We moved to Golden Courtyard

"This is the production manager at Seed Studio, and he's one of my trusted confidants."

Delta glanced at Xu Qi but didn't refute him.

Director Yang nodded, then suddenly looked at Liu Yizhi and said, "Now that everyone is here, Liu Yizhi, I think I've taught you what to say and do, haven't I?"

Xu Qi looked puzzled—what kind of charade are these two putting on?

A struggle flashed across Liu Yizhi's face. He bit his lip hard, his body trembling.

Secretary Yang frowned, quickly walked up to Liu Yizhi and said, "Liu Yizhi, you should have heard clearly what Father said just now. Don't make me do this for you."

……

"Boom!"

Liu Yizhi suddenly knelt down!

Xu Qi was startled, as was Delta.

The former department head of Idolmaster was now kneeling on the ground like a dog, and his words seemed to be forced out from his trachea, almost as if he were gritting his teeth.

"Yes!...I'm sorry!...Xu Qi!...Supervisor!"

……

Xu Qi narrowed his eyes and looked at Director Yang, who was sitting behind his desk, watching everything with a blank expression.

A chill ran down my spine and spread throughout my body. So this is what a private company should be like, this is the kind of work style a private company leader should have.

Xu Qi took a deep breath, glanced discreetly at Delta beside him, and whispered, "This newcomer doesn't seem friendly..."

"Supervisor, you're mistaken. We are the ones who have come."

Director Yang stood up from his chair, a fake smile appearing on his face, forming a smile that couldn't be more genuine.

"Manager Xu, my incompetent subordinate has already knelt down and apologized to you. I wonder... if you could do me the honor of having dinner together tomorrow night?"

314. Qibao: If I don't go to the car, where will I go?

Why should I agree?!

Back in Xu Qi's office, Delta couldn't help but yell as soon as she entered, "Didn't you see his attitude towards Liu Yizhi?! That's a real bastard who eats people alive!"

Xu Qi sat back down in his swivel chair and smiled as he watched Delta, who was jumping up and down, pacing back and forth after yelling.

He was muttering to himself, seemingly thinking about what to do next.

"That guy's inviting you to dinner tomorrow night, he's definitely up to no good, it's an obvious trap! The best thing to do is not go..."

Ugh! But you bastard, you actually agreed! You did it on purpose..."

Delta was taken aback, and she suddenly turned to look at Xu Qi.

"You deliberately?"

Xu Qi shrugged, neither confirming nor denying.

Delta stormed to the table, slammed his hands on the table, and shouted, "You little brat, what are you up to now?! Speak up! Tell the truth! Or I'll punch you!"

Seeing Delta clench her small, pink fist, Xu Qi thought to herself, "If you really throw that punch... you might be the one who gets hurt."

"Didn't you hear what Bronya said?"

"Invite them to dinner, behead them, and take them as dogs. Okay, okay, I know all that, so what?"

Xu Qi tapped the table lightly with his finger and smiled, "In that case, tomorrow night will just be a dinner party. The beheading will have to wait until later."

……

"that's it?"

"that's all……"

"I'm so angry!..." Delta exclaimed, "Could you be any more carefree!? What if..."

"What if what? What can they do to me?" Xu Qi spread his hands and said, "Could they find someone to assassinate me? You've been reading too many novels."

Delta rolled her eyes. That was indeed true.

"Don't worry, as long as there's no personal safety issue, we can deal with anything else as it comes. It's just a matter of responding to each move as it comes."

“Easy for you to say…” Delta muttered, arms crossed.

"In short, you can't get hurt. Seed Studio... can't do without you."

However, Xu Qi shook his head.

"That's wrong, Delta. Whether I'm here or not, Seed Studios must continue to operate perfectly. I'm the one who's truly dispensable."

Delta glanced at Xu Qi and suddenly smiled.

It's as if all the anger I felt earlier was just an act.

"Are you implying that we frontline workers are the cornerstone of animation projects?"

Xu Qi nodded emphatically.

"Delta, I think you know where I come from... In my previous workplace, there were even situations where one person was doing the work while two people were supervising!

The number of leadership staff, while not exceeding that of frontline employees, is certainly excessive. As for why? I won't elaborate, but here… everything is different.

When I first arrived, Bronya called all the middle-level managers to her office for a meeting. She called it the leadership, but in reality, only Rita and I were fully off-duty.

If animation production is likened to manufacturing, then even someone like you, as the production manager, will have to do actual production work.

Delta, do you know what this means? This is an unprecedentedly efficient project team because all management matters have been brought to a standstill with me!

And all of you frontline workers are the ones who control me!

At this point, Xu Qi couldn't help but stand up excitedly, step out from behind the desk, put his hands on Delta's shoulders, and continued speaking amidst the other's bewildered gaze.

"There won't be any so-called layer-by-layer transmission. If we compare the director to the brain, then the animators, directors, art directors, colorists, and so on are like the various organs of a person."

