Dream
"I think…"
"If it's for the position of Duke, then it's unnecessary."
Tiff's gaze swept over the light blue under her eyes. "Everything has been arranged. Just do as I say."
"Yes and no." Lina pursed her lips hesitantly. "I want to participate in suppressing the rebellion on the frontier."
The borderlands have indeed been quite turbulent recently. The second prince, Velai, volunteered to quell the unrest on the frontier. The king was initially reluctant, since, apart from the missing Muri and the mentally challenged prince, Velai was the only one left among his sons.
He was naturally unwilling, fearing that something might happen to Willey. Even though Ferrand's uncle had done such a thing, he didn't want anything to happen to the only child who could inherit the throne.
But Waley argued his case and persuaded the king, which allowed him to participate.
Listening to Lina's thoughts, Tiff lowered her head thoughtfully. There were still three days before Weile went to the frontier. If she wanted to mention it to the king, Lina could naturally go in. But because of Ferrand, Weile now hated her.
If Lina really goes in, she will likely be ostracized and bullied by Willie, but it's not too bad, since it's not just Willie's people who will go; some of her people and others will also be squeezed in.
They all knew perfectly well that this border unrest was not particularly serious, but because it was a border unrest, they could send some people in to share the credit.
“Of course you can, but are you sure there’s still some danger?” Tiff looked up and stared directly at her.
"I'm sure, thank you, sir." Lina bowed.
——
Murray did not die; in fact, he remembered some things.
Some things from a past life.
He had a dream in which he watched his own life unfold as an observer.
Including everything about him and Tiffany.
In June, on his twentieth birthday, the king summoned him to his study and asked him:
What do you think of the Duke of Stryker's daughter?
Prior to this, there had been rumors that the King intended to make the Duke of Stryker's daughter the Crown Princess.
In such a situation, suddenly asking him for his opinion of Tiffany would make anyone understand the king's underlying meaning.
He chuckled softly. “Miss Tiff Strickland is exceptional. Even though we haven’t met yet, I’ve heard of her. She’s ranked seventh on the Samuel Academy’s magic list. She’s outstanding among all the geniuses in the academy and among the noble ladies.”
“Father, I understand your intention, but… doesn’t she already have a fiancé?”
The king did not respond, but closed his eyes and leaned back on the sofa.
That evening, in the garden, he met the daughter of the Duke of Stryker.
They had never met, but Murray was convinced that she was Tiffany.
Her hair was braided and placed to one side. She was wearing a dark green long dress and was sitting alone by the pool.
The wind picked up, and as if her eyes were stung by the sand, she frowned and raised her hand to shield them, the stray hairs she had tucked behind her ears were blown back to her cheeks by the wind.
For some reason, he walked up to her.
As if she could no longer feel the wind, she opened her eyes and tilted her head back, revealing long eyelashes, pursed lips, and slightly swaying earrings.
And... bright red eyes.
He pursed his dry lips, then smiled and said, "Duke's daughter."
"Your Highness." She quickly stood up and bowed to him.
Unlike the Tiffany he had imagined, she looked like a simple noblewoman.
But it also fits the outside world's evaluation of her.
He chatted with Tiffany for a while until his servant rushed over in a panic, only to learn that a group of men in black had just appeared in the banquet hall and attacked the king.
Their second meeting was at a nobleman's group hunt. They didn't exchange any words, but he heard that she had blinded Ferrand's only son. This swift and decisive method contrasted sharply with her innocent appearance.
The third time was at her coming-of-age ceremony, which Murray thought was also the beginning of her nightmare. Her fiancé disappeared, his fate unknown, and not long after, her father was assassinated and could only lie in bed, unable to move. Her relatives were also eyeing her title and property.
Some people even dared to frame her during the coronation ceremony.
This isolated and helpless situation reminded Mullie of himself when he was a child.
Later, at the king's request, the two of them had frequent contact.
In truth, he knew that Tiffany wasn't as innocent as she appeared. After all, the fact that she could seize power in the Duke's mansion in such a short time and make the collateral branches of the Strych family submit to her and dare not make any other moves showed her shrewdness.
In January of the following year, her former fiancé, Rother, returned after being missing for almost six months.
He was replying to Tiff when he learned of this.
Rother's return was a complete surprise to him. He had been kidnapped by the Red Tower, and with several princes killed at their hands, how could he possibly return unharmed?
Unless, someone kidnapped him under the guise of Hongta.
Sure enough, the next day Rother took his brother Lorry to court.
In such cases, to avoid family scandals being exposed, the family usually chooses to handle the matter internally.
But who told Rory to use the Red Tower's name to kidnap Rother? Getting involved with the Red Tower is no longer just a trivial matter of internal family struggle.
