CHAPTER 42: CHAPTER 42: THE DEPUTY DIRECTOR’S AMBITION

Three days passed, and Chen Jixian finally returned. Chen Gu sent a text message requesting a meeting.

Chen Gu had initially thought his older son might still harbor some resentment and be unwilling to meet, but to his surprise, Chen Jixian quickly agreed, replying with a message: "Liuhe Martial Arts Hall, 7 PM."

Chen Gu arrived at the martial arts hall on time. A young man in a dark blue martial arts uniform greeted him at the door and led him inside to a private training room where Chen Jixian was.

Chen Jixian had just knocked down his opponent. The opponent, clearly well acquainted with him, complained repeatedly that Chen Jixian hit too hard and that he wouldn’t spar with him anymore.

Only father and son remained in the training room.

As Chen Gu was pondering how to start the conversation, Chen Jixian spoke first. "I’ll be concurrently serving as the branch director of the Wuzhaoyin City Bureau of Mystic Security, and I’m going to recruit you."

"Your professional identity... needs a legitimate background."

"Once you’re in, don’t reveal that you’ve already become a Professional. I’ll arrange for you to enter the Generator. Be careful in there, and you shouldn’t have any problems. After that, your identity will be legitimized."

Chen Gu: "!!!"

The long-standing problem was solved just like that? My older son is really capable!

But Chen Gu had some doubts. "I heard that the Bureau of Mystic Security is an independent system, not under the jurisdiction of the police system. How could they let you hold a concurrent post?"

"I am a Professional," Chen Jixian stated simply, offering no further explanation.

Then, there was nothing more for them to say. After a long silence, just as Chen Gu was about to leave, Chen Jixian slowly spoke up, "Zi Li and Qing Yu... you should look after them more."

Chen Gu nodded. "You don’t need to tell me that."

They’re my own grandchildren, after all.

When Chen Gu left the Liuhe Martial Arts Hall, he felt much lighter. With his identity legitimized, he would no longer have to worry about the repercussions of using his abilities.

Back at his apartment, Chen Gu suddenly slapped his forehead as he remembered something. "I knew I was forgetting something..."

Chen Gu immediately entered the gaming pod. Sure enough, his messages had exploded once again.

The earlier messages were various inquiries, but the latest ones had all converged into one terse, furious command:

"Get the hell out here for your mom!"

This one message from "Preparing Warrior’s Makeup in Front of the Mirror" had been sent three thousand times in succession...

Chen Gu could feel the sender’s explosive anger in every single word.

"I’m here, I’m here," Chen Gu replied nonchalantly. He then muttered to himself, No wonder I felt like I was forgetting something. But it’s fine. Ever since I’ve known this woman, she’s always been this explosive. Probably because life in the army turned her into a female T-Rex, and lacking the nourishment of love, her endocrine system and... uh... monthly cycle must both be out of whack...

Chen Gu was still rambling when suddenly a voice, tight with gritted teeth, sounded from within the gaming pod, "You definitely forgot you turned on the voice chat!"

Chen Gu was so startled he did a carp flip. His head went THUD against the pod lid, making him cry out in pain. He then noticed a large dent on the lid where his head had hit. The thought of repair costs made him groan in agony again, "OH—"

Bai Xianya must have exploded in place three hundred and sixty times by now.

That bastard! He stood up the entire Central Operations Room and still dared to slander me behind my back! You just wait! Don’t let me find out who you really are! When that time comes, this little fairy will get all dolled up, appear right in front of you, and blind your damn dog eyes! Female T-Rex? Damn him!

She said coldly, "Everything has been prepared according to your demands."

"The combat staff selected from various fronts, the professors invited from military academies, and Zhao Zhenhuai, whom you specifically requested—these people have been assembled for over a week. Every day they ask us: what exactly is the mission!"

At this point, Bai Xianya was grinding her teeth. "But the Marshal and I can’t answer any of their questions! We don’t know if some arrogant, conceited, stubborn, selfish, self-righteous, senile old fool is going to stand us up!"

"We are the Central Operations Room, the military’s core think tank. If he stands us up, centuries of painstakingly built prestige will be utterly destroyed!"

"The entire Confederation military will be humiliated!"

Chen Gu, in his gaming pod, twiddled his thumbs. Sounds serious.

Bai Xianya continued, grinding her teeth, "You remember this: you’d better not make the Central Operations Room regret this decision. Otherwise, the Central Operations Room will *definitely* make you regret *all* of your decisions!"

While still spitting out her anger, Bai Xianya’s hands flew across her controls, directing the war AI to begin analyzing the "Idol Actor’s" voice data.

Indeed, as the resentful yet dedicated fan girl who had been vigilantly waiting for the "Idol Actor" for over a week, Bai Xianya had already made all necessary preparations.

"Not a chance," Chen Gu immediately promised. "I can start working right now!"

「...」

Capital Star was a vast, first-class colony planet. Its natural environment was exceptionally hospitable to humans, boasting lush vegetation and an atmosphere that could be breathed directly without any modification. Moreover, there were few deadly alien creatures in the wild.

Everything there was very similar to humanity’s original home planet, only its surface area was much larger.

After thousands of years of development, the planet had a population of eighty billion and was becoming increasingly crowded. In many cities, housing was difficult to secure.

Guxiangyang City was one of the megacities on Capital Star. Here, every inch of space—above ground, below ground, and even in the sky—had been developed to its absolute limit, yet living conditions for its citizens remained extremely cramped.

In a certain area in the northwest of the city, an unusual tranquility prevailed. This was a military restricted zone.

More than a week ago, a small courtyard within this zone had a sign hung up. It bore no name, only a simple number: 745.

Every day, more than a dozen people came and went. Deputy Director Zhao Zhenhuai was "temporarily presiding over the work," but even he could only spread his hands in ignorance when asked what exactly that work entailed.

However, Zhao Zhenhuai was no longer as dejected as before. He had always thought he had offended someone, which was why he had been reassigned to this seemingly inconsequential research institute. But after arriving, he realized that the institute’s standards were extremely high!

All the researchers were either renowned military academy professors or high-ranking military officers with real authority from the front lines.

Any one of them held more status, power, and reputation than Zhao Zhenhuai had previously possessed.

Gathering such individuals here means the 745 Research Institute must be extraordinarily important. And to think I could become its deputy director! It seems my career is about to take off! This is far better than being retired or transferred to a civilian post. He even began to fantasize: So what if Chen Jixian took over my old position? I still have the hope of becoming a general! I still have the chance for my dreams to come true! But Chen Jixian, you don’t have that chance anymore!