Chapter 406: I Have One Billion for You to Spend

After the meal.

Ms. Nian said to Jiang Lai before leaving, "Oh, by the way, if you have any research projects now that need funding, tell me; I have ten hundred million for you to splash."

Jiang Lai: "......"

"I'm leaving," Ms. Nian said, hugging Jiang Lai, "Don't overthink it; you're not only my son's girlfriend, but also my daughter's good friend. Investing in my son's girlfriend and investing in my daughter's good friend is the same."

Jiang Lai said seriously, "Thank you, aunt."

Ms. Nian smiled at her son, "I also thank you."

There are indeed many women eager to marry her son, and many who fancy him, but her son himself is uninterested in women, a total wood block; only when he meets Jiang Lai does he blossom, and life becomes colorful.

Ke Yue whispered to his son nearby, "Gu Zhiyan and the two elders of the Song family have arrived in A City."

Ke Zhongyu lifted his eyes to look at his father.

Ke Yue patted his shoulder, speaking earnestly, "The Gu family wants Jiang Lai's reputation to make their name louder and more influential. The Song family wants more than just a name; they need tangible assets. Whether the Song family becomes a force depends on the lineage of Song Shiwei."

Ke Zhongyu's gaze darkened slightly, "I will handle it."

Ke Yue: "You need to discuss with Jiang Lai and solve it together; when you are together, you're not one person, but two."

Ke Zhongyu nodded.

Ms. Nian and Ke Yue left; Ke Zhongying stayed, linking Jiang Lai's arm, waving to the parents and saying goodbye, then added, "We ate together today, just me alone; seeing you two so affectionate makes me want to fall in love."

Jiang Lai turned her head, "Do you have someone you like?"

Ke Zhongying shook her head, "No, I haven't met anyone that makes my heart flutter. Probably because my dad and older brother are ahead; it's hard for anyone to impress me. If someone can't impress me, I feel there's no need to date."

As soon as the words fell, her older brother knocked her head.

"What are you doing!" Ke Zhongying exclaimed angrily, turning to complain, "Sister Jiang Lai, you scold him for me!"

Jiang Lai couldn't help but say, "Alright, I'll scold him."

Ke Zhongying: "Scold him right now!"

Jiang Lai looked at the two siblings, truly putting her in a dilemma.

Ke Zhongying, seeing this, began to act shamelessly, "I don't care, you scold him! You can even kick him."

Jiang Lai gave Ke Zhongyu's ankle a kick.

Ke Zhongyu laughed.

Ke Zhongying was furious.

She was thrilled again by her brother; how could she forget that her brother acts like a dog in front of Sister Jiang Lai!

Watching Ke Zhongying sulk into the car, Jiang Lai said to Ke Zhongyu, "Don't bully her so much; Zhongying is twenty‑three, dating is normal. I know you're worried she'll be deceived, but she's not me… hmm."

Ke Zhongyu grabbed her chin, growling, "Stop saying you're not good."

Jiang Lai nodded, and only then did Ke Zhongyu release.

He brought up what his father just said, "Gu Zhiyan and the two elders of the Song family have arrived in A City; they should be looking for you."

Jiang Lai asked puzzled, "Looking for me? Why?"

Ke Zhongyu: "Anyway, it's not about family affection."

Jiang Lai realized, "Then it's about blood ties."

The two exchanged a knowing glance.

Ke Zhongyu: "If you see him, it's up to you; if you don't see me, stop him; if you do see him, I'll go with you."

Jiang Lai currently has no time to think about that; what's important now is a proper nap to have enough energy for the afternoon's solo smart equipment product testing.

Arriving at the Ke household, Jiang Lai flopped onto Ke Zhongyu's lounge, while Ke Zhongyu was about to go out.

"Aren't you taking a nap?"

"Change of location." Ke Zhongyu held the door handle with one hand, saying gravely, "My control hasn't reached a remarkable level yet."

Ke Zhongyu's words grew increasingly blunt and sincere, often leaving Jiang Lai speechless, yet always quickening her heartbeat.

"Ke Zhongyu really is…" Jiang Lai murmured low, then began her nap.

Ke Zhongyu was absent the whole morning; many matters awaited him, so he had no time for a nap.

Besides company affairs, he also had to call the White Tower side.

The one who answered the phone was Ke Guanjia.

"Young Master, I'm checking."

"Do it quickly; investigate everyone who used this IP address during that time slot, without missing anyone," Ke Zhongyu said coldly, "Give me the time slot."

