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

Zhong Tian recognized Xia Jin'an, but Xia Jin'an did not notice her.

She was sitting inside the carriage, the servants outside and the style of the carriage completely unfamiliar to Xia Jin'an. And her? Would he feel any sense of unfamiliarity?

Zhong Tian desperately suppressed his emotions and managed not to lift the carriage curtain and call out Xia Jin'an's name to the departing figure.

Her choice was exactly the same as his; they both regarded the small carriage as their safe haven, locking themselves inside and refusing to step out.

Only after silence returned outside did Nakata slowly lift the carriage curtain a crack.

There was no one on the street, only a bright moon hanging high in the sky.

"Xichun, do you know who that person is?" Her voice was somewhat ethereal.

"Of course I know!" Xichun exclaimed excitedly.

"That's the manager of Tian Anju Restaurant. He came to the capital about a year ago. He's very generous and has opened several restaurants in the capital."

Zhong Tian pondered the name "Tian Anju" repeatedly in his mind, and asked with some bitterness, "What's with the gauze on his face?"

"His face was injured, and everyone felt very sorry for him. That person had such a delicate figure; if he hadn't been injured, he would have been an absolute beauty."

Xi Chun listened to the host in the carriage remain silent for a long time, and she didn't know whether she should continue speaking.

"Go on."

"The food at his restaurant is excellent, especially the braised pork, boiled pork slices, and other pork dishes. I haven't tried them myself, but I've heard that they are incredibly delicious."

Xichun swallowed hard and continued, "Tian Anju opened several stores in the capital in just one year. I heard he made a lot of money, so some people have taken notice of him."

"You've got him on your radar?" Zhongtian asked anxiously. "Has it been resolved? Is the injury on his face from this incident?"

Xichun looked back at the carriage with some confusion: "Do you know Manager Xia?"

Zhongtian looked at Xichun and said seriously, "Don't ask any questions. Answer my question."

"Of course it's been resolved. The injury happened before the shop opened. I heard that Manager Xia removed his veil in front of everyone and even tied up his hair in public, turning into a self-combing man."

What is a self-combed man?

"Some men, for various reasons, do not want to get married, so they comb their hair up, put on a black wooden hairpin, and announce to the world that they will never get married."

“Master, if you observe carefully, you will find that there are many self-combed men in the capital.”

Zhongtian felt as if she had swallowed a bitter pill; the bitterness was so intense that she couldn't speak. How much suffering had he endured—injury, self-combing?

Zhongtian's only consolation was that Xia Jin'an had become a famous shopkeeper in the capital, and had enough money to rely on. He no longer had to be restrained by others in everything he did, and he was no longer like a sparrow in someone else's hand, easily driven into a desperate situation with the slightest trick.

Nakata is currently alone and powerless, unable to protect him. It's best for the two of them to leave each other alone and remain safe.

She closed her eyes; she desperately needed to say something to distract herself.

She thought of that scholar, whose clothes barely covered his body but whose gaze was firm.

The business environment in Zhaohua Kingdom was not too bad, with scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants all belonging to the social hierarchy, and the imperial court did not suppress the development of commerce.

However, Zhongtian was quite worried. Perhaps one day she would offend some court officials. Since ancient times, the common people cannot fight against the officials. She would be at a complete disadvantage and would not even have anyone to speak up for her.

She needs to cultivate her own power.

"Xichun, go and investigate secretly. Find out about these impoverished students and their backgrounds. Remember, those who gamble, drink, and whore are not suitable, those who lack willpower, and those who are ignorant and incompetent are not suitable. Then gather them together and tell them that someone is sponsoring their studies until the day they pass the imperial examination with flying colors."

Xichun looked at Zhongtian in surprise and nodded: "Okay, Master, you are a very kind person. I will definitely handle this matter properly."

"There are some details I need to explain to you." Zhongtian discussed the details of this matter with Xichun in detail.

She planned to leave this matter to Xichun; she didn't intend to get involved herself.

The carriage moved slowly forward, and before we knew it, we had arrived at our doorstep.

Zhong Tian lifted the carriage curtain and saw Xia Muning waiting outside. The warm light of the lantern shone on his face. Among the myriad lights, one shone for her.

Zhongtian dismounted and immediately grabbed Xia Muning's hand, pulling him into his arms.

You weren't feeling well today, how are you feeling now?

"Much better, my lady. It's chilly here, let's go back to the manor."

Zhong Tian embraced Xia Muning and returned to the mansion. The next morning, Zhong Tian got up and left.

Her Shunning Express has never expanded into the capital, firstly because the capital is well-connected and goods are not scarce, and secondly because there are many wealthy people in the capital who can have their own servants handle their affairs.

Therefore, if Shunning Express wants to develop in Beijing, it must be faster, delivering orders placed today to customers tomorrow.

This required Nakata to build many warehouses near the capital to store goods, and the warehouses had to be interconnected so that goods could be transferred at any time.

Zhongtian had to travel around to select sites, hire people, conduct market research, and find out what was needed. He wouldn't return until late at night.

When they returned, a light drizzle began to fall outside. Lifting the carriage curtain, they found only the gatekeeper sheltering from the rain nearby, but Xia Muning was nowhere to be seen.

Zhongtian asked Xichun with a puzzled look, "Is the lord sick today?"

Xichun shook her head and replied, "I haven't heard anyone from the manor come to report this."

Zhong Tian felt a surge of anxiety and quickly walked to their bedroom. In the dim light, he could only see Xia Muning's slender back.

Zhongtian sat on the edge of the bed and placed his cold hands on Xia Muning's face.

Zhongtian knew that Xia Muning was not asleep; he could tell from the frequency of his breathing that he was pretending to be asleep.

Xia Muning's eyelids twitched a few times, and her eyebrows furrowed slightly, but she still did not wake up.

Zhongtian coaxed in a low voice, "Mu Ning, what's wrong? Please tell me."

Zhongtian bent down and hugged Xia Muning with his whole body, like hugging a giant koala.

Unable to sleep due to the disturbance, Xia Muning opened her eyes and complained, "I've been feeling tired these past few days and wanted to go to sleep early. Why are you bothering me?"

"Mu Ning, Mu Ning, you must have something on your mind. Please tell me."

It is her responsibility as the wife to pay close attention to her husband's mental state, and she doesn't want any misunderstandings between them.

Hearing this, Xia Muning felt extremely wronged. She pointed to the invitation on the table: "Go see for yourself."

He received an invitation from General Yongning's Mansion today. It was from the second young master, Le Xingxi, who invited him in a private capacity, saying that it was a beautiful spring day and he wanted to invite Lady Zhong to go out for a spring outing.

Are the men in the capital really this shameless? He, an unmarried young man, invited a married woman out for a spring outing.

He was resting so early today because he was holding back his anger, but he couldn't bear to vent it on Zhongtian, so he could only sulk in his own heart.

He was only gone for a short while, and Zhongtian was already hooking up with other young men.

So he went to bed early today; he didn't want to welcome Nakata home in such cold weather and wind and rain.

Nakata immediately understood.

Her husband is jealous!