well I understand the struggles to like Suu at time...even I am confused by what I am feeling. There are some stereotypes like you said, that we tend to follow and want to read in a book or a manga and that is because we (for good or bad) want to, in a way, relate to the characters, mainly the main character.
So even If I understand that the society they lived in was a hellhole and the way Suu handles it is super justified, no objection, he sometimes acts like an asshole... don't particularly agree with some of the choices he makes or the paths he choses. Do I sound superficial? OF COURSE ahahah but thats the way it is. Suu is the main character and as such you feel much closer to him compared to the other character.
That there are the stereotype of the dark rich jerk seme (crown prince) sureee, and I guess the stereotype exist for a reason...he is one of the love interest and as the audience we view him as such...we don't really put ourselves in his shoes so there is soo much less pressure put upon him. I guess thats my opinion. (=・ω・=)
I'm not surprised that Suu's had to kill some people in the past. In these period pieces, it is almost always the case; it's live or die, especially in Suu's poor background where he was subject to many terrible situations. I just hope no one holds it over his head too much. If it were the seme who had killed, people are normally indifferent, but many times if the uke commits a crime, people have a harder time dealing with it, as they are supposed to be the 'emotional pillars' of the story. hope there is no double standard here.
It is obvious that Suu has a plan to free himself from his situation (yes, he is still imprisoned), but I think we will gradually find out what that plan is over the next few chapters.
I'm still really curious about his past!