Chapter 177: Jiang Lai, you keep Ke Zhongyu's mouth in check

Gu Yinxue smiled and asked: "Nian Aunt, who is this?"

Ke Zhongyu came to Jiang Lai's side and introduced: "This is Gu Yinxue, the Gu Zhiyan you've met, her father and my mother are friends."

Jiang Lai nodded slightly; the person she bumped into at the café today was Gu Yinxue.

That was unexpected for her.

Gu Yinxue and Gu Zhiyan look nothing alike; probably one takes after their father, the other after their mother.

Gu Yinxue watched Ke Zhongyu and the woman's intimate pose, her smile froze slightly, then returned to normal the next second.

"Zhongyu, you introduced me, but you won't introduce her to me?"

"My girlfriend, Jiang Lai." Ke Zhongyu's tone rose slightly at the end, his deep eyes flashing with a hint of starlight.

Jiang Lai gave Gu Yinxue a slight nod.

Gu Yinxue was momentarily speechless, her scrutinizing gaze wanting to sweep Jiang Lai from head to toe.

Is this the Jiang Lai her brother mentioned?

The woman who made Lin Shutong's boyfriend transfer his affection?

The woman who made Ke Zhongyu look at her differently and call her his girlfriend?

Suddenly, Ke Zhongyu stepped in front of Jiang Lai, blocking Gu Yinxue's assessing gaze, his tone cool: "Looking good?"

Gu Yinxue withdrew her gaze.

She admitted, Jiang Lai is indeed good-looking, not the alluring gentle type, nor the pure sweet type.

Her brows and eyes are clean and clear, cool but not arrogant, light but not aloof, like a magnolia growing by the water; her attire looks refined and captivating.

After all the thinking, she never imagined that a cold, sharp-tongued man like Ke Zhongyu would like a woman similar to herself; everyone guessed he'd prefer someone with the opposite personality.

Looking at it this way, Jiang Lai doesn't resemble her father either.

Her father is a kind father.

Only from a certain angle, carefully examining Jiang Lai's brows and eyes, would one notice a resemblance.

For a moment, Gu Yinxue didn't know whether to feel relieved, perhaps her own suspicions made her think the woman before her was related to her father, or to feel sad that Ke Zhongyu already had a girlfriend.

Ms. Nian saw Gu Yinxue's mood was off and immediately said: "Yinxue, hungry? Let's go eat first."

"Okay, Nian Aunt." Gu Yinxue instinctively wanted to link arms with Ms. Nian; every time she went to the Nian Family for New Year visits, she naturally linked arms with Ms. Nian to head to the dining table.

But this time, Ms. Nian turned and waved at Jiang Lai, and she couldn't force herself to link arms.

Just as Ms. Nian was about to take Jiang Lai's hand, Ke Zhongyu swiftly grabbed Jiang Lai's wrist and pulled her to the table.

Ms. Nian: "?"

Guarding against her?

She's not only female, she's the birth mother!

Ke Zhongying laughed beside them: "Mom, you're still being mild; I'm wrong just standing next to Jiang Lai Sis, my brother keeps picking on me, just trying to ruin my reputation in front of Jiang Lai Sis."

Ms. Nian: "..."

"Yinxue, go eat." She hurried off to attend to the guests.

Ke Zhongying also said: "Yinxue Sis, let's go; Mom and Dad had the kitchen make the dishes you like."

Guests are guests; we can't neglect them.

The older brother is busy entertaining the girlfriend he barely managed to trick into staying for a day, so she's in charge of properly hosting Gu Yinxue, this distant guest.

Jiang Lai, whose wrist was pulled by Ke Zhongyu, felt a bit dazed; the warmth on her wrist was hot, like a heated warm pack pressed against her through her clothes.

"Sit here." Ke Zhongyu pulled out a chair, letting Jiang Lai sit in his usual spot.

Ke Fu saw this scene and nodded with relief.

His son inherited this trait from him.

Those who love their wives prosper.

The Ke Clan will reach greater heights in his son's hands.

Gu Yinxue stared unblinkingly at the two sitting side by side, feeling uneasy inside.

At the Nian Family, someone deliberately placed her seat next to Ke Yinxiu together, but Ke Zhongyu could move the chair himself.

Jiang Lai noticed Gu Yinxue's gaze toward her; it wasn't unfriendly, but it felt odd.

"Sir, Madam, Miss, Young Master, Young Mistress… Jiang Miss, Gu Miss, the dishes are ready." The server said, turned, and lightly tapped his own mouth.

Everyone said not to scare Miss Jiang.

Jiang Lai didn't hear that "Young Mistress" remark, but she saw several dishes from her hometown on the table.

Her first reaction was to look at Ke Zhongying.

Ke Zhongyu raised his hand, pinched her chin, gently turned it, making her look at him.

Then he let go.

"Those few dishes I told the kitchen about."

So, look at me.

Look at what, Ke Zhongying?

Jiang Lai's beautiful eyes widened in surprise at how he knew what she had just been thinking.

Ke Zhongyu thought: As soon as the dishes arrived, you'd first notice those few dishes, then show a delighted expression, quickly glance at Ke Zhongying opposite—aren't you just wondering if she told the kitchen to make them?

Jiang Lai blinked: "Thank you, Ke……Zhongyu."

"Hn." The man added another barely noticeable trailing tone.

Ke Zhongying almost had her teeth sweetened by the two's tiny interaction, asking: "Brother, how do you know Jiang Lai Sis likes these dishes? And there's spicy chicken."

Ke Zhongyu: "She's from G Province."

"G Province?" Gu Yinxue quickly caught the keyword.

"Hm?" Ms. Nian was also surprised; she didn't know Jiang Lai was from G Province. "How coincidental, Gu Yinxue was born in G Province."

