Chapter 162 "If you dare to play with anyone, I..."
As the early winter temperatures gradually rise, the fire in the fireplace no longer needs to be burned so fiercely, consuming only a third of the firewood needed in the depths of winter. The situation in the capital is stabilizing, and the palace has returned to the tranquil and leisurely atmosphere it had before the year-end ball, with the underlying tension vanishing without a trace.
Manberia and I have been spending time in the study lately. He explained the terrain of the Western Frontier to me in detail and carefully analyzed the terrain around the Western Frontier's independent capital.
I sighed deeply, "If an unsuspecting bystander saw this, they would think you were about to attack the Western Frontier."
“Those in high positions of power in the east, west, south, and north regions all know the situation in each region,” Manberia laughed. “It’s no secret.”
"Then why didn't you attack each other and seize each other's territory?" I asked jokingly.
“It’s not that easy.” Manberia deliberately rested his head on my shoulder. I quickly moved away, but he moved closer again, put one arm around my waist, and whispered in my ear, “Everyone wants to occupy the other’s territory, but the other side has already made preparations. If you really fight, it will be a thankless task. If you’re not careful, you’ll lose and have to cede territory and pay reparations.”
I smiled, said nothing more, and looked down at the map. After a while, seeing that I was engrossed in my work, perhaps not wanting to disturb me, Manboya quietly pushed open the door and left.
I was left alone in the study, which was quite peaceful. I focused on studying the map and soon gained some insights.
The study door opened, and I assumed it was a maid bringing in tea and refreshments. Without looking up, I simply said, "Just put the things on the table."
But then a familiar, slightly hoarse baritone voice came through, "Madam Lana, I apologize for my intrusion."
I looked up in surprise. The short, curly-haired man with brown hair I'd met at the year-end ball was standing tall by the door. "Leita? How did you get in?"
Mamboa left a few guards outside the study to watch over me; it was unlikely he would come in easily.
“I specifically asked Prince Mamboa for a favor, and he granted me permission to approach you,” Letea said respectfully. “I did some work during Prince Mamboa’s counterattack.”
She probably acted as his inside man in the palace, so Manboa naturally had to repay him.
"I heard you're planning to retake the Western Kingdom's capital?" Letea asked casually.
"Just tell me what you can do for me," I said frankly.
"The Western Kingdom's capital city is currently under the jurisdiction of my brother, Haiya, but Haiya is really not a capable person. He only eats, drinks, and has fun every day and doesn't care about anything else. The real power lies with a few supervisors. Of course, the real person in charge is King Midan. But King Midan often stays in the Western Kingdom's palace, so the capital city is actually still under the control of a few supervisors." At this point, his speech slowed down. "One of these supervisors is someone I know very well."
I sensed something was off. "How well do you know each other?"
"We're lovers." He didn't even try to hide it, "the secret kind."
I sneered, "Having a lover doesn't mean you won't betray them."
“Yes, but it’s still more reliable than other relationships,” he said slowly. “Other relationships are more prone to betrayal. With him, we know some of the secrets of the Great City, such as the tunnels you and Queen Diya Ruo dug, which were all sprayed with poison. If you went any further in, you would be poisoned to death.”
I was stunned and horrified. Back then, in order to reclaim the capital city, we designed this tunnel to sneak into the city and reach the palace. I never expected it to be destroyed so quickly.
"So, if you want to retake the Great City this time, you can only rely on a direct assault," Letea said calmly. "Without an inside accomplice, the chances of success are extremely low."
That night, I couldn't sleep at all. I sat in front of the floor-to-ceiling window watching the snow fall, and I watched it all night long.
Early in the morning, the door was quietly pushed open, and Manberia was startled to see me sitting by the window.
"You didn't sleep all night?" He quickly draped a robe from the sofa chair over my shoulders. "Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"
"Do you think I can conquer the capital city?" I asked him, looking up at him.
"If you think you can do it, then you can; if you don't, then you can't," he said with a smile. "I don't want to say too many useless words of encouragement; I just want to tell you that your destiny is in your own hands."
As dawn broke, I was alone in my study and wrote a letter to Artis. The letter was simple: I asked him to give me five thousand private soldiers. My reason was quite good: I had helped him discover several valuable mineral resources, and I deserved this gift.
"It's never pleasant to owe someone a favor, don't you think? Besides, you once used our divorce papers as a bargaining chip to get what you wanted from Queen Deya. Don't you think you should compensate me in some way?"
After sending the letter, I sat down at the table to calculate the troop strength: of the three thousand private troops that King Midian originally gave me, only two thousand remain, one thousand of whom were lost in battle. There are also the five thousand private troops that Manberia gave me, which are now about four thousand five hundred. In addition, there are two thousand private troops of Letea, Princess Yani mentioned that she has two thousand, and Manberia is willing to lend me twenty thousand troops, which is about twenty-eight thousand five hundred. If Attisken lends troops, then it will be thirty-three thousand five hundred.
