Part one

Chapter one: A melodious piano sound

Mark could hear a distant, yet melodious piano sound as he approached the tall gates of the luxurious detached villa. The music made him feel immediately relaxed, and meant that he could forget all the various unpleasant issues in his life - at least temporarily. 

Entering the house, he walked confidently, yet quietly into the large hall, in a corner of the hall where he saw Grace, the woman he loved sitting at the grand piano, she stopped playing the piano and started reciting a poetry loudly: 

“A yellow leaf is floating in the air,

Sighing sadly that it had to leave the treetops,

having lost its green beauty,

due to the ruthless autumn wind.”

Mark approached slowly and stood behind her as she was playing. He was eager to surprise her, having arrived a couple of hours earlier than expected.

He looked down at her beautiful, pale back and the pretty face, partially reflected in the polished wood of the piano. He desperately wanted to touch her and yet he really didn’t want to disturb her until she finished this beautiful piano piece.

She suddenly spotted his reflection and spun around excitedly to hug him. Mark looked about 60 years old and she was a pretty young girl of 27, but this age gap clearly meant very little as her expression showed just how much she loved him.

“My dear” he said stroking her shiny black hair tenderly, “Please don’t stop playing, I like this song very much, and would love to hear you complete it.”

Having said this, he gently kissed her on the lips.

His romantic and tender behavior was most usual coming from someone who had a reputation for being extremely confident and very proud in front of most people.

Grace looked at him affectionately and told him: “my darling, this new piano piece is based on a poem I wrote recently, I’m so glad you like it.”

After Grace finished speaking, she obediently continued to perform the piece quite perfectly, displaying all her talent as a professional pianist. She hoped that this demonstration of skill would win the more of Mark’s respect and love. 

As she played, she recalled how hard she studied at a foreign conservatory a few years ago. She graduated with a distinction, at that young age, she was a proud, pure-hearted and independent young woman. Her experience of living abroad had only confirmed her desire to settle permanently outside her home country. When she finally became an internationally famous concert pianist, various cultural affairs departments within Mars country, invited her to perform and always pay her very well so she often returned to her homeland frequently.

It was during one such visit that she met Mark. Following her concert, Mark threw a big celebration party for her. This was an exceptional honor for her - since very few people from Mars can be solemnly received by the supreme man in the Mars country. From that time forwards, he always lent a helping hand when she faced difficulties and he was also very generous too, buying her a very expensive luxury villa that she couldn’t possibly afford and this resplendent property had become her home. Apart from his obvious power and wealth, Grace found many good qualities in Mark’s character, especially a mutual love of music was their strongest bond as they gradually fell in love.

When Grace’s mother fell ill, she had to give up her life in England and return to Mars country. Her father had passed away a few years earlier, and Grace had no siblings, so her mother was now the only person in the world she had. She remembered fondly how her mother worked tirelessly and saved money on food and expenses in order to give her daughter a good education. This made Grace feel glad to be able to care for her mother in her old age.

Grace liked a quiet life, since she returned to Mars, she had to participate in some social activities against her will. Sometimes she also accompanies Mark to attend some social events to help Mark save his face. She understood that in this special social environment, she was lucky to be favored by Mark. Not only did Mark love her very much, also he promised to marry her. How many beauties were waiting to compete with her for this old man whose hand could dark the sun in Mars. Grace knew that only Mark could protect her and give her everything she wanted in Mars Country. She was already dependent on him to the point where she couldn’t extricate herself. 

Once the music had finished, Mark took her hand, walked to a sofa in a living room and said: “My darling, I brought a gift for you, can you please close your eyes?”

When she closed her eyes, she felt a bunch of keys slipped into her hand. She opened her pretty eyes curiously: “What are these keys for? Why are you giving me these keys? “

“Can you guess what they are for” he said mysteriously.

Grace coquettishly said: “My darling, although I have a Master Degree, perhaps I'm not as clever as you think. Please stop playing mind games with me”.

When Mark saw that she really couldn't guess the reason, he said quite seriously: “These keys are for a huge hotel apartment in this city which is a gift from a merchant and I give it to you for your mother. It’s a nice apartment, which includes premium services, even professional babysitting and medical care. You will no longer need to exhaust yourself with these frequent long- distance flights to visit your mother. You can help her move into the apartment and she will be looked after very well. Don’t worry, darling, I’ll always take care of you both.”

She looked up at him with tenderness and gratefulness, then embraced him and gave him a long kiss without a word. 

He stared emotionally into her beautiful eyes: “You’re a good and dutiful daughter, I know your mother worked hard to raise you so you want to appreciate her. Now your mother and you can be reunited and live in the same city, I hope to help you fulfill your wish.” 

Inside Mark was conflicted … he didn’t understand why he could treat Grace so well and love her so much, even though he had many women friends and lovers. Only when he stayed with her could his impetuous soul be at peace. Sometimes he really wanted to give up power, take her away from the crowd to a wild place to have a lot of children. Maybe she seemed special because of her pure and kind, or maybe this was God’s punishment for him.

Chapter two: The dog manor

The next morning, Mark told Grace that he would take her to a brand new of the dog manor which was actually designed by him. There they would be able to admire the most attractive dogs and taste the most delicious dog meat in the world.

He said: “My darling, would you like to go with me to the new dog manor? It’s very beautiful, and I think you will enjoy it.”

Grace joked sweetly: “Yes, dear, I’m happy to go anywhere with you - even to heaven.”

Mark smiled: “Yes, I will bring you to a beautiful version of heaven today. You’ll like it. You’re funny, darling, I love your cheerful personality. Thank you for making me so happy.”

Grace wore casual clothes, looking more youthful, lively, pure and cute. Mark held Grace's white and warm little hand like a father who cherishes his daughter, and the two walked out of the villa together. After going out, they were immediately greeted by many bodyguards and got into a black luxury bulletproof car. Their car was surrounded by bodyguards' cars. After about 2 hours of driving, they arrived at a place rounded by mountains and lakes. The door of the dog manor is engraved with two eye-catching gold characters 'Emerald'. From a distance, the architecture of this dog manor looks a bit like a fairy tale, but it looks more majestic and solemn, (so people will not think that this is a dog manor.)

The dogs in the ‘Emerald Dog Manor’ come from all over the world and come in many varieties, including some rare and valuable breeds. Each type of dog had its own habitat, per habitat was marked with the name of the country of origin according to the dog's different place of origin. Each dog had a tag that clearly indicates the dog's breed, age, gender and the country’s name of the origin. There were also many red and black flags in the habitat and the entire ‘Emerald Dog Manor’ was managed in an order.

Mark built this ‘Emerald Dog Manor’ for three special reasons. First, when he was a teenager, he was passionately in love with a female classmate named Juliya, and her family had a dog named ‘Emerald’. Juliya was an only daughter in her family and her parents control her very strictly. Except for the time when she was studying in school and letting the dog out, she was almost not allowed to go out because her parents were worried that she will be deceived by some boys. In Mark's youth, underage young men and women were not allowed to fall in love freely. In addition, Mark's parents were formerly imprisoned political prisoners who opposed dictatorship system at that time in Mars country, due to his poor family background, no girl except Juliya was willing to talk to him, not to mention liking him. In school, he and Juliya rarely get along alone, worried that others would stir up troubles to report to the teacher or other workers so that they would be punished by the teachers in their school for "falling in love." 

Only when Juliya went out to let the dog out in the park for a short period of time, did the two of them have a chance to meet. Almost every date, the Juliya’s dog followed them faithfully, looking at them curiously from time to time, as if it was monitoring them to prevent them from engaging in deviant behaviors between men and women. However, Mark and Juliya, out of traditional moral values, only dared to meet, take a walk, chat together, even they were afraid of holding hands because Juliya's mother told her that a woman would get pregnant if she held hands with a man.

One time, Juliya took her puppy Emerald to the street to buy things. As she was crossing the road, her puppy Emerald was playing on the side of the road. She saw a puppy on the opposite side of the road and wanted to go over and strike up a conversation with other dogs. When a large truck drove by, and unexpectedly the puppy Emerald suddenly ran into the middle of the road. In order to save the puppy Emerald, Juliya was unfortunately run over by the truck. Due to the ineffective rescue, both Juliya and the puppy Emerald passed away that day. Even after so many years, he still missed Juliya and poppy Emerald from time to time. As a memorial to Juliya and Emerald, he named this dog manor 'Emerald '. 

The second reason is that Mark liked eating the dog meat very much. The people of Mars originally had a tradition of eating dog meat. They believe that dog meat was not only rich in nutrients, but also could keep out the cold in winter. There was a saying among the Mars people: "Eating dog meat during the winter solstice can protect you from the cold winter." Of course, no one liked eating their own pet dogs. They thought pet dog meat was not delicious, so they only eat wild dogs and specially bred dogs, food dogs.

The third reason was that Mark believed that humans should learn loyalty from dogs, especially in this period. Mark had the ambition to rule the entire world. He needed to train humans in some way to become as obedient and loyal to him as pet dogs.

Meantime, Mark also invited two important ministers whom he trusted the most, to discuss some national and international affairs. When visiting the dog park together, one minister asked him: “Why did you put the black and red flag in the dog habitats of different countries?”

Mark laughed: “Can’t you guess why?’”

This minister answered carefully and with flattery: “I’m not as smart as you- so I can’t guess your intention, my dear president?”

After a pause, Mark said smugly: “Then I explain to you. The black flag stands for bribery and the red flag stands for incorruptibility. In all countries where the politicians and business people have been bribed, we will plant a black flag. In this way we can remember them and do further research how to increase our influence and control the world.”

