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In less than half an hour of sitting down, Jiang Chenyi’s words had already given the Lu family a collective heart attack.
The couple exchanged glances with both frowning and a hint of barely concealed panic in their eyes.
Mrs. Lu sensed something was wrong and suddenly burst into tears. "Child, don’t you trust us?"
Mr. Lu was about to echo his wife’s words when he heard a loud and clear response: "That’s right."
Jiang Chenyi’s lips curled into a smile with his pupils reflecting the figures of the three.
If someone were to observe Jiang Chenyi’s pupils up close, they would notice that the reflections of the three figures were surrounded by a dark gray aura.
Mr. Lu was genuinely angry now.
He couldn’t understand why his biological son would think this way.
He slammed the table and stood up in fury. "We are your biological parents and the people you should trust the most in this world!"
While Mr. Lu was aggressive, Mrs. Lu continued to cry pitifully, acting as though her heart had been broken by her own son.
Jiang Chenyi sighed.
Just as they thought he might be admitting his mistake, he said, "The good cop, bad cop routine doesn’t work on me. We have no emotional connection, so this act is just awkward."
After saying this, he turned to Mr. Lu. "Not only are your words laughable, but your anger is also fake. Don’t you realize how poorly you’re acting?"
Besides, how could there be any trust after twenty-two years of no contact?
Mr. and Mrs. Lu felt another pang in their hearts.
How could their child speak like this!
Mrs. Lu’s tears stopped.
She stared at the young man for a moment and confirmed that there was not a trace of familial affection in his eyes.
She wiped her tears and put on a cold, hurt expression. "You know you’re not our biological child, don’t you?"
Without waiting for Jiang Chenyi to respond, she continued, "You’ve been found by your biological parents, yet you feel nothing. Did your adoptive father say something to you when you were young?"
That’s it!
Mr. Lu suddenly realized that his biological son’s calm demeanor was likely the result of brainwashing by his adoptive father.
Otherwise, any normal person would feel at least some surprise upon meeting their biological parents!
And their family was so wealthy!
"Did he tell you we abandoned you on purpose?" he ventured a guess.
The more he thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
He began to interpret Jiang Chenyi’s indifference as a protective shell to mask his pain.
Fortunately, Jiang Chenyi didn’t know what he was thinking, or he would have been utterly exasperated.
The other party believed they had seen through Jiang Chenyi’s heart and pretended to be deeply pained as they recounted the events of that time.
"It really wasn’t our fault. The nurse accidentally mixed up the babies, which led to you being swapped for so many years."
As Father Lu spoke, tears actually welled up in the corners of his eyes as if he had touched upon a deeply sorrowful memory.
Mother Lu pursed her lips then turned her head away, and occasionally wiped her tears with a tissue while her shoulders trembled slightly.
Lu Jingan also joined in the sorrow and condemned Jiang Chenyi in a nauseating tone, "Brother, how can you blame Mom and Dad? You have no idea how much they’ve suffered for you!"
His eyes were red and he looked pitifully aggrieved on behalf of his parents.
This demeanor only made Father and Mother Lu cherish Lu Jingan even more, and thinking to themselves that the child they raised truly had a conscience.
Seeing them like this, Jiang Chenyi let out a deep sigh.
Under their expectant gazes, he withdrew the smile from his face and coldly stared at the three people before him.
"I’ve had enough of your acting. It seems that if I don’t make things clear, you’ll continue with this insincere performance."
He crossed his arms over his chest before he leaned back, and uttered a sentence that left all three of them stunned.
"My father—oh, the man you call my adoptive father—took me to find you after I finished my middle school entrance exam at 15."
At that time, they had already met once.
"Coincidentally, our meeting place was at the hospital. It was because this one…" He pointed at Lu Jingan, whose pupils were trembling and continued, "needed a blood transfusion due to an injury, so you already knew back then that he wasn’t your biological son."
Since you knew, why did it take until now to come looking for me?
Lu Feiyun was immediately rendered speechless as he was unable to explain his words, and even felt a hint of resentment in his heart: Why did this child come looking for us at 15?
"Because… it was hard to find you. Mom and Dad have been searching for you until now. How can you doubt their feelings for you?" Lu Jingan quickly regained his composure and found a reason for them.
Father and Mother Lu hurriedly nodded in agreement, "Yes, yes, that’s exactly it!"
But before the Lu couple could breathe a sigh of relief, his next sentence was the real killer.
"Our second meeting was a month after the hospital encounter. You came looking for me but thinking that I knew nothing, and deliberately 'bumped into' me in a small park."
He emphasized the word "bumped" heavily.
Jiang Chenyi raised a mocking smile, "I was quite mischievous back then because I pretended to be clueless to see if you’d take a foolish son back."
And then? There was no "then"!
