From the moment Liu Hui instinctively moved to embrace Anqi, to the kiss that followed, it was all done without conscious thought, driven purely by bodily instinct. And right as he was kissing Anqi, his secretary, Li Lian, discovered them. How could Liu Hui, who always prided himself on being a gentleman of unwavering fidelity, bear this humiliation?

At the same time, Liu Hui was deeply worried about how Anqi saw him. Would she think he was a predator, a boss taking advantage of a female colleague under the guise of his position, and refuse to work at his company?

Li Lian, ever quick-witted, quickly exclaimed, "Oh! Where did the boss and Miss Anqi go? I don't see them anywhere!" She then swiftly gathered the documents that had fallen to the floor, turned, and left, carefully closing the door behind her.

After separating from Liu Hui, Anqi turned away, head bowed, not daring to look at him. An awkward silence settled between them. Liu Hui could only see the slight tremor in her back, unsure of the expression on her face.

"Uh... this... actually... I'm sorry!" Liu Hui scratched his head, stuttering for a moment before finally deciding to apologize directly to Anqi.

Having startled this delicate young woman, Liu Hui felt deeply uneasy. He had no idea why he had acted so shamefully, as if bewitched, at that moment. Yet, the sensation had been strangely familiar, and the feeling of kissing Anqi had been undeniably pleasant.

With her back still to Liu Hui, Anqi whispered something. But her voice was so soft that even with his now astonishing hearing, Liu Hui couldn't make out a single word.

"Miss Anqi, what did you say?" Liu Hui asked quietly.

Anqi spoke.

Liu Hui still couldn't hear her. He didn't know what to do in this situation, yet he felt awkward pressing her further. A cold sweat broke out on his forehead from the sudden anxiety.

Finally, Anqi turned around. Her head was lowered, her face flushed crimson, and she murmured, "I'm going back to the States."

This time, Liu Hui finally understood her words, but a chilling emptiness swept through his heart. His forceful kiss had finally angered Anqi to the point where she was leaving his company and returning to America. Liu Hui was profoundly disappointed and began to bitterly regret his impulsive action just moments before.

"I'm leaving now!" Anqi whispered.

"Oh!" Liu Hui didn't know what else to say.

"Don't you have anything to say?" Anqi asked, her face still red.

"I apologize to you. Yell at me if you want!" Liu Hui said, full of shame.

"I mean, aren't you sending someone with me to America? I have so many research documents and books, plus a small laboratory—how can I move all that by myself as a woman?" Anqi still spoke softly.

"Where are you planning to move to..." Liu Hui asked casually, then suddenly realized the implication. A wave of delight washed over him. "Miss Anqi, are you not angry with me anymore? Have you decided to come work for our company after all?"

The blush on Anqi’s face finally faded a little, and her voice grew stronger. "I thought you were truly a paragon of virtue! Turns out you’re no different from other men. But my opinion of your character has no direct bearing on whether I want to join your company. However, I must warn you: you can never treat me like that again."

Liu Hui was overjoyed and quickly assured her, "Miss Anqi, please don't worry. I don't know what came over me just now to make me act that way. But I promise you, from now on, I will respect you completely and never harass you."

Anqi replied, "Since you say so, I will forgive you this time. But you shouldn't call me Miss Anqi anymore; just call me Anqi. And I will call you Liu Hui."

Liu Hui smiled. "Alright, Anqi. When are you returning to America so I can arrange for people to accompany you?"

Anqi said, "Since I’ve decided to join your company, the sooner the better, naturally. I plan to fly back to California tomorrow, settle my affairs there, and then report for duty here."

Liu Hui was thrilled. "Excellent. I'll arrange staff to go with you immediately. You look quite tired now, so why don't you stay at the Starlight Group guesthouse for tonight? I'll handle everything else."

Anqi nodded. "Alright, I am indeed a bit tired. I'll go down and rest first."

Liu Hui immediately called A'xia from the Eye of Starlight, asking her to escort Anqi to the Starlight Guesthouse, arrange her flight back to America the next day, and take care of the necessary details.

After Anqi left Liu Hui's office with A'xia, Liu Hui finally breathed a sigh of relief. The terribly awkward situation had been resolved. If Anqi had chosen to make an issue of it, he truly didn't know what he would have done. But why did he feel that familiar sensation when kissing Anqi? It felt as if he had kissed her many times before; it was wonderfully intimate.

"Bah, what am I thinking about!" Liu Hui instantly forced the thought out of his mind, feeling that dwelling on it further would be a disservice to both Anqi and Hu Xian'er.

"Li Lian, what are you sneaking around for?" Liu Hui suddenly noticed Li Lian peering into his office from outside and immediately called her in.

