"Shen Xian."
A white figure walked over from the other side of the boxing ring, accompanied by his deep and pleasant voice, that single "Shen Xian" nearly sent Shen Xian away.
Shen Xian, who had just taken a sip of water, started coughing violently when she saw him approaching.
Zhou Mu was the first to pat Shen Xian's back to help her get over the cough, then he looked up at the source of the voice.
The sophisticated man stood there in white sportswear, tall and well-built.
Perspiration glistened on his face, and the collar and chest of his white boxing gear were soaked, indicating he must have finished boxing.
"Gu, President Gu." Shen Xian collected her composure, stood up, and greeted Gu Chen.
"You're also here to box?" Gu Chen seemed surprised to see Shen Xian there.
"Yes, that's right, haha." Shen Xian chuckled but there was no trace of a smile on her face.
Gu Chen's gaze shifted to Zhou Mu beside her, and his lips curled into a small, polite nod.
"He's my..." Shen Xian hesitated slightly. How should she put it, comrade? Captain? Naturally, she couldn't introduce him like that.
"He's my friend." Shen Xian quickly changed the subject, "President Gu, are you also here to box?"
"Mhm," Gu Chen responded indifferently.
Shen Xian turned and introduced Zhou Mu, "This is my boss, President Gu of Shen Fei Group."
Zhou Mu, having roughly guessed who the man was from their earlier conversation, also nodded politely as a greeting.
Just now, Shen Xian had briefly shared the recent situations at Shen Fei with him; such a place, akin to a dragon's lair and a tiger's den, must have been tough for her to make progress under the burden.
The two men's eyes met and, as if by some tacit agreement, they lifted their hands in a motion and both walked towards the boxing ring.
Shen Xian had not known before that Gu Chen could also box, and it was evident from his movements that he had undergone rigorous training.
The two figures on the stage, one in black and one in white, fought fiercely. Shen Xian sat in her chair, observing their punching postures; men boxing really was different from women, with their powerful strength seemingly able to flip the surrounding air.
The figure in white was agile, throwing fierce and decisive punches without giving his opponent any chance to retreat—a complete contrast to his usual way of dealing with people.
As Shen Xian watched, her thoughts gradually veered off track, and she found herself pondering the intricate relations at Shen Fei.
The shadow before her began to sketch out a rough outline in her mind...
Could it be possible that the person who had died was a casualty in Gu Chen's power struggle?
Yet from her observations of Gu Chen over the past few days, it seemed he was someone who disdained resorting to extreme measures...
The boxing gym had quite a few people whose attention was drawn to the two professionals on stage, watching with bated breath.
Who would have thought that Shen Xian, who appeared like a boss seated beneath the ring, was now so distracted and lost in thought that her mind was flying far away.
"Good!"
After an indefinite amount of time, Shen Xian's reverie was interrupted by a burst of cheers, with scattered applause emanating from different corners of the gym.
Upon finishing their match, the two men on the stage seemed evenly matched and exchanged a polite shoulder touch and high five.
Shen Xian watched them, struggling to comprehend the battle between the two men and their sudden show of camaraderie.
However, she was certain that with Gu Chen's skill, if they were to fight, she would not be able to defeat him.
Just like the match with Zhou Mu earlier, where he had held back; otherwise, she could not possibly have fought to a tie with Zhou Mu.
The two men descended from the ring one after the other and walked towards Shen Xian, their sweat dripping down, the charm of males post-exercise evident on both of them, yet manifested in completely different styles.
Shen Xian grabbed two clean towels and handed them over to the two men.
Gu Chen glanced at Zhou Mu and was the first to grab the towel to wipe his sweat, while Zhou Mu arched an eyebrow and, without competing for it, took the towel from Shen Xian and casually sat down.
The atmosphere became slightly awkward for a moment until Shen Xian turned and took a bottle of water from his bag and handed it to Gu Chen, "Mr. Gu, have some water."
Gu Chen reached out, snatched the bottle, and looking at Zhou Mu who was seated, said to Shen Xian, "Your friend is quite good at boxing."
After speaking, he turned his head and gave Shen Xian a deep look, "You guys continue training, I have something else and must leave first."
Shen Xian waved goodbye to him, while Zhou Mu, with his leg propped up, half leaned in the chair and gave Gu Chen a chin lift as a way of saying goodbye.
It was only after Gu Chen left that Shen Xian finally relaxed, sank into his chair, and fiddled with his boxing gloves, his thoughts seemingly elsewhere.
"Hey, are we still sparring?" Zhou Mu called out when he saw her like that.
"Zhou Mu, under what circumstances would a group's leader kidnap the family of his subordinate?"
Shen Xian didn't answer but leaned in and quietly countered Zhou Mu's question.
Zhou Mu glanced at the receding figure of Gu Chen at the corner, "Do you suspect him of doing it?"
Shen Xian shook his head, "There's no concrete evidence now, but when he took office, he made some sweeping changes, cutting a number of people. That person was under his uncle's command and resigned inexplicably in advance. Couldn't there be a possibility that his uncle was threatening his position and so he eliminated this aid of his uncle's?"
"If it's just a simple power struggle, there's no need to go as far as sabotaging wealth and taking lives. I think there's a deeper reason."
"Someone deliberately chose that day to cause chaos with malicious intent, aiming to undermine Shen Fei Logistics' safety and reputation through the media. But the Police have examined the situation and conducted a detailed investigation..."
As Shen Xian spoke, her expression grew more solemn, "Coincidentally, the night before, the park experienced a brief five-minute power outage for a security test for the next day's inspection, and the surveillance didn't capture any useful information at that time. Could that have been for another purpose?"
Zhou Mu, listening to Shen Xian's analysis, suddenly had a new thought.
"Not to harm, but for..." Shen Xian frowned and contemplated, "Manufacturing public opinion?"
Zhou Mu nodded in agreement, "Very likely, which means that Shen Fei's internal struggle hasn't been resolved."
"But that day, it was Gu Chen who personally brought the media there. Who would..."
As she spoke, Shen Xian suddenly brightened up and, grabbing Zhou Mu's arm excitedly, said, "At the very least, we can now be certain that the bomb in Shen Fei Logistics wasn't Gu Chen's doing."
"Of course, no one would plant a bomb at a place they were planning to visit," Zhou Mu said noncommittally, watching Shen Xian's slightly agitated state.
"If Gu Chen was behind the event three years ago, then this time, it's very likely to be the work of someone opposing Gu Chen. Conversely, if Gu Chen had nothing to do with the incident three years ago, then the warehouse incident and the kidnapping case from three years ago could very well be perpetrated by the same person."
"Shen Xian, has your logical brilliance returned?"
Zhou Mu's face lit up with pleasure, "It seems that joining Shen Fei Headquarters was the right decision, at least it brought you one step closer to the truth."
Shen Xian's eyes grew dim, "Zhou Mu, would you be angry?"
"Angry? Why?"
Shen Xian: "I didn't tell you and made the decision to go to Shen Fei on my own."
Zhou Mu chuckled softly and gently stroked Shen Xian's head, comforting her as he had done before.
"I'm not angry, I know you had your reasons for doing it, and I will give you my full support. Shen Xian, I believe in you, I always have, and I still do."
Feeling the encouragement and trust from her former teammate, Shen Xian looked up and smiled happily.