Chapter 506 The Duke's Mansion, My Husband's Life Must Be Protected!
The carriage traveled silently through the bustling streets and returned to the Yuwen residence.
Just as they were about to turn into the alley, they heard a commotion ahead. Tushe'er, who was following outside the carriage, asked in surprise, "Why are there so many people?"
Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi immediately lifted the curtain and looked ahead.
Sure enough, the main gate of the Yuwen Mansion was crowded with people. Although Yuwen Yuan, as the Grand Chancellor, usually had a large number of guests at his Duke's Mansion, the gate of the Yuwen Mansion was strangely closed today, which was somewhat similar to the situation at the Shen Mansion.
Seeing this, the two exchanged a glance.
Yuwen Ye immediately ordered the driver, "Turn around and go back through the side gate."
The coachman dared not delay and hurriedly turned the carriage around, heading down another road along the alley. The two people in the carriage fell even more silent as they listened to the noisy crowd left behind.
After a long pause, Shang Ruyi gave a bitter laugh, as if she were thinking to herself, or perhaps murmuring to herself, "No matter where, there's no escaping it."
Yuwen Ye remained silent.
He simply lifted a section of the curtain again, looking at the bustling crowd behind him. This scene reminded him of his meeting with Madam Yu just now. He hadn't met this aunt, whom Shang Ruyi always talked about, many times and wasn't very familiar with her. But from the two meetings they had, he could tell that she was a woman with a naive personality. She might have experienced the hardships of life, but she had never experienced the hardships of love. She was clearly well protected by her husband and son.
He and Guan Yunmu are two completely different people.
But just now, when he entered the Shen family's backyard, he saw a different side of Madam Shen. She was still kind and amiable, but her eyes revealed a familiar rigidity, the kind of strength that people feel when they are forced to become strong after experiencing hardship and setbacks.
After thinking for a moment, he realized that it was the same as Shang Ruyi's.
After inviting him to sit down, Madam Shen went straight to the point: "Second Young Master, although my husband made this decision on his own, I believe that not only I, but also my children, understand who he is doing it for and who can benefit from it. You should have understood this long ago as well."
"……yes."
“I know some things shouldn’t be discussed openly, especially matters of great importance to the court, but I can’t worry about appearances right now. For me, nothing is more important than my husband coming back alive.”
"..."
"Therefore, please ask the Second Young Master to convey a message to the Duke of Sheng for me—"
"..."
"The Duke's Mansion, you must save my husband's life!"
Her last words were spoken in such a low voice that, upon reflection, Yuwen Ye seemed not to have heard her voice, yet he felt the weight of those words deep in his heart. He understood that it was a woman's heartfelt plea; regardless of the fate of the nation or the world, the only person she sought and protected was that one person.
It turns out, she and Guan Yunmu are the same kind of person...
Thinking of this, Yuwen Ye lowered the curtain, and the light inside the carriage dimmed. He then looked down at Shang Ruyi, whose face seemed to be shrouded in gloom, and whose eyes were filled with even more darkness.
And her...?
Last time, in order to rescue the exiled Shen Shiyan and his wife, she promised herself that she would no longer hinder her from meeting Princess Xinyue. Moreover, she would even provide them with opportunities to meet in private. At that time, even though he hadn't figured out his own feelings, Yuwen Ye was inexplicably enraged by her magnanimity.
However, he couldn't hold her accountable.
After all, it was I who proposed to be just a couple in name only and rejected her back then, so neither my indifference nor her "generosity" was really wrong.
But what about now?
Having not answered her own question just now, what will she choose next?
Is it the same as before, or—
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Entering the mansion through the side gate, although the atmosphere inside was different from the gloomy and desolate Shen mansion, it was still shrouded in a heavy atmosphere. The usually busy servants were all working silently, not daring to say a word.
After walking for a while, we were almost at their room.
Yuwen Ye suddenly said, "Aren't you going to ask me?"
"Um?"
Shang Ruyi reacted quickly, but didn't say anything, just looked at him quietly. Yuwen Ye looked down into her clear eyes and said, "You haven't asked me anything along the way, what your aunt just told me."
"..."
Don't you want to ask?
Shang Ruyi's eyes flickered, and she gently shook her head: "I won't ask."
Yuwen Ye frowned slightly: "Why?"
Shang Ruyi lowered her head again, her clear eyes seemingly shrouded in gloom. She said softly, "People only ask questions in two situations, one of which is when they don't know the answer."
"..."
"But I already know the answer. So I won't ask."
"Oh?" Yuwen Ye looked down at her, then suddenly asked, "What's the second one?"
"The second type..."
Just as Shang Ruyi was about to speak, she saw Xue Daotong walking over from not far ahead. As soon as he saw Yuwen Ye and Shang Ruyi, he hurriedly stepped forward and bowed, saying, "Second Young Master, Young Madam, you've finally returned."
"Uncle Xue, is something the matter?"
"Second Young Master, the Duke wishes to see you. You should go there quickly."
"oh."
