Chapter Eleven: Enterprise

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  After the last embarrassing misunderstanding, Zhu Yinglong consciously avoided Tian Shulan. He didn't know how Tian Shulan ended up bathing in her sister's room, especially when she said to him as he ran out: "Prince Wang, I like you!" Every night before sleep, those words would involuntarily echo in his ears, and Tian Shulan's shy and charming face would automatically appear before his eyes. He couldn't understand how a gentle and quiet girl like her could say such things to him. If he had just arrived in this time period, he might have been pleased that a girl liked him - it was a good thing, after all. But now, he didn't have those thoughts. Zhou, Tian, and Ye, the three women who married him, only developed feelings for him slowly over time. Zhu Yinglong always felt that his relationships with them weren't quite like true love. Although they eventually fell in love with him, something was missing. What was it? He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but Tian Shulan gave him a different feeling. How could this clever little sister say such bold words to him? This question had been plaguing him for days, and he couldn't figure out the reason behind it, leaving Zhu Yinglong feeling annoyed and frustrated. His temper naturally worsened, and many of the servants in the Wang estate were scolded by him. However, everyone thought his bad mood was due to the queen's situation, and no one noticed that the real reason for his sudden change in behavior.

  As the first, second and third heavy snowfalls came down, the weather in Kaifeng, the ancient capital, became even colder. The air in this time and space was not polluted yet, there was no greenhouse effect, so it was much colder than my own time and space.

  Eating hot pot, that's a good idea. He also knew he had done it himself a few days ago, so he ordered the entire Wang Fu to have a collective hot pot meal. The news was passed down and the whole household was overjoyed. Although hot pot was already widely popular in the Ming Dynasty and wasn't anything special, it was rare for the prince to invite them to eat hot pot, which made it special.

  Zhu Yinglong was accompanied by the three princesses, his younger sister, and Xiong Hu, who had been dragged along by Ye Liangwei. On such a cold day, several people gathered together to eat hot pot, which was extremely comfortable. Especially with five beautiful girls, Zhu Yinglong felt as if he were in a country of daughters. The atmosphere of eating hot pot was lively and Zhu Yinglong's witty remarks made the flowers tremble with laughter, and the silvery sound of their laughter echoed far away. Zhu Yinglong even forgot about his awkward misunderstanding with Tian Shulan that time. Whenever they talked about something funny, Tian Shulan's eyes sparkled the brightest, and she was the first to applaud and encourage him, just like a lovable little elf.

  The steaming hot pot, the joyful and unrestrained laughter, Zhu Yinglong felt as if he had returned to a familiar time and space. Every time he ate hot pot with his friends, the atmosphere was just as lively, but every time others were accompanied by their girlfriends, while he was always alone. Every time he ate hot pot, he only buried his head in eating, rarely speaking, and that's why he never felt full after eating hot pot. But now it's completely different, not only did he marry three beautiful wives, one of whom openly said she liked him, another who seemed to have some interest in him, but there was no friend by his side. If you insist on being serious, Shi Kefa barely counted as one, because he had already been corrupted by him, but now he lay in bed unable to move. Xiong Zhaojun, Tian Yan and others only treated him as their lord or relatives, not friends with whom they could have a conversation.

  Loneliness, well, it's hard to say, after all, he still has his wife and three beautiful daughters who will accompany him through the carefree years of this life. Such good fortune is something ordinary people can't attain in several lifetimes, but Zhu Yinglong just feels that sometimes his heart is empty and he can't grasp a thread of melancholy.

  Putting aside his temporary worries, Zhū Yǐng Lóng and the five girls launched an attack on the food piled up like a small mountain on the table. As he watched the five girls devour the food like a storm sweeping away leaves, Zhū Yǐng Lóng suddenly had an epiphany. He realized that Europe's civilization began to expand rapidly with the Industrial Revolution, but in ancient Eastern society, it might not be realistic to use new technology to drive social progress and enter capitalism. Moreover, those stubborn literati might say that this is a strange skill, violating the teachings of the sages and abandoning their ancestors without mercy.

