After Transmigrating As The Scumbag Alpha In An Ancient Pregnant-And-Run Novel - Chapter 4

Yun Chenghuai had experienced the warmth and coldness of human relationships very early on. When her parents died in an accident, she had not yet come of age and needed a guardian.

None of the relatives in her family wanted her, this troublesome burden.

At the time, she was fifteen, just old enough to have started high school. It was almost as if she had grown up overnight. She did not feel especially sad that no one was willing to become her guardian.

She had already grieved enough over her parents’ deaths. Whether anyone cared about this matter or not, she did not care.

But some things were not a matter of whether the other party was willing or not. A minor had to have a guardian. It was something that had to be enforced.

She was forced to move into the home of the aunt most closely related to her by blood. Heaven knew her aunt was only twenty-two, just out of university, and still had to take in a burden like her. Her monthly salary was completely insufficient.

Her aunt treated her neither warmly nor coldly, but she never let her lack anything. She was not close to her, but she did not mistreat her either.

She provided her with a place to live, gave her enough money for food each day, and usually did not say even a single extra sentence to her. That was the extent of their relationship.

Fortunately, after Yun Chenghuai turned eighteen, the compensation money from her parents’ deaths was deposited into her account. She paid her aunt back double the money she had spent on her.

After entering university, she moved into the dormitory. During holidays, she went out to work part-time. When she heard that her aunt had bought a house and moved, she sent a message of congratulations. The other party did not reply, nor did she tell Yun Chenghuai her new address.

At that time, Yun Chenghuai knew that her aunt did not want her to know her new address. Perhaps she felt that the two of them were even from then on.

Luckily, the two of them did not have much affection between them. Otherwise, after transmigrating into a book, Yun Chenghuai might have been sad for a very long time.

It was precisely because there was nothing for her to cling to that she could so quickly enter the role of this vicious female supporting character.

Although what she wanted was to change her image and stop being this vicious female supporting character.

On her first day in the world of the novel, Yun Chenghuai was still an evil woman in the female lead’s eyes.

Given her current situation, if she wanted to change the image she had in other people’s eyes, the first place to start was with the way Shen Liunian saw her.

But a drastic change in personality would definitely arouse suspicion. Moreover, in the middle of the succession struggle, the original owner’s older and younger imperial sisters were all watching her. The slightest thing wrong would be seized on as a point of attack.

Luckily, Shen Liunian was pregnant. Yun Chenghuai could completely use the excuse of her wife being pregnant to explain her own change.

Whether in this era or in the modern world she came from, people had always believed that a person could mature after having a child.

There were indeed people like that, but whether someone was childish or not truly had nothing to do with children. Still, she could use this as an excuse.

After Yun Chenghuai awkwardly finished dressing and grooming, she noticed Shen Liunian’s unfriendly gaze and revealed a pure, harmless smile.

She did not know that one sentence from her had made Shen Liunian furious enough to choke.

Who wanted to have her child? Shen Liunian had been plotted against in the first place, which was why she had consummated the marriage with the original owner.

Shen Liunian only felt disgusted, wishing she could drink a bowl of abortifacient medicine and immediately get rid of this child.

Even if doing so caused irreversible damage to her body.

Yun Chenghuai had seen too much of human warmth and coldness, and with the content of the novel added on top, she could naturally understand just how much hatred Shen Liunian held for her in her eyes.

In the novel, Shen Liunian had fled to Northern Qi while pregnant. The journey had been too rough, and she was unable to keep the child.

Shen Liunian’s body was left with lingering illness. Later, when she went to the Valley of Eccentrics to remove the mark, she grew even frailer and more sickly.

Even though, several years later, she obtained most of Southern Qin’s territory and became the first Kunze emperor in history, in the end, because her body was far too weak, she met an early death and only ended up making a wedding dress for someone else.

The original owner had caused Shen Liunian to suffer so much. It was only right that Shen Liunian hated her. Who told Yun Chenghuai to inherit this body?

Seeing Shen Liunian’s attitude toward her, Yun Chenghuai sighed inwardly. She had only arrived here on her first day. What could she possibly do?

There was no way three days would change Shen Liunian’s opinion of her. What she needed to do was keep Shen Liunian in the prince’s manor, and once she had dispelled Shen Liunian’s desire to kill her, she could think about the future.

Pretending not to understand Shen Liunian’s gaze, she gave an order in concern. “The Princess Consort has injuries on her knees. Call her personal maids over to serve her.”

“Also, from now on, the Princess Consort will move into the main courtyard. Have all her maids and older servants come here too so they can take good care of her.”

The main courtyard had originally been the princess consort’s courtyard. The original owner had driven her to another courtyard and occupied the main courtyard herself.

In ancient times, the lord of the household did not have her own bedroom. If she did not go to the main courtyard or to the courtyard of some concubine, she would basically rest in the study.

