lcionline Chapter 250: Exactly 7 Years Apart
Chapter 250: Exactly 7 Years Apart
Su Mowan didn't ask Su Ruofeng if she knew about the news that the Grand Princess was recruiting a consort. Seeing that Shangguan Qingqi had already pushed through the crowd and was coming this way, she told Su Ruofeng that she had to leave first.
Su Ruofeng frowned as he watched Shangguan Qingqi slowly approach.
He said in a low voice, "Didn't you say you were living quite comfortably in the Prince of Qin's mansion and had a good relationship with the Prince of Qin? Then how come you're hanging out with Shangguan Qingqi?"
Su Mowan didn't understand the necessary connection between them. "I have a good relationship with the Prince of Qin, but what does that have to do with Shangguan Qingqi? There's no conflict between them."
"What does it mean to not conflict?"
Su Ruofeng rolled her eyes at her and said, "I heard that Shangguan Qingqi has a grudge against the Prince of Qin."
"I've also heard that Murong Jing likes Su Huayue. Do you think that's believable?"
Su Mowan looked at Su Ruofeng with amusement.
"Don't take this lightly, I'm serious."
Knowing that she didn't want to mention Su Huayue, Su Ruofeng skipped the question and gave a direct answer.
Seeing that he was serious, Su Mowan thought for a moment and then pressed him to tell her what grudge they had against each other. Su Ruofeng couldn't give a clear answer, but he could only say for sure that they had had an unpleasant encounter.
Su Mowan thought back and realized that apart from saying that Murong Jing was rude, Shangguan Qingqi didn't seem to have said anything bad about Murong Jing. Murong Jing had never mentioned the name Shangguan Qingqi in front of her either. How could it be as serious as Su Ruofeng said?
Before Shangguan Qingqi could even get close, Tang Jingzhi also came over.
Su Ruofeng immediately said that she had to take her leave, and then walked straight toward Tang Jingzhi. She stopped him halfway, said something to him, and the two of them went off together in another direction.
"Congratulations, third-place scholar!"
Before anyone could get close, Su Mowan smiled.
"So you already saw it." Shangguan Qingqi shrugged. "I've done my best."
When the Seventh Princess saw Shangguan Qingqi approaching, she stopped chatting and laughing with Gu Huan and quickly came over.
The Seventh Princess glanced at Shangguan Qingqi and whispered with a grin, "Sister-in-law, can we go back now?"
Well, upon hearing this, Su Mowan knew that the Seventh Princess would be returning to the Qin Prince's Mansion with her tonight, and staying overnight was inevitable.
So Su Mowan looked at Shangguan Qingqi and asked him with her eyes whether he was leaving or not.
Shangguan Qingqi nodded without hesitation.
He glanced at the Seventh Princess and said, "We'll be parading through the streets on horseback tomorrow. If you're bored, you can come and watch."
Actually, he was saying this to Su Mowan.
Su Mowan could tell from the conversation and was about to reply when she heard the Seventh Princess say, "So bored! So bored! I'm so bored lately, I need to go for a stroll in the streets!"
Shangguan Qingqi glanced at the Seventh Princess. Why did she have to meddle in everything? She was practically a tagalong.
Su Mowan, however, knew the true intentions behind the Seventh Princess's shopping trip.
Thinking about this, Su Mowan had a malicious thought: what would Su Mobai's reaction be if she told him this news?
The group squeezed their way back, walking against the flow of people, even slower than when they came.
After finally squeezing her way to the street corner, the Seventh Princess was covered in sweat. She fanned her face with her hand, and Shangguan Qingqi, who was beside her, unusually took out a clean handkerchief from his pocket and threw it in front of the Seventh Princess.
"Your Highness, please mind your manners."
It's a disgrace to the Yunmo royal family.
The seventh princess reached out and caught the handkerchief in her hand.
She held the handkerchief to her nose and sniffed it, muttering with some disgust, "A pervert is a pervert, how can a grown man make a handkerchief smell so good!"
"..."
Shangguan Qingqi held out his hand: "If you don't like it, give it back."
The seventh princess didn't return it; she quickly wiped the handkerchief on her sweaty forehead, looking like she was just going to make do.
Seeing that the two were about to start fighting again, Su Mowan quickly told everyone to get into the car.
Upon reaching the intersection of Baihu Street and Qinglong Street, Shangguan Qingqi dismounted from the carriage and bid farewell to Su Mowan.
It was only then that Su Mowan realized that Shangguan Qingqi never seemed to bring any servants with him when he went out.
He goes alone, or with Fu Changge and his group, no matter where he goes.
This is a bit strange.
"Sister-in-law? Sister-in-law? I'm asking you a question!" the Seventh Princess shouted from the side, dissatisfied.
Su Mowan snapped out of her daze: "What's wrong?"
The Seventh Princess glared at Su Mowan, who was the only one in the carriage, and asked with relief, "Didn't you say you knew the person in the painting at the painting pavilion? What is their identity? Are they from the capital? Which family's young master are they? What's their name?"
The questions were so long that Su Mowan didn't know which one to answer first.
She suppressed a laugh and asked the Seventh Princess, "Do you know who the Eldest Princess likes?"
The Seventh Princess blurted out, "I know, my eldest sister likes Su Mobai, the Vice Minister of War! He's your older brother, sister-in-law."
After saying this, the Seventh Princess realized she had gone off-topic and immediately steered the conversation back on track: "What's wrong? What does this have to do with my question?"
"Of course it's related, it's very related."
