"Yeah, Lili, how did you know all this? That's amazing!"

Lili smiled mysteriously: "Because Lili has knowledge in her head."

The older brothers showered her with praise until she went back to her room before dispersing.

"Mother!"

Inside the house, Madam Yang was tidying up, while Old Man Shen was reading by candlelight.

Lili first ran over and kissed Yang Shi, making Yang Shi laugh, then ran over and sat next to Shen Laosan, curiously looking at the contents of the book.

"When the Great Way prevails, the world belongs to all."

Lili looked at the words on it and felt they were very familiar. After a moment's thought, she realized it was the Book of Rites.

Shen Laosan was shocked: "Li Bao, what did you just say?"

Lili looked puzzled and pointed to the line of text, saying, "This one."

Shen Laosan gasped.

Madam Yang put down what she was holding and quickly walked over: "Li Bao, can you read?"

Lili bit her lip. Oh no, she had completely forgotten that she was only a two-year-old child.

Parents, please let me explain. Do you believe me if I say I was just making things up?

Lili closed her eyes and simply lay down on Shen Laosan: "Oh, I'm so sleepy, Lili is going to sleep."

Shen Laosan and Yang Shi exchanged a glance, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.

After their initial shock, the two felt it was perfectly reasonable.

My daughter is very capable, so what's a little more ability?

So, Mr. Shen, who started learning at the age of six and only learned all the characters by the age of eight, calmly accepted the fact that his two-year-old daughter could read.

Old Shen pinched the little dumpling's cheek as he pretended to be asleep and laughed, "Our Pear Baby is really amazing. She knows so many characters at such a young age. She will definitely achieve great things in the future!"

Lili cautiously opened one eye: "Really?"

Amused by her, Yang suddenly asked her, "Does Li Bao know what this sentence means?"

Shen Laosan looked at her expectantly.

“When the Great Way is practiced, the world belongs to all people,” Lili said. “This statement speaks of an expectation for an ideal society, right?”

Old Shen was genuinely pleasantly surprised; his daughter not only knew how to read, but could also read!

"Wonderful, wonderful, absolutely wonderful!"

I've gotten a wonderful, studious daughter for free!

Lili smiled along with her, inwardly praising herself a thousand times for still remembering high school knowledge.

Lili suddenly asked, "Officials should serve the country and its people, so why is it that in this year of severe drought, the emperor is not providing disaster relief?"

Madam Yang hurriedly said, "Li Bao, you mustn't discuss the Emperor!"

Shen Laosan interrupted Yang Shi, and instead of finding Lili reckless, he chatted with her with great interest.

"His Majesty's current decision to grant amnesty to the world and adjust taxes upon ascending the throne is truly that of a wise ruler."

"Then why are the disaster victims from Xixiang County still fleeing the famine?" Lili asked, puzzled.

From the beginning until now, everyone has told her that the emperor is a wise ruler, so why are the disaster victims fleeing and the prefect acting recklessly?

Under the emperor's nose, how dare a prefect of a county act so presumptuously?

"The country is currently suffering from a severe drought, with Xixiang County being the most severely affected, and even experiencing an earthquake. Even if His Majesty is willing to provide relief, the middlemen will take a cut, so what actually reaches the people is just a drop in the ocean."

Disaster relief is a highly sought-after job, as it brings both a good reputation and easy profits. Countless people have handled it since the capital came here.

Naturally, less of it ends up in the hands of ordinary people.

Madam Yang sighed: "How many of those officials are only concerned with protecting themselves and truly put the interests of the people first?"

Shen Laosan's expression was solemn: "Scholars should take it as their duty to speak out for the people and take loyalty to the emperor and love for the country as their core values."

"One should serve the people and the country, but never act for one's own benefit."

The first half of the sentence is nothing special, but the second half is quite novel.

This was the first time Shen Laosan had heard such a statement: "Oh? What do you mean?"

"Looking far ahead from a high vantage point, one realizes that with great power comes great responsibility. If everyone in office seeks personal gain, then who will speak up for the people?"

"The officialdom is not like the martial arts world; it's no different from a battlefield, and even more treacherous," Shen Laosan said with a smile, shaking his head.

"And what about you, Father?"

Lili asked.

Shen Laosan studied diligently for many years. Since he knew that officialdom was complicated, why did he persist in taking the imperial examinations?

Is it also to take sides and get involved in factional struggles?

Lili seemed to be deep in thought. She didn't understand how it was said in ancient times, but she had watched a lot of TV dramas and read a lot of novels.

Sometimes, being a good official is indeed no easier than being a corrupt one.

Often, a person of integrity is labeled as incapable of being an official.

"When one is in a high position at court, one should worry about the people; when one is in a remote place, one should worry about the ruler. An official should be alone, serving the country and the people. What else is there to fear?"

Lili spoke with conviction. She didn't understand human nature; she only knew that since she had become an official, she had to fulfill the responsibilities of a public servant.

"Father, do you also want to speak up for the people?"

Shen Laosan was somewhat stunned, and Yang Shi was also momentarily dumbfounded.

These words could have come from a scholar, but they came from the mouth of a child like Lili.

Madam Yang murmured, "Li Bao's statement is somewhat similar to that of my grandfather."

"Mother's grandfather? That's Lili's great-grandfather?"

Lili was a little curious. It was one thing for her father, a scholar, to know these things, but her mother's grandfather could also say similar things, which meant that he was also a scholar.

Madam Yang smiled and gently patted Lili's head: "Yes, my grandfather was also educated. I often heard my grandmother say that he was a very talented person. But my mother said that my grandfather did try to take the imperial examinations, but perhaps because the family was not well-off in the past, he never tried again."

Yang showed a hint of regret. Seeing this, Shen Laosan quickly hugged his wife and said, "I'll be able to see them when I go home tomorrow. I'll be going back to the academy in a few days. Tomorrow I'll have a good talk with my grandfather."

Shen Laosan and Yang's grandfather, Old Master Yang, got along very well. Old Master Yang also thought highly of Shen Laosan. Every time he returned to the Yang family, the two would have a drink and talk about poetry.

Madam Yang smiled, patted Shen Laosan's hand, and turned to Lili, saying, "Tomorrow you'll meet your mother's family. Are you excited, Lili?"

"happy!"

Lili had extremely high expectations for this Old Master Yang mentioned by the Yang family.

Having a wealth of knowledge but not taking the imperial examinations—in a place where everyone wants to study and become an official, something just doesn't feel right.

Her intuition told her that there must be an Easter egg in this.

But Lili was also quite worried, since people here must be very particular about bloodlines, right?

She's not her parents' biological child, so won't her mother's family dislike her?

It was rare for Lili to feel insecure. She tugged at Yang's sleeve hesitantly and asked softly, "Mother, will they like my nest?"

Yang was surprised. Looking at the little dumpling tugging at her sleeve shyly, she inexplicably recalled the first day she met her.

Back then, Lili was very thin, with hardly any flesh on her body, and she was all wet and pitiful.