If the Lu family hadn’t been so picky, he would have been in Rong Province instead of Huacheng by now.
Jiang Chenyi shook his head, "You thought I knew nothing but in reality, I knew everything."
Those who treat others as fools are usually the biggest fools themselves.
Besides, this couple’s blatant favoritism was never hidden.
If you wanted to acknowledge your biological son, at least put on a show!
After saying this, Jiang Chenyi spread his hands and repeated his earlier question: "So, what exactly do you want from me?"
If there’s something to say, just say it because watching them continue to act like this was making him sick.
'Unwarranted kindness is either deceit or theft!' He understood this principle well.
Father Lu and Mother Lu’s expressions turned extremely unpleasant.
Father Lu’s hand on the table trembled slightly.
How does this kid know everything?
Seeing their silence, Jiang Chenyi wasn’t disappointed. He had already been thoroughly disillusioned with them by the age of 15.
He stood up from his seat: "Since you’re not saying anything, then there’s nothing more to discuss."
After saying this, he strode toward the exit.
"Wait!" Seeing him about to leave, Mother Lu quickly called out.
She dropped the act as her face was cold as she said, "I’m your mother. Even if I didn’t acknowledge you back then, I’m still the one who gave birth to you."
So, you owe me by default.
She laid out her purpose for coming: "Xiao An’s health is too poor. The family needs you to arrange a marriage alliance."
Jiang Chenyi: O_o???
He wondered if his ears were playing tricks on him, because it sounded like a pile of nonsense was being spoken.
When he didn’t respond, Mother Lu continued, "We won’t treat you unfairly. You’ll get a portion of the family’s assets but you’ll have to comply with your fianc├йe and not resist her."
"To be precise, you’ll be marrying into her family."
It had been a long time since Jiang Chenyi felt this level of speechlessness.
Their ability to daydream was truly unmatched.
"I refuse."
Mother Lu didn’t take his words seriously and just assumed that the kid simply didn’t know how much wealth the family had.
"We can’t give you company shares, but we can give you real estate and the family’s cash and gold. We’ll prepare a 50 million 'dowry' for you, enough to ensure you’re set for life."
Fifty million—this wasn’t just a life-changing sum for an ordinary person living in a third- or fourth-tier city.
Even a high-earning professional in a first-tier metropolis would be tempted by such a fortune.
After saying this, Mother Lu wore a confident and assured smile because she was certain that no one would refuse such an offer.
"I refuse."
Jiang Chenyi didn’t hesitate as he rejected it a second time.
Mother Lu’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Fifty million isn’t enough for you? Don’t be too greedy!"
Jiang Chenyi met her gaze for a moment then pulled out his phone and tapped a few times. He counted the numbers on his account: "Ones, tens, hundreds… millions, tens of millions, hundreds of millions…"
"Ah…" He squinted happily while silently thanking his father and dad for the fortune they’d left him.
"If you want a marriage alliance, let the child you raised go. I don’t care about your identity as my biological parents, nor do I care about that money."
He put his phone away and waved at the three of them: "Let’s not keep in touch anymore. A father who’s not a father, a son who’s not a son—you’ve stopped being human, but I still plan to be one."
Under their stunned gazes, he turned and left with a smile.
After he left, the atmosphere in the room grew tense.
Mother Lu’s face still bore a look of shock with her mind racing as she wondered why Jiang Chenyi was completely indifferent to the money.
Father Lu was visibly furious just looking at his face turning ashen with his one hand clutching his chest.
Among those present, Lu Jingan was the most anxious and flustered.
Because if they couldn't resolve the issue with Jiang Chenyi, in six months, he would have to marry a woman who was fat, old, and ugly!
Recalling some of the information he had gathered about that woman's methods, his frail body couldn't help but shiver.
No, he absolutely couldn't marry into her family!
"Dad, Mom... he's gone. What should we do now?"
Lu Feiyun furrowed his brows deeply and after a long pause, finally said, "He probably doesn't believe we have that much money. Once he actually sees the 50 million, he won't be able to resist the temptation."
So, they might as well show him the money first.
"You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a child. If he still has doubts, we can give him a portion first."
For example, maybe 10 million?
10 million?
Lu Jingan's eyes flickered.
He didn't even have 10 million himself, so why should he give that person 10 million?
However, he only dared to complain in his heart and did not voice it out loud.
He could tell that although his parents didn't have much affection for that person, they still felt a bit of guilt.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have added an extra 10 million to the originally agreed 40 million.
Of course, the main reason was that the 50 million paled in comparison to the importance of a successful marriage alliance.
As long as the marriage alliance succeeded, his father could take over that family's business, and the company could secure that huge overseas market.
At that point, forget 50 million, even 5 billion would be within reach!
Thinking of this, the frustration in his heart instantly vanished.
Even if they really gave that person 50 million, he would have the money but not the life to spend it.