Children of the first wife and children of concubines naturally stood in different positions. Few would become good friends with each other, but few would also become enemies; most of the time, everyone just minded their own business.
Su Changping’s family was relatively quiet; Father and Mother Su were affectionate, with no concubine coming between them, and although it’d been difficult for them to get a son and daughter, they were both healthy and could not be considered weak.
But the overall circumstance in Duke of Qi’s residence wasn’t so quiet; Duke of Qi had three sons, one from the first wife and two from concubines, and relationships were unclear. Duke of Qi and his wife had been together for most of their lives; they never blushed, nor quarreled, and although there was affection between them, it was more of a familial affection than it was a romantic one.
It was different between him and Concubine Wu. When they were younger it was difficult to separate them, and although they aged, their feelings never faded; it’s just the (1) stream had trickled for too long, so their affection for each other was no longer as strong compared to the past.
His sons weren’t born from the same mother, so his feelings towards them naturally differed. He relied heavily on his eldest son; even though this child rejected his arrangements and stubbornly abandoned the path of martials, he still believed he did well and was capable of supporting Duke of Qi’s residence in the future.
His second son was born to Concubine Zhao. He didn’t have any requirements for this son; it was fine as long as he was safe and sound, and didn’t cause any trouble.
His youngest son was born to Concubine Wu. This child wasn’t needed to become the family’s backbone and, because of his background, his official career couldn’t compare to his eldest son’s; it was really pitiful.
His eldest son didn’t choose martials, hence, Su Family’s military connections and foundations was successively handed over to the youngest son so he could stand up for himself in the military and (2) after a hundred years, Duke of Qi wouldn’t have to worry about this big family of his anymore.
As the head of the family, Duke of Qi just couldn’t handle matters fairly or justly, so he couldn’t blame anyone for thinking too much and feeling upset.
But this had little to do with Su Yuan. Although the families living in Duke of Qi’s residence weren’t separated, the estate had already been properly divided; the only thing not divided was Duke of Qi and his wife’s private property, hence allowing his three sons’ families to live together. Even so, they each lived their own lives and managed their own expenses; at the very least, the youngest son’s family didn’t hold any implications for property matters.
Su Changping’s family alone owned 70% of the family property, so their lives were naturally not difficult; in addition, because Mother Su had excellent finance-management skills, their family had become increasingly more prosperous.
Su Yuan had to learn family management from her A-niang, not just for food, but also property; their fundamental goal was to balance their finance, whilst their more ambitious goal was to use money to earn money.
Su Yuan was extremely interested in this course; no matter where one goes, money would always be important – there’d never be too much. In her past life, the reason why her father was shown mercy wherever he went was because he never lacked money – why else would people follow him?
Over here, Su Yuan concentratedly learnt the way of family management from her A-niang; over there, her A-die didn’t stay idle either. As the Crown Prince’s blood-related uncle, out of affection and reason, he had to help him become familiar with his new status. Even if he wasn’t able to help much because of the Crown Prince’s abilities, he had to show his manners – not as a display for the Crown Prince, but for the outsiders.
The Crown Prince accepted his uncle’s affections. Just as his biao-mei said, they all had a close relationship; like grasshoppers tied to a string, they’ll prosper together or lose everything together – no relationship was more reassuring than this.
Although the Crown Prince had just been granted his status, his roots ran deep; in the majority of people’s eyes, his promotion hadn’t caused a big change in Great Yan. Unless the Crown Prince committed an act of treason or unfiliety, he’d definitely become the next Emperor.
But since the next Emperor hadn’t married yet, with no Crown Princess or concubine beside him, those clever families had already begun to make preparations.
Sending an age-appropriate daughter to the (3) Eastern Palace would naturally be the best choice; at least, it’d be better than sending them to the current harem. There weren’t many positions left in the harem and the current Emperor wasn’t very young anymore. Despite his high status and wealth, there weren’t many parents cruel enough to marry their young and tender daughters to an almost-forty-year old man.
The Eastern Palace had become a sweet pastry in everyone’s eyes; as the Crown Prince’s mother, the Empress still wanted her niece to become the Crown Princess.
This should be excellent news to all three parties. A-yuan was Yu-er’s saviour, since she’d already helped him escape from one disaster; in the future, if the two really do become married, everyone relationship’s would become even closer. In addition, if Yu-er was ever to meet a catastrophe, the heavens would just send A-yuan a dream.
This should be excellent news to A-yuan too; if she let her niece walk the same path as her own by becoming the Crown Princess, then Empress, then finally the Empress Dowager, she’d definitely be the envy of the world. Even if the outsiders begged, they’d never be granted this opportunity.
Moreover, this was beneficial to the Empress. Instead of letting someone else’s daughter become her daughter-in-law, it was better for her niece to take the position; they’d definitely get along in the future, and there won’t be a need to compete against her when she becomes older.
This was beneficial to all three parties; the Empress naturally wouldn’t change her mind because of her son’s words.