In fact, within Mark’s heart, he looked down on those people who were the most financially greedy. He thought that poor people could accept the charity and that rich people who take bribes were shameful. But in this corrupt bureaucratic atmosphere, he too had to accept bribes from others or bribe others himself. Almost all citizens were also used to bribery. They thought that as long as a problem could be solved with money, it was not a problem. Hence the people in Mars country were not only at good to bribe but very generous too so the bribery had become a custom in Mars country.

Mark considered people of his nation to be the hardest working, kindest and most generous in the world. He felt very proud of Mars people and of his good nature - being not greedy for money …only for power as he thought power was so magical, like playing magic, he could get anything he wanted.

He confidently convinced himself that he had both the ability and morality to administer the whole world.

After visiting the dog park, they came to an antique building and entered a large and beautifully decorated dining room, in an octagonal pavilion facing a lake. There was large dining table in the middle of the room and some elaborate tableware was laid on it. 

There was also a grand piano in one corner of the dining room, which Mark had ordered especially for Grace. Several attractive young waitresses were already standing by, waiting to serve these important guests.

As they sat down, the waitresses first brought some warm towels for them to wipe their hands. Next, they poured some warm, healthy tea. Following, the guests were given a small bowl of dog broth with red dates and wolfberry. 

Finally, the delicious main meal of dog meat was brought to the table. The dog meat was prepared with different cooking styles and flavors: roast, stewed, fried and braised and served with many different vegetables. Mars country was quite rich in many food products so Mark’s life was always luxurious.

As the ministers ate, they praised the taste of the dog meat, and Mark was very happy to hear these compliments.

Mark asked: “Do you like the dog manor? …How do you think that we can manage the world in a similar fashion to our dog manor? …How can we train people to be as loyal as dogs?”

The ministers didn’t know how to reply to this rather sudden question. They looked embarrassed and flustered, but they had to respond.

Minister Abbey thought for a few minutes and said: “Why not use our nation’s excellent culture of generosity to overcome the world, bind their interests with ours, and then sometimes, for money, an angel will become a devil?”

Minister Bobe interjected: “But human nature is selfish and greedy, no matter how much money you give them, they will never be satisfied. We need to think of a better method to control them, so that our money won’t be wasted. First method: let them depend on us, lose their ability to live, then they will have to follow our instructions. Second method: turn them into criminals, grasp the evidence of their criminality, and they will have to obey us.”

Minister Abbey couldn’t stop interrupting as Minister Bobe was speaking; “Sometimes, a dog is more loyal than a man.”

Having said that, they looked at each other, both blushing rather awkwardly.

Grace saw this embarrassing scene and said: “Hi everyone, let me play a song which I composed for you all, to celebrate the completion of the dog manor. This song’s name is “Beautiful Jialing River.”

Then she came to the piano and began to play a piece of her own composition. This tune sounded rather like a sad homesick song, but it had a melodious melody and gave people a cheerful feeling so this beautiful music made these men temporarily forgot about territorial conquest and return to a peaceful life.

Chapter three: An ambitious wife

Mark returned to his palace one day, to find his wife Eliza in the hallway with an excited smile on her face. She told him the good news which the new surveillance system in their palace would soon be completed. Eliza was once a very famous film actress in Mars country, and despite now being in her 50s, she still had great charm. She was a very capable and possessive woman, not only keen on acting, but also on politics. 

Eliza said coquettishly: “My darling, how is your dog manor? Are you satisfied? I want to visit it with you after the surveillance system is installed. I hope I can help you to complete this important and grand project. With my assistance you might avoid any errors which could extend the process. Once it’s successfully finished, I hope you can achieve your ever bigger dreams.”

Mark was very happy to hear his wife saying this and replied: “You have worked hard recently, thank you darling. I’ll go myself and check the progress tomorrow.”

In Eliza heart, she hoped for the completion of this complex monitoring center as soon as possible, so that it would become more convenient for her to be able to discover Mark’s whereabouts and who he stayed with. Eliza’s philosophy of life was that as long as a woman can grab an influential and powerful man, she will win the whole world. 

Eliza had always known that Mark had enjoyed many women but she decided that it was worth enduring this promiscuity. Then she used her unique ability and means to hold on to the man she genuinely loved, who could determine her life and wealth.

One week later, Mark and Eliza walked into a monitoring center which had cost a lot of money to build and which looked extremely technical inside their sumptuous palace. When you walked into the front hall, you could see a huge global screen in the middle, surrounded by sofas, tea tables and beautiful bonsai plants.

The monitoring center was divided into two areas, one dedicated to the region of the Mars country and the other was for all international regions. 

The equipment inside was extremely advanced and the shiny computers were neatly arranged in rows. All telephone and mobile phone details of each about every important official in the Mars country would be automatically connected to these surveillance devices so that Mark, as Mars leader, could monitor them anytime. 

The Mars country covered a very large area and was split into numerous administrative provinces. Therefore, Mark had installed a dozen monitors within each provincial party committee office. He also knew the exact whereabouts of almost every governor, which greatly facilitated his ability to control all important party officials. He was delighted to be able to use this high-tech equipment as it gave him the opportunity to monitor anyone who he was suspicious of.

He could harness this extensive surveillance system and use it both overtly and secretly to prevent any citizens or officials from rebelling.

As they travelled through the surveillance devices of various Mars country provinces, Eliza asked Mark: “Darling - what do you think of the surveillance centers about our country…do you have any suggestions or comments? Anything we can improve right now will be easier and cheaper. Once the center is completed, it will be more troublesome to modify.”

Mark answered with satisfaction: “You are quite right as always in these matters my darling. I believe in your ability and vision, thank you my dear.”

Eliza continued: “I have noticed that recently, a number of citizens and officials have objected to your new policies, including tax increases. Several have actually launched public campaigns against you. I am sure that some officials want to overthrow and replace us by creating a big fuss over this matter. These fools are just daydreaming. We will not allow them to be so arrogant and I feel we must punish them most severely. Once this wonderful surveillance system is completed, it will be easier for you to manage all your officials. you will be able to check their every move, each word they utter and deed, they （enact） will be under your eyes. Not only do we have a strong military, police, agents and neighbourhood look-outs, but also this high-tech surveillance system. No one will dare to oppose us in the future.”

As Eliza uttered these words, she sounded very calm, yet her eyes were full of menace.

Mark felt a shiver down his spine when he saw such a fierce look in his wife’s eyes. Even though he often employed all kinds of cruelty and violence against any citizens and officials who opposed him, he was stunned to see such steely heart in a woman.

Mark was a traditional macho male and he preferred women who were pretty, smart, kind and gentle. He was disturbed by strong women who had such anger and aggression in their souls. 

In his younger days he was a fan of this woman who became his wife. By chance, they were introduced to each other by a good friend of Mark and they were married within a few months of meeting. 

They only have two daughters, despite trying for more, because Eliza has some gynecological issues and couldn’t have more children. However, Mark had secret plans to find a nice woman to give him one or two sons to inherit his throne of power.

Mark knew that his wife loved him very much, and he was also quite happy to give her many responsibilities. But as time went by, and he gained more and more power, he gradually came to dislike some aspects of his wife’s character which he felt she always wanted to control him and had developed ambitions of her own to become an important politician.

Although he could trust her to help him make important decisions, at the same time he was wary of her for fear that she will exploit him. This gave him many contradictory feelings towards her.

Also, because he could not resist the temptation of so many young and beautiful women who were available to him as a great leader, he worried that Eliza would become jealous of these lovers and turn against him. 

On top of that, the new surveillance center was also something of a double-edged sword. It made him worry that although he could spy on others, his wife could potentially spy on him.

When Mark and Eliza reached the international area of surveillance center, Eliza said: “Darling, we can arbitrarily install surveillance systems in our country, but surely how are you going to do the same things in foreign countries?”

He stared at the line of monitors, and replied gravely: “Don’t worry, darling, I will consider it carefully. Where there is a will, there is a way.”

Chapter four: Emotional study

One afternoon, Mark went to his study room. The interior decoration of the room was exquisitely tasteful. There were a number of precious paintings hanging on the walls. On his big desk sat a beautiful globe that fascinated him and there were some different books on the bookcases. All the furniture in the study room was antique and clearly expensive. There was also a small prayer room off to one side where he could pray in private.

Within the study were many classic books from all over the world, but Mark’s favourite book- which was also very popular in official circles was called: ‘Evil flower’. This was written by a writer born in the Mars country. The book described how the various villains and indeed the heroes in the long history of Mars country obtained their power and profits by evil means. Mark had read this book countless times, and he felt that he had learned some useful ways of behaving as an official from this book. In fact, his career had benefited very strongly from it.

When he had something on his mind or was in a bad mood, Mark always came his emotional study. He would firstly pray and then read a book. After an hour or two he would turn off the light and sit on total darkness. He enjoyed this dark quiet space because in the dark, he felt he could think better. Sometimes, in the inky blackness, his mood changed and he could feel that God was by his side, this made him feel safer. 

Sometimes however, he didn’t like the dark, because in the dark he couldn’t see the true expression on the face of others, and as the saying goes: “often the devils hide in the dark.” Mark thought that sometimes people were scarier than devils.

Today in Mark’s private study, he looked different from usual. He came to the small prayer room with a sad face, knelt devoutly before God and prayed for a long time, hoping that God would bless him through this difficult period. Then he walked to the bookshelf, picked up a copy of "The Flower of Evil", and then sat down on the boss's chair next to his big desk, hoping to find some useful wisdom and solutions to the current predicament of demonstrations against him from this ‘Flower of Evil’ book.

