The Flourishing Era of Female Merchants

“The prince may find it amusing, and perhaps there’s nothing wrong with it for the prince, but for ‘Miss Yan’, it might not be a good thing.” An Mi was glad that her face was covered by a veil, so she didn’t have to completely reveal her emotions to Bai Yi.

Bai Yi was slightly taken aback, a hint of anger rising in his heart. "It's not a good thing?"

Isn't it a good thing to be noticed by him?

An Mi ignored the noticeably darker look in Bai Yi's eyes. Now that things had come to this point, she had no reason to back down. "Of course it's not a good thing, Your Highness. 'Miss Yan' is, after all, a woman. If people misunderstand the relationship between the Prince of Bohai and 'Miss Yan,' how will 'Miss Yan' be able to get married in the future?"

Bai Yi's eyes narrowed. Marry someone? Marry someone else?

A surge of anger burned within him. Why didn't this woman say that she had ruined his reputation as "Miss Yan" and make him take responsibility?

This woman! This woman… Bai Yi’s fists clenched suddenly, but he tried his best to remain calm and composed on his handsome face. This woman really has the ability to drive him crazy!

He even wished he could grab her and give her a good scolding.

However, his remaining rationality told Bai Yi that after last night, An Mi's attitude remained the same. What did that mean? If he pushed her too far, perhaps An Mi would really sever all ties with him.

That was the last thing he wanted to see. He frowned slightly, took a deep breath, and a smile gradually appeared on his lips. "What you said makes sense. It seems that I haven't considered things thoroughly enough, but..."

Bai Yi frowned, his gaze still fixed on An Mi. He paused for a moment, then continued, "You and I are friends, and friends naturally can't avoid each other. We're also business partners, so many things need to be discussed together. How can we avoid suspicion?"

An Mi smiled slightly, "As long as Your Highness doesn't look at me like that, that's fine."

The way she looked at him made even her uncomfortable. She could ignore it before, but now it took a lot of effort to do so, and even then, there was no guarantee of success. She couldn't ignore his gaze, so how could an outsider not notice?

“Alright.” Bai Yi readily agreed. “As you wish! I will definitely pay close attention in the future.”

"Then thank you very much, Your Highness." An Mi nodded to Bai Yi, seemingly relieved, and turned her gaze away from Bai Yi.

But after a moment, An Mi felt that something was wrong. She turned to look at Bai Yi and, sure enough, met his eyes again—focused, doting, and affectionate…

Didn't we say to be careful? But why hasn't anything changed at all?

“Your Highness…” An Mi felt a hint of displeasure.

"Huh? What did you say?" Bai Yi suddenly leaned closer to An Mi, "I didn't hear what you just said."

An Mi caught a glimpse of his earnest and undisguised expression, and her face froze. This Bai Yi was clearly doing it on purpose. Just now, he was merely placating her, and now he was going even further, leaving her speechless.

Well then, An Mi turned her eyes away. Since she couldn't get to Bai Yi, she could only start with herself. She had to put in more effort to completely ignore the ambiguous nature of this man's every move.

At this moment, she couldn't help but wonder if choosing Bai Yi as a partner was the right or wrong decision.

She looked away, but didn't notice that a slight smile appeared in Bai Yi's bright eyes, with a hint of cunning.

Anmi, you've underestimated Bai Yi's abilities far too much.

So what if you avoid me like this? One day, he will make her see him in a different light!

The atmosphere in the carriage was sweet to Bai Yi, but unbearably uncomfortable for An Mi. Meanwhile, in another place, the atmosphere was completely different...

In Rong Jincheng's prison, in a separate cell, the once glamorous Liu Xuan and his wife were both dressed in prison clothes. After several days in prison, their hair was disheveled and their clothes were dirty.

A strange smell lingered around them in the prison. How could the two, who were used to living a life of luxury, endure such treatment?

"Hey, time to eat! Time to eat!" The jailer outside came in carrying a basket and placed bowls of rice outside the iron bars. The prisoners inside immediately snatched them all.

When they reached Liu Xuan and his wife, the jailer glanced at them disdainfully and said, "Master Liu, Madam Liu, dinner is ready."

When Liu Xuan and his wife glanced at the food on the ground, disgust spread in their eyes. The food they had been eating these past two days was even worse than what they usually threw away. Just thinking about the faint smell of spoilage made them lose their appetite.

However, a rumbling sound came from Madam Liu's stomach. Even though she didn't want to eat, she was hungry and had no choice but to eat.

Madam Liu got up and walked towards the food, intending to take it. However, before she could even touch the food, the jailer kicked it, and the two bowls of food crashed out, scattering all over the dirty ground.

“You…” Madam Liu glared at the jailer.

The jailer frowned and smiled. "Oh, I'm sorry, it was an accident. Oh, look, there's nothing left in this basket. If there is, I'll give Master Liu and Madam Liu another portion. But... oh, if you two are really hungry, you can make do with this on the ground."

After saying that, the jailer snorted and turned to leave in a swagger.

"You've gone too far! Master... Look at these dogs of servants!" Madam Liu was furious. When had she ever suffered such humiliation? Looking at the food on the ground, so filthy, how could she possibly eat it!

“He did it on purpose, he clearly did it on purpose.” Madam Liu’s chest heaved as she looked at Liu Xuan, trying to find comfort in him.

However, Liu Xuan merely glanced at her indifferently and said, "You better be quiet!"

"But..." Madam Liu's heart trembled, but she was still extremely unwilling. Her Liu family had not fallen into poverty, yet they had been bullied by this jailer.

However, before she could finish speaking, she saw Liu Xuan's expression change, and a doubt arose in her heart. Hearing footsteps behind her, she frowned. Her intuition told her that it must be the person who came in who made the master's expression change, but who was that person?

She was about to turn around to look at the person who had come when the jailer's voice rang out first...

"Master Mei, the person you want to see is inside. I won't see you in."

Madam Liu froze. Master Mei? Which Master Mei could it be? But how did he get to Rong Jincheng so quickly? He came to the prison for…