Chapter 55
"You want to be an official?"

Ye Shijie was speechless for a moment. Jiang Li's gaze at him was too pure, and even gave him an illusion of clarity. Ye Shijie immediately avoided Jiang Li's gaze and responded by snorting.

In fact, this kind of thing should not be told to her. After all, Jiang Li once regarded their Ye family as an enemy. But for some reason, he felt that Jiang Li was someone he could trust.

"If you have excellent grades in the Imperial College's exam, you can be appointed as an official." Jiang Li said, "But you came here from Xiangyang to be an official. Could it be that your grandmother and her family will move here in the future?"

Ye Shijie was very surprised that Jiang Li could think of this. He said, "Maybe we will move here after things get stable here."

"Moving here has both advantages and disadvantages," Jiang Li said what she was thinking. "If we can gain a firm foothold in the capital, the Ye family will have a good reputation in the future. If one or two of the Ye family members enter the government, the Ye family will be worry-free for a hundred years. However, once we move to the capital, there may be people who are jealous, and the Ye family will be in greater danger."

Ye Shijie stared at her strangely and said, "You think deeply." He knew that Jiang Li had just returned to Yanjing City not long ago. When Jiang Li was sent to the nunnery, Old Madam Ye was so worried that she fell ill. He felt very happy in his heart. After all, Jiang Li was really heartless.

It took Jiang Li eight years to return to the capital, but she seemed to be able to talk about the forces in the capital in detail, as if she knew them very well.

Jiang Li smiled and said, "I am from Yanjing after all."

Ye Shijie said disdainfully: "Are the people in Yanjing City superior to others? Ridiculous."

Knowing that her cousin's hostility towards her would not dissipate for a while, Jiang Li was not angry. She just suddenly thought of something and said, "You need to be recommended to study at the Imperial College. No one in the Ye family is an official in the court. How did you get in?"

Ye Shijie asked: "Why are you asking this?"

Jiang Li felt that Ye Shijie's attitude was a little strange, so she said, "Just curious."

"The second young master of the Right Prime Minister's Mansion recommended me." Ye Shijie finally answered Jiang Li's question.

"Right Prime Minister?" Jiang Li was puzzled. "How are the Ye family and the Right Prime Minister related?"

In fact, the Right Prime Minister of the current dynasty was Jiang Yuanbo's mortal enemy. Right Prime Minister Li Zhongnan rose to prominence in the past few years. In the beginning, Li Zhongnan was promoted by Jiang Yuanbo, but later, for some reason, his power grew. He almost reached the point of competing with Jiang Yuanbo. Jiang Yuanbo regretted it too late and had to confront Li Zhongnan.

Therefore, Jiang Li was very surprised when she heard Ye Shijie mention Li Zhongnan.

"Li Zhongnan's second son, Li Lian, once came to visit relatives near Xiangyang. He was framed and involved in a lawsuit. I happened to pass by and saved him. Later, he learned that I was a member of the Ye family and suggested recommending me to study at the Imperial Academy."

Being able to study in the Imperial Academy was like a pie in the sky for the Ye family. If Ye Shijie could get a job by studying in the Imperial Academy, it would be of great significance to the Ye family. Therefore, Ye Shijie readily agreed to Li Lian's proposal.

Jiang Li felt very strange after hearing what Ye Shijie said. Apart from other things, Li Lian decided to recommend Ye Shijie because he was grateful for his help? Is Li Lian really such a grateful person?
Jiang Li knew that when Shen Yurong was in high spirits after winning the first place in the junior high school entrance examination, she had put in a lot of effort to understand the character of her colleagues in the court in the future. Right Prime Minister Li Zhongnan had two sons. The eldest son was a young talent in everyone's mouth, but the second son Li Lian was clearly a playboy with a lot of evil deeds. Jiang Li instinctively felt that something was wrong when such a playboy played the game of repaying a favor.

Perhaps once you think something is wrong, you will think more deeply about it. Jiang Li suddenly remembered that Liu Zimin, who had troubled Ye Shijie yesterday, was one of Li Lian's friends and was very close to Li Lian. If Li Lian really wanted to repay Ye Shijie, he would not have told Liu Zimin Ye Shijie's name. Liu Zimin knew the relationship between Ye Shijie and Li Lian, so how could he dare to cause trouble for Ye Shijie?

Unless, Li Lian knew that Liu Zimin was causing trouble for Ye Shijie, and even condoned it, or even instructed it.

But why did Li Lian do this?
In just a short moment, Jiang Li had guessed all the possibilities.

Ye Shijie didn't know what Jiang Li was thinking. Seeing Jiang Li in a trance, he asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"Cousin," Jiang Li said sternly, "Li Lian is a man of ill intentions and has a very bad reputation in Yanjing City. If you want to enter the government, it's best not to get involved with him. Otherwise, if you are implicated in the future, it will be fine for you alone, but the Ye family will lose more than it gains."

Ye Shijie's expression became serious, and he asked Jiang Li: "Do you know something?"

What a clever young man, Jiang Li admired him in her heart, but she herself didn't know Li Lian's intentions at the moment, and it was not good to guess randomly. She could only remind him tactfully: "I don't know yet, but I think that with Li Lian's character, he is definitely not such a grateful person, so there may be other reasons for you being recommended to the Imperial College by him. Cousin Ye, you will be the one to shoulder the burden of the Ye family in the future, so you must be careful in everything you say and do. As for people like Li Lian, stay away from them if you can."

"you……"

Without waiting for Ye Shijie to speak, Jiang Li continued, "Liu Zimin and Li Lian are close friends. You have seen Liu Zimin's virtues yesterday. Birds of a feather flock together. Think about it yourself."

Ye Shijie's eyes moved slightly, and Jiang Li knew that he had heard the implication of her words.

"What about you?" Ye Shijie asked, "What are your intentions? Although you said that you did it unintentionally yesterday, our Ye family is most particular about doing business without any debt or overpayment. You helped me, what price do you want me to pay? Do you want to reconcile with the Ye family?"

Tong'er, who was standing aside and serving, almost couldn't help jumping up after hearing this. The young master of the Ye family spoke so harshly, as if Jiang Li was a calculating businessman.

"Why would I ask you to help me reconcile with the Ye family?" Jiang Li smiled indifferently and spread her hands towards Ye Shijie.

Ye Shijie looked at the delicate hand stretched out in front of him. The fingers were as white and tender as the tips of green onions. However... Ye Shijie also saw the calluses between Jiang Li's fingers.

Ye Shijie was stunned, and suddenly thought of Jiang Li who had stayed in the nunnery for eight years. During those eight years, she was a little girl after all, and she had to endure a lot of suffering. He had always been a person with a sharp tongue but a soft heart. No matter how harsh his words were, when he saw these, his heart softened unconsciously.

But I heard Jiang Li's unhurried voice: "Since Cousin Ye insists on saying that I have intentions, Cousin Ye will also feel uneasy if I don't want anything, so please give it to me."

"Give what?" Ye Shijie frowned.

"Silver." Jiang Li said as a matter of course: "One hundred taels of silver. When you do business in the Ye family, you should also be familiar with a term called "silver for goods."

　Hey, it’s April already, happy April Fool’s Day to all my darlings!
　　Spring is so nicen（*≧▽≦*）n
　　
　
(End of this chapter)