Chapter 197 "When a man wants to break up, he must..."
He left immediately after saying that. A few seconds later, Bernard appeared before me.
He smiled at me and invited me to dance a second time. Still reeling from the shock, I said, "Sorry, I'm a little tired."
"Are you angry? I was just dancing with Nora according to the rules."
"No, I'm really tired," I said.
"Then I'll go back to your room with you." He gently stroked my face. "You seem to have lost weight. Let me have dinner with you first."
I declined again, saying, "Really, it's not necessary."
He was a little angry, but didn't show it. "Okay, I'll come find you later, but you must have dinner."
I ignored him and turned away.
——
I rarely concern myself with the affairs of the Eastern Court, and I hardly pay attention to the situations in the other nations, because I feel they are all irrelevant to me. I'm just a woman from another region; I'll leave in a while, why should I care? But now, Derson's proposal has piqued my curiosity. What has driven him to such desperation, proposing to a woman like me who has nothing? And how can my abilities help him?
After some investigation, I learned that the struggle for the Eastern Throne had been raging for years. Bernot was the eldest son, but he had been marginalized. Not only was his status as the eldest son unrecognized, but he was also deliberately suppressed. If it weren't for his ability to amass wealth and marry a rich wife, he would have been banished from the court long ago. Ivanhoe was the Crown Prince, but his position was unstable because he was the second son. In all countries, primogeniture was the norm, and a second son's succession was illegitimate. The nobles of the Eastern Throne secretly harbored resentment but dared not easily oppose him. Because the King's Moste family and the Queen's Durand family were extremely powerful, and the attitude of Duke Abdul's Tjod family was ambiguous, the nobles, lacking support, were unwilling to step forward easily.
Furthermore, Bernault is of mixed blood, and while there's no explicit rule in patriarchal law regarding whether mixed-bloods can inherit the throne of the East, this made some high-ranking nobles uneasy, as everyone desired a pure-blooded heir. Ivanhoe, though the second son, possessed the noble blood of two powerful families and was the firstborn son of the king after abandoning the Elf Queen and a noblewoman from the East, making him, in a sense, the eldest son. Therefore, when the king chose Ivanhoe as crown prince, these high-ranking nobles did not object. And once they didn't object, coupled with the strong support of the two powerful families, the other nobles dared not say anything.
After Ivankh became crown prince, a new problem arose. Once the primogeniture system was broken, his other sons became restless, feeling that they also had a chance to inherit the throne.
After a bloody and unseen battle, only three princes survived, all legitimate sons: Prince Bernard, Crown Prince Ivanhoe, and Prince Derson. The other princes were either killed by Crown Prince Ivanhoe, provoked Prince Bernard and were killed by him, or perished in the innocent smile of Prince Derson.
Prince Dessen may seem innocent and harmless, but he is actually quite shrewd. He firmly controls the heart of his adoptive mother, Queen Nere, and uses her to eliminate one rival after another, while still maintaining his naive and innocent appearance.
After reviewing the intelligence I had purchased at great expense, I fell into deep thought. It seemed that Derson intended to use me to seize the throne. But didn't Derson know that my relationship with Bernard was far from over? We weren't just lovers; we were sworn brothers, having faced life and death together many times. I wouldn't easily betray Bernard.
Late at night, I met with Derson. Bernard wasn't there; he spent one day each month with his wife. I had Derson bribe the people around me to arrange the secret meeting.
"Do you know how deep my feelings for Bernard are? Why did you still propose to me?" I asked.
“Even the deepest feelings can be divided by interests,” Desen said confidently.
I smiled. "So confident?"
"You may have deep feelings for him, but he may not feel the same way about you. Or rather, if a man only has love and not fame and fortune, he cannot stand on this continent."
"you mean?"
“Survival comes first, and Prince Bernard cannot possibly put his love for you above all else.”
"But why should I follow you? What's the difference between following him and following you? Why don't I just stay with him?"
“I told you before that you still need someone to help you, and that person is me. Only by helping me can you possibly leave this continent. That’s the first reason.” Desen smiled slightly before continuing, “The second reason is that with me, you won’t have too much pain or entanglement, because you don’t love me as much, and you can be more yourself. The third reason is that Prince Bernard might abandon you at any time, but I won’t. Although Prince Bernard has been cultivating his power for many years, his position in the Eastern Territory is still not secure. Once there are better interests, he will abandon you and be with another woman. But I’m different. I have the Durand family behind me, and my adoptive mother has already helped me control most of the Durand family. I also have a closer connection of interests with you.”
I smiled and said, "I'm just wondering, why is it that I can only leave this continent if I help you? Besides, what close connection of interests do we have?"