Since she couldn’t reach an agreement with her son, the Empress sought out the Emperor and her younger siblings; marriage, after all, was up to the parents’ decision. Her son had always been ambitious, but when it came to the matters between a man and woman, he was still just a naive, inexperienced boy; she couldn’t completely follow his words.
The Emperor couldn’t pick out any faults against the Crown Prince; this was the child he brought up with his hands and whether it be his studies or government affairs, he was the one who taught him little-by-little. This was the child who’d inherit the world and, frankly speaking, he was more capable, more ambitious, than he’d ever be – anything he wouldn’t be able to do, this child would achieve in the future.
Towards the Su Family, there wasn’t anything he was concerned about either. Duke of Qi was a little muddle-headed when it came to family matters, but he was still a bright minister; although couldn’t be considered amazing, he wasn’t mediocre either. He had a good family background, didn’t lack anything, and hadn’t thought up of any crooked ideas even after so many years as a minister.
Duke of Qi’s eldest son was a person who held great understanding in his heart; if he could abandon the path of martials and become a scholar, it meant he had better foresight than Duke of Qi. He was also a person with great capability – after so many years spent in the Ministry of Works, his political achievements were all very sturdy – and would always wholeheartedly complete his tasks, unafraid of offending anyone; if an Emperor had to favour an official, they’d definitely favour someone like him.
As for Duke of Qi’s other two sons – they weren’t capable of causing any big troubles.
Such a family – if it wasn’t the Empress’ family, then choosing Su Family’s eldest daughter would certainly be suitable; however, Su Family already had the Empress, so they couldn’t have another Crown Princess, otherwise the court would be in chaos. Moreover, it wasn’t good for the Su Family in the long run.
“This is Yu-er’s marriage, so it depends on whether he wants to or not. He can decide which lady he’d like to marry – zhen won’t have an opinion on it.” The Emperor eloquently (4) kicked the ball to his son.
How could he not understand the child he raised? Yu-er was a person focused on the big picture; he wouldn’t let his gratitude mess up his mind.
“We’re not young anymore; to say it more unpleasantly, we don’t even know how many years we have left. Yu-er is the type to work hard for his goals. To entrust the future to him, zhen has nothing to be concerned about, so you shouldn’t worry about it too much either. If you have that much effort, why not use it to accompany me? We can drink tea and admire the flowers together.”
To the person by her pillow-side, the Empress had no words left to say. He was different from the Emperors in the history books in a way that even after so many years as Emperor, he wasn’t someone with a strong desire for power.
When Yu-er was still young, this person wanted to quickly cultivate the child so he could hand over the responsibility of Emperor to him; now that he’d become the Crown Prince, he could justify leaving all the government affairs to him.
She couldn’t convince the Emperor, yet when discussing it with her siblings, she couldn’t convince them either.
The other was also a mother dedicated to her daughter’s happiness. “A-yuan’s temperament is similar to a boy’s; neither me or my husband restricts her. If she wants to learn martial arts, we’ll let her learn martial arts; if she wants to ride a horse, we’ll let her ride a horse; if she wants to go out, then just bring enough people. Here are some words from my conscience – my daughter was born wrong; she should’ve been born a man instead. This child isn’t suitable for the palace.” What sincere and beautiful words.
Such a motherly heart made the Empress speechless; she’d intended on being a good person – who would’ve thought nobody accepted it?
Nevermind. Since everyone refused, then she won’t continue acting as the bad guy; A-yuan was her niece, and was also Yu-er’s saviour, so no matter who she’d marry in the future she’d always protect her and stop anyone from bullying her.
It was only a pity she’d become an ordinary person’s wife; although they’d live a simple life, they may not be happy – oh well, everyone had their own fate.
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
Since then, the Empress’ mind was put to rest whilst Su Yuan never even noticed anything; after all, nobody discussed this matter with her, and she’d been spending her days freely and comfortably at home. Regardless of how much she has to learn, she’d have a two days resting period every ten days; in other words, every ten days she could spend two days going out and having fun.
Sometimes, when she wanted to have more fun, she’d change into men’s clothing before going out; she’d bring a few people with her to walk around the Capital’s streets and alleys, or outside the city in the nearby mountains and forests – she’d occasionally visit the temples too.
Let’s not even mention women, even very few men were as free as her. Regardless of scholarly works or martials, everyone would use their teen period to work hard and aim for a spot in an academy; they’d either be reading or practicing martial arts with full focus, leaving no time to come out and wander around like her.
For Su Yuan to be able to live so comfortably wasn’t just because she was pampered by everyone in the residence and had no restraints holding her back – she also received her cousin’s care, in the form of a waist token. Her cousin had already notified the Magistrate and the Imperial Guards’ Commander.
This time she really did have a ‘close relationship’ with her cousin. No longer did he send her any precious jewels or jades, antique calligraphies or paintings; instead, he’d send her everything Su Yuan needed the most.
They were also gifts and also ways to repay her, but the degree of attentiveness was still different after all.