Recently, he had suffered from a lot of headaches. One of them was that many people were dissatisfied with his increase in taxes. Yet if he didn’t increase taxes, where would his huge wealth come from? Many people from the numerous large cities were demanding democratic elections too. If he agreed to such things his power would surely be lost. How could he keep his glory and wealth? He decided that he would never agree to these demands so he would then need to come up with some strong countermeasures to solve them. No matter if those people who opposed him would bleed into rivers and their corpses pile up like mountains, one way or another, Mark would keep his power. 

In his view, a democratic country was like a pan of loose sand within which the people have no cohesion. People only elect the politicians who could bring some benefits to them, then the populace would only become more and more selfish, greedy and eventually lose their lofty morality.

Mark thought that democratic elections were like driving ducks to the shelves, cats, dogs, and even brain-dead could be elected. These vulgar people had only ever known their own three meals a day, so they had no lofty ideals or spiritual reveries.

Mark convinced himself that he loved his country, and initially, he only wanted to build his country and improve it for everyone. But when he got into a position of great power, he gradually forgot his original noble ideal of serving the people of Mars country, forget who he is and stopped listening to others. He only realized that in the dictatorship of Mars, survival at the top is a life-and-death struggle.

The top priority for Mark was that he must strengthen his power over the whole of the Mars country. To do this he needed maximum surveillance of the citizens - including state officials. He felt that as long as he had power in his own hands, he could serve his country very well. But this could only be achieved if all the people would obey him and remain 100% loyal to him.

Just as he was thinking deeply about these matters, his wife, Eliza knocked on the door and after waiting for his “Come in”, she entered the study room. She brought him the mobile phone he had left in the master bedroom.

Eliza said: “Honey, you forgot to bring your mobile phone, I’ve been looking for you all around the East Palace. Your minister Boby has urgent business with you. I think it must be for those people want to fight for the damn election demonstrations.”

Mark replied: “Thank you darling, I will call him.”

Eliza looked with concern at her husband’s pale and tired face. She felt that he had seemed to age recently, due to stress perhaps. She gave him a sweet kiss and said: “in my opinion, it’s best to arrest all the demonstrators and put them into prison. Perhaps also shoot or somehow assassinate those who refuse to be arrested. After that, no one will dare to take to the streets to demonstrate ever again.”

Mark turned to face her, and said, a little wearily: “Don’t worry darling, I’ll handle it in my own way and with caution. Could you please leave me now, I need to be alone for a while?”

Eliza reluctantly left the room, and Mark immediately called the minister Boby once she had gone. When Boby did not answer, he became anxious and called again. This time he was glad to heard the minister’s low voice: “Hello sir?”

“Hello Boby, this protest is getting worse and worse, please call all the ministers to my office for an emergency meeting tomorrow morning.”

Boby answered quickly: “Yes, my president, I will arrange this at once.”

The following day all 25 ministers came to his office in the palace. Mark said to them: “You know that this protest movement is becoming more and more rampant, and attracting the attention of many foreigners and also international media. What better way can you suggest to solve this troublesome matter? Since there are so many foreign journalists interviewing people all over the place - we must be sure that they do not catch us behaving badly. We do not want them to take any pictures of violent scenes and publicize them abroad. That will negatively affect our international reputation.”

After he had spoken, all the ministers began to discuss how to extinguish the flames of these numerous demonstrations. Somehow the incidents must be made to calm down. After an hour or so they drew up what seemed to be a satisfactory plan. Mark read this document with a very serious expression and then handed over the command of the crackdown to minister Boby.

Chapter five: Virgin resort

Mark had been feeling tired recently, so he came to the holiday center named Virgin Resort, located on the subtropical coastline of Mars country. The climate here was ideal for vacations as it was almost always sunny. The resort was a state-owned enterprise of Mars country and was managed by one of his lovers named Ruth. 

In the Virgin Resort, all the facilities were of the very highest standard, matching the best international hotels. The staff, including receptionists, waiters and cleaners were all young and pretty women, recruited from all across the country of Mars. They had been carefully selected and trained for this unique resort.

The evening entertainment included a (superb) troupe of singers and dancers. The performers were all talented young men and women native to Mars country and their salaries were paid by the state. The resort included an (extravagant) and spacious nightclub called ‘Star Nightclub’ where the singers and dancers performed three days a week.

When important guests from home and abroad came to the resort either for business meetings including short vacations, this special nightclub was closed to the general public. During such times the staff, including waiters and dancers in ‘Star Nightclub’ were told to maximize the enjoyment the business conference guests.

There was a huge carved stone sculpture of a beautiful nude woman just outside the main entrance which was the famous symbol of the Virgin Resort. The upper half of her body was completely naked on the beach and the lower half of her body, below the waist, was under the water. It looked as if she was lying on her side basking in the sun, and appeared a little shy hiding her naked hips and thighs in the water.

Many beautiful dancers and singers who could also dance well recruited from every province in Mars country were performing at the different positions on the streets. Both dancers and singers were dressed in tight -fitting Beautiful and sexy ethnic costumes. The predominantly male guests were hard to take their eyes off these beautiful female dancers and singers as they were always milling around them.

One section of the main resort was called ‘Sunshine Court’ and a second area was called ‘Moonlight Court’. The ‘Sunshine Court’ was open to all the resorts normal visitors. but the ‘Moonlight Court’ was not open to the public. It only receives senior officials of the Mars Kingdom and some important foreign heads of state.

Many women across the Mars country felt that it was a great honor to come to work here, because they could sometimes actually get to meet the various national leaders and wealthy businessmen. Many women dreamed that one day they would be spotted by such a rich and powerful figure, and their lives would be transformed overnight. They could then fly up to the treetops to become a golden phoenix, and never have to worry about money again. 

One such young woman was Ruth, who had studied abroad and could speak several languages. She was not only a pretty and sexy singer, but also a highly- trained professional secret agent. Once the men saw her, almost all the men’s soul would be taken away immediately by her beautiful eyes and sexy figure because she knew how to attract men with her mind and pretty. Even Mark, a master of love, who had a lot of pretty women, couldn’t resist her charming temptation and became her lover's defeat.

Although Ruth was only 30 years old, with her natural talent, wisdom and beauty, she was already a well-known singer at home and abroad. Many overseas political and business celebrities are her fans and friends. She had also successfully performed for the Mars Country and made great contributions to public relations and intelligence work.

When Mark came to the resort, he always stayed in the Moonlight Court. The entire cares around the Moonlight Court were heavily guarded for 24 hours of a day. This meant Mark felt very safe here, all the staff members paid special attention to his every need and Ruth also gave her very special treatment. She closed the Star Nightclub, which was normally open and arranged a special evening programmer of songs and dancers to welcome Mark.

Ruth herself looked very sexy and seductive in a glittery sheath dress. Despite being in her 30s, she had a slim, (toned) body and with her glamorous looks she could compete easily with the other young and beautiful actresses. She had planned an elegant and sexy show just for Mark. Not only did she want to relax him, but she also wished to arouse his passion. 

At the end of the performance, she personally sang a song for Mark, alone on the stage. 

Her singing voice was sweet and touching, which certainly made Mark temporarily forget all his troubles. He could just immerse himself in her wonderful voice and admire her sexy movement.

After the performance, Mark and Ruth walked together back to the Presidential Suite in the Moonlight Court. The interior decoration of the room was specially designed by Ruth for herself and Mark. The style was quite sumptuous, both romantic and artistic. She took Mark’s hand and led him out to the balcony of the Presidential Suite. As they stood facing the sea, she stared at him with fiery eyes and whispered: “My dear, I miss you very much when you are away. How can you bear to leave me alone for such a long time?”

Mark thought that, despite Ruth was a flamboyant woman with many lovers, she seemed to be totally loving him. When he heard her say such loving words, he couldn’t help but hug her close to him and give her a long and passionate kiss. 

He said, “Honey, thank you for your company, you always make me want to linger here, and I will come to see you often in the future.”

They two of them laid together on the big deep red colored sofa on the balcony and looked up at the night sky. The myriad twinkling stars looked down at this strange couple. As Mark began to gently stroke Ruth’s beautiful hairs, he recalled how he had originally met her.

At that time Ruth had been the girlfriend of the former president of Mars country and they had met at a dinner party where the former president introduced Ruth to him. The moment Mark saw her, he immediately was attracted by her beautiful figure, he felt that she was clearly a passionate sexy young woman, but also very feminine and was a good talker with a sharp mind. She was born to be social flower. It was clearly easy for her to win the hearts of men and she was a woman of the great value.

Although Mark instinctively liked Ruthe, he had to control his feelings. He didn’t want to offend the president and ruin his political career over any woman. However, Mark was a man who could seize any opportunity and would not let it go. He decided to try to impress Ruth, so that she could speak well of him in front of the president. That way he would get to know her better and at the same time improve his chances in any future presidential election.

Mark asked his wife, Eliza to arrange a grand dinner for the president and Ruthe. Eliza was talented and a natural communicator. She knew her husband Mark’s ulterior motives well. She prepared a generous gift for each of them in advance - an expensive diamond necklace and earrings for Ruth, and an expensive and exclusive Swiss watch for the president. 

From that evening Eliza had become good friends with both Ruth and the president, she often gave gifts to them, building a good friendship with them.

In fact, Mark had to admit that his presidency today was due to both his wife and also the woman lying beside him now.

Of course, it wasn’t until he officially became the president that he dared to cross friendship between he and Ruthe and persuade her become his lover.

Ruthe hugged Mark’s fat body tightly and joked: “Darling, what wind blew you to me, how can those goblins around you let you go? Also how is your dear wife, my poor sister Eliza? I know that she must often stay alone in an empty room. You slippery men only think of yourselves once you become rich and powerful. Without any shame you will happily keep wives but then enjoy concubines in groups”.

