Chapter 79 Filled with Regret, I'm Sorry to Ayan
Hearing her resolute words, Lu Lingyue felt as if her heart was being pierced by needles, experiencing a dense, piercing pain.
His heart was filled with regret, his eyes stung, and tears welled up in his eyes without him even realizing it.
"I'm sorry, Ayan..." Lu Lingyue murmured absentmindedly.
"It's my fault, I've let you down... You're right, I'm not worthy of you."
Lu Lingyue's voice choked with sobs, filled with anguish.
In response to his apology, Yuan Yan simply said...
"It's too late."
The Yuan Yan who once treated him with sincerity is gone. Now all that's left is her, a person with a heart of stone. No matter what Lu Lingyue says, she can't be swayed in the slightest.
...
For several days afterward, Yuan Yan stayed in Lu Lingyue's courtyard.
She treated Lu Lingyue coldly and without any pity.
Lu Lingyue was immersed in a torrent of pain. More than the brutal pleasure he received every night, he could not bear Yuan Yan's unwillingness to speak to him.
"Your Highness, please don't treat me like this." Lu Lingyue's eyes were filled with shimmering light as she tugged at Yuan Yan's sleeve and pleaded in a hoarse voice.
Their bodies were incredibly close, yet their hearts remained frozen, separated by thousands of miles.
This was even more painful than when Yuan Yan hadn't seen him before; Lu Lingyue finally understood how Yuan Yan had felt back then.
Yuan Yan released his hand. "Lu Lingyue, don't tell me these things. Isn't this exactly what your Lu family wants?"
“What…” Lu Lingyue was stunned on the spot.
When Hengwu returned from the Lu family during the day, he learned that the Lu family had not given up after failing to persuade him and had even sent him gold and silver, asking Yuan Yan to favor him.
"It's happening again." Lu Lingyue felt nauseous and almost wanted to vomit just thinking about how her mother shamelessly invited people to their home.
A wave of shame washed over me.
The Lu family had already broken off the engagement once, which was already a breach of trust. Now, seeing Yuan Yan's success, they've shamelessly come crawling back.
Such a two-faced and opportunistic act was not only despised by Yuan Yan, but even he himself found it difficult to accept.
By doing this, what about the Lu family's century-old reputation and her own son?
Lu Lingyue felt deeply distressed. Her face was pale, and she tightly gripped the paper in her hand.
...
Today is a rare day off, and Yuan Yan does not need to go to the military camp.
After leaving Lu Lingyue's courtyard, she went to Yang Lingyi's place and had a meal with him.
"Sister Yan, did you rest well yesterday?" Yang Lingyi asked softly as she sat down beside Yuan Yan.
Yuan Yan immediately understood what he meant and laughed.
"Is Yi'er jealous again? He can't bear to be apart from his wife even for a day."
Yang Lingyi blushed slightly at her words, but still admitted it.
"Yi'er just misses her sister. I can't sleep when I think about Sister Yan at Lu Shifu's place... I want her to come and see me more often." Yang Lingyi hugged Yuan Yan's arm and shook it gently.
Yuan Yan: "You miss me that much?"
"Yes, I want to stay with Sister Yan all the time. I'm afraid that you'll always go to other people's places and forget about Yi'er..." Yang Lingyi said softly, her almond-shaped eyes glistening with tears.
"Don't worry, you'll never forget Yi'er, no matter who else you forget." Yuan Yan touched his cheek.
Yang Lingyi felt a sweet warmth in her heart from what she said. Seeing the servant turn around, she quickly kissed Yuan Yan and said, "Sister is the best."
Yuan Yan couldn't resist such affectionate and coquettish behavior. He immediately skipped breakfast, picked up Yang Lingyi, and carried her into the house.
Yang Lingyi was placed on the couch before she realized she had gone too far.
“Sister Yan, it’s still daytime…” Yang Lingyi didn’t expect Yuan Yan to come so suddenly. She blushed and gently pressed down on her arm.
Doing that kind of thing in the Prince's mansion in broad daylight—if the servants find out, he'll lose all face.
Yang Lingyi's eyes were timid, and her face was flushed. Although she was clearly refusing, it looked more like a temptation.
Yuan Yan coaxed him, "It's alright, everyone in the courtyard has gone out, let's keep our voices down."
She had already dismissed all the servants in the courtyard, so no one would disturb them.
