Of course, it wasn't as if she had a flock of male friends anyway. And sure enough, no sooner had she arrived at the Privy Council Research Institute than his watchdog call came through. Xia Xiwan clutched her phone, deciding to tease him. "You're right, the institute is full of handsome guys. I've already met a few today…" The other end of the line went silent, as if he'd stopped breathing. After