She smiled as she said these words and pointed at Mark’s forehead with the obvious sarcasm. Then she kissed him and said: “Honey, you have the potential purpose to do everything! If you need my help, just tell me straight up, don’t be beat around the bush with me.”

It was true that Mark had come to the resort for issues which he wanted Ruth to help him with, but he said softly: “My dear, don’t worry it’s nothing. We haven’t seen each other for a long time, I just wanted to see you.” 

Ruthe joked: "Hey, my dear President, Mark, when did your mouth learn to be so sweet? Just for those sweet words, I will go through fire and water for you and always do my best."

Ruth then embraced him and said, "I know that there have been many unfavorable things happening in our country recently, and I hope God can bless you through this difficult time."

Chapter six: A tough day

Mark, who handed over the power of suppression to Minister Bobe and had only arrived at the Virgin Resort one day earlier, yet was still deeply worried. He thought if Bobe would fail to handle the protests well and the situation were to spread to the whole country, it would have a huge negative impact on Mark’s personal image and status. 

In addition, some other ministers may wish to use this matter to exploit the situation, causing more widespread demonstrations and use the political chaos to seek power for themselves. They may try to overthrow Mark and usurp the throne. The dark consequences were almost unimaginable.

Mark decided he would come to the Virgin Resort to ask for Ruth’s advice and assistance. He knew that Ruth had extensive contacts and influence in the political circles, both at home and abroad. She was only greedy for personal wealth, and did not seek power so this made it easy for him to satisfy her needs without feeling threatened in any way.

Ruth understood Mark's concerns, and the next day she arranged for numerous high-definition monitors, powerful computers, and several dedicated telephone lines for him in order that Mark could directly observe and control his various ministers. Ruth then accompanied him to watch the latest TV news and discussed the possible countermeasures. 

On national television, news footage showed huge crowds assembled to demonstrate on the main streets of the Mars capital city. This was both spectacular and also unprecedented in the recent history of the country. Many heavily armed policemen were also present, following the crowds of demonstrators as if they were about to go into battle. The demonstrators lined up in an orderly manner, holding a large banner with a slogan which read: "WE WANT DEMOCRACY, FREEDOM, VOTES. MARK GET OFF THE STAGE.”

This slogan on the banner and other similar ones were shouted repeatedly by the protesters. There was real anger in the shouting, as if they were may even attempt to overturn Mark's palace. This shocking reality struck at Mark's heart and he was horrified when he first set eyes on this scene. He quickly calmed down, as he didn't want to show his panic and fear in front of the beautiful Ruth. He only wanted to show the opposite-the ability and strength of a powerful man to control his universe calmly and awe-inspiringly.

Ruth’s eyes followed Mark's every move. At this moment, she decided not to comment on the parade. She was worried that if she accidentally said the wrong thing, she would offend Mark or hurt his self-esteem. She certainly didn’t wish to anger him. She thought it would be better to wait until Mark chose to ask her opinion. Therefore, she just kissed Mark on the cheek and said: "Honey, don't worry too much, we will definitely find a way to solve this matter. Firstly, let us see what these demonstrators are actually going to do."

After listening to Ruth's comforting words, Mark began to feel a little more relaxed. He hugged Ruth tightly and kissed her passionately. She made him feel more secure, and helped ease his deep inner-fear of losing power. At this moment, he truly felt that Ruth was only women who would help him in his political career, only could she bring him a sense of security and well-being. Mark believed that as long as a man could choose the right women, and of course they will definitely bring him many benefits.

Despite this positivity from Ruth, Mark was still unable to resist staring at the TV screen. Most of the demonstrators on the streets were students, but there were also a few people of working age. As looking at the angry and excited faces of the demonstrators, he suddenly felt that they all were like devils, devils who wanted to tear him apart. He had finally managed to gain the highest position of power in Mars country despite many difficulties. Then these growing crowds clearly wanted to drive him out of power forever. To Mark, losing power was the greatest humiliation.

He immediately picked up the phone and made a video call to Minister Bobe who looking a little pale and somewhat nervous, he answered humbly: "My great and honorable Mr. President, I have personally instructed the mayor Peter of the capital to take care of everything. He will go to the site of the large demonstration tomorrow and appease the demonstrators. He will encourage them to go home and prevent the situation from continuing to develop in a dangerous manner. As for whether you accept their petitions, or how you may decide to deal with these incidents in the future, that is up to you."

Mark looked at Bobe's servile face, even though he knew that Bobe was being overly flattering, he felt very happy, because his strong desire to dominate was satisfied. Mark had always believed that his power came from God. Even so, he had used many disgraceful and evil methods to crush his political opponents. Now, at this moment, he felt that his weak heart was becoming stronger again. He comforted himself with the thought: "No matter what happens, I will deal with it calmly. I must have a little patience and wait until after the mayor's speech tomorrow, before making a long-term plan."

Then, turning to Bobe, Mark said very calmly: "That's good, I’m looking forward to hearing your good news tomorrow."

Mark didn't want to continue watching the news of demonstrations. He knew for sure that it would affect his mood. This was the first time since he took office that he had seen such a large demonstration. And the crowd were confidently walking towards him and demanding that he step down. He really couldn’t bear it, and felt ashamed to hold his head high. How could he explain this situation to everyone in the future? Before this time, he could manage his political opponents out of the public eye. But quite unexpectedly, these political opponents used demonstrators to directly confront him on the streets as if they carried weapons of swords and guns to kill him. he knew deep down that they wanted to put him to death.

Mark would have to wait almost a full day to know how to make his next move. In the presidential suite, the steady ticking of the clock pierced his heart like a sharp needle, making him restless and on-edge. How difficult it was for him to wait like this… he was not used to wait for anything. Maybe within 24 hours, his fate would be sealed, and at a stroke, the whole history of Mars country rewritten. 

To distract himself, he took Ruth's hand and said: "Look how beautiful the sunshine is, let's go for a walk on the beach? I want to forget about these demonstrators and the politicians who control them behind the scenes. I will deal with them after I think of a perfect plan."

In this summer season at the Virgin Resort, the sun was shining brightly and the climate was extremely pleasant. Ruth changed into a beautiful dark blue, floral bikini and put a delicate light blue silk shawl over her shoulders. The thin shawl reached right down to her sexy thighs. She matched the shawl with a pair of expensive and fashionable light blue slippers. This subtle combination was unique and stylish. As she walked, along the golden sand, the hem of her shawl moved in the breeze between her thighs, shimmering slightly in the sunlight. Her outfit was like a cool beauty, which brought people a cool feeling in the hot summer. As he watched the beautiful and sexy Ruthe, Mark's troubles melted away, at least temporarily.

Moonlight Court and Sunshine Court are located next to one another on the same large expanse of beach, but at some time they were separated into two beaches by tall thick iron walls. Many tourists were enjoying the sunshine and the whole atmosphere of lively crowds on the beach of Sunshine Court.

Beyond the high wall, Ruth and Mark were the only people on the beach of the Moonlight Court Although there were several security personnel in the distance, the beach still looked empty and lonely. Mark held Ruth's hand and looked blankly at the sea and sky in the distance. The scenery here was beautiful and natural, but even though he tried, he couldn’t enjoy the simple pleasure of this view like the ordinary tourists on the beach next door. The excited faces of those demonstrators kept flashing up in his mind, and he seemed to be able to hear their cries: "We want democracy, we want freedom, we want votes, Mark get out of power."

Ruth felt a little heartbroken when she saw Mark's absent-minded expression, she gently took his hand and led him into the shallow water. She splashed the cool, fresh sea water on Mark's face, thinking it would help him forget his troubles by playing in the waves. 

The sea water in Virgin Resort was very clean. Even if people couldn't swim, they couldn't help but want to soak in the water. Ruth said: "Let's have a competition? We’ll swim from shallow water out to the deeper water-a round trip of 300 meters. We have to complete 10 circuits and see who gets to the beach first, whoever loses must cook dinner this evening. No food delivery or dinner at the restaurant"

Mark thought for a while and said: "Okay, good idea, let's compete!”

Mark knew he couldn't swim well, let alone cook, yet he wanted to challenge himself and try something which would not only exercise his body, but also perhaps be good for his mind to release.

Ruth not only had a perfect figure for swimming, but also had very good technique. She moved freely in the water like a vigorous mermaid, and quickly left Mark behind. Mark was not discouraged, even though he was not as good as Ruth at swimming, he was still determined to do his best. Despite his somewhat bulky body, he persevered and with determination he finally completed the 3000-meter race.

After the competition, Mark felt totally exhausted, and very hungry. Ruth accompanied him back to the presidential suite, and ordered some of Mark's favorite meals for the waiter to deliver to their room. She then patted his swollen belly and said laughingly: "Dear Mr. President, look at how exhausted you are from swimming. You should do exercises every day to make you healthier and more flexible. Today I will let you off our arrangement and won’t force you to cook … but this means that you will owe me a favor and I will ask for it anytime I wish”.

On hearing these words, a smile appeared red on Mark’s face and he happily replied: "My sexy goddess, I'll give you whatever you want. Even if you choose the stars from the sky, I'll pick them for you."

Ruth kissed his big mouth and said: “Ha Ha, my dear, when did your mouth become so sweet?”

Accompanied by the charming Ruth, Mark finally got through this difficult day.

Chapter seven: Bloodbath the capital

The next day, Ruth got up early and prepared to go swimming as usual. She thought that regular swimming could not only exercise her body, and keep her in good shape, but also keep her mentally sharp. Mark was still sleeping soundly, so she dressed and left the bedroom silently so as not to disturb him. She hoped that Mark would sleep a little longer, and awaken refreshed, so that he could face the difficult situation ahead of him.

