Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Hannah sat back in the carriage, massaging her temples. “Still acting like a duchess…”
“Madam Hannah, the problem is that it’s easy to invite the gods, but hard to send them away,” said Gertrude, a maid. “She’s like chewing gum-it sticks no matter how hard you try to shake it off.” Hannah thought for a moment, and then came up with an idea.
“Go back to the workshop. Tell them that from now on, only buy Jessica’s portion of food. Everyone else will return home to eat. If she wants to eat, she’l have to cook it herself. If she doesn’t know how, she can ask them to teach her. Under no circumstances are they to cook for her. And she’ll have to clean the house, water the plants, and tend the garden. If she doesn’t do it, no food will be provided the next day.”
Gertrude laughed. “Madam Hannah, that’s a brilliant plan! She’ll be working in the workshop anyway. At least there, she’ll get food. If she takes up a job, she’ll have meals and a small wage. She’ll surely know which is a better option.” Little did they know, Hannah’s momentary kindness would soon spark a whole new wave of criticism.
The day after Jessica moved into the workshop, rumors about the reasons she had been divorced began to spread like wildfire across the entire capital. Whispers said she had plotted to harm the Marquis of Ironridge’s children, caused trouble with the concubines, and even pushed one of them into the water in an attempt to kill said concubine.
As the rumors spread, someone also revealed that Jessica had been involved in usury.
She was such a wicked woman, yet the Marquis of Ironridge’s family hadn’t handed her over to the authorities. Instead, they had simply cast her out from the household to settle the matter. What truly shocked the people was that Skye Embroidery-of all places-had taken her in, providing her with food and shelter as though nothing had happened.
Sophie had been focused on wrapping up the cleanup operation of the Garrison Unit. She had no idea that Skye Embroidery was facing a storm of public backlash once again. She only found out the day before her operation ended, and immediately went to ask Violet. Violet was flustered. “Claire looked into it. It wasn’t Molly who leaked the news. I’m guessing it came from the Marquis of Ironridge’s family. They never officially explained why Jessica was divorced, so someone within Ironridge Estate must have spilled the beans. Whoever did it wants to make sure Jessica is completely ruined.”
Sophie frowned. “This isn’t just about ruining Jessica-it’s about taking down Skye Embroidery too. Have you found out who’s behind it? Spreading rumors on such a large scale must have cost a lot of money.”
“There’s someone you know well from Ironridge Estate. Could it be her?” Violet replied.
“Serena?” Sophie thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. “She’s the most likely one. She hates Jessica and despises Amelia too. The workshop is named after Amelia. But Serena doesn’t have the means to do this on her own. She’d need help.” The two of them exchanged a look, then burst in unison, “Flora!”
If there was anyone who hated Jessica enough to go to such lengths, it was Flora, who had lost her child because of Jessica’s actions.
Sophie had thought about it before. What kind of medicine could cause a miscarriage with just one dose? She had wanted to find out, but Margaret had been ill and refused to meet. It wouldn’t be proper to just show up at her door.
Violet’s face turned pale, and her heart felt like it was on fire. She couldn’t decide whether to be angry or just deeply upset.
“Now everyone knows we took Jessica in! They’re saying we’re feeding and housing her, and that Skye Embroidery is sheltering a criminal and covering up dirt. The things they’re saying are beyond cruel, Sophie. I think this might be the end for us.”
“Don’t worry. There’s always a way out,” Sophie reassured her. “With Skye Embroidery in such a mess, I’ll have to put the Garrison Unit’s matters on hold for a few days. I need the public’s attention on my side. Once it reaches the Oversight Department, we can make some real progress.”
“But what can we do now?” Violet fretted, still anxious. “I went to see Mrs. Lloyd today. She regrets the decision. She said even if we send Jessica away now, it would be useless because someone is clearly intent on causing trouble.”
“Let’s have Claire investigate first and confirm whether the rumors really came from the Marquis of Ironridge’s family,” Sophie suggested.
Violet spent the rest of the day feeling down, but by the next morning, her resolve returned. She set out with Travis to look for any trace of the culprit behind the rumors.
Avoidance wouldn’t help. They had to face the situation head-on, for there was still a slim chance of turning things around.
The next day, as Sophie was preparing to head back to the Capital Guard headquarters, she intended to send someone to Ironridge Estate with a formal notice of a visit. Luke quickly intercepted her, walking briskly toward her.
“Your Grace, the Marquis of Ironridge’s secondary wife passed away last night. It would be inappropriate to send a visit notice at this time.”
“What? Was her condition that serious?” Sophie froze, not believing the news. “Are you sure it was his secondary wife, Lady Emma?”
“Yes, it was. Giles told me. He said that her condition had been improving with the warmer weather, but suddenly, over the past few days, her health worsened. She passed away last night,” Luke explained.
