Chapter 2
Mary looked at herself in the mercury mirror, her gaze deep and unfathomable. She remained silent for a long time until her maid called her in a nervous whisper. As if startled, she handed the mirror to Miss Fleming and gestured for her to take it away.
Fleming slightly bent his knees, took the mercury mirror away and put it away, then quickly returned.
Another maid, Miss Livingston, placed the silver cup on the table and knelt down, tightly cupping her mistress's slender fingers in her palm, as if trying to transfer warmth through them. She looked up and asked with concern, "Your Majesty, how are you feeling? Is your headache still there?"
In the dim candlelight, Miss Livingston's eyes were red and swollen, with tears welling up in her eyes.
Mary saw this and her heart softened slightly. She didn't say much, but simply pulled her hand away, patted the back of her hand reassuringly, and then called the other three maids in the room to come over.
The young, delicate, and beautiful faces of the four maids were indistinct in the warm yellow candlelight, and most of them were not clearly visible. However, Mary felt that she could not get enough of looking at them. Her gaze lingered on them repeatedly, as if she wanted to engrave their faces in her mind.
No one could understand this feeling. For eighteen years after she went to England and was imprisoned, until she was about to be beheaded, she did not see any of her acquaintances in Scotland except for Mary Seton.
Especially in her final days, the only people around her were the harsh prison guards from Elizabeth I. In order to find evidence that she had murdered the English monarch, they searched even her most private underwear every day. The pain of having no privacy and dignity was enough to drive a person crazy.
Looking at their still youthful faces, Mary felt as if she were in a dream.
"Your Majesty, what's wrong?"
"I will go and fetch the royal physician, and then have the bishop come to bless you."
Would you like something to eat?
...
Sensing the former Queen's unusual attitude, the maids immediately started chattering.
Mary raised her hand to quiet the maids, and then, in a slightly solemn atmosphere, solemnly addressed them: "By the grace of God, I dreamt of a blazing white light and the sound of holy music. Immediately afterward, my whole body felt light, as if I had been baptized and all my ailments had been washed away. When I awoke, I felt better than ever before, and my headaches were gone. I think, with the Lord's blessing, I have overcome this ordeal."
Her Majesty the Queen—no, Her Majesty the Queen of Scotland—speaked with a slightly hoarse voice, yet it was clear and calm. Her back was straight, and her expression was serene, a stark contrast to the patient lying in bed just hours before. Her unusually serious demeanor made the ladies-in-waiting believe in this miracle, and they all made the sign of the cross on their chests, praying and thanking God for His blessing.
After the maid stopped, Marie continued, "François's death has caused me great pain. He went to heaven alone to return to the embrace of the Lord, leaving me in this painful world to face the storms. From now on, every day, I will pray for him in my heart, wishing him eternal peace and happiness."
"Ladies, everything changed the moment François returned to heaven."
“This is not just about me losing my radiant queenly crown and no longer being the first lady of the French court; it means that my protective shield has collapsed, leaving me with nowhere to shelter me from the storm.”
"So from this day forward, I hope that you will abandon your frivolous and casual lifestyle, give full play to your innate intelligence and prudence, gather information from others, and stop casually revealing my private affairs. Treat every matter seriously and report to me, and become my smartest assistants and most trusted friends."
“You need to understand that I, and all those who have loyally followed me, will from now on face numerous enemies and fight against their countless open and covert attacks and despicable schemes.”
The maids held their breath, listening intently to Mary's words, but at the end they looked at each other in bewilderment, not understanding why Her Majesty the Queen would say such a thing.
It was as if these noblewomen were not in a magnificent palace protected by countless guards, but on a battlefield filled with blood and smoke.
"Your Majesty, we do not understand..."
Mary noticed their confused looks and explained, "Even if you grew up in the French court and have French blood from your mother, don't forget that we are not French, but native Scots."
After calmly meeting the gazes of each of the four maids, Mary slowly uttered her last words.
"But Scotland is never peaceful."
After a brief silence, Fleming, who reacted the fastest, immediately knelt down on one knee and once again swore to Mary that he would do everything in his power to serve Her Majesty the Queen, dedicate his life to Mary, and do what the mistress of the house required of him.
The other three maids followed suit and once again solemnly pledged their loyalty to Mary.
...
The royal physicians arrived and left quickly. After a thorough examination, they respectfully informed Mary of her full recovery and soon relayed the good news to others in the court, such as the Medici Queen Mother and the Duke of Guise.