When Mark finally did awaken, it was already past 9 o'clock in the morning. After such a good night's sleep, he did feel mentally refreshed, but yesterday’s swimming race with Ruth, meant that his muscles were aching. He certainly was not used to such excessive, however he smiled to himself, and was proud that he didn’t give up.

After eating the nutritious breakfast that Ruth ordered, Mark couldn't wait to turn on the large TV. He also switched on all the other sophisticated communication devices in the room. He focused all his attention on the issues facing him, and prepared to start commanding today's decisive battle for power.

At just this time, a clip of Mayor Peter’s speech, from the capital city of Mars, began to be shown live on TV. The mayor held a microphone in his hand and said in a loud and steady voice: “Dear fellow countrymen, my name is Peter, and I am mayor of Huijing City, the capital of Mars Country. Today I represent the whole government of Mars. I wish to thank you for coming to our wonderful capital city to offer your valuable opinions to our government. We will humbly listen to your proposals and even try to adopt them if, and where we can. We will do our best to improve and promote the system of reform and develop a positive policy of opening of our country, so that our citizens can live a more prosperous life. If our government have done something wrong, please forgive us. But now, for the stable development of society and the safety of everyone, please go home as soon as possible, and resume your normal lives”.

As soon as Mayor Peter finished speaking, some citizens in the audience shouted angrily: "Give me back my democracy, give me back my freedom, step down from the dictator, step down from Mark, and we will not evacuate until Mark surrenders power."

Some people threw stones, eggs and shoes on the stage, and Mayor, Peter had to evacuate in embarrassment. After Mayor Peter left, the crowd cheered. Then, there was another shout: "Mark come out, Mark gets off the stage."

Seeing this, Mark turned off the TV angrily, picked up the phone and dialed Bobby's video call. He said emotionally: "You saw the rampant faces of those demonstrators, I believe they must have some backstage bosses supporting them, otherwise they could not be so arrogant. They want to pull me down, okay! You immediately arrange to clear the venue and restore the country’s good social order. All demonstrators must evacuate within 2 days. Violators will be dealt with strictly and we will not be relent.”

One sentence of we will not be relent --- it made Bobe creepy, he could understand the dictator, Mark's implication, that means he had to order the country's armed forces --- the dictatorship machine of the Mars country, the police, and even the army to suppress some unarmed political opponents and innocent citizens. Next, the capital of Mars country would be bloodbathed, with corpses piled up like mountains! However, he, Bobe, in order to keep his black hat of official position, would become a cruel executioner---a sinner through the ages in the history of the Mars country! Although Bobe was frightened and reluctant, he nodded (duplicity) and said, "(Of order), Mr. President."

Mark stared at the TV screen holding his breath，demonstrators still gathered on Capital Avenue and Central Square, and a large number of police reinforcements also entered Capital Avenue and Central Square. In order to protect the false image of the government, the police chief of the capital once again issued an ultimatum to the demonstrators. He pretended to say: "Dear friends, in order to restore the normal order of life in the capital, please be a law-abiding citizen and leave the capital avenue and the central square as soon as possible. Today we must clean up the scene, our police well-trained do not wish to have unnecessary conflicts with the citizens. For your safety and the stability of the capital, I ask for your understanding."

As soon as the chief of police left, some plainclothes polices who had already mixed in with the demonstrators intentionally caused disturbances, smashed some shop window glass, damaged some public facilities, and clashed with some demonstrators. At this time, the entire capital avenue and the central square were in chaos. The police took the opportunity to use force to drive away the demonstrators and demonstrators stubbornly resisted. The citizens of the capital also supported the demonstrators in demanding democracy and freedom and resisting violence. Some capital citizens donated a lot of food and daily necessities to the demonstrators. their heroic behavior of demonstrators and citizens in capital had driven dissidents throughout the country of Mars, so some dissidents of students and citizens from large, medium and small cities in the country of Mars went to the streets to protest, and the spark of demand for democracy and freedom almost spread to the entire country of Mars.

When Mark saw this, he was so angry that his lungs were about to explode. He called Bobe again and shouted hysterically: "You useless guy, I trust you so much, I value you so much, I give you all the command power this time and I hope you can handle it well. Look at what you have done to this matter now, not only did it not quell it, but it made the fire of the pretest burn more and more, almost reaching the black official hat of you and me. You are limited to clean up this mess within 3 days, or you will take the blame and resign. "

In the phone video, Bobe’s face was turned blue and white by Mark’s rude and rude lecture, and he seemed a little out of his wits, but he kept flattering: “Yes, my great and wise president, I am incompetent, I will improve immediately, give me one last chance, I will devote my heart and soul to you and the country of Mars, I will do my best, if I can’t handle it within three days, I will automatically resign.”

Seeing that Mark's emotions were a little out of control, Ruth touched his shoulder gently with her hand and said, "Dear Mr. President, you are too angry and be careful of your dragon body. At this critical juncture, you should handle everything calmly, and buy people’s hearts, treat your ministers politely and kindly, and make them willing to go into the fire and water for you so that you can control the overall situation and stabilize your presidency.”

After listening to Ruth's words, Mark regretted his attitude towards Bobe. He actually liked Bobe very much in his heart. Although Bobe was not a loyal person and he belonged to the neutral faction who was both right and left, he had no ambitions or intentions to harm him. He often discussed some state affairs with him, helped him make suggestions, and gave him some useful advice. Thinking of this, he wanted to make an apology call to Bobe, but he was afraid of losing face and sweeping away his prestige as president, so he decided to just send him a comforting message.

A day later, there were still many student demonstrators on hunger strike in the central square of the capital. Some students and citizens also confronted the police. The police sprayed the demonstrators with chemical spray in the eyes, and beat them on the head with iron rods and electric batons. However, the demonstrators could only take all available weapons of shoes, clothes, backpacks and other self-defense around them, and use the iron railings on the side of the road to block the police's attacks. Some plainclothes policemen deliberately brought wooden sticks, kitchen knives, etc. in order to blame and arrest demonstrators. The entire Capital Avenue and the central square became a contest field between democracy and autocracy, evil and justice.

Two days later, an army drove tanks into the capital avenue and the central square, and many demonstrators and citizens were still stranded here. A man's loud voice came from the loudspeaker broadcast around the capital avenue and the central square: "All people, please leave Capital Avenue and the central square immediately, our soldiers have begun to clear the area with arms."

At the end of the broadcast, the soldiers drove their tanks and rushed towards the demonstrators and citizens, and at the same time shot at the people in the square. The blood and brain matter of the people crushed by the tanks splashed everywhere, and their bodies, then it turned into a meatloaf. The capital avenue and the central square were instantly covered with corpses and blood washed the ground. The living people were terrified when they saw this scene. In an instant, there were heart-piercing cries and screams, and people began to flee in all directions, as if the end of the world was coming. They couldn't believe their eyes, let alone their government dared to crush their own people with tanks and shoot at their own people.

Mark was staring at the TV screen intently, concerned about the development of the situation. When Mark saw this appalling scene, he was terrified and turned pale. As a president in a peaceful era, although Mark was considered a ruthless politician, he had never seen such a bloody scene before. He didn't dare to continue watching, so he turned off the TV with trembling hands. Ruth, who was beside him, knew that Mark was also afraid of the real picture of the bloody storm, so she gave Mark a comforting hug, and then said softly: "My dear, you should inform all the news media, especially the TV station, to stop reporting the negative news to the outside world. If the people of the whole country and the world see these brutal and real news, the consequences will be unimaginable. It will affect the image of you and the government of Mars. It is extremely unfavorable, and how will you, Mark, realize your grand blueprint to dominate the world? On the contrary, you will only be left with eternal infamy!"

After being reminded by Ruth, Mark came back to his senses from the bloody horror scene, and then he immediately dialed Bobe's phone and issued a news ban on all media in Mars country to continue broadcasting this demonstration.

Chapter eight: Mass arrest

Following Mark’s order prohibiting the media in Mars Country from broadcasting or publishing any news of the violent suppression of demonstrations, no tv or radio station, newspaper, or magazine would dare to risk covering this important issue. To the majority of the population, the protest seemed to have ended.

All media organizations were now more heavily censored and had to be approved by the Mark government. However, Mark's governmental observation unit was still following the demonstration. Therefore, the most senior, trusted ministers had access to real footage of the ongoing violence.

Mark and Ruth continued to watch the exclusive State coverage of the protests. On both the Capital Avenue and the Central Square of the Mars capital, the army gradually withdrew, having firstly conducted a large-scale sweep of the whole area. This widespread action enabled police to arrest many of the protesters fleeing through the streets and alleys off the main square. Even some totally innocent pedestrians or onlookers were forcibly lifted onto trucks one after another. 

The police and army vehicles soon filled up with mostly young people, some adult demonstrators even elderly bystanders found themselves arrested too.

The female students were extremely frightened, and could not stop screaming, whilst others were so deeply afraid that they were totally silent and their faces were expressionless. Many people had been physically beaten before being loaded into trucks, showed clear bruises on their noses, had swollen lips and others had blood streaming down their faces from head wounds. In every pair of eyes there was an expression of pure terror. A (dawning) terror that this cruel government would not know how to treat them, a terror that they may face a most terrible fate.

After watching these scenes on the TV in his office, Mark was silent and deep in thought. Although he considered Bobe's methods to be rather cruel, he still appreciated Bobe's ability to actually change things on the ground. After all - he seemed finally able to calm down the storm of the demonstration and prevent such public uprisings from spreading to the entire Mars Kingdom, and thus threaten Mark’s sacred throne of power.

