Why My Domineering Prince Regretted Filing for Divorce?-Chapter 629 - 508: What Kind of Woman Are You?

The daughter of Duke Shenwu, that is—Mrs. Dong.

Shang Ruyi took a deep breath.

She knew that the words to come might be difficult for Yu Wenye to express, yet tonight, he seemed to need an outlet to convey some things. So she said softly, "Father, he married Mrs. Dong."

"Mm."

"So—"

"So,"

Yu Wenye pondered for a moment before slowly saying, "On the night of the wedding, Father drank nine jars of Nine Brewed Spring in a single breath."

"..."

"He drank in the Duke Mansion on the night of the grand wedding, while Mother locked herself in her room, also opened a jar of wine, and drank along with him."

"..."

"It is said that neither of them had touched a drop of alcohol before this, but afterward, they both developed quite a tolerance. Yet, they never knew the extent of each other’s drunkenness in places unseen."

"..."

Shang Ruyi’s heart felt a surge of sourness and another of pain.

So that was it. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

No wonder on the night Yu Wenqian returned to the Duke Mansion, Yu Wenquan was initially full of excitement, but when Aunt Hui brought out the treasured jar of Nine Brewed Spring, saying it was to celebrate ’the joy of tonight,’ his expression immediately changed, and his mood fell.

Aunt Hui would never understand just how complicated the emotions were mixed in that night’s wedding joy.

Nor could she understand whether Yu Wenquan felt joy or sadness that night, after drinking nine jars of Nine Brewed Spring.

Shang Ruyi sighed deeply.

This sigh, in the dark and quiet night, conveyed infinite melancholy; Yu Wenye seemed to be touched by this emotion as well, and after a long silence, he continued in a hoarse voice, "Two years later, my elder brother was born, but Mrs. Dong passed away while giving birth to him."

"..."

"And later—"

The subsequent events did not need to be recounted, as not only Shang Ruyi but almost everyone knew.

Five years after the passing of his first wife, Yu Wenquan married Guan Yunmu.

Of course, the world likely knew little about their prior betrothal and so mostly didn’t understand that those five fleeting years, which to others were merely a matter of living and surviving, were for Guan Yunmu, who was well past the age of marriage and nearly incapable of finding a suitable match, a stubborn and almost suicidal long wait.

Fortunately, she finally waited for him.

Yu Wenquan married the woman with whom he previously had a betrothal but whose youthful years had been spent waiting in vain.

And as for what happened after, there was even less need to speak of it.

Yu Wenye was born, Yu Wencheng was born, and although Yu Wenqian was away cultivating, Yu Wenquan never stopped moving forward. The Yuwen Family had made achievements without parallel in the establishment and early days of the Da Ye Dynasty, amassing countless military victories and public acclaim. What was once a harsh and challenging environment was transformed by Yu Wenquan into gradually smoother waters, and to continue along this path would eventually reach the absolute pinnacle.

Everything seemed truly over.

Yet, there are always traces of unresolved feelings, like a feather left behind by a soaring wild goose, floating aimlessly, unwilling to sink, adrift in the long river of time.

By now, the night had deepened.

Beside the bed, only one lamp remained, with only a short piece of wick left, the flame gradually shrinking, but even such weak light, reflected in Yu Wenye’s deep eyes, resembled stars glimmering persistently in the dark night, refusing to extinguish.

His inner thoughts remained unsettled.

Shang Ruyi pondered for a while, then softly asked, "Feng Chen, do you want to know if Father had... if he ever had true feelings for Mrs. Dong, and between his two wives, whom he loved more?"

"..."

Yu Wenye did not speak.

But at times like this, silence is an acquiescence.

Shang Ruyi asked, "Did you ever ask him?"

Yu Wenye nodded lightly.

Even though it was Shang Ruyi herself who asked the question, when she saw Yu Wenye nodding, she was somewhat taken aback—as if Yu Wenye shouldn’t care or shouldn’t ask these questions.

But, it seemed reasonable.

Even though he vowed from a young age to not entangle himself in romantic affairs if he didn’t achieve great things, that was, after all, his father and mother, especially with Guan Yunmu—a woman whose life was detached even from her own son, focused solely on her husband—how could Yu Wenye be at ease with her lifelong devotion being in vain?

Moreover—between the death of Mrs. Dong and his remarriage to Guan Yunmu, Yu Wenquan had delayed a full five years.

He could not have been unaware that Guan Yunmu had been waiting for him all along, yet he still delayed for five years. To say he had no feelings for the deceased wife would be impossible.

People are not plants or trees; how could they be emotionless?

Furthermore, though Guan Yunmu waited because of feelings, Mrs. Dong implicated herself and her entire family for him, even sacrificing her dignity to seize love, was this not also sentiment?

Thus, it was of course that Yu Wenye would ask.

Shang Ruyi cautiously inquired, "Then, how did Father answer you?"

"..."

Yu Wenye was silent for a while, then said, "He only asked me if my practice time was too short. If so, the morning practice would be doubled."

"Ah?"

