The Queen's heart grew colder and colder. Her lips turned faintly pale as she silently lamented her fate. It was over, truly over. This foolish emperor—the more cheerfully he smiled, the more murderous intent he harbored. Her own life was of little consequence, but her family… Whenever she thought of her parents, who loved her dearly, The Queen's heart became even more desolate. Should she risk everything, or beg him one more time? Although by nature she was unwilling to plead repeatedly, for the sake of her parents, The Queen was still willing to make one last effort. If it truly failed, then she would fight him to the end—after all, if everything was ruined, perhaps a miracle could still happen.

"Your Majesty, I beg you, please show mercy." The Queen knelt on the ground, shuffled forward two steps on her knees, and clung to William Carter's leg, her eyes brimming with tears, her expression sorrowful as she said, "Just now, I was momentarily confused. I am willing to pay with my life for Your Majesty. I only beg that Your Majesty show mercy and not implicate my family because of this."

William Carter was startled by her sudden sobbing, and only then remembered she was still kneeling on the floor. Now, seeing her cry so pitifully, he truly had no idea what had happened. He quickly wiped the lecherous smile from his lips, intending to help her up first. Doing his best to put on a kindly expression, he racked his brain for the tone of ancient emperors from TV dramas. He managed to squeeze out, "The Queen, get up first, we can talk things over. Um, if anything happens, uh, I will stand up for you." That self-address as "I" (朕) felt awkward for William Carter, but as soon as he used it, an inexplicable sense of superiority welled up in his heart, as if he was merging with the role of emperor.

The Queen had never heard the emperor speak to her in such a tone and had no idea what trick he was playing. Judging by this foolish emperor's temperament, there was absolutely no way he would spare her or her family. Sooner or later, he would have them all executed. It would be better to… Just as The Queen was forced to the brink and her desperation turned to courage, she suddenly looked up to speak, only to see a strange look in his eyes. They were still the same eyes, but now there was a clarity in them, unlike before, when they were always filled with coldness, violence, and cruelty.

William Carter saw the inexplicable grief and anger between her brows and felt at a loss, scratching his head with a simple, honest look. Just as he was about to offer a few more words of comfort, he noticed some blood on his hand. Startled, he touched his head again and found even more blood. Still, he didn't make a fuss—after all, he'd been in plenty of fights growing up, and a little blood was nothing new. With a wry smile, he looked around, then walked to the bronze mirror, lowered his head, and checked himself. It seemed he'd been struck by something, leaving a small cut on his head, but it wasn't serious and the bleeding wasn't much. Some blood on his face looked like it had been wiped at clumsily by someone.

A thought flashed through his mind, and he began to understand. Under The Queen's frightened, rabbit-like gaze, William Carter strolled around with his hands behind his back, then bent down and picked up a shard of porcelain from the carpet. Glancing at The Queen, William Carter pieced together what had happened. No wonder he had blacked out and then slowly regained consciousness.

Seeing The Queen's face pale and guilty as a thief, William Carter couldn't help but feel mischievous. He deliberately let out a lewd chuckle and said, "The Queen, oh The Queen, you dared to smash my head—you're quite bold, aren't you? Do you know what crime that is?" Teasing such a beautiful woman was a first in his life, and he couldn't help but feel a bit nervous.

Unexpectedly, The Queen bit her lip, stood up resolutely, and glared at William Carter with angry eyes, shouting, "You foolish emperor who can't tell right from wrong, I know exactly what crime I've committed. If you want my life, I'll give it to you. But if you dare to harm my parents or family, even if I become a vengeful ghost, I will never forgive you." With that, her face turned cold, and she lowered her head, charging fiercely toward the carved dragon pillar.

William Carter was shocked and immediately lunged toward the pillar. What kind of world was this? Teasing his own wife had actually driven her to try to kill herself. He truly couldn't bear to see her hurt.

……

Chapter 3: The Ice Begins to Melt

……

Bang! The Queen crashed into the pillar with speed and force. Fortunately, William Carter reacted quickly and wasn't far from the pillar. He rushed forward, spreading his arms to block her. Her delicate head slammed hard into his stomach.

Ouch… Maybe this body was too used to a life of luxury, because the pain was especially intense. And this time, The Queen truly wanted to die, hitting him so hard his insides felt like they were churning. He fell to the ground with a thud.

As for The Queen, she couldn't withstand the momentum and fell into his arms. William Carter, afraid she would hit the marble floor and get hurt, quickly reached out to hold her.

The warmth and softness in his embrace, the quiet and pleasant fragrance drifted into his heart through his nose. Time seemed to freeze in that moment. In his whole life, William Carter had never held a girl like this before, and a strange feeling surged in his heart. Lowering his head, he saw her face pale and full of sorrow, and couldn't help but feel a desire to protect her. Just as he was about to ask with concern if she was hurt anywhere…