I Really Like the Male Supporting Character (Quick Transmigration) - Chapter 6
The next day, Ah Luo had Chun Xi help her put on the butterfly hairpin.
She put it on her jet-black bun. The golden butterfly shimmered brilliantly in the sunlight. Just as Ah Luo had imagined, with each step she took, its wings trembled slightly. It looked as if a real butterfly had perched on her head, fluttering its wings with her every movement.
Ah Luo wore this butterfly hairpin as she went to meet her father in the study.
Today was a rest day, so Grand Tutor Su did not go out of the house. (1-14)
The original host’s older brother, Su Shaoyan, had also stayed at home.
This was the first time that Ah Luo had seen the original host’s older brother ever since coming to this world.
There was very little description of Su Shaoyan in the novel, except that he had passed the imperial examination at a young age and that he held a modest official position. Later, when his sister Su Luoyan became the crown princess, he requested to be assigned outside the capital and had no further role in the storyline.
His reaction to Su Luoyan’s death, for instance, was not included in the novel. At that time, Grand Tutor Su had already passed away, and Lady Yao had passed away not long after her husband had. Following Su Luoyan’s death, Su Shaoyan became the last surviving member of his family.
One could imagine he did not fare well. As a ‘heartless family member’ who ‘mistreated the white lotus female protagonist,’ a character like him would typically be harshly treated in other stories.
Su Shaoyan didn’t appear much in the novel, but Ah Luo also had the original host’s memories, so he wasn’t really a stranger to her.
Su Shaoyan, true to his name, was a man of few words. (1-15)
He was taught by Grand Tutor Su from a young age and was well-versed in his studies. However, his extensive reading made him appear somewhat wooden. He was currently just past his coming-of-age ceremony and had married last year to a quiet, reserved girl chosen by Lady Yao. Their relationship was quite good.
Su Shaoyan’s attitude towards Su Luoyan was not particularly warm.
His scholarly demeanor was ever-present, and with Su Luoyan being equally mature and reserved, the interactions between these two siblings were barely warmer than those between strangers.
Ah Luo had no intention of changing the way they got along with each other. When she saw Su Shaoyan, she acted as the original host would; she curtsied to him in greeting and called him ‘brother,’ all as per usual.
Su Shaoyan returned the courtesy and greeted her back by calling her ‘sister.’
Even though they were siblings and from the same family, they were so formal and proper with each other. It was no wonder that they couldn’t have a close relationship.
Ah Luo also curtsied to Grand Tutor Su and greeted him. Then, she went straight to state her intention in seeing him. “Father, the heir of the marquis of Yuanting should come to propose marriage to me in a few days; please agree to it on my behalf.”
Grand Tutor Su was drinking tea. When he heard her say this, he nearly dropped his teacup.
He looked at his daughter as if this was the first time he’d ever seen her.
Grand Tutor Su had personally educated Su Luoyan, so she was different from ordinary girls. While other noble misses were elegant and virtuous, at their core, they were still women. However, Su Luoyan was different; fundamentally, she was more like a man.
This was why, even though she excelled in the four arts and mastered all the skills a noblewoman should, she was still called a dull beauty by other people. (1-16, 1-17)
She was beautiful but never showed off her beauty. She was a woman but didn’t know how an ordinary woman should conduct herself.
Grand Tutor Su taught her poetry and calligraphy, as well as statecraft. He didn’t raise her to be an ordinary noblewoman; she was the future crown princess, and he raised her accordingly.
The crown princess and the future empress might not know how to please a man. She also might not know what kind of clothes to wear to bring out her beauty. However, she must have a broad mind, extensive knowledge, and a far-reaching vision. This way, she could be worthy of an emperor and assist him in governing the empire.
In truth, while Grand Tutor Su was an excellent teacher for his male students, he was far less so for his daughter. As a result, his daughter spoke of marriage matters in front of him with none of the shyness or reticence typical of young maidens; instead, she displayed an unusual openness.
Grand Tutor Su felt a mix of relief and a peculiar sense of displeasure at this.
He coughed and cleared his throat, then asked, “How do you know he wants to propose? Have you been privately contacting him?”
