Jiang Shuqin picked up the invitation and glanced at it.
A familiar name caught her eye—
Jiang Liangjun.
It was the name of her biological father.
Jiang Shuqin’s hands clenched tightly around the invitation.
Soon, her eyes landed on three words printed clearly on the card: “Recognition Banquet.”
What kind of recognition banquet was this? Who in the Jiang Family was holding it?
Her brow furrowed deeply.
“Now that you have the invitation, I’ll be heading back,” Lin Xuan said as he stood up from the sofa.
“Mr. Lin, I’ll see you out,” Nanny Zhao said, walking alongside him.
Lin Xuan treated Nanny Zhao kindly.
Over the years he’d lived in the Lin Family household, she was the only one who had shown him genuine care.
Back when he was still with the Lin Family, Nanny Zhao would often sneak him money and food.
“Young master,” Nanny Zhao began cautiously, “though the Lin Family are your blood relatives, don’t get too attached to them. Stay as far away as you can, understand?”
She had served the Lin Family for over twenty years and knew their true nature well.
At heart, they were ruthless, profit-driven merchants.
Now that the young master had become successful and returned home, they would swarm him like bloodsuckers.
They’d drain every last drop of his strength, and then, egged on by the second young master’s scheming, they’d turn on him with abuse and hostility.
Though the young ladies now felt guilty toward him, once he stepped back into this household, it wouldn’t be long before their attitude shifted again.
“I know that,” Lin Xuan said, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. “I will never return to the Lin Family.”
After everything he had been through in his past life, how could he be foolish enough to return and offer warmth to a cold shoulder?
Nanny Zhao could see that Lin Xuan truly no longer cared about the Lin Family.
Her eyes grew moist with relief.
“All right, all right, young master. It’s good that you’ve come to your senses.”
Lin Xuan reached into his spatial pocket and pulled out a prescription, handing it to Nanny Zhao.
“What’s this...?” she asked, frowning.
Lin Xuan replied, “Nanny Zhao, I remember your knees have been hurting. This is a prescription—there’s both a topical treatment and medicine to take internally. The instructions are all written on it. You can give it a try.”
“Thank you, young master,” Nanny Zhao smiled warmly as she accepted the prescription.
Lin Xuan stepped outside the villa.
Butler Wang asked, “Young master Lin, do you really think Jiang Shuqin will attend the Jiang Family’s recognition banquet?”
“She definitely will,” Lin Xuan said confidently.
“My words just now planted a seed of doubt in her heart. She feels she shouldn’t have wrongly accused Lin Li, the son she loves most. So she’ll go in person to find out the truth.”
He had initially wanted to send Jiang Shuqin the video.
But no matter how shocking a video might be, seeing things with her own eyes would have a far stronger impact.
Butler Wang nodded. “Looks like Jiang Shuqin will be going for sure.”
“Let’s go. We’ll set off now.”
Lin Xuan reached to open the rear door of the car.
“Young master Lin, wait,” Butler Wang suddenly called out, stopping him.
“What is it?” Lin Xuan asked, frowning.
“Nothing,” Butler Wang shook his head.
Forget it. There was no need to trouble the young master with it now—he would see it for himself soon enough.
Lin Xuan opened the car door and had just settled onto the back seat when he saw Su Hua sitting there, smiling brightly at him.
Lin Xuan nearly slid right off the seat.
He forced himself to stay calm.
“Hua Bao, weren’t you at home? What are you doing here?”
For some reason, whenever Lin Xuan saw Su Hua, he always had a bad feeling—a strong sense of unease.
With a sharp “slam,” Su Hua closed the car door, blocking Butler Wang’s curious gaze.
As for the partition, she had already instructed the driver to lower it.
Now, only Su Hua and Lin Xuan were left in the back seat.
“Ah Xuan,”
Su Hua straddled Lin Xuan’s lap, her soft arms wrapping around his neck.
“I missed you, so I came to find you.”
Her voice was irresistibly seductive.
“Hua Bao,” Lin Xuan’s eyes darted nervously, “I’m going to a banquet tonight and might be out late. Why don’t you go home first? I can have the driver take you back now.”
Being in the same car as Hua Bao always made him feel especially unsafe.
“That’s not urgent,” Su Hua curled her red lips, “It’s still early. I’ll just take you to the family recognition banquet.”
It was about a twenty-minute drive from here to the banquet.
A bit short on time, but if they kept things moderate, it could work.
“Hua Bao, really, you don’t have to send me. The driver can take me there, and there are plenty of people watching out for me. Nothing will happen.”
Right now, the most dangerous thing was the little enchantress sitting right in front of him.
“Oh?”
Su Hua’s gaze suddenly dropped. “Looks like Ah Xuan is tired of me and doesn’t want me by his side.”
Lin Xuan: “!!!”
He was so wronged.
How could he ever be tired of Hua Bao?
Not to mention, did he even dare?
“Hua Bao, I’m not tired of you,” Lin Xuan hurried to explain.
“Well then, Ah Xuan better behave well.”
Su Hua hooked her arms around Lin Xuan’s neck and kissed his lips.
She had wanted to do this since last night, but Ah Xuan came home too late. She wanted him to get a good rest, so she held back all night.
This morning and afternoon, she had been busy with too many things at the company and only got off work in the evening.
Once she knew where Lin Xuan was, she rushed over right after work and sat in the back seat waiting for him to appear.
“Hua Bao, I—”
Lin Xuan tried to say something, but the next second, Su Hua’s tongue intertwined with his, silencing his words before they could escape his throat.
“Don’t speak, just kiss me...” Su Hua whispered seductively.
The temperature in the air rose steadily.
Butler Wang kept his eyes seriously on the road, sitting in the front passenger seat, though his mind drifted to the back seat.
Who knows what Young Master Lin and Miss Su were doing back there?
A man and a woman alone, deeply in love—they probably couldn’t control themselves.
He hoped Miss Su would quickly give birth to Young Master Lin’s child.
Once there was a baby, he could finally hold a little young master or young miss in his arms.
——
At the Jiang Family’s recognition banquet, elegantly dressed guests mingled everywhere, exuding refinement.
Many people raised their glasses in conversation, each appearing polite and cultured.
The Jiang Family made their entrance.
They couldn't help but step forward to curry favor and flatter them.
"Mr. Jiang, you're already in your eighties or nineties, right? Look at you—your complexion is so vibrant and full of life. I truly believe you still have many years ahead of you."
"Mr. Jiang, since you've acknowledged your grandson, will the Jiang Group be handed over to your grandson, or will it go to your granddaughter?"
Logically speaking, the company should be inherited by one of his two granddaughters, Jiang Manting or Jiang Yutong.
But in a family that favors sons over daughters, this vast family fortune might very well be passed down to a male heir.
Moreover, the Jiang Family has no precedent of women inheriting the family business.
So, it's quite possible that the Jiang Group will be entrusted to this grandson.
uu

