HLnovel Chapter 922 I will definitely go back
Chapter 922 I will definitely go back
Helian Jue was summoned to the palace before he could even enter his home, and he didn't return that night.
Li Duan counted the days in prayer, not daring to sleep too soundly at night.
The next day, the person who came was not Helian Jue, but Dugu Zhijian.
Dugu Zhijian led his men in, with Brother Fu carrying a tray on which was a wine glass.
This is something that Ribu is very familiar with.
She was a frequent visitor to the palace in her childhood, and was even given poisoned wine for execution. She never expected that one day she would encounter it herself.
Dugu Zhijian dismissed all the servants in the room, leaving only Fu Ge behind.
Li sat motionless in the chair, no longer acting as crazy as usual, but calmly looking at Dugu Zhijian.
“You don’t seem surprised at all,” Dugu Zhijian said.
“Of course I’m not surprised. When the two armies are at war, even if I, as a princess sent for a peace treaty, am really going to die, I should at least be used on the front lines and serve as a humiliation. Now that I’m dead, what kind of idiot would come up with this idea?” Li Duan said with a smile.
"Shut up! What right do you have to speak to our Grand Consort like that!" Brother Fu scolded.
Li Duan glanced at Brother Fu and said, "Dugu Zhijian, if you really have something to say to me, then send your dog servant away. Although I only know a little bit of kung fu, I'm not someone this old woman next to you can control. I can only drink this wine if I want to. If I don't want to, do you think the two of you can force me to drink it?"
Dugu Zhijian stared at her for a moment, then waved for Brother Fu to leave, "Brother Fu, you can go out first."
Fu Ge looked at Dugu Zhijian with unease, "Grand Consort, don't believe this vixen, she's doing this on purpose."
"Go down," Dugu Zhijian repeated.
Brother Fu glared at Dugu Zhijian, then had no choice but to put down the tray and leave.
Only Dugu Zhijian and Li Duan remained in the room.
"Whether you believe it or not, I'm doing this for your own good. Drink this cup of wine, and at least you can leave with dignity." Dugu Zhijian looked at Li Duan with complicated eyes: "I heard that your Great Zhao values a woman's chastity the most. You are a princess. Even if you can live to return, your life afterward will not be easy. No one will be grateful for your sacrifice. They will only blame you for your infidelity."
"Hahahaha!" Li Duan burst into laughter: "I really can't believe that you barbarians who have no sense of propriety or shame could raise such a fool like you who spouts nothing but filth. It's true that you've only learned the rules, and what comes out is just shit!"
"You!" Dugu Zhijian's face flushed red instantly, and he looked at Li Duan in disbelief: "How could you say such a thing!"
"Is there anything wrong with what I said?" Li Duan said sarcastically without any attempt to hide it. "Put away your self-righteous face! Whether I live a good life or not is none of your business to judge. And why should I live a bad life? I am a princess of Da Zhao. So what if I am not chaste? When I return to Da Zhao, I will not only live a good life, but I can also support a hundred or eighty male concubines and still live a carefree life!"
"They won't let you go back!" Dugu Zhijian shouted instinctively.
“It seems you know that they plan to use me as a sacrifice.” Li Duan looked at Dugu Zhijian.
Dugu Zhijian was taken aback, and when he met Li Duan's gaze, he was speechless for a moment.
“Yesterday, Helian Jue took me to see my imperial uncle, presumably to discuss peace talks, but my imperial uncle did not agree to it. You have no more bargaining chips.” Li Duan stood up and walked step by step closer to Dugu Zhijian. “My imperial uncle was willing to be a hostage for the sake of peace between our two countries, and was trapped in Yanjing for twenty-five years. If you kill him, it will inevitably incite hatred between our two countries. None of you dare to take this risky step. So, after all the calculations, it is still the most cost-effective to kill me, the princess who is to be married off for peace. It can boost morale and humiliate the Great Zhao. Neither side will suffer any losses.”
“You…” Dugu Zhijian looked at the approaching Li Duan and subconsciously stepped back, placing her hand on the table, on which was the poisoned wine she had asked Brother Fu to prepare.
Her gaze fell on Jiujiu, then she turned to Liduan, "Since you know this, you should understand that dying now is the best choice for you."
"What's so good about it?" Li Duan asked. "Is it to have a reputation for committing suicide because you couldn't bear the humiliation, or to have people say that you forced your husband's concubine to death out of jealousy?"
"Sorry, I don't want any of these." Li Duan reached for the cup of poisoned wine and smashed it on the ground. "Listen to me, even if I'm dragged to the battlefield and humiliated to death, I will never end my own life! My life is very precious, why should I hurt myself because of your coercion?"
"You!" Dugu Zhijian exclaimed in disbelief, "Aren't you really afraid?"
"Afraid?" Li Duan sneered: "Of course I'm afraid. Before I came to your Great Yan, I was my mother's darling. Even if I just got a cut on my finger, she would fuss over me for ages. I only had to worry about whether I was happy every day. Now you're going to throw me to be sacrificed to the flag. How can I not be afraid?"
"So you don't care about your reputation at all? They're making you sacrifice yourself, it's not just about killing you, you..." Dugu Zhijian's voice grew softer and softer, her feelings becoming more and more complicated. She really hated Li Duan.
She and Helian Jue were childhood sweethearts, and she had loved him since she was young. She knew that when she grew up, she would become Helian Jue's wife, his queen, and accompany him for life. She had also thought that Helian Jue might have other wives in the future, but she would be his only queen. Until Helian Jue went to the Great Zhao and returned with the Princess of Zhao, a princess of noble birth. Although after marrying Helian Jue, she could only be the Princess of Zhao and could not surpass her, she clearly saw that Helian Jue's heart was no longer with her.
She watched as the man she loved most gradually shifted his gaze to another woman. The tacit understanding and trust between them faded and weakened with time. In just three short years, she began to wonder if her unwavering love still held any meaning.
She had once firmly believed that their relationship would never change because of anyone or anything.
But these firm beliefs, unknowingly, gradually wavered during each period of waiting.
That's why she hates Riduan; if Riduan hadn't appeared, perhaps none of this would have changed.
But she was still unconsciously drawn to Li Duan; she was truly different, unlike any other woman she had ever met.
As the eldest daughter of the Dugu clan, she was expected to achieve great things from a young age. The empress of the Great Yan Dynasty had to come from the Dugu clan. She married Helian Jue, and in the future, she would either be a princess or an empress. Her every word and action was taught by the famous teachers invited by her family, who were determined to make her even more outstanding than the noble ladies of the Great Zhao Dynasty.
Everyone liked her, everyone praised her, and everyone believed that she would definitely become a good princess, or even a future queen.
She was also confident that she was no worse than anyone else, and that she would become the most honored woman in the Great Yan Dynasty, just like her aunt.
She didn't take Li Duan seriously at first.
She thought she would meet a well-behaved noblewoman of the Great Zhao Dynasty, just like herself, but what she met was a rebellious woman, flamboyant and passionate, who didn't care about anyone's opinion. Even when she was bullied, she remained steadfast, and even now, knowing her fate, she still refused to submit to it.
How did that happen?
The person she should hate the most is the one she feels a great deal of envy for.
"Why?" Dugu Zhijian looked at Li Duan and finally asked the question he wanted to ask, "Why can you not care?"
“Because everything I care about is in Da Zhao,” Li Duan replied.
"So I will definitely go back, and no difficulty can stop me."