Chapter 181

Chapter 181

Maria could no longer quite remember how she had reacted when she first learned that the Queen had once been her mother’s personal Maid.

At first, in fact, she had thought the Queen was her birth mother.

Later, someone had told her the truth.

She had been shocked, furious, filled with hatred. She had wanted to rush straight to the Queen and demand to know why she had betrayed her mother.

After that first storm of complicated emotions, she had grown quiet, maturing at astonishing speed within that cold Royal Palace. She stopped trusting anyone, whether it was her heartless father or her arrogant, frivolous brothers.

She studied hard, and every one of her tutors praised her intelligence.

Princess Maria was so outstanding, so beautiful. In the future, she was sure to have the finest husband.

She did not understand why, when she was so outstanding and worked so hard, the best they could say of her was that she would become someone else’s ornament.

As if all her efforts existed only so she could have an exceptional husband.

At first, she had not thought there was anything wrong with that. After all, everyone had told her the same thing.

Until one of her tutors said to her, “Maria is so outstanding. In the future, you will surely be able to become a great ruler.”

She froze.

“But aren’t rulers all men?”

That tutor smiled warmly and said, “No. There have also been brilliant female rulers. For example, Wu Zetian…”

“Wu Zetian?” Maria asked curiously. “Who is that? What a strange name.”

The tutor patted her own mouth, looking chagrined. “Er… she comes from my homeland, a very, very distant place… That isn’t important, Maria. What matters is that you must recognize your own value. You are far more outstanding than both of your brothers. Why couldn’t you become the ruler?”

Yes. Why couldn’t she?

How was she any worse than those two fools, Eugene and Dennis?

Although that tutor abruptly disappeared a few days later, and Maria never saw her again, her words left an indelible mark on young Maria’s heart.

She changed her mind.

She no longer wanted to marry an exceptional man. She wanted to become the most exalted person in this kingdom, to make everyone prostrate themselves at her feet.

Just imagining that scene made her blood burn.

Now, she was finally drawing closer and closer to the dream she had held since childhood. She would absolutely not allow anyone to ruin it.

Maria stood before the door to the Queen’s bedroom, took a deep breath, and raised her hand to knock.

A moment later, the Queen opened the door. She had probably not expected Maria to come looking for her; a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. “Maria, you… Did you need something from me?”

Maria looked at her calmly. “May I come in to talk? There are indeed a few things I would like to discuss with you.”

The Queen hesitated, then stepped aside to make way for her. “Come in.”
—
The Queen brewed her a cup of black tea. The tea was bright and clear, wisps of steam curling upward as it released the distinctive fragrance of black tea.

“Your favorite black tea.” The Queen pushed the cup in front of her. “Have a sip while it’s hot.”

“Thank you.” Maria nodded, but she had no intention of tasting it.

The Queen did not seem to mind. She leaned back against the sofa, her posture relaxed. “What did you come to see me about? You’ve never come here before.”
Maria had no intention of wasting words with her. She got straight to the point. “Was my mother Aphro?”

The Queen immediately sat up straight, her once-leisurely expression visibly tightening. “How do you know about Aphro?”

Maria looked at her. “All you need to tell me is yes or no.”

The Queen instinctively avoided her eyes, her hand hanging at her side clenching tightly around the edge of her skirt.

After a long while, she finally let out a laugh. “How utterly ridiculous. You don’t even know who your own mother is? Ask any old servant who has worked in the Royal Palace for many years, and they will tell you your mother’s name was Cecilia.”

“None of them know as well as you do,” Maria said, a hint of mockery in her voice.

Although the Queen did her utmost to control herself, her body had already betrayed the emotions roiling inside her.

She was not nearly as calm as she appeared.

“I don’t know what you mean,” the Queen said coldly.

“You do know! Anna!” Maria snapped.

The Queen stared at her in disbelief.

As if she could not believe the person before her was Princess Maria, who had always been composed and calm.

“Enough, Maria.” Her breathing grew a little heavier. “You don’t look the slightest bit like a princess right now. If your father knew, he would certainly be angry.”

Maria looked at her coldly.

“That name must feel very unfamiliar to you now,” she said. “After all, you are the high and mighty Queen now. Who would be so tactless as to call you by the name you used back when you were a lowly Maid?”

The Queen’s body trembled slightly, as if her rage had reached its peak.

“But no matter how much you want to erase that shameful memory, it truly existed.” Maria used the most cutting words she could. “You cannot deny that, from the very beginning, you were nothing more than a Maid at my mother’s side!”

“Enough!” the Queen shrieked, cutting her off in fury.

Her fair face flushed scarlet, and she shook uncontrollably.

“What do you know…” Her voice was almost forced out through gritted teeth. “What could you possibly understand…”

“Forgive me. I truly do not understand the mind of a traitor.” Looking at the Queen’s appearance, Maria felt an indescribable thrill rise within her. “When you wake from your dreams in the middle of the night, have you never seen my mother? Never heard her denounce your vileness, your eagerness to betray her?”

“Shut your mouth.” The Queen suddenly slammed her hand against the table in rage.

The black tea in front of Maria shook from the impact. The red tea sloshed back and forth against the white porcelain walls, spilling over the rim in several places. It showed just how much force the Queen had used.

The Queen clenched her teeth, staring fixedly at Maria, her expression frighteningly terrible.

Maria, however, looked at her and smiled.

“Are you this angry because I touched on the most unbearable memory in your heart? Queen?”

She enunciated the final word with ringing force, her mockery unmistakable.

The Queen closed her eyes. All the blood in her body seemed to rush to her head, and she was like a volcano on the verge of eruption.

She took several deep breaths, and somehow forced herself to calm down. Then she squeezed out an ugly smile. “I had no idea you were so sharp-tongued.”

“There are many things you don’t know,” Maria replied coldly. “Now tell me what exactly you know.”