Lan Yan returned to her room and found no Jun Yelan, only a plate on the bed. She read the words on the note, "Do not come to the dark room to find me tomorrow."
She fell into a dilemma. Jun Yelan didn't want her to see him in his madness, but she couldn't help but worry. "I've got it. He only said I couldn't find him, not that I couldn't go."
Hehe, problem solved.
She looked at the clothes under the note again, picked them up, and tried them on. "This is my size. Did Jun Yelan choose it specifically for me?" Her lips couldn't help but curve upwards. She changed into the clothes and put the earrings on both sides of her ears.
Looking at herself in the mirror, she thought she looked quite good.
The system in Lan Yan's mind: "..." It silently listened to Lan Yan's self-praise.
Lan Yan, dressed in her new clothes, walked out and headed towards the dark room.
To get to the dark room, one had to pass through the garden. The maids, upon seeing Lan Yan's appearance, barely recognized her. "Look quickly, is that Lan Yan! We never really noticed her before, but she's so beautiful when she dresses up."
"Actually, she's always had good looks, she just hides it too much. But with her monthly allowance, she shouldn't be able to afford this."
"Are you silly? It must have been given by the City Lord. She's coming, stop talking." Several maids quietly stood aside, watching Lan Yan pass.
Lan Yan heard nothing and didn't care about the maids' attitudes. She had more important things to do. She arrived at the entrance of the dark room and pressed her ear against the door, listening to the sounds inside.
"It seems there are no loud roars. It's not as severe as last time."
She breathed a sigh of relief, sat by the door, and picked up the flute the Saintess had given her last time. Her fingers pressed the holes, and she began to play slowly.
The melodious flute music entered the dark room. Jun Yelan, who was chaining himself up inside, heard the music and felt his heart calm down considerably. He knew who the owner of the flute was, and even through a door, his heart felt warm.
He chained himself to the wall. His hair began to change color, and the pain in his chest followed. He clenched his fists, bit his lip, and suppressed the sounds from his mouth.
Lan Yan looked at the dark night sky surrounding her and continued to play the flute. She hoped that Jun Yelan would hear the music and know that she was with him, that he wasn't fighting alone.
Jun Yelan, you must hold on.
Inside the dark room, Jun Yelan's hair turned completely silver, and veins bulged on the back of his hands. His mind became increasingly muddled, his pupils dilated. The only thing he remembered was this flute music.
A belief formed in his mind: the owner of this music was very important to him. No matter what happened, he could not hurt her.
Hearing the low growls from inside the dark room, Lan Yan sped up her playing. This tune could calm the mind. She stayed by the door, playing it again and again, accompanying the person suffering inside.
After an unknown amount of time, the low growls diminished. Her lips had turned pale, and only her fingers continued to press the holes.
Jun Yelan had woken up. He looked around. The scene was much less brutal than usual. He thought of Lan Yan at the door, pulled off the chain from the wall, and walked towards the entrance.
Lan Yan looked up and noticed that the sky had turned bright. Jun Yelan must have successfully gotten through it. Her fingers trembled as she tucked the flute into her waist and leaned against the door, closing her eyes slightly. Soon, she fell asleep from exhaustion.
Jun Yelan arrived there and saw this scene. He crouched down, tucked a stray strand of hair from Lan Yan's forehead behind her ear, cupped her stiff hands, and rubbed them in his palms to warm them.
Lan Yan was woken up. She looked at Jun Yelan holding her hands, his head bowed, and her lips curved upwards. She said nothing, just gazed at Jun Yelan in front of her.
Jun Yelan looked up and saw Lan Yan awake. He scooped her up and said with concern, "I'll take you back to rest." He bit his lip, unable to say anything else, his heart overflowing with too many emotions.
Lan Yan nodded, leaning against Jun Yelan's chest, and murmured, "City Lord, it's so good to see you today." She fell asleep again.
Jun Yelan's pupils trembled slightly. He responded, "You'll be able to see me every day from now on." No one had ever wanted him to live before, but now there was someone by his side, desperately trying to keep him alive.
He said, "I live for you."
Lan Yan had already fallen into a deep sleep.
The next morning, Jun Yelan brought breakfast and ate with Lan Yan. He watched Lan Yan slowly pick up her spoon, his palms tightening. It was all because of him.
He took the bowl of porridge in front of Lan Yan and said, "Your hands must have been tired yesterday. Let me feed you." He scooped a spoonful of porridge, blew on it, and offered it to Lan Yan's lips.
Lan Yan was stunned, feeling that Jun Yelan was a little different today. She smiled and drank it, "Thank you, City Lord."
Jun Yelan's eyes flickered. He should be the one saying thank you. He picked up a small dish of food and continued to feed Lan Yan.
Lu Qi, waiting outside the door, felt too awkward to report. After the two finished breakfast, she went in. "City Lord, the stewards have purified the city and are waiting to report to you."
"Mm." Jun Yelan picked up a handkerchief and wiped his fingers. He looked at Lu Qi and said, "You'll take care of Lan Yan today." He then got up and left for the main hall.
Lan Yan was still sitting there. She moved her fingers and smiled, "Lu Qi, I don't need looking after. Go attend to your business." After sleeping for a night, all her problems were gone.
But Lu Qi still stayed by Lan Yan's side, preventing her from working.
Jun Yelan sat on the throne in the main hall, looking at the stewards below and tapping the chair beside him coldly.
The stewards immediately held their breaths and reported, "City Lord, we have captured all spies within the city and dealt with them."
"No omissions?" Jun Yelan swept his gaze over them coldly, causing the stewards to lower their heads.
The stewards quickly exclaimed, "None. There are no righteous people left in the city now; they are all locals from the dead city." They dared not slack off, knowing how important this matter was to Jun Yelan.
"We absolutely dare not deceive the City Lord!"
Jun Yelan stopped tapping his fingers and said coldly, "Remember, if I discover even one more spy, your heads will be misplaced."
"Also, some people in the dead city have been undisciplined recently, arbitrarily bullying others. Strengthen patrols, and those who act like this will be killed on the spot. Do you understand!" His words were filled with a low, cold indifference.
The stewards immediately knelt on the ground and shouted, "Understood. Understood." Their backs were soaked with cold sweat. They dared not rise until they heard Jun Yelan's words.
Seeing this, Jun Yelan waved his hand and told them to get lost.
After the stewards left, they felt as if they had survived another ordeal, praying that no one had been missed.
At this moment, Lan Yan, while Lu Qi was in the kitchen, secretly slipped out of the room. She didn't want to be constantly watched and planned to retrieve some items from her previous room.
A pigeon flew down from the sky and stopped abruptly in front of her. Confused, she saw a letter tied to the pigeon's leg. She took it down and read it. It was from her scumbag father, asking her to kill Jun Yelan.
"You must be dreaming!" She destroyed the letter, grabbed the pigeon, and walked towards the kitchen. Tonight, there would be extra dishes.
Not far away, a maid from the Saintess's palace saw this scene and found it strange. She quickly returned to report to the Saintess.