Chapter 171 Seizing Power.
I had a fever that lasted for several days. I wanted to breastfeed my daughter myself, but I was too weak and my milk supply dried up. I only breastfed for two days before it stopped.
Fortunately, Mamboa had already chosen a reliable wet nurse, and the wet nurse fed him.
I lay in bed recovering from my illness, feeling listless. Mamboya came to see me several times a day, but he could only say a few words to me. I was either dozing off or silently leaning against the headboard. He couldn't do anything with me, so he offered a few soft words of comfort and then left.
Having a fever also has its advantages: it allows you to stay in your room all day with a legitimate reason, and you can maintain more contact with the bodyguards without fear of being discovered.
After burning for three or four days, I was about to set off for the Western Kingdom's independent capital. Mamboa tried his best to stop me, saying to me with a serious expression, "You really can't go."
"Oh? You're afraid Beatrice will come after me?" I leaned back on the sofa, trimming my fingernails.
“It’s not safe there,” Mamboya said, looking at me.
"Don't worry, I have a plan."
"Asterix will also be deployed."
Me: "I don't understand, why do you think Beatrice would target me? My relationship with her has always been very good."
Manberia: "Feelings? Feelings are worthless in the face of interests. I told you long ago that everything you've done will only benefit her."
My heart skipped a beat. Did he know something? Sure enough, Manberia continued, "I know a little about your secret contact with King and Queen Midan." Seeing my drastically changed expression, he added, "Don't worry, it wasn't you who gave yourself away, but rather that King and Queen Midan's silence wasn't tight. But based on the clues, I can guess a little bit. Without you, how could a queen who had fallen out of favor and been sent back to her family have such power to carry out such a scheme? And how could she have obtained evidence that King Midan had killed her brothers and sisters? King Midan is always very cautious, especially when it comes to things that would ruin his reputation."
Mamboa walked over to me and knelt down on one knee. "So, listen to me, don't go to Beatrice's side. I can guess it, and Beatrice can definitely guess it too. Beatrice won't let you live so she doesn't become a puppet queen."
I was still trimming my nails, head down. "I've remarried, am I still her stepmother?"
Now that I am nominally "married" to Mamboya, am I still entitled to exercise the rights of a stepmother over her stepdaughter?
Manberia chuckled, “Don’t tell me you don’t know? If you weren’t her stepmother, why would I worry about you? The rule of the Western Kingdom’s royal family is that as long as a marriage certificate isn’t signed, it’s considered not a marriage. That is to say, our marriage is recognized in the North, but not in the West. You are still Atreus’s legal stepmother, and you have the right to govern on her behalf.”
That's why he said "She won't let you live" just now.
I smiled. “I see. I originally thought that Beatrice was worried that I wanted to take over the Great City, so she led a few men who had sent me as her private army back to drive her out.”
That's really what I thought; I never considered the stepmother aspect.
The independent capital city was reclaimed by me, and I have the ability to take it back for myself.
That night, I still decided to set off, and Manberia couldn't stop me; he didn't want to break ties with me.
“I don’t want to put you under house arrest, but I can’t bear to see you die either. I also don’t want you to go unpunished. So, I will only appear when you need help the most,” Manberia said to me in the carriage that took me to the train station.
I looked at him silently, and he took my hand. "Remember, we still have a daughter."
At the train station, snowflakes danced in the firelight as I boarded the train. Sitting by the window, I heard Manberia below say to me, "Be careful!"
I hummed in agreement.
The train started moving, its whistle sounding, slowly moving forward, gradually accelerating. Manberia's figure grew smaller and smaller, becoming a tiny black dot in the swirling snow.
I find it hard to express my feelings. It was clearly a marriage of convenience, yet I was moved for a moment.
Letea appeared before me like a ghost, and said mockingly, "Prince Mamboa just had another illegitimate child yesterday. His wife's cousin gave birth to a son for him."
I froze, my mind went blank for a few seconds, and then I said, "Really?"
I hadn't seen his cousin for a while, so I didn't know she was heavily pregnant.
“This was never a secret,” Letea said with a mocking laugh. “You just didn’t leave your room, so you couldn’t find out, and your maids wouldn’t tell you either.”
Why didn't you tell me?
“I thought it wasn’t important.” He shrugged. “We were busy with things in the West.”
“But don’t worry,” he said slowly, “your status will not change. She only gave birth to an illegitimate child, which cannot be compared with your daughter’s legitimate status.”
My body trembled, and my voice shook slightly. "My marriage with him was just for business."
"Yes, your marriage was a marriage of convenience from the very beginning."
After traveling for four or five days, we arrived at Independence City. The late autumn rainy season had just passed, and after one rain after another, the ground was muddy, sticky, and dirty, making it extremely difficult to walk on.
The heavy city gates slowly opened, and Beatrice came to greet me with a large number of guards and maids, her face bearing a warm smile, just as before.
