Her Graceful War Song

Victoria was well aware of Helen's intentions. She decided to give Helen a gentle warning.

"Soon, you'll be moving to Hell Monarch Estate to live with Rafael. If you don't understand the ways of managing a household, don't try to overstep and take control. Once Carissa enters the family, she will naturally take charge of the household's affairs..."Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

"Victoria, that's not quite right," Helen interrupted Victoria with an unusual seriousness. "How can a new bride be in charge of the household? I have reservations about her. Since we're here together, I won't hesitate to speak plainly-I don't like her, and I don't want her to be my daughter-in-law, let alone manage the household."

"Oh? You want to take over the household?" Victoria raised an eyebrow. "Alright then, starting tomorrow, I'll ask Kylie to transfer her duties overseeing the inner palace to you. Let her have a rest and see how you manage for a few days."

"It's not like I've never done it before," Helen replied. "Kylie has been in charge of the inner palace, and I've assisted her significantly. Besides, didn't I help you a lot when you were in charge of the palace back then?"

"Yes, you helped a lot, but sometimes you were more of a hindrance," Victoria said bluntly.

"Our parents spoiled you too much. After you entered the palace, I kept an eye on you and protected you, allowing you to have a stable life and bear a son and a daughter. How many times have you gotten into trouble and I had to clean up after you?

"But once you're in Hell Monarch Estate, if you want to enjoy a peaceful life, don't try to make things difficult for your daughter-in-law. Whether you like Carissa or not, or oppose her entering the family, it's a done deal that she's marrying Rafael. You don't have the right to oppose it. If you cause trouble in the household, I won't spare you."

Because of Carissa, even Helen's own sister wasn't fond of her anymore. This made Helen even more unhappy with Carissa.

Despite this, Helen had come to a harsh reality-no matter how unhappy she was with Carissa, the marriage was set in stone. She couldn't stop it.

*96 BONUS

Thinking back, Helen had made such a big deal about it at Eleanor's birthday banquet. If they backed out of the marriage bow, Carissa's reputation would be ruined. After considering it, Helen decided to just let it be and see how things play

out

The news of the Hell Monarch marrying the Duke of Northwatch's daughter soon spread throughout the capital, and the citizens were abuzz with discussion.

There were many opinions among the people. Some said Carissa was unworthy of such a match, while others believed they were a perfect match.

However, another voice soon emerged, claiming that Carissa had married Barrett less than two years after the deaths of Hector and his six sons. That meant she hadn't observed the three years of mourning, and was thus deemed greatly negligent and disrespectful toward her family.

Now, it had been just over a year since her mother passed away, and Carissa was already preparing to remarry. This further showed she had no sense of respect for her family. How could someone so disrespectful have been a dutiful daughter-in-law to Rebecca?

This claim quickly ignited into a wildfire of controversy across the capital. People began to realize that it really hadn't been three full years between Hector's death and Carissa's marriage to Barrett. That meant the mourning period Carissa had observed was indeed less than three years,

As for the mourning period for her mother, whether Carissa needed to observe it or not was still under debate as she had already divorced once. However, it was clear that she was married to Barrett during the period when she should have been mourning.

In Starhaven, failing to observe duties to one's family was considered a grave offense, which could incite public outrage. Within days, the situation escalated, with some even shouting and cursing outside Northwatch Estate,

When the maids went out to buy silk threads today, they returned trembling with anger. Recognized as servants of the Duke of Nortwatch's family, they were surrounded and berated by the people. People pointed fingers at their faces and showered them with spit.

After washing their faces, they went to report to Carissa.

Lulu was nearly in tears as she said, "They talk about observing three years of

*ROM

mming which is generally understood as two years and a bit more. But Lady Shad been mourning for more than three years. The wedding date was also chosen by the late madam after a discussion with the Astrology Department. Now could it be twisted into this? We couldn't explain it to them, they simply refused

Carissa adjusted her collar and smiled. "It's no matter. Let them continue their outery for a few more days. Grand Princess Eleanor has plenty of money. Let her spend more of

The instigators of this public outery were none other than Eleanor herself, with some otizens stirred up by her and others led by hired provocateurs.

Let them continue their attacks for now. This tactic wasn't hard to counter, as it was based on falsehoods