After a brief period of commotion, the doctor left, and Mary's royal suite returned to its somber, mournful state.
Because there is such a rule in the traditional etiquette of the French court.
If the king dies, the queen, who has lost her husband, should also observe mourning at home for the first forty days and cannot leave her palace for even a minute. During this period, for the first two weeks, no one except blood relatives and the new king can enter the palace to visit the queen.
After Francis II's death, according to the law of succession, his younger brother Charles IX succeeded him to the throne—a child who was only ten years old this year. In their brief time together, he and Marie did not have a deep relationship and would not have thought of visiting his brother's widow, the widowed former queen.
Queen Catherine de' Medici, for various reasons, had always had a tense relationship with Mary. It was already a courtesy of her not to come and make sarcastic remarks, so naturally she would not come to offer any kind words of comfort.
As for her blood relatives, namely Mary's three uncles, they should be busy dealing with the court struggles surrounding the new king's coronation, and have no time to visit their sick niece.
Therefore, Mary did not receive any visitors for several days after waking up from her high fever.
Mary didn't take it to heart and was even somewhat relieved that such a rule existed.
She desperately needs time to recall many things that happened in her youth, especially the many nobles in the French court, many of whom she only remembers as familiar faces but cannot recall their specific names.
Her hobbies and some language habits are also different from when she was younger.
If these flaws were discovered, Mary thought, she would have no choice but to use the excessive grief caused by her husband's death as an excuse to cover it up.
There was a lot to do, and a month or so was a good buffer period. Mary asked Seton to bring her a map of the British Isles across the Channel, as well as her correspondence with Scotland over the years and news of changes in the English court. She began to read it intently.
She will soon return to Scotland to rule in her own right, and there are many things she needs to know. If she doesn't want to suffer the same fate as in her previous life, she can no longer be a puppet, with her power almost entirely usurped by her half-brother.
Seton took the map and the letter from Scotland, but stood by the bed without leaving, biting his lip and looking angry. This reminded Mary of a squirrel she had encountered in the forest when she went hunting with François.
Mary put the map on the desk and asked curiously, "What's wrong with you? Did someone offend you while you were looking for the map?"
Although it's true that once someone leaves, their influence fades, and she was prepared for a significant decline in her status at the French court, it didn't mean she would tolerate everything.
If anyone were to mistreat her maid, Mary would never remain silent.
“I feel so sorry for you, Your Majesty…” Seton said, his eyes reddening and almost in tears, “…I feel so sorry for you. It’s one thing for the Queen Mother and His Majesty Charles, but for a whole two weeks, the Duke of Guise hasn’t come to visit you even once, or even sent anyone to inquire after you! Good heavens, when His Majesty was still alive, you spoke up for the Guise family to His Majesty the King quite a bit!”
“Oh, about that, don’t worry, Seton. I believe my uncle will remember me, visit me, and comfort me sooner or later. After all, I am still the Queen of Scotland,” Mary said with a half-smile.
Having witnessed countless instances of the fickle nature of human relationships in her previous life, Mary did not take the Geese family's inconsistent attitude to heart. In the struggle for power, so-called kinship was probably worth less than a piece of waste paper.
Sure enough, more than half of the forty-day mourning period had passed when Duke Guise finally arrived belatedly to visit his poor niece Mary, who had just become a widow.
"Oh, my unfortunate child, may God bless you." Duke Guise lovingly embraced Mary, touching her forehead with a jeweled ring as if trying to check her temperature.
“I’ve been fully recovered for many days, Uncle,” Mary said, giving Duke Giss a tight hug before quickly separating.
“I’ve been thinking of you constantly, Mary. When I heard you had a high fever, I was so worried. Now that I see you healthy, I feel a great weight lifted off my shoulders,” Duke Giss said sincerely.
Then, the Duke of Guise spoke with worry and guilt about why he hadn't visited Mary for so long. It was all because of Catherine de' Medici's interference, coupled with the tense situation at the Louvre, which kept him from coming.
“I know, dear uncle, I know everything.”
Mary said with a smile, sitting in a chair with her uncle, her eyes also filled with gentleness and trust.
If it were her past life, she might have truly been moved by Duke Giss's sincere statement and put aside all her grudges.
But now it's different. She can see through Duke Giss's pretense completely. Not only can she see through it, but she can also play along.
It's just a competition of acting skills, and she can do it.
After another warm and friendly chat, Duke Giese revealed the purpose of his visit.
He hoped that Mary would marry Charles IX, who had just ascended the throne.
—That child who was only ten years old.
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