"Have you communicated with the other Dukes?"
Celia shook her head, "The families allied with the Glihuade family are your own, but the tense relationship you now have with your family makes it difficult for me to easily communicate with your father. After all, many people suspect you concerning the recent events. If I went to your father now, you would surely be unhappy."
"You know that’s for the best."
"In fact, there are also reasons for me not to trust your father." Celia did not hide her thoughts. She was in urgent need of allies, and Lance was the one she trusted the most, far more than Major General Fu Xing. Forming an alliance with someone like Fu Xing would put her at a disadvantage.
She didn’t want to be controlled by others again, unless it involved Ah Foo’s life or death, so she would not easily contact Major General Fu Xing.
"My father..." Lance curled his lips, "It seems that the relationship between the Royal Family and the Guardian Duke is very delicate, no longer the close trust of the past. Your Majesty even stops requiring your oath of allegiance. Indeed, we’re not the real heirs; we have always been mere pawns, otherwise, the old man would not have concealed the relationship between the Guardian Duke and the Royal Family."
Having become the Duchess, Celia’s status had changed, exposing her to different people and affairs, and she realized there were many things she should have known but did not. She had to slowly understand them on her own, fortunately, the family had always kept a record of the family history for her to consult.
"It’s laughable. The old man always told me I was the primary heir, but it was just to fool me."
"It’s the same for all of us."
The two sat in silence for a long while until Celia finally asked, "Did you come to see me because there’s something urgent?"
"Don’t beat around the bush with me, you know what it is."
"It’s time I told you." Since the two formed an alliance and Lance helped her purge the Duke Mansion, they were in the same boat, a community of interest that was more solid than any marriage alliance. The same experiences and same family background also made their stances more aligned.
"Lin Fu... she is Ah Foo. I saw the arena match between you and her, she told you to forfeit and step down, and you obediently did just that, hahaha... Lance, you’re still the same as when you were a child. Every time you competed with Ah Foo, as soon as she said that, you happily cooperated, it hasn’t changed over the years. I thought you had forgotten, but some things are written into your genes; even if the memory is not there, when it happens, your body acts accordingly."
Celia’s words made Lance’s breathing suddenly constrict, and then his body painfully curled up, shaking uncontrollably, not moving for a long time.
"Ho ho..." A pained, repressed voice emerged from his throat, wrenching to listen to.
"I felt the same when I first found out," recalled Celia with a deep look in her eyes, "but I dared not believe it, I had to test it."
"The assassination attempt in Zone 23 was your test?"
"You’re too bold, you shouldn’t have put her in danger, you shouldn’t have used her to test." Lance suddenly became angry, grabbing Celia by the collar, his gaze fierce with a glint of crimson in his eyes.
Even though Celia was prepared for this, she still felt a jolt of fear.
Her collar was choking her, making it difficult to breathe, but she did not struggle at all, for she indeed had done wrong and deserved to be punished.
"You’re courting death," Lance said each word deliberately, "Major General Fu Xing helped you because of her!"