"Ah, Boss, you're back. I just came to your office, but I didn't see you or Miss Anqi—it's so strange!" Li Lian jumped, startled, and immediately started babbling nonsense.

"Mmm... it's good you didn't see anything, but remember to keep your mouth shut. Don't let anything slip," Liu Hui said. Although he appreciated Li Lian's quick thinking, he gave her a firm instruction, lest this little girl let the secret slip. It would be terrible if this reached Hu Xian'er's ears.

"Boss, rest assured. I sleep with a mask on; I won't even talk in my sleep," Li Lian quickly promised.

"Alright, that's all. You can go now. Next time, remember to knock before entering," Liu Hui instructed. Li Lian stuck her small tongue out at Liu Hui's back and quickly left his office.

The next day, A'xia, accompanied by several female bodyguards, saw Anqi onto the plane back to America. Because of the awkward incident between them, Liu Hui dared not go to the airport to see Anqi off. He summoned Desheng to his office to get a detailed account of Anqi’s experiences in China.

Since Liu Hui had previously stressed the importance of Anqi, Desheng had assigned two capable subordinates to follow Anqi, monitoring her situation and providing covert protection.

According to Desheng, Wei Chao had initially accompanied Anqi. However, Anqi and Wei Chao soon had a significant argument. The root of the conflict was Anqi’s repeated rejection of Wei Chao’s affections. Wei Chao felt he had invested so much in her, yet she remained unmoved, and he could no longer bear the torment. He had decided to confront her, leading to the argument.

Yet, Wei Chao was still a man. Although they argued, he did not lay a hand on Anqi. He was simply too distraught by his own emotional state, and in his anger, he parted ways with Anqi, who then continued to travel across the country alone with her luggage.

Thanks to the protection arranged secretly by Desheng’s men, Anqi avoided any particularly perilous incidents during her travels. However, witnessing some of the tragic events in the country left Anqi deeply saddened, and she shed many tears, but this experience also helped her mature, lending a certain resolution to her features.

When Anqi first returned to Hong Kong, Desheng had received intelligence about it. But he assumed she would rest for a while before taking further action, so he was busy organizing data to prepare a detailed report for Liu Hui about her time in China. He never expected Anqi to come directly to the Starlight Group to find Liu Hui immediately upon her return. This is why Liu Hui was so emotionally agitated upon seeing her, without having received Desheng’s intelligence first.

Liu Hui received further confirmation from Desheng that Anqi herself posed no issues and was absolutely not a spy sent by any faction. Only then did he truly relax. Once Anqi officially joined Starlight Group, he planned to place her in the most secretive Starlight Scientific Research Institute for true scientific endeavor.

Half a month later, Anqi finalized her affairs in the United States and returned to Hong Kong. She brought with her the massive collection of books, mountains of experimental data, and even her compact laboratory, which had been carefully disassembled and transported. To move this considerable amount of material, A'xia had to requisition a transport aircraft from the Starlight Logistics Company to ensure everything arrived at the Starlight Group intact.

Liu Hui had already informed Chen Changsheng about Anqi’s imminent joining of the Starlight Scientific Research Institute. To his surprise, Chen Changsheng was not only aware of Anqi’s reputation but also held immense admiration for some of her published scientific papers, calling her a "super genius." When Chen Changsheng learned this super genius was coming to work at the Institute, he was so delighted that he jumped for joy, momentarily shedding the composure expected of an elder statesman.

Chen Changsheng had previously told Liu Hui that the Starlight Group lacked a top-tier genius, causing their research progress to be sluggish. Liu Hui had promised to help look for one, but he never imagined he would actually deliver a bona fide super genius. This made Chen Changsheng even more awestruck by Liu Hui’s capabilities, elevating him to a level of near inscrutability in the old man’s eyes. Yet, Liu Hui himself didn't fully understand why Anqi chose Starlight Group; it felt as implausible as catching a pie dropped from the sky.

Therefore, when it was time to greet Anqi, Chen Changsheng arrived at the airport early with Liu Hui. When Anqi finally stepped off the plane, Chen Changsheng was the first to rush forward and introduce himself. As both were dedicated to scientific research and possessed a deep understanding of technological advancement, they immediately hit it off, leaving Liu Hui, the boss, completely aside.

Liu Hui could only offer a wry, internal smile, realizing that Anqi, still embarrassed by the previous kissing incident, was deliberately keeping her distance from him by engaging so animatedly with Chen Changsheng.

"Desheng, are Anqi's parents still unwilling to join our Starlight Group?" Liu Hui asked, feeling slightly frustrated.

"Boss, Miss Anqi did persuade her parents to join us for research, but they seem to prefer dedicating themselves to teaching and nurturing the next generation, so they declined our invitation. However, they are very pleased that Anqi could join the Starlight Group," Desheng reported.

