Chapter 643 How many people do you still want to hold in your heart?
Soon, Shang Ruyi and Wo Xue returned to the county government office.
Although Lei Guo went to discuss important matters with Yuwen Ye and the others, he still had rooms prepared for them in advance. Although they were not luxurious, they were already a very comfortable place to stay for them who had been living a life of hardship.
Wo Xue lit the candlestick, looked around, and smiled, "Your Highness, you can finally get a good night's sleep tonight."
"..."
The people around him did not answer.
Wo Xue turned around in surprise and her heart sank.
The room had been warmed by a brazier prepared in advance, but even so, Shang Ruyi's face was as pale as paper, and even her lips were bloodless. She looked as if she were in a frozen wasteland, and even the blood in her body had frozen.
Wo Xue dared not delay and hurriedly asked the county government to send some hot water and soup over so that she could eat some to warm herself up before taking a bath.
Shang Ruyi didn't refuse, and reluctantly ate a few bites before going to take a bath.
When she returned, she had washed away the bloodstains on her face and body. However, her complexion still hadn't regained its rosy hue. In fact, because she had changed into a plain white nightgown, she looked as pale and cold as a person made of snow.
The aura emanating from him was not the steam from his bath, but rather an indescribable, sorrowful presence.
Almost involuntarily, Wo Xue began to feel sorry for him.
She helped Shang Ruyi to the bedside and sat her down. Then, looking at Shang Ruyi's downcast and dim eyes, she asked softly, "Your Highness, would you like me to keep watch for you tonight?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi looked up at her.
He looked at her with a hint of bewilderment, and after a moment, a faint smile appeared on his face. Then he said, "No need."
"..."
"You weren't there at that time either."
"...?"
Wo Xue was taken aback, not knowing what she was talking about, but Shang Ruyi seemed to have no intention of continuing, and said indifferently, "Alright, you should go and rest now."
Having no other option, Wo Xue could only bow and leave the room.
The door was closed.
Although Wo Xue moved very quietly, and the door closed with only a soft "click," when the sound reached Shang Ruyi's ears, it was a heavy, mournful thud—
That was the sound of a huge palace gate being closed!
Shang Ruyi suddenly shuddered, as if she couldn't bear it and didn't want to think about it. She immediately covered her ears, shutting out the sound from her own world, and lay down on the bed, curling up into a ball.
It's as if this way, I can avoid everything in my memory.
However, the memories turned into nightmares, surging up on her like a tide after she fell into a deep sleep. In the dim dream, Shang Ruyi returned to the tall and magnificent Hall of Light once again, and when she opened her eyes, she saw her own eyes.
No, those aren't my own eyes.
It is a sword.
Those slightly widened eyes, revealing a hint of astonishment and a deep sorrow, were the reflection of his own eyes on the gleaming sword.
And on the other side of the longsword—
Shang Ruyi suddenly felt suffocated, somewhat incredulous, and even more afraid to look up. But in her ears, she heard that person's arrogant yet dashing voice, smiling as he said, "Why don't you look at me?"
"—!"
The voice was sharper than the sword before her, piercing her heart in an instant.
Shang Ruyi trembled, and after a long while, she finally slowly raised her eyes and met those bright and unrestrained phoenix eyes.
"Your Majesty..."
Shang Ruyi wanted to call him, but as soon as she opened her mouth, her voice was already hoarse. When she tried to call him again, it seemed that it was no longer the voice that came out of her mouth, but a tremor from the depths of her heart.
"It's you, Chu—"
That ambitious and proud emperor considered her his confidante, doted on her and protected her, and even created the most beautiful scenery in Jiangdu Palace for her. He even spent the last moment of his life with her. She not only witnessed his death, but also buried this scene deep in her heart, making it a lifelong nightmare. She was even willing to give her life for him to repay his confidante.
However, she couldn't call him by his full name.
Chu Yang......
Chu Yang......
This name lingered in my mind a thousand times, yet no matter what, I couldn't bring myself to say it.
But why did he suddenly enter my dream?
Just thinking about it made Shang Ruyi shudder. She realized she was dreaming. The handsome man with phoenix eyes and a smile, as beautiful as an immortal, had long since died in the Jiangdu Palace, right before her eyes. And the reason she suddenly remembered him was probably because—
Shang Ruyi's gaze slowly fell, landing on the long sword that stood between the two people.
Sword dance.
It's because of the sword dance I performed today.
She danced gracefully in the main hall of Qixian County Government Office, then seized the opportunity to kill the Western Turkic envoy, Chaci, with a single sword stroke. Afterwards, everyone around her looked at her with concern. She knew it was because of her dazed appearance and excessively pale face; everyone assumed she was shocked by the fact that she had killed someone with her own hands and terrified by the gruesome state Chaci had before his death.
