Getting punched and knocked down first thing in the morning, right at the main entrance where colleagues and superiors were coming and going, made Huang Hao explode with anger.

The surrounding military officers stopped to watch.

“What’s going on over there? So much energy so early in the morning?”

“If you want to fight, go to the training room. It’s not good to be seen by the leadership here.”

“Isn’t that Jing Xi? Why is he so out of line today too?”

“Old Huang got knocked down with one punch? Hahahaha—”

Huang Hao’s face was grim. He poked his cheek with his tongue, grimacing in pain.

Just as he was about to curse Jing Xi’s ancestors, he suddenly saw the smile on the other’s lips, and all the swear words he had prepared were completely forgotten.

This eternal iceberg actually smiled?!

The officers pointing and staring from the side gasped in unison.

Although it looked malicious no matter how you looked at it, it was too damn good-looking!

Jing Xi had too many shining points, but he always had a cold face and a strong aura. Those with weaker psychological fortitude didn’t even dare to look up at his face, which made people overlook his appearance.

Most of Huang Hao’s anger inexplicably dissipated.

Although he had taken a punch, seeing such a beautiful face seemed like a fair trade.

After mentally coaxing himself, he got up from the ground on his own, his tone much weaker.

“What do you mean by that? Explain it clearly!”

Chi Yao clenched his fist, intending to land another punch.

It was Jing Xi’s body anyway, so he wouldn’t be responsible even if he killed someone.

It would be even better if it got Jing Xi a demerit and a transfer to another department, saving him the trouble of being watched all the time.

Seeing him about to swing his fist again without a word, Huang Hao subconsciously covered his face and took a step back.

That punch was too damn hard. Taking two might disfigure him.

Just as Chi Yao raised his hand, Jiang Feng returned with the printed report materials.

“Sir, why are you still here? It’s almost time, shall we go?”

Remembering he had official business to attend to, Chi Yao lowered his hand and walked away nonchalantly.

Seeing him leave without a word of explanation, Huang Hao instantly lost face and called out to him from behind.

“Training room at 7 PM. Do you dare to come?”

Jiang Feng didn’t know what had happened, but at 7 PM, the boss was supposed to visit his elders, and he also disliked this kind of challenge match for the sake of reputation.

Jiang Feng: “Sorry, I’m afraid not—”

“Sure.”

Before he could finish, Chi Yao readily agreed.

Both Jiang Feng and Huang Hao’s eyes widened slightly.

Jing Xi actually agreed? Were they hearing things?

“See you then. Don’t you dare stand me up!” Huang Hao grinned, which irritated the wound on his lip. “Hiss—it hurts like hell.”

An alpha came up from behind and put an arm around Huang Hao’s shoulder. “Haozi, you just took a punch. Why are you still smiling like an idiot?”

He had a buzz cut and a square face, with regular features. It was Li Bo, the commander of the White Crane Corps.

Huang Hao rolled his eyes at him. “Do you know how hard it is to get a match with Jing Xi? As long as he agrees to fight me, I’ll offer my other cheek for him to punch.”

Li Bo looked at him with disgust. “Is there no one else in the military? You just have to fight him? You don’t have a crush on him, do you?”

“Get lost! What do you know!” Huang Hao lowered his voice. “He’s been number one in the assessments for over two years. The only time he wasn’t was because he was on an expedition and couldn’t make it back. If I can beat him, won’t I get both face and substance back?”

Speaking of this, Li Bo’s eyes darkened.

Military officers needed to undergo regular assessments, which were much harder than the exams in military school.

If the difficulty was graded from 1 to 10, the military school student assessment was a 3, and the officer assessment was a 10.

The higher the rank, the higher the difficulty of the assessment, with the exception of the few top leaders.

“You still have the nerve to laugh at me?” Huang Hao sneered. “You used to get first place all the time. As soon as he came, you became the eternal second place. You’re not good enough.”

A hint of gloom flashed in Li Bo’s eyes, but he quickly smiled as if nothing had happened.

“I’m already forty. I don’t care about these empty vanities.”

