Chapter 1: Must She Give It to Me?

On the mottled bluestone road, a wooden carriage was rolling forward, leaving two long tracks. The market, which should have been noisy, was unusually quiet at this moment.

A gust of cold wind blew, rolling up dead branches and leaves, which flew away in the wind. Suddenly, a group of masked men in black came out from all directions with weapons in hand, and slowly surrounded an inn.

This is a three-story wooden building, covering a large area and majestic. A yellow flag was hung on the windward side of the door, with four large characters written in cursive on it - "Youjian Inn".

The door of the inn was wide open. On the stage in the center of the lobby, a woman in her twenties, dressed in silk and satin, was looking at everything outside with a normal expression. She had an inexplicable look in her eyes and muttered to herself, "Can't you bear it anymore and take action?"

In fact, she had a premonition in her heart half a month ago when there were rumors that the new emperor would marry the daughter of the prime minister as his empress after ascending the throne. But at that time, she wanted to see if the man she had given everything for had any feelings for her, or if he still wanted to get something from her. In

the twenty years since she came to this ancient time, she started out by running a teahouse with leaks on all sides, and now her inns are spread all over the country. Whether it was connections, news, or money, all the proceeds were used by her to support him in ascending the throne step by step. But now it seems that she had misjudged him after all.

But who could have thought of that? After all, they grew up together, and even her parents regarded him as the future heir of the family, as well as her brother, future husband, and support. She

sighed slightly, and looked at the man in gorgeous clothes getting off the simple carriage, and a little sadness rose in her heart. It's just that the man had given her more than half a month without leaving a trace. If it wasn't intentional, then in this world where imperial power is supreme, it would be very easy for her, an innkeeper, to prevent her from hearing anything.

After all, everything about her, except this inn itself, was firmly in the hands of the man.

"Xia Ran, long time no see." The man looked at the woman gently as always, his eyes calm, as if nothing had happened, but the woman couldn't help but shudder. After all, all her understanding of this man was overturned. How terrifying is it that a person can calculate others for decades?

"Ah, congratulations on getting what you want. So what do you want today?" The woman pursed her lips, nodded to the man in a dry voice, and asked. It's not that she doesn't hate him, but she has no way to deal with him today. It's not a wise move to confront him head-on, so the woman is not prepared to do anything to him.

"I have to thank Xia Ran for this, otherwise I would never have the chance to ascend the throne even if I were to dress up as this abandoned prince." The man smiled and continued, "As long as Xia Ran hands over this inn to me, the position of queen will be yours."

"Queen? Then what about the prime minister's daughter?" Hearing this, the woman smiled with the corners of her mouth curled up and said, "As long as you have the ability, you can take this inn. Anyway, I don't care anymore." The inn itself is a system, and it is bound to the soul. Unless she gives up the ownership, no one can get it.

Although the woman has never told the man, with the man's intelligence, he probably realized that it is useless to seize by force, otherwise he would not ask for it. But, if he wants it, does she have to give it to him?