Only she knew that it wasn't true.
Because it wasn't the first time she had seen a sharp blade slit a person's throat at such close range, and seen blood spray into a mist in front of her.
She was lost in thought simply because she saw another person in that blood mist.
Standing before her at this moment, he still maintained that arrogant demeanor, yet smiled with a hint of mockery and provocation. He should have lived freely, like a banished immortal.
Why don't you call me "I"?
Just as her mind was racing, unsure whether to feel joy or sorrow, that smiling voice rang in her ears once again.
This time, Shang Ruyi did not hesitate and immediately raised her head. His bright phoenix eyes were right in front of her, and his warm breath enveloped her instantly.
He seemed to want to—
Recalling that night at Jiangdu Palace, the burning heat he left on her lips, Shang Ruyi instinctively took a step back.
With her retreat, Chu Yang seemed to suddenly be far away from her.
He remained standing there, motionless, simply smiling as he looked at her: "Why don't you call my name?"
Why don't you call me "I"...?
"Why...why don't you call...my name..."
He smiled and spoke these words intermittently, as if obsessed, his voice never ceasing. Just as Shang Ruyi was struggling, he suddenly stretched out his long arm and placed it across his own neck.
And this gesture was exactly what he had done in the Hall of Light, right in front of himself—
Seeing the blood mist rise again, Shang Ruyi rushed over.
"Chu Yang!"
With a piercing scream, Shang Ruyi was jolted awake from her dream.
The next moment, she felt herself lying in a familiar, warm embrace, and the chest jolted violently the instant she heard her voice.
Shang Ruyi was also startled and suddenly opened her eyes.
At this moment, it seemed that dawn was approaching. Although the room was dimly lit, a faint morning light shone through the window, allowing her to see the man who was holding her tightly, but whose arms had suddenly stiffened as if cast in iron.
It wasn't Chu Yang, the one who broke her heart in her dream.
It was Yuwen Ye!
Not only his arm, but when Shang Ruyi looked up at him, his face also seemed a little stiff. His usually cold and stern gaze flickered at this moment, giving off a dangerous feeling that it was about to shatter at any moment.
At this moment, Shang Ruyi was also stunned. She just lay there in his arms, looking up at him for a long time.
Then he said, "Feng Chen..."
She uttered those two words very softly, even with a hint of hazy helplessness lingering from a dream. Yet, those very words suddenly silenced Yuwen Ye's shattered gaze. He took a deep breath, as if convincing himself or suppressing something, then looked down at Shang Ruyi and replied heavily, "Mm."
This time, Shang Ruyi was more clear-headed.
It's not a dream.
Yuwen Ye had returned. He was right beside her, his still-stiff arms holding her tightly. This was a tenderness they hadn't felt in days, a tenderness they hadn't shared in a long time. Although the pain and sorrow from her dream still lingered in her chest, making her breath painful, Shang Ruyi calmed down, as if comforted by his embrace.
She gently lowered her head, pressed her cheek against his chest, and felt the real and powerful heartbeat.
He then said, "Feng Chen."
The person above him took another deep breath and replied, "Mm."
It's true, Yuwen Ye.
This man was given to her by God, and also chosen by her own heart; he was her only reliance and her only true love in this chaotic world.
She slowly, then gripped him tightly.
His body temperature and breath gradually soothed the pain of loss that her dream had brought.
She couldn't tell anyone; this pain was something she couldn't express. Besides, what's lost is lost. She could endure all the pain in her dreams, but the one thing she couldn't accept was losing someone alive again.
so--
Thinking of this, Shang Ruyi took a deep breath to clear her mind and calm down. Then, she pressed herself against Yuwen Ye's chest and whispered, "Feng Chen."
"Um."
He responded to her again, though quickly, but that quickness carried a hint of suppressed stiffness and coldness.
But Shang Ruyi didn't notice at all. She was just trying her best to calm the shock brought on by the nightmare between reality and illusion, and then said softly, "Could you send some more men back to Changchun Palace?"
"..."
“My brother only has two hundred people with him, and I’m really worried about his safety.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Shang Ruyi suddenly felt a chill.
It was the chest she was pressed against that seemed to have its warmth stolen away in an instant, and even her heavy heartbeat paused for a moment.
At that moment, Yuwen Ye's voice rang out above her head—
"Shang Ruyi,"
His voice was dry and hoarse, almost unfamiliar, as he coldly asked, "How many more people do you still want to keep in your heart?"
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