Desen took out an old wooden box, opened the worn lid, and inside was a yellowed note. "This is a note placed under the mysterious book in the Western Kingdom's royal court. The mysterious book you risked your life to obtain back then wasn't as powerful as you imagined. What truly mattered was this note placed under the mysterious book. When you touched the mysterious book and activated its energy, you immediately returned to your own world and didn't see this note. Of course, the Western Queen who stabbed you didn't see it either; it was the Queen's maid who saw it. This maid then stuffed this box into her bosom and took it out."
I was shocked for a moment before asking, "And then?"
“Then this wooden box was sold by the maid to a nobleman at a high price, and eventually ended up in my hands. That’s how I learned your secret.” Derson took out the yellowed note. “This note contains the secret of the King of the West’s many trips back and forth. The mysterious book you saw was actually a blank book. I can give you this note. You can take it back and read it at your leisure.”
"As for your other question," he continued, "what close connection do we have in common? After much research, I've discovered that you are a true kingmaker. With your efforts, even if the other party isn't the real king, they will be the king behind the scenes. I need your help so that even if I can't become the real king, I can still have real power in this country; even if I can't have all the power, I can have a portion of it. So what connection do we have in common? It's because of you that I have a true ally. I will never abandon you. To abandon you would mean abandoning power and good fortune, and it would also mean giving up the opportunity to have power to someone else."
This person is cunning, but their cunning should be crystal clear, laid bare before me.
"I haven't decided yet," I said.
"You can't bear to part with Prince Bernard? He is indeed a man that women can't let go of; so many women have died for him. If we get married, I will turn a blind eye to your private interactions with him."
I was stunned. "Really?"
He smiled and said, "He's a man who's hard for a woman to give up. It's too difficult for me to let him go. Why would I do something that puts people in such a difficult position?"
I was completely stunned.
"Think about it. If you marry me, you will not only have the opportunity to return to your own world, but you will also have a prestigious status. Isn't being a legal wife more glamorous than being a mistress? Even if you can't return to your own world, you can still live a good life here."
I didn't say anything and stood silently for a while.
As I left, with my back to him, he laughed and said, "I'm actually not bad looking, I have a great body, and I'm pretty good in bed. If you're willing, let's have a few rounds and see if I'm up to par?"
I ignored him and walked away.
The following night, I had a three-round battle with Bernard, and I collapsed onto the bed, exhausted. He kissed my damp hair, and I kissed his lips. I was still clinging to him, reluctant to let go. He really is a man you wouldn't easily give up.
"Did you and your wife do it a few nights ago?" I asked him, biting his earlobe.
He smiled lazily, "Why ask such hurtful questions?"
"Okay, I won't ask." I obediently bit his earlobe again.
A few days later, I met with Desen.
“We can’t break up easily,” I said. “Do you have a way to make us break up?”
"Are you willing to break up with him?" Desen asked me jokingly.
"It's precisely because I can't bear to let go that I need external help." I don't want to break up with him, but I know in my heart that my current love is like an addiction to poppies. Knowing it's poisonous, I still plunge headlong into it, only to sink deeper and deeper. I don't want to have too deep feelings for him; I can't afford to lose, I can't afford to pay the price, and I can't afford to gamble.
Men can always easily extricate themselves, but women can't.
I don't want to die because of my love someday.
“A man who wants to break up must be doing so because he’s losing money,” Derson chuckled. “Just spend his money, spend it all you want, until he loses money. Also, his wife will feel threatened and try to get rid of you.”
How can his wife sense a crisis?
This was not easy. He had many mistresses, some of whom were stunningly beautiful, but none of them made his wife feel threatened.
“I have a kind of medicine here that will give you false pregnancy symptoms. Then you can use that to ask Prince Bernard for more things. Make him find a noble person to vouch for you and sign an agreement to give your child the treatment of a legitimate child. You should also find a way to give your child a duke title, a prince title, etc. You are insatiable. His wife will be annoyed and uneasy.”
I did as instructed. I spent money like crazy. I've probably never been so extravagant in my entire life. In modern times, I was a poor student, renting a cheap apartment, eating cheap student meals, wearing inexpensive skirts, and using secondhand appliances. I never imagined I would be able to spend money like this one day.
He went on a shopping spree at the jewelry store, almost emptying the store, and even ordered exorbitantly priced jewelry from several well-known jewelers.
I spent the whole day trying on clothes in clothing stores, wearing every expensive piece, and even had several famous tailors make custom-made haute couture.
He lavishly spent money at luxury restaurants and expensive bathhouses, and frequently held social dances at upscale clubs, covering all the expenses himself.
"What's wrong with you lately?" Bernard asked me gently in the middle of the night.
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Author's Note: Please add my story "Animal Farm" to your favorites!
Also check out my other works: "Cinderella Wants a Powerful Novel Script," "All the Male Gods in the World Are in Love with Me," "Love of Ice and Fire," and "My Girlfriend is a Genius" is about to finish. Mwah!
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