Chapter 452: Dad Never Gave Up Looking for You

"It's the Gu family's affair." Ke Zhongyu didn't hide everything entirely, "I'll let you know the specifics once I've cleared things up on my side."

He lowered his head and kissed the parting of Jiang Lai's hair.

Jiang Lai didn't care about the Gu family's affairs; she shifted her head slightly, slowly closed her eyes, and said, "Tomorrow I need to go to school for a bit; it's nothing major, you don't need to see me off."

Ke Zhongyu lowered his gaze to the person in his arms: "When are you planning to take the driving test subjects two and three?"

Jiang Lai was already feeling drowsy, yawning as she said, "I'll let you know once I've registered."

"Mm." Ke Zhongyu played with her strands of hair, gently winding them around his fingertip, as if tying the red thread of the old matchmaker onto himself.

Jiang Lai knew that Ke Zhongyu's real purpose in asking this was to buy her a car; last time in B City they had gone to look at cars.

Just send it then.

Because she was also considering buying him a sports car, she saw that Ke Zhongyu not only liked astronomy but also enjoyed racing, and she herself quite liked watching him race.

She superficially thought that she found Ke Zhongyu handsome when he raced, and even more handsome in racing gear.

To the extent that she dreamed that night of following Ke Zhongyu racing on a mountain road, and when she opened her eyes the next day, the first thing he said turned into: "You have to teach me to race."

Ke Zhongyu froze for a moment, raised his lips in agreement, then asked how she would think of learning that.

Jiang Lai spoke of the dream she had last night.

Ke Zhongyu listened seriously to her narration, his black pupils shining like obsidian, fixed on Jiang Lai.

Jiang Lai couldn't bear his gaze, instinctively raised her hand, pressed her palm against one side of Ke Zhongyu's cheek, gave a gentle push, and told him: "Don't look."

Ke Zhongyu would each time tilt his head to kiss her palm, and Jiang Lai would then loosen her grip and go do something else.

Every time in such moments Ke Zhongyu would see Jiang Lai's ears silently turning red, which was his happiest moment.

After breakfast, Jiang Lai headed to A Da.

The dean handed her an invitation letter, and at the same time asked: "You haven't opened your mailbox lately, have you?"

Jiang Lai startled a bit, nodded: "These past few days I've been slacking off."

The principal, however, laughed and shook his head: "It's rest; people aren't made of iron, you can't keep turning nonstop. Originally I wanted to ask if you'd like to adjust your classes last time, but you came yourself."

Jiang Lai had already opened the invitation letter; an international academic conference to be held in June in the capital of M Country.

On the invitation letter, Jiang Lai's name appeared conspicuously.

She looked slightly shocked at the principal.

The principal raised his hand and patted her shoulder, relieved: "It's been less than three months; go get the visa sooner."

"Okay." Jiang Lai took the invitation letter, gave a slight bow to the principal, and the moment she left the principal's office she told this news to the matriarch, Professor Cheng, and the dean's mother.

As for Ke Zhongyu, of course it was said face to face.

Jiang Lai walked out of the school gate, just having put the invitation letter into her bag, when she lifted her eyes she saw Gu Zhiyan standing by the car.

Gu Zhiyan saw Jiang Lai, strode over, but after a few steps hurriedly slowed his pace; his eyes held anxiety and also panic, altogether quite complex.

"Jiang Lai."

Jiang Lai looked at Gu Zhiyan before her, not knowing why he had come to see her again.

Gu Zhiyan got straight to the point: "I know you don't want to see me, but I have a request for you, concerning Dad."

He thought Jiang Lai disliked him and disliked their mother, so she probably didn't dislike their father much; on the day Jiang Lai returned to the Gu household, although she didn't call out "Dad" to her father, she also didn't ignore him, giving him no cold expression or indifferent gaze.

Gu Zhiyan had not heard from his father for four days already.

Uncle Hui also remained in A City, and he wasn't clear about what happened after the father returned.

Jiang Lai, upon hearing Gu Zhiyan say that, also recalled what Ke Zhongyu had said the previous night, naturally linking Gu Sen and the Gu family's mishap together.

"Something happened?" Upon asking that, Jiang Lai instantly felt her mood become complex as well.

Gu Zhiyan's eyes brightened slightly, but soon dimmed again.

"Shall we talk in the car? Or find a quiet place?" Gu Zhiyan asked somewhat cautiously; all his pride and arrogance in front of Jiang Lai had been completely crushed after learning the truth of the abandonment twenty‑eight years ago.

Jiang Lai's feelings toward Gu Sen as a father were relatively complex, but her feelings toward Gu Zhiyan as a brother were ordinary; if she didn't dislike or hate him, only a faint indifference remained.

She didn't want to be alone with Gu Zhiyan.

"I want to find Ke Zhongyu."

"Okay." Gu Zhiyan didn't mind Ke Zhongyu knowing this matter, and moreover Ms. Nian personally called to ask him whether his father had left any words before departing A City.

There was.

This isn't a place to talk; Gu Zhiyan opened the car door and waited for Jiang Lai to get in.

Jiang Lai got in.

The two remained silent all the way, only Gu Zhiyan would occasionally tilt his head to glance at Jiang Lai, his heart churning with various sour, bitter, and spicy feelings.

Jiang Lai paid no heed.

The car stopped at the gate of the Ke Clan for less than a minute, and Ke Zhongyu learned that Gu Zhiyan had sent Jiang Lai back; he looked at Assistant Zhou: "Go down to pick them up."

