Chen Gu and the military students were halfway through their meal at Celestial Flavor Restaurant when the anxious classmates suddenly noticed that the police cars parked outside had silently vanished!
Everyone was puzzled, but Chen Gu guessed what had happened.
He had received a call from Zhao Ji when he was almost home. Zhao Ji, in his casual way, wanted to take credit, "You should really thank me this time."
"Zhao Zhenhuai is out of luck. He got kicked to some backwater office for some reason. The chief’s position is vacant, and many people are getting restless. Luckily, I got wind of it early and immediately worked some angles for your big nephew. He’ll soon be the deputy chief of Wuzhaoyin City’s police department, and he’ll be promoted to chief next year."
Chen Gu was momentarily stunned. The world truly is a wondrous place, he thought.
Of course, Zhao Zhenhuai’s misfortune was Chen Gu’s doing. Chen Gu hadn’t asked the Central Operations Room for a favor for Chen Jixian for two main reasons: he didn’t want to expose his identity, and he felt there was no need to intervene. Chen Jixian owns a conglomerate worth tens of billions. If his post-transfer job isn’t to his liking, he’ll just be a bit gloomy; it won’t have any substantial impact on his life. Besides, my adult son clearly hasn’t ’lobbied’ for a good position due to his personality. Now that he’s grown up, I, as his parent, must respect his choices.
But who would have thought? The king of freeloaders actually stepped in, and now my adult son’s career is soaring!
"I will definitely thank you properly. How about I betroth Old Sara to you..."
"Get lost!" Zhao Ji cursed. He was about to say more when a woman’s voice suddenly came through on the other end of the phone, prompting him to hurriedly say, "Bye," and attend to her.
Chen Zili received the news even faster than his father!
When he got home, he saw that the guards who had "taken leave" earlier had all returned, fully armed and looking spirited. The team leader, somewhat sheepish, still braved a smile and greeted, "Young Master Chen is back..."
Chen Zili ignored him. Instead, he merrily chatted with the old soldiers his father had called upon, showing great enthusiasm. These were the people who had helped when it mattered. At his young age, Chen Zili might not yet understand how to curry favor, but he simply believed that he should treat well those who treated him well.
Every year, the military sees a large number of servicemen retire and transition to civilian life, and the police force is undoubtedly one of the most appropriate and best places for them.
Next year, Chen Jixian was going to be the top man in Wuzhaoyin City’s police system. Which soldier wouldn’t want to secure a path for themselves after retirement? Consequently, Chen Jixian instantly became highly sought after.
Zhao Zhenhuai spent a day in the hospital with his son, utterly baffled as to how things had turned out this way. He had also reached out to the Lieutenant General, but the Lieutenant General wouldn’t take his calls. Instead, a message was relayed through Anderson: it was a direct order from the Central Operations Room, advising Zhao Zhenhuai to reflect on whether he had offended some high-ranking military figure—a person not even the Lieutenant General dared to provoke.
Afterward, Zhao Zhenhuai hurriedly left Empire River Star for Capital Star to take up his new post.
He had set aside a day, planning to use his arrival at Capital Star to network and investigate just who he had offended.
In the following days, Chen Gu focused on the preliminary training for Star Battle Instructor. With the help of high-nutrition synthetic foods, he felt he could complete this final stage in one go.
Meanwhile, Wuzhaoyin City’s major media outlets were competing to cover the "Dawn" dangerous species clearance operation commanded by Colonel Chen Jixian. Three regiments had conducted multiple joint operations to sweep all sorts of dangerous creatures within two hundred kilometers outside the Tranquil Ring, greatly enhancing the city’s safety.
Only the alien hunters were complaining endlessly. Previously, they could easily find various steam-powered mechanical species and other dangerous alien creatures by merely venturing about twenty kilometers outside the city, beyond the protection of the frontier military forts.
Hunting these creatures meant money.
But now, they had to travel a full two hundred kilometers.
This military operation greatly enhanced Chen Jixian’s reputation among the public and smoothed his path to taking over the Police Bureau.
Chen Zili perked up at school again. Those lackeys who had betrayed him to side with Zhao Junzhi wanted to come back, but Chen Zili ignored them all. Instead, he recruited a new group. Every time he appeared, he was surrounded by followers, looking quite impressive.
As a result, this upset Liu Shichan, the leader of the Dead Phoenix Gang. During a combat exchange class, she gave Chen Zili a severe beating.
Chen Zili was not Zhao Junzhi. Having been wronged, he was too embarrassed to use underhanded tricks against a girl. So, he... decided to ask his grandfather to fight a woman for him!
Chen Gu looked at Chen Zili in surprise. "You actually came to tattle to me? How is your behavior any different from a child running back to their parents after being bullied by the neighbor’s kid?"
"Uh..." Chen Zili suddenly felt very childish as well.
However, his thoughts shifted, and he spoke in a pitiful tone, "You take such good care of my sister, helping her contact record companies and fulfill her dreams—but you don’t care about me..."
Chen Gu couldn’t stand it. "Enough already! Your acting is terrible. At least squeeze out a couple of tears."
It’s not like I can force them out, Chen Zili thought to himself. He looked at Chen Gu with pleading eyes, but Chen Gu simply slapped him. "Scram! Men of the Chen family reclaim their own honor when wronged!"
I’m avoiding Liu Shichan myself, and you want me to stand up for you? Am I crazy?
One morning, after completing his training, Chen Gu suddenly felt an unprecedented hunger. It was different from before; this time, every cell in his body felt empty and in dire need of a massive energy supplement.
Chen Gu opened the fridge and, almost in one go, devoured all the stored high-nutrition food until nothing was left!
His digestive system worked rapidly, supplying energy to every part of his body. After finishing the meal, drenched in sweat, Chen Gu experienced an unparalleled sense of revitalization.
"The third stage is complete!" Chen Gu clenched his fist vigorously, and it made sharp cracking sounds. SNAP! SNAP! His physical constitution was now seven times that of an ordinary person, far exceeding his previous expectations.
This high-nutrient synthetic food company seems really good. I should invest in it if I get the chance.
Chen Gu took out the crystal stick and checked the auras of the unaffiliated professionals. Everything was as usual. The steam locomotive was still peddling goods, but its recent offerings were of no use to him.
Giant wood-type hypermaterials... they’re not suitable for me either, Chen Gu sighed. Oh well, I’ll wait for my adult son to return and ask him.
As a military professional, Chen Jixian should have access to the relevant channels.
However, to Chen Gu’s surprise, Chen Jixian’s original one-week duty rotation was extended. Before Chen Jixian could return, Chen Gu faced his first monthly exam in this lifetime.
Chen Gu’s Physical Combat score was unsurprisingly first in the entire school, far surpassing even the military students. And that was with him holding back.
Third place in academics went to a boy with a scholarly air, pale skin, a frail figure, and a shy disposition, who seldom spoke to others.
Before Chen Gu arrived, this student, named Meng Erguan, had consistently ranked first in academics throughout his three years of high school.
However, his Physical Combat scores had always been poor, making it difficult for him to enroll in top-tier universities.
Of course, Chen Gu wasn’t concerned about his own grades but about Chen Zili’s. When he saw that his grandson was ranked 374th in the entire grade, Chen Gu immediately dragged Chen Zili to the restroom and gave him a thorough scolding.
This kid just doesn’t get it. His grades are far too poor.