Upon learning that Grace Bennett now had a small business and had made quite a bit of money, Grace Bennett's mother was so excited she nearly burst into tears on the spot.

Grace Bennett's father, although still wearing his poker face, clearly looked at Grace Bennett with softer eyes, tinged with a bit of relief and pride.

That evening, Grace Bennett's mother cooked a table full of delicious dishes and kept all the guests to stay for dinner.

His father opened a treasured bottle of Wuliangye, a bottle he had bought ten years ago. Now that the factory had gone bankrupt, his father had even sold his Passat to pay off debts and could no longer afford such a luxury.

"Uncle, little uncle, let me walk you out," said Grace Bennett as he saw his two uncles off after the meal.

"No need, no need, I didn't drink much. I'm just happy that my nephew has achieved so much!" the elder uncle said simply.

"And your money..."

"No rush to use it," the elder uncle said. "Your business is just getting started, and this is when you need money the most. If you have to pay someone back, pay your Uncle Foster first. Your little uncle and I aren't in a hurry. Remember, we're family."

Grace Bennett was deeply moved. He secretly decided that no matter what, he could never let his two uncles down in this life.

"Alright then, I'll pay back Uncle Foster first, and uncles, I'll return your money in a few more days."

George Foster blinked and quickly did some calculations in his mind. "Grace Bennett, your dad and I have been friends for years. I watched you grow up. How about letting me invest in your website?"

Grace Bennett sneered inwardly. George Foster wanted to buy into Sky Eye and get dividends? What a daydream. Back when you were chasing my parents for debts, you sure didn't talk like this.

So, Grace Bennett politely refused, took back the IOU and tore it up, transferred three hundred thousand yuan in cash into his account, and from then on, they were even—each going their own way.

When Grace Bennett looked back, he found that his younger aunt's husband had already slipped away, probably too embarrassed to stay any longer.

At the dinner table, the elder uncle had given him a hard time. The fact that he lasted this long already showed he had a pretty strong will.

……

After staying at home for two nights, Grace Bennett took the high-speed train back to Hudu.

Nowadays, high-speed trains are getting busier and busier, and Grace Bennett couldn't even get a second-class ticket.

He remembered what the Didi driver said that day, gritted his teeth, and bought a business class ticket.

A second-class ticket was only 279 yuan, but business class was a whopping 889 yuan—three times as expensive.

But as soon as Grace Bennett poked his head into the business class carriage, he immediately realized the money was well spent.

The dark red leather seats were almost as good as the high-end massage chairs in shopping malls that cost tens of thousands.

Spacious and comfortable, the seat could recline completely flat, and there was an LCD TV hidden in the left armrest.

A beautiful attendant brought Grace Bennett a blanket and slippers, and if he got hungry, there were free snacks.

Grace Bennett sat down comfortably, took out his laptop from his backpack, and started coding, continuing to improve the functions of Sky Eye.

When the train reached Jinling, three people boarded and sat in the row in front of Grace Bennett.

Leading them was a silver-haired scholar in a three-piece suit, accompanied by a young man and woman who seemed to be his students.

The female student was very beautiful, tall, and even more attractive than Julia Cooper's dorm's beauty, Sophie King. Plus, she had short hair and a bright, sunny smile—the sporty type that Grace Bennett liked best.

Grace Bennett glanced up at them for a moment, then buried himself back in his work, fingers flying over the keyboard, the keys clattering away.

After a while, Grace Bennett felt his eyes getting sore, so he stood up to stretch. The business class was so spacious he could do the splits if he wanted.

Looking ahead, he saw the elderly man in the three-piece suit was also coding, with his two students flanking him on either side.

"Is he writing an artificial intelligence program?" Grace Bennett wondered.

Ever since AlphaGo defeated Lee Chang-ho, artificial intelligence had become a global sensation, with countless investors flocking to it. It was the most cutting-edge research topic in the computer industry.

But this code... was way too basic...

Grace Bennett's smart assistant and smart bot programs were both types of AI, though fairly basic—they could only perform simple tasks according to logical definitions.

But what this man was writing was even more basic than Grace Bennett's assistant—not even at the beginner level.

"Could this really be the current state of AI on Earth?" Grace Bennett thought.

The knowledge in his mind came from a cosmic civilization, while Earth's civilization hadn't even left the solar system yet. The gap between the two was like heaven and earth.

After receiving the knowledge base of a cosmic civilization, it was only natural for Grace Bennett to feel that Earth's current knowledge was lagging behind.

"It's like the difference between a horse-drawn carriage and a train," Grace Bennett thought, shaking his head. "At this rate, our journey to the stars and the sea will probably take a very long time."

"I'm going to the restroom."

The silver-haired old man, apparently in a hurry, closed his laptop, handed it to his student, and went to the restroom. When he came out, he happened to pass right by Grace Bennett.

This...