Huang Hao didn’t believe him. “I think that statement itself is pretty empty.”

The onlookers, hearing that Jing Xi was going to have a match, immediately became interested.

Before work hours were over, the news had spread throughout the entire military headquarters.

In the hallway, Jiang Feng listened to the discussions of the people around him and had already pieced together most of what had happened.

But even though he had figured it out, he couldn’t believe it.

The boss had punched someone without a word?!

He was someone who couldn’t be bothered to respond no matter what others said!

What on earth had Major General Huang said to make him so unhappy?

Chi Yao casually flipped through the report materials as he walked.

“Is there something dirty on my face?”

Jiang Feng was taken aback. “No, it’s clean.”

Chi Yao: “Then why are you staring at me like that? Am I good-looking?”

Having followed Jing Xi for so many years, Jiang Feng thought he understood his temperament quite well.

But these past two days, he felt like he was back to when he had just joined the corps.

Jiang Feng didn’t know whether to nod or shake his head and said stupidly, “Good, good-looking.”

Chi Yao said with a straight face, “I think so too.”

Jiang Feng: “…”

The briefing hall was on the third floor. When they arrived, the members of the other corps had already gathered.

After returning from an expedition, the corps needed to report to their superiors, summarizing the problems and difficulties encountered during the mission.

These other corps had also just returned in the past two days.

Chi Yao walked in, and under everyone’s gaze, sat down in a corner.

The leader hadn’t arrived yet, so the others were discussing in low voices, their eyes occasionally glancing his way.

Chi Yao pretended not to see and, with nothing better to do, opened his terminal and sent himself a message.

[You’re so popular in the military. Why don’t I, your big brother, help you switch to a civilian post? It would be convenient for finding a partner.]

A moment later, the hall doors opened again. Everyone straightened their backs and immediately stopped their discussions.

Chi Yao looked over.

Three old men walked in front, followed by two slightly younger ones. One of them was Chen Bingfeng, the supervising leader of the Cetus constellation garrison and also Jing Xi’s direct superior.

His wrist vibrated. A message came in.

The AI automatically read it and played it in his mind.

[I was also planning to find a barren planet and take your group to plant rice. Your group has a lot of strong people, perfect for farm work.]

Chi Yao: “…”

Making the number one star pirate group in the empire plant rice?

“Since everyone is here, let’s start the reports, beginning with the Iron Wolves.”

The old man sitting in the very middle had a resonant voice. Although his face was full of wrinkles, his eyes were sharp, and his aura was undiminished.

The commander of the Iron Wolves walked to the side podium with his report materials, saluted the leaders first, and then began his report.

“The Iron Wolf Corps accepted the mining area clearing mission on July 20th—”

Chi Yao leaned back in his chair and glanced at the white-haired old man in the middle.

His name was Zhao Hongyi, a general, in charge of the military’s finances, armaments, and logistical supplies. He held a very high position in the military, just one step away from being the supreme commander.

He then turned to Chen Bingfeng.

The man was a beta in his late 50s, with an aquiline nose and high cheekbones. His slicked-back hair completely exposed his large forehead, not at all a friendly face.

After the corps commanders finished their reports, they would be questioned on the spot, and the three generals would grade their performance on the expedition. If the score was not high enough, they would have to go back and write a self-criticism.

Jiang Feng sat diagonally behind Chi Yao. Seeing that the other corps had all reported smoothly, he secretly reminded his boss to get ready.

“Flying Dragon, it’s your turn.”

Zhao Hongyi looked at Chi Yao.

Chi Yao stood up and slowly walked towards the podium.

Jiang Feng saw that he hadn’t even brought the printed materials and wasn’t flustered at all.

The boss was just that excellent; he could memorize it after a few flips.

Chi Yao stood at the podium, his face impassive.

“Flying Dragon—has nothing to report.”

The three generals in the upper seats frowned simultaneously. The commanders in the audience who had already reported looked on with astonishment.

Even if there was nothing to report, you had to make up a short essay!

This was something everyone understood tacitly, but no one would say it out loud.