And the production team, including you, the production director, are the neurons responsible for transmitting information! As for me? I'm just a supervisor.

Delta, I absolutely love this format! Even if it weren't for Alahato! Even if it weren't for my favorite animation! Just for the sake of maintaining this project team, I would do everything in my power!

……

Delta looked at Xu Qi, who was pressed against her.

That sincere and passionate look in my eyes was just like... myself many years ago when I first entered this industry...

If it weren't for passion, who would want to do this kind of lousy job that's 365 days a year and sometimes even requires overtime?

"You've grown up so fast. Just a month ago you were just a clueless little kid... and now you can talk a good game."

"It's all thanks to Senior Delta's excellent teaching."

"I can't teach you what you just mentioned..."

Taking a deep breath, Delta stared at Xu Qi and suddenly raised her fist.

Xu Qi tilted his head, looking somewhat puzzled.

"Alahato Seed... You must make it a success! I will dedicate my entire life to it... Understand!?"

Xu Qi suddenly realized what was happening and also extended his fist.

“Of course, Senior Delta.”

Their fists lightly touched in mid-air...

"I swear this!"

······

When Xu Qi got off work, he approached Rita and, after confirming that she was indeed not coming back to Golden Courtyard with him, he was visibly disappointed.

Rita laughed heartily – "You really can't live without me at all?"

"You promised to be my little maid, but you ended up serving me at the company during the day."

"Then... next time I come to work, should I wear a maid outfit?"

Xu Qi recalled the night before, when he was riding Rita, and the black maid outfit that Rita changed into afterward, which resembled a rose...

Oh no, this is going to be unforgettable!

"Stop spacing out, hurry back, tonight is really not an option."

"All right……"

Xu Qi's expression only showed a hint of sadness, but he quickly recovered. After all, as long as he and Miss Rita loved each other, she would eventually move into the Golden Courtyard.

Before leaving, they shared a passionate kiss before Xu Qi watched Rita depart and then got into his car.

"Have you been intimate with who knows how many girlfriends you've had?"

The sudden sound from inside the car startled Xu Qi.

"Kiana? You... ah? You transferred your consciousness into my car!?"

"Otherwise what? Did you expect me to listen to your passionate talk all night long?" The white-haired dumpling's tone was full of resentment, while Xu Qi scratched his head somewhat embarrassedly.

Suddenly having someone else's consciousness inside you would make anyone feel a little uncomfortable.

Xu Qi isn't unaccustomed to it; rather, he tends to forget about it in certain situations.

"Besides, sticking to you all the time isn't in line with my style! It's better if we keep some distance."

Xu Qi raised an eyebrow in the crowdfunding group 456127940.

For some reason, ever since she became closer to Kiana, the girl's cheerful and lively nature seems to have become impossible to hide.

"Okay, whatever you say."

315. Qi Maomao: I won't tell you, hehehe.

"Huh? You're being so nice to me?"

"if not?"

"...Connect with my mental energy first!"

Xu Qi smiled indulgently. He was becoming increasingly adept at connecting with Kiana's mental energy. Before, he needed to rely on the neural interface of his exoskeleton armor, but now...

By projecting his mental energy outwards, he quickly sensed a different kind of fluctuation within the car's terminal.

You have to admire the extensibility of Möbius's design in the project. Previously, the Moonlight System followed the floating cannons, so Kiana's consciousness could only be attached to the floating cannons.

And now...

Kiana can infiltrate any terminal device that requires a system in the form of a data stream, rendering any firewall ineffective.

It's practically the ceiling of the data world!

Xu Qi's mental energy began to connect with Kiana, and soon he easily entered that space filled with radiance and... no!

Xu Qi looked at Kiana's mental world in astonishment. It was no longer a hazy glow, but... a room.

However, you can still see through the window that the outside is still the same as before.

And Kiana...

She stood gracefully in front of him, hands on her hips, a slight feigned anger on her face, two white braids hanging behind her head, looking quite adorable.

And most importantly... Kiana is dressed.

She wore an orange coat draped over her shoulders, with a simple white cloth wrapped around her chest, and a cute cat hair accessory on her head. It seemed like she was probably holding a cup of milk tea in her hand as well.

"Qi Maomao..."

"Hmm!?" Kiana couldn't help but raise her voice. Although her lips were full of smiles, she felt that she shouldn't give Xu Qi a nice look right now, so she was still angry.

"What a strange name!"

Xu Qi naturally reached out and pulled Kiana into his arms, holding the white-fuzzy ball of fur as if she were a delicate and adorable doll, making her irresistible.

"I was just saying you're cute..."

Nestled in Xu Qi's arms, Kiana greedily savored his scent.

Although they are only spiritual entities, in this increasingly realistic world, Kiana is finding it hard to distinguish whether this is reality or not. She longs to embrace Xu Qi like this in real life.