Chapter 5

Back in Jane's room, the older maid, Maya, who had previously been unfriendly and stern, immediately ordered a bath for Jane. She pushed Lily out of the way while smiling at Jane.

"Your Majesty, the king has never favored another concubine other than Lady Helena all these years. You're the first one!"

Lily stood nearby. She was rather critical of this old maid. Maya hadn’t been behaving so attentively earlier. It was an obvious case of worshiping the powerful and crushing the weak.

The status of women in the palace depended on the king's favor. Even someone as high-ranking as the queen would be neglected without his favor.

Maya said a lot, but Jane wasn’t paying attention to her.

"All of you may leave. Lily will be sufficient," she instructed coldly.

-

After the chamber had cleared, Lily began to speak, worried.

"Your Majesty, it's a good thing that the king is willing to come. But aren’t you starting a difficult situation with Lady Helena? Your mother told us to keep a low profile in the palace and not make enemies. She specifically mentioned Lady Helena-"

"Was that how Mom taught Wendy too?" Jane asked coldly with a stern look in her eyes.

She did not agree with this method of parenting.

Her master had taught her to repay kindness with kindness. The same could be said about hostility. She only had one life to live, and she ought to live it with no regrets.

In reality, Gloria had raised her children the same way the Foster family had for years. They had high expectations for their daughters, hoping that they would be crowned the next queen, and therefore had demanding requirements.

The Foster family's women had to be the best in everything from music to arts. They were not allowed to lose to outsiders. On top of that, they had to remain virtuous and hold a good reputation.

Wendy had written more than once to Jane and expressed how she envied Jane for her freedom. Wendy hadn’t wanted to become queen.

Now that Jane thought about it, how could Wendy ever have withstood the torture from these people in the palace if she actually became queen?

Lily was one of the few people in the Foster family who knew of Jane's true identity. She was very cautious and reflexively closed the window.

"Your Majesty, walls have ears. You should forget about the things that need to be forgotten. Never mention this again."

Jane seemed determined. "They are too far away to hear us."

She was skilled in combat and could sense other people's auras. If she hadn’t attained such high level skills, she wouldn’t have survived during the two years she served in the army.

Jane was a straightforward person. She didn’t care to beat around the bush.

"I went to Cloud Palace tonight under the pretense of delivering medicine. In reality, I was probing the level of defense of the area."

"Defense? Your Majesty, what are you planning to do?" Lily asked carefully.

"I want to kill her."

"What?!" Shocked, Lily covered her mouth to stop herself from screaming too loudly. Her mistress actually wanted to murder Helena! After calming down, Lily quickly advised her against it.

"Don't do it, Your Majesty. It's too risky!"

Jane nodded seriously. "It certainly is dangerous. Lady Helena really is beloved by the king. Not only does Cloud Palace have tight security, but there are also mechanisms under two of the eaves. I couldn't find a way in. I'll need to make a few more trips to figure it out."

Lily gulped nervously. "But Your Majesty, Madam Gloria said-"

Jane's gaze turned cold. "You were right. We should forget about things that need to be forgotten."

Lily was nervous. That wasn’t what she had meant.

Jane looked at her. "I won't force you. If you want to avenge Wendy too, we can work together. If you're too afraid to be my accomplice, just pretend I didn't say anything. However, you must not reveal to others what I'm going to do. Otherwise, I will kill you."

Jane didn’t mind if the people around her were unable to help her, but she wouldn’t allow them to drag her down.

Lily's forehead was covered in sweat, her heart thumping agitatedly. After struggling to make up her mind for a while, Lily soon recalled the gentle smile on Wendy's face. She slowly closed her eyes.

"Your Majesty, Wendy treated me like her sister. I'm sad that they tortured her so badly too. If I can do something for her, I'll have no regrets!"

Jane looked away. There was a calm look in her eyes. "Since you have decided, don't regret it."

After calming down, Lily had something new to worry about.

"Your Majesty, if you and the king consummate your marriage tonight, he will surely find out that you're a virgin. Lady Helena will later find out too. What if she starts growing suspicious about you?"

Jane was not worried about this.

"Firstly, the king is the leader of this country. He would never bring up matters in the bedroom in such a casual manner, and especially not to his favorite concubine. It would only make her unhappy and serve no valid purpose.

"Secondly, even if the king did tell her, she wouldn't believe him. She would only think he had too big of an ego. Even if his wife was no longer a virgin, he would force himself to accept her. Alternatively, she might suspect that we pulled a trick or two.

"Whatever the outcome, Lady Helena won’t make a big deal out of this. That would only publicly humiliate the king," Jane explained.

"But before the wedding, Lady Helena-"

"Before the wedding, I wasn't the queen. Now, I'm protected by my status."

Lily suddenly had a realization. "In that case, there's no reason to fear the king's arrival," she said.

-

They waited a long time. Even as it approached midnight, the tyrant king still had not arrived.

Jane was still in her pure white silk pajamas. She sat on the bed with an unchanging expression.

"He won't be coming. Let's get some sleep."

"All right, Your Majesty."

Lily felt angry. The king hadn’t kept his word.

Jane was accustomed to taking things as they came. She soon fell asleep.

Later in the night, Jane woke as someone suddenly pressed into her body. It was a man, and he was breathing heavily and moving carelessly as he started to untie her belt.

Jane immediately became alert and wide awake. She instinctively drew the dagger from under her pillow, only for her wrist to be seized in the dark.

She was about to fight back when she heard a deep and furious voice. "My queen, is this an attempt at regicide?"