Just as he was thinking this, an unsightly and tragic scene suddenly appeared on another TV screen. Several male police officers aggressively arrested a beautiful female student who was leading a small group within the larger demonstration. They could then be seen dragging her to an empty house and stripping her clothes off to leave her helpless and naked. Not only did they use their cigarette butts to burn her breasts, but they then gang-raped her while watching her scream in pain. One short policeman in the group kept cursing: "So- you beautiful girl, a few of our buddies are going to torture you today, let’s see, you stinky bitch, if you dare to come out to protest in the future, we will gang-rape you until you’re sick.” After saying that, he slapped her face very hard and red welts appeared on her tender face. This young female student could not withstand being tortured and raped by these gangster-like policemen, and soon she fainted and fell to the floor.

At just this time, Bobe called. His tone was serious: "Great Mr. President, I wonder if you are satisfied with the way I am handling the situation on the streets? If you are, then I also want to discuss another important matter with you."

Mark replied: "I'm very satisfied, but perhaps some actions are a little excessive. Why do those videos of police officers behaving indecently appear on TV? You must investigate this and deal with them most strictly."

In fact, Mark believed very strongly in the saying that God was watching people’s behavior in the sky anytime. He was therefore rather afraid that this brutal crackdown would be somehow punished by God. Because of this fear, he did not dare to use the word “cruel” to describe this crackdown, but preferred the more civilized word "excessive". He asked Bobby: "Do you have any other important things to discuss?"

Bobe replied: "A friend of mine gave me a business suggestion. I wonder if you would like to discuss it on the phone."

Mark said: "Don't beat around the bush, we are both busy men- just tell me what is on your mind."

Bobe hesitated and said, "My friend said that one of his relatives is sick and needs a liver and kidney transplant. It would obviously be best to find healthy young people as donors, or at least as providers. We just happen to have a lot of young students under arrest at this time and they are potentially a considerable resource. I wonder what you think?"

Mark thought for a while. He didn't want to be implicated in these blood debts, and then said: "You should not tell me these things, let alone discuss them with me. I cannot agree to such cruel things happening in our country." 

Bobe said respectfully: "Yes, of course, our great and wise president. I completely understand your position.”

After Mark hung up the phone, Ruth, who had been quietly sitting beside him said: "As -anyone with compassion can see, this is a very cruel thing. In a business sense I can see have a huge market all over the world for such operations and this can bring huge income, of course, you can say there is also the value of medical research. But one must love to make money in a wise and humane manner, not all money in the world can be earned, and it is always difficult for people to accept. In addition, you should make sure that Bobe investigated and deal with the case where those horrid police raped the female student just now. They are simply a bunch of beasts, worse than wild and violent animals.”

The more Ruth talked, the more upset and angrier she became. Even though she was aware that many incredibly corrupt and unsavory things happened in the autocratic system of Mars, she would never tolerate men bullying and raping women. Moreover, the fact that it was a brutal gang rape angered her to her bones.

 "Okay, my beauty, I will punish them severely. Please don't be so angry, to frown and spoil your beautiful face." Mark gently stroked her face with his hand and said, "I know the news about this crackdown must have spread overseas already. How do you suggest I can reverse any damaging consequences?” 

Ruth replied: "I know that some foreign media are already broadcasting the news of this crackdown, and for many broadcasters it is the big headline. It will certainly have a lot of negative impact on the country of Mars."

Mark asked again: "So in that case, how do you think it should be handled more appropriately?"

Ruth replied: "We can ensure that our own media organizations create some fake news. They can talk about demonstrators becoming violent, looting, stealing and other bad things. This should then be broadcast on our foreign media platforms, and encourage foreign friends to the belief that your ministers have no choice but to adopt special measures to maintain the security and stability of Mars country. Also, we could bribe some greedy and famous foreign cultural figures to help us write positive articles about Mars. This way we may be able to change the opinions of foreign people and governments and win their understanding and support. Democratic countries of the so-called “free world” are all capitalist societies, so as long as we are willing to throw enough money at them, everything will be easy for us. Our money can make all the difference!"

Mark nodded in agreement with Ruth's opinion. He had an innate natural talent which enabled him not only to persuade his lovers to follow his vision, but also to select some very unique women. Almost all the women in his circle were versatile, beautiful and capable. As the saying goes “They could hold up half of the sky for him.” in particular, Ruth’s assistances and opinions made great contributions to his career.

Looking for lovers was popular within the political sphere of Mars country, and male politicians were always looking for their favorite roses. They believed that roses could also be shared with others, thereby “killing two birds with one stone.” They all knew the substantial power of beauty. If they choose the right lover, not only will they enjoy themselves, but they will also gain the opportunity to achieve good fortune - including possible promotion and greater wealth.

Mark understood this very well. He glanced at Ruth thoughtfully, then took her hand and said: "My dear, thank you for accompanying me through the most difficult days of my life. Now let's go down to the beach for a walk, the fresh sea breeze will help dissipate the ominous atmosphere of this time.”

Just as Mark finished speaking, his cell phone rang. It was a video call from his wife Eliza. He was afraid of jealousy between Ruth and Eliza, so he hesitated to answer the phone. Ruth, who was beside him, saw the profile picture of Mark's wife on the screen. She understood Mark’s situation and said in a calming manner: "My dear, it's your wife calling. I’m sure she must be worried about you. Please answer the phone quickly. I haven’t contacted your wife a long time, and I also want to talk to her and catch up on old times.”

This reassured Mark, and he took the call. Immediately Eliza’s loud and coquettish voice came over the phone: "Darling, are you okay? I've been so worried about you. Although the demonstrations have been suppressed for now, we don’t know what other tricks those people may play?”

Eliza knew that Mark was with Ruth at the Virgin Resort and she knew very well that Mark was a man who did nothing without a reason. Why did he go to find Ruth at this time? Clearly because Ruth could help her husband's career. In fact, it could be said that Ruth was not just helpful to Mark, but was somehow Eliza’s benefactor too. Without Ruth, Mark would not be the president today, and she, Eliza would not be the first lady of Mars.

Eliza knew very well, that in a social atmosphere like the Nation of Mars, if a man became powerful, he would soon be surrounded by thousands of beauties. 

For Eliza, Ruth posed no threat to her marriage, and could even help them as a couple to stabilize their power and status. If Mark found a woman to compete with her for marital status, Eliza would be truly frightened and unable to bear it at all. But she knew that Ruth had many boyfriends, and Mark was a very conservative man who would not take a social butterfly such as Ruth to be his wife. The reality was that they just took advantage of what each could offer the other. 

Even though Eliza was a little jealous in her heart, she quickly realized that she had to swallow her slight resentment and stay close to Ruth and even become good friends. She forced a smile and said: "Darling, how is Ruth? Do say hello to her from me and ask her to our home as a guest when she has time."

Overhearing the conversation between Mark and Eliza, Ruth instinctively wanted to take the phone from Mark and talk directly to Eliza. But on second thoughts, she felt that may be a bit hasty and rude, because Mark didn't answer Eliza's call just now. She was conscious that her appearing right next to Mark would cause Eliza to have unhappy reveries. She didn't want to compete with Eliza for Mark, so she didn't want an unpleasant and embarrassing situation to arise between her and Eliza.

Ruth preferred a free life and younger handsome men even though Mark was so powerful, he was not the marriage partner she was looking for. Ruth was just a nominal general manager at the Virgin Resort and she didn’t have any real responsibilities, but she still had significant influence. She effectively controlled all finances and managed through her large team of staff, the entire Virgin Resort. 

Mark gave her a very high salary, and since she also enjoyed the environment of the Virgin Resort, she was quite happy to stay here. Each year, she lived almost six months abroad and six months at the Virgin Resort. Although she loved her country very much, she knew very well that the social system of Mars was increasingly unstable and was not a place to stay for a long time. In fact, she concluded that a democratic country was ultimately the place where she could live and work in peace and contentment.

After a while, Ruth changed into formal clothes and left Mark in his study. In the living room she dialed Eliza’s phone number from her own mobile phone: “Hello, sister, I haven’t seen you for a long time. How have you been recently?"

Eliza replied: "I am fine myself, but the current situation has been so chaotic and frightening! I am worried about Mark and simply wish these troublesome affairs completely end.

Ruth took over the conversation and joked: "Don't worry, sister, I'm here to help you keep an eye on Mark, no one can destroy his career and no vixen can snatch him away from you. "

Eliza was slightly jealous but still smiled and replied: "Thank you, sister Ruth. I feel relieved with your care. But how are you lately? I haven't seen you for such a long while. Welcome you to our home when you have some free time."

At this time Mark walked back into the living room and sat down beside Ruth. Ruth decided to end the call: "Okay, sister, I will definitely visit you when I get to the capital. Please take good care of yourself." 

After ending the call, Ruth put one hand on her hips, poked Mark's forehead with the middle finger of the other hand, and said with a smile, "I will watch at you, no vixen can snatch you away from my sister, Eliza.”

Mark enjoyed Ruth's funny movements and expressions, and they both burst into laughter.

Chapter nine: Pretentious

A few days later, Mark's wife Eliza called him with some good news - the latest hi-tech surveillance equipment had just been installed in their palace. She hoped that he come home and test the system as soon as possible. Just as Eliza expected, Mark immediately said goodbye to Ruth, and took his presidential plane to return to his grand palace. Eliza was overjoyed when she knew Mark was returning, she really didn't want her husband to leave her and go looking for the flowers of other women, leaving her all alone in this huge palace. She dressed up specially in an expensively new and sexy dress in order to greet her husband, Mark.

When Mark arrived, Eliza rushed out to the car to greet him. They embraced tightly and kissed each other, Eliza said: “My love, I miss you very much, I am so happy to have you at home.” 

