The issue concerning King Jingyao was soon dismissed. Uncle Bo resumed his work, while Gu Anxi continued to play on her phone. After a while, she suddenly asked, "Uncle, are you still competing for that lab project?"

Bo Xichen looked up in surprise. "That project belongs to Yunxi Hospital; it’s unrelated to anything else."

Suddenly, he pulled her into his embrace, his voice hoarse. "The proposal... Our Little Gu seemed to have approved it as well."

His sudden intimacy in broad daylight, in his office, overwhelmed her for a moment, and she stuttered, "I-I forgot."

Uncle Bo pinched her cheek. "That must mean you weren’t paying attention at work."

She let out a small yelp, leaning against him. "Then Uncle, you should be the one paying more attention."

His voice suddenly grew hoarse. "I also don’t feel like being serious anymore."

With that, he set aside what he was holding. "Alright, I’ll take you out to have some fun. How about the shooting range?"

Gu Anxi jumped up excitedly. "That’s great! Let’s invite Chen Ming."

A moment later, she grinned mischievously. "Oh, and let’s invite Zhou Yunchen too. If he comes, Beauty Song Jia will most likely come along."

"You naughty girl." Bo Xichen gave her a light pat. "Don’t bully Chen Ming."

Gu Anxi let out a sound of grievance and drooped her head, looking dejected.

Bo Xichen sighed in resignation and coughed lightly. "Fine, invite him then."

After speaking, he went to the washroom. Facing the mirror, he helplessly rested his forehead in his hand. What possessed me to agree to her?

This was utter nonsense, but seeing her unhappy had softened his resolve, and his principles vanished. This was so unlike him. Yet, a voice deep within told him: he had intended to let her go out and relax anyway, so why not let her be a little happier? Even if it was nonsense, he accepted it.

When he returned, Gu Anxi had already gathered everyone. Only Chen Ming, who was in a meeting, had texted back secretly, saying he would be a bit late and that "the boss" was furious. Bo Xichen knew perfectly well who that "boss" was.

Gu Anxi couldn’t be bothered with it and hung up. Turning to her uncle, she said, "Chen Ming will be a little late, so let’s go first. Zhou Yunchen is heading over with Beauty Song Jia now, they’ll be there soon."

Bo Xichen smiled. "Weren’t you just on his case about his performance? Why so eager to play now?"

Gu Anxi stated confidently, "Being able to make time for fun while still getting work done—that’s what shows his true capabilities."

Her reasoning left him torn between amusement and exasperation. He shook his head and led her out.

Just as they stepped out, an assistant rushed over with a pile of urgent documents for him to sign. Bo Xichen reviewed and signed them right there. By the time they got into the car, half an hour had already passed.

Gu Anxi tilted her head. "Uncle, if you’re very busy, you don’t have to bother with me."

Professor Bo chuckled. "Didn’t you say it yourself? Being able to have fun while handling work efficiently is a real skill. Hmm... I don’t want to appear useless in my wife’s eyes."

Gu Anxi’s cheeks turned a little red, and it took her a good while to stammer, "Uncle, you... you talk a lot."

"Do I?" he laughed and started the car.

Upon reaching the shooting range, Zhou Yunchen had surprisingly arrived even earlier than her. Just as Gu Anxi had expected, Beauty Song Jia, that tag-along, had indeed come with him, dressed quite elegantly in a style her brother adored.

Gu Anxi found it inwardly amusing. It was hard to believe Song Jia could be so clingy. She’d heard that Song Jia not only stuck to Zhou Yunchen but was also especially clingy with Congwen. Just the thought of it was hilarious, and her mood brightened.

She walked over to greet Zhou Yunchen. Song Jia saw her and pointedly ignored her.

For Song Jia, Gu Anxi was the person she hated most in the world.

Gu Anxi, however, was unfazed. The two of them hadn’t gotten along for a long time, and one more instance wouldn’t make a difference to her.

At this moment, Zhou Yunchen, adopting the air of a family elder, looked at his sister. "Aren’t you going to greet anyone?"

