I, Mildred Bernal, stayed in the ancient world for Armand Alwyn and helped him become the prime minister.

But after seven years of our marriage, I still couldn't get pregnant.

One day, Armand brought his three-year-old son home.

He said to me, "I have no affection for him and his mother. I just don't want the Alwyn family's child to be homeless."

But he said to the child's birth mother, "Although Mildred is my wife, she is more like my aide. There is not that much love between us."

At that moment, I saw through Armand.

I agreed to let Armand break his vow and marry Estelle Reese.

And I chose to disappear in front of him on the day he married Estelle.

***

When I had just drunk a bowl of bitter fertility decoction, I heard Brenda say, "The child is coming."

I used to hate drinking medicinal decoction.

Every time when I needed to drink it, Armand would always coax me.

He would also give me a piece of preserved fruit.

But now, even if Armand was not by my side, I could drink bitter medicinal decoction without frowning.

I wiped the corners of my mouth with a handkerchief and bantered with Brenda, "It won't be so quick, okay?"

After all, there was no way I could get pregnant right after I took the medicine.

I had prayed to the gods and sought medical advice for seven years, but I still hadn't got pregnant.

Brenda showed a worried face, saying, "No, Mrs. Alwyn... It's that Mr. Alwyn brought a child back."

The smile on my face froze.

Before I saw the child Armand brought back, I comforted myself, thinking that maybe Armand just brought an orphan back.

But when I saw their similar eyebrows and eyes, my mind just went blank for a moment.

My mother-in-law, Cheryl Alwyn, had been ill for a long time. But now, she held that little boy in her arms with a happy face, saying with a smile, "Finally! I finally have a grandson!"

Armand keenly sensed me being absent-minded and comforted me, "Don't worry. I won't marry the boy's birth mother."

Upon hearing this, the little boy, Doran Alwyn, pouted and cried, "I want my mom!"

Cheryl hurriedly coaxed him, "Don't cry, my dear!"

After soothing Doran, Cheryl looked at me angrily and said, "Mildred, how can you be so narrow-minded? How can you let this little child be separated from his birth mother?"

I remained silent for a moment and then said, "I won't allow his mother to marry into this family, and I also don't accept this child."

Cheryl widened her eyes and exclaimed, "What? Mildred, you clearly know the situation in the Alwyn family. I only have one son, and Doran is my only grandchild!"

I pursed my lips and then said, "This child must not be accepted by the Alwyn family."

After finishing my words, I returned to my room.

The smell of medicine in the air had not yet dissipated.

Armand came in and held me in his arms, asking gently, "Mildred, are you angry?"

I looked straight ahead, unmoved by his coaxing.

Armand sighed resignedly, "Mom is seriously ill, and you can't get pregnant. If it weren't for these, I wouldn't have brought him back. Haven't I sacrificed enough for you? Why can't you understand me?"

Many people in the capital wanted to send beauties to Armand when they saw that he had no children, but Armand refused them all.

However, in my eyes, that was what Armand should do. When he married me, he swore to be with me forever and never take any concubines.

I looked up at Armand. "So? Are you going to hide it from me for the rest of your life?"

He lowered his eyes. "I didn't break my vow."

Indeed.

Now, I was still his only wife, and he just had a child with another woman.

Armand's unreasonable argument made me want to laugh.

I suppressed the sorrow in my heart and sneered, "Yeah. You had that child by using some magic."

Armand fell silent.

After that day, we stopped talking to each other.

Despite my objection, they still brought the child into the mansion, and he was kept in Cheryl's place.

Following the timeline, I found it was not difficult to find out the truth.

Four years ago, to protect Armand from an arrow, I got injured.

But he had sex with Estelle that night.

After Estelle found herself pregnant, she came to Armand, and Armand told me Estelle was her distant cousin who came to seek refuge.

I believed in Armand and settled Estelle in the Alwyn's manor.

But before long, Estelle was taken out of the manor.

Estelle was always dressed gorgeously, looking like a rich lady.

She bowed her head to greet me.

At the same time, she unintentionally revealed the jade pendant around her neck.

It was an emerald pendant, made from the same material as the earrings I was wearing today.

I also had an emerald hairpin, but I didn't wear it today.

That hairpin was a birthday gift from Armand, but I actually didn't know it was a set.

It had been four years, and it turned out that Armand and Estelle's bond was even deeper than I had imagined.

What was ridiculous was that I trusted Armand wholeheartedly.

Before I could speak, Estelle knelt in front of me.

She cried with tears, "Mrs. Alwyn, please. I won't ask to marry into the Alwyn family. But Doran is my everything. I just want to stay by his side and watch him grow up."

She kowtowed repeatedly, and I seemed to be able to feel the pain just by listening to the sound.

Coincidentally, Armand hurriedly arrived.

When Estelle raised her head again, there was already blood on her forehead.

She looked so pitiful.

Estelle called out, "Mr. Alwyn..." Then, she fainted.

Armand furrowed his brow and immediately caught her in his arms.

"Call the doctor over! Now!"

Armand scooped Estelle up and turned to leave.

He completely ignored me.

"Stop! Armand, do you really need to hold her by yourself?" I asked.

The servant saw me angry and quickly reached out to take Estelle over.

But Armand said reluctantly, "She is my woman after all..."

Seeing my cold face, Armand shut up and handed Estelle over to the servant.

Then, he regained his composure and sighed, "Mildred..."

I asked with a sneer, "Do you think I mistreated your beloved one?"

Armand immediately defended himself, claiming, "Of course not. Mildred, you know what kind of a man I am."

Then, he grabbed my hand and put it on his cheek, looking at me affectionately.

Seeing him like this, I softened my attitude for a moment.

I asked, "But why did you hide it from me?"