to panic—he has a system. As long as an investment target dies, he can claim a reward. And since he is immortal, the one thing he has plenty of is time. ... Countless years later. “Immortal Emperor of Longevity? I invested in him.” “Supreme Celestial Venerable? I invested in him.” “Undying Empress? I invested in her.” “...” “Heh. Once they’ve all died, even the Heavenly Dao will have to kneel and call me Dad.”

e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.

his freshman year, Su Bai accidentally bound the "Indulgence Tycoon System." 【Sleeping in? Reward: +$1,000】 【Spent $288 at a street barbecue stall? Cashback: +$2,880】 【Dropped $14,396 on in-game skins? Special reward unlocked: A brand-new Porsche Panamera!】 Luxury cars, penthouses, corporate shares, financial empires… College life was all about living freely and doing whatever he pleased! … When the adorably naive academic genius faced family medical bills and financial struggles, Su Bai waved his hand dismissively: "Your future is on me." "Wuwu~ Big Brother is so good to me! I’ll become a scientist to repay you!" When the genius girl got bullied by a shady professor? Su Bai casually dropped a billion-dollar investment, forcing the university to grovel and beg for her return. A company’s funding chain collapsing? Su Bai smirked—cash was the one thing he’d never run out of. Years later, when people traced the rise of the AI prodigy beauty, who was the man behind her success? Not just that—Su Bai also became the tsundere campus belle’s unattainable dream, the contrast senior’s daily necessity, and the beautiful counselor’s emotional anchor…

m back to his original world. In the end, he realized he had overthought things. [Hey, why is Shen Manni, the female lead, acting strange? Shouldn't she be fawning over the male lead at this point?] [Zhou Qiaoqiao, are you sick? Weren't you supposed to break off your engagement today?] [Damn it! An Youyi, please do your job as an undercover agent and sell my information to the protagonist, you idiot!] ... At this moment, Xu Mo himself didn't know that these female leads had already heard his inner thoughts. Then they decided not to play by the rules. Xu Mo: Please respect my profession as the big villain!