The guards stepped forward to take Jane out for her punishment.She did not beg for mercy. Her eyes were calm and unwavering."Your Majesty, I knew that once I was discovered, I would face punishment. But I do not regret my actions. I would rather bear the punishment alone than have all the concubines in the palace suffer."I have but one request. Punish me as you will, but I ask that the silver and goods be given to the concubines of each palace in the name of a reward. In this way, I shall have no regrets."George met her obstinate gaze. He felt an inexplicable urge to destroy her. She stood like an unyielding pine tree, stubbornly facing him, making her presence a constant irritation.The more she resisted, the more he wanted to break her spirit. He wanted to show her what it meant to know one's place and to obey."Take her outside!" he ordered.Lily immediately knelt. "Your Majesty, I am willing to take the punishment in the queen's place!"George was always domineering in
The fact that the queen was punished by copying out the palace rules spread quickly throughout the palace.The concubines knew even more than that."Those valuables didn't just come from our families—some of them we sent ourselves. But the queen didn't expose us, so we can see she truly cares for us.""I heard from someone in Zen Palace that the queen was very considerate of our struggles. She had already planned to give those things to us, without keeping a single one for herself.""The queen was even willing to bear the punishment alone and take the blame for us..."The more the concubines talked, the more moved they became. Some of them even shed tears. After all, true kindness was hard to come by in the palace.Wilhelmina, however, sneered at them condescendingly."You are all so easily fooled. As for me, I know better—nothing comes without a price. Has the queen not benefited from this? "You think you're all so grateful to her, but this is exactly what she wanted. Mutual
Helena sat down, her gaze sweeping over the queen.It was said that the Fosters produced wise queens, but never beautiful ones.But Wendy was a picture of stunning beauty, her presence so regal and refined that it made others seem plain by comparison.Could it be true that despite Wendy's beauty the king was not moved in the slightest?Helena couldn't help but feel a flicker of doubt.She smiled gracefully, her voice soft and sweet."Your Majesty, I apologize for the delay in visiting. The king has been calling for me every night, and it has left me exhausted. I only felt able to come and pay my respects today." Without giving Jane a chance to reply, she quickly added, "Fortunately, Your Majesty was able to convince His Majesty to be generous with all the concubines, and now I finally have some time to rest."Her words were intended to sound casual, as if she didn't mind the king's attention being occupied elsewhere. But there was an undeniable sting of provocation.Jane's ga
Helena paused in her tracks, her gaze locking onto the woman seated at the head of the room.Though Jane's face remained as cold and impassive as ever, Helena couldn't shake the sudden, palpable chill that swept through her.Slowly, Jane spoke, "His Majesty has been generous with his attention to all the concubines, and the families of the concubines no longer offer tributes to Cloud Palace. You're clearly bothered by this, but you pretend not to be."Even though you care, even though you want nothing more than to see me fall, you still have to wear that mask of indifference. Lady Helena, you remind me of a trained dog—afraid, yet still shaking its leg and barking."A cold fury flashed across Helena's face, and she took two quick steps toward Jane."What did you say?"How dare this wretched woman compare her to a dog!Clara, standing nearby, was equally stunned. How dare the queen speak to Helena like this? In the palace, even the queen dowager treated Helena with the utmost res
In just a few days, rumors about the queen had spread like wildfire throughout the palace, even reaching the royal court.The queen dowager had initially planned to handle the matter quietly, but seeing that this approach wasn't working, she grew anxious."The queen is the king's wife, and the face of the royal family! Regardless of her past, once she enters the palace, she must not carry any stains on her reputation."Laurel bowed respectfully."I will go and remind the other palaces. If anyone dares spread these rumors again, they will be severely punished."The problem with rumors was that they were impossible to completely suppress.Although the queen dowager had intervened, the rumors about the queen's supposed loss of virginity before marriage continued to spread, becoming more vivid with each telling.A few curious concubines gathered together in secret and whispered amongst themselves."Zen Palace hasn't made any move to counter these rumors. Are they afraid?""Could t
George clenched his fists tightly at the news of the queen's lost virginity. So, she really had been lying all this time.He shouldn't have shown mercy on their wedding night.Just as he was about to unleash his anger, one of the maids spoke up."May I dare ask if the queen often dances or rides horses?""Yes! Yes!" Lily quickly responded.The maid seemed to understand. She then reported to George."Your Majesty, this isn't uncommon. Most of the women raised in the palace have a sedentary lifestyle, so their hymen remains intact. However, there are occasional cases like the queen, where if one practices intense dance or equestrian skills, it might cause some damage to their hymen."George coldly asked, "Just answer me, is the queen innocent?"Both of the maids nodded."Your Majesty, though her hymen is damaged, the queen has not had any relations with a man. We are very certain of this."They were seasoned palace women, and as women themselves, they understood the struggles o
