Teressa's sudden return to the palace sent waves of unease throughout the harem.At Serene Palace, Dina appeared especially tense."Why would she return to the palace so suddenly?"Normally when Teressa returned, she would send notice at least half a month in advance, and a ceremonial escort would welcome her on the day of her arrival. But this time, she had come back in such haste, as if there were urgent matters to attend to.Dina couldn't help but wonder if she had done something wrong that had drawn this old harbinger of doom back.Laurel attempted to console her."Your Majesty, please don't worry. It's said that she intends to meet with the queen upon her return. It should have nothing to do with you."Dina focused her thoughts. "According to her usual habits, she rests for a day after returning to the palace before permitting any juniors to pay their respects. It's rare for her to summon anyone on the same day. "Could it truly be directed at Wendy? But how could Wendy ha
Helena's voice rang out sharply."What? You're telling me Teressa is forcing the king to consummate the marriage with that wretch?" Her previously good mood disappeared instantly.The royal servant delivering the news kept his head low, not daring to meet her fury."Your Highness, I heard it personally. Lady Teressa said…""Enough!" Helena cut him off impatiently, unwilling to listen to any more. Her initial shock gave way to deep suspicion.Teressa's return to the palace should have been focused on investigating the queen's rumoured impurity. Why the sudden push to have the king and queen consummate their marriage?Helena's gaze turned icy, her voice laced with venom."I'll ask you again. Did Teressa question the queen about her abduction?"The royal servant shook his head. "I'm not sure. Only a few were inside the inner chamber. From where I stood outside, I couldn't hear the conversation clearly."Hearing this, Helena's face darkened. Panic welled in her chest as she
Jane looked at the items prepared for the consummation ceremony and frowned.This was getting more and more absurdWhat about George? How could he agree to such an arrangement?Alice instructed the royal servants."Set the items down and prepare the queen for her bath.""Yes—"Jane cut in with a steady voice, "Lily alone will attend to me."Alice, confident in her authority under Teressa's orders, adopted a patronizing tone toward Jane."Your Majesty, this is your first time receiving the king's favor. You may not understand the rules of the harem."The ceremonial bath before the consummation is far more intricate than an ordinary one! One person could hardly manage it all. Your Majesty, don't keep the king waiting."With a respectful bow, Alice extended an arm in a 'please proceed' gesture.Jane's eyes were cold, her tone low."Lady Teressa sent you here to ensure the consummation between me and the king. If I'm not pleased, we'll see whether this consummation takes place
Jane took two steps forward, her gaze calm and undisturbed.George put down his book, his face dark, his eyes filled with dissatisfaction."What's this? Didn't Alice teach you how to serve in bed?"Jane remained focused, not wanting to miss any of his expressions. It was clear he didn't want to consummate the marriage either.Suddenly, George grabbed her arm.His fingertips, pressing against her wrist through the fabric, sent a cold, almost destructive, sensation over her body."Afraid of pain?"Jane frowned slightly.Pain? Was it the kind of pain she imagined? Was he really going to listen to Teressa's orders and act like a good grandson?A sense of resistance rose in her, her teeth grinding as she stared directly at him in silence.His handsome face remained impassive. He grabbed her with one hand, and with the other, a dagger appeared.Jane didn't change her expression, but her heart stirred with slight confusion. What did he want with the dagger?In an instant, she reca
Helena almost stood up from her seat.It couldn't be! The king couldn't possibly have favored Wendy!Moreover, the blood on that cloth couldn't possibly be Wendy's virgin blood! She had clearly already lost her purity!Helena had a look of disbelief on her face.But Teressa seemed satisfied and soon allowed Helena to leave.Helena left Longevity Palace, her mind distracted.Clara felt the same way. Had the king and queen really consummated their marriage?But wasn't the queen…Clara instinctively looked at her mistress.Helena's eyes were tinged with a hint of red.Something was wrong! This consummation had to be fake!Helena both refused to believe it and desperately wanted to see the king, to ask him about it in person.-Elsewhere, in Serene Palace, Dina was surprised to hear that the king and queen had consummated their marriage."Is this news reliable?"Laurel nodded repeatedly."Your Majesty, it's true. Lady Teressa sent Alice to oversee the entire process, and th
