Morax is dead, Liyue will fall into my hands.

Without even thinking, Yun Jin directly rejected Li Ye's suggestion: "Forget it, you should rest more. Rest is more important than anything else."

I've been really looking forward to those novels you mentioned before. I hope you don't collapse from exhaustion before you even finish writing them.

In short, I don't want to see you looking so haggard next time we meet.

Li Ye replied with a hint of doting affection, "Yes~"

Seeing that Li Ye readily agreed, Yun Jin said with satisfaction, "That's right. I'll go downstairs to listen to today's storytelling pieces, and I won't disturb you any longer."

Li Ye quickly stood up and said, "I'll see you off."

"Let's not go." Yun Jin pressed Li Ye back down again, saying, "Otherwise, tomorrow's big news from the 'Wanmin Daily' will be..."

Shocking! Yun Jin, the leading lady of Yunhan Society, has had her mysterious boyfriend revealed! He's not one of the Liyue Seven Stars, nor a noble scion, but...it's him!

Yun Jin: "Pfft~"

Li Ye: "Hahahaha"

The taste was so strong that Yun Jin couldn't help but laugh out loud after she finished speaking.

But just then, Steward Zhang's voice came from outside the door again:

"Boss, a man named Burns claims to represent the 'Northern Bank' and says he wants to discuss a business deal with you."

Chapter 58: The Visitors Are Not Well-Intentioned (2/5)

Upon hearing Manager Zhang's words, Li Ye frowned slightly: "The 'Northern Bank' sent someone to discuss business with me?"

When Yun Jin heard "Northern Bank," she paused for two seconds. She quickly reminded Li Ye, "Ever since the murder of the Rock King Emperor, the already infamous Fools are now hated by everyone, which has caused the reputation of the 'Northern Bank' to plummet."

It's best to avoid getting involved with "Northern Bank" unless absolutely necessary.

Not only would that damage Young Master Li's reputation in Liyue Harbor, but it could also lead to gossip and be exploited by those with ulterior motives.

Li Ye laughed, he didn't...

Chapter 59: Flipping the Table (3/5)

Burns' statement doesn't sound like there's anything wrong with it.

"Northern Bank" intends to spend money to buy reputation, and a large sum at that. Naturally, they do not want any surprises in this transaction, so it is understandable that they want to invite Li Ye over for a detailed discussion.

"Northern Bank" rarely asks for favors, but when it does, it often doesn't allow the other party to refuse.

If Li Ye resolutely rejects Burns' proposal, he is certain that if he refuses today, all his businesses will be besieged and suppressed by "Northern Bank" starting tomorrow.

Considering that once "Wanmin Money Shop" opens, it will be impossible for it to be on good terms with "Beiguo Bank", it's only a matter of time before they turn against each other.

However, since they were bound to fall out sooner or later, Li Ye really wanted to take this opportunity to meet the boss of "Northern Bank".

After reading the letter again, Li Ye looked at Burns and said, "Mr. Burns, could you tell me just how large this charity is?"

Burns answered without hesitation, "Absolutely no less than ten million molars."

Ten million Mora? It's not a small amount, but it's not a huge amount either.

For "Northern Bank", the annual net profit is at least several billion, or even tens of billions of moanas, and tens of millions of moanas is nothing special.

But donating millions of Mora to charity can indeed help many people.

Li Ye had been planning to start a school for a long time, but he was worried about not having enough money. Just when he was about to doze off, "Northern Bank" handed him a pillow.

Although this pillow looks like it has a poisonous thorn hidden inside, waiting for me to run into it.

After much deliberation, Li Ye finally made a decision. "You have your clever plan, and I have my countermeasures." Since this gentleman wanted to play a game of Xiang Yu inviting Liu Bang, he might as well personally meet him at this Hongmen Banquet.

"Ten million Mora, that's quite a lot. We definitely need to plan this out in detail."

As Li Ye spoke, he turned to look at the mountain of papers on his desk behind him: "But as Mr. Burns has seen, I'm just too busy to leave."

"How about this: if it's really urgent, I'll send someone over to discuss it; if it's not so urgent and can be postponed for a few days, I'll go immediately after I finish what I'm doing here."

"A few days' delay?" Burns frowned slightly. He wanted to refuse, but refusing now would be too forceful and might arouse Li Ye's suspicion. So he backed down and asked, "How long will it take, Mr. Li?"

Li Ye calculated that there were still nine days until the opening of "Wanmin Money Shop". So he stretched out his right hand, spread his fingers wide and said, "Three days. Even if I'm not finished here, I should have basically dealt with everything by now. Even if I'm busy, I'll still have to make time to go there."

If "Northern Bank" can't even wait three days, then I'll have to ask someone else to go or politely decline.

Burns thought about it for a moment, and realized that the timing was just right. If it had been three or five days longer, he really wouldn't have been able to explain himself.

After all, it's best to frame Li Ye before Ningguang figurees out what the "mysterious business" really is, otherwise the effect will definitely be much less than ideal.

Thinking this through, Burns nodded in agreement, saying, "Alright, three days from now, Burns will welcome Mr. Li at the 'Northern Bank'."

Li Ye clasped his hands in a fist and bowed, saying, "No problem, I will definitely give you a surprise within three days."

Burns knew that Li Ye was busy, and since his goal had been achieved, he didn't linger: "Then I won't bother you any longer, Mr. Li, please continue with your work."

"Walk slowly."

After watching Burns get dressed and leave, Li Ye returned to his desk, took out his phone, and posted the message about "Northern Bank" inviting him to the chat group.

The message was sent out and someone replied immediately.

