When Chen Gu saw "Important Matters to Discuss," he subconsciously thought, There's money to be made, and thus accepted the request without much thought, knowing that if it was a scam, he would just delete it.
As Bai Xianya heard the pleasant DING-DONG sound from the game, blue glowing text flashed: [Idol Actor] has accepted your friend request. She rubbed her eyes vigorously, thinking she had misread it.
Did he really accept it?!
But Bai Xianya calmed down. This was a basic quality an excellent staff officer should possess—to remain calm, especially at critical moments.
She analyzed seriously why her request had been accepted this time.
She determined that [Idol Actor] probably hadn't seen the requests sent before this login. He had likely rejected them en masse along with the multitude of other friend requests.
From this behavior, it could be inferred that this [Idol Actor] was a person who seemed affable on the outside but was actually hard to approach. This matched the previous judgment she and her uncle had made: he was either a tactically astute but perpetually frustrated old man or a deeply hidden professional.
Both types of people possessed extremely proud hearts, which was why they exhibited such characteristics.
Bai Xianya abandoned the rational analysis of a staff officer and decided with a woman's intuition: This must be a wily old man.
Her uncle's previous attempts to "probe" the man had been ruthlessly rejected. In contrast, her own plain request was accepted. This indicated that the man disliked excessive formalities. So, she decided to get straight to the point.
"Hello, [Idol Actor]. I am from the General Staff of the Central Operations Room of the Confederation military."
He replied quickly, "How can you prove it?"
Bai Xianya replied calmly, "You can choose any military base, and I'll order them to conduct an exercise."
Chen Gu casually searched on the interstellar network and then replied to her, "[Delta III] planet, Ogu City, six fighter jets, and four large anti-air Mechas, within ten minutes."
Bai Xianya immediately agreed, "Okay."
An exercise of this scale didn't require a Marshal's authority; her own was sufficient for approval.
Then, Bai Xianya quickly issued another command: "AI, screen all suspicious targets around Ogu City matching the subject's profile."
BEEP. The AI began screening.
A few minutes later, Chen Gu watched a live stream where an announcer was saying, "Friends, don't miss today's match; it's definitely going to be thrilling, one of the top ten behemoth battles of the year..."
"The match starts in two hours, but let's take a look outside the arena first. Ogu City is one of the earliest human-developed colonial stars, with many points of interest. If you have time, you can come here for a visit..."
The live stream showed a massive metal arena in the background, with throngs of spectators arriving for the match. In the sky above, six large fighter jets streaked past, followed by four heavy aerial combat Mechas, their thrusters emitting a thunderous roar.
Chen Gu closed the live stream with a smile and then sent a message to Bai Xianya, "I saw it. Have you found me yet?"
Bai Xianya curled her lip. He really was a crafty old man, seeing through my intentions at a glance.
She didn't feel any sense of defeat. He was a master tactician; if he couldn't see through such a minor ploy, that would have been the real issue.
"Do you believe me now?"
"I believe."
"On behalf of the Central Operations Room, I hope to collaborate with you. We know you are willing to contribute to the entire human race and have demonstrated the 'Skypillar Tilt Tactic' against the Alien Insect Race. However, there are still many issues, and we need your guidance."
Chen Gu was stunned. Alien Insect Race? What's that got to do with me? I just wanted to put Zhao Zhenhuai in his place. But since you all think my actions are "highly meaningful," then... I might as well establish the persona of this wise and profound grandmaster.
"What do you want from me?"
Bai Xianya continued, "We want to set up a research institute dedicated to studying various tactics against the Alien Insect Race. The first project is to thoroughly perfect the Skypillar Tilt Tactic, and we hope you can lead this research institute."
"Please rest assured, regardless of your past experiences, the Central Operations Room's offer is made with utmost sincerity."
Chen Gu, in his gaming pod, touched his chin, nearly unable to resist asking directly, "What kind of offer?" Good thing he stopped himself in time. No, I'm supposed to be playing a "wise and profound" old enigma right now; being overtly interested in money doesn't fit the persona.
"I can't show up in person. Give me some time to think about it."
"Alright, how long do you need to consider..." Bai Xianya hadn't finished speaking when the other party's avatar went dark.
BANG! Bai Xianya smacked the table forcefully, grinding her teeth and cursing, "That insufferable old man, utterly graceless!" Still, the mission was finally making progress, so she was reasonably satisfied. Then she remembered how her uncle's prank had nearly made her explode with anger, and a mischievous, fox-like grin touched her lips.
...
Bai Yunpeng suddenly received a phone call. He picked it up respectfully and dutifully, "Dad."
The old man's tone was none too pleasant, "Get your ass back here right now!"
Bai Yunpeng's face immediately fell. "That girl... she really holds a grudge. Her uncle was just joking..."
...
In the Principal's office of Lubei Middle School, a small meeting was being held.
The Dean of Studies sternly denounced Chen Gu. "Such a student is a blight on our school! He's rough, barbaric, and utterly uncultured. We must enforce school rules and discipline, expel him immediately, and report this to other schools!"
Teacher Dai glared indignantly at the Dean of Studies. Not only expel the student but also get other schools to reject him? Is this something a teacher should even do?
"'Let's not even talk about this incident,' Teacher Dai argued. 'In the first place, Chen Gu did nothing wrong. It was a sparring exchange, and Chen Gu had never participated in such an event before. He didn't know his own strength. How can we blame him if his opponent got hurt while wearing protective gear?'"
"'And even if he was at fault, we are teachers! What are teachers for? Isn't it our duty to point out when students make mistakes and guide them onto the correct path?'"
"'You talk about expulsion and notifying other schools so casually! You would ruin a student's life, forcing him out into society where he might eventually turn to crime and never become a good person.'"
"'I don't care about any of that,' the Dean of Studies retorted curtly. 'I only know that if this student isn't punished, I won't be able to enforce school regulations with the other students!'"
Teacher Dai pressed, exasperated, "Which school rule did he violate?"
The Dean of Studies didn't argue further and turned to the Principal. "If this student isn't punished, then I can't continue as Dean of Studies!"
The old Principal, a man in his sixties with graying hair, looked somewhat weary. He had been dozing in his office chair during the meeting. Startled by the question, he jerked his head up, rubbed his eyes, and yawned. His gaze swept around the room before landing on an elderly teacher who had been sitting quietly to one side throughout the meeting.
"'Mr. Xu, what are your thoughts?' he asked, deftly passing the buck.