Xue Yue hadn’t left for work yet when Zhao Yinglan arrived with Pain. She had come to say goodbye.

"Aunt Zhao, didn’t you say you were staying for half a month? Why the sudden rush?"

Zhao Yinglan explained with a helpless look, "We’ve been back for some time now. Something came up over there, and they’re pushing for my return. I can’t be away from the factory for too long. Luckily, it’s easier to travel back to the country now, so I can come back whenever I want in the future. You all can come visit Country Y, too. The scenery is different from what you see here."

"Okay."

Pain asked Xue Yue, "Is Ruanruan not home?"

Xue Yue looked at him and said, "Yeah, she’s not home from school yet."

Pain’s head drooped in disappointment. Zhao Yinglan patted his head and comforted him, "If you miss them when we get back, you can always write letters."

Pain glanced at Zhao Yinglan and nodded, but he still looked a little downcast.

Xue Yue had wanted to ask them to stay for dinner, but Zhao Yinglan said they still had to make a trip to the Country Y embassy and were afraid they’d be late, so they left.

Xue Yue sighed softly to He Lang, "I was planning on giving Aunt Zhao a gift, but then this whole thing with me happened and I got delayed. And now they’re leaving."

He Lang smiled. "There’ll be other chances in the future."

Xue Yue could only console herself with that thought.

「Beijing City Public Security Bureau.」

"Alright, settle down everyone. Come over here."

"Captain, what’s up?"

"The bureau is holding its triennial Grand Competition. Like always, there are two events: marksmanship and combat skills. If any of you can take first place in either event, the rewards are substantial. It’ll also go into your permanent record, which will be good for your future promotions." 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

"For real? Captain, what are the rewards? Is it money?"

"Guo Laoer, is that all you think about? What’s this got to do with you? With your aim, you couldn’t even hit a wooden post, let alone with your fighting skills."

"Hey, Big Zhang, my aim might not be the best, but it’s not bad! And what’s wrong with my skills? When we caught that robber last time, I took him down all by myself."

"Hah! You have the nerve to bring that up? We chased that guy for two whole streets. You just got lucky at the end, kid. You think you took him down? He collapsed from exhaustion!"

"Hahaha, so what? Luck is a part of skill, you know."

"Shameless."

The room erupted in laughter.

After laughing, the captain said to them, "Take what I said seriously. Don’t come complaining when others get promoted over you. And another thing, Team Two took first place in both events in the last competition. This year, you all better make me proud."

"Got it, Captain."

For the next two days, everyone was preparing. They were either at the shooting range or the training grounds.

"Xue Xingzhou, what’s with you, kid? Cut us old-timers some slack, would you?"

"Brother Ming, that’s called natural talent. We can’t even hope to catch up."

"I refuse to believe it. Xue Xingzhou, come on. Let’s you and I have a match."

Xue Xingzhou gave him an indifferent look. "What’s the competition?"

"Shooting and disassembly."

"What are the stakes?"

"If I win, you pull out of the Grand Competition."

Xue Xingzhou nodded. "Fine."

Someone couldn’t watch anymore. "Brother Ming, aren’t you just bullying the new guy? Everyone knows you’re the fastest at disassembly. No one in the bureau can beat you."

Ming Wei raised an eyebrow at Xue Xingzhou. "They’ve warned you. So? Still want to compete?"

Xue Xingzhou raised the gun in his hand slightly. "Of course."

Ming Wei’s lips curled. "You all heard him. He’s the one insisting. So don’t go saying I’m bullying the new guy."

Since it had come to this, someone started egging them on. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get started."

"Oh, and how about the loser buys everyone here a soda?"

"Hey, that sounds good to me. What about it, you two?"

Ming Wei nodded. "That’s no big deal."

Then he looked at Xue Xingzhou. A faint smile touched Xue Xingzhou’s lips. "Mhm."

A table was placed in front of the two men, with a gun laid out for each of them. Ming Wei wiped his palms and glanced at Xue Xingzhou, who remained expressionless.

Someone shouted, "Start!"

The two men snatched the guns from the table and began disassembling them, laying each part out on the table before starting to reassemble them.

The crowd glanced at the clock, their eyes glued to the men’s hands. They were on the edge of their seats.

Just as everyone’s eyes widened in disbelief, shots rang out. BANG! BANG! BANG!

Ming Wei froze, but he didn’t give up. He finished reassembling his weapon and fired five shots at the target.

Someone ran over to check.

Ming Wei: an eight and four tens.

Xue Xingzhou: a ten.

The onlookers exchanged confused glances. "What’s going on? Did Xue Xingzhou only hit one ten and miss the target with the others?"

The person who went to check ran back.

Everyone asked him, "What happened?"

The man gave Xue Xingzhou a strange look and said to them, "Xue Xingzhou also got five tens, but there’s only one bullet hole."

"Stacked shots?"

Everyone turned to look at Xue Xingzhou. Ming Wei frowned.

"Xue Xingzhou, kid, be straight with me. Was that your actual skill, or more luck?"

Someone didn’t like hearing that. "Ming Wei, how can you call that luck? Xue Xingzhou’s disassembly time was even faster than yours. You can’t do that with luck alone."

"Yeah, Ming Wei. A bet’s a bet, so be a good sport. There’s always someone better out there."

Ming Wei gritted his teeth. Seeing Xue Xingzhou’s calm demeanor, it was hard to swallow, to think he’d messed up and lost face in front of the new guy. But he wasn’t the type who couldn’t take a loss.

"Alright, I lost. I’ll withdraw from the Grand Competition. And I’m buying sodas for the team."

"That’s more like it, Brother Ming. We’re all men here. Winning and losing are all part of the game; it’s no big deal."

Xue Xingzhou looked at Ming Wei and said, "Brother Ming, it was just some friendly banter between us guys. We just thought it’d be more fun to have something on the line. Buying sodas is plenty. Sorry to make you spend the money, Brother Ming. As for withdrawing, that’s not our call to make. The bureau requires everyone to participate. How would it look if you quit on your own?"

Ming Wei hesitated, his expression complex as he looked at Xue Xingzhou. He saw Xue Xingzhou just give a small smile, acting like it wasn’t a big deal. Suddenly, Ming Wei felt he had been petty.

Just then, an arm was thrown around Ming Wei’s shoulder. "Xiao Xue is right. What’s the big deal? Besides, our real opponents are Team Two. Let’s go, let’s go, time to buy those sodas."

With that, he dragged Ming Wei away.

The people left behind curiously asked Xue Xingzhou, "Dude, have you been practicing in secret? How’d you do it? Brother Ming was the bureau’s former disassembly champ, and you just beat him that easily?"

Xue Xingzhou shrugged. "Natural talent. Nothing I can do about it." He said it with unabashed pride.

The group was stunned by his cockiness. Several of them exchanged a look.

"Boys, get him!"

With that, they pounced on Xue Xingzhou. Soon, the area was filled with boisterous laughter and cries for mercy.