When George arrived at Zen Palace he saw many people kneeling in the courtyard.Each of them had their heads lowered, shivering in fear."Your Majesty." Jane stood at the door to greet him, dressed in a plain blue outfit, without any makeup, yet still looking radiant.George only glanced at her coldly before entering the palace.Jane respectfully followed him in. Once inside, she went straight to the point."I have lived up to the king's expectations. I've found the person who spread the rumors!"George looked outside the hall."Are those people the ones responsible for starting this?""These are the ones I 'invited' for questioning," Jane answered. "After a series of inquiries, we confirmed that the rumors were spread by a maid from Cloud Palace."At the mention of Cloud Palace, George's expression changed."In just three days, how can you be sure the testimonies of these people are accurate to determine who the culprit is?" he demanded.Jane didn't defend herself but instea
"A noble cause, for both public and private reasons," George sneered coldly. "Since you've gone this far with your words, you're certain I'll allow you to investigate for the sake of the kingdom's peace, aren't you?"Jane responded respectfully, "Your Majesty, I believe you are a wise ruler, concerned with the welfare of the country and the people. You would never overlook any threat that harms the Nidora kingdom."George's tone turned colder. "There's no need to flatter me. If this matter were truly of great importance, why would I leave it to you? Do you think I have no one capable of handling this?"Jane did not deny it."Yes, Your Majesty, my abilities are limited. But I am directly involved, and no one is more eager than I to uncover the truth. Furthermore, no one will be more cautious than I am in preventing this matter from escalating. "I will lose greatly if it becomes known to everyone that the royal family is chasing after bandits. Your Majesty, you could have others in
Helena fainted and was taken back to Cloud Palace.Despite the physicians' efforts, she remained unconscious.George's expression showed a hint of concern as the physician explained, "Your Majesty, Lady Henela's injuries have not yet fully healed. The lack of proper blood circulation is inevitable but not alarming. She simply needs to rest."At Zen Palace, Jane sat before a mirror, carefully removing the jewelry from her hair.Lily, attending to her, still seemed shaken."Your Majesty, are you…are you really unharmed? Ursa was so strong. Shouldn't you let the physicians take a look?"As soon as she spoke, Lily realized her mistake. If the physicians discovered any injuries, it might expose Jane's actions.Jane remained calm, her gaze tinged with cold determination. "No one is to know that I participated in the fight."Lily immediately nodded. "Yes, Your Majesty! I understand."She knew better than to say more.Shortly after, a chamberlain arrived with a message. "Queen Jane,
The mention of dismemberment sent a shiver through the officials.According to the law, the crimes of Cameron and Wallenby didn't warrant such a severe punishment.The two were in utter shock and terror."No! Caleb was merely demoted back then. Why are we to be executed in such a cruel manner?""Your Majesty, have mercy! Spare us, Your Majesty!"Cameron crawled to Caleb's side, clutching his leg desperately."Caleb, save me! We once fought side by side and risked our lives together as comrades…"Yesterday, Cameron had been arrogant and domineering. Now, he was reduced to a pitiful state.Caleb, who loathed Cameron and Wallenby to the core, wished nothing more than to kill them with his own hands. Facing Cameron's pleas, his expression remained cold."You betrayed your comrades, using their lives to pave your way to promotion. Did you think about us as your comrades back then? Cameron, you're even more deserving of death than Wallenby!"Cameron's face turned pale. "No, no! You
Jane presented the letters. They were handed to George, who opened and read them one by one.Cameron and Wallenby stood silently at a distance, holding their breaths and avoiding even the slightest eye contact.Cameron was especially antsy. He kept reassuring himself. 'This is fake, all fake. The queen and Caleb are bluffing!'Bang!George slammed the letters onto the desk, his sharp gaze brimming with murderous intent."Kneel!"The two men immediately felt their legs weaken, collapsing to the floor.Moments later, the royal servants placed the letters before them, allowing them to see for themselves whether they were being wrongfully accused.If they pleaded innocence, their handwriting would be examined to confirm this.Cameron glanced at the letters and immediately felt a chill down his spine, as if needles were pricking his back.'How could this be?'He had hidden those letters so well. How could anyone have found them?Still unwilling to give up, he picked up one of th
