CHAPTER 382: CHAPTER 340 ARE YOU ANGRY?

Shang Ruyi’s heart sank for a moment.

But she didn’t say anything, only raised her head quietly, looking at the stone tablet outside the pavilion with the words "Wanggang" which appeared stained with blood in the sunset.

Shen Wuzheng heard this and said, "You all didn’t even know about the new emperor’s ascension, which shows how perilous and isolated the journey was. I only found out about it after much inquiry, but as for the Empress, I really know nothing further."

After speaking, he looked at Yu Wenye: "Second Young Master seems very concerned about the Empress."

"..."

Yu Wenye glanced at him, then immediately looked towards Shang Ruyi.

After a moment of silence, he said, "Yes."

Shen Wuzheng’s gaze deepened, his tone also getting heavier: "Why?"

But this time, before Yu Wenye could speak, Shang Ruyi softly said from the side, "Brother, you probably don’t know, the Empress watched him grow up, and also, she has been very good to me."

"...?"

Shen Wuzheng turned his head to look at her, somewhat surprised, for a while, he said, "Really?"

Shang Ruyi smiled, "Why would I lie to you."

"..."

"So, whether as a subject or a junior, it’s natural for him to be concerned about the Empress."

Although her words defused the situation, Yu Wenye looked at her with even more shadow than before.

Shen Wuzheng’s expression softened gradually.

He said, "Since the Second Young Master is worried about the Empress’s safety, once we are done here, we can hasten our journey back to Daxing City to learn about the Empress’s condition."

Yu Wenye simply nodded, "Hmm."

Only then did Shang Ruyi smile again, "Alright, it’s getting late, we should quickly find a place to settle down."

With that, the three of them descended the dirt slope together.

Shen Wuzheng went into the woods on the other side to fetch his horse tied there, while Shang Ruyi slowly walked over to the carriage. Just as she was about to board the carriage while passing by Yu Wenye, he suddenly whispered in her ear, "I worry she might—"

But before he could finish, Shang Ruyi immediately interrupted him, "It’s alright."

"...?"

Yu Wenye frowned at her, only to see Shang Ruyi calmly say, "No need to explain."

"Ruyi."

"Let’s go, or we’ll have a hard time finding a place to stay later."

With that, she boarded the carriage on her own accord.

Although they shared the carriage on their way here, now that Shen Wuzheng had arrived, Yu Wenye rode a separate horse alongside him, and they rejoined the group they had left behind, heading east. Finally, as the sun set, they entered Yanyue City.

This was the nearest city to Li Wanggang Village.

Despite the rampant chaos across the land, with many cities falling into ruin amidst the flames of war, Yanyue City remained as prosperous as ever. This wasn’t due to the efficiency of the local government soldiers, but because the city housed dozens of large and small temples, with a multitude of monks, making it a prominent center of Buddhism. Although rebel armies were constantly slaughtering elsewhere, they hesitated to harm monks. No matter how fierce the battles outside were, this place remained a haven of peace.

Thus, many passing through this war-torn area chose to rest here.

By the time they entered the city, it was completely dark, and lights were already extinguished everywhere, almost to the point where one couldn’t see their hand in front of their face. Bearing torches, they walked a bit further before finding a temple to lodge in for the night. After a brief conversation with the abbot, some monks led them to the back of the temple, where they were settled in the monks’ quarters.

Shang Ruyi and Yu Wenye were naturally arranged to share one room.

The monk who led them there put down a basin of hot water and some utensils, then said, "Please rest early. I shall take my leave."

With that, he exited the room.

The room fell into silence.

Shang Ruyi stood in the center of the room, instinctively turning to glance back, seeing Yu Wenye standing at the door, closing it with both hands, then slowly turning to look at her.

The air immediately turned a bit strange.

Despite not being alone together during the journey, their interactions had remained peaceful, especially after their visit to Song State. Their communication had been ordinary. Yet at this moment, as their eyes met, an inexplicable tension started to ripple between them.

Shang Ruyi instinctively averted her gaze.

She wanted to walk further inside, only to find the room extremely simple: aside from two meditation cushions for rest and kneeling in the outer room, there was only a bed inside.

Moreover, the room was very small; with Yu Wenye’s tall figure standing by the door, it seemed as if he already filled half of it. His presence seemed to permeate the entire room, giving Shang Ruyi the illusion that there was no escape.

Could it be—they would share a bed tonight?

Just the thought of it made her heart feel prickly and uncomfortable.