How many soldiers will King Midian send to fight me? I chewed on my pen and thought about it all afternoon.
After dark, I wrote another letter to the Elf King, asking to borrow five thousand soldiers. He had sent five thousand of his private soldiers to rescue me when I was besieged by King Midian, which shows that he was still willing to help me.
After finishing the letter, I was exhausted. I slumped in a high-backed chair for a while before taking a shower.
After taking a 15-minute bath, I opened the bathroom door and overheard two maids gossiping in hushed tones.
“Prince Manberia’s chief mistress has returned and spent the afternoon in the room with him.”
Why did she suddenly come back?
"Her father's youngest daughter was to marry the new king, and her status in Prince Mamboa's heart rose immediately."
The two maids suddenly saw me and turned pale with fright. I usually take a half-hour bath, but today I was out in a quarter of an hour, which they clearly hadn't expected.
I smiled at them, then wrapped my robe tighter and left.
At dinner, Manberia's smile was as sweet as honey, and she rubbed against me like a lapdog. I ate my fruit and vegetable salad without making a sound and completely ignored her.
Only after I finished eating did Mamboy cautiously speak, "Sometimes it's not that I don't want to tell you, it's that I don't know how to say it, and I'm afraid you'll misunderstand."
"What are you saying?" I picked up a clean handkerchief to wipe my mouth.
"Yes, about Midna's return."
Who is Midna?
"My chief mistress."
"Oh, you also have a mistress? I always thought you only had eyes for me," I said, slightly exaggeratedly.
He smiled even more obsequiously, almost licking my skin, saying, "You're the only one in my heart; everyone else is just a fling."
I burst into laughter, laughing so hard I could barely breathe.
I've long understood that expecting the men here to be devoted to only one person is nothing short of a pipe dream.
I laughed and said, "I'll believe you if you swear you'll never sleep with her again."
He lowered his head, looking like a child who had done something wrong.
"Or if you swear you'll never have another woman, I'll believe you." I laughed so hard I almost fell over.
He looked completely innocent, even a little pitiful. "You know, sometimes I really have to play along, otherwise other men will laugh at me."
I smiled and patted his head, like petting a dog. "I understand your difficulties, I understand."
He looked somewhat displeased, frowning as he looked at me. I frowned back at him, and then burst into laughter again.
That night he insisted on sleeping in my bedroom, but I coldly lowered the bed curtains and watched him sleep on the floor through the gaps.
In the middle of the night, I could faintly hear a woman's voice coming from outside the door. There was a guest room outside my bedroom, and the voice came through two doors, so it was clear that the woman's voice was quite loud.
I heard Manberia get up and gently open the door, so I got out of bed and followed her barefoot without a sound.
Outside the reception room, Manberia stood with his back to me, seemingly scolding the woman in a low voice. I stood on tiptoe and saw a sexy and delicate beauty with half-exposed breasts and long, loose hair wiping away tears and sobbing softly.
Suddenly, Mamboya stopped saying anything, slammed the door shut, turned around and picked me up in his arms. "It's chilly at night, why are you barefoot?"
"Your chief mistress?" I chuckled. "Should I invite her in to sleep with me?"
“If you’re really that open-minded, then I won’t worry about anything.” He laughed too.
What are you worried about?
“I’m always afraid you’ll be angry with me, afraid you’ll run away.”
"Why would I be angry?" I laughed. "Was it comfortable sleeping with her? Her breasts are pretty good."
"I've always wanted to sleep with you, but I wonder if you would do me the honor?"
My smile vanished, and I suddenly raised my hand and slapped him across the face. He was stunned.
“Don’t even think about it,” I pushed him away and jumped off. “You can forget about getting into my bed. We’ll each have our own thing.”
He stood frozen in place, not moving an inch.
With a swift movement, I drew the bed curtains shut, making it completely airtight. His voice, however, drifted over unhurriedly, "If you dare to play around with any guy, I'll chop him up." He added, "Only his genitals."
After that day, he suddenly became very clingy. Before, I could be alone in the study, but now he wouldn't leave my side for a second. Except when I went to the toilet, he followed me almost everywhere. Eating, drinking, sleeping, taking walks, handling official business, he was always close by. Even when talking to his confidants, he would only be three steps away from me, but he would deliberately lower his voice.
"Didn't your mistress return? Isn't her father's daughter going to marry the king? Aren't you going to hurry up and try to win her over?" I advised him.
He chuckled and said, "Right now, all I want to do is please my wife. If she gets angry, I really don't know what I'll do."
"You have too many wives, be careful you can't manage them all," I said sarcastically.
"Just focus on what's in front of you," he said pitifully.
I ignored him and kept walking forward. He followed closely behind, and we were almost at the dining room when we met a graceful and charming figure.
"Your Highness, I spent the whole morning making your favorite roast meat." The figure pounced into Mamboya's arms like a whirlwind, catching Mamboya completely off guard.
She even kissed his lips directly.
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