Ke Guanjia: "Before 10 a. m. tomorrow."

Ke Zhongyu: "Mm."

He hung up.

Assistant Zhou knocked and entered, carrying a stack of documents, placing them on Chief Ke's desk, then pushing up his glasses, "Chief Ke, these all need to be dealt with before six p. m. this afternoon."

The piled work didn't make Ke Zhongyu show any difficulty; he calmly signaled Assistant Zhou to step back, sat down again, rolled up his sleeves, leafed through and signed.

So he lost track of time.

At two o'clock, Jiang Lai saw him busy through the crack in the door, didn't go in to disturb, and instead went to the lab for product testing.

The first-level segment test didn't go smoothly; when she looked up, it was already dark.

Professor Cheng said, "We'll do data optimization and retest tomorrow; that's all for today."

Seeing Jiang Lai not move, Professor Cheng sternly said, "Don't be stubborn."

Jiang Lai looked at Professor Cheng and nodded.

When she left the lab, Ke Zhongyu was still there waiting for her.

"Hungry?" Ke Zhongyu asked.

Jiang Lai was surprised his first sentence was that, and asked puzzled, "Why didn't you ask how my product test went?"

Ke Zhongyu gestured for her to check the time: "It's 7 p. m. now, off-work time."

He is Jiang Lai's boyfriend, not the Ke Group's Mr. Ke.

We can discuss work matters tomorrow during office hours; there's plenty of time.

Ke Zhongyu: "The Song elders are waiting for you; they're old, we can't rush them at the front desk, or something might happen."

Jiang Lai's steps paused slightly; it's already 7 p. m., "Are they still waiting?"

Ke Zhongyu nodded.

One can see how troublesome these two old folks are.

"It's fine, I'm right beside you."

Jiang Lai gave a faint smile: "I know."

The two walked into the lobby; the Song elders seated in the reception area heard the commotion and immediately looked over. They had already seen Jiang Lai's photo, and the grandson said that as long as she stood with Ke Zhongyu, that was Jiang Lai.

The two elders didn't rise, just watched Jiang Lai and Ke Zhongyu approach them, then slowly got up.

Song Grandma smiled warmly and said: "Jiang Lai, I'm your grandma, this is your grandpa. We wanted to come to B City to see you, but you're too busy, so we haven't managed to meet yet. Fortunately, your brother is here on business, so we had him bring us over. We didn't disturb you, did we?"

Ke Zhongyu glanced at the two elders; these Song folks are all sharp, somewhat better than the Gu family in that they know to say pleasant things first, seeming caring.

Not striking a smiling face, Jiang Lai gave a slight nod: "Hello."

But she didn't call them "grandpa" and "grandma."

Song Grandpa sized up Jiang Lai; he could see a trace of his daughter in his granddaughter, but he was somewhat dissatisfied that Jiang Lai didn't address them as grandparents.

"Why don't you address them?"

Jiang Lai looked at Song Grandpa: "I'm not used to it."

Song Grandpa: "Then you'd better get used to it quickly; you've already returned to the Gu family."

Jiang Lai: "I'm just going through the motions of returning; I haven't changed my surname."

"What?" Song Grandpa wore an expression of utter outrage: "You are the daughter of Shiwei and Gu Sen; how can you not change your surname to Gu?"

Jiang Lai responded calmly: "I don't want to."

Song Grandpa was about to say more when Song Grandma reached out to stop him, smiling: "I know it's Gu Sen and Shiwei who let you down; back then they didn't think highly of you, leading to the mix‑up, so they're at fault, but we can't blame them entirely, can we? As their daughter, you should also understand their good intentions."

Ke Zhongyu spoke slowly: "Jiang Lai has never been their daughter for even a day, so she can't empathize."

The two elders glanced at the impossible‑to‑ignore Ke Zhongyu; none dared to say he was wrong, so they silently swallowed their resentment.

"You can't say that…" Song Grandma's gaze fell on Jiang Lai again: "I know you're a good child; you certainly wouldn't deny your own kin. Even if this outsider treats you well, it still can't compare to your own family, right?"

Song Grandpa also said: "Nothing is more important than blood relations."

"Is that so?" Jiang Lai replied calmly: "Didn't Mr. and Mrs. Gu tell you that I and Gu Yinxue weren't switched at birth? The saying 'nothing is more important than blood' seems to be the opposite for Mrs. Gu."

The Song grandparents froze on the spot, then pressed for clarification.

"What do you mean?"

"Jiang Lai, what do you mean by that?"

"What do you mean by 'not switched'?"