Chapter 18 - Chapter 18: Chapter 18: Fear of Returning Home (2/2)

Hence the two concubine’s daughters had always addressed him as Old Master

Su, just like the servants did, which especially rankled them. They carried the Su Family’s blood as well, and just because they did not have a favored mother, how had their lot fallen so low?

Concubine’s daughters need not necessarily return home when the first lady did; they had come back simply to revel in the sight of Su Wenyue’s downfall and to mock the proud and arrogant first lady’s current plight.

An Family knew exactly what the concubine’s daughters were thinking and felt very displeased. As a result, she had been giving everyone a cold shoulder all morning, even leaving Master Su with a snub. Master Su glared fiercely at the two concubine’s daughters with shallow eyelids, these two troublesome beings. They were already married yet still came back to meddle in family affairs.

Indeed, Father was right: concubine-born children were just things that could never be presentable! Influenced by his father, Old Master Su, Master Su didn’t like the two concubine’s daughters one bit, let alone place any importance on them.

“I am truly looking out for our daughter’s best interests, why won’t you trust my judgment? The son-in-law is indeed a good man, he will surely achieve great things in the future. Father had someone calculate his fortune specifically; they said the son-in-law is destined for officialdom and will certainly rise through the ranks smoothly. In the future, our daughter could also become an official’s wife, isn’t that wonderful?”

Upon hearing this, An Family got even angrier. What unreliable nonsense was this—believing the words of some old monk?

“Don’t use these intangible things to pacify me. That Han family’s kid is just a farmer, albeit a more literate one, with some martial arts. Apart from that, he has no special abilities—destined for officialdom, are you dreaming? Regardless of what could happen in the future, what about now? Look at the kind of life our daughter is leading. The Han family is such a modest household that they couldn’t even afford a proper wedding. Never in my wildest dreams did I expect my daughter to marry in such a disheartened way.”

Saying this, An Family felt her heart break, and she heartily dabbed at her tears with her handkerchief. Master Su felt helpless as he tried to comfort his wife, “Well, isn’t there a saying that one must endure hardship before enjoying prosperity? Our daughter’s good days are yet to come, don’t be like this. Today is the day our daughter returns, and she would feel heartache seeing you this way.”

“Heartache, what heartache? Aren’t you aware of your daughter’s temperament? When we forced her into the bridal sedan chair, she must have been resenting us deeply. I was even worried whether she would come back today. None of the men in this family can give me peace of mind. I must have owed you all in my previous life!” Even though An Family spoke thus, her steps hastened as she moved to go outside, with Master Su cheerfully following behind.

As they say, as one draws near to their hometown, they become fearful. It was only now that Su Wenyue truly understood the meaning of this phrase. Standing at the entrance to the Su Family’s estate, she found herself unable to take a step forward, simply standing there stupefied, gazing at the large signboard before her that read “Su Mansion”. A surge of feelings welled up in her heart as she thought of her father’s and mother’s faces and voices, as if her life had passed by in many years.

In her previous life, besides the child she had abandoned, the people she had let down the most were her family members who had doted on her since she was young. While she was in the mansion, she had someone inquire about her family and, knowing that they were well, she never disturbed them—just silently keeping tabs until she was framed and killed by the Mistress. She didn’t even know if her parents had received any news of it..