How could someone be unhappy living in a matriarchal society?

Chapter 148 I will request permission

Chu Ci slept soundly through the night without any dreams, and only slowly opened her eyes when the first rays of sunlight shone through the window onto her face.

Looking at her husband, who was still fast asleep beside her, Chu Ci's heart was filled with tenderness and love. She gently kissed Shi An's cheek, then carefully got out of bed, afraid of waking him.

After washing up, Chu Ci left her room and went to a small restaurant outside where she ate fried dough sticks and steamed buns.

After the meal, she went to a nearby pastry shop and bought some of Shi An's favorite pastries to take back to him as snacks.

When Chu Ci returned to the room, Shi An was still immersed in a sweet dream and showed no signs of waking up.

Chu Ci then sat gently on the edge of the bed, picked up a book, and began to read to pass the time.

Around noon, Shi An finally woke up from his sleep.

He slowly opened his eyes, only to find that all the muscles in his body were incredibly sore, and even moving a little was extremely difficult.

Chu Ci naturally noticed his discomfort and quickly put down her book, asking with concern, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

After saying that, she tenderly stroked Shi An's forehead and gently kissed him.

Shi An smiled a little embarrassedly and comforted her, "It's okay, I just feel a little tired."

His voice was still a little hoarse, obviously from just waking up and from last night's sex.

Looking at the man's weak appearance, Chu Ci felt even more guilty and said remorsefully, "It's all my fault. I will be more restrained in the future."

Upon hearing this, Shi An quickly shook her head and said, "Don't hold back, I like you like this."

After saying this, a blush rose on his face, his eyes became somewhat shy, and his toes unconsciously twitched. He wondered to himself: Did I sound too lewd? Would my wife look down on me because of this?

Shi An became increasingly frightened as she thought about it, and quickly raised her head, her gaze fixed on Chu Ci's face, trying to capture every change in her expression.

Chu Ci's lips curled slightly upward, her eyes forming a beautiful arc as she gazed at Shi An with a half-smile, seemingly tinged with a hint of teasing.

"I didn't expect you to approve of me so much..."

Shi An's face flushed even redder. He lowered his head somewhat awkwardly, tugged at the woman's sleeve, and whispered, "My lady, please stop joking..."

However, Chu Ci seemed not to have heard him and continued, "I'm not kidding, you really enjoyed it last night... you begged me to come several times... you couldn't stop."

Shi An wished he could disappear into the ground. He was already very shy, and Chu Ci's words made him even more ashamed, with no idea how to respond.

She could only bury her head in Chu Ci's chest and didn't lift it up for a long time.

Happy times are always short-lived, and soon Chu Ci's rest period came to an end.

She resumed her life of leaving early and returning late, busy with various tasks every day.

Time flies, and before we knew it, it was May.

As the temperature gradually rose, Shi An also took off her heavy outer coat and put on lighter clothes, and changed her shoes to a more breathable style.

That morning, Shi An finished washing his and Chu Ci's clothes and was about to take them to the yard to dry when he suddenly heard a soft knock on the door.

Shi An's heart skipped a beat, thinking that Song Yin had come to see him, so he quickly walked to the door and opened it.

However, when he saw who was standing outside the door, he was stunned. "The Seventh Prince!"

The Seventh Prince was surprised that Shi An knew him, and a look of astonishment appeared on his face. He blurted out, "You've seen me before?"

Shi An inwardly cried out in alarm. Of course he had seen the Seventh Prince before, but that was in his previous life.

He naturally couldn't reveal the truth, so he composed himself and replied with a smile, "Your Highness, I once saw you from afar in the palace."

"Is it……"

Ning He pursed his lips slightly, gave a half-smile, and then slowly released his nanny's hand, straightened up, and looked down at Shi An.

His gaze started from the top of Shi An's head and slowly moved downwards, as if trying to see through the man in front of him.

Shi An felt a little uncomfortable under his unbridled gaze, but she still tried to remain calm and meet his eyes.

Ning He's eyes revealed an arrogant and condescending attitude. He seemed to have little interest in Shi An and had only come here for some reason.

Shi An secretly pondered the prince's intentions while also observing his every move.

After a brief silence, Ning He arrogantly strode into the courtyard with several servants, completely disregarding Shi An.

Upon seeing this, Shi An felt a pang of anxiety.

He could sense that Ning He's visit today was ill-intentioned, and that the other party clearly did not regard him as their master.

Nevertheless, Shi An remained polite and carefully followed Ning He into the courtyard.

When Ning He walked to the center of the courtyard, his gaze fell on a rocking chair in the yard, and he sat down without any hesitation.

Shi An stood aside, his dissatisfaction growing stronger. That was the place where Chu Ci often sat, and it had been defiled by him.

Shi An took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, then walked up to Ning He, bowed, and asked, "May I ask what brings Your Highness here?"

No sooner had Shi An finished speaking than the wet nurse beside him suddenly shouted, "How dare you! Kneel down before His Highness the Prince!"

The nanny's brows furrowed tightly, his face full of anger, clearly very dissatisfied with Shi An's attitude.

He secretly despised Chu Ci's husband, thinking that he was just a lowly person who had risen to power through women, yet he dared to be so presumptuous in front of the prince.

They are truly ignorant and arrogant, and don't understand any rules at all.

Upon hearing his wet nurse's reprimand, Shi An knelt down and performed a standard kneeling bow to Ning He, respectfully saying, "Greetings, Your Highness."

Ning He glanced at him expressionlessly and did not tell him to get up.

The nanny standing to the side wasn't particularly happy to see this. Shi An's bowing posture was so perfect that even he couldn't find a single fault with it.

Time ticked by, and the atmosphere at the scene became unusually heavy, as if even the air itself had frozen.

Finally, after a long wait, Ning He slowly spoke: "I have come here today to tell you that I have decided to ask the Emperor for a decree to grant me marriage to Chu Ci. In this way, you and I will become brothers."

These words struck Shi An like a bolt from the blue.

He felt his mind suddenly go blank, and he completely lost the ability to think.

After a long while, she came to her senses, suddenly raised her head, and stared intently at the seventh prince in front of her. Her eyes were filled with madness and anger, as if she wanted to devour him.