"Beef Offal Chef": "This person doesn't seem to have any good intentions."

"Who in the world does not understand Ye?": "At that time, we will be the ones who come."

"Liyue Rich Woman": "There must be a conspiracy. I know Pantarone."

If he wanted to salvage the reputation of "Northern Bank," he had a million ways, but he would never resort to charity unless he was driven to desperation.

"Who in the world doesn't know Ye?": "Do you think this Pantalone has already guessed that we're planning to open a money exchange?"

"The Great Inventor": "You've only heard a few broad pieces of information? That might be a bit difficult."

"Who in the world doesn't know Ye?": "No, perhaps it was deduced through other channels."

Someone of Pantalone's caliber wouldn't need to deduce the truth based on any clues; they could simply investigate the people around me, or even my whereabouts.

Pantalone, having run a bank for so many years, is much more sensitive; they might just find out we're planning to open a money exchange.

If that's the case, then inviting me over this time is probably a deliberate attempt to kill me.

"Liyue Rich Woman": "Even if Pantarone is incredibly audacious, she wouldn't dare to openly kill you inside the 'Northern Bank'; she must have used other methods."

Watching Ningguang and Li Ye chat, Keqing was also wondering what Pantalone was planning when she suddenly realized something.

"Beef Offal Master": "Do you think it might be a case of using someone else to do the dirty work? I mean, could there be a spy for Tianquan Ningguang in 'Northern Bank'?"

This woman has spies all over Liyue Harbor; perhaps one of them is planted in the "Northern Bank," and Pantarone is using this opportunity to sow discord and kill someone else.

Ke Qing wasn't just guessing; she genuinely knew that "Northern Bank" had Ning Guang's eyeliner.

Because Ningguang had provided detailed information about the "Northern Bank" to the other Liyue constellations on more than one occasion before.

Upon hearing Ke Qing's guess, Ning Guang's eyebrows furrowed slightly.

This was also what she wanted to say, but she didn't expect Ke Qing to say it first.

Was it a lucky guess? Or is there something else going on? Regardless of the reason, Kuaiyu is indeed quite capable, and we must not underestimate him.

"Liyue Rich Woman": "This guess may have some merit, but we cannot rule out other methods from Pantalone. As the saying goes, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open but hard to guard against an arrow in the dark. Boss Li should not have agreed to it."

"Who in the world doesn't know Ye?": "Boss Ji is right. There's no such thing as catching a thief for a thousand days but preventing him for a thousand days."

Pantalone has a hundred ways to kill me; I can't possibly defend against every single one of them, can I?

Furthermore, Pantalone wanted to play against me on the chessboard. I was in the open while he was in the dark, so no matter how I played, I would be at a disadvantage. Therefore, I chose a simple, direct, but effective method.

"Liyue Rich Woman": "What method?"

"Beef Offal Chef": "What method?"

"Who in the world doesn't know Ye?": "Flip the table!"

Chapter Sixty: The Genius Who Feigns Confusion (4/5)

I'm raising my fist in an attack stance. (jpg)

Pikachu used Thunderbolt on the enemy trainer, with outstanding results.

Screw chess, I'll just flip the chessboard over and see how you win!

"Liyue Rich Woman": "Flip the table? How?"

Ningguang stared at the information on the screen, completely bewildered by Li Ye's words. Was he going to turn against her? Why agree to Burns' promise then?

The other members, including Ke Qing, were also completely confused, not understanding what Li Ye was up to.

When Burns proposed that "Northern Bank" intended to salvage its reputation through charity, Li Ye already had a plan in mind.

"Who in the world doesn't know Ye?": "My plan is not complicated. Isn't Pantalone planning to do charity and hoping that our 'Wanmin Newspaper' will give him positive publicity?"

Okay, no problem, I agree.

"Northern Bank" thinks that I'm afraid of getting involved with them and ruining my reputation, so they will definitely try to keep their distance from me.

But I won't!

I will not only do it openly and honestly, but I will also take the initiative to let all the people of Liyue know that the "Northern Bank" is preparing to do charity and has asked the "Wanmin Newspaper" to help report it fairly, justly and openly.

Furthermore, I will explicitly state in my report that I hope to take this opportunity to establish a charitable foundation in Liyue Harbor, encouraging more chambers of commerce to participate in philanthropic endeavors.

Apart from two naive immortals, everyone else in the chat group was a seasoned veteran who was well-versed in human relationships.

Upon hearing Li Ye's idea, she immediately understood his plan.

If both sides intend to engage in open and covert struggles, with each side attacking and defending, then "Northern Bank" is not only larger in size and more resourceful, but also, crucially, a typical example of having nothing to lose and not being afraid of those wearing shoes.

It's like a lump of mud; as long as you, Li Ye, get involved, you'll lose out no matter what the outcome.

If that's the case, why insist on following Pantalone's pace?

"Northern Bank" is universally despised in Liyue Harbor; Li Ye is universally praised in Liyue Harbor.

Li Ye directly used the high profile of the "Wanmin Newspaper" to lay the whole matter bare before the eyes of all Liyue people, without any concealment.

At the same time, he maintained a neutral and objective attitude and expressed his high expectations for the charitable work of "Northern Bank".

If the entire incident is successfully reported, "Northern Bank" will face a difficult situation, regardless of whether it truly intends to do charity.

Furthermore, Li Ye has a personal letter from Pantalone as evidence, so he is not worried that "Northern Bank" might suddenly change its mind later.

In this situation, "Northern Bank" has no choice but to do charity work, whether it's done or not!

They must do it perfectly, without any flaws, so as not to completely ruin the already precarious reputation of "Northern Bank".