Yang Lingyi's protests were ineffective. Yuan Yan caressed her waist, unbuttoned her clothes, and soon Yang Lingyi was so weak that she lost the ability to resist.
After a passionate encounter, Yang Lingyi nestled in Yuan Yan's arms, her body weak and her expression lingering.
Yuan Yan kissed his fair cheek. "Yi'er can sleep well at night now, right?"
"Sister Yan!" Yang Lingyi's face was flushed, and she strongly objected, "Don't laugh at me."
"I would never laugh at Yi'er. If you can't sleep well, I'll keep you company tonight," Yuan Yan said with a smile, pinching his cheek.
"No, no, my wife, you should sleep alone tonight. I can't take it anymore." Yang Lingyi was scared by her and buried herself in the quilt, shaking her head and refusing no matter what Yuan Yan said.
He's a typical case of having the desire to steal but not the courage.
"Yi'er, take a good rest." Yuan Yan smiled, instructed the servants to take good care of Yang Lingyi, and then went out to handle official business.
During this period, Yuan Jing was stimulated.
Since Sun Shijun was exiled, the Empress Dowager's attitude towards her has become somewhat cold.
Yuan Jing was inwardly panicked, and clung even tighter to the various powers he held. He buried himself in court affairs, as if trying to prove that he could stand firm even without his maternal grandfather's support.
At the same time, news also came from Qi Wang's subordinates.
During their search, they discovered Zhang Xiaoju's trail and were about to kill him as Yuan Jing had instructed.
But just as the longsword pierced Zhang Xiaoju and before it could completely kill him, a guard suddenly appeared and rescued her.
"Did you see clearly whose people they are?" Yuan Jing asked.
"Your Highness, please forgive us." The subordinate knelt down and begged for forgiveness. "Those people were highly skilled in martial arts and were no ordinary guards. We were no match for them and we lost them."
"The capital city isn't that big, how could we lose them!"
Yuan Jing's face turned ashen. "Investigate! Continue investigating for me. As long as Zhang Xiaoju is still in the capital, he will eventually have a chance to show his face."
"When the time comes, I will not let either her or the people behind her go."
...
The seriously injured Zhang Xiaoju was taken back to the Prince's Palace.
When Yuan Yan learned that it was done by people from the Prince of Qi's mansion, he guessed that it must be Zhang Xiaoju's secret plot in the matter of Sun Shijun's exile that had been discovered.
Therefore, she personally went to visit Zhang Xiaoju. She arranged for a doctor to be hired for him and instructed people to take care of him. She settled Zhang Xiaoju in a separate courtyard to recuperate and assigned several guards to protect him.
Yuan Yan himself was thinking about where to cause more trouble for Yuan Jing, so that she wouldn't be like a mad dog with bloodshot eyes, chasing after Yuan Yan and other political enemies and tearing them apart.
After everything was finished.
That night, Yuan Yan went to Chen Lianzhou's house.
"What is Lianzhou doing?" As she stepped into the room, Shen Lianzhou was busy at her desk again.
"It's just keeping me busy with some shop matters, nothing too trivial."
Upon seeing Yuan Yan arrive, Shen Lianzhou smiled gently and had the account books on the table removed.
Yu Lu exposed him: "These past few days, Master has been secretly making clothes for His Highness again. Xiao Lu calls Master to rest early at night, but he refuses. If this continues, he will ruin his eyesight at such a young age! His Highness must keep a close eye on Master."
"Lianzhou, look at you. You don't take care of yourself. You've made Yulu, the little steward, very angry."
Yuan Yan walked to Shen Lianzhou's side, put his arm around him, and asked, "What did Lianzhou do for me this time?"
Chen Lianzhou was somewhat helpless. Seeing that Yu Lu had blurted it out, he had no choice but to take out the unfinished undergarment.
"It's not some fine garment, just an undergarment."
As he spoke, he took out a satin undergarment and unfolded it for Yuan Yan to see.
This undergarment is mostly finished, except for the cuffs which are not yet sewn properly.
"Please let me put on the lotus boat," Yuan Yan said with a smile.
Shen Lianzhou personally helped her change her clothes.
"What does Your Highness think?" he asked, looking at Yuan Yan's expression.
The fabric of the garment was soft and comfortable to wear, with fine stitches. Like the things Shen Lianzhou had given her before, it must have taken a lot of thought to make it.
“Lianzhou has me in his heart, so naturally everything he does is done with the utmost care,” Yuan Yan praised him, but also gave him a word of advice.
