Despite the wails of Lady Dain and Victoria, Her Majesty Queen’s expression remained unmoved. She glared at the two on the screen as they proclaimed their innocence, the disgust in her eyes palpable. It was clear that after being repeatedly humiliated, her patience and tolerance for Lady Dain and Victoria had completely run out.

’Why do these two idiots never consider the consequences?’ 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

’These two idiots have brought utter shame upon the Imperial Family.’ Now, even her gaze toward Duke Lu Xia was filled with annoyance.

However, she concealed this well and didn’t let it show.

She snapped, "Enough! Stop crying! I will have your residence on the Imperial Star confiscated. From now on, you two are not to appear on the Imperial Star again. Don’t even think about returning. Just stay in your fiefdom and reflect on what you’ve done."

Lady Dain and Victoria had originally hoped they could return to the Imperial Star after spending some time in their fiefdom, but they never expected Her Majesty Queen to banish them outright.

A fresh wave of wailing erupted from them, as they clearly couldn’t accept this outcome.

Lady Dain wailed, "Your Majesty! All these years, even if we haven’t earned great merits, we’ve toiled tirelessly! Our grandparents built this empire together! Must you be so ruthless and drive us to ruin? Lu Xia is just an ordinary Duke! So what if she dies? You can ennoble thousands more Dukes. Must you treat us this way for her sake?"

With these words, her malice was completely undisguised.

Lu Xia lowered her eyes, her expression innocent and pitiful. Lady Daina reached out, took her hand, and gave it a light, comforting squeeze.

Her Majesty Queen’s face flushed with anger. She couldn’t believe this fool was so brazen. ’Even if you truly think that, you should never say it out loud!’

"Enough! Enough! I’ve had enough of you! Lady Dain, if you don’t want to live, then go die! Die now! Die this instant!"

Her Majesty Queen was now thoroughly enraged, unable to remain calm and composed. She glared at the woman on the screen, wishing she would vanish from her sight this instant.

At that very moment, however, a tremendous roar suddenly echoed from the other end of the screen.

The sheer volume of the sound left everyone on both ends of the call stunned. Before Her Majesty Queen could even process what the noise was, the expressions on Victoria and Lady Dain’s faces changed drastically. The screen flickered, and a group of people in the dark uniforms of the Rebel Army stormed in.

At this sight, Her Majesty Queen’s eyes widened in shock. At the same instant, the screen connecting them abruptly went dark.

"What is going on? Someone, investigate at once! I want to know immediately what has happened in Lady Dain and Victoria’s fiefdom! Why has the Rebel Army landed there?"

Seeing Her Majesty Queen’s pale and apprehensive face, Lu Xia was also stunned. ’What a coincidence. For the Rebel Army to land in Lady Dain and Victoria’s fiefdom at this exact moment, right after Her Majesty told them to go die... it’s almost as if the universe granted her wish. If the timing weren’t so inappropriate, I would have burst out laughing.’

Lady Daina was also astonished. No one could have expected such a coincidence—that just as Her Majesty Queen was telling Lady Dain and Victoria to die, the Rebel Army would suddenly burst in.

For a moment, the room was eerily silent, broken only by Her Majesty Queen’s ragged, emotional gasps.

Her Majesty Queen was clearly too unsettled by this sudden turn of events to deal with Lady Daina and Duke Lu Xia. She waved her hand dismissively. "You two may go. Do not speak of what happened today to anyone."

Lu Xia replied, adding with concern, "Your Majesty, please take care of yourself."

Her Majesty Queen nodded and waved her hand again, clearly unwilling to speak further. Lu Xia and Lady Daina then left the Imperial Palace.

Lady Daina suddenly let out a soft chuckle. "It truly is a case of ’what goes around, comes around.’ It was only a matter of time. Dain and Victoria are not going to have an easy time of it now. After all, we’re talking about the Rebel Army."

Hearing this, Lu Xia finally understood. ’The relationship between Lady Daina and Lady Dain must be truly awful. Her own sister might have just been captured by the Rebel Army, yet not only is Lady Daina not nervous or afraid, she’s actually in the mood to gloat.’

After she spoke, Lady Daina noticed the questioning look in Lu Xia’s eyes and laughed. "I told you my relationship with Lady Dain is terrible. It’s been that way since we were children. I’ve often wished I didn’t have a sister. Now, it seems my wish has come true."

Lu Xia didn’t know how to respond to that, so she just smiled. "It’s just that Her Majesty Queen didn’t seem very happy."

"I’d be surprised if she were happy. The Rebel Army is practically at our doorstep now. Even though she banished Lady Dain and Victoria to their fiefdom, it’s not some remote, backwater territory."

Lu Xia hummed, indicating she understood.

’No wonder Her Majesty Queen was so nervous. The Rebel Army’s infiltration is clearly deeper than she imagined.’

Lady Daina gently patted her shoulder. "Don’t overthink it. If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up. Even if the Rebel Army conquers the Imperial Star, we won’t be the ones to suffer."

Lu Xia didn’t understand why Lady Daina was so certain the Rebel Army wouldn’t harm them. But before she could ask, Lady Daina continued, "Because the one who’ll suffer for sure is Her Majesty Queen. As for us? We’re just ordinary people."

Lu Xia couldn’t help but wonder, ’Is that really how it is?’

After parting ways with Lady Daina, Lu Xia drove herself home. It was already late at night, but Duke Lu Xia’s Mansion was still brightly lit. Clearly, neither the old butler, Smelian, nor Cecil had gone to bed; they were still waiting for her to return.

Hearing the sound of a hovercar landing, the three of them emerged from their rooms. Smelian was the first to approach, meeting Lu Xia as she stepped out of the vehicle. "Are you okay, Xiaxia?" he asked with concern.

Lu Xia nodded. "I’m fine. Why are you all still up? Didn’t I tell you not to wait for me?"

Cecil walked over, his clear eyes fixed on her. "Sister, are you really okay?"

"I’m really fine. Besides, Lady Daina was with me, so how could anything happen? It’s getting late. All of you should go get some rest."

Lu Xia led them into the house, and the old butler asked, "Would you like some supper?"

He was thinking about Lu Xia’s special condition, which made her get hungry easily. Although she usually didn’t eat late at night, she had been out for a while, and he was worried Duke Lu Xia wouldn’t be able to last until morning.

However, Lu Xia shook her head. "Just a glass of warm water, please. Nothing else. It’s too late, and I don’t feel like eating."

Hearing this, the old butler didn’t insist. He turned and poured Lu Xia a glass of warm water.

After finishing the water, Lu Xia felt much calmer. She looked at Smelian’s worried gaze and at Cecil, who was still reluctant to go to his room, and spoke with another smile, "What, are you two planning to pull an all-nighter? Well, in that case, I’m heading to my room to rest first."

Lu Xia’s teasing helped dissipate much of the worry in their eyes. Cecil said goodnight to her and went upstairs. Smelian, however, followed Lu Xia into her room. After shutting the door, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and asked once more, "Xiaxia, are you really okay?"