Chapter 261 Zhou Mo

"I'm fine. I'm not tired at all, even in the carriage. Are you hungry?"

Jiang Zhi rubbed his stomach and laughed, "I'm actually a little hungry. By the way, let me introduce you. This is Zhou Mo, our classmate from the academy. His talent is no less than mine or my second brother's. He's a rare talent, and I think he'll definitely be the top scholar this time."

The man named Zhou Mo quickly waved his hand modestly and said, "Brother Zhi, you flatter me. This year's top scholar will definitely be one of the two of you."

Jiang Mi took a serious look at the person and realized that it was the same man in blue robes she had met at the academy that day. What a coincidence!

"Hello, I've heard so much about you."

Zhou Mo seemed to recognize Jiang Mi as well, but he didn't say anything, just nodded: "Me too, I've heard so much about you."

Jiang Zhi smiled and said, "We often talk about having a very capable younger sister at the academy, so they all know about it. By the way, Brother Zhou, why don't you come back with us and have a meal at our house?"

On the weekend, he shook his head: "No, my elderly mother is waiting for me to come home for dinner. Maybe next time."

Jiang Zhi shrugged regretfully and didn't insist on keeping him. Jiang Xuan simply told him to be careful on the road before getting into the carriage with Jiang Mi.

"Jiang Zhi, you seem quite enthusiastic about this Zhou Mo," Jiang Xuan said in the car.

Jiang Zhi looked at him with a puzzled expression: "What's wrong? Although Zhou Mo is a man of few words and quite aloof, he is indeed very talented. I discussed a few issues with him before, and his insights were very unique. His thoughts are also quite different from ours, but I have learned a lot from him."

Jiang Xuan frowned: "It's hard to say. I just feel like something's not right. Maybe it's because of his personality."

Jiang Zhi thought for a moment and said, "I heard that his family was very poor, and it was really not easy for him to get to where he is today. He only has an elderly mother at home, and it is all thanks to his mother doing needlework day and night that he has achieved what he has today. I think this is also the reason for his personality."

Jiang Xuan nodded: "That should be part of the reason, but you and I both come from poor families, so it shouldn't be like this, right? Besides, he always seems very strange in his speech and actions, but he is different in front of the Emperor. He is obviously a very good at pretending. We should not deliberately stay away from him, but we should not get too close to him either."

Jiang Zhi had no objections. He would listen to whatever Jiang Xuan said, since he didn't have much affection for Zhou Mo anyway.

Jiang Mi asked curiously, "Really? He seems quite normal in his speech and actions, I didn't notice anything else. But I saw him once when I went to the academy with you guys before. So he is Zhou Mo. Although our family was very poor before, our family was very warm and happy. Everyone was very nice, which is naturally different from Zhou Mo."

Jiang Zhi agreed, saying, "Honey is right. Zhou Mo is probably suffering because he lost his father. These days, aren't people all bullies who prey on the weak? They're orphans and widows, so they must have been bullied a lot."

Jiang Xuan was silent for a moment, then said, "Alright, stop talking about an outsider. As for you, why did you answer the Emperor like that today? You clearly knew what the Emperor wanted to hear, but you insisted on going in a roundabout way."

Jiang Zhi shrugged and said nonchalantly, "I don't want our family to be in the limelight. People outside would be so envious. Besides, I don't have much ambition to be the top scholar. I'd be very satisfied if I could be in the top three."

Jiang Xuan understood Jiang Zhi's meaning. He only wanted to enter the court and become an official. Becoming the top scholar would be too prestigious. If the two brothers from the Jiang family were to compete for the top scholar title, outsiders would probably consider them as rivals.

Jiang Mi didn't care about any of that; no matter what her two brothers were like, they were the same in her heart.

The three of them went back and had a good meal, after which Jiang Mi told them about her plans.

"I'm planning to rent a shop nearby to sell soap. Business might not be very good at first, but I'll take it slowly and treat it as a trial run."

"Scented soap?" The Jiang family all knew that Jiang Mi had made scented soap. It smelled nice and was indeed better than soapberries. However, since they were all men, they naturally wouldn't use such a thing, otherwise they would feel uncomfortable all over.

If you make yourself smell nice from head to toe, you're bound to be ridiculed as a woman.

"Yes, I even went to check out the soap shops in the capital. Their best soaps are not as good as mine. Once my soaps are released, they will surely attract some people. Even if they can't surpass the biggest soap shops, they won't be too bad."

"I thought you wanted to open a restaurant," Jiang Xuan said. He clearly remembered Jiang Mi looking at restaurants before, so why did she want to open a soap shop now?

"I had the same idea, but there are so many restaurants in the capital. I'm not sure what everyone is thinking. What if we spend so much money to buy one, but then fail to run it well? That would be a loss."

Jiang Xuan and Jiang Zhi exchanged a glance and said, "There's something you can't manage? I thought you were good at everything, but I didn't expect you to have things to worry about. But don't worry, once your third brother and I have some official positions, we can help you out."

Jiang Mi smiled but didn't take it to heart. Honest officials like her two older brothers only earned enough to support their families, so how could they possibly have any extra money? Besides, Jiang Mi didn't intend to take their money.

"It's alright, I'm not in a hurry. As long as we have the skills, why worry about not having opportunities in the future? You don't need to worry about my affairs. By the way, when will the list be released?"

"It will be in three days, which is soon. We won't go to the academy these few days; we'll just accompany you to look at the shops. Since we came here, my second brother and I have been busy studying and haven't had time to spend with you. We'll take advantage of these few precious days to play with you or do other things."

Jiang Mi was about to refuse, as she was used to handling these things on her own. However, since Jiang Xuan and Jiang Zhi were so enthusiastic, she couldn't very well refuse their kindness.

"That's fine then. Go and take a look at the shop I want to rent tomorrow."

Jiang Xuan was a little worried: "If we only rent and don't buy, won't there be problems later?"

Jiang Zhi put his arm around his shoulder, patted him, and said, "Do you think you know more about this than Honey? Don't worry about the reasons, just listen to Honey. She can do whatever she wants."

Jiang Mi had her worries, but she was even more concerned that if she didn't do well after buying the shop, she would lose even more money. After all, this was the capital city, and it was better to be cautious.