His face was angular and his nose was high and straight.
Compared to three years ago, he has lost some of the youthful naiveté and arrogance, and gained more of the fortitude and composure of a mature man.
For some reason, Su Wanwan thought of that face, panting, its nose touching hers as they looked at each other.
You bastard.
What a waste of such a beautiful face.
She cursed under her breath, but her heart remained unmoved.
They quickly came to terms with reality.
Throughout history, the struggle for succession among noble families has been bloody and cruel.
"Establishing the eldest son as heir" is a rule that has been recognized by everyone for thousands of years.
Her son, though nominally born of the legitimate wife, was in reality just an illegitimate son.
Given the choice between an infant grandson and a young eldest son, the Duke of Wei, eager to revitalize his family's reputation, naturally knew which to choose.
Only her mother-in-law, the Lady of Wei, was unwilling to give up and never stopped making trouble. Her illegitimate son did not have her bloodline, but her illegitimate grandson did.
Lu Xingjian looked into her large, watery almond-shaped eyes and saw only indifference and aloofness, along with a faint sense of wariness and forbearance.
Gone are the previous shyness and evasion, and the occasional expressions of love when she is moved.
Three years have passed, and the two have experienced vastly different circumstances.
Whether it's love or hate, it seems there's not a trace left in her.
She wore her hair in a woman's bun, had given birth, and wore an invisible layer of armor.
She was no longer the quiet, shy girl who dared not look herself in the eye.
The past is truly behind us.
He did not answer her.
silence.
A terrible silence.
After what seemed like an eternity, he finally parted his thin lips and said, "Okay."
With a slight weariness on his face, he turned his body slightly to the side.
He didn't know what he had said that offended her, and he wanted to explain but couldn't find the words. He also couldn't leave her blocking the way.
Su Wanwan could only brush past him.
When they were closest, her shoulder almost bumped into his chest.
His hand, hanging by his side, reached forward, only inches away from her slender waist.
With just a gentle tap, she would fall into his arms.
They can then be as close as before.
The long, strong hand froze in mid-air, unable to move forward even a fraction.
His dark eyes saw that her cold profile was full of aloofness.
All of them.
She frowned, shifted her body slightly, and slipped past smoothly.
A faint fragrance wafted past his nose.
He watched quietly as her slender, limping figure disappeared at the end of the road.
It took a long time before he looked away and focused his gaze on the hand that was still suspended in mid-air.
His expression grew increasingly cold.
Not far away, Steward Li lowered his head and pretended not to see anything.
Oh dear.
He won't say who went too far.
...
Upon returning to the Duke of Wei's mansion, her mother-in-law, Lady Han Xiufen, immediately summoned her.
Seeing her limp in, pale-faced, Han Xiufen's hope immediately dimmed, tears streamed down her face, and her expression turned fierce.
"It's all your fault, you jinx! If I hadn't married you, my Peng'an wouldn't have gone to the frontier to lead the army, and he wouldn't have died in battle!"
"Even if he does nothing and idles away his time, he is still the rightful heir apparent. Why should I, at my age, go to such lengths to preserve his position as heir apparent?!"
Han Xiufen became more and more upset as she spoke, and cried so hard that she beat her chest and stamped her feet.
"I thought that since you grew up in the palace, you must have some connections with those nobles, but who knew you were so utterly useless! I was so wrong to choose such a good-for-nothing as my daughter-in-law!"
Su Wanwan didn't step forward to comfort her; instead, she quietly looked at her, a hint of sarcasm playing on her lips.
Back then, the Duke of Wei's family relentlessly pursued her, insisting on marrying her in order to gain an official position and revive their family's reputation.
"It's a pity that my husband can't come back to life, otherwise Mother could have made him divorce me and choose another virtuous wife."
Three years of filial piety and respect could not warm Han Xiufen's heart.
Instead, after her family fell from power, they treated her with condescension and became increasingly rude in their words.
This wasn't the first time she'd heard people call her a jinx.
Back when the Su family was at the height of its power, she was the perfect daughter-in-law that Han Xiufen longed for.
Now that the Su family has fallen, she has become a useless piece of trash, subject to arbitrary insults.
Do you really think she's a clay figure with no temper?
Han Xiufen was furious. She glared at her and yelled, "You dare talk back?! Go kneel outside and be there for me!"
Su Wanwan calmly stood up and said yes, then knelt down directly outside the gate of the Duke of Wei's mansion.
The two maids, Yanrong and Heying, also knelt down, sobbing and saying nothing.
It was the afternoon rush hour, and the main road in front of the Duke of Wei's mansion was bustling with people coming and going.
Soon a crowd gathered to watch the spectacle.
The sight of three delicate and beautiful young women kneeling at the gate was already very eye-catching, whetting everyone's appetite.
Secrets of wealthy families have always been a topic of great interest.
Besides, all three of them had red eyes, which clearly showed that they had been bullied.
I heard that the young woman in plain clothes was the widowed wife of the heir apparent of the Duke of Wei.
The onlookers quickly erupted in uproar.
The Hanlin Academy and the Imperial College are both located nearby.
Among the onlookers were many scholars and students, whose minds were certainly sharp. They quickly pieced together the whole story, one after another.
"Who doesn't know that the struggle for the heir apparent position in the Duke of Wei's mansion is a contest between the Duke and the Duchess, yet they're bullying a widow. It's utterly shameless and despicable!"
"No wonder the Duke of Wei's mansion has declined more and more over the years, even losing the position of Nanjing garrison commander, a fifth-rank official. It turns out that the family's moral character is corrupt!"
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