Shocking! In this matriarchal society, every man wants to marry me!

Nakata walked slowly on the snow-covered road, his footsteps making a very faint sound on the ground, but in the quiet night, the sound was exceptionally clear.

Following this road to the main courtyard, all I could see was darkness; Xia Muning had already turned off the lights and was resting.

As Zhongtian looked at him, he felt so sad that he almost cried. In the past, no matter how late it was, Xia Muning would always leave a light on for Zhongtian so that he wouldn't come back in the dark. But now, he was actually asleep so early?

Zhongtian stepped forward and gently knocked on the door. The sound was particularly noticeable in the quiet night.

However, no one came to open the door.

Xia Muning inside the room was also awake; he tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

He lost his temper with his wife during the day today, the first time he had ever done so, and it was absolutely wrong of him!

But he was really upset, his heart was aching as if it were being cut by a knife. When Zhongniang married him, she had promised to be with him for life, but had she changed her mind in just a few years?

In the past, no matter how late it was, Xia Muning would wait for Zhongtian when he was working hard outside. Now, that shouldn't be necessary anymore.

I heard that today, Xia Jin'an was listening to their conversation outside the room, crying her heart out to her wife. A beautiful woman with tears streaming down her face must have been especially pitiful. When Zhong Niang returned, she must have gone straight to Zhuli Pavilion to comfort her quietly.

However, the bed was so empty for one person. He clenched his fingers. Even if Zhongtian was angry, he would never give in. Xia Jin'an being a husband was already the biggest concession Xia Muning could make. As for being a concubine, he shouldn't even think about it!

Suddenly, Xia Muning heard a knock on the door. Zhong Niang had returned; she had come looking for him!

His breathing quickened, and he put on his clothes, intending to open the door immediately, but he stopped in his tracks when he reached the doorway.

Xia Muning thought with a pang of heartache: Today is truly heartbreaking. If he opened the door for Zhongniang and she gently persuaded him a few more times, would he soften his heart? Would he agree to Zhongniang's request to make Xia Jin'an his concubine? After all, he loved Zhongniang terribly.

The answer should be yes!

He lowered his hand from the door.

The two people, one outside the door and the other inside, were the closest of husband and wife, yet they didn't even have the courage to open a door and face each other.

Nakata didn't keep knocking. He found a clean spot, cleared away some snow, and sat down.

Suddenly, Nakata's eyes lit up as he looked towards the room.

Although Xia Muning did not open the door, he lit the candles in the room. The candlelight was extremely dim, but it gave Zhong Tian a glimmer of hope.

However, only a single candle flickered faintly, and Xia Muning still did not open the door. Yet, Zhong Tian saw Xia Muning's shadow through the refraction of the candlelight.

"Mu Ning, open the door!" There was no response from inside.

Zhongtian stopped pushing the door open and continued sitting on the floor. The floor was cold, and her whole body was cold.

She stared at the snow on the ground. The snowflakes were small, but slowly, these tiny snowflakes would turn the ground white, just like the harm she had done to Xia Muning. One day, Xia Muning would leave her!

And so, Zhongtian stared at the snow on the ground, and Xia Muning stared at Zhongtian's shadow outside, sitting there listlessly all night.

When Shi Shu came looking for Zhong Tian, ​​she was extremely surprised. Zhong Tian was covered in a thick layer of snow, and she didn't know how long she had been sitting outside. She was sitting there blankly like a statue, her eyes staring at the ground with a somewhat lifeless expression.

"Master, what's wrong?"

When Zhongtian saw Shishu coming over, he stood up and shook off the snow that had fallen on him. Shishu quickly helped him tidy himself up.

"Shishu, have you come looking for Mu Ning?"

Shi Shu glanced inside. It was already winter, yet the young master hadn't come out to deliver a cloak to his master, which meant he was truly heartbroken! He then understood that he had done the right thing.

"No, sir, I have come to find you!"

Shishu glanced around the room and handed the letter in his hand to Zhongtian. Minglu had given it to him early this morning, asking him to make sure it was delivered to Zhongtian.

Shi Shu is the head steward of the mansion. He knows the Zhong family very well. Last night, Zhuli Pavilion ordered a lot of Hongsu Shou wine. Xia Jin'an drank the wine while shedding tears.

In high spirits after drinking, they danced in the garden all night!

The commotion at Zhuli Pavilion only subsided as dawn broke.

Yesterday's commotion was quite significant; many servants secretly went to see, and Shi Shu went too. Xia Jin'an's dance was exceptionally beautiful; the falling snow, the beautiful woman, it was breathtaking.

But Shi Shu was so moved by the immense sorrow expressed in the story that he almost burst into tears! He wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, but coldly left.

Shi Shu should have reported to Zhong Tian, ​​but he had his own selfish motives. People have different degrees of closeness and distance. In his heart, his young master was the most important. Since Zhong Niang had already found the young master, she couldn't let Xia Jin'an call her over halfway!

If the master wants to blame him, he will accept it!

However, the letter that Minglu wrote this morning forced Shishu to seek out Zhongtian.

Zhongtian's hands were a little stiff from the cold. As she looked at the neat handwriting on the envelope addressed to "To Zhongniang," a bad premonition was about to well up in her heart.

Xia Jin'an is at the Zhong residence. If you want to say something to her, you can just send someone to tell her. Why write a letter?

Nakata opened the envelope with trembling hands.

“Zhongniang, by the time you open this letter, I will have already left the Zhong residence. However, this time I did not leave without saying goodbye. I have clearly told you where I am going. The Empress Dowager in the palace is seriously ill and has been looking for a doctor, so I accepted the proclamation!”

"I will take Minglu with me when I leave. I have been all alone for a long time, with no one to accompany me. I want a companion, and Minglu has agreed!"

"Having said all that nonsense, let me tell you what's on my mind. Although I choked up and sobbed several times while writing these words, I still want to say, Zhongniang, as you spent every day with Xia Muning, the scales in your heart gradually tipped towards Xia Muning."

“Last night, I waited in the courtyard and watched you walk towards the main courtyard. Then I understood. I used to be able to tell myself very clearly, Zhongniang, that I am the one you love the most, but now I don’t have that confidence anymore.”

“I don’t want to wrong myself, and more importantly, I don’t want to wrong you! Zhongniang, I will always love you. This love will not fade with time, but will only grow stronger with the passage of time.”

“However, Zhongniang, I want to withdraw. Ever since I met you, I have regarded you as my whole life and absorbed all your love. But, Zhongniang, I want to test whether I will be so sad that I will die if I leave you?”

"Since Xia Muning says I come from a lowly background, then I will enter the palace and earn a future for myself!"

"Please keep the Bamboo Lodge for me. Maybe one day I'll come back crying, feeling utterly pathetic. Please don't turn me away, but that's highly unlikely."

"That's all I have to say! Zhongniang, this isn't a farewell letter. We will meet again, in various forms, as friends or lovers. Zhongniang, please don't be sad!"

Nakata choked up several times as he looked at the letter!

Xia Muning appeared out of nowhere. He looked at the letter in Zhong Tian's hand, its contents clearly visible. He looked at Zhong Tian, ​​whose eyes were red from crying, and said...

"Go and find him. If you go now, you should be able to catch up!"

"...No."