Jasper had vanished for three whole years without a word. How could Agnes not worry about him?
Just as he was about to speak, Pauline suddenly shoved me hard and exclaimed, "You vile woman! How dare you try to smear Jasper's name and make it his fault?"
I felt a sharp pain at the back of my head, and my vision blurred instantly. The metal studs on the manor gate split my scalp open, leaving a thick trail of blood behind.
All strength drained from me. I collapsed to the ground as a heavy, sinking pain surged through my lower abdomen.
Agnes screamed, "Quick! Get the royal physician here!"
Several maids, old and young, moved to rush out of the manor. However, Jasper's men obstructed their path.
Seeing this, Agnes shouted in fury, "Are you going to ignore my words as well?"
Pauline sneered mercilessly, "The royal physicians serve the noble ladies in the palace. How could a shameless woman like Isabella ever be worthy of them?"
Jasper ordered coldly, "Guards, protect my mother. Do not let her be deceived by the wicked."
As his words fell, a soldier who was over eight feet tall seized Agnes.
She stared at Jasper in disbelief. "I am your mother!"
Agnes struggled several times. In response, the soldier twisted her arm back in one ruthless motion. She cried out in pain, but Jasper remained unmoved.
I clutched my stomach and struggled to my feet. "Have you lost your mind? If you don't want to die, let us go right now! You can't afford the consequences for harming the child I'm carrying!"
Jasper said nothing. He calmly drew the long whip from his waist. With a flick of his wrist, a sharp crack tore through the air.
A searing pain exploded across my knees. I crashed down to the ground. The freshly opened wounds sank into dust and mud. For a moment, I could feel the pain right in my bones.
Jasper raised his voice and said, "I cannot tolerate this woman's behavior. It's a disgrace to the General's Manor. As such, I must right the wrong by doling out the corresponding punishment. I gave you a chance, Isabella. Since you refuse to get rid of this bastard child, I'll do it with my own hands."
Ignoring the blood pouring from my knees, I scrambled backward, desperately hoping that I could escape.
"What are you trying to do?" I asked.
Jasper closed in on me step by step. "To carry out the whipping, of course. You committed adultery and poisoned your mother-in-law. Today, I'll whip you a hundred times in public as a warning to others!"
My breath caught as my eyes instinctively fell on the whip in his hand. That whip had followed Jasper onto the battlefield for years. No one knew how much blood it had already tasted.
If even one lash landed, I might not be able to survive it, let alone my baby!
Amid the crowd's cries of approval, Jasper swung the whip again. It came so fast that I could only shield my stomach and squeeze my eyes shut.
The pain didn't come.
I hesitantly looked up and saw that a shadow guard was standing in front of me with one hand clamped tightly around the whip.
"General Oakley, Ms. Slade is carrying a child of nobility. She is not someone you can strike. I ask that you stop."
It was the first time anyone had dared to defy Jasper so openly by stopping his blow midway.
Jasper narrowed his eyes and studied the guard. "Who are you? I am disciplining my wife. How does this concern you?"
The shadow guard replied in a composed and neutral tone, "If you wish to know the truth, perhaps we can move over—"
The next instant, Jasper let out a cold laugh and yanked the whip free. He lashed it toward the shadow guard at full force.
"I'd like to see who dares covet my woman!" he bellowed.
The guard failed to react in time. Half his face was flayed open in an instant. He collapsed to the ground and lay there, motionless.
Those with weaker nerves screamed almost simultaneously. Agnes fainted from fright and was immediately carried away to be put under strict supervision.
Now, there was absolutely no one left who could save me.
Upon realizing this, all the color drained from my face. When I looked at Jasper again, I saw in his eyes the strong intent to rob me of my life.
"Here I was, thinking you'd latched onto some powerful figure. So this is it? You betrayed me for a guard who can only stay in the shadows?" Jasper jeered.
At that point, I could no longer care about anything else. "This child is… It is…"
Before I could finish, the whip sliced through the air and struck my belly.
