gnovel Chapter 110. Catherine's Courage
Chapter 110. Catherine's Courage
Chapter 110. Catherine's Courage
"Please, Your Majesty, allow me to see my child."
Catherine pleaded with Elizabeth.
She hasn't seen her child for half a month.
"What right do you have to see him? He is the future of Russia. Your only contribution to Russia is giving birth to him. Only under my care can he become the Emperor of Russia." Elizabeth's eyes were indifferent.
"No, he is my child. You have no right to deprive a mother of her right to see her child. You've never been a mother; you have no idea what a mother feels!"
Catherine's words enraged Elizabeth, who shoved Catherine away, knocking her to the ground.
"What did you say! Don't I want to be a mother?! I treat Paul like my own child right now, I am a mother now! Are you questioning my feelings for Paul?!"
Ekaterina was terrified by Elizabeth's hysteria, but for the sake of her child, she could only crawl back to Elizabeth, hug her legs, and beg again.
"Your Majesty, I know I was wrong. I am willing to be punished however you wish. Please, let me see my child."
"
Elizabeth's eyes were cold as she stroked Catherine's hair and looked out the window.
"Don't be afraid, I won't punish you or exile you to a convent. You can stay in the palace and have more children; you are extremely good at that."
She suddenly grabbed Catherine's hair, forcing her to look up into her eyes.
"Find any mistress you like, and watch the heir ascend the throne that rightfully belongs to him."
Catherine was in tears.
"Your Majesty, I beg you, please let me see my child."
Elizabeth kicked her aside and ordered Shuvalov, "Take her away!"
Ekaterina left Elizabeth's room, and as she left, she took the diamond necklace from her pocket and threw it on Elizabeth's desk.
When Ekaterina returned to her room, she saw Peter.
"What are you doing here?" Ekaterina asked coldly.
Peter looked at her with disgust: "Do you always dress like this? Are you having an affair all the time? Who tore your clothes and saw your body?"
"She's your aunt," Ekaterina replied coldly.
"I've come to tell you that you are never allowed to say that he is my child in front of anyone again!" Peter shouted.
"You should say that to your aunt," Ekaterina said, unmoved.
"Is that my child or your lover's child? But no matter whose child it is, Auntie has gotten what she wanted! Do you know what I'll do? You don't know, but I'm telling you, from now on I'll behave myself."
With that, Peter knelt down beside the table, placed his hands on the tabletop, and then crawled under the table as if he were crawling through a dog hole.
"I will live like a dog, hiding in the dark corners, until my aunt forgets her ill-fated nephew."
Ekaterina looked at him expressionlessly.
Peter suddenly stood up, rushed to her, and questioned her loudly.
"Whose seed did you borrow from! From whom?!"
Catherine's tears mingled with her icy gaze: "We share a common enemy; we both hate your aunt. I can't imagine that at this time you're not thinking about how to deal with your aunt, but instead saying these things here. Isn't this all your own fault?!"
"How do we deal with her? She's the Empress of Russia." Peter smiled wryly.
Catherine said, word by word, "Then I will help you ascend the throne. You will return my son to me, and I will take him and flee far away, away from Russia!"
Peter laughed, a laugh that bordered on maniacal.
"Hahaha, you really are a crazy woman! You'd give up the Empress's throne for a bastard!"
This isn't like you. Back then, you would have become ruthless and vicious, like a mad dog, just for the position of Grand Duchess!
Ekaterina remained silent.
She has indeed changed. Her love for Sergei and the birth of her child, becoming a mother, have both altered her mindset.
It's also possible that she realized that no matter how close she got to Peter the Great, she could never become Peter the Great.
And the Empress—
She now feels disgusted and tormented every moment because her husband is Peter.
So, she had the idea of escaping from here.
Peter looked outside.
"I am now the only sane person in the court. You have been bewitched by Elizabeth, and Elizabeth and everyone else have been bewitched by the child. I will do nothing. I will wait, wait for my aunt to die, wait for the throne to come to me, and then I will be the emperor."
Ekaterina squinted at him.
"Who told you these things? Shuvalov or someone else?"
She knew perfectly well that Peter, with his personality and intelligence, would never have come up with such a clever idea.
Peter sneered.
"See? You're getting impatient. But don't worry, you need to wait with me. When I become emperor, I will order the execution of everyone who has humiliated me, and you will be the first!"
Ekaterina laughed: "Shouldn't you think about all the humiliations you've caused me?"
Peter is gone.
He walked away without looking back.
Ekaterina stared at the table and the "dog hole" under it, her eyes turning incredibly cold.
Sergei walked in.
"Ekaterina," he whispered.
When Ekaterina turned around and saw her lover, the coldness in her eyes slowly dissipated, replaced by grievance and pain. She threw herself into Sergei's arms and wept bitterly.
"I offered the throne in exchange for our children, but Peter remained unmoved. Shuvalov must have taught him how to deal with everyone!"
"And Besdudev, he won't help me against the Empress now, much less risk offending her by letting me see the children!"
"No one can help us. You are all I have left, but even you will soon leave me."
Sergei gently patted Catherine's back, listening to her sobs.
He only spoke after she had calmed down a bit.
"Judging from the Queen's attitude, my departure is inevitable, but believe me, I will definitely come back, and as quickly as possible. There is one more piece of news I haven't told you: I will find a way to go abroad, where there are important people waiting to meet me."
"When I return, your strength will grow once again, and we will definitely see Paul in the future. Not only will we see Paul, but we will also keep Paul by our side at all times."
Ekaterina wiped away her tears and looked at Sergei.
"How many helpers do you have now? When you leave, are you confident you can snatch Paul from the court, take me with you, and elope with us!"
"Actually, that's not a problem at all. We could easily kidnap Peter as a hostage. No, in Elizabeth's eyes, Peter is no longer important. She would kill Peter for Paul! Kill us!"
A resolute and decisive glint flashed in Ekaterina's blue eyes.
"I was able to get close to Elizabeth. I concealed a knife in my sleeve. We kidnapped Elizabeth as a hostage, and no one dared to stop us! We escaped the Russian border!"
"We have no choice but to go to Prussia, because other countries won't offend Russia for our sake, but the King of Prussia, my Uncle Frederick, is Elizabeth's sworn enemy."
"He will surely, for our sake—or rather, for Paul's sake—resolutely prevent the Russians from taking us back! Although I deeply dislike Frederick and Prussia, I can endure any humiliation for Paul's sake!"