“What illness did she have? I saw her last year and didn’t notice anything terribly wrong,” Sophie said, confused.
“Giles said Lady Emma’s health had never been very good. She was in charge of the household’s provisions and was always busy. When she was pregnant with her second child, something happened, and she fell ill. He didn’t know the exact details, but hementioned it was a result of overwork.”
The passing of a life could sometimes go unnoticed, slipping away quietly.
The Marquis of Ironridge’s family hadn’t made a big spectacle of Emma’s death, keeping it low-key because of all the recent rumors et
Even the funeral was kept quiet, and it wasn’t until the coffin was carried out that people learned of the loss.
But because the Marquis of Ironridge’s family hadn’t made an official announcement, rumors began to swirl.
Some claimed that Jessica had poisoned Emma, and that she had only survived thanks to a physician’s care and expensive medicines. But now, she was finally unable to hold on any longer and passed away. Thus, the people strongly believed that Jessica was responsible for Emma’s death.
Because the Marquis of Ironridge’s family was in mourning, Sophie couldn’t press forward with her visit. There were too many rumors circulating outside, and while she wanted to put a stop to them, she had no way of clarifying the truth. Without the facts, any attempt to suppress the rumors would be useless.
Claire had returned with the results of her investigation. She confirmed that the rumors had indeed started from Ironridge Estate. She had done a thorough job, meticulously tracing the source of the gossip. She even spent some money to dig deeper and learned that the It turned out that Jessica had been cruel to the servants in the past and had abused them. Now, they were seeking revenge. The storytellers, enraged by the tale, felt it was their duty to spread the word of Jessica’s wickedness to the public. Claire had asked them, “Since you speak so passionately about justice, are you sure this is the truth?”
storytellers’ information had come from the servants of Ironridge Estate.
The storytellers had looked at her in surprise. “Of course it’s the truth. Who is she? She’s Eleanor’s daughter. The king even stripped her of her title as a duchess, so it’s clear she’s not innocent in the treason case. If she’s bold enough to plot against the king, what wouldn’t she do in her household? Who knows how many people might have died at her hands?”
Jessica’s name had already become a mark of guilt. Claire questioned a few more people, but didn’t uncover anything concrete. She reported back with her findings, though she had little to offer in terms of hard evidence.
Violet had ridden out to the workshop that day, only to find she couldn’t even get inside. A large crowd had gathered, shouting about tearing the place down. The gates and walls were covered in rotten eggs and feces.
Violet was furious. She quickly turned her horse around and headed back to Hell Monarch Estate. As soon as she entered, she overheard Claire explaining that the servants of Ironridge Estate had leaked the story. They did it because Jessica had been cruel to them in the past, and now they wanted to get back at her.
Violet slammed a cup down in anger. “This is outrageous!”
However, Sophie took a moment to think before asking, “Did you see Jessica?”
“I couldn’t even get in!” Violet replied, her anger still raw. “Just thinking about her makes my blood boil. And honestly, it doesn’t surprise me that she’d do something like this. She was never a good person.”
Sophie smiled and gently reassured her, “Don’t let it get to you. When we set up the workshop, we expected to encounter all kinds of people. What we need to do is solve the problems and handle the troubles, not let them drag us down and stop us from moving forward.” Violet looked at Sophie, a wave of discomfort washing over her. “How can you still be smiling? I’m about ready to lose my mind over Jessica. If it weren’t for her-“
Sophie interrupted with a light laugh, “If it weren’t for her, you’d be worrying about how nobody is coming to the workshop. Truth is, we’re just as stuck by these rumors. We might as well keep things simple-look at this from the perspective of the workshop.
“Jessica was the first one to seek help here. Let’s set aside any personal bias. Let’s pretend we’ve never met her and start the investigation from scratch. Once we figure everything out, we’ll do what needs to be donat means sending someone away or clearing their name.”
Violet sat there quietly, processing what Sophie said. She understood the logic, but seeing how Sophie was being unusually lenient with Jessica in this matter left her feeling uneasy. She felt like if she didn’t bring up the issue, she would remain uncomfortable forever.
“What’s wrong?” Sophie asked after a long moment of silence.
Violet looked up and said, “Sophie, I think we should just kick Jessica out. Doesn’t that align with what the public wants? It would show everyone that our workshop only accepts good people.” Sophie’s eyes widened in mild surprise, as if she hadn’t expected Violet to say that. “Vivi, how do you define ‘good”?”
“Naturally, someone who hasn’t done anything wrong.”
“Does that mean you would distinguish between big and small wrongdoings?”
Violet faltered. “Well… Anyone who’s done wrong shouldn’t be allowed in. We should only accept the good ones.”
Sophie raised an eyebrow. “So, do you think we’re good people?”
“Of course we are.”