Ancient Wen Heng admitted that ever since arriving in this Rong Dynasty, he wished he could keep Jin Qianqian by his side twenty-four hours a day.

It wasn’t that he was being overly dramatic, but in this unfamiliar dynasty, they were all each other had. And having been through life-and-death situations, he was even more terrified that some other accident would make Jin Qianqian disappear from his life.

He never wanted to taste that feeling again. He knew this kind of attachment wasn’t healthy, but he had no desire to change.

"We’re going to live very well," Jin Qianqian said, patting her side. "After all, we’re quite well-off now. If we didn’t feel like striving for more, we could totally just coast and wait for old age.

Since that’s the case, let’s make our lives even more exciting. What do you say?"

Ancient Wen Heng turned his head, taking the opportunity to steal a kiss. "As you command, my dear wife."

"..."

***

「Bustling Sea City」

The moment they passed through the city gates, Jin Qianqian couldn’t stop exclaiming, "Now this is a real ancient city! Look at these buildings, and the roads... nothing from our time can compare."

Ancient Wen Heng had learned a bit about the city from Deng Yuanhang. "The saying ’nobility in the north, wealth in the south’ isn’t without reason. Plus, with the port here, there are many people coming and going for trade, so of course it’s more prosperous."

"No wonder Ouyang Bin wasn’t the least bit surprised by that painting I drew for him. So there really are people with blonde hair and blue eyes here."

"There’s a port here, so it’s normal for people from other countries to come in," Ancient Wen Heng said with a laugh, thinking of Jin Qianqian’s mischievous drawing. "It would probably be difficult to find someone based on that picture."

Jin Qianqian nodded in agreement. "We saw several Tianfu Restaurants along the way. It looks like his business is doing quite well. Maybe there’s one here in Sea City, too."

"Huh? What are they doing here too?" Ancient Wen Heng asked, looking into the distance with a puzzled expression.

"Who?"

Ancient Wen Heng said, "Remember that Mr. Bai who was fighting the wolf pack at the city gate? I just saw him and a few other familiar faces ride past on horseback."

Jin Qianqian glanced at their retreating figures. "We’re complete strangers anyway. Even if they’re here, it has nothing to do with us."

She recalled how so many people had been trapped outside the city gates, while those men had the leisure to ride around and hunt. It left a bad taste in her mouth.

Ancient Wen Heng was only briefly curious before his attention was captured by the other sights of the city.

"This is real ancient architecture. See? It’s all mostly stone and wood. And those carvings are countless times more beautiful."

Jin Qianqian wholeheartedly agreed. She stretched languidly in the carriage, relieved that this leg of the journey was finally over. "It’s just that traveling like this takes a heavy toll. It’s not just time-consuming, it’s exhausting."

The convoy came to a halt. The dart masters from the escort agency gave a few final instructions, and the group disbanded on the spot.

Although Wang Biyi had a small courtyard home here, it couldn’t possibly accommodate so many people.

He took all the students to a nearby inn to get them settled for the time being. He also sent a servant to inquire around the neighborhood about a suitable house for rent, which would help save on expenses.

Deng Yuanhang wanted to invite Ancient Wen Heng and his wife to come stay with him, especially since he felt he had been imposing on others throughout the journey.

But with his other school brothers present, he could only depart with the family servant who had come to greet him, feeling a trace of guilt.

After moving all their luggage from the cart, Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian paid the remaining fee to Master Zhu, adding an extra tip of reward silver. Only then did they truly relax.

"Wenheng, about renting a house... do you have any thoughts?" Just as he was about to turn and go back to his room, Zhou Ping stopped him.

Ancient Wen Heng tapped his shoulders. "I certainly don’t have any ideas right now. We probably can’t get anything done today anyway. Let’s think about it tomorrow."

’He’s looking for someone to share the rent with, but I have no intention of doing that.’

Zhou Ping pressed, "What if we don’t find a place tomorrow? Staying at an inn indefinitely isn’t a long-term solution."

Ancient Wen Heng replied, "Don’t worry. Hasn’t our teacher already sent someone to look for us? Besides, it’s only for one night. We need to rest well to have the energy to deal with all this."

Zhou Ping wanted to say more, but Mrs. Zhou Liu, standing beside him, tugged at his robe. He could only say dryly, "That’s true."

After Ancient Wen Heng and his wife had entered their room, Zhou Ping turned to Mrs. Zhou Liu. "Why did you pull on me just now?"

"Your Junior Brother Gu isn’t short on silver. They probably wouldn’t want to share a place with others. Why don’t we go find someone else?" Mrs. Zhou Liu’s voice was gentle, but her eyes were filled with disapproval.

Zhou Ping argued, "We’re from the same school. Living together, we could look out for each other.

Besides, we both brought our wives. When we go to the academy, you and Miss Gu could keep each other company."

Mrs. Liu pursed her lips. "Have you seen how many words Miss Gu has said to me this entire trip?

Just now, the most she did was nod at me. Not even a simple greeting. I don’t want to spend my time around someone like that."

Jin Qianqian: "..." ’I’m about to collapse from exhaustion, who has the energy for idle chitchat with you?’

Zhou Ping said, "Maybe Miss Gu just isn’t very talkative. It’ll probably be fine once you get to know her."

"How is she ’not very talkative’? Didn’t you see how she was laughing and joking with Senior Brother Deng? And I heard she even runs her own business. You’re the only one who would say something so naive," Mrs. Liu said, her voice rising.

Zhou Ping glanced at the closed door and quickly pulled his wife away. "Keep your voice down! Why are you shouting?

If they hear you, it’ll be mortifying."

Mrs. Liu knew she had gotten carried away. She apologized softly but continued to mutter, telling her husband to find someone else to partner with.

Meanwhile, Ancient Wen Heng and Jin Qianqian, having entered their room, were completely unaware of this little incident outside.

They were now in their private space, lying on their big, comfortable bed, and quickly drifted off to sleep.

***

「Tianfu Restaurant」

"Young Master, we just received news. Prefect Xiao has been demoted to a seventh-rank county magistrate. The place he’s been sent to is extremely harsh; it’ll be difficult for him to ever recover." Lu Ping patted his chest in lingering fear. "If Prince Bai hadn’t helped fend him off, I’m afraid even my father wouldn’t have been able to withstand Xiao Yunhai’s schemes."

"Look at you, so pathetic," Shan Ke’an sneered from the side. "Honestly, it wouldn’t have been a loss for you to marry his illegitimate daughter. You should know, his legitimate daughter married my cousin with a dowry that stretched for miles. But Prefect Xiao doted on this illegitimate daughter far more than his legitimate one. Her dowry certainly would have been substantial.

Back then, many men had their eyes on her. But you? You had such a golden opportunity right in front of you, and you just pushed it away."

Lu Ping retorted, "If it’s so great, why didn’t you go for it? I’m sure with your qualifications, you would have been a top choice in Mr. Xiao’s eyes."