  Adding to this was the fact that China had closed itself off from the world, thinking itself superior, believing it was the strongest in everything. To put it bluntly, Chinese people liked to be complacent and lacked a sense of crisis awareness, allowing others to surpass them step by step. The sprouts of capitalism had appeared hundreds of years ago but hadn't been developed yet, which also showed how powerful these people were.

  They didn't even know that the Earth was round, nor did they understand that they were the "Celestial Empire," using virtue to govern the people. Could they not take another path? Zhū Yǐng Lóng thought left and right, finally remembering that in his original time and space, the economic structure was divided into three main blocks: agriculture, industry, and the all-encompassing tertiary sector, commonly known as the service industry.

  Why not use the service industry as a starting point to drive the development of industry and agriculture? At first thought, it seemed like putting the cart before the horse, but after careful consideration, if they tried it out, how would they know it was wrong?

  Clothing, food, housing and transportation are the four major concerns of ordinary people. Clothing is not feasible for me as I am not skilled in mechanics or textile machinery. Food, on the other hand, is relatively easy, as I can draw inspiration from my previous experience with chain restaurants in another time and space. Perhaps if I were to create something here, there would be no KFC or McDonald's in this timeline. The idea came to me while looking at this boiling hot pot. As for housing, the invention of cement might spark a construction revolution, but that won't happen anytime soon as I am not yet capable of large-scale production, which will have to wait another two years. Transportation is also limited for now, as I don't have the power or resources to undertake massive infrastructure projects. It seems my only option is to start with the food industry.

  "A Long, why aren't you eating? Is the dish not fresh?" Ye Liang Wei suddenly noticed that Zhu Ying Long, who had been eating non-stop earlier, had stopped moving his chopsticks and was sitting there in a daze. She couldn't help but ask, "A Long". This nickname was exclusive to Ye Liang Wei, and the other four girls didn't dare call him that without showing respect. Zhu Ying Long didn't mind at all, and it had been a long time since someone called him that. Not only did he not blame her, but he also encouraged the other four girls and some close friends to call him that too. Unfortunately, his efforts had little effect, and only Ye Liang Wei, who was fearless and daring, dared to call him that. It took a long time for ice to form three feet thick, and it wasn't something that happened overnight. If one person did it, they could influence the people around them, so Zhu Ying Long didn't use his supreme power to force others to do it. He believed that with time, under his constant influence, they would change.

  "Ripples, what did you just say?" Zhu Yinglong was thinking about how to get involved in the food industry and didn't hear Ye Liang's question clearly.

  Ye Liang's delicate nose wrinkled up, and her small mouth opened wide as she stuck out her tiny tongue, repeating to Zhu Yinglong: "I'm asking you, isn't this dish not fresh? Why aren't you eating it?"

  "Not fresh?" Zhu Yinglong repeated, his eyes suddenly lit up, excitedly stood up, hugged Ye Liangwei and kissed her hard, saying: "Liangwei, you are really the lucky star of this king!"

  Ye Liangyi was startled by Zhu Yinglong's actions, and she sat stiffly on the stool like a wooden stake, her face suddenly turning red like an apple. Her heart was racing to her throat, and she couldn't describe the feeling. Originally, she wanted to slap him back, but she felt that she couldn't even lift her arm, and in her heart, there was more of a thrill of excitement.

  Because of their personalities, Ye Liangwei and Zhu Yinglong's relationship was limited to being very good friends who would sit together for meals, but they didn't have the same level of intimacy as Zhou and Tian did. However, one day Zhu Yinglong suddenly hugged Ye Liangwei and kissed her, completely out of excitement without any romantic feelings involved. But Ye Liangwei didn't think so, Zhu Yinglong's kiss had opened up her heart, and her vague feelings became clear, causing her to blush with embarrassment.

  "Monosodium glutamate, haha, monosodium glutamate..." Zhu Yinglong couldn't stop laughing like a little kid.

  Among the five girls, except for Ye Liangwei who was still shy on one side, they looked at each other in dismay. What's wrong with Wangye? Has he gone silly again?

  Zhu Yinglong laughed and saw that the five girls were staring at him with wide eyes, suddenly realizing he was a bit too excited, afraid of scaring them, thinking he had gone crazy again. He picked up his chopsticks, clamped a piece of mutton, swished it in the boiling hot pot, threw it into his mouth and said: "I just figured out something, I'm particularly happy, come on, don't stop, eat quickly!"

