"My choice?"
"That was when I had no choice back then."
"Your Dongfang Family wields immense power. Only by attaching myself to your family could I go further and climb higher."
Dongfang Yinuo slumped on the ground, the sneer on her face palpable.
"You despicable, sycophantic wretch!"
The King of Dongzhou didn't get angry but instead burst into laughter. His expression was as arrogant as that of a successful villain.
"Look, although you're my child, your veins also carry the blood of the Dongfang Family. You all are so self - respecting and proud in your bones. You look down on everyone. Even though I'm your father, you'd use such offensive words against me."
The King of Dongzhou took a few steps forward. Dongfang Yinuo quickly backed away.
He continued, "Do you know when I'm happiest?"
"It's when I see your mother lying in bed, listless, unable to move a single muscle, losing her former high - spiritedness. She could only lie there and watch me get intimate with Jinse. Even if it made her have a stroke, she was helpless. She didn't tell your uncle about it just for the prosperity of the Dongfang Family, thinking I'd change my mind."
"Look at the women of your Dongfang Family. They're all the same. If I'm not mistaken, you haven't let anyone inform Dongfang Yan outside the palace about what happened today, have you?"
Dongfang Yinuo looked up in surprise. The King of Dongzhou laughed heartily.
"A father knows his son best. From your performance at the banquet that night, I knew you're just like your mother. You'd never push the family to the brink of destruction just because of a bit of personal grievance."
"Despicable!"
Dongfang Yinuo was so furious that she couldn't say anything else. Her body just kept trembling.
The oppression the King of Dongzhou had endured for decades had greatly distorted his mind. Seeing Dongfang Yinuo like this, he felt no pity at all but only a sense of exhilaration and pleasure. He just wanted to torture the people of the Dongfang Family. He wanted to see them crawl at his feet humbly and act submissively when they regarded him as the king.
So, he didn't kill Dongfang Yinuo. It wasn't out of mercy. It was just because he wanted to torture this little brat slowly. Children? He and Jinse would have more in the future. But he hated the people of the Dongfang Family to the core.
"Come here! Take good care of the princess. Tonight, I and Lady Jinse will surely come to visit you again."
Looking back, he said to the people beside him, "Don't let her harm herself or die so easily."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The King of Dongzhou left. Dongfang Yinuo was completely drained of strength and sat on the ground.
After a while, there were many panicked voices outside. And there was also the scream of the governess who had taken care of Dongfang Yinuo since childhood.
"What's going on?"
Dongfang Yinuo hurriedly got up and tried to rush out of the palace gate, but was heavily blocked by the guards. She couldn't step out of the palace gate at all.
About a moment later, the successive screams completely disappeared. Everything became so quiet again, as if nothing had happened.
The panic in Dongfang Yinuo's heart became even more intense. She propped herself up and tried to look outside.
At this moment, she saw many guards carrying corpses passing by outside the palace gate. Among them were Dongfang Yinuo's personal maids, the maidservants in the Queen's palace, and the governess who had raised her since childhood.
Just this morning, the governess was still worried about her. But unexpectedly, now she had been ordered to be killed by the King of Dongzhou. There was a huge hole in her body. When she was carried away, the blood was still dripping continuously. Her eyes were wide open in horror. Before she died, she seemed extremely shocked.
"Auntie—"
Dongfang Yinuo's hair was in disarray. She fell to the ground.
"Princess, please return to the palace."
Dongfang Yinuo had no strength left and didn't let the guards touch her.
The leading guard sneered secretly, "She's just an out - of - favor princess. In the future, her status will be no different from ours. She really still thinks of herself as the most favored princess before."
No one stepped forward to help her anymore. Dongfang Yinuo could only crawl into the palace bit by bit on the ground.
The King of Dongzhou was a bit too impatient. It seemed that the two people behind him couldn't wait to take action either. She didn't know if Uncle and the others had a countermeasure. Last time when he entered the palace, he said that there was a temporary solution. She hoped it could deal with this sudden incident.
In Lady Jinse's bedroom, the beauty was lying in bed, her face pale. When the King of Dongzhou entered the room, she just woke up slightly. Seeing him, tears welled up in her eyes again, as if they were about to burst out at any moment.
"Jin'er."
"Your Majesty, our child..."
The King of Dongzhou walked closer, sat down, and held her hand. He consoled her earnestly, "Jin'er, we'll have more children in the future."
"What about the princess?"
"I won't let her off. Don't worry. She'll pay for our child's life."
Lady Jinse got up and leaned into the King of Dongzhou's arms, trembling, "Your Majesty, I can't bear to part with him. It's my fault that I didn't protect him well."
As she spoke, tears streamed down in strings. The King of Dongzhou felt so heart - ache for her.
He gently patted Lady Jinse's back and comforted her, "It's okay, Jin'er. Don't worry. I've imprisoned Dongfang Yinuo in the princess's palace. With her ability, she can't get out of the palace. I didn't kill her for the time being. When you're a bit better, I'll make her kneel in front of you and repent."
Lady Jinse shook her head frantically while shedding tears.
"No, no. I'll never forgive her."
The King of Dongzhou sighed.
"Jin'er—"
"Your Majesty, do you still can't let go of the Queen and your daughter? But Your Majesty, the child in my womb is your real child!"
"No. I've decided to wipe out the Dongfang Family this time. Jin'er, you've helped me a lot. With your delicate body, you've shouldered such a heavy responsibility for me. I'll never let you down."
Jinse nodded and buried her face in the King of Dongzhou's arms. Her expression was unpredictable.
"By the way, how are your father and younger brother? They must fully assist me in this matter."
"Your Majesty, you can rest assured. My father and younger brother came from the Ghost Domain with great difficulty just to help you become the real overlord of Dongzhou. If they know about my situation, they'll probably come to see me later. I'll tell them about this then."
"That's the best."
"Lady Jinse, there are honored guests asking for an audience."
The one who came to report was a secret guard in the palace. Jinse knew at a glance that the visitors should be the God Throne and the Lord of the Ghost Domain.
"Such humiliation! This matter can't just end like this. What's the King of Dongzhou's plan?"
A deep voice came. Two black - robed figures appeared in front of the King of Dongzhou like lightning.
Facing these two people, the King of Dongzhou was quite wary. Even though they had barged in without being summoned, he didn't get angry.