monarch

Mrs. Herbert, the queen's younger sister, slightly opened the door of the queen's bedroom. She lifted her skirt, tiptoed, and sneaked in like a cat.

The first queen leaning on the soft couch was amused by her sister's funny behavior, "What are you doing? My dear sister?" However, when she noticed the frightened expression on Mrs. Herbert's face, The smile on her face stiffened too.

The first queen waved her hand, signaling all the servants and maids in the room to leave.

Soon there were only the two of them left in the house.

The first queen motioned her sister to sit on the armchair opposite, "What happened? Your face is so pale, is there any discomfort?"

Mrs. Herbert didn't sit down, she took a few steps forward and knelt down in front of the queen, "My God, it's so terrible, I can't believe my eyes..." She was trembling all over, as if Cry anytime.

Queen Xian felt a discomfort in her abdomen, she frowned slightly, and then squeezed out a comforting smile, "It's okay, tell me what happened, and I will deal with it."

Mrs. Herbert glanced around to make sure there was no one else in the room.

She poked her head into Queen Xian's ear and whispered something.

The smile on Queen Xian's face gradually disappeared, like the remaining snow melting under the spring sun.

After Mrs. Herbert finished speaking, the queen froze for a few seconds, then shook her head with an expression of disbelief on her face, as if she had been turned into a statue by the Medusa basilisk.

"Impossible... Absolutely impossible. Would he be so stupid?" Queen Xian waved her hands violently, as if she wanted to slap open the shocking news.

"This is what I saw with my own eyes." Mrs. Herbert stared at the queen with wide eyes.

Queen Xian stared at her younger sister without saying a word for a few seconds, and then she tried to force a smile, but that smile withered like a winter jasmine in bud before it fully bloomed.

"It doesn't mean anything." She sounded more like trying to convince herself than Mrs. Herbert. "It's just a gesture or two, and it doesn't mean anything at all."

"But there are still those rumors..." Mrs. Herbert murmured.

The Queen's voice suddenly became sharp, "Gossip, those damn gossips! Seriously, my dear sister, why do you care about those nonsense things? There are always all kinds of gossips, this kind of gossip. Absurd things, no one will take it seriously, no one!" She stood up abruptly, "It's just some jokes after dinner, boring and ridiculous!"

Mrs. Herbert was petrified, her eyes widened, and she could not utter a word.

The first queen regained her composure slightly, and she took a deep breath, "Okay, let's stop talking about these boring things. Go and do your own thing, I want to rest for a while."

Mrs. Herbert curtseyed hastily, and hastily left the room.

The first queen stood there blankly, but suddenly her legs gave way and she collapsed on the Turkish sofa behind her.

……

Half a month since this conversation took place, the queen's pregnancy reaction has become more and more serious.The severe discomfort left her exhausted and unable to sleep at night.Although he just retreated to his bedroom every day, he still looked exhausted.

One autumn afternoon, the first queen, Catherine Parr, was sitting by the window, watching the scenery outside through the frost-covered window.The setting sun hangs on the western horizon, and the warm afterglow gently caresses the withered morning glory and dry branches of ivy on the wall.

Empress Xian showed an irritable expression on her face, and her white fingers nervously tore the white petals of the roses in the celadon vase on the small coffee table in front of her.The throbbing of the veins in her temples was so obvious on her thin, disfigured face that they trembled like vines hanging from a white wall in a gust of wind.

Although she tried her best to appear indifferent, there was no doubt that Mrs. Herbert's words had an impact on the queen. These days, even when there was no pregnancy reaction, she seemed to be deeply worried and had trouble falling asleep.

The last petal on the rose was also pulled off, and slowly fell from the fingers of the first queen to the carpet, where the same white petals had already fallen.

The first queen tossed the rose stem far away, regardless of the small thorns on her fingers that had already pricked some tiny blood spots.

Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of a familiar figure in front of the window of her husband's apartment opposite: Sir Thomas was standing in front of the window, and the golden light of the setting sun enveloped him, making him look like a bronze statue.

