An unseasonable cleaning was in full swing at the Winston mansion.
It was an unusually grand cleaning.
The workers were hammering away, fixing windows and roofs. The maids were changing the carpets throughout the mansion to match the changing seasons.
It was so loud that the sound reached Penelope, who was stuck in her room.
Penelope, wondering what was going on, came out of the room and urged a maid who was passing by.
"What, why is it so noisy?"
"I'm cleaning because the madam is coming to visit."
"What? Bridget is coming? That's all the fuss over. No, no. When?"
"You said you'd be back in a few hours."
"Yes?"
The maid also thought that Penelope would lose her temper and explode with anger.
But contrary to my expectations, Penelope suddenly disappeared into the baby's room next to mine.
In the baby's room, a nanny was rocking the baby.
Penelope said secretly.
"Nanny, Bridget is coming. Tell the Duke. Bridget came alone when she came here. She will come alone this time too."
"I'll tell him that. The baby..."
The nurse handed the baby over to Penelope.
Penelope picked up the baby tremblingly.
"I'll be back soon!"
The nanny looked back twice as she left the room, perhaps feeling uneasy.
'If that's the case, why don't you just let me meet the contact in person? Tsk.'
The Duke of Linchester was testing Penelope's sincerity.
"The Duke wants to see how much Iady Bellingham trusts him and how much she can help him."
This was the story she was told when she first met her nanny.
Penelope said she would do anything to bring down Bridget.
The nanny appeared to have a private meeting with the Duke of Linchester's contacts outside the mansion but did not let Penelope off the hook.
'I guess I can still cut it off at any time.'
Something had to be done to help the Duke of Linchester.
'Bridget, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have done this. You've put me in a corner. If you had just given up Viscountess Winston's place and left, we could have been friends.'
Penelope still doesn't understand. If Bridget was going to cheat on Julian anyway, why didn't she divorce Isaac and hold out until the end?
Julian had no Queen, and Bridget could have become queen if she had divorced...
Of course, since Bridget's background was not that great, other nobles might have opposed it, but if Julian pushed ahead with force, who would stop him?
Penelope couldn't understand Bridget, but one thing was clear.
'You have ruined me to this extent.'
Penelope bit her lip as she looked down coldly at the baby writhing in her arms.
Perhaps it was because her hands were too strong. The baby was groaning.
“Wah... wah!”
"Why does he cry whenever I hug him?"
Penelope muttered annoyedly and laid the baby down roughly in the crib.
Then Eleanor came running when she heard the baby crying.
Eleanor remained at the Winston mansion to see the baby.
"Why are you making the baby cry?"
"The baby naturally cries, mother."
"Where did the nanny go?"
"She was out of the office for a moment to run an errand."
Eleanor clicked her tongue.
"The child is more attracted to the nanny than to the mother, so that's a problem. The child should be looked after by the mother. This little one is already being taken care of by someone else..."
Penelope sighed inwardly at that nagging.
Eleanor, who was expected to have the strength to stand up to Bridget, was actually unable to exert any strength.
On that topic, she started nagging Penelope about all kinds of things.
She also said some strange things.
"It's strange how the child doesn't follow his mother..."
"Hey, what does a newborn know? I'm still clumsy..."
"But still, the child instinctively knows its mother..."
"Where is that?"
"Where is such a thing!"
Eleanor gave Penelope a look as if telling her not to talk back, then picked up the baby and rocked him.
The baby did not stop crying easily.
"Our Isaac didn't cry like this when he was little. It's strange. Who does he take after...?"
"I guess it's because he takes after me. I heard I was sensitive when I was young."
"Hmm."
Eleanor narrowed her eyes and looked at the baby.
Every time she did that, Penelope felt a pang.
From the beginning, Eleanor grumbled that the baby did not resemble Isaac.
People used to say that it was strange that the baby was chubby and white, like a baby two months old, even though it was born earlier than scheduled.
"Give me the baby. It's almost time to breastfeed..."
Penelope hurriedly snatched the baby from Eleanor and held it in her arms, trying to send her away.
Just then the sound of a carriage was heard outside. The butler announced Bridget's visit.
***
There was a gentleman next to Bridget, who he thought was coming alone.
Isaac, who had waiting for Bridget, ran to the front door and greeted her.
"Bridget! Welcome. Next to you is...?"
"He is the court doctor. I am worried when I hear that Penelope has given birth prematurely. But the baby is now my adopted child, so I must take care of it."
"Yes...?"
Isaac was suspicious of Bridget's goodwill.
The doctor introduced himself and shook Isaac's hand.
Isaac looked back and forth between the doctor and Bridget, then chuckled.
Just then Eleanor was coming down the stairs.
Isaac whispered to Eleanor.
"That doctor is the court doctor and he has come to see the baby. Watch carefully what he is doing to the baby, Mother. I have something to discuss with Bridget."
"Really? A court doctor?"
Eleanor's eyes sparkled with another thought. She quickly guided the doctor to the baby's room.
Isaac stopped Bridget for a moment as she tried to follow the doctor.
"I have something to tell you."
"If it's about my parents, then that's fine. I clearly said it has nothing to do with me."
'You're quick-witted.'
She cut him off and followed Bridget up the stairs.
"Bridget, of course, I told you I wasn't going to ask you for money. But Chloe is more greedy than you think. And so is your mother. Chloe's been on fire lately. I've heard that some of the rich guys at parties are eyeing her. But I've been having trouble getting cash these days. She's your sister, so you should be pushing her."
Bridget snorted.
"You could ask His Majesty to grant you and my family some land. Mines are good, and forests are good. It would be nice to have land that has been passed down through generations in the family..."
Bridget, who couldn't hear anymore, glanced at Isaac.
"If you want to get something from me, why don't you try targeting someone other than my family?"
"The other side?"
"Use your head. We're not family anyway. Didn't you feel anything when you saw me kick my mother and Chloe out of the palace?"
Bridget followed Eleanor and the doctor into the room they had gone into before, seemingly unwilling to hear anymore.
Isaac clicked his tongue.
'You're abandoning your family? That's ridiculous.'
Family and sacrifice. That was Bridget's identity. No matter how determined she was, she couldn't give it up.
'Let's see how long you can hold out.'
Isaac entered the nursery for the last time.
But inside the room, an unexpected scuffle was taking place.
"My baby is fine! Where the hell are you putting your hands on!"
Penelope cursed, holding the child behind her.
Eleanor tried to snatch the baby from her.
"What the hell is going on? He's the court doctor! He's just going to check if the baby is okay! Don't you think opportunities like this come often?"
"Why are you saying this? My child is so healthy and fine!"
"It's fortunate that he's okay. Why are you doing this? Are you hiding something?"
"So, are you hiding it?"
Isaac touched his forehead.
"Ah, Penelope. Penelope...!"
Penelope's nagging was harder to bear than Bridget barging in with the doctor and acting suspiciously.
Penelope was now that kind of person to Isaac.
He gritted his teeth and approached Penelope, whispering.
"I'm just saying I'm going to examine you, so don't make a fuss. We're all watching, so what can that doctor do that's making such a fuss?"
And then he took the baby away.
Penelope bit her lip nervously.
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