What troubled her more was that even though she diverted her gaze, she could still feel the other person’s eyes on her, with a warmth tinged with an inexplicable intensity—a familiarity she’d known all too well.

The last time, when they were alone in a monastery’s quarters...

She tried to forget, but some memories seemed to root like a thorn in her heart, impossible to pull out, continually causing her pain.

Feeling a bit restless, especially being beside him, she softly said, "I want to go for a walk. You, you should rest first."

After speaking, she stepped past him, ready to open the door and leave.

However, just as her hand touched the door, another hand suddenly reached over and grabbed her wrist, spinning her around, and forcefully pressed her against the door. Shang Ruyi’s brows furrowed and she was about to struggle when a hot body pressed closely against her, firmly pinning her down.

She looked up and met Yu Wenye’s deep black eyes.

He stood in front of her, his hands tightly gripping her arms, as if positioning her between his body and the door, rendering her unable to move.

Shang Ruyi’s heart was beating fast, but her face remained expressionless as she calmly said, "What are you doing?"

Yu Wenye’s gaze was cold, but there seemed to be a flicker of flame deep within his eyes.

He said, "Are you angry?"

"..."

Shang Ruyi found it somewhat amusing.

But immediately, she also found the fact that she found it amusing rather laughable. So she sighed and looked at him, saying, "I’m not."

Yu Wenye said, "You saying that means you are."

"..."

Shang Ruyi was at a loss for words. Indeed, although Yu Wenye was not a talkative person, it did not mean he couldn’t be eloquent. On the contrary, if he wanted to, his words could be sharper than his knife. Moreover, if words failed, he could directly act, just like the current situation between them—no matter what she did, she couldn’t gain the upper hand in front of him.

So she sighed, and helplessly said, "Yu Wenye, whether I am happy or angry, it’s my own matter."

Yu Wenye looked into her eyes: "So, you are angry."

"..."

"Is it because I mentioned the Empress?"

"...!"

This time, Shang Ruyi couldn’t control herself.

Her brows furrowed, as if her heart were pierced once again.

This time, her subtle change was clearly captured by the eyes so close to her, and a knowing expression appeared on Yu Wenye’s face. He raised his eyebrows and slowly said, "It truly is."

"..."

Shang Ruyi bit her lower lip, feeling that she had lost face at this moment, but she immediately took a deep breath and looked up at him, calmly saying, "I just don’t want my brother to worry about me."

"...!"

Yu Wenye furrowed his brows: "What?"

Shang Ruyi said, "You should have noticed, my brother is a very perceptive person. Not only in the major matters men are skilled at, but he is also very attentive to minor things. He has been the one who cares about me the most from childhood to adulthood. Even if I feel slightly unhappy, even before I realize it myself, he would know sooner than me."

Yu Wenye said nothing, his brows furrowing even tighter.

He said, "So, you spoke up for me in front of him, and even ’covered up’ for me, because you were afraid he would find out?"

Shang Ruyi sighed and said, "Sort of."

"Sort of?"

Yu Wenye narrowed his eyes slightly: "What do you mean?"

Shang Ruyi chuckled bitterly and said, "At that time, when my uncle’s family was exiled, I pleaded with you to send someone to save them. I once made such a condition that I would not obstruct you from meeting your beloved, not only that, I could even help cover for you."

"..."

"It’s just that at that time, I mistook the person."

"..."

Speaking of this, even now, she still found it somewhat amusing, so she truly laughed, yet in this laughter, she dared not face Yu Wenye any longer and simply buried her face deeply.

Her burning eyes seemed as if something was about to drip.

After struggling for a while, she finally managed to calm herself down, and continued speaking, "But no matter what, my promise still stands. Moreover, this time, you went down south to Jiangdu Palace to save my life, which cost you more than just sending someone along to rescue my uncle and aunt before. I, I will—"

"Shang, Ru, Yi!"

Yu Wenye interrupted her words, almost through gritted teeth.

The gritted sentence shocked Shang Ruyi’s heart, and she instinctively raised her head, only to find the pair of cold eyes so close before her, seemingly slightly reddening.

He was angry...?

Thinking back, although there had been many emotions between them, she had never seen him appear angry. The only time she felt he might be angry was the last time she proposed to cover for him and Princess Xinyue, in exchange for him sending someone to help save Mr. and Mrs. Shen.

But this time—

She felt the body pressed against her was burning, as if a flame was raging inside him, not only nearly consuming his sanity, but as if it was also about to reach her.

Shang Ruyi suddenly panicked and instinctively began to struggle: "You—"

Just then, footsteps suddenly sounded outside the door.