Chapter 824 She's in pain!
Yuwen Ye opened his eyes wide as he watched Shang Ruyi approach step by step.
At that moment, joy and pride surged like two tidal waves, engulfing his entire being and lifting him into the sky, leaving him feeling lightheaded. But as soon as Shang Ruyi reached his side, she placed her hand on his shoulder, and the warm touch from her soft palm instantly pulled him back from the heights of despair.
It landed solidly on the ground.
Yuwen Ye took a deep breath: "Ruyi, you've arrived."
The lantern in her hand was still swaying from walking too fast, and her pupils were also shaking. But Shang Ruyi's gaze was more determined than ever before, just like the hand that was resting on his shoulder, more steady than ever before.
But before she could say anything, several figures swayed and ran in behind her.
They are guards of Chengqian Hall, and the leader of them is Shang Shoufei!
Following closely behind were Tu She'er and Wo Xue, their faces ashen. The two young women, their breathing heavy and their expressions angry, clearly had struggled to get in. As soon as they stopped, Shang Shoufei immediately bowed to Yuwen Qian and said, "Your Highness, this humble general failed in his duty of guard. Princess Qin—"
Yuwen Qian raised his hand, stopping him from continuing.
Then, his eyes flickered, as if he wanted to look up, but it was as if an invisible force was suppressing him, preventing him from not only looking up, but also from even raising his eyes to look at the person who had suddenly intruded. On the other hand, Shang Ruyi held Yuwen Ye's shoulder with one hand and gripped the swaying lantern tightly with the other, and said in a deep voice, "Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I came here because I was worried that it was getting late and the Prince of Qin had not returned yet."
"..."
"Please forgive me if I have disturbed your enjoyment, Your Majesty and Third Brother."
"..."
Yuwen Qian lowered his head and remained silent for a moment before lowering his voice and saying, "Sister-in-law, you flatter me."
At this moment, Yuwen Ye's eyes were brighter and colder than before. He looked at Shang Shoufei standing by the table. Although the other party looked gloomy, he immediately lowered his head when his eyes met and even instinctively took a few steps back.
Looking at the several goalkeepers following behind him, almost all of them fully armored, Yuwen Ye understood even more clearly.
Although the three brothers were the only ones in the empty Chengqian Hall, the farewell banquet was heavily guarded outside the hall, not to outsiders, but to insiders.
Clearly, the Crown Prince and the King of Qi would not allow anyone to leave before the third cup of wine was finished.
They just didn't expect that it would be Shang Ruyi who came.
Although appointing Shang Shoufei as the Right Palace Gatekeeper caught them off guard and caused them some trouble in the hawthorn cake incident, once Shang Ruyi appeared, even if he wanted to stir up trouble, he couldn't forcefully take action against his own little sister. It wasn't that he didn't dare, but that Shang Ruyi was carrying the Emperor's long-awaited eldest grandson, and any mishap would be something that a mere Right Palace Gatekeeper like him couldn't afford.
Therefore, he had no choice but to let Shang Ruyi in.
Thinking of this, Yuwen Ye raised his head again, as if he wanted to say something, but as soon as he looked up, his heart sank again.
At this moment, the swaying lantern gradually stabilized, and the light illuminated Shang Ruyi's face more clearly, revealing that her forehead and nose were covered with tiny beads of sweat. Immediately afterward, Yuwen Ye felt the hand on his shoulder exerting force, even pressing down with all its might.
This wasn't something Shang Ruyi was consciously aware of; rather, it was because she was about to reach her breaking point.
Yuwen Ye was startled and subconsciously reached out to grasp her hand. Just as he was about to say something, a cold voice rang out from the side: "Second sister-in-law, you've come at just the right time. We brothers have three cups of wine. Just as I was about to toast my two elder brothers, you came in. It's as if you're preventing my second brother from drinking the cup I'm toasting."
Shang Ruyi frowned.
Although she tried her best to restrain herself at this moment, only she, who was so close, quickly grasped her cold hand and realized that she was in great pain!
The pain was only a dull ache inside the Thousand Autumns Palace, but every step she took along the way aggravated it. Especially after encountering Shang Shoufei outside the Chengqian Palace, where he prevented her from entering, Shang Ruyi's anxious feelings seemed to be transmitted to her swollen belly. It was as if even "he" sensed his mother's anxiety and the danger his father might face, and began to stir restlessly. That restlessness directly transformed into even heavier pain, which came in waves.
It's almost, almost unbearable.
Just as Shang Ruyi was gritting her teeth and forcibly enduring the pain coming from her lower body, Yuwen Ye had already stood up. He looked down at Yuwen Cheng, whose face was illuminated by the lantern in Shang Ruyi's hand, but whose eyes were as cold as ice, and at Yuwen Qian opposite him, who refused to raise his head and seemed to be stubbornly guarding the darkness. He calmly said, "Third brother, you are exaggerating."