Sir Thomas cast his eyes on a certain point in the garden, his eyes were full of ambition and desire, and he did not hide it at all. Not only was the first queen startled by this straightforward gaze, she followed it to look at A corner of the garden.

By a fountain in the garden, Princess Elizabeth is sitting under a laurel tree with a book in her hand.

Queen Xian's face turned pale all of a sudden, she covered her mouth with her hands, and the familiar feeling of nausea returned.

She slumped on the couch, gasping for breath.

After a few minutes, the exhausted Queen Xian finally calmed down.She reached out to pick up the glass jug on the tea table in front of her, and poured herself a glass of clear water.

She picked up the cup and drank it down, and the overwhelming feeling in her stomach finally calmed down a bit.

She straightened up again and looked across the window of her husband's room.

No one was to be seen there anymore.

The first queen turned her eyes to the garden again, and she was shocked to find that her husband had gone downstairs at some point, and was walking towards Princess Elizabeth along a path leading to the fountain.As he walked, he absently whipped the dried hollyhock stalks along the path with his light wicker stick, leaving clumps of dry leaves behind.

The Queen watched as her husband walked to the fountain and bowed to Princess Elizabeth.

The princess put down the book in her hand, smiled and said something to him.

Sir Thomas stepped forward, lowered his head, and gently kissed the princess' forehead like a loving father, but his hand on the princess' waist seemed extremely inappropriate.

Queen Xian's face turned blue, she stretched out a hand that had become thin, and stared at the man and woman by the fountain with eyes like a hawk staring at a lark.

Sir Thomas smiled and took Princess Elizabeth's hand and led her towards the gate. The setting sun cast two long shadows behind them.

Queen Xian vomited violently, and she felt a sour and bitter taste in her mouth, which was the mixture of bile and gastric juice.

……

At eight o'clock in the evening, the butler struck the gong to start dinner.

Princess Elizabeth wore a beautiful white dress embroidered with blooming white roses and camellias, followed by Miss Jane Grey, who was similarly dressed.

At the landing Sir Thomas was already waiting for the ladies. "Your Highness." He took Princess Elizabeth's hand, kissed it lightly, and pinched the right hand holding the little hand of the princess lightly.

Princess Elizabeth responded with a sweet smile of a young girl, which made Sir Thomas's heart flutter.Suppressing his delight as best he could, he turned to Miss Jane Gray and bowed slightly.

Jane Gray nodded to him, and took half a step back with a wink.

Sir Thomas entered the dining-room, taking the Princess's arm.

When the door of the restaurant opened, the three were shocked to find that the first queen had already taken their seats in the restaurant.

Catherine Parr wore a gorgeous gold dress, her head and dress were full of jewels, and the pearls on her hood gleamed softly in the candlelight.She looked ten years older than before she was pregnant. Even with a thick layer of white powder on her face, it was difficult to cover up the decadent blue color underneath.

Queen Xian glanced coldly at the embarrassing crowd, "Good night, everyone." Her voice was a little hoarse.

Princess Elizabeth was the first to react, "Good night, madam! How are you feeling today?" She walked to her seat, pulled out the armchair, and sat down.

"I'm fine, Your Highness." Queen Xian nodded to her stepdaughter.

Miss Jane Gray also took a seat behind the princess, leaving only Sir Thomas standing there with some embarrassment.After a while, he finally squeezed out a smile, "Ma'am." He bowed slightly, walked to his seat and sat down.

"Everyone seems to be a little surprised that I came here tonight?" The voice of the first queen sounded a little weird.

"I am very glad that you have the appetite to dine with us today." Princess Elizabeth replied with a wide smile.

The servants began to serve the first course.

The first queen smiled slightly, and looked at her husband again.

"And you? My dear husband, you seem very surprised?"

Sir Thomas' face was gloomy, and he replied bluntly, "I am not surprised at all. After all, this is your house, and it is very natural for you to appear wherever you are." He lowered his head, picked up his knife and fork, and began to eat.

