The Bigshot Married Himself to the Heiress-Chapter 689 - 730: Breaking the Cauldrons and Sinking the Boats - Self-Destruction
The Sultan looked at his queen with cold eyes. This queen was treacherous and cruel. He had only one son, Kiya, and he was certain this woman was inextricably linked to that reality.
However, the queen had powerful forces behind her, and he had been unable to do anything about her all these years.
"I’m well aware of your means," the Sultan mocked.
Despite their poor relationship, they still had to play the loving couple in public.
"Sultan, our customers have arrived. It’s time for us to welcome them."
The queen hid the emotions she had just revealed and put on her noble mask. She stood up and went to meet the customers.
She was already the queen, and Kiya was still the crown prince. With the support of her family, the Sultan couldn’t shake her position, so now she didn’t even bother to please him anymore.
The neglected Sultan didn’t mind. He stood up and escorted his noble queen to greet their customers.
「...」
After the engagement ceremony, to demonstrate the Royal Family’s approachability, a press conference was held.
Although it was an engagement, the questions at the press conference were mostly about politics, the economy, and people’s livelihoods.
Recent unrest in Southeast Agaia had made Abyanabad’s unique position even more critical. This time, Abyanabad and Pelindi became in-laws, strengthening their relationship. As a result, many media representatives and reporters from various countries attended.
The Sultan, the queen, and Kiya sat on gleaming golden chairs, all dressed in their finest.
"...Your Majesty the Sultan, Abyanabad is a country that developed because of its oil wealth. We know that oil is a non-renewable resource. If one day Abyanabad runs out of oil, how will it develop?"
This was a question the Sultan had been considering for many years. He smiled and said, "Let my son answer this question."
The queen was quite pleased that the Sultan gave their son the opportunity to shine.
Kiya spoke confidently and eloquently, "The issue of oil depletion is not unique to Abyanabad. It is precisely because of oil’s preciousness that the Middle East has experienced oil wars...
Abyanabad has accumulated vast wealth from oil, enough for our oil-dependent nation to transition.
In recent years, Abyanabad has been developing into a tourism-oriented country. Currently, tourism revenue accounts for twenty percent of the national GDP..."
The queen watched her son, her face beaming with pride.
The first half of the conference proceeded normally, but during the second half, a reporter from Abyanabad posed a question that instantly threw the venue into chaos.
"...Your Royal Highness the Crown Prince, the Princess Consort is not present at today’s engagement ceremony. Have you two secretly divorced?"
Kiya’s expression changed instantly. "No! My relationship with the Princess Consort has always been excellent."
"But recently, reporters from our paper photographed the Princess Consort with her first love, an ex-boyfriend, checking into a Hotel. Your Royal Highness, were you aware of this?..."
Kiya retorted angrily, "I don’t know! There’s absolutely no such thing! That’s baseless slander! If you dare to defame my Princess Consort’s reputation, I will sue you before the Chief Judge, no matter the cost!"
The reporter who had spoken showed no fear of Kiya. He smiled and stated calmly and clearly, "I am not slandering or defaming the Princess Consort. I only dared to say what I did because I have evidence."
"It seems His Royal Highness the Crown Prince has also been kept in the dark about the Princess Consort’s affair."
"My relationship with the Princess Consort is very good. These are all just rumors!" Kiya adamantly denied.
"I have videos, photos, and audio recordings of the Princess Consort... Your Royal Highness, if you don’t believe me, we can show them to you right here and now."
"Insolence! Guards! Drag this man who dares to defame the Royal Family out of here! Have him flogged!" Kiya roared. The queen beside him tried to stop him, but it was no use.
"Kiya, calm down!"
"Your Royal Highness, on what grounds do you order me to be flogged? I have not spoken recklessly. I have evidence for every word I’ve said... And there’s one more thing I must tell Your Royal Highness..." the reporter stated, neither servile nor overbearing.
"Your only son, His Highness the young prince, is not your biological child..."
This time, it wasn’t just Kiya who was agitated; the queen also lost her composure. "What did you say?"
"Your Majesty the Queen, your most beloved little grandson is not biologically yours!"
"How is that possible?" The queen couldn’t believe it either.
"The Princess Consort said so herself!"
The queen felt deceived and betrayed. "Where’s the evidence?"
The Sultan was the only one among them who remained calm. Regardless of whether the reporter’s words were true or false, this was a scandal for the Royal Family.
The best way to handle it was to suppress the matter and deal with it privately. However, his usually clever queen made the most foolish move at this moment.
The Sultan said, "Today is the engagement day of the Crown Prince and the Princess of Pelindi. I urge everyone to ask questions beneficial to the people’s livelihood, rather than focusing on such gossip..."
With that one sentence, the Sultan characterized the matter as mere gossip, baseless talk!
"No! I must get to the bottom of this! What exactly is going on?"
The Sultan had almost managed to suppress the issue, but the queen stirred it up again.
"Queen, calm down!"
"I can’t calm down! I need to know if Dylan is truly my grandson!" The queen, heedless of the many people present, insisted on getting to the truth.
The reporter had been waiting for her to say just that.
He took his phone out of his pocket and connected it to the large screen with a data cable.
As soon as the video began to play, the entire press conference fell utterly silent.
In the video, the beautiful Princess Consort, her shoulders bare, was lying on a man who was also bare from the waist up. Though the man’s face was not visible, the Princess Consort’s face was seen with perfect clarity.
Kiya saw the woman in the video and squeezed his eyes shut.
Once this scandal gets out, there’s no way back for us...
Paige Desmond, is this how badly you want to leave me? So much so that you’d resort to such a self-destructive method!
Compared to news of the engagement between the Crown Prince and the Princess of Pelindi, the media was far more interested in these sensational topics: the Princess Consort’s affair, and whether Abyanabad’s young prince was truly of Royal family blood.
「...」
"Has that fool of a prince discovered yet that Dylan is my child?"
"No! I have Kiya wrapped around my little finger; he’ll never know Dylan isn’t his child."
That was Paige Desmond’s voice.
Kiya was all too familiar with that voice—so familiar he couldn’t even deceive himself into thinking it was a fabrication.
"...You still need to be careful. Don’t let them find out."
"They won’t. I’ve always been very careful... I just desperately want to see you. You have no idea how painful it is to sleep with a man I don’t love. When can the two of us finally be together forever?"
"Just endure it a little longer. One day, we’ll never have to be apart again."