"..."
"Didn't I just say I was about to drink that wine?"
"You've already had your drink, haven't you?"
Yuwen Ye frowned again, looking at the wine cup in his hand, while Yuwen Cheng stood up with his wine cup in hand and said, "Second brother has always valued brotherhood the most. He used every means to teach his good-for-nothing brother back then... Surely you won't stop treating your brother like a brother after you marry your sister-in-law."
Yuwen Ye frowned deeply.
He wasn't unaware of the danger; years of fighting on the battlefield had given him a sense of danger far more acute than that of an animal. But even with this sense, he was unwilling and unable to believe that this already perilous brotherhood feast was truly fraught with danger!
Just then, his shoulder was loosened, and the wine glass in his hand was snatched away.
Yuwen Ye turned his head and saw that it was Shang Ruyi who had taken his wine glass. Under the flickering lamplight, her face was even paler than before. After taking the wine glass, she gripped the glass tightly with her hand, her fingertips turning white. Even so, her hand was still trembling so much that the wine in the glass was about to spill.
But that wasn't her eagerness, it was—
She's in pain!
At this moment, the pain intensified with each breath, surging towards her like a tidal wave. Normally, she would have fainted long ago, but miraculously, she endured it. Not only that, she didn't even struggle or cry out in pain. Only her disordered breathing and the cold sweat streaming down her face showed Yuwen Ye and the others nearby the excruciating pain she was in.
Before Yuwen Ye could speak, she said directly, "Third brother, you flatter me. It's just that your second brother promised me after I got pregnant that he would drink less so as not to interfere with his work. You said that two cups were enough, so if you don't mind, let me, as your second sister-in-law, drink the third one!"
After saying that, she brought the wine glass to her lips!
This stunned everyone in the Chengqian Hall.
The first to move was Yuwen Ye. Almost instinctively, he reached out to grab Shang Ruyi's wrist, but just as he raised his hand, he met Shang Ruyi's eyes, which were covered by a wine glass, revealing only her clear and bright eyes. Although her eyes were red from the pain, they were clearer than ever before, and because of the redness, they even revealed a hint of murderous intent.
This was the first time Yuwen Ye had seen this in this young woman.
His heart skipped a beat, his fingers froze for a moment, and his arm, which had been slightly raised, slowly lowered.
Yuwen Cheng's expression changed instantly.
He never cared about his second sister-in-law. There had been many times in the past when she had verbally provoked him, and he had even directly exposed the unusual relationship between her and Chu Yang. He didn't have any moral principles to uphold, nor did he care about a woman's chastity. However, he was already very happy to make this woman who had wronged his eldest brother lose face, and to embarrass his second brother who always disciplined him and made him unhappy.
However, his indifference only applies to those he can afford to offend.
It wasn't that he couldn't afford to offend Shang Ruyi and Yuwen Ye; it was just that this heavily pregnant woman was carrying their father's long-awaited eldest grandson.
If Shang Ruyi loses the child due to worry or even excessive grief, it would be her own incompetence in protecting it. However, if it were through his own hands—Yuwen Yuan would definitely not let him off easily. No matter how audacious he is, he has not yet reached the point of daring to touch the emperor's sore spot.
However, just as he instinctively opened his mouth to stop him, he hesitated for a moment.
How can we stop it?
If I stop it, I'll put the matter on the table, which would give Yuwen Ye an excuse to make trouble.
But if we don't stop it, and things really get to the point of no return—
In the instant he hesitated, Shang Ruyi's wine glass touched her lips, and at that moment, Yuwen Ye's breath caught in his throat.
Seeing her eyes red from the pain and her hands trembling uncontrollably, even before she opened her mouth to drink, the wine was already about to spill onto her lips. Yuwen Ye finally couldn't hold back and was about to reach out.
Just then, a low, hoarse voice suddenly spoke. Although the voice was not loud, it was like a muffled thunderclap, causing the entire hall to tremble.
"don't want!"
At the same time, Shang Ruyi let out a soft exclamation: "Ah!"
Before her cries of pain could subside, the wine glass in her hand fell to the ground with a clatter, spilling wine all over the floor and wetting her dress. But Shang Ruyi couldn't care less about that now; the excruciating pain completely shattered all her resolve, and she collapsed limply to the ground.
"As one wishes!"
Yuwen Ye twisted the hand that was about to grab her wrist and immediately hugged her tightly, looking down at her face which was covered in cold sweat: "What's wrong with you?!"
Shang Ruyi raised her head, and in that instant, her eyes were unfocused, and her whole body trembled like a leaf in the wind, quivering incessantly in his arms: "I, I think I'm going into labor!"
Yuwen Ye lowered his head, his eyes instantly widening in fury.
Her dress was already mostly soaked, but the drink from that glass only stained a small patch of it; the rest was completely wet.
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