  "Sister-in-law Wang Ye, your smile just now was really ugly, but Lan'er likes it!" Half a night, Tian Shulan said something that almost made Zhu Yinglong spit out the hot soup in his mouth, and he almost passed out from choking, his face turned bright red, and the blue veins on his neck were exposed.

  Tian Shu-ying patted Zhu Ying-long's back to help her catch her breath, but she gave her sister a look with profound meaning. Tian Shu-lan seemed embarrassed as she slowly lowered her head, her small mouth nibbling on a piece of just-washed cabbage, her cheeks already flushed red.

  The atmosphere was somewhat unusual, Zhu Yinglong quickly came up with a plan and coughed a few times, saying: "How is this soup so spicy, it's so spicy that I almost can't breathe!"

  The awkward atmosphere was suddenly dispelled by Zhu Yinglong's strange words, and everyone started chatting and laughing again. It seemed that no one asked Zhu Yinglong what he meant, and this was actually quite good.

  A sentence from Ye Liangwei "not fresh" reminded Zhu Yinglong that he was used to the luxurious life, whether in the Forbidden City or the Wangfu, everything he ate was the best. His cheap brother was very caring and assigned him a few imperial chefs. Although he strictly ordered no more than four dishes and one soup per meal, the food was still incredibly delicious. However, if ordinary people were to make these dishes, they wouldn't have that flavor. Besides cooking skills, the most important thing was that ordinary people used too little seasoning, while the imperial chefs used top-notch ingredients that even big restaurants couldn't match, some of which were tributes from vassal states and unavailable outside. This made him think of the first condiment every household in his time space used to cook: MSG. If he could manufacture MSG, he imagined what his food empire would be like. With modern management systems and business methods, it would create a storm in the catering industry in the Ming Dynasty, breaking the existing business model and causing competitors to follow suit. This would drive related industries to progress and develop. Zhu Yinglong seemed to have already seen the hope of success and couldn't wait to start researching how to produce MSG.

  "Wow, I'm so full, it's been a long time since I've eaten with such relish! The only thing is that the soup was a bit too spicy, and now I'm sweating all over. I'll have to take a bath later before going to sleep!" Ye Liangwei put down her chopsticks first, closed her eyes contentedly, and patted her small belly without caring about appearances.

  Among the five girls, Ye Liangyi was the most casual in front of Zhu Yinglong, not respecting him as her husband at all. The sisters from the Zhou and Tian families were all from noble backgrounds, and every word and action adhered to etiquette, without any deviation. Xiong Hu was a bit better, but she was of lower status, so she couldn't help but be a bit restrained. Seeing Ye Liangyi being so innocent and lively, Zhu Yinglong liked this younger sister even more, and since both of them had excellent martial arts skills, they got along even better.

  When it comes to bathing, Tian Shulan couldn't help but cast a deep glance at Zhu Yinglong, as if she had a belly full of grievances. This made Zhu Yinglong look at her with a startled expression. What's wrong? Could this girl really like him? It can't be love at first sight, can it? He quickly put down the chopsticks in his hand and said: "I'm full too, I remembered that there are still some things that haven't been dealt with, you guys clean up, I'll go to the study."

  Bathing, bathing, what's going on? Why do I always think about bathing? Zhu Yinglong slapped his own head hard and sat in the study room, feeling restless. He originally wanted to calm down and recall some knowledge about MSG, but after thinking for half a day, there were only two words in his mind: "bathing". His heart was annoyed, all because of Tian Shulan's resentful glance at him. Is this what they call the stirring of youth? No way! Just now he had also broken out in a sweat, so why not take a hot bath first? His body felt sticky and uncomfortable.

  Sitting in a large wooden tub, soaking in the warm hot water, Zhu Yinglong felt that all 36,000 pores on his body were open, and he was so comfortable that he almost moaned out loud. Next to him, a personal attendant, Yan Hong, kept adding hot water to maintain the temperature of the water in the tub. This is what it means to be rich and powerful! Zhu Yinglong couldn't help but feel a sense of melancholy, wondering if he had become decadent and corrupt. Absolute power absolutely corrupts, fortunately, he was not yet at the pinnacle of power. In other words, he must remain vigilant spiritually in order to achieve his goals.