Armand replied, "I don't want this matter to affect you. If it weren't for Doran, I wouldn't have even given Estelle a glance. Don't you know who I have in my heart?"

He seemed to think that I didn't believe him, so he made a promise again. "I promise I will never take a concubine, and Doran will be registered as your son. You will be his legitimate mother, and he will take care of you when you get old."

He made a promise so solemnly.

The look in his eyes was as genuine as ever.

He acted as if nothing had happened, and it was me who was making a fuss just now.

Seeing that I was moved, Armand grasped the opportunity and changed the subject, talking to me about politics.

This was what we did every day. I used all my knowledge to help Armand become a prime minister.

Armand would instinctively discuss matters with me when he had something that he couldn't figure out in the government.

He said I was different from other women.

I used to think so too.

But everything changed on the day of the recognition banquet.

They held a banquet in the mansion, and many distinguished guests had been invited.

Everyone spoke flattering words, and no one questioned where the child came from.

It seemed as if it was normal for me to have a son like Doran.

I sat aside, watching the lively scene silently.

Suddenly, someone handed Doran to me and said, "He wants his mother!"

I snapped out of my thoughts and instinctively took Doran over.

As soon as Doran was in my arms, he started crying. I hurriedly soothed him.

But suddenly, I felt a sharp pain in my chest, and I instinctively let go.

As a result, Doran fell to the ground.

The maid beside me quickly caught Doran and asked pitifully, "Mrs. Alwyn, how did the child offend you? Why did you drop him like this?"

I covered my chest and found that this maid was actually Estelle.

Her face looked gentle, but her eyes were full of venom.

Estelle lifted Doran's clothes and raised his arm.

There were several pinholes on Doran's tender skin.

The hall suddenly fell into silence.

Then, the guests began to whisper.

"Well, well. I didn't expect the child's legitimate mother to be so malicious towards him."

"Well, I'm not that surprised. After all, he's not her biological son. She pricked the child with needles and dropped him on the ground, obviously wanting the child dead."

I knew that I was set up.

That needle was probably somewhere on me. It just pricked me.

There were so many people in the hall, and I couldn't prove my innocence by taking off my clothes.

Besides, who would believe that a three-year-old child would be part of this scheme?

I straightened my skirt and looked at Estelle, saying calmly, "I've been sick recently, and I'm still weak. I just couldn't hold the child steadily. Why did you frame me by saying I deliberately dropped him?

"Besides, he is my son. He was just bitten by mosquitoes. You're just a maid. Who do you think you are to make a fuss and accuse me at the banquet? Guards, get her out!"

Estelle quickly knelt down and kowtowed, apologizing, "I...I'm sorry. Please spare me, Mrs. Alwyn!"

Estelle dared to cause trouble for me in public, but she didn't dare to admit in front of everyone that she was Doran's birth mother.

With her current identity, she couldn't afford the consequence of damaging the Alwyn family's reputation.

But I forgot that there was a person who dared to.

"Mildred! How dare you! You, kneel!"

Cheryl walked out of the crowd, looked at Doran's wound with concern, and asked her maid to call the doctor over.

Then, she turned to look at me coldly.

I stood up and bowed slightly, saying, "I don't know what I did wrong, let alone why I should kneel."

Cheryl was strong-willed, but I refused to comply with her order in public.

This made her feel embarrassed and angry.

Cheryl snapped, "You harmed an innocent child, you malicious woman. Why can't I punish you and make you kneel? Besides, you've married into our family for so many years, but you still haven't got pregnant. I can directly let Armand divorce you if I want!"

Since I married into the Alwyn family, I had taken care of everything in the mansion perfectly all along.

When Cheryl was seriously ill, I tried to ask a highly skilled doctor to treat her five times.

But Cheryl didn't appreciate that. She even thought I was malicious and blamed me.

Ignoring the curious gazes around me, I straightened my back and said, "No."

"Good! Good! Very good! You don't even listen to my words now, huh? Kneel down! Now!"

Cheryl's chest heaved, and she was so angry. Estelle supported her, trying to let her calm down. "Madam Alwyn, don't get angry. It won't do any good for your health."

The guests all spoke up.

"Madam Alwyn asked you to kneel. You should listen to her," a man said to me.

"This is really an eye-opener for me. Mr. Alwyn's wife doesn't respect the elderly, and she even wants to harm a child," a woman remarked.

At this moment, I became the target of everyone's criticism.

Standing in the crowd, I felt so hurt in my heart.

Suddenly, Armand came to hold my hand and stood in front of me.

He instructed Cheryl's maid directly, "Madam Alwyn needs some rest. Send her back to her room."

Then, he turned to face the guests, apologizing, "My son was just bitten by mosquitoes. Sorry to make you misunderstand it."

With just a few words, Armand solved the problem and settled the commotion.

After the banquet, I made Estelle kneel in the courtyard and had a servant slap her.

Armand hurriedly came.

He tried to persuade me, saying, "She's Doran's birth mother after all. She suffered a great deal during childbirth, so she has always been very weak. You don't have to punish her like this, do you?"

I was unmoved and said, "If you didn't come today, I would be the one to be punished."

Armand sighed helplessly, "Mildred, when did you become so heartless?

"Forget it. You can't give birth, so you naturally don't understand the pain of having childbirth, and you don't care about the child as much as his real mother does."

Hearing Armand say so, I looked at him in shock and disbelief.

I couldn't believe that he would actually say something like that.

"Do you think I really did those things at the banquet?" I asked.

Armand took out a silver needle from my robe and threw it on the table.

With disappointment in his eyes, he said to me, "You should calm down. I'll give you a moment."

Then, ignoring my call, he got up and left.

He also took Estelle with him.

That night, Armand sent someone to inform me that he would sleep in the study.