The very next day, Lady Zinnia’s relatively isolated palace received a guest.
"My, what an unexpected guest," Zinnia said with a gentle smile, looking at Octavia and a few servants who graced her small palace with their presence.
Octavia didn’t say anything and just let herself in. A few guards and servants closely followed behind her, though a certain maid could only look down in shame.
Esstia could not look at Silva, feeling heavy and ashamed. If she had lifted her head, anyone would have seen the large eye bags and red eyes, signs of her crying the entire night.
Silva sighed. He did not blame her; she must possess been compelled.
His jaw clenched as he shifted his gaze to the pregnant woman.
It was known that she was one of the people who pushed the Golds out. They had to be extremely careful with her.
A possible worst-case scenario was getting not only Bleulle, but also Hassen, on their tail.
At the same time, this could also be their chance to get what they need.
Although Zinnia’s eyes did land on Silva, she didn’t show outright shock at the appearance of the woman so early in the morning. Silva naturally reported his relationship to her, so that she might watch out as needed.
"This is the first time you’ve visited me after that customary greeting you did months back," Zinnia said, asking the maid to bring them some tea.
It was customary for the younger generation to greet the older generation women of their father-in-law, to show a domestic hierarchy of sorts.
However, technically speaking, Octavia only had to go to her legitimate parents-in-law (her husband’s biological parents) and perhaps some high-ranking woman that the King favoured.
On the contrary, Zinnia was proclaimed dead for a long time, and she practically had no status in the house for decades.
When she was revealed, her family fell, making it even lower, so there was no need for Octavia to go to her at all. It would still be looked upon as per tradition, but no one would openly shame her for it.
’I came to look at the last member of Golds there is,’ she wanted to say.
However, although Zinnia no longer had backing, Octavia couldn’t be outwardly disrespectful to her either.
A City’s etiquette rules for women were quite strict, and Zinnia was technically her mother-in-law, so her arrogance had to be combed down as she was taught from a young age.
She had to do the traditional greeting with those other women who had empty heads, much more so than Lady Zinnia, so—at least on the surface—Octavia just included Zinnia in her itinerary back then to get things over with.

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