Chapter 402 The bustling world, the cold clouds
"...?"
Shang Ruyi was taken aback.
Perhaps because she had finally left that quiet, lifeless Buddhist hall, her mind returned to her body, and she immediately understood the words.
Yuwen Ye heard the two verses that Yuwen Qian and he had just recited together.
What he meant was—
Shang Ruyi's mind raced, and she finally came to a conclusion.
Is he jealous?
Normally, under any circumstances, Shang Ruyi would never have come to this conclusion; but it was precisely today, precisely after the two of them had just shared that almost blasphemous kiss before the Buddha, and even after she had clearly told him "I like you"—
She could clearly sense that Yuwen Ye was jealous.
For a moment, Shang Ruyi was dumbfounded.
When he met her gaze, Yuwen Ye's face suddenly stiffened, and then a look of almost annoyance appeared on his face. He immediately turned his head to look ahead, and the hand holding her wrist tightened even more than before, causing Shang Ruyi to stagger as they walked.
But she still looked at him.
Until I saw clearly, I noticed that the tips of his ears were somewhat red.
Shang Ruyi said, "You—"
Yuwen Ye gritted his teeth and said, "Shut up!"
At that moment, his annoyance was clearly written on his face and etched in his voice. Even though Shang Ruyi never dreamed of it, she truly felt that Yuwen Ye was genuinely jealous.
Shang Ruyi almost laughed.
Normally, she probably would have burst out laughing, but at this moment, just by looking up, she could see that figure in front of her, and the heavy weight on her heart made it impossible for her to laugh.
Shang Ruyi could only say, "I've never even met Yuwen Ye!"
"..."
Yuwen Ye's expression turned even more unpleasant.
He didn't say anything more, just kept walking forward. Shang Ruyi probably knew that he was not someone to be trifled with at this time, so she didn't say anything either, just followed him through one mountain gate after another. Finally, the voices in front became more and more noisy. Looking into the distance, it was Yuwen Yuan leading a group of civil and military officials standing in front of the Great Buddha Hall. It seemed that they were preparing to hold the next Dharma assembly, but everyone's mind was obviously not on the Dharma assembly.
After all, Yuwen Yuan's mind wasn't on that.
As he spoke to the others, he would occasionally look up in this direction. When he saw Yuwen Qian appear, Yuwen Yuan's eyes lit up.
It was as if a crack had appeared in the dark clouds, and sunlight shone on his face.
Immediately, Shang Ruyi saw her father-in-law, the Duke of Sheng, who was quite kind and approachable, and a happy smile appeared on her face.
Speaking of which, although she had been married into the Yuwen family for a long time, Yuwen Yuan was sent to Liaoxi to collect grain and fodder shortly after their marriage. After returning to Dongdu, he was transferred to Taiyuan not long after. The two of them did not spend much time together. However, because of his special status and because he could decide the fate of himself and everyone else, Shang Ruyi paid special attention to his joys and sorrows.
Even so, Shang Ruyi had never seen him so happy.
That joy emanated from the bottom of his heart, and even someone as high-ranking and powerful as him, and as shrewd as he was, could not hide it at this moment.
And this joy is directed towards the person who is the center of attention—
Yuwen Qian.
Yuwen Qian slowly walked over, seemingly about to bow to him, when Yuwen Yuan immediately grabbed his arm and pulled him up, saying unhappily, "Where have you been again?"
He is now a high-ranking and powerful prime minister, almost second only to the emperor. He speaks and acts with an air of authority that commands respect without anger. But at this moment, when he speaks to Yuwen Qian, there is a hint of resentment in his voice.
It seemed as if he was wronged.
Faced with his father's grievances, Yuwen Qian remained calm and simply said softly, "Father, I'm just going to let go of some worldly possessions."
"What do you mean by material possessions? — Okay, just let it go."
Perhaps because he was too happy, Yuwen Yuan was somewhat incoherent. His bright tiger eyes narrowed into slits as he smiled, and he kept saying, "It's good that you're back."
"..."
The bustling activity on one side only made the other side seem exceptionally deserted.
Yuwen Ye, who had been walking briskly just moments before, stopped abruptly and stood quietly inside the Zhaotai Gate on one side of the Great Buddha Hall, gazing ahead.
The blush that had just gathered on his face had vanished without a trace.
What remains is a paleness, as if it has lost its blood.
Even so, his face remained expressionless, and his eyes were as cold and stern as ever, making it impossible to discern any of his current emotions.
Until, Shang Ruyi's deep voice rang in his ears—
"However, that's not necessarily true."
"...!?"
Yuwen Ye frowned and looked down at her. He saw that Shang Ruyi was also looking at the bustling scene in front of her. Under Yuwen Yuan's friendly attitude, all the officials around him had gathered around Yuwen Qian, making it impossible for him to move. Everyone was talking at once. Although they were far away and could not hear clearly, judging from their obsequious faces, they were saying nothing more than that the eldest son was wise and brave, subdued the enemy without fighting, captured Daxing City, and created an unparalleled feat.
On the contrary, Yuwen Qian stood in the center of the crowd. His handsome and upright figure made him appear even more otherworldly. The faint curve at the corner of his mouth always seemed to be a smile, but from a distance, he seemed a little cold.
The world is bustling, but the clouds are cold.
Yuwen Ye's aura grew even colder as he asked, "What did you say?"
Shang Ruyi turned to look at him and said softly, "I've seen him before."
"when?"
"When we were in Crescent Moon City."
"What?!"
Yuwen Ye's eyes widened in surprise. He looked down at her, and Shang Ruyi said, "It was in Yanyue City, when I was distributing rice to the people, that I saw him standing across the street."
"..."
"But at that time, he was masked, and I didn't know who he was, and he left quickly, so I didn't tell you. But now that I think about it—"
Her breathing became increasingly erratic, but in contrast, her thoughts were racing.
Since the white-robed monk they saw in Yanyue City was Yuwen Qian, it means that during that time, he had been following them, but concealing his identity and not revealing his whereabouts.
Then, in that valley—
Just thinking about it made Shang Ruyi's fingertips feel cold.
But just then, a deep voice sounded in my ear: "It's not him."
"...!"
Shang Ruyi looked up at Yuwen Ye.
His gaze was deep and intense, completely regaining its usual coldness, even more so than before. Although Shang Ruyi hadn't spoken yet, he seemed to already know what she was thinking, and said without any hesitation, "It's not him."
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