Fireworks exploded in Jiang Feng’s mind. He was completely dumbfounded.

What did the boss just say?!

Chen Bingfeng, sitting in the row below the upper seats, looked over, his face grim.

“Please report seriously.”

Chi Yao met his gaze. “I am being very serious.”

Zhao Hongyi crossed his arms and asked calmly, “How was the mining area clearing work completed this time? I heard you encountered a magnetic storm on the return trip. Were there any casualties, and what was the extent of the damage to the military equipment?”

Chi Yao: “These are all in the report submitted to you. Go look at it yourselves.”

The leaders: “…”

The commanders: “…”

Jiang Feng: “…”

Ahhhhhhhh!!!

Chi Yao said nonchalantly, “If you have no other questions, shouldn’t it be my turn to ask?”

Everyone: “…”

You want to ask questions?!

Chi Yao looked at the dark-faced Chen Bingfeng. “May I ask, Lieutenant General Chen, what do you think of your own management skills?”

Chen Bingfeng’s eyes narrowed, his gaze sharper than a knife.

“Jing Xi, please be mindful of the occasion!”

As if he hadn’t heard the warning, Chi Yao continued, “Cetus is under your jurisdiction, right? If a very serious and vicious incident were to occur there, as the supervising leader, would you have any responsibility?”

Smack.

Chen Bingfeng slammed his palm on the table, furious.

“Jing Xi!”

Chi Yao: “Please answer.”

Chen Bingfeng: “In this setting, I have no obligation to answer any of your questions!”

Seeing him jump up and down, a slight smile appeared on Chi Yao’s lips.

“In that case, my report is finished.”

After saying that, he walked off the podium under everyone’s astonished gazes.

The three generals in the upper seats had varied expressions.

Zhao Hongyi didn’t even give a score, just snorted coldly, stood up, and left.

Chen Bingfeng was close enough to hear the cold snort and felt as if he had been plunged into an ice cave, his fingertips trembling.

“Sir—”

General Pei Zhenyue, sitting on the left, also stood up, glanced at Chen Bingfeng, his voice betraying no emotion.

“You’d better be able to explain this clearly.”

Chen Bingfeng: “I—”

Jing Xi was under Chen Bingfeng’s command. If the higher-ups were to hold someone accountable, it would be Chen Bingfeng.

The few lieutenant generals sitting with him couldn’t help but give him a pitying look.

Jing Xi was originally the most worry-free subordinate, but today he had suddenly dropped a bombshell.

It was truly unexpected.

After the meeting, Chen Bingfeng called Chi Yao to his office in front of everyone.

Chi Yao watched Chen Bingfeng leave in a huff, his long fingers tugging at his collar.

The tie was making him very uncomfortable.

He took off his military jacket and threw it to Jiang Feng, telling him to take it back to the office first.

Jiang Feng stared blankly as he walked away, still unable to come to his senses.

The boss had actually confronted his superior in front of the top leaders!

Wasn’t that too bold?!

But, it was so cool!

Chi Yao followed Chen Bingfeng from a distance. Just as he entered the office, a strong gust of wind blew towards his face.

Chen Bingfeng was furious. “If you don’t fucking want to do this job, then get the hell out!”

Chi Yao raised his hand and easily blocked it.

With a flip of his wrist, he seized his opponent’s wrist, twisted it forcefully, and pushed.

Crack.

A bone was displaced.

“Ah!” Chen Bingfeng’s face turned red with pain. He clutched his shoulder and shouted, “Let go!”

Chi Yao kicked the back of his knee and let go at the same time.

Chen Bingfeng stumbled forward, and despite his best efforts, he couldn’t avoid falling to his knees.

Chi Yao slowly walked up to him, lowered his eyes, and looked down at him as if he were looking at something dirty.

“Whether I want to do this job or not, it’s not for you to decide—”

__

Author’s note:

Chi Yao: Whether I want to do this or not is not for you to decide, it’s for my wife to decide. [obediently]
Jing Xi: If you cause any more trouble, Xi Xi will become dog jerky.
Chi Yao: …