"But Lianzhou's health is the most important thing. I hope that Lianzhou can stay by my side for a long, healthy life... Does Lianzhou understand my thoughts?"
Yuan Yan stroked his long hair and said sincerely.
"Your Highness..."
Upon hearing this, Shen Lianzhou was both pleased that Yuan Yan cared about him and felt somewhat guilty. He had made Yuan Yan worry about him even when he was busy.
"Lianzhou understands, and will not cause Your Highness any more worry in the future," Shen Lianzhou replied shyly.
Yu Lu laughed, "No matter what the barbarians say, they won't listen. But as soon as Your Highness speaks, the master changes. It's Your Highness who can control the master."
"Alright, there's nothing more for you to do here, you can leave now." Yuan Yan waved his hand, dismissing the few male servants who were still standing in the room.
"Your Highness, let's rest." Shen Lianzhou took off the inner garment she had just put on His Highness and gently helped Yuan Yan to bed.
...
In the stillness of the night, an urgent report was delivered to the palace.
The palace gates swung open, and the imperial guards rushed to the various residences, knocking on the doors.
Yuan Yan was still fast asleep when the system loudly woke him up.
[Wake up, host! It's an emergency! Something terrible has happened in the palace!]
Even without the system saying anything, Yuan Yan realized something was wrong as soon as he woke up.
Inside the Prince's Mansion, lights began to illuminate the area.
Shen Lianzhou, who was sleeping beside her, was also awakened by Yuan Yan's movements. Seeing Yuan Yan sit up from the bed, she was afraid that she would catch a cold, so her first reaction was to put an outer garment on Yuan Yan.
Shen Lianzhou: "What has happened, Your Highness?"
"It seems like someone from the palace has arrived." Yuan Yan frowned as he looked at the lights coming on outside and listened to the faint sounds coming from afar.
"Your Highness, the palace urgently summons you."
The guard rushed in and knelt outside the screen to report, "His Majesty has ordered that Your Highness enter the palace immediately without delay!"
Such an urgent summons filled Shen Lianzhou with a vague sense of foreboding. She drew back the curtains and, together with the male attendants, helped Yuan Yan change his clothes.
Yang Lingyi arrived at this time. Because he had come in a hurry, even his usually impeccable attire looked slightly disheveled.
"Your Highness, why would the palace summon us at this time? Has something happened?"
Yang Lingyi's beautiful eyes were filled with worry for Yuan Yan, and she couldn't help but ask.
Yuan Yan was also unaware of the situation, but he still tried to comfort the two men.
"It's nothing. I'll go into the palace first. You can wait here in your residence."
...
Zichen Palace.
Inside the hall, the water clock dripped, and footsteps hurried.
All the officials entered the palace under cover of darkness, summoned by the guards, and gathered in this main hall.
When Yuan Yan entered, the princesses Yuan Jing and Yuan Xiao had already arrived.
The emperor also summoned important officials such as Guo Xinghuai, the Left Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel; Dong Chonggu, the Minister of War; and Liu Qian, the Minister of Revenue, along with a group of generals in the capital.
Yuan Hao's face was grim, and the urgent report lay on his desk. On the map of the territory in front of him, Yan Pass had been fiercely crossed out with vermilion ink, while Qingzhou and Youzhou were circled, the strokes sharp and forceful.
Minister of War Dong Chonggu looked worried. "Your Majesty, the Wu Kingdom has amassed an army of over 100,000 and breached Yan Pass. They are now divided into two routes, advancing directly towards the cities of Qingzhou and Youzhou. If these two prefectures fall, the gates to the capital will be wide open, and the consequences will be unimaginable!"
The faces of everyone present were grave, and their breathing was tense. This was not the first time that the Wu Kingdom had launched a major attack on the Huang Kingdom.
The Wu Kingdom is different from the Liang Kingdom. Although both of these neighboring great powers are eyeing the Huang Kingdom, the Liang Kingdom's aim is to plunder, while the Wu Kingdom's aim is also to accumulate a deep-seated grudge.
Wu Kingdom and Huang Kingdom were originally the same country, Cang Kingdom.
However, when Emperor Xiaojing of a certain dynasty passed away, he did not appoint a crown princess or leave a will. This led to a fierce struggle for the throne between two adult princesses, who attacked each other and led their respective subjects to seize territory, splitting the vast Cang Kingdom into two countries, namely the present-day Huang Kingdom and Wu Kingdom.
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