Despite feeling tired from such a long journey back to his home, Mark couldn't contain his excitement and hurry up to the huge new monitoring center in the palace.

Eliza joyfully accompanied him as he checked all the monitors and the various sophisticated control mechanisms. After the exhaustive test, Mark's eyes shone with an almost mystical light. He thought with great internal joy: "This magical monitoring center means that I can now monitor the entire people of Mars through their computers, IP and mobile phones at anytime and anywhere. Whether they are high-ranking officials or civilians, I can check anyone’s private information or (stalk) anyone at will."

He couldn't help but give Eliza a passionate kiss on her soft lips and said: "My precious darling, thank you very much for all your hard work, which has helped me realize my amazing dream and enabled this great project to be successfully completed."

After a passionate kiss from Mark, Eliza quickly took advantage of the opportunity and snuggled into Mark's arms, how much she needed his warm embrace and his love. Her face showed sweet happiness, despite the numerous pains of having to tolerate his various lovers. At this very moment wrapped in his arms, all that pain dissolved into nothing and Eliza felt that she was the happiest woman in the world. She believed that she could still have the love of the greatest and wisest man in the Kingdom of Mars, and she knew that this was the man for whom she was even willing to give her life!

Eliza’s mother had recently become seriously ill and had been sent to the Ivy Hospital which employed the country's elite doctors and surgeons and had the most advanced medical equipment in the Kingdom of Mars - equal to the very best in the world. 

The Ivy Hospital was used mainly by the families of government ministers and senior officials but it also treated famous actors and other celebrities. It was surrounded by high walls and had military security posted at every corner and at the main gate. Ordinary Mars citizens were prohibited from entering this renowned hospital.

In the country of Mars, almost all government officials enjoyed free medical care, but the vast majority of ordinary taxpayers had no free medical care and they were forced to pay for expensive medical treatment out of their own pockets. If a regular citizen succumbed to a serious illness or disease, it could bankrupt the entire family. However, custom had developed among the poor people of the country, in which family members or friends would try to help each other. 

For example, they often lent money to those with financial difficulties. Often, when a family member suffered from a serious illness and could not afford to see a doctor, their relatives or close friends would support their medical expenses, but this sometimes caused those who helped to also become impoverished over time.

A huge number of seriously citizens would end up in hospital but without any way of paying for the necessary treatment, this resulted in many thousands each year dying in hospital beds, whilst hoping to be treated. At the elite Ivy Hospital, situated in the most expensive and leafy area of the city, everything was different.

One morning a black limousine arrived outside the hospital gates and the security guards waved it though, Eliza was saluted by other guards as she stepped from the car dressed very glamorously and wearing expensive jewels. She had come to visit her mother, who had been admitted to the most luxurious ward in Ivy Hospital. 

Her mother had the most highly qualified doctors and nurses to treat and care for her, and there were also a team of non-medical attendants to take care of her daily needs and special diet. Here Eliza’s mother was looked after rather like a Queen mother, there was no doubt that as a relative of the president, she was enjoying completely free medical treatment. 

Eliza hurriedly entered the special ward. Her mother happened to be sleeping, so Eliza tiptoed to her bed, gently kissed her forehead, and then quietly walked out of the room with the senior consultant.

Eliza’s mother was now about 75 years old. Although her eyes were closed, and her face quite drawn and pale, it could still be judged from her fine bone-structure that she had once been a very beautiful woman. And Eliza was lucky enough to inherit her mother's excellent genes.

Eliza was afraid of disturbing her mother's important rest, so she and Dr. Logan, who was in charge of treating her mother, went to the office next door to discuss her mother's condition. 

Dr. Logan told her: “Sadly I must inform you that your mother's liver and kidneys have all failed. This is obviously a very serious matter, as these organs cannot recover naturally. I must tell you that if you want to extend your mother’s life, and give her any real quality of life, then both her liver and kidneys will have to be replaced- and replaced very soon. However, it may be very difficult to find a matching donor for both these vital organs. Where in the world can one quickly find living livers and kidneys? There are very few donors you know.”

Eliza was the eldest daughter in her family and had great filial piety. She also had one younger sister and a younger brother. When she married Mark, one notable consequence was that all her close relatives had risen in status until they became a hugely prominent and influential family in the Kingdom of Mars. 

Her father passed away 2 years ago, so now only her mother was left. Eliza dearly hoped that her mother could live a long time, and thus enjoy the prosperity and wealth that Eliza’s marriage had brought her.

When Eliza returned to the palace from the hospital, the doctor's troubling words kept echoing in her ears. She was extremely anxious and tearful, as she couldn’t see how it may be possible to save her mother's life. As darkness fell, she tossed and turned, unable to sleep all night.

The next day, Eliza received a call from Minister Bobe’s wife, Yisa. Yisa said that her relatives had grown some special tea, which can help people lose weight and improve their beauty, and she invited Eliza to their home to taste it. 

***Yisa was a well-known costume designer in the country of Mars, and Eliza was a well-known movie actress in the country of Mars. Yisa often helped Eliza design and create beautiful garments, making Eliza even more dazzling when seen in public. Over the years, Eliza and Yisa had become very close friends. Now that Eliza was so worried about her mother's illness, she desperately wanted to go out and relax, to take her mind off this matter at least for a few hours.

Yisa was also married to Minister Bobe - one of Mark’s most trusted political colleagues. The following day, Eliza travelled to Bobe's luxuriously decorated home to have tea with Yisa. It was a warm afternoon, they sat outside, besides the beautiful rockery next to an elaborately designed, soothing waterfall. Yisa was also an exceptional cook, and she specially prepared a delicious and sumptuous meal for her dear friend Eliza.

Yisa, though not as strikingly beautiful as Eliza, had an excellent figure and looked young for her age. She was also intelligent and had a sparkle in her eyes. She always dressed very tastefully from head to toe, and deserved to be seen as a master of fashion design. As they ate and chatted, Eliza confided in Yisa about her mother's grave illness. Yisa comforted her, saying "Dear Eliza, don't worry too much. Your mother is blessed by God, and I believe that she will definitely recover soon."

After Eliza confided her worries to Yisa, she felt somehow a great burden had been lifted from her shoulders and she could relax a little. She admired Yisa’s many talents very much - particularly the dresses which Yisa so stunningly designed. Eliza felt that Yisa’s designs were perfect for her. They were both elegant and sexy, and carried a sense of stylish nobility. 

After lunch, as Eliza prepared to leave, Yisa gave her some special health-giving tea leaves and also a short silk dress she had made just for Eliza.

Eliza was so delighted by these gifts. As soon as she got home, she couldn't wait to try the new dress, which was a deep pink color. When she saw herself in the mirror with the dress clinging to her body so nicely and showing the natural curves of her firm breasts and sexy hips, she was overjoyed, and kept turning again and again in front of the tall mirror. The dress was shorter than most of Eliza’s collection and showed her beautiful legs from her smooth thighs down to her fine delicate ankles. She decided to put on her favorite high heels and twirled once more in front of the mirror, as if in a fashion show.

Just as she was totally intoxicated with herself, she received a message from Yisa on her mobile phone: "Dear Eliza, I have been thinking more about your mother's serious illness. I asked some close friends if they could think of a cure, and one of them had what I consider to be a very good suggestion. It must be the best solution to help your mother…but I wonder if you will ever be willing to adopt it. If you are interested, we need to meet and discuss it further. Love you Yisa!”

Eliza immediately called Yisa back and invited her to come for dinner that evening.

Mark had only been home for two days before leaving the palace once again. Eliza had to accept that he quite often went out to stay with other women. Her two daughters were now studying abroad. They were old enough to know that their father had numerous concubines. This meant that during the holidays from university they would come back to stay with their mother Eliza. Although there were many servants and guards around the palace, Eliza was lonely much of the time. She rarely invited her sister or brother to visit the palace as she didn't want them to know about Mark's scandalous lifestyle. She knew that this would only worry and upset them. 

Because of this, Yisa became the most frequent visitor to the palace. As they were such close friends, Eliza would occasionally reveal some secrets of her complicated marriage to Yisa. It was around 5 o'clock when Yisa drove into the isolated and gorgeous palace.

Eliza wore the new dress given to her by Yisa and once again spent several minutes admiring herself in the mirror. It wasn't until Yisa was ushered into the main hall of the palace that Eliza hurriedly came out to greet her. She led Yisa directly into the dining room. On the mahogany table, gold plates and silver spoons were neatly arranged, and several smartly dressed servants were already standing to one side, waiting to serve them. After they were seated, one fragrant delicacy after another were served to their table. 

However, Eliza was not so interested in the food and asked Yisa anxiously: "Dear Yisa, can you tell me your suggestion about how I may save my mother's life?”

Yisa moved closer to Eliza and whispered in Eliza's ear: "The only way is to trade other people's lives for your mother's life. Would you be prepared to do this? Of course, you cannot let anyone know. Only God will know, you and I will know."

Upon hearing this, Eliza looked shocked at first, then slowly lowered her eyelids and was silent for a few moments. Then she raised her head thoughtfully and whispered to Yisa: "Let’s go to my study after dinner to chat more about this."

After dinner, Eliza took Yisa to her personal study. The room was richly decorated, with a dark brown polished wooden floor, upon which was a beautiful hand-woven rug. The walls were painted in deep pink and the curtains were of a floral design with shades of dark green and pink. Famous paintings from all over the world, hung from the walls and some valuable bonsai and small sculptures were appropriately placed in every corner. There were many romance novels, some celebrity biographies and several history books on the bookshelves. The whole room seemed to be a combination of artistic sentiment and girlish dreams, making it very warm and romantic. 