Queen Xian raised her eyebrows slightly.

Miss Jane Gray was absorbed in her plate of smoked salmon as if nothing had happened.

Needle dropping could be heard in the room, and for a while there was only the faint clanging of knives and forks.

The main course came. It was a beautiful grouse, which was roasted and fragrant. The chefs decorated it with gorgeous feathers, making this beautiful bird look like it was about to fly.

The first queen and the queen began to feast on it, and changed from the previous lack of appetite.But she was swallowing nervously rather than eating normally.She kept stuffing grouse into her mouth, and the oil trickled down from the corners of her mouth, staining the messy collar.

When the first queen finally put down the knife and fork, she raised her head and found that the other three people at the table were looking at her with strange eyes, and there was a trace of anxiety in the eyes of the two girls.

Queen Xian suddenly laughed, "Why don't you all eat it?" She pointed to the bird that had lost all its beauty, "Hurry up! It won't taste good when it gets cold." She giggled again. He laughed happily, like a night owl hovering in the dark night sky.

Princess Elizabeth smiled awkwardly, "I think I'd better go back to my room." She put down her knife and fork.

The first queen stretched out half of her body and stretched out her arms to signal her to stay where she was, "Don't you try this grouse? Mr. Bassombierre cooked it perfectly today...Look how much I ate!"

"This is a bit too greasy, but thank you for your kindness, madam." The princess replied.

"Then please stay here as well, there will be dessert later." The queen's tone was quite soft, but her meaning was firm.

Sir Thomas finally spoke with a gloomy face, "Your Highness, if you want to go back, please go home. Good night." He stood up and bowed to the princess.

"I invite you to stay, the dessert hasn't been served yet." Queen Xian threw the fork on the table with a snap.

"Honestly, Kate, you must be tired, and you should go back to rest." Sir Thomas turned to his wife. He knocked on his glass, and a servant opened the door.

"What are your orders, sir?"

"Please inform the kitchen that there is no dessert, the ladies are tired," Sir Thomas ordered.

Queen Xian suddenly grabbed the glass at hand and drank the wine in the glass.She hurls the glass onto the table with a jerk.

The cup exploded into countless fragments and splashed everywhere, the girls screamed and avoided it.

A tiny piece of debris scratched the face of the first queen, leaving a tiny streak of blood on it, but she didn't realize it. "Please inform the kitchen that dessert is now served." She stared at the servant as if she wanted to swallow him in one gulp.

"Really, none of us thought..." cried Sir Thomas.

"I am the head of the family!" The queen suddenly stood up, slammed the table, and shouted at the servant who had been stunned, "This is my house, and you are my servants! Not his! She pointed to the door, "Go and tell me the kitchen, now serve dessert."

The servant jumped up like a cat whose tail has been stepped on, and ran for the door.

Queen Xian sat back on the chair, her chest heaving, obviously extremely emotional.

Dessert was brought into the room by a group of bowed servants, a cake made from strawberries and raspberries freshly picked in the conservatory.

The first queen began to eat the cake with big mouthfuls, but no one moved a mouthful except her.

When the queen finished eating the dessert on the plate, she waved her hand, and the servant hurried forward to remove the plate.She wiped her mouth with a napkin, threw it on the floor, and turned to the ladies.

"Your Royal Highness, Miss Jane Gray, if you don't mind, I would like to spend tonight talking to my husband about some important matters." She pronounced the words "my husband" deliberately emphatically .

Miss Jane Gray, as if pardoned, rose to her feet, curtseyed quickly, and fled the room as fast as she could.

Princess Elizabeth also stood up, and she nodded arrogantly towards the first queen, her eyes revealing a vague contempt, which caused the first queen to ignite an unknown fire, but she didn't know how to do it.

"Good night then, madam," said Princess Elizabeth.

"Good night, Your Highness." The first queen's voice was very stiff.

Princess Elizabeth nodded to Sir Thomas again, then lifted her skirt and walked out gracefully.

When she left the room, she closed the door behind her.