Why My Domineering Prince Regretted Filing for Divorce?-Chapter 622 - 503: Strange Occurrences at Shen Mansion
The word to describe it is—submission?
Submission?!
Shang Ruyi suddenly drew in a sharp breath, and for an instant, countless doubts swelled in her mind, only to unravel all at once.
Just as she was feeling somewhat numb and unsteady, a hand reached from behind to gently support her back. Turning her head, she saw that Yu Wenye had somehow already made his way behind her to steady her.
Compared to Shang Ruyi, who was shell-shocked as if struck by lightning, he was rather calm. He merely whispered, "Sit down first."
"..."
Shang Ruyi looked at him with a complicated expression for a while, then lightly nodded.
Without saying a word, she followed the warmth and strength of his palm, led by him to slowly walk aside and sit down, only to feel her heart still pounding rapidly, making her chest burn.
Yet, she couldn’t utter a single word.
And Yu Wenquan, who also seemed to know the shock the word brought to her, because today in Liangyi Hall, upon hearing that word, the young Emperor, who had always listened to them, immediately turned deathly pale and then erupted in fury, wanting to kill someone; while several other seasoned, steady ministers also turned horrified, nearly losing their composure.
Submission!
This word, before the Emperor, is not one to be spoken lightly—
Even though, he had once contemplated more discourteous methods.
Even though, after supporting the new Emperor, this word had crossed his mind countless times, even devised countless times.
But he had never expected that Shen Shiyan, just freed from exile, would dare to utter this word before the Emperor, a word that had once brought calamity upon Yan Ru!
For a moment, the atmosphere in the study became oppressive.
Who knows how much time passed before Shang Ruyi finally caught her breath and, much calmer now, looked up at Yu Wenquan and said in a deep voice, "Father, then my uncle—"
Yu Wenquan replied, "Your uncle spoke incorrectly this time, guilty of deceiving the sovereign. Although today several of us elder ministers jointly managed to protect him, it’s only temporary. His Majesty has imprisoned him, obviously not intending to forgive so easily."
"..."
"If His Majesty insists on execution, there’s nothing we can do."
Shang Ruyi hesitated and asked, "Can we ask the ministers in the court to plead for my uncle again?"
Yu Wenquan glanced at her without speaking, while Yu Wenye beside him had already said solemnly, "This might instead backfire."
"Ah?"
Shang Ruyi turned to him in surprise: "Why?"
Yu Wenye, looking grave, said, "If Uncle Shen had spoken other words, the ministers could all plead for him. But the word he used—for fear that the more the ministers plead, the greater His Majesty’s anger will grow."
"..."
Shang Ruyi was taken aback. Upon reflection, she immediately came to her senses.
Indeed.
Shen Shiyan said the word "submission" in front of the Emperor. If other ministers plead for him, it might arouse the Emperor’s suspicion, making him believe the courtiers were forming factions and plotting rebellion—although the law does not punish the public, the one who stands out will surely be made an example of.
And this person could only be Shen Shiyan!
Thinking of this, Shang Ruyi broke out in a cold sweat and immediately dismissed this thought.
At this moment, Yu Wenquan said, "The current strategy is only to find a way to calm His Majesty’s fury. But we ministers cannot speak much; the only one whose words His Majesty might heed is—"
Shang Ruyi instinctively said, "The Empress Dowager?"
Yu Wenquan shook his head: "It’s only after entering the palace today that I knew the Empress Dowager had already gone to Dayan Temple for fasting yesterday."
Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi’s heart sank once more, and even Yu Wenye, sitting beside her, furrowed his brow slightly—no wonder Princess Xinyue had summoned them to the palace today under the pretense of the Empress Dowager’s name.
Princess Xinyue...
In this case, the only one who can speak in the Emperor’s ear is this Eldest Princess.
Shang Ruyi’s heart immediately sank.
Subsequently, they deliberated in the study for a while, but indeed couldn’t come up with a better plan. As they watched the sunset slant outside, Yu Wenquan said, "Alright Ruyi, we will think of another plan regarding this matter, but it’s getting late, you should head back first."
"Yes."
Shang Ruyi rose and bowed to him, ready to turn and leave, when she glanced once more at Yu Wenye.
Yu Wenquan said, "Ye’er, stay behind; I have something else to discuss with you."
Hearing this, Shang Ruyi couldn’t say more and silently turned to leave the study room.
And just as she stepped out of the study, she heard Yu Wenye gravely say, "Father, why hasn’t elder brother returned yet?"
"Him?"
"Today, it seems it’s not his turn on duty at the Ministry of War."
"Perhaps he has his own matters. Let’s not talk about your elder brother; I ask you, today when you entered the palace—" 𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶
The voice behind grew faint, gradually becoming inaudible. Shang Ruyi lifted her head, momentarily blinded by the sunset light, before slowly making her way forward.
Along the way, her mood became increasingly heavy.
The Eldest Princess... Chu Ruoyan, for this matter, perhaps she really must be sought out.