Jiang Lai comes and goes freely at the Ke Clan, so there's no need to pick her up; besides, Assistant Zhou had been inquiring about the Gu family's affairs since early morning, so he naturally understood the meaning behind Ke Zong's words.

With Assistant Zhou present, Gu Zhiyan entered the Ke Clan smoothly.

He watched as each passing employee greeted Jiang Lai, and she responded with a polite smile.

Everyone here holds Jiang Lai in high respect.

Jiang Lai's every move is also dignified and proper.

Gu Zhiyan's dangling fingers curled slightly; he recalled his past disrespect toward Jiang Lai, and how he had once thought in his heart that she grew up in a poor backwater, her behavior surely coarse, utterly incomparable to Gu Yinxue, who had been raised in the Gu household since childhood.

Nowadays.

He lowered his head in shame.

Jiang Lai caught his motion of lowering his head, said nothing, the next second shifted her gaze, and was the first to walk out when the elevator doors opened, with Assistant Zhou last.

Assistant Zhou said: "Ke Zong is in the tea room."

"Okay." Jiang Lai nodded, headed toward the tea room, with Gu Zhiyan, who was a head taller than her, following step for step behind her.

In the tea room, Jiang Lai again saw the familiar old man's thermos, but she didn't see Ke Zhongyu, who seemed to always drink his white down silver needle without getting tired.

Ke Zhongyu certainly wouldn't use the tea Jiang Lai gave him to entertain guests; he's still a Gu family person.

Before Jiang Lai forgave the Gu family, he shared their hatred of a common enemy.

Ke Zhongyu gave Gu Zhiyan no glance, first looking at Jiang Lai, then at the seat beside himself.

Jiang Lai walked over and sat down.

Gu Zhiyan didn't bother to think whether the two had invited him to sit; he was worried about his father, and again spoke bluntly: "Jiang Lai, I can't contact Dad; Dad made me sign a document before he left, but he wouldn't let me see its contents, only telling Hui Shu; no matter how I asked Hui Shu, Hui Shu said it's not the time yet, I can't be told."

"Four days, four days I haven't had any news from my father, I—" He swallowed the words "Mom" that almost came out, changed to: "I called home, no answer, the reply was also nothing, just Dad being too busy, I don't believe it."

Ke Zhongyu cut to the chase: "What Ms. Song said about it being fine—do you believe that?"

Gu Zhiyan shook his head.

He didn't believe it.

Since learning the truth of the abandonment, in this family, besides father and Hui Shu, he dares not trust anyone.

Especially the sister who secretly stabbed him again and again, and the mother capable of abandoning her own biological daughter.

Their mouths full of lies are cut from the same cloth.

Ke Zhongyu put his arm around Jiang Lai's shoulders, his icy gaze fell on Gu Zhiyan, speaking lightly: "What makes you think Jiang Lai will intervene?"

Gu Zhiyan's eyes suddenly reddened: "Jiang Lai, Dad never gave up looking for you, never."

Jiang Lai, who had been calm, suddenly felt a jolt in her heart, she lifted her eyes to look at Gu Zhiyan.

Gu Zhiyan said earnestly: "I'm telling the truth, Dad never gave up looking for you, but his eyes and ears were covered by family and trusted people around him, who continuously fed him false information for over two years, keeping him in the dark, until I went to G Province and found the driver Wang Peng whom Dad had trusted back then, and learned what happened to you..."

Those two words, any normal person couldn't say them.

Ke Zhongyu and Jiang Lai exchanged a surprised glance, not expecting Gu Zhiyan to already know about the abandonment.

"Sorry." Gu Zhiyan lowered his noble head as the eldest son of the Gu family, speaking with remorse: "Sorry, I'm sorry to you, that person is even more sorry to you, Dad said he's also sorry to you."

"Dad deserves everyone's respect, except he lets you down, but everyone is using him, everyone lets him down."

Gu Zhiyan's eyes were red to an unreasonable extent, and only because he is a man did he not let tears fall.

In his bloodshot eyes lay guilt toward Jiang Lai and worry for his father.

Listening to Gu Zhiyan say her biological father never gave up looking for her, Jiang Lai's chest felt as if struck by something, suddenly cracking open a thin seam.

When Jiang Lai learned she had been abandoned, that faint longing for family affection in her heart had completely sunk into darkness; she actively peeled off and locked away that region of her brain responsible for familial affection.

At this moment, her impenetrable gloom was forcibly squeezed in by a faint light, unexpectedly intruding into this desolate, lifeless corner.

Oh, it turns out not everyone is indifferent to her as an abandoned infant.

Oh, it turns out her biological father had been looking for her, this abandoned infant, for quite a while.

Gu Zhiyan's voice continued to echo in her ears.

"Back then everyone pressed on Dad, not letting him openly search, so he went secretly; his position was inconvenient, so he sent a close driver, but the driver was the old master's man, always deceiving Dad, for over two years they couldn't find anything, everyone advised him to give up..."

"I can't explain it clearly, Jiang Lai; you can go ask Dad yourself, provided you can see him."

"Dad went back after learning all this, and after returning he couldn't be contacted."

"'Hui Shu is watching me, not letting me go back, saying it's Dad's orders, saying going back would be useless and would only add fuel to the fire.' Gu Zhiyan is now so obedient, afraid that he'll act rashly and ignorant as before and mess things up."

Ke Zhongyu passed the tea to Jiang Lai.

Jiang Lai gradually came to her senses, looking at Gu Zhiyan: "You want me to go back and find him?"