Caleb raising grievances at this moment left everyone stunned.He was bringing up a case from two years ago. After so much time had passed, how could anything still be clearly investigated?Cameron immediately rebuked him."Young Master Caleb, if you have grievances, you should present them to the High Court! Filing a complaint here as if we don't uphold the law in Nidora—do you have any idea how that looks?"This madman—what was he trying to do?Robin also hadn't anticipated Caleb's bold move. He quickly stood up and addressed the king."Your Majesty, my son has acted impulsively—"But Caleb's tone was resolute. "Two years ago, I was tasked with escorting disaster relief grain through Bourdon. On the way, we were ambushed by bandits..."Cameron immediately jumped in, feigning righteous anger."Caleb! You still dare to bring that up! If it weren't for your poor judgment, insisting on taking that route, those men wouldn't have died!"He seized the initiative, pinning the blame
George's gaze was deep and cold.The rule that the harem must not interfere in political affairs existed not only to prevent collusion between the harem and the court, which could lead to the overreach of influential families, but also because most women in the harem were shortsighted. Their petty schemes and vying for favor were tolerable, but in formal situations, they lacked propriety and understanding of boundaries.Just as George was about to intervene to restore balance to the situation, Jane spoke up with composure."Helena indeed misspoke. There's always someone better refers to individual achievement."In truth, the thousands of soldiers on the frontlines are all heroes. Victories are not achieved by a single person. For instance, earlier, if it weren't for the previous contestants exhausting Ursa and creating an opening, my brother wouldn't have been able to defeat him so swiftly."Ultimately, you only sent one person to compete, so this could be considered as Nidora w
George's tall figure nearly blocked out the sunlight streaming in through the doorway.The mask was on the table inside the room.Darkness hung over George's handsome face as his gaze locked onto the figure behind the screen.He had crossed paths with the female assassin multiple times. Her moves were deeply engraved in his memory.The motions Caleb had just displayed—he looked exactly like her.Could it be a coincidence? He needed to confirm it with his own eyes.George strode forward swiftly. Without hesitation, he moved to the other side of the screen, extending a long arm…In that instant, their eyes met.Caleb, whose arm was grabbed and whose right shoulder was partially exposed, responded in surprise, "Your Majesty!"Not bothering to cover himself, he immediately lowered his head in a bow.George's sharp brows furrowed deeply, his dark eyes stormy as though a tempest had suddenly descended. "Are you alone?"Caleb was puzzled. "Yes, Your Majesty."At that moment, Steve
At the critical moment, Jane grabbed the wooden stake, using it to perform a quick turn and somersault. Her skirt spun elegantly in the air, drawing a perfect arc.Immediately, she leaped in front of Ursa, and in the blink of an eye, tore off his belt.The female spectators immediately turned away, covering their eyes. However, from a distance, they couldn't see clearly. All they knew was that Ursa's belt was now in Caleb's hands, like a long whip.George furrowed his brows.Tearing off the belt. How clever. That female assassin had also used this move against him.Everyone was curious about what Caleb intended to do by tearing off Ursa's belt.Even the three commanders closest to the martial stage couldn't understand. Was it to embarrass Ursa? Or maybe to seize the opportunity to attack while Ursa was distracted, fixing his pants?-Jane stood behind Ursa. He couldn't care about his pants as he swung the wooden stake backward in a fierce strike. In the blink of an eye, Jane us
Ursa suddenly collapsed, like a mighty, immovable mountain crumbling in an instant.Everyone was stunned.What just happened?Before anyone could make sense of it, the man was down...On the dueling platform, Jane delivered a backward kick, landing squarely on Ursa's chest. Ursa struggled to get up but failed. His right knee felt like it was shattered, searing with pain. Clenching his jaw, he tried to force himself up.But Jane wouldn't give him the chance. She launched a sweeping kick, channeling her power into her knee, striking directly at Ursa's neck.Ursa lost his balance and fell backward.Jane bent her knee, pressing it firmly against his throat. Through the mask of the Kunlun slave, Ursa could see her eyes—cold and still as a dead pool, locking him in place."No... Impossible... How could you..."He couldn't comprehend how a single kick to the knee could generate such devastating force.Behind her mask, Jane's lips curled. Ursa suddenly realized—since the start of
Commander Christoff was the first to understand the situation on the stage. His eyes widened in disbelief."Caleb isn't trying to exhaust Ursa, nor is he defending. On the contrary, he's attacking!""How is that possible? Hasn't he been dodging this whole time?""Christoff, are you out of your mind?"Christoff shook his head, his gaze fixed on the stage as he firmly responded, "No, I'm absolutely certain. Caleb is attacking in a covert way!"The other two commanders, baffled, shouted impatiently, "How is he attacking?"Christoff hastened to explain, "Caleb has been circling and dodging, but if you notice, he's not dodging aimlessly. He's consistently moving to his left—Ursa's right.""What does that mean? Is Caleb trying to dizzy Ursa by circling? Wait, dizzy him? Could that be it? Is Ursa losing balance?"Christoff dismissed this notion. "Of course not!"Dizzying an opponent? Such a ridiculous tactic would never work.He continued, "Look carefully. Every time Ursa moves, he