The original owner was obsessed with fighting for the throne. Every day, her mind was filled with thoughts of showing off and how she could become Crown Princess after the Crown Princess died. There were no real concubines or bedwarmers around her, so she could barely be considered clean in that regard.

It was also because Southern Qin’s rules were strict. Before having a legal wife, even if one had one or two bedwarmers around, one absolutely could not have concubines.

Even bedwarmers could not exceed three. If there were more than three, outsiders would have to consider whether they should marry their daughters into the household at all.

The legitimate Qianyuan daughters raised by upright scholarly families had always only taken concubines after turning forty without an heir.

The rules were a little looser among noble military families. Of course, if someone took concubines before marriage, no one would dare marry them, and in the end, they could only form marriage ties with lower-status households.

Southern Qin valued propriety. Even the imperial clan had to observe propriety. Since the original owner wanted an in-law family that could help her, it was necessary for the people around her to be clean.

The one point Yun Chenghuai rarely approved of about the original owner was that she had no concubines or bedwarmers around her. That saved Yun Chenghuai from having to dismiss those people.

It was just that there were far too many maids in the original owner’s courtyard. All those graceful, delicate young women made her head ache just by looking at them.

After all, the original owner was only a vicious female supporting character. Only the important people around her had been described—the ones who had followed the original owner in making things difficult for the female lead. As for everything else, Yun Chenghuai had to rely entirely on the original owner’s memories.

But the original owner’s memories did not give her a very clear understanding of the people around her at all.

Basically, Yun Chenghuai could only rely on the original owner’s memories to recognize people. As for everything more than that, she had to rely on herself.

When she had time, she could sort through the original owner’s memories and look for some clues.

However, she was a prince. As a prince, once she gave an order, even if the people around her had other masters behind them, they would not dare disobey her openly.

Once she gave her instructions, Shen Liunian’s momo and personal maids all came over.

These people had already been waiting outside the main courtyard. As long as Shen Liunian called out from inside, they would have forced their way in if they had to.

Shen Liunian had one momo and three personal maids.

Fortunately, the room was large enough. Even with more than a dozen people inside, it did not seem crowded.

Yun Chenghuai had her own maids leave, then sat on the beauty couch and watched Shen Liunian’s maids help her wash and dress.

Outside the courtyard, dozens of people carried out their duties, each in their proper place, not daring to make the slightest sound.

Before long, Lanping brought tea over. Yun Chenghuai leaned against the beauty couch and drank her tea, looking completely idle.

Shen Liunian’s momo stood to the side. From time to time, her eyes glanced toward Yun Chenghuai, filled with fear as well as confusion.

She had probably heard Yun Chenghuai’s earlier instructions and begun to suspect her intentions, while also worrying about her young mistress’s situation.

They had only just learned of Shen Liunian’s pregnancy and were completely shocked, not knowing how to respond for the moment.

Yun Chenghuai withdrew her gaze and leaned back further against the beauty couch. Her hair had been fully tied up, like a bun, then fixed in place with a hair crown and hairpins. One hand supported her body while the other held a cup of tea, making her appear noble and refreshing, yet also carefree and unrestrained.

She was thinking about what else she should do besides cling to Shen Liunian.

“Your Highness, it is time to eat.”

Just as she was thinking, Lanping reminded her.

Yun Chenghuai looked toward Shen Liunian. The other woman had not finished getting ready yet.

“Wait for the Princess Consort.”

“Prepare more of the Princess Consort’s favorite dishes. If the cooks in the manor do not know them, ask the people by the Princess Consort’s side.”

Lanping fell silent for an instant, but still said, “Yes.”

Yun Chenghuai did not care what Lanping thought. She gave instructions to another maid. “Have someone go with Momo Wei and move all of the Princess Consort’s belongings to the main courtyard. From now on, this will be the Princess Consort’s courtyard.”

Momo Wei belonged to Shen Liunian’s side and was very loyal in protecting her mistress.

Yun Chenghuai continued, “Open this prince’s storeroom. Pick out some good things from inside and send them to the Princess Consort.”

She gave one instruction after another, frightening the people at Shen Liunian’s side badly.

Since when had the prince become so considerate? Could she be planning to torment their young mistress again?

Who told the original owner’s viciousness to have already become deeply rooted in everyone’s hearts?

After Shen Liunian finished washing up, her mind had fully cleared. Someone who could one day ascend the throne as a Kunze was naturally no mediocre person.

It was only that Yun Chenghuai’s change had been too sudden, shocking her for a moment. After the shock passed and she regained her calm, she already had plans in her heart.

No matter what Yun Chenghuai intended to do, an imperial daughter who had lost power was probably only capable of throwing her weight around in her own prince’s manor.

Once Shen Liunian secured a path of survival for the people by her side, Yun Chenghuai would be nothing but a paper tiger before her.

She would like to see exactly what kind of play Yun Chenghuai was trying to perform.

If the performance was poor, people would die…