Chapter 392 Humans reside in this mortal world, nothing more than love and hate.
What she saw was the former Empress Jiang, the Empress Dowager of the Daye Dynasty, who was not unfamiliar to her—her skin was still as white as snow, her hair was still cloud-like and her face was still beautiful. When those affectionate eyes looked up at her, it was as if a hand had gently caressed all her wounds and taken away all her pain.
That was her unchanging gentleness.
Everything seemed just like when they first met.
However, Shang Ruyi still couldn't believe her eyes. She even forgot to speak and forgot to bow. She just stared at the person in front of her with wide eyes and walked towards her step by step.
No matter how closely you look at it, it is still—
Shang Ruyi spoke in a trembling voice, which was already broken and even tinged with the saltiness of tears.
"Your Majesty..."
Empress Jiang—no, the Empress Dowager—smiled at her, but unlike any previous meeting, she didn't speak softly to her; she simply nodded gently.
But Shang Ruyi knew that she wasn't ignoring her.
She simply couldn't speak.
Because, on her slender neck, at her throat, there was a nearly grotesque scar!
Looking at the scar, Shang Ruyi felt a chill run through her entire body.
Even though she once harbored unbearable jealousy in her heart, and even though she knew that she would never be able to see her without any resentment again, deep in Shang Ruyi's heart, she could not deny that Jiang Xinyue—the most supreme woman in the Daye Dynasty—was a perfect woman.
But now, a crack has appeared in her perfection.
At this moment, Shang Ruyi's tears welled up involuntarily. She couldn't suppress them or swallow them; they just spilled out and dripped onto the small, low table.
Although it was only a slight sound, it seemed to have stirred up a huge uproar in the quiet Mahavira Hall.
She knelt down abruptly, like an empty shell devoid of a soul, staring blankly at the person before her, choking out, "Your Majesty, how could this be?"
Seeing her tears, the Empress Dowager's gentle eyes, though still smiling, were tinged with a faint sadness. But by this time, she had passed the moment of overwhelming grief and quickly calmed down, only smiling as she looked at Shang Ruyi.
She didn't say anything, yet it seemed like she said everything.
What else could it be?
Because of suicide.
While they were still in Yanyue City, Yuwen Ye told her that after learning of Chu Yang's passing, she drew her sword and attempted suicide, but fortunately, she was saved.
This is the only trace of her gentle and tender nature, and the only time she made a resolute decision!
Seemingly knowing that she didn't need to answer the question, the Empress Dowager didn't speak. She just looked gently at Shang Ruyi, who was crying uncontrollably, and gently stroked her cheek, wiping away some of her tears.
However, this has led to even more widespread proliferation.
The Empress Dowager sighed softly, then reached out her other hand to wipe away the tears that were streaming down her face, and gently shook her head.
"Don't cry," she was saying.
At this moment, seeing her silent comfort, Shang Ruyi realized that she was the one who had experienced the most painful things and the one who had endured the greatest sorrow, yet she herself was shedding tears in front of her and even needed her to comfort her. She felt utterly pathetic.
Thinking of this, she could only suppress the pain in her heart and swallow all her tears.
When she looked up at the Empress Dowager again, tears welled up in her eyes, blurring her vision and almost distorting everything around her, yet the hideous scar was still so clearly piercing into her eyes.
Shang Ruyi almost burst into tears again.
She sobbed, whispering, "It still hurts—"
Before she could finish speaking, the Empress Dowager smiled and gently shook her head.
Shang Ruyi then said, "Then—"
The Empress Dowager still shook her head.
Although she hadn't uttered a word, it seemed that those affectionate eyes had seen through all her distress. The Empress Dowager even reached out and gently patted the back of her hand to comfort her.
She could no longer speak.
Standing so close, Shang Ruyi could see more clearly the scar that ran almost across her entire neck. It had probably only recently healed and scabbed over, but the scar still showed traces of red. One could imagine the horrific scene that had unfolded. While she was haunted by memories of bloodshed in Jiangdu Palace, the Empress Dowager, far away in Daxing City, had also plunged herself into a sea of blood.
This scene was so oppressive that Shang Ruyi could hardly breathe.
She even felt some hatred.
I hate that man. Why didn't he think of the woman who was willing to give up her life for him before he died? He had everything, so why was he so willful and gave it up so easily?
She also hated herself.
What exactly did I do?
Thinking of this, Shang Ruyi felt tears welling up again, almost bursting forth. She could only grit her teeth and choke out, "Empress Dowager, is there something you want to ask me?"
"..."
"At Jiangdu Palace, actually—"
She almost mustered the courage to tell her everything that happened at Jiangdu Palace. Although she had just explained everything to everyone outside, only she knew that it wasn't real. The real Jiangdu Palace, the real blood-stained night, was hidden only in her heart.
But for this woman, she was willing to speak out.
She was willing to confront those nightmarish memories again.
But just as she was about to speak, she saw the Empress Dowager looking at her tenderly and then gently shaking her head.
"...?"
Shang Ruyi froze instantly.
All the words remained stuck in her throat.
She stared blankly at the Empress Dowager, her vision blurred, tears welling up, the scalding tears dripping down her cheeks, turning icy cold immediately afterward. She seemed to be enduring this torment of being attacked by both ice and fire, almost reaching the limit of collapse.
But the Empress Dowager's eyes were as gentle as a breeze.
The wind blew across her eyes and across her cheeks.
It took away all the agonizing heat and soothed the emotions that were almost collapsing in her heart. After a long time, she reached out and took something from the side.
Shang Ruyi then noticed a stack of papers, along with pen and ink, on one side of the low table.
There are several images on it, and there seem to be faint traces of writing on them.
Since she could no longer speak, this pen and ink must have been what she used to instruct those around her. Sure enough, she spread out a sheet of white paper, picked up the pen with her delicate hand, and hurriedly wrote a line on it. Then she looked up at Shang Ruyi and gently handed her the paper.
Shang Ruyi sniffed awkwardly and hurriedly took it.
Looking down, through my blurry vision, a line of gentle yet solemn handwriting came into view—
Humans live in this mortal world, their lives filled with nothing but love and hate.
"...!"
Her heart skipped a beat, and she looked up at the Empress Dowager.
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