Liu Hui stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Given Anqi's ability, she will certainly produce many new breakthroughs here very quickly. My concern is that once her inventions become known, those coveting them might target her parents. If her parents remain outside our protection, we cannot guarantee their safety, which puts us in a very passive position."

Desheng responded, "But Anqi's parents are typical Americans with a strong sense of independence. It’s practically impossible for them to abandon their professorships at Caltech for their daughter's sake. What should we do?"

Liu Hui mused, "We don't have a good solution right now, and we certainly cannot take any action against Anqi's parents, as that might cause Anqi to resent us. Let's do this: we will assign a team to be near her parents, providing security. Should any contingency arise, our personnel can transfer them promptly to the Starlight Group, keeping the initiative in our hands, which will make things much smoother. Additionally, Anqi's research progress must be placed under the most stringent secrecy protocol; not a single detail can leak externally. This way, Anqi won't be immediately known to other factions, reducing some of our immediate security pressure."

Desheng nodded. "Boss, I understand. I will arrange personnel immediately."

"Make sure you select highly capable individuals. In emergencies, they must have the authority to mobilize our intelligence operatives already embedded in America. But one crucial point: they must maintain absolute confidentiality and not be discovered by Anqi's parents or any other outside force."

Desheng affirmed, "I will see to it."

Once Anqi officially joined the Starlight Scientific Research Institute, Chen Changsheng was immediately won over by her capabilities, granting her a free pass on all her operational requests. When Anqi surveyed the research projects underway in the Institute, she was utterly stunned. She had never imagined that this seemingly unremarkable facility housed so many scientific achievements and secrets; the achievements presented publicly by the Starlight Group represented less than one percent of the actual research conducted here.

The marvelous arrays with various functions, the mysterious application of True Essence, the advanced energy stones containing immense power yet small in volume, the God-tier energy stones whose purpose remained undiscovered, the Cold-Hot Peeling Tree, and the noxious sap of the Stinky Tree—these were all things Anqi had never seen or heard of before.

Furthermore, the numerous research results already achieved by the Starlight Group were an eye-opener for Anqi: various enhanced composite materials, massive deep-sea super-submarines, levitating platforms, deep-sea generators, compact laser weaponry, miniature electromagnetic cannons, and seawater desalination equipment. The existence of all these things thrilled her. Upon learning about the construction projects for the "City of Starlight" and the "Deep-Sea City," she was amazed by the sheer scale of Liu Hui’s ambition.

Anqi had already achieved many leading research milestones and developed several scientific hypotheses. However, due to limitations in research conditions, verifying these hypotheses would have required a long wait, which had been a source of disappointment. Upon arriving at the Starlight Group, she discovered the facilities were exceptional, with an endless stream of novel equipment that made realizing her scientific hypotheses suddenly possible.

Anqi proved worthy of her designation as an all-around super genius. After thoroughly grasping the current state of the Starlight Scientific Research Institute, she moved past her awe and immediately identified critical weak points in the Institute's infrastructure. After consulting with Chen Changsheng, she submitted a detailed list of required equipment to Liu Hui.

Just by reading the names of the equipment, Liu Hui knew they were highly advanced technological items, and the nations producing them would certainly be reluctant to export them to him. He spent several days in close consultation with Desheng, formulating a series of plans. They then mobilized their intelligence personnel embedded worldwide, paying a significant price through overt and covert means—even deploying the super submarines "Starlight One" and "Starlight Two"—to finally assemble all the specialized equipment Anqi required.

Strange occurrences began happening at various scientific institutes and high-end instrument manufacturing plants globally: equipment would suddenly explode, critical components would inexplicably fail, and inventory records at some advanced manufacturing facilities became so scrambled that stock quantities were rendered uncertain.

These recent anomalies immediately attracted the attention of the world's renowned intelligence agencies and major organizations, which deployed personnel to investigate the unusual data spikes. However, Liu Hui had executed everything with meticulous cleanliness, leaving behind no actionable clues. Consequently, these intelligence bodies and major organizations found no useful information and eventually dismissed the incidents, locking them away as mere suspicious events.

With the cutting-edge instruments covertly transported from various nations, Anqi finally completed the foundational infrastructure of the Starlight Scientific Research Institute. With this comprehensive set of research apparatus, the Starlight Group was now equipped to launch scientific investigations across multiple sectors, marking a significant leap forward in its overall research capacity.

Having rectified the Institute’s deficiencies, Anqi finally began channeling the bizarre technologies, equipment, and materials available within the Institute into her own scientific endeavors. After observing Anqi’s research for a period, Chen Changsheng was profoundly shaken by the content of her work and willingly volunteered to become her primary experimental assistant.