Yuwen Ye nodded, then turned to look at Shang Ruyi and said, "Go back to your room and rest first. We'll talk later."
Shang Ruyi didn't seem surprised that Yuwen Yuan wanted to see Yuwen Ye as soon as he got home. He obviously knew where they had gone and had been waiting for them to come home. She knew this answer even better than what her aunt had just told Yuwen Ye.
So he responded and turned back to his room without making a sound.
Yuwen Ye glanced at her retreating figure and was about to head towards the study when Xue Daotong said, "Second Young Master, the Duke is in the tea room."
"The tea room? Not the study?"
"yes."
Although the tea room was merely a place for Yuwen Yuan to drink tea, his family understood his habits. Whenever he had important matters to consider, he wouldn't go to the study to discuss things, but instead would go to the tea room. And once he entered the tea room, no one in the family, no matter what happened, was allowed to disturb him.
So this matter...
Upon hearing that he was in the tea room, Yuwen Ye raised an eyebrow slightly, seemingly understanding, and turned to walk towards the tea room. After taking only two steps, he stopped and asked, "By the way, Uncle Xue, where is my elder brother?"
"The eldest young master went out early this morning."
"Is he on duty at the Ministry of War today?"
"It doesn't seem so. However, the eldest young master has been busy with things outside lately and comes home very late every day."
"oh?"
Yuwen Ye frowned again, but after glancing at the sky, he didn't say anything more and turned to go to the tea room.
The teahouse was located in the southeast corner of the Yuwen residence, where there was a small bamboo grove. It was secluded and quiet, and the servants and maids would almost never pass by without the Duke's permission. When Yuwen Ye pushed open the door and walked in, apart from a gust of wind carrying the aroma of tea that rushed towards him and made a sudden sound in his ear, there was almost no other sound.
Looking up again, I saw Yuwen Yuan sitting in the center of the tea room.
He picked up a cup of freshly brewed tea, but instead of drinking it immediately, he brought it to his nose and took a deep breath. The aroma of tea is usually light, but at this moment it was exceptionally fragrant and rich, almost like… human desire.
Yuwen Ye walked over and said softly, "Father."
Yuwen Yuan didn't respond immediately. Instead, he took a small sip of tea, the aroma filling his mouth. After swallowing, the aroma faded, as if some emotion had been calmed by the subtle fragrance. Only then did he slowly open his eyes and say, "You're back."
"yes."
"You saw someone from the Shen family?"
"I saw him."
What did they say?
Yuwen Ye thought for a moment and said, "Aunt Shen only said that no matter what, the Duke's Mansion must protect Uncle Shen's life."
"So what was your answer?"
"The son did not answer."
"Oh? Why?"
"Because Aunt Shen wants the Duke's Mansion to make a promise, but her son cannot replace the Duke's Mansion at this time."
Yuwen Yuan's gaze flickered slightly, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes. He looked up at his son, who no longer needed to rely on him and could stand on his own no matter where he went, and asked, "So, what are you thinking?"
Yuwen Ye said, "I think that no matter what, we must save Shen Shibo's life."
"Why?"
"Because if Shen Shibo dies because of this matter, the great cause that Father seeks will never see the light of day again."
The moment those words were spoken, the entire tea room fell silent. Although it had been quiet just moments before, that quiet was merely secluded and tranquil; the silence now was a suffocating stillness.
Yuwen Yuan did not look up, but when he looked down at the tea in his cup, the slightly rippling tea reflected his eyes. His eyes were sharp and restrained, yet they revealed a fierce determination that he could not hide no matter how hard he tried, like a tiger lurking in the dense forest, ready to pounce even if there was a bottomless cliff next to it.
This was the first time Shang Ruyi had ever seen her father-in-law look like this.
It only looked like this when the rebels were annihilated at Longmen and a terrifying mound of corpses was erected.
However, as Chu Yang gradually became suspicious of him, that gaze, along with his ambition, slowly sank into his seemingly peaceful facade. What appeared before everyone was only the humble, modest, cautious, and prudent Duke Sheng.
However, appearances are just appearances.
His true self cannot be forever suppressed by humility and caution.
Upon hearing the words "great undertaking" from Yuwen Ye, his eyes flickered for a moment, but his demeanor became even calmer. He slowly put down the teacup he had only taken a sip from and said, "So, are you ready?"
Yuwen Ye said, "No."
"...?"
This surprised Yuwen Yuan somewhat. He looked up at his second son, who was always decisive and ruthless: "Why?"
"..."
"Because of Ruyi?"
"……yes."
Yuwen Yuan's aura deepened. But he wasn't surprised—after all, even if he couldn't see through other people's thoughts, he understood the feelings between young men and women better than anyone else.
after all--
Yuwen Yuan sighed, "You..."
Just as his mind was momentarily unsettled, Yuwen Ye added, "Besides that, I have another unresolved question, which makes it difficult for me to make a decision."
"Oh? What's your question?"
"..."
Yuwen Ye stepped forward, staring intently at his father, and said, "After this incident, does your son still not represent the Duke's Mansion?"
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