Chapter 508 What kind of woman are you?
The daughter of the Duke of Shenwu, namely, Lady Dong.
Shang Ruyi took a deep breath.
She knew that Yuwen Ye might not be able to continue, but tonight, he seemed to need an outlet to confide in her. So she whispered, "Father... he married Madam Dong."
"Um."
"so--"
"so,"
Yuwen Ye pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "On the night of our wedding, Father drank nine jars of Jiu Yun Chun in one go."
"..."
"He drank at the Duke's mansion on his wedding night, while his mother locked herself in her room, opened a bottle of wine, and drank with him."
"..."
"I heard that they were both teetotalers before this, but after that, they both developed a high tolerance for alcohol. However, neither of them knew how drunk the other was when they couldn't see him."
"..."
Shang Ruyi felt waves of soreness and pain in her heart.
I see.
No wonder that on the night Yuwen Qian returned to the Duke's mansion, Yuwen Yuan was originally in high spirits, but when Aunt Hui took out the treasured Jiu Yun Chun wine and said it was to celebrate "the joy of tonight", his face changed immediately and his mood became depressed.
Aunt Hui would never understand how many complex emotions were mixed in with the joy of that wedding night.
They would never understand whether Yuwen Yuan, who drank nine jars of Jiu Yun Chun wine, felt sorrow or joy that night.
Shang Ruyi sighed deeply.
This sigh, in the dark and quiet night, was filled with boundless sorrow. Yuwen Ye seemed to be affected by this emotion as well. He remained silent for a long time before continuing in a hoarse voice, "Two years later, my eldest brother was born, but Madam Dong passed away while giving birth to him."
"..."
"later--"
What happened next, without him having to say it, was known not only to Shang Ruyi, but also to almost everyone in the world.
Five years after his first wife passed away, Yuwen Yuan married Guan Yunmu.
Of course, few people in the world probably know that they were once engaged, and most of them don't know that those five years flew by. For others, it was just a simple matter of living and going about their lives; but for Guan Yunmu, who was already past the age of marriage and almost impossible to find a good match, it was a stubborn, long wait that almost put him to death.
Fortunately, she finally got what she was waiting for.
Yuwen Yuan married a woman who had been engaged to him but had wasted her youthful years.
And what happened afterward goes without saying.
Yuwen Ye was born, then Yuwen Cheng was born. Although Yuwen Qian was away cultivating, Yuwen Yuan never stopped his progress. The Yuwen family made unparalleled contributions to the establishment and early stages of the Daye Dynasty, accumulating countless military achievements and popular support. The harsh environment that had once made progress extremely difficult was gradually transformed by Yuwen Yuan into a smooth path in life, and if he continued to follow this path, he would reach that absolute peak.
Everything seems to have truly passed.
However, there are always traces of unspoken thoughts, like fragments of feathers left behind by wild geese after they have flown high, drifting leisurely and refusing to sink, floating in the long river of time.
By this time, it was getting even later.
Only one lamp remained by the bedside, now reduced to a short, thin wick. The flame gradually dimmed and shrank, but even that faint light, reflected in Yuwen Ye's deep eyes, resembled a star that always twinkled in the dark night sky, refusing to go out.
His worries were not yet resolved.
Shang Ruyi thought for a moment and asked softly, "Fengchen, do you want to know if Father ever...whether he had any real feelings for Madam Dong? And which of his two wives did he love more?"
"..."
Yuwen Ye remained silent.
But in these situations, remaining silent is tantamount to acquiescence.
Shang Ruyi said, "Have you asked?"
Yuwen Ye nodded slightly.
Although Shang Ruyi asked the question herself, she was somewhat surprised when she saw Yuwen Ye nod—it seemed that Yuwen Ye shouldn't care about, or rather, shouldn't have asked these questions at all.
But it also seems to make sense.
Even if he had vowed since childhood that he would not get involved in romantic love unless he achieved great things, they were still his father and mother. In particular, Guan Yunmu was cold and distant even to her own son, and only had her husband in her heart. How could Yuwen Ye be willing to let her lifelong affection end in vain?
Moreover, a full five years passed between the death of Madam Dong and Yuwen Yuan's remarriage to Guan Yunmu.
He couldn't possibly be unaware that Guan Yunmu had been waiting for him all along, yet he still delayed for five years. To say that he had no feelings for his deceased wife would be impossible.
Humans are not plants or trees; how can they be without feelings?
Moreover, Guan Yunmu waited for him with affection, but Madam Dong also risked her entire family for him, abandoning her dignity to steal his love. Wasn't that also a form of affection?
Therefore, Yuwen Ye naturally had to ask.
Shang Ruyi asked cautiously, "Then, what did Father say to you?"
"..."
Yuwen Ye was silent for a moment, then said, "He only asked me if I hadn't been practicing for long enough. If so, he said I should double the time I spend practicing early in the morning."
"ah?"