However unwilling, Song Jia lazily stood up. "Professor Bo."

Zhou Yunchen knew she harbored a slight grudge against Bo Xichen. Why? Because Bo Xichen had eliminated the man she loved. However, she also knew Bo Qing was Bo Xichen’s relative, so Bo Xichen wouldn’t have felt good about it either. Thus, the matter could only remain in a deadlock.

Bo Xichen didn’t seem to mind and simply gave a faint smile.

Zhou Yunchen looked at his sister again. "Didn’t you say you wanted to come play? Why do you seem so uninterested now?"

Song Jia, flipping through a magazine, retorted, "You didn’t say Gu Anxi was the one who invited you."

Zhou Yunchen was both annoyed and amused. "Anxi is very good at shooting, even better than Chen Ming. Don’t you want to have a friendly match?"

His words made Song Jia feel even more awkward. "Why did you have to bring him up?"

Zhou Yunchen chuckled. "And why can’t he be mentioned?"

Song Jia ignored him, silently got up, and went to change her clothes. When she came out again, Gu Anxi was already shooting. She was indeed very skilled, hitting the bullseye with all six shots. Song Jia couldn’t understand how her lifelong training could be inferior to Gu Anxi, who had started late. But no matter how unconvinced she was, there was nothing she could do. She had only recently heard that earlier in the year, during an archery competition, Gu Anxi had split Jiang Chaoge’s arrow in two. How much strength must that have taken?

This thought inevitably brought to mind someone she shouldn’t be thinking about, someone Song Jia actively tried to forget. So, she fired a few shots—BANG, BANG, BANG—all hitting the ten-ring, then looked at Gu Anxi triumphantly.

Gu Anxi smiled and walked over to lean against something nearby.

Song Jia’s face was taut. She changed a magazine, aimed, and was just about to shoot again when Gu Anxi suddenly drawled, "Forgot to tell you, Chen Ming is coming later too."

BANG.

The shot rang out, but it missed the target completely.

Song Jia lowered her hand, turning to glare at Gu Anxi. "What do you mean by that?"

Gu Anxi was all smiles. "What could I possibly mean? I was just making casual conversation."

She walked over, glanced at the target, and then feigned surprise. "Oh, you missed! Sister Duoduo, you don’t possibly have feelings for Chen Ming, do you? Otherwise, why would you get so flustered the moment I mention him?"

Song Jia shot her a disdainful look. "How childish."

Gu Anxi nodded. "It’s fine if you don’t care. Chen Ming is a straightforward sort of person; he doesn’t know how to sweet-talk you. He’s suited to find an ordinary woman to marry and have children with."

With that, she took Song Jia’s gun with her left hand. With a rapid succession of BANGS, all five bullets hit the center.

And it was with her left hand. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ𝓋𝑒𝑙.𝑐𝘰𝑚

The difference in skill was immediately apparent.

Song Jia stared at her.

Gu Anxi, still smiling, said, "If you hadn’t been distracted, you wouldn’t have lost."

Song Jia scoffed. "Inferior is inferior. I’m not so petty as to deny that."

She lowered her voice. "This has nothing to do with Chen Ming. There’s nothing between him and me."

"Oh." Gu Anxi nodded understandingly.

At that, Song Jia turned to Zhou Yunchen. "I’m not feeling well. I’ll wait for you in the car."

Gu Anxi arched an eyebrow. So she’s not playing anymore? She claimed it wasn’t because of Chen Ming, yet she clearly didn’t want to see him. Just how bad had things gotten between those two for Song Jia to avoid him like this?

Over there, as Song Jia was about to leave, Zhou Yunchen looked slightly displeased. "You just got here, why leave already? Try to be more gracious."

Song Jia went over to him and whispered, "Chen Ming is coming soon. I don’t want to see him."

Zhou Yunchen nodded understandingly and chuckled. "Alright, if you’re not feeling well, go wait for me in the car. When we’re done, we’ll pick up your sister-in-law and go out for dinner."