Chapter 167: Chapter 166 Warmth
The incident of the missing Five Lotus Green Porcelain Cup was like a small interlude, only echoing briefly in the tea room without causing much impact, and soon everyone returned to their respective posts, each performing their duties.
Shang Ruyi could see that although Jinyun had some hesitation, there was a bigger issue at hand, so she didn’t say much.
It wasn’t until the evening, when no one else was around, that Tushere approached her and softly said, "Miss, why did you lock up Chang Wan?"
Shang Ruyi said, "Why, shouldn’t I have?"
Tushere thought for a moment and said, "I don’t believe that Chang Wan would steal something."
Shang Ruyi gave her a glance, "How do you know?"
"Although I’ve only been at the Duke Mansion for a few months, and the people around the madam always speak little and don’t interact much with us, their moral character isn’t bad. That Chang Wan, in particular, is proud and lofty, and I’ve heard she even read a few books, she doesn’t seem like the type to be a thief at all."
"Really?"
Tushere met her gaze, thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "Of course, it’s just my guess."
Shang Ruyi also smiled faintly and said, "That’s right, if others ask, I can’t just say—it’s my guess. How could that convince anyone?"
"..."
"Locking her up is just temporary, the important thing is the evidence."
Tushere frowned and said, "But this matter is a dead end, she’s firmly asserting that the item was returned, and there’s no receipt from Uncle Gui’s side, so besides eyewitnesses, where is the evidence?"
Shang Ruyi said, "Since the matter is about the missing cup, then naturally the evidence is the cup."
Tushere shook her head even more, "The item is lost, how could it be found?"
As she spoke, she stared at Shang Ruyi, "Do you want to search?"
Shang Ruyi immediately shook her head and said solemnly, "Right now, it’s the madam’s funeral, with people coming and going. If we start searching for stolen goods in the mansion at this time, what would that become if it gets out? Wouldn’t it disgrace the Duke Mansion completely?"
"..."
"At this moment, the last thing we should do is blow this matter up."
Tushere was suddenly enlightened, "No wonder you promptly ordered to lock up Chang Wan, it’s to prevent the situation from escalating and keep outsiders from laughing at us."
"Yes."
"But, if we don’t search, how can we find the cup?"
Shang Ruyi was silent for a moment, then said faintly, "We’ll see how it goes."
After saying that, she looked up at the sky outside, it was already very late, so she instructed Tushere, "Go to the backyard and tell them that there are constantly people coming and going in the mansion, to prevent intruders, have them close the back door and the small doors on both sides, and only use the side doors near the main entrance for access."
Tushere said, "Yes."
After she left, Shang Ruyi turned back to look at the mourning hall, everything was arranged properly, and there were no other matters to attend to. At this time, naturally, no more guests would come.
So, she personally poured a cup of hot tea, lifted the curtain, and went to the back hall.
Yu Wenye was still kneeling there, motionless.
Even when Shang Ruyi walked in, he didn’t glance at her; only, perhaps because of the cold wind seeping in as she lifted the curtain, his body had a slight tremor.
Shang Ruyi walked to his side and softly said, "Second brother, you haven’t eaten or drunk anything all day, this won’t do."
"..."
"Would you drink some tea? At least, warm up a bit."
"..."
Even she didn’t realize how soft and tender her voice was, like a mother coaxing a child who was reluctant to eat. Yu Wenye’s lowered eyelashes trembled slightly, and he looked up at her.
Shang Ruyi hurriedly brought the teacup carefully to his lips.
"Just take a sip, okay?"
"..."
Yu Wenye didn’t speak, just glanced down, the clear tea in the cup reflecting his dim eyes, at this moment, the usual sarcasm in his gaze seemed to mock himself.
He slowly closed his eyes and turned his face aside.
Shang Ruyi became anxious and said softly, "I’m not even persuading you to go rest, but if you keep on like this, your body can’t take it."
"..."
Yu Wenye still ignored her.
Shang Ruyi had no choice, she really couldn’t force anything down his throat, she could only place the teacup aside, then slowly knelt beside him, shoulder to shoulder, her arms even pressing tightly against his.
Yu Wenye still showed no reaction.
Shang Ruyi silently dragged a brazier close, grabbed a stack of gold-colored tin paper money, and tossed them into it one by one, the flames gradually rising, bringing a warm heat closer to Yu Wenye’s body.
Shang Ruyi said softly, "Actually, I know why you’re doing this."
"..."
"It’s not just that you’re grieving over mother’s death, you’re also blaming yourself. You blame yourself for why you didn’t try harder to persuade her, that if you had convinced her to stay, maybe she wouldn’t have—"
"..."
"What I wanted to tell you is—"
Shang Ruyi turned to him and said, "That’s exactly right."
"..."
"If back then, we had both tried to persuade mother, or even thought of ways to make her stay, maybe she wouldn’t have fallen seriously ill in Liaoxi, and wouldn’t have left us."
Upon hearing her words, Yu Wenye’s body started to tremble.
His gaze has always been cold and serene, like a layer of ice. At this moment, that layer of ice seemed to start cracking, shattering, and the emotions hidden beneath the frozen facade began to slowly spill out.
He turned to look at Shang Ruyi, his eyes gradually turning red.
Shang Ruyi met his gaze and continued, "But—you don’t need to shoulder all the responsibility yourself."
Upon hearing this, Yu Wenye’s body shook again.
Shang Ruyi continued, "For mother, being by father’s side was more important than anything. If we had forcibly kept her here, perhaps the anguish in her heart would have caused her more pain than everything she experienced afterward. As younger ones, we can only persuade them, we can’t really arrange their lives for them."
"..."
"Second brother, you have fulfilled your filial duties, there’s no need to blame yourself with the results."
Each of these words fell into Yu Wenye’s heart. Not only was her voice gentle and deep, but more importantly, these words were almost exactly what Shen Shiyan had told her when she was anguished by his demotion and exile.
She had remembered them all, almost word for word, and was now saying them back to him.
Just as before, back in Yanmen County.
Only this time, she was comforting him. The heat from the paper money she threw into the brazier enveloped him, and even her arm pressed tightly against his was transmitting warmth through his clothes, soothing his body.
Yu Wenye looked at her, finally speaking for the first time, his voice hoarse, "You—"