Shang Ruyi was momentarily unable to respond, staring at him blankly, while Yu Wenye looked down at her, saying indifferently, "That was his answer to me."

"..."

"He said, from now on, practice twice as hard; if you don’t sweat, you can’t put down your weapon; if you don’t pant, you can’t stop to rest."

"..."

"This way, you won’t have the time to think about these trivial matters."

Shang Ruyi blinked her eyes.

Thinking a bit more, she somewhat understood and lightly sighed: "Because the matter is already past."

The meaning of ’past’ is that it is no longer in front of us.

For someone pragmatic like Yu Wenquan, the past is simply past. Pursuing whether love existed or not is not as important as practicing a bit more, which offers a slightly better chance of surviving on the battlefield.

When he gets old and rests, perhaps there will be time to think about these things.

But for him right now—facing the survival of his family back then, bearing the Emperor’s suspicion later on, and now with great undertakings yet uncompleted, where does he find the time to think about such trivial matters?

This is Yu Wenquan’s life philosophy.

Shang Ruyi murmured: "If such a person cannot accomplish great things, then it truly is heaven’s unfairness."

"Indeed,"

Yu Wenye sighed lightly: "You once said that I was a very clear-headed person, but compared to my father, I am probably still far behind."

"..."

"When I have unresolved doubts in my heart, I can’t move forward; but if he has unresolved doubts, he will still forge ahead, bearing them. When he reaches the point where he can resolve them, then he will address them, but in the meantime, he will not stop moving forward."

At this point, he paused again, as if he chuckled lightly, and said: "Come to think of it, I used to think that ancient poets only wrote about wind and moon, but now it seems there’s some truth in their words."

"What truth?"

"The indulgence of a man can still be spoken of; the indulgence of a woman, cannot be spoken of."

This verse is quite familiar to most people, but at this moment, it is full of bitterness. After saying it, Yu Wenye continued faintly: "In this world, naturally, there are love-crazed fools."

Shang Ruyi didn’t expect he would think of this verse at this time, silently reciting it twice in her heart. She also chuckled gently and said: "Indeed it makes sense, but the reason is actually quite simple."

"Oh?"

Despite his continuously gloomy mood, Yu Wenye’s eyes sparkled for a moment, showing some liveliness. He looked down at her and said: "Tell me."

Shang Ruyi said: "The reason is that there are many things a man can do, and they have a vast world to see."

"..."

"But as a woman, she was once confined to the household courtyard, seeing only relatives, servants, and neighbors, and possibly hadn’t even read many pages of books that describe women as ’indescribable’. How could such a person escape the trap of a heart-deep emotion?"

"..."

"But if a woman’s heart holds a vast world, and she bears her family’s mission, or even the rise and fall of the state, where could she find so much attention to indulge in love and emotions?"

"..."

"Even ten or twenty percent might be too much."

Yu Wenye’s face darkened, and he said in a deep voice: "Are you saying my mother was wrong?"

Upon hearing this, Shang Ruyi’s face changed as well. She hurriedly stood up, repeatedly waving her hands in front of the suddenly cold and sharp-eyed Yu Wenye: "No, that’s not what I meant."

"Then what do you mean?"

"I mean—Mother was not wrong."

Thinking again, she added: "Loving deeply is not wrong."

"..."

"But being able to see more scenery and do more things isn’t wrong either."

On reflection, her ability to speak eloquently here and her familiarity with the verse Yu Wenye recited didn’t come overnight. It’s because of Empress Wenxian Du of Emperor Wen. She not only loved reading and was knowledgeable about the modern and ancient world but also had wide associations from a young age. Later, she was on par with Emperor Wen in founding the Da Ye Dynasty, and nearly all the civil and military officials had good relations with her and discussed state affairs freely.

Such a woman naturally wouldn’t be confined to love alone; there were many things she could do.

Therefore, after Emperor Wen founded the kingdom and became emperor, Du was enshrined as the Empress and was not confined to the deep palace but actively participated in political discussions. It was at her suggestion that the National Academy of the Da Ye Dynasty began accepting female students, and the palace even saw the emergence of female officials.

It is precisely because of Empress Du’s influence that the style of the Da Ye Dynasty’s women is different from the past.

It is also why Shang Ruyi was able to say "no" to a marriage she didn’t want.

As Shang Ruyi nearly longingly spoke of these past events, she also somewhat despondently recalled when Guan Yunmu once told her that her riding skills were taught by Shang Ruohong, but unfortunately, she could not use those skills to go to farther places and see better scenery, when Yu Wenye’s voice sounded once more.

"And what about you?"

"Hmm?"

Shang Ruyi was momentarily dazed, as if the faint candlelight also sensed something, with a ’pop’, it went out.

The entire room fell into darkness and silence.

In such a night, feeling the warm breath of a person at arm’s length brushing across her cheek, Shang Ruyi barely shuddered when she heard Yu Wenye’s somewhat hollow voice whisper in her ear—

"What kind of woman are you?"

"..."

"The state and the world, or love and affection, which one would you choose?"