I secretly breathed a sigh of relief; things between us hadn't reached the legendary tense standoff.
But the next second, Atreus's expression changed, and she waved her hand. A large group of armored guards swarmed out and surrounded me and my guards.
"Atris, what do you mean?!" I asked in surprise.
"Sister, I have said that I am grateful to you, but that does not mean that I am willing to give you my great capital."
"I never wanted your royal city."
“No? That’s wonderful, we’re a loving mother and son.” Beatrice smiled charmingly. “But how can I live peacefully with someone who can command troops, has a private army of ten thousand, and is also my stepmother?”
“I never really wanted your capital,” I said.
Beatrice's face darkened, and she said sternly, "Take her head!"
“Are you not afraid of being disgraced for killing your stepmother?” I shouted.
But hordes of armored guards still charged toward me. My guards were brave and skilled in battle; they drew their swords and engaged in direct combat, and the deafening sounds of battle erupted.
I blew the whistle on my chest, very loudly, and a large flock of birds appeared in the sky not far away, each bird carrying a guard. Although there were only a thousand cavalrymen, they were enough to hold them off for a while.
This was a backup plan I prepared before coming here, a bird-summoning technique that I had Letea buy at a high price.
A dense swarm of birds flew in, and the clash of swords grew louder. Amid the chaos, I mounted a fierce bird and soared into the sky, heading straight for the royal city.
Suddenly sensing something was wrong, Beatrice cried out, "Stop her! Stop her!"
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Dozens of long arrows flew towards me, but countless birds circled around me, protecting me firmly, using swords or their bodies to block them. The birds beneath me flew extremely fast, and in an instant, I safely rushed into the city, flew into the palace, and then into the main hall. The birds carried me to the throne.
I quickly took something from the bottom of the throne—a golden scepter, symbolizing supreme ruling power.
Holding the scepter tightly in my hand, I mounted a bird and flew towards the location of the royal palace and military headquarters.
When I stood before the generals, scepter in hand, they all knelt down. This was the rule of the Western Kingdom's royal family: if I were the stepmother, possessed the golden scepter, and was being hunted by my stepchildren, I would have the right to directly control the capital city.
This rule is somewhat peculiar, but that's exactly how it is.
In my hand, I still have the divorce papers signed by Haya, proving that Beatrice is now unmarried.
When the royal army arrived at the city gates, Atrist was not surprised to see me, probably because she knew in advance that I had taken control of the military. However, her face was deathly pale.
Her legion, which had been fighting half-heartedly, now saw several generals leading their troops and threw down their swords, which clattered to the ground.
Beatrice pursed her lips, her body trembling almost imperceptibly.
"Someone, take Princess Beatrice back to her room," I called out. "She's been frightened; summon the royal physician to examine her."
A group of guards stepped forward and surrounded Beatrice. I then raised my hand, and several tall, burly maids who had accompanied me stepped forward, walked to Beatrice, and respectfully invited her to proceed.
Beatrice bit her lower lip and stepped out...
In the narrow, simple side room, Hya stood on the soft red carpet, glancing at me with a sidelong smile, "When will King and Queen Midan arrive?"
I said calmly, "Tomorrow."
During the days I had a fever, I sent Letea as a messenger to negotiate with both King and Queen Midian and Haya, and they finally reached an agreement: King and Queen Midian agreed to marry Haya.
King and Queen Midian will come tomorrow to sign a contract with Haya, agreeing to officially marry after King Midian's death.
They had previously signed a provisional contract, which bore the fingerprint of King Midian's father. Without this contract, Haya would not have agreed to divorce Beatrice.
For Hyja, marrying Queen Midian would allow him to become the King of the West, while marrying Beatrice would require fighting a war to achieve the same goal, and there was no guarantee of success. Clearly, marrying Queen Midian was the more worthwhile option.
In this patriarchal society, in divorce cases, women have no right to unilaterally dissolve the marriage, but men can. This is why a divorce decree signed solely by Haiya becomes legally binding.
In the luxurious and warm room, Beatrice sat on the thick carpet with her hair disheveled, staring at me as I stood before her.
“Do you think you’ve won? You’re far from becoming the King of the West,” Beatrice said viciously.
“I never intended to become the King of the Westerlands,” I said.
"Stop pretending," she said angrily. "You command a large private army, have several men working for you, and want to seize my capital. What else do you want to be but a king?"
I really don't want to become king; I just want to enter the room with the mysterious book.
“I really don’t want to become king,” I emphasized again, “Don’t misunderstand me.”
She stared at me coldly, then said nothing more.
I sighed and left, saying, "You should get some rest."
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Author's Note: I hope everyone will continue to support my novel, "Cinderella Wants a Thrilling Novel Script," and "My Girlfriend is a Genius" will soon be finished!
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