But—
Just thinking back to the attitude she received at Yichun Palace today made Shang Ruyi feel a prickling unease, as if her legs were filled with lead, and with every step, they felt heavier, and even her breathing grew labored.
Just as she raised her head and took a deep breath, trying to shake off the shackles of unease, she saw a tall figure slowly walking toward her. It was none other than Yu Wenqian.
He seemed a bit surprised upon seeing her.
But immediately, a hint of a smile rose in those serene and gentle gray-blue eyes as he walked over and said, "Sister-in-law."
Shang Ruyi said, "Elder Brother."
Yu Wenqian stood in front of her, lowered his head to look at her dazed expression, and softly said, "I’ve already heard about Uncle Shen. Don’t worry too much. A person of fortune has the Heavenly Phase; I’m sure he will turn misfortune into fortune."
"Thank you, Elder Brother."
"By the way, where are Father and Feng Chen?"
"They’re both in the study discussing matters."
"I’ll go and take a look then."
After saying this, he nodded slightly, then walked past Shang Ruyi without any hesitation, his graceful robes creating an inadvertent breeze.
Preoccupied with her thoughts, Shang Ruyi didn’t dwell further and continued to walk forward.
However, as that breeze brushed past her cheek, it seemed to carry a faint and elusive fragrance.
That night, Shang Ruyi was nearly sleepless, only managing to doze off slightly as dawn approached. Even then, it was a light sleep, and the moment a gentle breath blew across her cheek, she felt something and slowly awoke.
As soon as she opened her eyes, she met a pair of familiar ones.
It was Yu Wenye, lying beside her, gazing down at her with deep eyes. Seeing her wake up, he didn’t immediately speak, and neither did Shang Ruyi; she merely watched him in silence.
In that moment, it seemed very quiet, yet amid the silence, it was as if a thousand words were spoken.
Until the light through the window grew brighter and the sound of Tushere and others bustling about in the courtyard arose, Yu Wenye finally lowered his eyelashes and softly asked, "Did you sleep well?"
Shang Ruyi silently shook her head.
Yu Wenye asked, "Well then, do you want to sleep a little longer?"
Shang Ruyi still shook her head.
"Then today——"
"Today, I want to visit the Shen Family,"
Shang Ruyi said softly, "Feng Chen, will you accompany me back?"
Yu Wenye wasn’t surprised. After all, this was what he promised her when coaxing her out yesterday, but now that it’s mentioned again, it lacks yesterday’s joy and ease. He gently said, "You want to go back?"
"Yes. Although I haven’t figured out a way, I want to see Aunt."
"..."
"She just returned for a couple of peaceful days, and now this happens. She must be having a hard time."
Saying this, Shang Ruyi’s eyes reddened involuntarily.
Seeing her like this, Yu Wenye reached out and gently embraced her, his low voice seemed to resonate through his solid chest, reaching Shang Ruyi’s ear as she pressed against him: "Alright, I’ll go back with you."
"Okay."
So the two of them quickly got out of bed, dressed, washed, had breakfast, and then went out together, taking a carriage for more than half an hour before finally arriving at the Shen Family.
It was just as they approached when a lavishly decorated carriage passed by them.
Yu Wenye happened to lift the curtain to peer outside, and upon seeing the carriage, he murmured, "That is——"
Shang Ruyi glanced over and immediately said, "That’s Minister Lu from the Ministry of War’s carriage."
"How do you know?"
"Minister Lu came to Mother’s funeral before, riding the same carriage, so I remember."
"..."
At that time, Yu Wenye had stayed in the mourning hall, lost in grief by Guan Yunmu’s coffin, so he naturally didn’t know about the outside affairs, nor Minister Lu’s carriage.
He nodded lightly and then furrowed his brow.
What’s Minister Lu doing here at this time?
Could it be that he’s visiting the Shen Mansion for something?
While pondering this, Shang Ruyi raised the curtain to look outside once more, only to see the Shen Mansion’s grand gate ahead, with a sedan chair stopping there. Someone was talking with the porter; after a few words, the porter kept bowing and retreating inside, while that person sat helplessly back in the sedan chair, which was then carried away by the bearers, leaving the Shen Mansion.
That person seemed to be Grand Doctor Wen Juncuo.
He was also previously punished and exiled along with Pei Xu and Shen Shiyan due to their petition to halt the Liaodong campaign. He had just returned to Daxing City not long ago after being pardoned by the new Emperor, and has yet to be reinstated, remaining a commoner.
He also came?
Shang Ruyi and Yu Wenye exchanged a look, their expressions growing more solemn.
At this moment, the carriage stopped at the entrance of the Shen Mansion.
Tushere, familiar with the place, went up to call the door on his own, while Yu Wenye helped Shang Ruyi down from the carriage. As soon as they stood firm, they saw that the entrance of the Shen Mansion was crisscrossed with carriage tracks, and the footprints were chaotic.
Strange...
Shen Shiyan had suffered such a disaster, and with the crime of deceiving the Emperor, shouldn’t the court officials be distancing themselves to avoid trouble? Why are there still so many visitors?
What’s going on?