Su Mowan chuckled secretly, coughed lightly, and resumed her serious expression: "The person in the painting is my brother, Su Mobai."
"What?! That's Su Mobai?!"
The seventh princess was so shocked by the answer that she almost lost her balance.
She grabbed Su Mowan's hand, unsure whether she was excited or disappointed.
"Sister-in-law, you're not lying to me, are you?!"
"Why would I lie to you? Don't you think he looks somewhat like me?"
The Seventh Princess looked anxious: "How could I have noticed that! Oh dear, what should we do? My eldest sister likes him, but does he like my eldest sister?"
"..."
It must be said that the Seventh Princess is very good at grasping the key points; she immediately asked the most crucial question.
Su Mowan had a gut feeling that Su Mobai didn't like the eldest princess, but only the parties involved knew the truth of the matter.
So Su Mowan vaguely replied, "I don't know about that. You might as well ask your eldest sister."
The seventh princess frowned, looking rather distressed.
"How could I possibly ask her about something like that!"
Looking at the Seventh Princess, Su Mowan wondered, "Could this be the legendary love at first sight?"
But they only met once, so at most it could be considered a good impression, right? Why does it feel like the Seventh Princess is obsessed with searching for him all over the capital?
Su Mowan felt it necessary to bring the Seventh Princess to her senses: "You've only seen him once, there's no need for you to look so distraught, is there?"
"Of course it's necessary! How could it not be necessary!"
The seventh princess let out a wail.
"This is the first man I've ever seen who made my heart pound! I never imagined he'd be my eldest sister's sweetheart! My eldest sister and I have such similar taste! Can we find another man like him? Let's each have one, that's fair!"
"..."
"By the way, how much older is Brother Mo Bai than me?"
"..."
Seeing that Su Mowan didn't speak, the Seventh Princess wrapped her arms around her and shook her arm.
"Sister-in-law, dear sister-in-law, is Brother Mo Bai twenty-one, twenty-two, or twenty-three this year?"
"twenty two."
Su Mowan couldn't resist pestering him.
The Seventh Princess was not yet of marriageable age, barely fifteen, while Su Mobai was twenty-two, which meant there was a seven-year age difference, which was really... quite incongruous.
Especially if you just imagine the Seventh Princess following behind Su Mobai, calling him "Brother Mobai" over and over again, Su Mowan thinks Su Mobai would probably go crazy.
While she was thinking, the Seventh Princess had already started calculating, muttering to herself, "I'll be fifteen soon, and if Brother Mo Bai is twenty-two, that's exactly seven years apart! Ah, what a perfect match!"
"...How exactly is it a perfect match?"
"Look at you and my third brother! You're sixteen this year, right? My third brother is twenty-three, so there's a seven-year age difference between us! Look how loving and well-matched you and my third brother are now!"
"..."
How did the Seventh Princess come to realize that she and Murong Jing were in love?
"Ah, this can't be a coincidence, it must be destiny! Since God is helping me like this, I certainly won't let it go!"
"..."
This family is really... hard to describe.
After a brief outburst, the Seventh Princess noticed that Su Mowan wasn't cooperating. Her joy faded slightly, and she said somewhat unhappily, "Sister-in-law, what do you mean by not saying anything? Yes, Brother Mobai is indeed remarkable, but I... I haven't fully grown up yet! When I blossom into a graceful young woman, I'll definitely be worthy of Brother Mobai!"
Su Mowan really wanted to say, "At this rate of growth, by the time you're all grown up, Su Mobai's kids will be old enough to run errands."
But it was obviously not good to spoil the Seventh Princess's mood like that, so Su Mowan said tactfully, "Then let's talk about it when you've grown up. There's no use in you getting so excited now. My eldest brother doesn't have anyone he likes right now, so don't worry about it."
"Really?"
Upon hearing that Su Mobai currently doesn't have anyone he likes, the Seventh Princess's eyes lit up, and she looked on with longing.
"Then I should take advantage of the fact that Brother Mo Bai doesn't have anyone he likes yet, and try to get to know him!"
"..."
Su Mowan felt that the Seventh Princess was the real sticky pest, "It's not easy for you to see him now, even I don't know his whereabouts."
The Seventh Princess raised an eyebrow and said smugly, "What's so difficult about that? Brother Mo Bai must go to the Ministry of War every day. I can lie in ambush at the entrance of the Ministry of War! With that, how could I not see him?"
"..."
Su Mowan really didn't understand why the Seventh Princess was acting like she wouldn't marry anyone but Su Mobai, even though they had only met once from afar.
To put it more poetically or aesthetically, it's just a fleeting glimpse.
How did you become so fixated on it?
Does Su Mobai really have that much charm?
Su Mowan couldn't help but pour cold water on the idea: "He rarely goes to the Ministry of War, so just forget about it. Don't ask me where he usually is; I really don't know."
Upon hearing this, the Seventh Princess's face showed worry, but she quickly recovered, her face showing a shy blush of a young girl in love.
"I don't care, I have to find a chance to talk to my father."
Before the words were even finished, the Seventh Princess blinked, clapped her hands, and exclaimed with a sly look, "Oh dear! How could I forget about my Third Brother! I heard that he and Brother Mo Bai are good friends! Quick, quick, I'll go find him as soon as we get back to the manor!"
Seeing the Seventh Princess's excited expression, Su Mowan could only sigh.
I wonder if Su Mobai would be angry if he knew that she was the one who betrayed him.
While she was worrying, the Seventh Princess kept urging the coachman to hurry. Su Mowan was truly at her wit's end this time and could only pin her hopes on Murong Jing.