Seeing Grand Tutor Su’s stern expression, Ah Luo hurriedly shook her head and explained, “No, Father, I have only heard that he is a true gentleman. I spoke of wanting to become a nun, and given his character, he must feel guilty. I think if he is as upright and noble as the rumors say, he would come to our house to propose.”
Grand Tutor Su stared at Ah Luo for a long time. How could he not be aware of her actions these past few days?
He said, “You are forcing his hands, so that he will marry you.”
Ah Luo knelt down. She bowed her head and said, “Yes, Father. My actions are far from what a respectable person would do, but for my own sake, I had to do this. Regardless of whether he comes or not in the future, I will have no regrets.”
Grand Tutor Su kept a stern face. “Have you thought about your betrothal to the crown prince?”
Once more, Ah Luo recounted her plan of allowing her half-sister to marry the crown prince in her stead.
Grand Tutor Su looked at her deeply for a long while before waving his hand. “You may leave.”
Ah Luo understood that this was his way of giving tacit approval. Grand Tutor Su was a father, and he loved his daughter.
While Ah Luo walked out of the study, she overheard Su Shaoyan’s voice coming from inside.
“Father, I think the marquis’ heir will come,” he said. He paused before continuing, “I hope that he will. It would be better for Sister to marry him than to marry the crown prince.”
Grand Tutor Su didn’t speak and only sighed.
How could such a betrothal be so easily broken off? Could the emperor not know whom he wanted to be his daughter-in-law?
For over ten years, their family had a betrothal between the crown prince and their legitimate daughter. How could they suddenly replace their legitimate daughter with their concubine-born daughter at the last minute? Which groom’s family could tolerate such a thing?
Especially the imperial family!
Here, they were dealing with the emperor, the ruler of their empire!
On the very same day, after his conversation with Ah Luo, Grand Tutor Su went to the palace and asked for an audience with the emperor.
He knelt for an hour outside the Zichen Hall. After a further hour inside the hall, he received an imperial edict.
The edict was clear. It annulled the betrothal between the crown prince and Su Luoyan and declared that the two families—the imperial family and Grand Tutor Su’s family—would no longer be tied through this betrothal.
Holding the edict finally allowed Grand Tutor Su to feel a sense of relief.
There was a fundamental reason why he tacitly allowed the crown prince to have private meetings with Su Baiwei, and it was precisely this.
His concubine-born daughter, Su Baiwei, was indeed favored by the crown prince. However, this kind of affection was precisely the thing most taboo for a future emperor. Grand Tutor Su also knew very well that while Gu Xiuyan currently held the crown prince position, he might still not be the one to eventually ascend the throne.
A crown prince who couldn’t see his political situation and whose heart was filled only with personal affairs was unfit to be emperor.
Rumors regarding the incident at the grand princess’ flower-viewing banquet had spread for many days and still had yet to subside. This alone made the emperor’s opinion regarding it clear.
There were several other sons of the emperor, who were also princes who grew up in Shaoyang Palace and who had shown themselves to be outstanding. Besides, it had been many years since the late empress—the crown prince’s mother, had passed away; without her pacifying presence, the emperor must have grown to be dissatisfied with the crown prince’s uncle, who wielded military power outside the court.
Grand Tutor Su had secretly arranged everything for his legitimate daughter and had inevitably neglected his concubine-born daughter.
Human hearts were naturally biased. Su Baiwei was a result of a scheme against him, and her birth was not something that he had expected. He had never personally taught her; for this daughter of his, he could only ensure she was raised well and find a suitable family for her to marry into after she grew up.
However, now that she had chosen the crown prince for herself, he had no other option but to fulfill her wish.
Ah Luo had warned Grand Tutor Su regarding Wenren Jin’s possible proposal in the morning. She didn’t expect that Wenren Jin would come to visit her family’s house that very same day at noon.
She went to the front courtyard, filled with disbelief.
Out of the two of them, who exactly was eager to marry whom here?
Why did it look like he was even more impatient than she was?
With these thoughts, she reached the front hall. Her mother, Lady Yao, pulled her into the room. There, she saw her future husband—Wenren Jin, from behind a large screen.