Inside Zen Palace, new bedding had been laid.Jane stepped out of the bathhouse and changed into her formal attire.Lily brought in hot coffee, her expression full of concern as she asked, "Your Majesty, did you...consummate the marriage?"Jane showed no extra emotion on her face. "You need not ask about this matter."Hearing this, Lily became even more confused, but since her mistress had instructed her not to ask, she refrained from further questioning.Suddenly, a knock came from outside."Your Majesty, Lady Helena wishes to see you!"Lily's heart skipped a beat. "She must be here about your consummation, Your Majesty. Do you wish to see her?"Jane drank the still-hot coffee, feeling some relief in her throat, and then spoke calmly, "Let her in."Inside the hall, it was only Jane and Helena.As soon as Helena saw her, her face twisted in rage, as though she were about to lunge at Jane and tear her apart."Your Majesty, you certainly seem proud of yourself," Helena sneered
Helena couldn't understand how Wendy could have avoided the body inspection. After much thought, the only explanation she could come up with was that the person in front of her was not Wendy.But this explanation was absurd. If she wasn't Wendy, who was she?Faced with Helena's doubts, Jane didn't try to defend herself. She stared at Helena with a cold, heavy tone."Indeed, I am not Wendy. After being captured by the bandits, I am no longer her."Helena felt a chilling pressure. She wanted to step back, but Wendy grabbed her collar, forcing her to bend down, and the wounds on her body tormented her."You... Let go!" she cried out.Jane held her tightly and slowly stood up. Helena's eyes widened. The shadow cast over her felt like a demon emerging from the depths of the earth.A faint smile appeared on Jane's face…"There is a strange medicine from a foreign land. If it's applied to the skin, after forty-nine days, it can regenerate and make all scars disappear. The skin becomes
Jane had been affected by the Dream Flower poison, and while waiting for news from Wallace outside the palace, she also attempted to purge the poison on her own.In a careless moment, she fainted inexplicably.Then it felt as though she had returned to the past, or perhaps fallen into a nightmare.She saw someone who hadn't appeared in her dreams for a long time. She spoke to him for quite a while...When Jane woke up, she didn't know how long she had been unconscious.She only felt the room was eerily quiet. Her breathing was uneasy.Lily was by the bed, looking pale as paper, her hands trembling."Your Majesty... You're awake..." Lily said.Jane sensed that something was wrong. She sat up, and upon looking around, saw that George was also there.He was sitting on a small couch not far away, his expression as cold as ancient ice, now staring at her with an intense gaze.Jane's mind briefly went blank.Had he figured out that she was affected by the Dream Flower?Swoosh—G
In the imperial study, George sat radiating authority and an intimidating aura, his piercing gaze as cold as ice. On the desk before him lay a copy of Cameron's signed confession.He scrutinized Jane before giving an order to Karlsen."Bring Cameron here. I will question him myself."Shortly after, Cameron was brought in under escort. Seeing the king, he immediately dropped to his knees, trembling with fear."Greetings, King George and Queen Jane!"Jane stood off to the side, her expression indifferent.George's voice cut through the silence. "Did you personally sign this confession?"The confession detailed numerous offenses, including Cameron's framing of Caleb two years prior, his bribes to Wallenby, and his financial dealings with Helena.As assistant captain, Cameron had amassed significant wealth through corruption, using half of it to bribe Wallenby and the other half to send gifts to Cloud Palace. The ledger from his residence contained all the records.Furthermore, it
Cameron was held in solitary confinement in a cell. When he saw Caleb, he dropped to his knees and began to plead."Caleb, please get me out of here! I beg you! I know I was wrong. For the sake of all the years we've known each other, please let me go. If… If you can't save me, at least give me a quick death! Being dismembered is too horrifying. I don't want to die like that!"The man who once humiliated Caleb now knelt before him, begging for mercy. Caleb should have felt vindicated, but instead, he only felt a deep sadness."You don't want to be executed by dismemberment, and you don't want to die. But did Calvin and the others want to die?"They were completely innocent! If I let you go, how could I face the souls of the dead?"Cameron, you climbed to the top by sacrificing those who were as close as brothers to you. Was it really worth it?"We were once so close. I thought we shared a mutual respect. Why did you do it? Why?!"Caleb gripped the iron bars of the cell, his eyes
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