  Suddenly, he thought of Yan Hong who had also been busy all day and was still serving him. He felt tired too, so he said to Yan Hong behind him: "Yan Hong, the king doesn't need you to serve him anymore, go down and rest."

  "I'm not tired, I still need to help the king change his clothes!" Yanhong's small face was flushed red from the steam.

  "No need, I'll handle it myself. You can go rest." Zhu Yinglong wanted to sit in the tub for a while and naturally didn't want Yan Hong around him.

  With a "thud", Yan Hong suddenly knelt down, startling Zhu Ying Long, and hastily turned around to say: "Yan Hong, what are you doing? Get up quickly!"

  "The king won't let Yanhong stay, so Yanhong won't get up." Yanhong knelt on the ground and sobbed softly.

  "What's wrong with you, Yan Hong? Has someone bullied you? Tell me, Ben Wang will take care of it for you!" Zhu Yinglong hurriedly wrapped a white towel around his private parts and rushed out of the water bucket.

  Yan Hong saw Zhu Ying Long get out of the bathtub, hastily stood up and pushed him, wanting to push him back into the water: "Your Highness, I was wrong, don't come out, you'll catch a cold!"

  Zhu Yinglong's strength was much greater than Yan Hong's, and Yan Hong's push only moved him slightly. He grasped Yan Hong's weak shoulders with one hand and said: "Yan Hong, what's wrong with you? Tell me, what's going on?"

  The young girl's heart had long been placed on the young man in front of her, but he was completely unaware. No wonder, what was she, and what was he? It was destined to be impossible, it was just her own foolish thoughts. The more she thought about it, the more sorrowful she felt, especially now that he was becoming increasingly distant from her. Although she was still his personal maid, the opportunities to see him were not much more than those of ordinary servants. What young girl in love would not want to see her beloved at all times? Thus, she suddenly forgot everything and burst into tears under the pear blossoms in the rain.

  Yan Hong cried so hard that she almost cried herself into a mess, and Zhu Ying Long was stunned, not knowing how to react. He just let her cry, and this was truly a strange scene - a young girl crying uncontrollably in front of a man with a strong build, the girl's shoulders shaking violently as she sobbed pitifully, while the man stood there stupidly, seemingly entranced, his expression stiff and unreadable.

  "Ah-choo!" Zhu Yinglong suddenly felt a tickle in his nose and let out a loud sneeze, which startled Yan Hong, who was crying. She didn't even bother to wipe away her tears as she hastily ran over, grabbed Zhu Yinglong's clothes, and helped him put them on, saying anxiously: "Your Highness, it's all my fault! Please hurry up and put your clothes on. If you catch a chill, I'll be responsible for it with my life!"

  Zhu Yinglong held down Yan Hong's small hand and said solemnly, "Yan Hong, no matter what grievances you have, you can always come to me, I will definitely stand up for you!"

  Yan Hong's body trembled slightly, and she hesitated for a moment before speaking in a trembling voice: "Thank you, Your Highness, I understand."

  When Zhu Yinglong was dressed, Yan Hong put everything away and was about to leave. Zhu Yinglong called out to her: "Yan Hong, I know what's on your mind. If you think I'm worthy of your trust, in a few years, I'll definitely give you a name!"

  Yan Hong was suddenly stunned, she never thought that happiness would come so suddenly, so violently, and even the coldest wind in her heart at this moment was a warm spring breeze.

  Yan Hong Meng turned around and rushed into Zhu Ying Long's arms, sobbing again, this time with tears of joy and happiness.

  Zhu Yinglong couldn't help but know Yan Hong's thoughts about him. Just now, he was stiff there, considering how to deal with Yan Hong, this young girl who had a deep affection for him. Although her love for him started from the original Zhu Yujian, he felt that Yan Hong liked the current him more. If he didn't even have this bit of confidence, then he shouldn't mention reviving the Ming Dynasty. So he decided to take on this burden and accept Yan Hong. Moreover, he also liked this girl who was steady in her actions, looked very delicate and listened to him.