HLnovel Chapter 929 Agreement
Chapter 929 Agreement
By daybreak, the Zhao army had successfully taken control of the entire city of Yanjing.
With Empress Dowager Dugu's death, the Great Yan regime lost its central leadership and collapsed overnight. The nearly 200,000-strong army that Helian Jue had painstakingly assembled was scattered, and the Helian clan's more than 100,000 troops quickly routed and surrendered. The Dugu clan's commander could not persuade Lin Wuji to take charge of the overall situation, and seeing that all was lost, he led his troops in a hasty escape. Unfortunately, they were intercepted by Zong Shuo before they even left the capital. They abandoned all their women and children and fought desperately to break through the encirclement, finally escaping Yanjing with less than 20,000 remaining men.
The once powerful Dugu clan in Yanjing City has also become prisoners, with both the main branch and the branch being escorted back to the Yan Palace to await their fate.
This includes Dugu Zhijian, who had already packed his bags and was almost fleeing the capital with his clansmen.
When Li Duan woke up, she opened her eyes and saw Sheng Junyao guarding her bedside. She blinked and then closed her eyes again.
Sheng Junyao had already noticed her little gesture, and gently touched her cheek with his calloused hand, "Are you hungry? Get up and eat."
Li Duan opened her eyes and stared blankly at him. "Not a dream?"
Sheng Junyao ran his fingers through her hair, gently lifted her neck, and leaned down to place a kiss on her brow. "Want to try?"
Li Duan's eyes widened, and she asked in a low voice, "How do we try it?"
Sheng Junyao chuckled softly, his lips brushing against her cheek and the tip of her nose before slowly moving towards her lips.
Startled, Li Duan quickly raised her hand to cover her lips, her cheeks flushed. "I... I haven't washed up yet."
Sheng Junyao couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Then he gently kissed the back of her hand, "Then get up and wash up first."
He held Li Duan's hand, and Li Duan sat up with his help. Sheng Junyao let go of her and got up. "Change your clothes first, I'll go get you some water."
Although the palace has been taken into control, the palace maids and eunuchs who were originally in the Yan Palace cannot use it. There is hot water on the stove, but you have to fetch it yourself if you want to use it.
Li sat upright on the bed, the blanket still half-draped over her. She looked at Sheng Junyao's back and couldn't help but murmur, "It's so nice to dream."
The dream was indeed wonderful. Sheng Junyao returned quickly, bringing not only hot water but also a food box. Li Duan followed him closely, obediently washing up and sitting at the dining table. Sheng Junyao had already taken out the food for her.
"The palace is not fully settled yet, and the food is simple. Please eat something first."
Sheng Junyao brought the porridge to her, watched her eat some, and then took out an oil paper package from his pocket, unwrapping it little by little. "Among the girls Yangyang brought, there are some who are good at making pastries. After settling in this morning, I specially asked them to make it. It's a flower cake that is commonly available in the capital. Try it and see if you like it?"
Li Duan looked at the pink peach blossom-shaped flower cake wrapped in oil paper. It was one of the most popular snacks in the former capital. She hadn't eaten it for three years since she came to Da Yan.
She reached out, picked up a piece, and took a bite. It wasn't too sweet or greasy, but had a hint of the sweetness of flower petals. Inside was a hawthorn filling, which was sweet and sour. She wondered if it was because she hadn't eaten it in a long time, but it tasted even better than she had before.
She couldn't help but feel a lump in her throat, and quickly took another bite, murmuring softly as she chewed, "Dreams are so wonderful."
How could she open her eyes and see her beloved Brother Sheng, whom she had been longing for day and night? Brother Sheng was still by her side, taking care of her meticulously. It was like a dream.
If this really is a dream, then she might as well not wake up.
Li Duan ate two pastries and finished the porridge in her bowl, feeling that she hadn't felt so satisfied in a long, long time.
She carefully held Sheng Junyao's hand, her fingers tracing the slightly rough calluses on his palm. She wanted to reach out and pinch them to see if she was dreaming, but she was also reluctant, afraid that if she pinched them, she would wake up from the dream.
Sheng Junyao grasped her hand, as if he could read her thoughts, and said gently, "There are still many wounded soldiers in the city, and we can't manage them all in a short time. Yangyang is over there with people watching over them. Would you like to go and take a look?"
"Really?" Ritsu asked, somewhat incredulous.
"Shall we go take a look?" Sheng Junyao asked, looking at her.
Li Duan nodded cautiously.
Sheng Junyao led her out.
Li Duan then realized that the place she had slept in last night was actually the Yan Palace, which she used to dislike the most, and that she had actually slept peacefully there last night.
As they walked from outside the Zichen Palace toward the Imperial Hospital, they could see palace servants being escorted along the way. When they reached the passageway outside the palace wall, they encountered female members of the Dugu clan being escorted, and Li Duan saw Dugu Zhijian among them.
Dugu Zhijian never expected to see Li Duan here.
When the soldiers escorting them saw Dugu Zhijian standing motionless, they raised their whips to strike him, but Li Duan stopped them, "Wait!"
When Li Duan saw those familiar faces in the crowd, they all looked haggard, and their usually impeccable appearance now appeared somewhat disheveled and embarrassed.
Li Duan asked Sheng Junyao, "Where will you send them?"
“These are all family members of the nobles and princes of the Great Yan. Men and women are separated. We will temporarily find a place to hold them. After the military deployment is completed, someone will be in charge of handling them.” Sheng Junyao did not hide anything from Li Duan. “His Highness intends to appoint Lady Jiang as the Prefect of Yanjing and leave her to be responsible for the reorganization of Yanjing. Lady Jiang is a woman. She is a good friend of Yangyang from Jiangnan. She once served as the magistrate of Changyang County. If you want to know more about her, you should be able to meet her in the next two days.”
Besides Lu Yangyang and Yin Yueling, who arrived in Yanjing ahead of the main army, Jiang Zhiyi and Sheng Yunjiao are at the rear and will enter the city with the following army. They will arrive no earlier than tomorrow or the day after.
Li Duan was surprised for a moment and couldn't help but become curious about this Lord Jiang. They had been separated for three years. The last time she saw Nalan Yunyan was when she heard her mention that she had met Yangyang in Yuzhou. She knew that not long after she was married off, her second cousin was deposed as crown prince and Yangyang was exiled with him. Later, she encountered danger and lost contact with him. She had not received any further news from her.
These three years have been a long time, but how far did Yangyang and the others travel to finally come to Yanjing to pick her up?
Li Duan unconsciously tightened her grip on Sheng Junyao's hand.
Sheng Junyao gently stroked the back of her hand, silently comforting her.
After regaining her composure, Li Duan said to the guards, "Don't torture them."
She doesn't want the disaster she experienced to happen to another group of people.
Sheng Junyao looked over, and the escorting man immediately bowed and replied, "Yes!"
Dugu Zhijian looked at Li Duan with a complicated expression. At this moment, she finally understood why Li Duan could still be so willful despite her poor situation in Yanjing. It turned out that she really didn't need Helian Jue's love.
Someone traveled a long way to pick her up, and fearlessly held her in their arms, protecting her in the palm of their hand, regardless of any stares.
She couldn't help but ask, "Don't you hate me?"
Li Duan shook her head. In the entire city of Yanjing, everyone treated her as a female slave, except for Dugu Zhijian, who treated her as a rival in love.
This is nothing to do with any grudge.
But she didn't explain to Dugu Zhijian. She couldn't wait to see Yangyang and wanted to know how far they had come in the past three years to reach their destination.
Her heart was pounding; it felt like this really wasn't a dream.
Her lover and her friends are all doing their best to keep their promise.