Yuan Xihua's eyes lit up after just one round: "How did my wife come up with something like this?"
"It's all to amuse you two. I have to work shifts and don't have much free time to spend with you, so I wanted to find some fun for you. That's how this deck of cards came about. I'll make some more decks for you two to play in the future. Oh, and our future child too."
She explained as she drew the cards.
Yuan Xihua: "My lady, these playing cards are so interesting, can I use them to make money?"
With the recipes given to her by her wife, her mother opened a three-story upscale restaurant in the capital. Because the dishes were fresh and delicious, even though the prices were high, the restaurant was always packed with customers for the past half month since it opened, and her mother made so much money that her hands were sore from counting it.
He felt that the poker game his wife had created could also make him a fortune.
Ning Yan thought to herself, "He truly is the son of a businessman; the moment he sees this thing, he thinks about making money."
"It's just a trinket. You can take it and sell it if you want, but you probably won't make much money from it."
Ancient and modern times are different.
Poker and mahjong are games meant to kill time; in other words, only people with free time can play them.
Only those who have both money and free time are truly idle.
In ancient times, productivity was low, and in Fengyu Kingdom, there were two or three harvests a year. If a family of seven or eight people were to cultivate more than ten acres of land, they would basically have no free time throughout the year.
The disparity between the wealthy and ordinary people is too great; anything that cannot be accepted by the general public is destined not to become popular.
Just like the top-tier teas and wines of today, only the elite families can afford to enjoy them.
Ordinary people have never even heard of it, let alone tasted it.
As a result, sales will not be high.
Yuan Xihua also thought of this. "Don't worry, my lady. If ordinary people don't buy it, then let the rich spend more money."
Ning Yan: "Do whatever you want. When we get back to the manor, I'll give you a method for making paper. The playing cards were prepared in a hurry today, so I made them from wood chips. They're a bit rough."
After saying that, Ning Yan thought of the paper in this world, which was frighteningly expensive, one of the reasons why poor people could not afford to support a scholar.
She hadn't planned to bring these things out before, but she was happy to do so if it would help her husband earn more money.
"Paper making? Then I thank you in advance, my lady."
After saying that, he looked at the Third Prince and said, "Your Highness, why don't we cooperate? Anyway, you spend all your time in the manor playing the zither or painting. You're just idling around. Let's make money together."
The third prince did not refuse, "Alright, but I don't know anything about business, so I'll have to trouble you to teach me more about things I don't understand."
Yuan Xihua: "We're all family. As long as you don't mind, I'm naturally willing to teach you."
Ning Yan smiled. This way, her two husbands would get along better. She only had one requirement for them: to get along peacefully and not fight.
However, it seems that the two are getting along quite well so far, which is good.
They played cards all the way to the village, and because there were new and exciting things to do, no one felt tired.
This is Ning Yan's second time visiting the estate.
When I last came, the crops in the fields had just been planted, but now all I see is green.
When the head of the village learned that the master of the house had arrived, he immediately led his men to pay their respects.
Ning Yan inquired about the grain grown on the estate, instructed them to take good care of the crops, and then dismissed them.
She was out having fun with a man; if you keep listening, the whole day will be over.
"Is Xi Hua feeling unwell?"
Yuan Xihua is physically strong, and her pregnancy felt like she wasn't pregnant at all; she experienced no discomfort whatsoever.
Seeing him shake his head, Ning Yan immediately suggested, "Then I'll take you fishing. There's a fishpond here with big fish in it."
Neither the Third Prince nor Yuan Xihua had ever fished before, so they naturally agreed.
In matriarchal societies, men are still subject to certain restrictions. Even the Third Prince cannot do as he pleases and is confined to his courtyard most of the time.
Attending various banquets always involves having servants around, making it very difficult to have fun freely.
Ning Yan had fishing rods and fishing gear brought to them, and personally prepared the bait for them.
Because Yuan Xihua was pregnant, she reduced the effectiveness of the bait for his safety.
Even so, within a quarter of an hour, both of her husbands began to serve fish one after another.
Since they were on her own estate, Ning Yan saw that the two of them were happy. Whoever caught a fish would hug and kiss them. She didn't do anything, but their faces were all red and swollen.
Fearing they might catch a fire, Ning Yan went to the estate and ordered people to prepare charcoal for a barbecue later.
After she left, the two men had a rare chat. They moved their small stools very close together and spoke in very low voices, eventually reaching an agreement on something.
"Do you know what the wife has been busy with in the study lately?"
She had previously written about exploration techniques, but she didn't submit them. Later, she wrote a medical book.
I've carefully read through them all; they're very detailed, even more so than the books in the palace archives.
She even included illustrations; this medical book alone is enough for the Empress Dowager to promote her.
"Is Your Highness saying this because you're worried that someone will still have designs on our Lady in the future?"
The Third Prince's worry was written all over his face: "She is so good, we can see it, and others can see it too."
"As time goes on, who can guarantee that the wife won't get tired of us and fall for someone else?"
Yuan Xihua felt that the Third Prince's worries were unnecessary. He was a prince, after all. How dare the mistress send people into the mansion?
So he tentatively asked, "Then what does Your Highness wish to do?"
"What my wife tells me most is that she hopes we can get along peacefully, so..."
Yuan Xihua understood and immediately nodded: "Your Highness, when I first came to the capital, my wife said that I should get along well with you. If my wife hadn't needed money to continue her studies, how would I have had the chance to marry her?"
"I am already extremely grateful that Your Highness has been so tolerant of me, and from now on I will certainly follow Your Highness's lead without question."
He was merely a merchant; if he hadn't married the mistress, he wouldn't even have had the right to speak to the Third Prince.
Therefore, he said that he did it willingly.
The Third Prince breathed a sigh of relief. "Only when the household is harmonious can our mistress fully realize her ambitions outside. Don't say anything about blindly following her lead. Let's just get along well."
Yuan Xihua nodded and said "good" emphatically.
The two of them had opened up to each other, which brought them even closer.
The Third Prince couldn't help but ask Yuan Xihua how she got pregnant, and why he couldn't get pregnant even though his wife had slept with him quite a bit.
This question made Yuan Xihua feel embarrassed. "Well, let nature take its course. We were married for three years before, but we still didn't have anything going on."
The Third Prince was so focused on how Yuan Xihua had become pregnant in such a short time since arriving in the capital that he completely forgot the two had been married for three years. (End of Chapter)
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