"Sir, what would you like to eat?"
The waiter placed the menu on the table. Tang Si casually ordered a steak and a vegetable salad without even looking at it, then ordered a bottle of red wine.
After the waiter left, he turned to Huo Xiaohua. "Did Zhao Wuyan send you to find Shi Ran?"
He got straight to the point.
Shi Ran, whose heart rate had just calmed down, felt her head buzz upon hearing this.
"President Huo he..."
Just as she was about to explain, she saw Huo Xiaohua say with gentle grace, "Miss Shi is here to discuss cooperation with me."
"Cooperation? What cooperation?"
This time, Tang Si was bewildered.
Shi Ran didn't want Tang Si to know too much about her affairs. But if she didn't say anything, Tang Si would investigate on his own, and then he would discover the connection between Chaoyun E-sports and Meng Jingwei.
After thinking it over, she could only explain proactively, "I am representing my company to discuss cooperation with President Huo. Young Master Tang, this is a company matter, and it is considered confidential. I hope you will not inquire further."
"Which company?" Tang Si asked again.
Shi Ran remained silent, unwilling to answer.
Unexpectedly, Huo Xiaohua replied, "Chaoyun E-sports. You play games often, so you should know about this. Do you know Chaoyun E-sports?"
"Chaoyun E-sports?"
Tang Si's eyes lit up. "I do. It's a very strong e-sports company. Their team has gone from obscurity to minor fame in just over a year, and..."
He paused, then frowned and looked at Shi Ran. "Looking for sponsorship?"
He hit the nail on the head.
Shi Ran nodded and gave a perfunctory "Mm."
"This is simple. I'll visit your company this afternoon."
The thought that Shi Ran came to find Huo Xiaohua to discuss cooperation immediately brightened his mood, sweeping away all the gloom.
Shi Ran: "..."
Her brows furrowed, and her small face showed unconcealed anger. "Young Master Tang, this is my job. I don't want to use personal connections to take shortcuts."
"What, you look down on the strength of my Tang family?"
"Not at all. My discussion with President Huo about cooperation was a decision made by my superior."
"Then shut up. I'll contact your boss."
Shi Ran clenched her fists in anger, feeling a headache coming on.
But Huo Xiaohua was her fiancé's brother, so she couldn't lash out despite her resentment.
"President Huo, thank you for the lunch. My company has some matters to attend to, so I'll be going now. I'll contact you later."
Shi Ran really didn't want to see Tang Si, fearing he would sabotage her opportunity to cooperate with Huo Xiaohua's company, so she chose to leave.
"Mm, alright."
Huo Xiaohua readily agreed.
Shi Ran glared at Tang Si in annoyance, only to see him raise his eyebrows and give her a charming smile, making a playful gesture.
His demeanor was clearly roguish, yet it exuded a sense of carefree handsomeness.
The anger that had just ignited in her heart instantly dissipated with his smile. Not only that, Shi Ran even felt her heart quicken its pace.
So useless.
Shi Ran cursed herself inwardly and huffily grabbed her bag and left.
After she left, the smile on Tang Si's face quickly disappeared, and his cold eyes glanced at Huo Xiaohua. "Stay away from her."
His tone was slightly cold.
Huo Xiaohua was not surprised by his warning.
"You're worrying too much. I only discuss work with her. As for what's between you and Xiao Yan, that's between the two of you. I have no right to interfere, nor am I interested."
Huo Xiaohua lied calmly, maintaining an appearance of a hypocritical gentleman.
"It's best if that's the case."
Tang Si tilted his head to look out the window. He saw Shi Ran go to the parking lot, get into her car, and slowly drive away. A trace of tenderness appeared in his icy eyes.