Rother presented all the evidence, which led to Rory's death sentence, but the "kind" Rother pleaded with the king for a pardon, and Rory naturally did not die.
In fact, Rother's affairs had nothing to do with him, and he didn't need to care so much.
But what could he do? Rother was his girlfriend's ex-fiancé.
However, his relationship with Tiffany did not last long, ending after Willey's failed attempt to seize power.
Her reason for breaking up with him was that she wanted to remain loyal to the royal family and didn't want to make any mistakes in the future because of personal feelings.
This statement seems especially ridiculous when she later murdered the emperor and usurped the throne.
Even when he was imprisoned in the room, he still couldn't believe she would do such a thing.
When the sound of high heels came from outside the door, he knew his death was imminent. She would never let him go, the crown prince of this country.
A faint scent of perfume wafted over, and cool fingertips brushed across his face as they removed the blindfold from his eyes.
The first thing he saw when he opened his eyes was those bloodshot eyes.
He was given poisoned wine, a very dignified way to die.
But when he saw her holding the wine glass and handing it to him, some inexplicable emotions welled up in his heart for no reason.
He didn't know how to describe this emotion, and just instinctively grabbed her wrist.
He made a request, if it could be called a request, that she feed him the poisoned wine.
She didn't disappoint him; she "generously" satisfied him.
Although the actions were somewhat rough.
"Cough cough." A bright red, viscous liquid spurted from his mouth.
His heart ached as if it were being squeezed, making it impossible for him to tell whether it was the poison taking effect or his unwillingness to accept defeat.
As he gazed into those fiery, blinding eyes, tears streamed down his face.
He was unwilling to die like this and wanted to say something, but nothing he said could change anything.
He curled up in a ball, in so much pain, yet he still tried to reach out and grab Tiff's skirt as she turned around. He seemed to understand his resentment and the reason for his inexplicable emotions.
In his hazy state, he suddenly remembered something from long ago, when her ex-fiancé hadn't returned.
It was just an ordinary afternoon when he and Tiffany were taking a walk in the garden, with servants holding umbrellas behind them as they followed.
He walked along the path, but he couldn't remember what they had been talking about that day.
He only remembered the moment her hair, blown by the wind, brushed against his cheek; he remembered her arched eyebrows as she looked at him in the sunlight; and he remembered the sound of her high heels walking on the stone path.
And after winning a game of chess in the pavilion, she smiled smugly yet reservedly, clearly happy, but quickly suppressing the upturned corners of her lips.
Thinking about all this, he suddenly realized that he had been paying attention to Tiffany ever since they first met.
He felt uneasy as they whispered about Tiffany and her fiancé at the banquet, marveling at how well-matched they were.
After confirming their relationship, her icy fingertips touched his cheek, their breaths mingled, and their lips pressed together. He couldn't help but wonder if this would happen between her and Rosser.
He was jealous; why wasn't he the one engaged to Tiffany?
My heart was pounding violently, as if it were about to leap out of my chest.
Fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead. Mullie was dreaming about his past life again, but he couldn't truly empathize with those experiences.
Yes, it wasn't a rebirth; he simply possessed these memories.
Hicks reminded him of everything.
That night, he woke up the moment Hicks stepped in, and upon seeing her, he fell asleep again, remembering all of this.
Upon waking up, he, who was nominally kidnapped, could only stay in the Demon Tower.
He knew that Hicks reminding him of these things couldn't be anything good; his main target was Tiffany.
He will wait until the right time is right before he comes out.
——
Rain mixed with snowflakes pounded against the window. Within ten seconds, the rain intensified, and the unclosed window began to shake.
Tiff was engrossed in her newly published novel on the sofa in her warm bedroom, until she heard the sound of rain hitting the window. She then realized it was raining, put the book down, and put on her coat to close the window.
As Tiffany got closer, she realized it was snowing. She closed all the windows, opened the balcony door, and went outside.
As soon as she stepped outside, a biting chill enveloped her entire body. She wrapped her coat tighter around herself, casting a spell to keep warm.
She slowly walked to the edge of the balcony, stretched out her hand, and a snowflake landed on her fingertip, but quickly melted away.
Tiff touched the pocket, then suddenly realized she was wearing pajamas. She opened her hand, and a pack of cigarettes appeared in her palm.
He pulled one out, closed the cap, and casually stuffed it into his pocket.
With the cigarette held between her index and middle fingers, she brought it to her lips, and a small flame flickered from the tip of her left finger to light it.
Tiffany smokes cigarettes that don't have a strong smell; she doesn't like cigarettes that have a strong smell.
She took a deep breath and then exhaled the smoke.
Amidst the swirling smoke, her gaze shifted to the garden downstairs, where she saw a figure beside a tree.
It looks exactly like it...
Hicks.
Tiff narrowed her eyes and said his name.
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