The Marquis doesn't support his beloved wife's ambitions, so I'll take the imperial e

The cheers gradually subsided, but the excited atmosphere in the study room lingered for a long time.

Kang Mingyan's cheeks flushed with excitement. He grabbed Shen Yu's shoulder and shook him vigorously, exclaiming, "Xiao Yu! You've been hiding your true colors! You didn't see Lin Ruyu's face just now; it stinked worse than a rock in a latrine! That was so satisfying!"

Shen Yu felt a little uncomfortable being shaken by him. He just pursed his lips, but his gaze went past everyone and landed on Jiang Zhenxue with concern.

Jiang Zhenxue met his gaze, smiled reassuringly, and then said loudly, "Thank you all for speaking up for me today. It's getting late, and the shop is closing. Please go back now."

The group was still enjoying themselves, but when Manager Jiang spoke, they all bowed and took their leave, casting admiring glances at Shen Yu before departing.

"Sister Jiang, what about Lin Ruyu..." After everyone had left and the shop door was closed, Shen Yu finally asked the question that had been weighing on his mind.

"He's suffered such a huge loss, he'll never let this go easily." Kang Mingyan also stopped joking and his expression became serious.

"We'll meet force with force and water with earth," Jiang Zhenxue said calmly as she tidied the counter. "If he wants to come, we'll face him."

Her calmness reassured the two boys.

After the three of them tidied up the shop, Jiang Zhenxue did not rush to calculate the day's accounts by candlelight. Instead, she walked to the huge map on the wall and looked at the vast prefectures outside Pu County.

"Xue'er, we've offended Lin Ruyu so badly this time. It's going to be tough for us in Pu County from now on," Kang Mingyan sighed.

"So, I was thinking," Jiang Zhenxue turned around, looked at them, and said something surprising, "should we run away?"

"Run away?" Kang Mingyan's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "Why? We're doing so well right now, business is booming, why would we run away?"

Shen Yu seemed to understand something instantly. He stepped forward and asked softly, "Sister Jiang means... opening a branch?"

Jiang Zhenxue gave him an approving look: "Yes."

She pointed to several points on the map: "Pu County is too small a pond; it can't contain us, nor can it trap us. Today it's the son of the prefectural magistrate; tomorrow it might be a relative of the prefect. We're like fat meat on a chopping board here; everyone wants a bite."

Kang Mingyan followed her finger and murmured, "Yunyang County, Qinghe County... these are the places with the most students in Lizhou Prefecture. But Xue'er, our branch business has only just begun, and the Qiande branch in Yongzhou is still far from settled. Isn't it too hasty to start expanding now?"

He analyzed urgently, "We have limited manpower and funds right now. If we put all our energy into external projects, and a local tyrant like Lin Ruyu causes trouble for us in Puxian and raids our hometown, then we'll suffer a great loss!"

Kang Mingyan's words were all reasonable.

Jiang Zhenxue had certainly considered these things as well. The money she brought, plus what she had earned during this period, was more than enough to support opening one or two branch stores, but management was a major problem. The only person she could trust was Shen Yu.

But if they stay stuck in Puxian, they will eventually be worn down by these endless troubles.

She had to go out into the world, she had to become stronger, strong enough that no one would dare to mess with her.

So powerful that... one day, you can have an equal dialogue with that person in the capital.

Thinking of that man, Jiang Zhenxue felt somewhat dazed.

Xiao Qingyan...

What kind of expression would he have if he saw himself like this?

He probably thought that after leaving him, he was like a bird with broken wings, trembling in some dark corner, crying and regretting, waiting for him to take pity on him and find him again.

He would never have imagined that his canary, instead of dying outside the cage, would learn to build a nest and even want to create its own forest.

Will he be shocked?

He still felt that his disobedient pet had finally shown some interesting claws, which aroused his interest in hunting.

A cold smile, unnoticed by anyone, curled up at the corner of Jiang Zhenxue's lips.

No, he won't appreciate it at all. He'll only feel that his possession has slipped out of his control, then he'll fly into a rage, and then he'll stop at nothing to drag her back into the cage and clip all her wings.

Just thinking about his sinister and possessive eyes sent a chill down Jiang Zhenxue's spine.

But strangely, besides fear, she also felt a secret, twisted pleasure.

It shocked him, enraged him, and made him realize he had misjudged him. This in itself was a form of revenge.

Why torture her? She's transmigrated, so she's going to have a blast and make this guy look at her with new eyes!

As she pondered, her thoughts seemed to travel thousands of miles.

……

Beijing.

Chang Suifuan carefully carried a bowl of freshly stewed bird's nest into the study, even holding his breath.

The Marquis has barely slept for three days in a row.

In the study, Xiao Qingyan stood by the window, his dark-colored casual clothes unable to conceal his menacing aura. He didn't look at the scenery outside the window, but stared expressionlessly at something in his hand—a small safety buckle strung on a red cord.

That belonged to Jiang Zhenxue. Once, when she was ill, he was upset and casually bought it from the street and gave it to her. She treasured it and wore it every day, saying that this was the first time the Marquis had ever given her anything.

When she fled, she took all the gold and silver, but left this behind.

Was it because they left in a hurry, or... did they simply not care?

The thought of the latter possibility made Xiao Qingyan's eyes turn terrifyingly gloomy, and the knuckles of his fingers, gripping the peace buckle, turned white from the force.

"My lord," Fu'an said, forcing himself to step forward, "the son of the Vice Minister of Rites sent you some things, saying they were... to help you pass the time."

Xiao Qingyan didn't turn her head, but coldly asked, "What is it?"

"They are...these are several beauties purchased from Jiangnan. They are all...they are all very well trained. They can sing and dance, and they are knowledgeable and charming." Fu'an's voice grew softer and softer.

Everyone in the capital knew that the Marquis of Ningguo's mansion had lost a favored concubine, and the Marquis was furious about it. But there were always some blind fools who thought this was a good opportunity to curry favor, believing that since the Marquis lacked women, they could win his favor by offering him a more beautiful and obedient one.

The air seemed to freeze in that instant.

After a long while, Xiao Qingyan slowly turned around. His face was expressionless, but his gaze fell on the bowl of bird's nest soup, and he asked calmly, "Was this also a gift from him?"

"No...no, this was prepared for you by the kitchen."

It's fallen over.

"My lord..."

"I told you to fall!" Xiao Qingtan's voice suddenly rose. He walked a few steps to the door and said sternly to the butler waiting outside, "Bring him in."