Chapter 526: Chapter 266: If the Wedding Night Isn’t Consummated, None of It Counts (Part 3)

"How can I not be anxious? I only have this one daughter. She’s been missing for so long and we still can’t find her. How can I, as her mother, not be frantic???"

"I’m not like you, with wives and concubines all over the place. Even if you don’t have Xue’er, you still have other daughters and sons. Xue’er’s life or death doesn’t matter to you at all..."

"No, or maybe you’re actually wishing Xue’er would just die, aren’t you?"

"Xue’er was never very smart since she was a child, and I spoiled her besides. Among all those noble ladies she seemed all the more stupid and ridiculous, always laughed at by others, and later she did all kinds of foolish things—"

"So, do you think she ruined your reputation, and that if she died, your good name could be salvaged?"

Madam Su’s eyes were red with anxious love for her daughter. Instead of being soothed by Su Jian’s words, she seemed provoked, entering a mode of indiscriminate attack.

She lashed out at him with a storm of sarcasm.

"Utter nonsense!!!"

Su Jian was so angry his lips were trembling and his chest heaved violently. He glared at the woman before him and said, "When has I, this official, ever not cared about Xue’er?"

"Has this official not doted on Xue’er enough? Among all the officials of Da Wu Country, can you find anyone who spoils his daughter more than this official?"

"It’s precisely because this official spoiled her too much that she ended up like this, not knowing how high the heavens are, with not a shred of proper conduct."

"To spoil a daughter is like killing a daughter, Wang Wanzhen. Xue’er is now missing without a trace. You and I both bear great responsibility."

"But you’re fine, you never reflect on yourself, you only ever blindly blame this official. With such an unreasonable mother as you, Xue’er is truly terribly unlucky, hmph."

With that, he flicked his sleeves heavily and strode off, leaving Madam Su behind to weep in desolation.

Watching his figure grow more distant, Madam Su froze, dazed, as if her soul had flown away.

To spoil a daughter is like killing a daughter?

She had only this one child, and she had nearly lost her life giving birth to her. Xue’er had come so hard-won, of course she loved her a little more. Was that really wrong?

Madam Su covered her face and cried quietly. Her mind was filled entirely with Su Qianxue.

Her Xue’er hadn’t been like this before.

Granted, compared to other ladies from noble families, Xue’er had no talent, knew no etiquette, was muddle-headed and slow, indeed far inferior.

But she used to come to the main courtyard to see her every day, would lean against her and act spoiled, keep her company at meals and chat with her.

If she wanted to go out, she would seek their permission and truthfully report her plans, and accept the servants they arranged to accompany her.

Yet ever since that last fever, after she woke up, she seemed like a different person, running around all day, nowhere to be found, like a wild horse off its reins.

She was away from home every couple of days, and none of the servants in the residence knew her whereabouts.

As for coming to see Madam Su, or chatting and eating with her, that was even more out of the question.

Sometimes Madam Su missed her so much she could hardly bear it and would send servants to call her, or even go look for her herself, only to come back empty-handed every single time.

This time she was simply gone without a trace!

"Xue’er, why did you become like this? Where exactly have you gone? Do you know, Mother is really worried about you, really worried about you."

"It’s all Mother’s fault, it’s all my fault for not watching you properly. If anything happens to you, Mother won’t live either..."

Madam Su cried in a muffled, painful way.

Worry, longing, heartache, regret, self-reproach, guilt—those emotions all tangled together, pressing down on her until she could hardly breathe.

Yet there was no one who could share this pain with her.

Duke Ning Mansion.

Hearing the news that the Pei Family had gone to the Su Family to present betrothal gifts, Lady Yun was slightly taken aback. Then she handed the shelled walnut kernels to Yun Rui at her side and chuckled softly.

"This marriage will most likely fall through. I wonder what sort of scandal it will stir up then."

Others might not know, but the Yun Family knew full well about Su Qianxue’s hidden identity.

She was the heroine of this world, backed by a system, with King Qi, Mo Yunhao, as her target. How could she possibly marry Pei Yu so easily?

She just didn’t know how Su Qianxue planned to handle this engagement.

Parents’ orders and a matchmaker’s words—without her parents’ support, it was not so easy to break off a betrothal.

And after she and Pei Yu had done that kind of thing, if the Su couple weren’t out of their minds, they certainly wouldn’t support her in breaking the engagement.

"Who knows, but I’m quite looking forward to it."

Thinking of the storyline between Pei Yu and Su Qianxue, Yun Wanyao snickered but didn’t say much more.

She turned to look at Yun Rui and pinched the little fellow’s thin cheeks.

"Rui’er, how is it that in just a few days of not seeing your little sister, you’ve lost so much weight?"

Yun Rui sprawled on the table and muttered gloomily, "When will Little Sister finally come back? She’s still so young. Can she really handle staying at our relatives’ house?"

That day after school, the first thing Yun Rui did was come to see Yun Wanqing.

Of course, he came up empty.

Unable to find Yun Wanqing, he pestered Lady Yun about her whereabouts. Naturally, Lady Yun would not tell him the real situation of the three siblings.

So she lied that a relative’s family was having a joyous occasion, and his two older brothers had taken Yun Wanqing to stay there for a while, and that it would be some days before they returned.

Since then, Yun Rui had been in low spirits every day, uninterested in everything, even eating a lot less.

"Your eldest and second brother will take good care of her, don’t worry. It’s you I’m worried about. When Ningning comes back and sees how much weight you’ve lost, she’ll probably feel even more distressed."

Lady Yun smiled faintly and passed him the freshly shelled peanuts.

"My lady, Mr. Pei requests an audience." 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

Just then, Yu Luo came to deliver the message.

At these words, Lady Yun and Yun Wanyao immediately frowned.

This fellow had just finished presenting betrothal gifts, and now he’d run over to the Yun Family. What on earth was he here for?