SFL Chapter 17

Su Qianluo looked at Su Qianhuan and asked directly, “Cousin, do you remember that you once wanted to find a husband who would suit your heart? Have you found one now?”

“Find… no, weren’t we talking about cousin just now?” Su Qianhuan responded.

Su Qianluo smiled and said, “Would cousin become a virtuous wife just because of idle gossip from others? Cousin isn’t living with them. So why should you care about what they say?”

“But if so, then I hope that in the future, cousin can become a virtuous wife. If cousin forgets, I will remind you.”

As an outsider, Su Qianhuan couldn’t miss the hidden meaning behind Su Qianluo’s words. Knowing this, her body trembled slightly.

Su Qianluo seemed overly confident. Could she guarantee that she would be favored for a lifetime?

Facing Su Qianluo’s self-assured demeanor, Su Qianhuan felt particularly uneasy.

In her mind, her impression of Su Qianluo was still stuck in the previous decade. Su Qianluo’s father held a lower official position than her own father, and throughout their childhood, even though Su Qianluo was younger, she was always pampered.

Now, the little follower who had always followed her suddenly grew wings, leaving Su Qianhuan stunned.

Su Mother also felt uncomfortable, but unlike Su Qianhuan’s pure anger, she understood that since Su Qianluo married, she could no longer treat her as the easily dismissed niece from before.

But who could she blame for this? It was Su Qianhuan who gave Su Qianluo the chance to rise like a phoenix.

“Your Highness, there’s no need to point fingers. If it weren’t for your cousin, how could a daughter of a fifth-ranked official have become a royal consort? When it comes to life, one should know how to be grateful. You mustn’t be a white-eyed wolf,¹TL: Wolves are also viewed as vicious and brutal in Chinese culture. The expressions 白眼狼 (bái yǎn láng) – literally “white eyed wolf” is used to describe a particularly cold-hearted, cruel person” the head of the Su family said with a smile.

Su Qianluo sneered softly at the remark. “Is it only when I’ve had a good life after marriage that Aunt and Cousin can ask such questions with a clear conscience? If I had suffered greatly after marriage, I’m sure Aunt and Cousin would have been very glad that it was me who was married off back then.”

Su Mother and Su Qianhuan’s expressions stiffened for a moment. They were reminded of the true reason behind Su Qianluo’s marriage, and it was not for Su Qianluo’s benefit. Su Qianluo earning the respect and favor of the Third Prince was completely unexpected and contrary to the Su family’s initial expectations.

At the time when Su Qianhuan ran away from marriage, she didn’t know about or participate in Su Qianluo’s marriage on her behalf. If Su Qianluo had experienced a difficult life after marriage, she might genuinely feel guilty as an older cousin. However, she couldn’t help but feel envious of why Su Qianluo’s life after marriage had turned out so well. The love and relationship she had been chasing since her youth now seemed to be within Su Qianluo’s grasp.

If Su Qianhuan didn’t run away from marriage, would she be the one who’ll be favored by Mu Yunfeng?

Although Su Qianhuan had never really like Mu Yunfeng that much. She subconsciously felt that her cousin Su Qianluo had just picked up the man she didn’t want, the favorable treatment that Su Qianluo was currently receiving made her unable to suppress the feeling of jealousy.

This cousin who had always been following behind her was suddenly taking the lead, which was something Su Qianhuan absolutely couldn’t tolerate since she has always been the superior among them both.

Su Qianhuan was eager to revert to their previous dynamic, but Su Qianluo had already made a move to prevent it.

At this moment, Mu Yunfeng returned from the palace, and Su Qianluo started serving tea to see off the guests.

Seeing Su Qianluo behave like this, Su Qianhuan couldn’t help but hold back her anger. It was as if she couldn’t see Su Qianluo’s actions and had no eyesight. She still remained seated in her place.

Naturally, Su Mother also didn’t want to leave directly and chose to stay as well.

As a result, Mu Yunfeng had no choice but to meet the female lead, Su Qianhuan, directly.

As the female lead, Su Qianhuan’s appearance was undoubtedly very attractive, but Mu Yunfeng’s expression remained unchanged. He greeted them with a smile, saying, “Aunt, cousin.”

The way he addressed them, with his status following Su Qianluo’s side, surprised Su Mother. Su Qianhuan quickly realized the situation and stood up, apologizing to Mu Yunfeng, “Please don’t blame me, Third Prince. Earlier, I was only discussing the matter of offspring with cousin. She has no children of her own, yet she has been occupying Your Highness for so long. It’s a failure of our family’s teaching…”

After speaking, she boldly looked at Mu Yunfeng, a look of apology mixed with hesitation.

Mu Yunfeng found this rather peculiar. “Cousin, you’re overthinking it. I didn’t even care about the matter of your Su family’s bride being replaced. Whether or not Wang Fei becomes pregnant is not something we can control. Even if we never have children in our lifetime, I won’t mind.”

Can you even tolerate not having children for a lifetime?

Both Su Qianhuan and Su Mother were shocked. They hadn’t expected Mu Yunfeng to be so accommodating towards Su Qianluo. This was something that couldn’t be achieved through one’s family background alone.

The Mother and daughter felt as though they had both eaten the same sour lemon, and their hearts were equally bitter.

The Third Prince personally assured that Su Qianluo’s life wouldn’t be worse than it is now, even if she’ll never have children for the rest of her life. Just the thought of this made Su Qianhuan feel a hint of bitterness.

Even the man she had regarded as her perfect match didn’t possess the same generosity and tolerance as the Third Prince.

“Your Highness, are you still holding a grudge against me for running away from our marriage, so you’re now giving up on me?” Su Qianhuan said and looked directly at Mu Yunfeng.

Her words instantly chilled the expression in the eyes of Su Qianluo, the Third Princess Consort. Su Mother was also taken aback. She hadn’t expected her daughter to be so audacious. Even if she wanted to understand the Third Prince’s feelings toward her daughter, she couldn’t directly ask such a question in front of Su Qianluo.

However, Su Qianhuan was so driven by emotions that she couldn’t care less. At this moment, she desperately hoped that she held a special place in Mu Yunfeng’s heart.

The reason Mu Yunfeng treated Su Qianluo differently was all because of her.

Unfortunately, Mu Yunfeng disappointed her. Upon hearing her words, he looked at Su Qianluo with some surprise and replied, “Cousin, I’ve only met you a few times. Would you be so concerned about a stranger you’ve never met before?”

“The reason I treat Wang Fei well is entirely because she deserves it. She not only manages the Wang Mansion efficiently but also shows filial piety to my parents. In the future, she will endure the hardships of childbirth for my sake. When a woman goes this far for a man, even if I treat her better, it’s well-deserved,” Mu Yunfeng said.

Su Qianhuan could no longer hear the rest of his words. She finally admitted that the Third Prince’s kindness toward Su Qianluo had nothing to do with her. She could no longer deceive herself.

Understanding this, Su Qianhuan felt that she would have no face to meet Su Qianluo and Mu Yunfeng in the future. She ran out of the Wang Mansion in emotional turmoil, and Su Mother had no ice but to hastily make a bow before following her daughter.

In the corner of her eye, Su Mother saw Mu Yunfeng approaching Su Qianluo, which further intensified her feelings of bitterness. She knew that her daughter had truly missed out on a good man.

Even though the calculating Su Mother was filled with scheming, she had to admit that she had made a mistake. Su Qianluo had picked up a treasure that was once in her daughter’s hands.

Su Qianhuan didn’t stay outside for long. When she saw Su Mother, she couldn’t help but break down and said, “Mother, Su Quanluo has surpassed me.”

“Whose fault is that? Isn’t it your own doing?” Su Mother scolded her angrily.

“Huan’er, ever since Su Qianluo married in your place, your status has been inferior to hers. I used to think that, despite your mistakes, the Third Prince would still look upon you favorably because of your father’s official position. But now, I don’t think so anymore. The Third Prince’s kindness to Su Qianluo is not because of her family background; it’s because of who Su Qianluo is…”

At this time, Su Mother’s voice was tinged with bitterness. Her words were essentially an admission that her carefully raised daughter was not as good as someone else’s daughter, which made her, as a mother, feel incredibly uncomfortable.

“Given the current situation, there’s no use thinking about the Third Prince. You must focus on the Fourth Prince,” Su Mother said.

“I… I understand,” Su Qianhuan replied with her head lowered. Since the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince were close brothers, what the Third Prince could do, the Fourth Prince should be able to do as well.

Back at the Third Prince’s residence, Su Qianluo looked at Mu Yunfeng and asked with a smile, “Your Highness, can you really tolerate me not having children for the rest of my life?”

“A woman doesn’t need to bear children to be considered a woman. Besides, I care more about my wife than the children. As parents, how long can we accompany our children? Only with my wife can we grow old together. On this matter, I won’t be confused,” Mu Yunfeng said with a smile.

Later, Mu Yunfeng discussed the reduction of expenses for the royal relatives and encouraged Su Qianluo to prepare for having fewer children.

The Royal relatives had many children mainly because the imperial family supported them in raising those children without using their own resources. Now it was time for them to contribute, and they would naturally choose to have fewer children given their limited resources.

Mu Yunfeng had the ability to earn a lot of money for the treasury, so his own family would not lack money. However, he did not plan to have too many children. If they couldn’t have children together, that would be fine. The only thing he couldn’t accept was having a bunch of children, turning into mere reproductive tools.

With Mu Yunfeng revealing this information, Su Qianluo, who had been anxious due to Su Qianhuan’s earlier remarks, immediately relaxed. She had known this for a long time, but the Third Prince was really different from other men.

She felt incredibly lucky to be married to him. What Aunt and Cousin had said was true. If it weren’t for Su Qianhuan running away from their marriage and the Su family hadn’t asked her to stand in, given her father’s background, she really couldn’t have married the Third Prince. Looking at it from this perspective, she truly needed to be thankful to them.

While Mu Yunfeng and Su Qianluo had a harmonious relationship, things weren’t going so smoothly between Su Qianhuan and the Fourth Prince.

The Eldest son of the Su family saw potential in the Fourth Prince and planned to invest in him using Su Qianhuan as the means. Although Su Qianhuan accepted the family’s arrangement to nurture a relationship with the Fourth Prince, her teenage emotions had not completely disappeared. This often led to her emotions overpowering her rationality.

Especially after witnessing Mu Yunfeng’s affection for Su Qianluo, Su Qianhuan couldn’t help but compare the two brothers when interacting with the Fourth Prince.

The Fourth Prince regarded Su Qianhuan merely as a political marriage partner, with no romantic intentions. It was unlikely for two people with such different motives to get along.

Su Qianhuan began to feel dissatisfied with the Fourth Prince. Although he wasn’t the Crown Prince, he was still a royal heir and had never really suffered any hardships. Even in the palace, despite his lower status, he was often pampered by others, and he rarely had to humble himself.

He had chosen to temporarily bend to the Su family’s political power because of Su Qianhuan, but that didn’t mean he would tolerate her forever. As Su Qianhuan became increasingly critical of him, he couldn’t help but lose his temper and scoff at her unrealistic expectations. “Am I supposed to only devote myself to you? Are you insane, or am I?”

While he might have considered accommodating her for a while if she could provide him with significant political support, her demands had now exceeded what the Fourth Prince was willing to offer. If the input didn’t match the output, the Fourth Prince was no longer patient.

Su Qianhuan, who had been mocked by him, hadn’t expected the Fourth Prince to turn hostile so quickly, and she was deeply affected by this.

“Su Qianhuan, do you really think of yourself as a goddess, expecting me to focus only on you?” The Fourth Prince chuckled at Su Qianhuan’s naivety.

“But the Third Prince can do it,” Su Qianhuan replied with pursed lips.

“Do you wonder why I didn’t follow the example of my eldest brother and second brother, who have numerous concubines? My third brother is an exception and I won’t be as foolish as him.”

“Foolish?” Su Qianhuan was stunned, not expecting her sincere feelings to be so disdainfully disregarded.

At this point, even though Su Qianhuan might be naive, she realized that the Fourth Prince was not as fond of her as he had initially shown.

However, their entanglement was no longer a simple matter of emotions; it was deeply intertwined with the political forces behind both Su Qianhuan and the Fourth Prince. Even if she wanted to break free now, it was already too late.

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  TL: Wolves are also viewed as vicious and brutal in Chinese culture. The expressions 白眼狼 (bái yǎn láng) – literally “white eyed wolf” is used to describe a particularly cold-hearted, cruel person