CHAPTER 241: CHAPTER 229: SHANG RUYI, DON’T PUSH YOUR LUCK!

Meanwhile, at the snow-covered Luokou Ferry, the soldiers awaiting the emperor’s orders, though without a mission to dispatch, still performed their daily exercises, not neglecting any patrols or defenses.

A few young soldiers couldn’t help but complain, "The battles are over, why are we still training? We’re freezing for nothing."

Several older soldiers curtly replied, "What do you know?"

"Without these days of diligent practice, do you think we could have returned alive from Wanggang Village so easily this time? Have you forgotten what a perilous place that was?"

"General Yu Wen is strict in his discipline for our own good, you should be grateful."

"Indeed, which general leads by example like him? This time he got injured, nearly lost the use of his arm, yet he rappelled down a cliff single-handedly. Who else in the court would have such courage!?"

...

Hearing this, the young soldiers recalled their recent experiences and were appeased, ceasing their complaints.

The older soldiers sighed and said, "In these times, serving under a wise lord is a blessing earned over lifetimes. I hope I can continue to follow General Yu Wen in the future..."

They chatted while slowly walking away.

In her tent, Shang Ruyi remained silent at this moment.

Actually, her injury was healing well. As long as she didn’t move or exert herself, her shoulder felt numb rather than painful. Yet for some reason, hearing the soldiers’ words, especially when she learned that Yu Wenye had rappelled down a cliff with a wounded shoulder to infiltrate Xingluo Warehouse City, she felt a sharp pain in her shoulder again.

That pain pierced straight into her heart.

Instinctively, Shang Ruyi pressed her hand to her chest, managing to calm her erratic heartbeat caused by the inexplicable and dull pain. But in the next moment, the tent door was opened. She looked up, and her heart raced out of control once more.

Yu Wenye walked in.

His expression was cold and indifferent, holding a bowl, his demeanor still carrying the chill of the weather outside, stiff and somewhat unyielding.

He slowly approached the bedside, looking down at Shang Ruyi.

His face remained stern, but when he spoke, his voice had a hint of subtle warmth—

He said, "Eat."

Shang Ruyi stared at him blankly. She couldn’t quite make out the expression on his face, yet inexplicably felt that his expression must be gentle. But the gentler it was, the more the indescribable bitterness in her heart surged forward, nearly breaking through as tears in her eyes.

She hurriedly lowered her head.

However, this action seemed to irritate Yu Wenye. This was his first time yielding—if it could be considered yielding. He had personally prepared this bowl of porridge, only to find Shang Ruyi still sitting still on the bed, in the same position and with her hair cascading down exactly as when he left. She hadn’t moved for so long, and even when he spoke first, she remained unresponsive.

What on earth was she thinking?

Yu Wenye furrowed his brow, "What, you made a mistake, and now you want me to apologize?"

"..."

Shang Ruyi kept her head down, still not speaking.

Yet the turbulent emotion inside her continued to expand, swelling painfully in her chest, until the searing tears finally rolled out, dripping onto the bed and her hand.

Yu Wenye was taken aback for a moment.

She was crying again!

Just like when he brought her back from the Ziwei Palace, she said nothing and kept shedding tears silently. She didn’t even show any grievance or complaint, yet inexplicably, all the defenses he had in his heart dissolved at that moment, softened beyond belief.

He truly felt compassionate.

Yu Wenye tightened his grip on the bowl, struggling for a while before slowly sitting by the bedside. He looked at her red eyes and nose, hesitatingly saying, "Alright, I—"

Shang Ruyi looked up at him.

Yu Wenye gritted his teeth and finally managed to speak, "I won’t apologize to you, but I, I shouldn’t have spoken to you like that just now."

"..."

"And I shouldn’t have left you alone in Xingluo Warehouse, without showing up to reassure you—"

"..."

The more he spoke, the more tears fell from her eyes, as if flooding before him. Yu Wenye felt as though something was pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe, and he couldn’t help but become angry— this little woman, without saying a word, made him succumb with just a few tear drops, and it wasn’t enough either! What would happen in the future?

So he gritted his teeth, "Shang Ruyi, don’t push your luck!"

"...!"

Shang Ruyi was startled by his reprimand.

Looking up, she met Yu Wenye’s face, which was no longer composed and calm but rather embarrassedly angry.

Seeing his angry look, Shang Ruyi suddenly felt her tears were unwarranted. She hurriedly wiped her tears away, sniffling.

And seeing her like this, Yu Wenye calmed down a bit.

He thought for a moment, realizing his reaction just now seemed unwarranted. Tears were always a sign of weakness in his eyes. Even if the little woman had her vulnerabilities and grievances, she hadn’t gone too far to "push her luck." Why had he felt such anger of being coerced just now?

Thinking about this, he felt puzzled.

What was going on with him?

He found himself at a loss for words, and Shang Ruyi was at a loss too. For a while, both of them were silent, facing each other.

After a long time, Shang Ruyi finally said softly, "I didn’t..."

Seeing her like this, Yu Wenye felt even more that his reaction had been excessive, and could only brush it off, softening his voice, "Alright, have some porridge. You have been scared these days, and probably haven’t eaten well. But there’s nothing better to eat here."

"..."

"When, when we return to the city, I’ll take you to Tinghe Building, to eat something good and properly nourish yourself, alright?"

"..."

Shang Ruyi widened her eyes, looking at him with surprise on her face.

It wasn’t his tenderness towards her that surprised her, but the fact that his tenderness was so specific.

Did this mean that for her, at least no longer like in the past, he wasn’t just pretending to be a loving couple in front of others, but had genuinely thought it through, and was planning to treat her well after returning?

Shang Ruyi felt her heart beating rapidly, but when she truly opened her mouth, she only uttered a soft "mm."

Yu Wenye immediately brought the bowl to her, the rich aroma of rice wafting into her nose, suddenly making Shang Ruyi aware of her hunger. She then realized that her last meal had been a day ago, and having gone through so much, she hadn’t felt it before, but the smell of the porridge triggered a wave of exhaustion in her.

Her body went limp, leaning against Yu Wenye.

Yu Wenye didn’t move away. Instead, he lowered his head, looking at her pale lips and the fine sweat on her forehead, his tone becoming gentler, as if coaxing her, "Here, eat a bit."

He then took a spoonful of porridge and blew on it gently, sending it to her mouth.

Shang Ruyi obediently opened her mouth.

Realizing that the spoon was a bit large, the first mouthful left porridge hanging from the corners of her mouth, and before she could wipe it off, another spoonful was brought to her. She could only obediently open her mouth, drinking down the porridge he fed, mouthful by mouthful.

They stayed close like this, one feeding, the other eating.

Soon, more than half the bowl of porridge was gone.

Porcelain hanging at the corners of her mouth was about to drip. Yu Wenye frowned, reflexively reaching out to hold her chin, his thumb gently wiping away the soup from her lips.

Yet after wiping it off, his hand didn’t leave her lips.

Her lips, though a bit pale, were soft and small, and when caressed by his rough fingers, it was like holding a petal at his fingertips, her lips slightly parted, revealing a fleeting glimpse of a crimson tongue inside.

Suddenly, Yu Wenye felt a tightness in his lower abdomen, his breath becoming hot instantly.