She ground her teeth, cursing Yuri Sinclair internally. 'Get handsy one more time and I'm washing my hands of you!'
The Palace of Concord was silent, save for the bathroom, from which a man's muffled yelps of pain occasionally echoed.
Ashley Bowen smirked triumphantly, holding an exfoliating mitt as she scrubbed mercilessly at Yuri Sinclair's tender back.
「In the Palace of Obeisance」
After dinner, the Empress Dowager reclined in her rocking chair, lost in thought. She felt the prime minister's earlier proposal was sound. Having Anna Thorne replace Ashley Bowen as the Third Prince's Imperial Concubine was, indeed, the best possible choice.
Anna Thorne was of noble birth, highly educated, and her beauty was one in a million. The Empress Dowager had, in fact, been quite fond of such a fine young woman at first—she'd even considered setting her up with her own precious grandson.
