He paused for a moment, almost as if he was unwilling to continue what he was about to say.
My eyes widened in realization. “Did they tell you that I’m the mastermind?”
Rufus slowly nodded.
Sylvia’s POV
Rufus and I were not surprised by the cooks’ confession, which also confirmed Joanna’s side of story. Noreen’s original intent was to frame me.
We were now even more certain that the person behind this incident was Noreen.
I just needed to figure out who on earth Noreen had impersonated so that she could act so unscrupulously in the imperial palace.
“Let’s have dinner first. I have something to show you after we eat.” Rufus led me to the table.
Maya served a beef stew with stout. I didn’t know why I had become particularly sensitive to the smell of alcohol since I got pregnant. As soon as the smell hit my nose, I felt the bile rise up my throat.
Rufus was so enraged that he rebuked Maya harshly, as if he wanted to flush her down the drain with the stew.
“Don’t blame Maya. It’s just my morning sickness.” I was unable to stop retching.
Rufus became furious and scolded Maya in a frosty voice, “Didn’t I instruct you repeatedly to not add alcohol in the food cooked for Miss Todd?”
Maya immediately fell to her knees and begged for mercy in a trembling voice.
“Rufus, let it go. Help me up to the room. I want to lie down for a bit.” I took Rufus upstairs and secretly threw a wink in Maya’s direction, trying to comfort her. Rufus’ temper would simmer down soon after I cajoled him. I didn’t want Maya to be punished for something so minor.
Maya was like an elder sister to me. Thanks to her help, I was able to quickly adapt to life in the palace when I first came here.
After returning to the room, Rufus ordered the servant to call the doctor. He didn’t relax until the doctor examined me thoroughly and assured him that I was indeed fine.
It was quite late at night by the time the doctor finally left. After the servants also left the room, I asked Rufus what he wanted to show me.
He went to the study with a sigh and came back with a document, which he handed to me. “This is my father’s diet record. Take a look.”
I leafed through it but didn’t find anything amiss.
“Go through it more carefully,” he prodded patiently.
I flipped through the pages carefully once more and spotted a familiar name on the last page. “When did Maya start taking charge of Ethan’s meals? Besides, she even made shaved ice for him. Didn’t the doctor say that he isn’t allowed to have anything cold?”
“This has aroused my suspicions. Maya is not supposed to be responsible for my father’s diet. She came here when she was little and she has been a maid in my palace forever. However, she cannot interfere in any other affairs in the imperial palace without my express order.”
“Is it possible that the queen ordered her? You know, there was a heat wave during the past few days and the temperature suddenly rose. Perhaps Maya made some refreshing shaved ice for the king out of kindness to help him feel better.” I tried to come up with a plausible explanation for Maya’s strange behavior, but in the end, I couldn’t even convince myself.
It was nearly late autumn. Even though the temperature indeed rose a few degrees, it wasn’t really that hot that one would need to eat a large bowl of ice to feel better.
And today, despite my state of being pregnant, Maya not only made shaved ice for me, but also cooked a dish with alcohol.
“My mother has a lot of confidants and capable subordinates. There was no way she would suddenly need to call maids from my palace to take care of my father,” Rufus said lightly.
“So this is…” I dared not continue, feeling uneasy.
Just then, there was a slight disturbance outside the door. Rufus immediately turned his head and asked in a stern voice, “Who’s there?”
“It’s me, sir. I’m here with some food,” Maya’s gentle voice came from outside.
Rufus and I exchanged glances. He pressed his lips into a thin line and let Maya in.
She walked in bearing two bowls of steaming noodle soup. She said with a smile, “I believe you haven’t eaten anything all day, and you just skipped dinner. So I specially cooked something for you.”
Sylvia’s POV
I took the tray from Maya and placed it on the table. “Have you been waiting at the door for a long time? Next time, you can just knock at the door.”
“I just arrived.” Maya’s lips curved up into a gentle smile, just like before.
Rufus nonchalantly sat at the table and sipped on a glass of water without looking at the noodles on the table.
I took Maya’s hand and led her to a seat next to me. Pretending to be surprised, I picked up the spoon to eat the soup. “You’ve made the chicken noodle soup! I haven’t eaten this in so long.”
“Yes, Miss Todd. I still remember that I cooked this for you on your first day to the imperial palace.” Maya thoughtfully poured me a glass of cucumber juice.
I gave her a bright smile and said nothing. After taking two more bites of the noodles, I pretended to casually ask, “By the way, the shaved ice with grape jam you prepared this afternoon was absolutely delicious. Did you happen to make some for the king these days?”
Maya nodded and replied in a very calm and natural tone, “The weather suddenly turned hot several days ago, so I decided to make him some to help him feel cooler. But I only gave the lycan king’s chef the recipe. I didn’t make it myself and personally take it to his palace.”
I ate the noodles and nodded to acknowledge that I had heard what she said.
“Why did you ask me this, Miss Todd? Is something wrong?” she asked worriedly.
“Nothing at all. We were just going over the lycan king’s diet these days, when it suddenly struck me that you had brought me some delicious shaved ice in the afternoon, so I just asked.” I picked up a napkin and wiped my mouth with a smile. Then I pushed the empty bowl in front of me to Maya and said, “I finished the whole thing! Maya, your cooking skills are getting better by the day! I hope I get the opportunity to have such delicious chicken noodle soup once again in the future.”
Maya covered her mouth and giggled, as if she was delighted to receive my praise. “Miss Todd, if you wish, I can cook it for you every day.”
“No, no, no. I will get bored if I eat such rich food every day. Just cook it once a week or a month.” I shot her a playful wink.
Maya nodded politely and left with my empty bowl and Rufus’ untouched bowl of noodle soup.
As soon as the door closed behind her, my smile instantly vanished.
Although her explanation sounded flawless, I knew the matter was not as simple as it appeared.
Rufus, who was sitting opposite me, looked even more grim and said, “Someone might be impersonating Maya.”
“Do you still remember how Maya usually cook?” I asked and frowned at him.
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