Shang Ruyi was momentarily stunned, staring blankly at him. Yuwen Ye looked down at her and said calmly, "That's his answer to me."
"..."
He said that from now on, he should practice even harder, and he should not put down his weapon if he does not break a sweat, and he should not stop to rest if he is not out of breath.
"..."
"That way, you won't have the time or inclination to think about these trivial matters."
Shang Ruyi blinked.
After thinking about it again, she understood somewhat and sighed softly, "Because it's all in the past."
"Past" means it's no longer in sight.
For a pragmatic person like Yuwen Yuan, the past is the past. Dwelling on whether he loved or not, whether he loved or not, is not as important as practicing his skills a little longer to increase his chances of survival on the battlefield.
When he gets old and has more free time, perhaps he'll have time to think about these things.
But right now—back then he faced the survival of his family, later he endured the emperor's suspicion, and now he has a great cause yet to be accomplished. How could he have time to think about such trivial matters?
This is Yuwen Yuan's life belief.
Shang Ruyi murmured, "If someone like this can't achieve great things, then God is being unfair."
"yes,"
Yuwen Ye sighed softly, "You once said that I am a very clear-headed person, but compared to my father, I am probably still far behind."
"..."
“If I have unresolved questions in my heart, I cannot move forward; but if he has unresolved questions, he will move forward even if he carries these questions on his back. He will wait until he can find the answers, but he will not stop in the meantime.”
He paused here, seemingly chuckled softly, and said, "Speaking of which, I used to think that the ancients only wrote poems about the wind and moon in the Book of Songs, but now it seems that there is some truth to life in them."
What's the reasoning behind that?
"A man's infatuation can be explained; a woman's infatuation cannot be explained."
This line of poetry is familiar to most people, but it sounds bittersweet at this moment. After Yuwen Ye finished speaking, he added softly, "In this world, there are always those who are deeply infatuated."
Shang Ruyi hadn't expected him to think of this poem at this time. She silently recited it twice in her heart, chuckled, and said, "It does make sense, but the reason behind it is actually quite simple."
"oh?"
Although Yuwen Ye had been in a low mood, his eyes flickered with a hint of liveliness at this moment. He looked down at her and said, "Tell me about it."
Shang Ruyi said, "The reason is that men can do so many things and see so much of the world."
"..."
"But as a woman, she used to be confined to her home and courtyard, and all she saw were relatives, servants, and neighbors. She probably hadn't even read many pages of books that said she was 'unspeakable.' How could such a person escape from a deeply unforgettable love?"
"..."
"But if a woman has a vast world in her heart, and she also carries the mission of her family, or even the rise and fall of the nation, how can she spare so much energy to indulge in love?"
"..."
"Even one or two out of ten is probably too much."
Yuwen Ye's face darkened, and he said in a deep voice, "Are you saying that my mother was wrong?"
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi's expression changed. She hurriedly stood up and waved her hands repeatedly at Yuwen Ye, whose eyes flashed with a cold light, saying, "No, of course that's not what I meant."
"So what do you mean?"
“What I mean is—Mother is not wrong.”
After thinking for a moment, he added, "It's not wrong to be deeply in love."
"..."
"But it's also good to see more scenery and do more things."
Speaking of which, the fact that she could speak so eloquently here, and was even familiar with the poems recited by Yuwen Ye, was not something she could do overnight. It was because Empress Wenxian, the wife of Emperor Wen, was not only fond of reading and knowledgeable about the past and present, but also had a wide circle of friends from a young age. Later, almost all the civil and military officials who worked alongside Emperor Wen to establish the Great Dynasty were on good terms with her and discussed current affairs.
Such a woman is naturally not confined to love and romance; there are many things she can do.
Therefore, after Emperor Wen established the country and ascended the throne, Du was made empress. She was not confined to the inner palace, but actively participated in political discussions. Moreover, at her suggestion, the National Academy of the Daye Dynasty pioneered the admission of female disciples, and female officials even appeared in the palace.
It was precisely because of Empress Du's influence that the atmosphere of women's quarters in the Daye Dynasty was different from the past.
Only then could Shang Ruyi say "no" to the marriage she did not want.
Just as Shang Ruyi was reminiscing about the past with a touch of melancholy, recalling what Guan Yunmu had once told her—that her riding skills were taught by her father, Shang Ruohong, but unfortunately she couldn't use those skills to travel further and see better scenery—Yuwen Ye's voice rang out once again.
"And what about you?"
"Um?"
Shang Ruyi was momentarily distracted, and the faint candlelight seemed to sense something, and with a "poof," it went out.
The entire room fell into darkness and silence.
In the darkness of the night, feeling the warm breath of someone so close brushing against her cheek, Shang Ruyi trembled slightly before hearing Yuwen Ye's somewhat hollow voice ring in her ears—
What kind of woman are you?
"..."
"The fate of the nation or love, which would you choose?"
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