Ah Luo thought that this screen was somewhat unnecessary. The man couldn’t see, anyway, so what was the point of this partition screen?
In truth, Ah Luo still didn’t know what Wenren Jin looked like, exactly.
That day, she fell into the water too quickly, and she passed out after that. As such, she never saw his face clearly.
Ah Luo was quite curious about Wenren Jin’s appearance. The novel described him as an elegant and refined gentleman with unmatched handsomeness. He always wore a white robe. There was even a poem written about him, and a line in that poem went, ‘Apart from you, who else in the world could befit the white attire?’
Most notably, Wenren Jin’s eyes were different from ordinary people’s, with pupils that were particularly gentle amber.
In terms of both appearance and character, he was very much a ‘male supporting character’ type.
If Gu Xiuyan was the epitome of the ‘cool, handsome, domineering, and unruly’ type, then Wenren Jin was the very symbol of gentle elegance. Every time the female protagonist was down or dejected, he was the one to heal her wounds. He was truly a perfect spare tire! (1-18)
Ah Luo was curious about Wenren Jin’s appearance. However, Lady Yao was completely unaccommodating regarding this, and Ah Luo also couldn’t directly ask about that, since that would be ‘out of character.’
Su Luoyan had a polite character; she wouldn’t say something about wanting to see Wenren Jin’s appearance.
Ah Luo sat quietly behind the screen as she listened to the conversation between Grand Tutor Su and Wenren Jin.
Both of them were highly educated and talented men. They had high respect for each other. Their discussion was both harmonious and congenial.
On this visit, Wenren Jin came alone. His purpose for this visit was not to formally propose marriage. Official weddings required a matchmaker, the three letters and six etiquettes, and a meeting of both families. (1-19)
Today, he was merely informing Grand Tutor Su of his intentions.
He was always cautious and meticulous in his actions. Previously, to avoid causing a negative impact, he had a little beggar deliver the letter. Later, when he sent Ah Luo the butterfly hairpin, he did it under the name of Zhenbao Pavilion.
He never allowed the possibility of any misunderstanding to be created.
Moreover, he was concerned that Ah Luo might not have discussed the matter with Grand Tutor Su, that Grand Tutor Su was dissatisfied with him, or perhaps that Grand Tutor Su still intended to marry his daughter to the crown prince. He needed to clarify all these matters.
Thus, he came seeking a meeting with Grand Tutor Su.
Fortunately, Ah Luo had already informed Grand Tutor Su. Both parties quickly discussed and agreed on the next steps.
After everything was settled, Wenren Jin should have said goodbye and left.
However, it was customary for family members to deliberately leave the future couple to talk together at this time.
Seeing that Grand Tutor Su and Wenren Jin’s conversation had come to an end, Lady Yao hurriedly walked over and forcibly took Grand Tutor Su away. She smiled at Wenren Jin and said, “Heir, please enjoy your tea a little longer. I have some matters to discuss with my husband, so we won’t be able to keep you company.”
Wenren Jin, who was unaware of this customary process, politely nodded in agreement and, indeed, sat there, quietly drinking his tea.
It wasn’t until he heard the faint sound of footsteps approaching that he noticed something.
As Ah Luo looked at the elegant man sitting in the redwood chair, her heart raced. She greeted him by saying, “Heir.”
As expected, he was dressed in white, a moon-white robe with inconspicuous water-colored flowing cloud patterns embroidered along the edges. His black hair was tied back with a matching headband. His appearance, along with his demeanor, made him look as refined and gentle as a piece of warm jade.
Wenren Jin turned his face to look at the person who spoke to him. A habitual light smile grew on his face, but it had a hint of surprise. His amber eyes found Ah Luo, and his gaze softly fell on her.
His voice was very gentle as he said, “Miss Su?”
Even though she knew that he couldn’t see her, Ah Luo still couldn’t help being nervous and very conscious of herself at this moment.
Her mind went blank. She licked her lips. Her mouth seemed to be acting on its own as she said, “Heir, the waist sash you left last time is still at my place. I… I washed it clean, do you… still want it?”