Su Mingfeng was always aloof, but Zhang believed that once one entered officialdom, one should strive to climb the ranks.
“In officialdom, what else is there to talk about if not power? I’m doing this for the sake of our descendants! Right now, the Emperor favors the Imperial Noble Consort and is willing to promote you and your brother-in-law. But what will happen to the Su family when the Imperial Noble Consort falls out of favor or the Emperor is gone? If Tang’er marries the First Prince, then there’s no need to worry anymore; at least there will be a layer of protection.”
Su Mingfeng initially thought that the Zhang family came from a scholarly family and should be extraordinary people. However, he forgot that Zhang Tingyu was the head of the Han officials, and half of the officials in the court obeyed him. The Zhang family's power was at its zenith.
Growing up in such an environment, Zhang valued power highly. She always tried to win over Su Mingfeng and bring him into the Zhang family faction, but Su Mingfeng was unwilling to participate in factional struggles. Even though Zhang Tingyu was his father-in-law, he was unwilling to associate with them.
Because he rose from the bottom step by step, he knew that their factionalism would ultimately harm the interests of ordinary people. Therefore, he only followed his own path and did not attach himself to any faction.
Previously, when an official got into trouble, Zhang asked Su Mingfeng for help. Su Mingfeng refused to show favoritism and handled the matter impartially. Zhang scoffed at him for being too straightforward and inflexible.
The couple had many disagreements about this and often argued.
It's one thing for her to scheme against others, but now she's even scheming about her own daughter's marriage. Su Mingfeng finds this utterly despicable.
"She is our daughter, not a tool for you to fight for power! If she wants to marry, fine; if she doesn't, you shouldn't force her!"
Her daughter was naive and inexperienced; how could she understand what a woman truly needed? "Tang'er is young and ignorant; as her mother, I have to make choices for her. How could I possibly harm her?"
"Ordinary people may not take concubines, but princes must have secondary wives. This is what Tang'er cares about most. Tang'er is simple and innocent; she can't compete with those women. If you insist on making her marry the First Prince, you are harming her!"
Zhang glanced at Su Mingfeng and sneered, "So what if you don't take a concubine? You may not take a concubine, but do you even care about me?"
When the two first got married, they did not have much affection for each other, but Su Mingfeng also knew that now that they were married, he should put the past behind him and treat his wife well, after all, Zhang was innocent.
He tried to cultivate a relationship with Zhang. Zhang was eloquent and very proper in her dealings with others. However, she had one flaw: she loved to dress up and owned countless pieces of jewelry and silk. She would buy new ones every month, and if she saw something she liked in a shop, she would bring it home and always mention Su Mingfeng's name.
At that time, Su Mingfeng's official position was not very high, and his salary was very small. He was unwilling to embezzle, and his family was not wealthy. However, he thought that since she was his wife, he should support her and give her whatever she wanted, as long as he could.
As a result, when he ran out of money, he had to take out the money that the emperor had previously bestowed upon him and which he had deposited in a bank for emergencies, and use it for her expenses.
As his official position rose higher and his salary increased, she became increasingly generous with her spending.
It would have been one thing if he had just spent the family's money, but unexpectedly, Zhang had also secretly accepted gifts from the wives of officials.
Because those officials saw that he refused to accept bribes, they started targeting his wife.
Upon learning of this, Su Mingfeng was furious. He believed it was a disguised bribe and absolutely could not be accepted. Zhang, however, thought it was an unspoken rule in officialdom and there was no need to make a fuss.
The two had a big fight over this, and Su Mingfeng ordered her to return everything. Zhang eventually did return everything, but their already fragile marital relationship was further broken as a result.
From then on, Su Mingfeng never took a concubine, but he and Zhang were not on the same page and could not work together, so they could not develop any feelings for each other.
Zhang increasingly felt that the man she had married was too old-fashioned and not a good match. Therefore, she hoped that her daughter would marry a powerful and wealthy man in the future, and never marry such a stubborn scholar!
The couple had argued for a long time today about their daughter's marriage. Su Mingfeng's attitude was very firm. To prevent Zhang from causing trouble, the next morning, after court, Su Mingfeng went to the Hall of Mental Cultivation to request an audience with the Emperor and express her stance.
"I heard from my wife that the Imperial Noble Consort intends to betroth Tang'er to the First Prince. This is a blessing that Tang'er has accumulated over many lifetimes, but Tang'er says she is unwilling."
After a moment's thought, Hongli considered a possibility: "Does she have someone she loves? Which family's young master is he?"
If her daughter truly had someone she loved, Su Mingfeng could have taken the opportunity to speak up and let the Emperor decide. However, this was not the case. "Your Majesty, Tang'er has no one she loves."
That's strange. "If she has no such intention, why is she unwilling to marry her cousin, thus strengthening family ties?"
Su Mingfeng couldn't find a suitable reason, and since he wasn't good at lying, he had no choice but to tell the truth: "Actually, it's because Tang'er longs for a relationship where both parties are in love, but the prince will have to take a concubine in the future, which is why she has some concerns."
What Hongli admired most about Su Mingfeng was her honesty. Officials who had been in the officialdom for a long time often liked to speak in official jargon and make empty promises, but Su Mingfeng always spoke the truth and never lied.
To outsiders, this reasoning seemed peculiar, but Hongli could understand it.
The daughters of the Su family seem to be exceptionally sensitive. Hongli also longed to stay with Yushan, but unfortunately, he married a Fujin because of the rules.
Royal descendants always have their own reasons. Hongli was an experienced person, and he knew better than anyone else that the so-called princes' wives were mostly glamorous on the surface but shed tears in secret.
After a moment of silence, Hongli said softly, "I understand. I will discuss it with the Imperial Noble Consort before making a decision."
The emperor did not give a clear answer, and Su Mingfeng was uneasy, wondering what the emperor meant and whether he would continue to arrange a marriage for Tang'er.
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