Jiang Lai looked at Gu Yinxue and said her height fit the common stereotype of southerners.

Gu Yinxue smiled, "It seems I and Jiang Lai are fated, but I was only born in G Province and I don't like spicy food."

Ke Zhongyu: "I didn't let you eat."

Everyone: "……"

That's enough; they're a guest!

A guest!

Ms. Nian looked at her son and, with her eyes, said: "Give Mom some face, little brat."

Ke Fu glared at his son, then said to Jiang Lai, "You intervene and make him shut up."

Jiang Lai: "……"

That was quite a dilemma for her.

She lifted her eyes to look at Ke Zhongyu, wanting to ask what to do.

Ke Zhongyu: "Hmm, I'll shut up."

Their speech and demeanor were so natural that Jiang Lai began to suspect they had been together for years, let alone Gu Yinxue.

Without holding hands or kissing, Gu Yinxue didn't doubt their couple relationship at all.

Only Ke Zhongying clicked her tongue inwardly, feeling that without Jiang Lai's sister's scolding, her brother could train himself into Jiang Lai's sister's dog.

Since Ke Zhongyu stopped speaking, the dining table became harmonious. Gu Yinxue raised her glass to Jiang Lai and said, "Sorry for startling you at the café today; I'm a photographer, and I thought you would make a great model, so I wanted to keep your name and contact info to invite you to model for me in my work."

"Especially your eyes, your gaze—it speaks, it has the story feel I want."

So that's how it is.

Jiang Lai clinked glasses with her but said, "Sorry, I don't like being photographed."

"No problem; if you ever change your mind, I'm always welcome."

With that, Gu Yinxue didn't bring up any more topics.

Jiang Lai suddenly understood Secretary Cen's remark: Gu Yinxue controls the boundaries in conversation well, never giving people reason to overthink or dislike her, so naturally no one offends her.

But it was strange.

She looked at Gu Yinxue, and Gu Yinxue looked at her, and there was an inexplicable oddness.

After the meal.

Ms. Nian chatted with Gu Yinxue a while longer, asking about her parents.

Gu Yinxue said, "Dad is busy with the company, Mom is busy with the foundation, and both are in good health."

Ms. Nian said, "That's good."

When it was about time, Ms. Nian said, "It's getting late, auntie can't keep you, I'll have the driver take you home; you need to sleep on schedule, your body can't stay up late."

"Okay, auntie, goodbye." Gu Yinxue said goodbye to everyone, and before leaving handed a business card to Jiang Lai.

To avoid awkwardness, Jiang Lai reached out and took it.

After seeing Gu Yinxue off, Jiang Lai, on a whim, asked, "What's wrong with Miss Gu's health?"

Ms. Nian: "Congenital heart disease, not severe; with regular routine and no stress, everything's fine."

After moving a short distance away from the Ke Family, Gu Yinxue opened the chat window with Lin Shutong.

"I met a very resourceful woman at the Ke Family, named Jiang Lai."

When the word "resourceful" appeared, Lin Shutong realized Gu Yinxue was on his side and immediately called.

"It's a bit late, I need to rest, it's not convenient to talk much, let's discuss when we meet."

……

Ke Family.

Ke Zhongying knowingly asked, "Brother, why did you stop speaking?"

Ke Zhongyu sat on the sofa, dignified yet a bit lazy, his eyelids slightly lifted as he looked at Jiang Lai.

Immediately, everyone turned to look at Jiang Lai.

On the day Jiang Lai faced the media cameras, she was never this nervous under the public's gaze.

She looked at Ke Zhongyu and said, "You can speak now."

"If no one brings it up, you'd probably just forget that I even exist," Ke Zhongyu said, teasing her.

Jiang Lai: "……Maybe you should just shut up."

Ke Zhongyu: "."

"Hahahahahahaha……" Ke Zhongying finally could laugh out loud.

Laughter and joy echoed through the Ke Family.

As it grew later, Jiang Lai yawned; Ke Zhongyu, seeing this, pulled her up and said, "Dad, Mom, let's go back first."

The next second, with a cold face, he said to Ke Zhongying, "Stay at home and be obedient."

Ke Zhongying: "Oh."

She didn't even say she was going back to Nanshan Shu Jiuhao with Sister Jiang Lai!

Jiang Lai looked at Ke Zhongying's aggrieved expression, reached out and patted her head, "Good night."

"Good night." Ke Zhongying smiled warmly and waved.

Ke Zhongyu pulled Jiang Lai out, not wanting her to stay with Ke Zhongying for a moment.

Jiang Lai was somewhat immersed in the atmosphere of the Ke Family tonight, a feeling she had never experienced before.

When her mentor was alive he was too busy, so she rarely went to Cui Zhai with him; after the mentor passed, she often visited the teacher's mother, which was warm, but still different from the feeling at the Ke Family.

Ke Zhongyu's father was rather silent, yet could instantly sense Ms. Nian's emotional shifts and needs; Ms. Nian was gentle and dignified, occasionally a bit playful, and Ke Zhongying probably inherited that trait from her mother.

Chongying constantly argues with her brother; the two siblings go back and forth, yet they have never actually raised their voices at each other.

As for Ke Zhongyu…

Jiang Lai turned her head toward the man beside her; although he was clearly looking at his phone, the moment she lifted her gaze, he first let out a questioning "Hmm?"

Then he raised his eyes toward her and set the phone down.

Jiang Lai gently shook her head.

Ke Zhongyu said, "Chi Ce mentioned the Medical Hall has developed a series of herbal milk teas and wants to use you as a guinea pig."

Jiang Lai couldn't help but wonder, "Is that Doctor Chi's exact wording?"

"Read it yourself." Ke Zhongyu held his phone motionless, deliberately forcing her to lean over.