Chapter 111 I can trade with you
No one answered.
The entire Shen Mansion was so quiet that only the sound of the wind could be heard.
After a while, they heard footsteps approaching, followed by the sound of the door bolt being pulled off. As soon as the door opened, Shang Ruyi immediately went to greet them: "Uncle—"
She stopped before she could finish speaking.
The person who came to open the door was Uncle Chen, the steward of the mansion.
The old man looked much more haggard than before, with tear stains still on his face. As soon as he saw Shang Ruyi, he burst into tears again: "Miss Ruyi, you, you've come."
Shang Ruyi hurriedly asked, "Uncle Chen, where is my uncle? And where is my aunt?"
Uncle Chen said, "Miss, you already know."
"Hmm, where are they?"
"They're all gone."
"What?!"
Shang Ruyi, who was about to walk inside, stopped immediately upon hearing this, staring dumbfounded at Uncle Chen. Yuwen Ye followed closely behind and said in a deep voice, "Lord Shen and Madam Shen have already—"
Uncle Chen nodded and said in a trembling voice, "What happened yesterday was that the soldiers took our master away without even packing a few clothes."
Shang Ruyi's heart sank into an icy abyss in an instant.
It's true! Shen Shiyan has actually been exiled.
Moreover, it happened so quickly, before they even had a chance to say a word.
Yuwen Ye, standing to the side, remained calm. He glanced at the interior of the mansion, which was now noticeably quieter, and said, "I heard the Emperor's decree was only to exile Lord Shen, with his family remaining unaffected. Why is Madam Shen still—"
Mentioning this, Shang Ruyi remembered that Wang Shaoji had just mentioned that among all the people exiled this time, only Shen Shiyan was convicted and his family was not implicated.
Otherwise, how could she have remained uninvolved until today, only to find out everything?
When Uncle Chen mentioned this, he was even more heartbroken: "Indeed, none of us were implicated, but Madam—how could she bear to let Master suffer alone? She insisted on going with him."
"ah?"
"So she packed a few clothes and some things and went with them."
"..."
"Before leaving, they told us to stay home and not to tell Miss. If Miss found out, they told us to tell her not to worry, that she would take good care of Master."
Shang Ruyi's tears flowed like a burst dam.
Her aunt, Yu, was usually a playful and somewhat unreliable elder, but at this moment, regardless of the distance and even her own life, she insisted on following her uncle and never abandoning him. In order not to implicate her, she didn't even tell her when she left.
Shang Ruyi cried, "Why did you only tell me now!"
Uncle Chen was also in tears, saying, "Miss, Miss, don't be too sad. Madam made all the arrangements before she left. Everyone else in the family was dismissed, leaving only this old man and Gao Feng and a few others to look after the house. Miss, you don't need to worry about us. Just, just live a good life with your son-in-law."
Shang Ruyi cried so hard she could barely breathe.
The people who were kindest to her in this world were Shen Shiyan and his wife. They were her only family. Now they were exiled to Lingnan, which was a wild and desolate place. Moreover, they didn't know how much hardship they would have to endure along the way.
How could she "live a good life" when her own uncle and aunt were tormented by such a fate?
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By the time they left the Shen family and returned to the Yuwen family, it was already dark.
Along the way, Shang Ruyi didn't cry anymore, but she didn't say a word either. She was completely silent, like a clay sculpture whose soul had been taken away. When Yuwen Ye led her back to the room, she just stood numbly in the center of the room.
Yuwen Ye glanced at her, wanting to say something, but at this moment, there were still too many things he needed to deal with.
Unfortunately, he was preoccupied with Princess Xinyue's matter yesterday and didn't have time to pay attention to the changes in the court. However, the emperor's dismissal of so many officials at once will definitely have a huge impact in the court and even among the common people. Moreover, the most important thing is the Pei family—
The two families have a deep friendship, and no matter what, he has to take care of Pei Xingyuan's situation.
So he turned and walked out, intending to send someone to the Pei family to investigate the situation.
Just as he was about to turn and leave, Shang Ruyi's low, hoarse voice suddenly sounded behind him—
"I... I have something I'd like to ask of you."
The voice, numb yet trembling, sounded like a desperate cry for help from someone on the verge of despair. Upon hearing this, Yuwen Ye immediately paused, stopped, and turned to look at her.
The room hadn't been lit yet, and in the dim light, Shang Ruyi stood there, lifeless.
He frowned subconsciously.
Although Shang Ruyi hadn't finished speaking, he seemed to already know what she was going to say.
Shang Ruyi's face was ashen, and when she looked up at him, her gaze was like frozen frost. It wasn't coldness, but rather a complete lack of feeling and warmth. She said, word by word, "I... I want to ask you how many people you need."
Yuwen Ye said in a deep voice, "What are you going to do?"
Shang Ruyi said, "I'm going to save them."
"..."
As expected.
Yuwen Ye watched as she uttered those words almost numbly, seemingly unaware of the utterly rebellious nature of her words. He took a deep breath and said, "Do you know what the consequences of your actions will be?"
Shang Ruyi looked at him for a long while before saying, "I want to save them."
"..."
She didn't have the energy to listen to him or to judge the so-called "outcome".
All she wanted was to save them.
Exile—these two seemingly light words are actually piled up with the bones of countless exiled people. Not to mention that Lingnan is mountainous, remote, and has a harsh environment, those exiled there lived a life worse than death. In fact, only a few people could reach Lingnan; most of the exiled people were tortured to death on the way!
Her uncle and aunt were her most important relatives, and she was determined to save them!
Yuwen Ye said, "Do you think I would agree to do such a treasonous thing?"
"..."
Shang Ruyi stared at him in silence for a long time before suddenly saying, "I can trade with you."
"What?"
Yuwen Ye frowned: "What do you want to exchange with me?"
When Shang Ruyi spoke, her voice trembled slightly for some reason. She even walked up to him with a hopeful and ingratiating expression, looking up into his eyes: "From now on, I will never stop you from meeting Princess Xinyue again."
"..."
"Not only will I not hinder you, but I will also help you cover it up as long as you need it, and I will never let anyone find out about your relationship."
"..."
"How about it? As long as you agree—"
Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly felt a strong sense of oppression. In an instant, it felt as if someone was choking her, and she swallowed the rest of her words.
In the dim light, Yuwen Ye could be seen squinting at her, coldly watching her.
"What did you say?"
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