Every single day was spent with happiness; compared to her past life, she felt even happier now. Although society and technology were more advanced in her past life, there were too many annoyances at home – unlike now, where even if there was trouble, it wouldn’t be enough to bother her.
What kind of trouble would there be within the residence anyway? It was just her third uncle’s side, but everyone from the residence knew that there wasn’t much interaction between the family’s Eldest Young Lady and Second Young Lady. Although cousins, if their parents weren’t on good terms, then as daughters would they have a good relationship with each other?
Su Yuan and her second cousin would only appear close on the surface, when in truth, their relationship only consisted of greeting each other when necessary – when they do greet each other, they may even be cursing the other.
Su Rong was privately named the ‘blessed person’, which was already trampling over Su Yuan’s good reputation. There were four ladies in the Duke of Qi residence; the third and fourth ladies were born from concubines, so their presences weren’t very strong, thus the outsiders who only knew about the first two ladies would inevitably compare the two.
If Su Yuan’s background was good, then Su Rong’s reputation was even better.
Cousins with relationships like these were better off staying away from each other – what’s the point of gathering together, ‘disgusting’ the other, and becoming someone’s obstacle in life?
Su Yuan didn’t want to become closer with her second cousin anyway; just because she was in her pre-teens didn’t mean she was soft-hearted. Whenever the other came over, she’d act polite but never get close, nor would she take her out to have fun with her.
∘₊✧──────✧₊∘
“I’m indeed planning on visiting Anshan Temple tomorrow, but you also know that I’ve never liked riding in horse carriages. Most of the time I ride my own horse outside; even the guards diedie arranges for me would follow on horseback – this way, our trip to and from our destination won’t be so rushed. If (5) er-mei wants to go to Anshan Temple, it’ll be better to have Third Aunt accompany you; after all, it’ll be more comfortable riding in a horse carriage. Staying for a night at Anshan Temple would also be good – you can enjoy the vegetarian foods there – so it isn’t necessary for you to accompany me,” Su Yuan refused.
She didn’t know what Su Rong was planning, but for the past few days she’d always come over to find her; then and again, there were no affections between them, so why would she bring along a (6) troublesome oil bottle?
She couldn’t ride a horse, nor could she hunt; if they really did encounter a group of bandits, she’d have to protect her.
Su Yuan wanted to go out and have fun, not to entertain a child; even if she was to entertain a child, she’d be entertaining Dong-lang, not this cousin.
The rejected Su Rong wasn’t not embarrassed – even the tips of her ears had turned red – but she didn’t complain. She thought her cousin too arrogant – she hadn’t even shown her some respect – but also thought herself too impatient; she had to take this slowly and gradually, instead of using such aggressive means.
“Since big sis says so, then Rong-er won’t insist on going out with you tomorrow. It’ll be better for me to accompany you whilst you’re within the Capital rather than out anyway.”
From the surface, Su Rong looked very well-behaved and there weren’t any faults in her words; however, Su Yuan didn’t believe in this kind of uncalled-for intimacy.
“We’ll talk about it then; we have very stressful lessons, so who knows when we’ll be free next time.”
Su Rong also understood that too much is as bad as too little, so she didn’t say much before taking her leave; only when he back had turned on the other did her lip turn into a pout, her brows slightly burrowed into a frown. Even the reasons big sis found were perfunctory.
It was true her lessons were stressful; instruments, chess, calligraphy and painting; poetry and literary works; the feminime arts; family management; she had to learn every single one of these, so in the past, she had very little time to spare.
But it wasn’t the same with big sis – who didn’t know big sis would go out and play for two days every ten days? Even during days when she had lessons, big sis would go out whenever she wanted, with uncle and auntie just letting her.
Such a sloppy person like big sis didn’t hold a single trace of a woman’s demure; instead, she lived no differently from a man – only her face could fool others for a little bit.
Yet, just because of her background, such a person with only a good face would always be ranked above her; it’d be fine if this was just within Duke of Qi’s residence, but what she was afraid of was it’d be like this even outside the residence.
Duke of Qi’s wife dreamt that the prince would be assassinated and, with a freak combination of factors, saved the prince. She didn’t see how it benefited Duke of Qi’s residence, but it undeniably benefited her big sis. During their stay in the resort, gifts after gifts were sent to her big sis; when they returned to the Capital, the Crown Prince’s favour towards her big sis increased.
Mother would always say that ‘for women, any acts of honour or disgrace will affect the men; marriage is like a second reincarnation’.
She couldn’t compare to her big sis during her first reincarnation, so she couldn’t just let her second reincarnation be beaten either; if big sis was to marry into the Eastern Palace, then she’d marry into the Eastern Palace too.
(1) Stream had trickled for too long – too much time had passed
(2) After a hundred years – exaggeration; meaning ‘after some time has passed’
(3) Eastern Palace – the Crown Prince’s residence
(4) Kicked the ball – handing a burden/responsibility to another
(5) Er-mei – ‘er’ meaning second, and ‘mei’ meaning sister (the same ‘mei’ used for ‘biao-mei’)
(6) Troublesome oil bottle – a hindrance
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