novelxo Chapter 17
Once out of the Emerald House, Charles shouted at his men, "Go and find him no matter what it takes!"
"Yes, My Lord!" The men shot up at the newly addressed order before rushing away to find the man.
The loud footsteps and tense atmosphere stirred the entire mansion at its rest. Sue, who was just having tea in her room, got out
with her maids to check what had happened. The moment she saw Charles, she caught sight of his dark look. "Charles, what
happened?"
"A thief went inside. Please don't be afraid," Charles said, sounding as calm as possible. On the inside, he was raging. The thief
had broken into the most guarded place of the mansion, his secret chamber. He had stolen something from him, and if he didn't
take it back, he'd be dead.
"A thief?" Sue raised her eyebrows. "Isn't it a coincidence? Just as Harper came back, a burglary occurred?"
Charles shot her an unhappy look. He had no time for dealing with the disputes between her and Harper. Sue stopped the
subject at once and then asked, "Has the thief been caught?"
"No. But he is somewhere nearby. We've lost sight of him," Charles said. His face reddened in fury. He wasn't expecting the thief
to escape his mansion so quickly yet remain unseen by his guards. He had been hiding a powerful device in the chamber, one
that could've injured the thief. But even then, the man escaped, without a drop of blood in sight. The thief wasn't just any other
man out in the streets. He was trained.
"I suggest we do a complete search in our mansion, especially the Emerald House. Maybe the thief is hiding in—"
"Enough!" Charles roared. "Mother intends to send her to the Imperial Palace. You know what to do. Don't trouble her."
Sue looked at him exasperatedly, only to see that he wasn't joking at all. She paled. 'If the bitch becomes a concubine of the
emperor, she'd be favored with that sick face and she'd go through every length possible to torture us. No, no, I mustn't let that
happen.' "I got it." Sue pretended to be calm, fixing her skirts. Deep inside, she was furious. 'If Harper wants to enter the palace,
let's see if she has the ability and guts to stand all the politics.' "If Harper is favored by the emperor, it can greatly help Hailey and
Howard in the future," Charles said meaningfully. The reason he had reached where he was today was only because of the help
of two women, Katrina and Kelly. Just thinking of Kelly sent
an ache in Charles' heart. Thus, he'd just prefer not even mentioning or even thinking of the woman. Yet, every time when he
saw Harper, he'd be reminded of the times he'd been despicable. "Of course I'll take care of her. I hope one day she'll be
selected by the emperor and climb the ranks to his favor. She'll bring endless glory to our clan," Sue said and congratulated
Harper as if she were her own daughter. However, Charles was unaware of the way she was digging her fingernails into the
palms of her hands. 'Over my dead body does that bitch become the emperor's concubine. I'll never give her a chance to rise
higher than my daughter!'
"I'm glad we've come to an agreement. Go and rest. For the Emerald House, pay more attention to it, if you may."
"Yes, My Lord." Although Sue had given birth to three children, her body could rival that of a teen. If not for her curves, her charm
could draw anyone in. That was why it was so easy for her to convince Charles to spend that night with her.
The next morning, Sue quickly ordered someone to get Harper's measurements to order some clothes for her. As maids came
back and forth trying to get her appropriate measurements, Harper already had her doubts. Though she knew of the purpose
behind all these fittings and dresses, she had a theory that Sue had a plan of her own. She knew the woman would rather die
than help her get to the emperor's good side. "My Lady, why does Lady Sue want to make clothes for you all of a sudden?" Nina
furrowed her eyebrows as she felt something wrong about the whole thing. Harper turned to another page of her medical book.
"As the saying goes, the weasel can go pay his respects to the hen but not without his own intentions behind him." "My Lady,
then why...?" Nina hesitated.
Harper chuckled, knocking the book on Nina's head. "Calm down, Nina. Let her come if she wants to. All we have to do right
now, is wait and see her next move. She hasn't even taken any action yet and you're already so scared. What will you do if she
finally acts? Surrender?"
"My Lady, I am worried about you," Nina pouted. "What does Lady Sue want with us? It's impossible for us to guard you against
surprised attacks, especially if we don't know in what shape or form they'll be in."
Harper smiled, "As I said, we'll sit and wait. We could deal with it when it comes. What I am afraid is that she does nothing. If so,
how can I deal with her?"
Nina wildly looked around to check if there were any eavesdroppers. When there were none, she bowed her head. "You can't
say things like these, My Lady. Even the walls carry ears."
Harper smiled and shrugged in response, not really bothering to care. She had already implied to her grandmother Mavis that
she wanted to go to the Imperial Palace. One reason was to let Charles see her value to avoid killing her. Another was just to
annoy Sue and the others. There was nothing to do about the grudge between them already, having exchanged multiple threats.
If she became the favored concubine, she'd be able to stop Hailey from marrying the crown prince. That was why she knew for a
fact Sue would be taking action against her before it was too late. Once Sue would act upon it, Harper would finally be able to
analyze the situation at hand and plan a harder strike back.
While Sue was sending presents to Harper, she was also trying her best to persuade Charles. She had tried fueling his thoughts
with doubt, even going as far as asking him where Harper's loyalties would lie if she'd become an imperial concubine given their
bad treatment against her.