The Double
Chapter 122 - 122 79 Ostentatious_4

122: Chapter 79: Ostentatious_4 122: Chapter 79: Ostentatious_4 After a while, the men also arrived one after another.

Men and women were seated separately, but ultimately in the same hall.

Northern Yan was different from the previous dynasty; if in public, women did not need to avoid seeing men who were strangers.

Still, there was some shyness, and some of the girls with thinner skins turned their backs, to spare themselves the embarrassment.

Jiang Yuanbai followed by his brother Jiang Yuanping walked over, while Jiang Yuanxing, due to a not very close relationship with the two brothers, appeared somewhat awkward.

Jiang Li caught sight of Ye Shijie.

Ye Shijie had made a name for himself and was destined to enter the civil service soon.

Some of the young aristocrats were making friends with him, and not a few were by his side.

Ye Shijie seemed to get along quite well with them.

Jiang Li breathed a sigh of relief in her heart.

If Miss Jiang the Second had a strong maternal family, it would only be good for her future.

Ye Shijie was in high spirits, and following him was the person who placed second in the Imperial College examination, who originally should have been first but was overtaken by Ye Shijie.

It was the eldest young master from the Right Chancellor’s Residence, Li Jing.

Li Jing was of ordinary appearance, and compared to his younger brother Li Lian, really wasn’t popular with the girls.

But fate is often fair; what Li Jing lacked in looks, he made up for with his brilliant talent.

Where Li Lian was charming and handsome, he turned out to be an indolent playboy.

Li Jing and Li Lian, the two brothers, entered along with the Right Chancellor Li Zhongnan.

Many bold girls also began sizing up the brothers.

After all, the Right Chancellor’s power was growing ever more formidable, almost rivaling the Jiang Family in influence.

If previously the Jiang Family was considered the leader among the civil officials, now this position was precarious due to the Right Chancellor’s rise to power.

Naturally, Li Jing and Li Lian had also become highly sought after.

Jiang Li’s gaze lingered on the Li brothers for only a moment before sliding away.

As far as she was concerned, she had no intention of associating with the Li Family.

Whatever warning she had for Ye Shijie had already been delivered, and it seemed Ye Shijie was doing well, with hardly any interaction with Li Jing and Li Lian.

Clearly, he had heeded her advice.

No matter what the Li Family was plotting, as long as Ye Shijie wasn’t involving himself, it was always a bit safer.

On the Imperial College’s honor roll, Ye Shijie was the top scorer, followed by Li Jing in second place, and naturally, the Heir of Marquis Ningyuan, Zhou Yanbang, in third.

Jiang Li soon saw Zhou Yanbang.

It wasn’t that she wanted to pay attention to Zhou Yanbang, but his gaze upon her was too obvious, overly intense.

If it weren’t for the crowd, it might have already given away their connection.

Jiang Li felt annoyed in her heart; Zhou Yanbang’s behavior was utterly loathsome and extremely uncomfortable.

Others didn’t pay attention to Zhou Yanbang, since although he was a young talent, he was already betrothed.

However, from the moment Zhou Yanbang entered, the Heir of Marquis Ningyuan and Ji Shuran, mother and daughter, had been closely watching his every move.

Seeing Zhou Yanbang immediately search for Jiang Li upon entering, they became anxious.

Madam Ningyuan’s mind buzzed, and she immediately thought it wasn’t good.

Zhou Yanbang wasn’t afraid of being seen and was acting too conspicuously, which was bound to upset Jiang Youyao and displease Ji Shuran.

But Ji Shuran and her daughter were surprisingly filled with hatred, on one hand, detesting Zhou Yanbang’s weak will and easy manipulation, and on the other, resenting Jiang Li, the instigator to the extreme.

If Jiang Li hadn’t seduced him, how could Zhou Yanbang have become so infatuated!

Jiang Li decisively stood up, changed her position, and obscured Zhou Yanbang’s view.

She really didn’t want to have any unclear entanglements with Zhou Yanbang.

After Mingyi Hall’s examination, her reputation had just started to improve, and she didn’t wish to see it destroyed because of Zhou Yanbang.

Zhou Yanbang couldn’t find Jiang Li anymore and was a bit disappointed, but he quickly recovered and continued to be the graceful gentleman, chatting and laughing with others.

Jiang Li finally made her way through the crowd and saw Shen Yurong.

Shen Yurong was clad in his official attire today, which Jiang Li had never seen before.

During the time they were married, Shen Yurong was warm, gentle, and forgiving.

Later, after Mother Shen’s birthday banquet, Jiang Li saw him only occasionally, and at that time, she was full of guilt while Shen Yurong remained silent.

But the current Shen Yurong was vastly different from back then.

He wore the official robe of a Third Rank court official, having risen from an ordinary scholar to prominence in one leap.

It seemed as though the official robe added an endless luster to him.

He still appeared gentle and refined, but in his eyes, there was now a sense of worldliness and maturity.

Jiang Li observed him conversing with his colleagues, who were clearly ingratiating themselves to him while he remained aloof.

For a moment, Jiang Li felt this version of Shen Yurong bore a striking resemblance to Princess Yongning.

Both had the arrogance of thinking themselves above others, looking down on everyone.