Chapter 106: Chapter 106: Gathering

When Lu Xiao received the call from Lu Ge Wei, she had a feeling. Sure enough, as soon as the call connected, Lu Ge Wei got straight to the point. “A male has recovered and been discharged from the S-Class Shelter?”

Hearing this, Lu Xiao was almost certain Li Hua’an had contacted Lu Ge Wei, though she didn’t ask about it directly. “It hasn’t been announced publicly yet, but it’s true. Since when have you been so concerned with these things, Mother?”

“You think I want to be? If you’d handled your own mess with Li Hua’an, she wouldn’t have come running to me to complain, would she?”

“Oh, really? I thought Earl Hua An had accepted my proposal. I didn’t realize she’d gone to you. In that case, you must have made her back down, right, Mother?”

Lu Ge Wei was pleased to hear that, and her attitude softened slightly. “Her Majesty the Queen rewarded you for this very reason. You’re quite capable, aren’t you?”

“Is that a compliment, Mother? If so, thank you.”

Lu Ge Wei felt her chest tighten. ’Even if it is, do you have to be so blunt about it?’

She lost all desire to continue the conversation with Lu Xiao, mainly for fear that Lu Xiao would say something else to twist the knife. She hastily ended the call.

After the call ended, however, a faint smile touched Lu Xiao’s lips.

’It seems that after our few clashes, Lu Ge Wei understands me quite well now.’

’She knows she can’t gain any advantage over me, so she doesn’t try to use her status as my mother to emotionally blackmail me anymore.’

’This is good. This is exactly the kind of “mother-daughter” relationship I want. Maintaining a harmonious facade is enough.’

In the afternoon, Teacher Ai Li took a call. When she returned, she clapped her hands to gather everyone. “I’ve just received a request from the head of the Seventh Military District, Admiral Kula Peng. He’s hoping we can conduct a Spirit Sea assessment for them at the Seventh Military District. If no one objects, we’ll schedule it to start next Monday. It’s expected to take about a week. Any objections?”

“Hey!” Teacher Sherry suddenly piped up. “Isn’t the Seventh Military District where Major General Ares is stationed?”

The words had barely left her mouth when Lu Xiao felt four pairs of eyes snap to her.

She gave a slight chuckle. “Actually, the last time I went to pick Ares up from work, I was fortunate enough to meet Admiral Kula Peng. He mentioned this to me, and I didn’t turn him down.”

“Well, since that connection’s already there, I have no objections,” Teacher Sherry said, winking at Lu Xiao.

Lu Xiao immediately pressed her palms together in a gesture of thanks to everyone.

Teacher Ai Li smiled. “Alright then, it’s settled. We’ll be working at the Seventh Army next week, so everyone be ready.”

Meanwhile, Admiral Kula Peng was overjoyed when he received Teacher Ai Li’s message confirming their request had been approved.

He immediately summoned Ares. “The Fifth Research Institute has accepted our request. I want you to prepare for it. You will be personally responsible for coordinating and liaising on this assessment project.”

The reason for Kula Peng’s arrangement couldn’t have been more obvious, and naturally, Ares wasn’t about to refuse.

It was a rare opportunity to work alongside Lu Xiao, one Ares was more than willing to take.

“Yes, sir.”

Seeing Ares agree so readily, Kula Peng pointed a finger at him. “Don’t play dumb. You must be over the moon right now, aren’t you?”

Ares looked slightly puzzled. “What do you mean, sir?”

“Still playing dumb! You get to work with Lu Xiao next week. You’re not happy about that?”

Ares’s face cleared with understanding, and he replied, “Happy? Why would I be? We see each other every day.”

Kula Peng felt his chest tighten again. He waved a dismissive hand at him. “Go on, get out of here. If there’s nothing else, just go!”

’If he stays here any longer, it’ll make my chest hurt just looking at him!’

Ares nodded and replied dutifully, “I’ll take my leave then.”

As he turned, the corner of his mouth twitched into a small, unconscious smile.

’Of course I’m happy,’ he thought. ’But I’m not going to say it!’

As he was leaving Admiral Kula Peng’s office, he ran into his colleagues, Major General Chrisman and Vice Admiral Hades.

The moment they saw him, the two walked right over. “Major General Ares, perfect timing. We were just looking for you.”

Ares stopped and looked at them, confused. “What for?”

Major General Chrisman grinned. “Hey, you free tonight? Want to go out for drinks?”

Vice Admiral Hades nodded in agreement. “Our treat.”

Ares didn’t refuse immediately. “If you need something from me, you can just say it. No need to stand on ceremony.”

“Ah, it’s not something we can just say right here. We need to sit down and talk it over. Bottom line, can you make it tonight or not?”

Ares hesitated at his words. “I’ll have to let my master know.”

Vice Admiral Hades nodded. “As you should. But your master won’t disagree, will she?”

“She won’t,” Ares said with conviction. Lu Xiao wouldn’t refuse; she’d probably even be happy he was going out to make friends.

’After all, that’s what the monthly allowance was for.’

’But he’d never spent any of it until now.’

After the three agreed on the plan, Ares sent a message to Lu Xiao on his way back: “Going out for dinner with colleagues tonight. I’ll be home late.”

Lu Xiao was genuinely surprised when she received the message, then smiled as she replied, “Got it. Have fun, and don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself. ^_^”

’He’s finally getting out! He’s finally getting out! My Ares finally knows how to go out and have fun with his friends.’

’This is wonderful!’

At that moment, Lu Xiao genuinely felt that her careful, subtle guidance was finally paying off.

She was so gratified.

Noticing Lu Xiao staring at her screen with an unusually bright smile, Teacher Ai Li asked quizzically, “What’s the good news? You look way too happy, dear.”

“It is good news! My Ares is finally making some progress. He’s learned to go out with his friends to relax and have a good time.”

Hearing this, Teacher Ai Li shook her head with a helpless laugh. “Only you would care about something like that.”

“Oh, come on. I just think Ares is perfect in every way—he’s handsome and capable—but he’s just too restrained and wound up. I want him to live a little more freely and easily, not to always be so withdrawn.”

Teacher Ai Li looked at Lu Xiao with a gentle expression as she spoke. “He’s the lucky one for having met you. Males like Ares, with no connections, who have clawed their way up entirely on their own, don’t dare to relax. They have to strive and fight for everything themselves. If they let their guard down, they could lose more than they can afford.”

So, the way Ares acts is just his method of survival.

If he hadn’t met Lu Xiao, Ares might have spent his entire life that way.

But now, Ares has a newfound sense of confidence that he otherwise never would have possessed.

And all of this was because he had met a good master, Lu Xiao, who was willing to give him a sense of security.

“It’s mutual. Ares is very good to me, too!” Lu Xiao sincerely believed it. Ares didn’t just earn good money—he was handsome, had a great body, was gentle and considerate, and handled all the housework. He provided practically all the emotional support and material comfort she could ever want.

’What more could I ask for?’

’One Ares is more than enough!’

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep