SFL Chapter 11

In Su Qianhuan’s heart, she didn’t believe that her cousin, Su Qianluo, was leading a good life, even though Su Qianluo enjoyed luxuries, exquisite clothing, and a lofty status.

She believed that if a woman didn’t have a husband who truly understood and cared for her, her life would be spent in vain.

With her runaway marriage in the past and Su Qianluo’s substitute marriage, it was equivalent to a direct challenge to the Third Prince. How could the Third Prince possibly harbor no resentment towards Su Qianluo as his consort? This was also why she felt guilty towards Su Qianluo.

Now that someone was saying Su Qianluo’s life was great, Su Qianhuan’s immediate reaction was disbelief.

She couldn’t believe that Su Qianluo could be leading a good life and refused to accept it.

Because that would mean her decision to run away from the marriage was wrong.

Due to the pressure she had faced from her family for running away, how could she watch Su Qianluo become the last straw that broke her family’s back?

Thinking this way, Su Qianhuan’s eyes slightly reddened. She looked around vigilantly, like a cautious and sharp-eyed rabbit.

Unfortunately, the noblewomen were not mind-readers and didn’t know Su Qianhuan’s thoughts. Their words continued without shifting because Su Qianhuan didn’t want to listen.

“Exactly! Don’t even compare the Third Prince’s harem to those of the other two princes. Even in comparison to us, the Third Prince’s back courtyard is exceptionally clean,” one of the noblewomen said with envy. “The Third Princess Consort is really fortunate. If it were me, I’d rather endure being cold-shouldered by everyone just to experience being doted on by my husband.”

Compared to lives that appeared glamorous on the surface but were filled with hardship inside, Su Qianluo, who had been shunned by the noblewomen in the capital and had married into the imperial family, didn’t know that there was a reason behind it.

After all, they all appeared glamorous on the surface, and there was no room for real pampering. Having seen so much, it made them lose their appetite.

“I heard that the Third Princess was a substitute bride. I’m sure that Su family daughter who fled the Third Prince’s marriage has no idea what married life is like now. Otherwise, she must be regretting it to the bone,” the noblewomen continued, this time with disdain on their faces.

Even though they flattered Su Qianhuan in front of Su Qianluo, now that Su Qianluo was not present, they no longer needed to hide their true thoughts.

“Before a marriage, who knows what kind of life awaits afterward? Maybe it’s because the Third Princess has a charm that makes the Third Prince cherish her more. With a different consort, the Prince might not act the same way,” one of the perceptive noblewomen commented.

This was the reason they admired and even envied the situation.

In a world where everyone had impurities, the Third Prince remained pure. The same went for the Third Princess, which made these noblewomen, who had experienced some dissatisfaction in their own marriages, unable to ignore it.

While they discussed, they didn’t notice that one of the main characters they were talking about was right nearby.

Su Qianhuan’s face visibly paled, and she began to feel cold.

At that moment, the head of the Su family, Su Qianhuan’s mother, slapped her hand with a “thud.” This snapped Su Qianhuan out of her self-doubt. Su Qianhuan’s mother stood up straight, her gaze icy and unchanging, and she educated Su Qianhuan without changing her expression. “At this point, even if you regret it, it won’t change anything. This marriage has been missed, and even if you did, how can you be sure you won’t encounter a more suitable marriage tomorrow?”

“Mother, is the Third Prince seeking revenge on me? Seeking revenge on our Su family? Otherwise, how can Su Qianluo receive the Third Prince’s favor?”

In the world, so many beautiful and talented girls are married and transformed after marriage, and they no longer resemble their carefree selves. How could Su Qianluo, who was rejected by many women, enjoy the exclusive favor that so many women coveted?

Is the Third Prince, of royal blood, afraid of her as a minor royal consort? Their differences in status should make it impossible for the Third Prince to fear her. In this marriage, the Third Prince dominated Su Qianluo in every aspect, so he chose not to take other consorts and exclusively favored his consort. It was something the Third Prince wanted to do.

Why did Su Qianhuan run away from her marriage initially? Wasn’t it because she anticipated the complicated situation in the Third Prince’s residence, where she would have to deal with numerous concubines and a group of children who were not her own?

Now, the actions of the Third Prince are like a slap in her face, making Su Qianhuan realize that she has missed out on a marriage that would have suited her.

If she had known that the Third Prince was this kind of person, and that she would receive her husband’s exclusive affection, she would never have chosen to run away from the marriage.

But now, no matter what she says, it’s too late. The identity of the Third Princess belongs to another woman, and she gave it away willingly.

If it weren’t for that, Su Qianhuan might have felt a little better.

But precisely because of this, Su Qianhuan is now as bitter as if she had swallowed a whole piece of bitter melon.

“Have you forgotten the people the Third Prince offended in the capital? Don’t be fooled by the good life your cousin is living now. She might have her share of hardships in the future,” Su Qianhuan’s mother said, looking at things from a completely different perspective.

“But Su Qianluo has gained the Third Prince’s exclusive favor. If it were me, I would endure any hardship for that,” Su Qianhuan said unconsciously, focusing on the point of the Third Prince exclusively favoring Su Qianluo.

Su Qianhuan’s mother didn’t intend to debate with her daughter about whether love or material wealth was more important. She knew that her daughter was still in a state of innocence and hadn’t yet experienced real hardships. She didn’t know that sometimes, even a piece of bread couldn’t compare to so-called love.

Which woman in the inner chamber hadn’t once harbored delusions of love? In the end, they were all crushed by the harsh reality.

Meanwhile, the other two people in question, Su Qianluo and Mu Yunfeng, were standing together, chatting and laughing.

Su Qianluo was not talking about anything important but rather some trivial matters in the residence. These were very trivial matters, not because Su Qianluo didn’t want to discuss external matters, but because she couldn’t comprehend the broader world.

Originally, Su Qianluo thought Mu Yunfeng might get impatient listening to these, but unexpectedly, Mu Yunfeng listened with great interest. He also occasionally shared interesting anecdotes from his work in the Six Ministries. The husband and wife exchanged various trivial matters they had encountered.

Through these small details of daily life, the relationship between the husband and wife gradually deepened, and they both gained a clearer and deeper understanding of each other.

It was precisely because of the deepening of Su Qianluo’s understanding of Mu Yunfeng that she began to feel more secure in her heart.

While everyone else was envious of her exclusive favor from the Third Prince, Su Qianluo herself couldn’t help but have mixed feelings. She was afraid that Mu Yunfeng was only interested in her beauty, and once her looks faded, someone new would replace her.

If that were the case, she would rather this so-called exclusive favor had never existed from the beginning. That way, she wouldn’t have any expectations.

Not expecting anything, when such an honor was no longer present, she wouldn’t lose her peace of mind.

Sometimes, Su Qianluo even doubted if Mu Yunfeng was intentionally spoiling her. She knew very well what kind of person she was. If Mu Yunfeng hadn’t given her hope from the beginning, it would have been fine. But once he did, she wouldn’t allow him to take it back, or else she didn’t know what she might do.

Mu Yunfeng didn’t know about Su Qianluo’s thoughts, but from the very beginning, he understood Su Qianluo’s nature and knew that she would resort to any means when her marriage was in crisis.

In the original story, many people accused Su Qianluo of being malicious, but they forgot that she was the wife officially married to the male lead. Her actions were merely a defense of her legitimate rights. Even though she was a stand-in bride, it was the female lead who caused the trouble, not Su Qianluo.

Just because Su Qianluo wasn’t the female lead, her status as a wife could be sacrificed, becoming a stepping stone for the emotions between the male and female leads, to be trampled upon at will.

Su Qianluo could be considered a rare supporting character who had brains and could be ruthless. At least, her intelligence was always evident. If it weren’t for the protagonist’s halo, she might have been the ultimate winner in the end. Unfortunately, in the book, no matter what, they had to make way for the “star-crossed lovers.”

God knows how much of a headache Mu Yunfeng had when he originally read the original work.

Before anyone else interfered in his marriage, Su Qianluo was a very gentle and considerate person. She did everything a wife should do, but even so, the original host found fault with what Su Qianluo did and became interested in the female lead who had slapped her own face.

If Mu Yunfeng were to describe it in one word: despicable.

Why turn a peaceful life into a dramatic one? He didn’t like it at all, as if life was only about emotions, and he had thrown all his responsibilities and obligations to the dogs.

This time, without his intervention as the male lead, he wanted to see how the female lead would manage on her own.

“Husband, what are you looking at?” Sensing that Mu Yunfeng was a bit distracted, Su Qianluo asked.

Mu Yunfeng came back to his senses and smiled, “Just suddenly felt like watching a drama.”

“What drama?” Su Qianluo had an intuition that this was not an ordinary stage play.

“Life is like a drama,” Mu Yunfeng said.

He was thinking, which of his younger brothers would eventually ascend to the throne?

The First and Second Princes had already been excluded by him. After all, their intelligence couldn’t even compare to the original host’s romantic brain.

So, in the original story, it should be one of the younger brothers contending for the throne.

With that in mind, Mu Yunfeng discreetly glanced at the princes behind him.

He and Su Qianluo had been married for a short time, and none of his younger brothers below him had gotten married yet; they were all still residing in the imperial palace.

Although they were young now, it didn’t mean they were well-behaved.

Leaving aside the rest, he had once personally interrogated the staff of these younger brothers in the Ministry of Justice.

Their manpower was not as abundant as the First and Second Princes, so if they suffered losses, they would probably hate him for it.

“Third Brother.” Sensing Mu Yunfeng’s gaze, the Fourth Prince looked over, smiling as he greeted Mu Yunfeng.

The young prince had a fair complexion and a clean, natural smile that made it difficult to tell whether he was a white or black-hearted individual.

Mu Yunfeng smiled back at him, earning a light humph from the Eldest Prince beside him.

The Eldest Prince believed that Mu Yunfeng was trying to win over his younger brothers and was doing so openly in their presence, without any pretense.

In an instant, the Eldest Prince, who still harbored hopes of ascending to the throne, began to doubt the “loyalty” of his younger brothers.

The Legitimate Prince Mu Yunfeng carried far more weight than himself, the eldest half-brother. Those younger brothers had the same status as him. If Mu Yunfeng could win them over, there was no guarantee that he could do the same.

This made the Eldest Prince’s expression even more sour. Even though they were enjoying exquisite food and various performances at the banquet, it didn’t bring a smile to the Eldest Prince’s face.

From his elevated position as the Emperor, he didn’t notice the Eldest Prince’s subtle scheming. Instead, he focused on Mu Yunfeng and conversed with him in a friendly manner.

The Second Prince and the Eldest Prince both felt a bitter taste in their hearts, and some of the other princes couldn’t hide it on their faces either.

They keenly noticed that the Emperor was changing. He was no longer distributing his favor evenly among his sons as he used to, but rather, he had begun to show preference to someone else, and it wasn’t them.

This realization filled them with panic, especially those princes who had aspirations for the throne. They felt a sudden chill, sensing that things were taking a worrisome turn.

This was something that had never happened before.

In the past, even though Mu Yunfeng was the Legitimate Prince of the Palace, he had never received such special treatment from the Emperor. But now, this special favor was falling upon Mu Yunfeng, and what it signified, many dared not imagine.

The princes felt uneasy, and the court officials shared the same sentiment.

Why did His Majesty favor the Third Prince so much? The Third Prince was so harsh and ruthless towards them; they didn’t need to look into the future to realize that they were already suffering under the Third Prince’s rule.

Privately, Mu Yunfeng had already topped the list of least-liked princes among the court officials, and he occupied the top spot. No one was willing to have such an unapproachable “boss” hanging over their heads because they were all afraid of falling into Mu Yunfeng’s hands.

However, these thoughts couldn’t be openly expressed, especially not to the Emperor.

But at the same time, some officials began to think differently. They looked at Mu Yunfeng with increasingly murky eyes.

They had always been considering matters from their own standpoint as loyal ministers. Naturally, they wanted an obedient Emperor, even one they could manipulate and control.

But what about the Emperor? Would the Emperor be willing to entrust his empire to a son who could be easily manipulated by his ministers?

Presumably, he wouldn’t.