As they sat together on the sofa, Yisa began to explain in detail to Eliza, how it may be possible to save her mother's life. It would mean organ transplants from ordinary people who may not be volunteers, however this would involve difficult moral decisions.

By this time Eliza was desperate to save her mother and no longer wanted to think forward or backward. She decisively accepted Yisa's advice and help, despite all of the many risks and complications involved in multiple organ transplants. She only hoped that God would bless her mother with the successful surgery and a long life.

Chapter ten: Disregard life

Minister Bobe had actually arranged for his wife, Yisa to help Eliza with the complicated situation regarding her sick mother. Yisa never challenged her husband and did not hesitate to execute his plan perfectly.

In this case, it was easy because Yisa had a great affection for her friend Eliza, the First Lady of the country of Mars. In the higher, official circles of the Mars Kingdom, a culture of "Lady diplomacy" was prevalent and popular. When senior officials - who were almost 100% male, couldn’t personally handle business transactions or accept bribes, they usually entrusted their wives to act on their behalf. If their wives were very busy or abroad, then other family members, or even reliable friends would be asked to carry out the actions.

This way when things such as buildings collapsing due to poor quality of cement or major factory accidents, these senior officials could shirk responsibility and stay out of the investigations.

The Kingdom of Mars was a huge country in relation to the rest of the world, with a vast landmass containing abundant natural resources. It has had a long history and has produced a rich culture, and a large population. The Mars people were very hardworking, and also kind, smart, capable, hospitable, and generous.

Perhaps some of the more tragic and violent events in the history of the Mars Kingdom had influenced the character of the population as a whole.

For instance, the vast majority of the country’s citizens would never dare to stand up to the government even to defend important issues such as justice, democracy or freedom. At their core, they were afraid of the consequences which may be imprisoned, tortured or even death. That’s why they chose to live almost like slaves, rather than rise up to resist dictatorship and tyranny.

In the modern era of Mars, in order to maintain their absolute power, some senior politicians did not hesitate to take advantage of the people's weaknesses. They used all kinds of manipulation and control to exploit the people, including violence, surveillance, brainwashing, fraud, inducement and intimidation. They gradually established the most complete and sophisticated system of dictatorship in the world. It became increasingly difficult, indeed almost impossible for the people of Mars to resist them, and hence they could maintain their autocratic rule. But they did not foresee that the evil authoritarian system they had built could ultimately become a ruthless meat grinder that may finally chop themselves and their families into thousands of pieces. To quote a popular saying in the religion of Mars: "If you harm others, the bad things will always follow you and you will eventually be punished by god."

One week after Yisa visited, she came to Eliza's palace home again. She brought with her an oil painting by a famous Mars painter who had died many years ago. Yisa carefully carried the painting into Eliza’s study and said: "My dear Eliza, a friend of mine who had settled abroad and recently returned to Mars country give me several famous paintings. I picked out the most expensive one for you, I wonder, you like it?”

Eliza looked at the painting carefully, although she already had many famous and expensive paintings given to Mark and her by various visiting dignitaries, she liked this one very much. She said to Yisa with a smile: "My dear friend, you have remarkably artistic taste and I will be delighted to accept this precious gift. Thank you very much."

Yisa returned: "It’s my pleasure dear Eliza, I feel happy that you would like it. My friend who collects such beautiful paintings is also the chairman of a major foreign medical company. He graduated from a prestigious foreign medical school. He is now a well-known organ transplant expert- perhaps the best in the world. I mentioned your mother’s condition to him and he is willing to help you and perform both a liver and kidney transplant for your mother. Would you like to meet him? If so, I will arrange a dinner for us all to meet tomorrow."

Eliza replied: "Thank you my dear friend, you are so kind."

The next day, Eliza came to Yisa’s house dressed up beautifully as usual. Minister, Bobe Yisa’s husband made an excuse of having to do errands and avoid meeting Eliza directly and talking about things that had nothing to do with his work as her husband Mark is his boss, in case he would speak too much with her about personal matters to make a mistake.

In the luxurious living room of Yisa's house, sat a handsome, elegantly dressed, middle-aged man. After being introduced by Yisa, he politely walked up to Eliza and handed her a business card and said: “I’m Charles, I feel very happy to meet you, first lady, you’re so beautiful and elegant. If you need any help in the future, please don’t hesitate to tell me, I’ll do my best for you any time.”

Eliza was a little excited when she heard Charles' flattering words, and was even more attracted by his chic demeanor. Although she had seen a lot of handsome guys in her life, she had never seen a man who was so perfect from outward to inner beauty.

Eliza calmed her racing thoughts in an instant, not wanting Yisa or Charles to see her inner turmoil. She politely took the business card and looked at it: "BENEFY Pharmaceutical Group Co, Ltd. Chairman, Charles."

Charles had been born into a family of high officials in the Kingdom of Mars. After he grew up, he studied and finally settled abroad. He was familiar with the both the culture and history of several foreign countries and also the Kingdom of Mars. He was erudite, eloquent, and well versed in the ways of officials and businessmen in the country of his birth. 

With his knowledge and intellect, by the age of 35 he had made his fortune in the field of medicine and medical equipment. He imported and exported these products between his homeland and various foreign countries, He had also qualified as a top surgeon.

Over the dinner, Yisa, Eliza and Charles talked freely, laughed and had a most enjoyable evening. Both Yisa and Elisa were impressed by Charles’ charm and talent. In the end, Elisa decided that she would be happy for Charles to perform the organ transplants to try to save her mother’s life.

When the dinner was finally over, Yisa sent Charles away. She then took out a photograph of a young man and showed it to Elisa, whispering in her ear: "My husband found this young and healthy donor for your mother. He has good livers and kidneys and he actually looks quite handsome too. You can go to the hospital to arrange your mother's surgery in a few days."

Eliza looked at the photo and said, "Thank you very much, dear Yisa, you are so kind and thoughtful. I hope God will bless my mother to get through this crisis safely and smoothly."

Two days later, in a prison complex in the capital city of Mars, Jimmy, a young political prisoner, was escorted to an office by two prison guards. When Jimmy sat down, the prison governor sitting behind the desk, handed Jimmy an envelope and said with a mysterious face: “Congratulations, your lucky day has arrived. From this afternoon you will be transferred to a single cell and enjoy the highest level of treatment here. When you are in your new private cell, read this letter carefully, and then sign it.”

Jimmy was then taken to a clean and comfortable single cell with its own bathroom. Sitting on the bed, he hurriedly opened the envelope. As he read the letter, he became numb with anger. He was convicted as a political prisoner, but this letter clearly had turned him into a murderer who could be disposed of at will. 

His eyes filled with tears and his heart with righteous indignation. He felt profoundly scared. Despite the comfortable room of his new cell, he now felt extremely vulnerable, and didn't know what the prison guards were going to do to him next.

Jimmy was 26 years old and he was an intelligent and talented person with a strong body. He was the only son in the family, his parents worked as civil servants in one of the smaller provinces of Mars country. They had brought him up with great care since he was a child and regard him as their favorite. Even as a young child, Jimmy was naturally smart, studious, and positive. At the age of 18, he was admitted to the most prestigious university in the capital of Mars and became the role model and pride of his family. After graduating with a distinction in his university course he had been employed for two years by a high-tech company in the capital.

Like so many other liberal and progressive young people, Jimmy participated in the various street demonstrations. He had a pure heart and lofty ideals for himself and for the country as a whole. He wanted to change the rotten of the political culture and social system of Mars, and desperately hoped that it could become a democratic and free country, A country within which people may live a truly happy and beautiful life.

Three days later, two burly prison guards equipped with large batons came to Jimmy's room. After winking at each other, the two guards stared at Jimmy with cold and cunning eyes. The taller of the two then presented a document to Jimmy, it was a voluntary organ donation form and he asked Jimmy: "Has your confession been signed?"

Jimmy replied: "I am simply a demonstrator participating in the democratic movement, not a drug dealer or murderer. I am certainly not a member of some underworld organization as stated in this confession. This is an invention of pure fiction and has nothing to do with my case. Why should I sign it?"

The two prison guards smiled slyly at one another and one of them said: "Whether this confession is true or not, whether you want it or not, you must sign it today, if you wish to avoid any physical pain. This is our job. Don't make us angry, otherwise we will have to punish you.”

Jimmy was an honest, kind and upright young man. Under the care of his parents, he had not experienced any complications or difficulties in his life. Only as he grew older did he start to see the many injustices in the Mars country. He replied bluntly to the guards: "You simply have no law. You want to force me to admit and sign a confession that is not mine, and I will not sign it even if I die today.”

One of the prison guards slapped him hard and said rudely: "You stupid boy, don't think that you dare to talk to us like that. Do you think you understand the law of kings after reading just a few dead books? I can teach you, so listen to me. Whoever has the biggest fist is the king's law, whoever has the strongest power is the king’s law. So today, we’re the king’s law.”

After he finished speaking, Jimmy was again struck very hard on the head. His eyes immediately filled with stars and he felt extremely dizzy and disoriented. Then suddenly, the larger of the prison guards pressed his body down in the chair so that he could not move. Jimmy couldn’t resist as the shorter prison guard took his hand and forced him to sign the Confession and Voluntary Organ Donation form.

Minister Bobe wanted to please both Mark and Eliza in order to finalize a huge business deal between him and his friend, so it was Bobe who secretly helped Eliza's mother find a suitable political prisoner who may be forced to donate both his liver and kidneys, this is how Jimmy came to be chosen. Bobe knew that neither Mark nor Eliza had sympathy for these political prisoners who opposed their regime and Bobe therefore took advantage of the situation and saw the opportunity to make a profit for himself as well as helping Eliza and her mother.

Mark would only learn about this matter after the transplant surgery was completed, and at that point he would simply turn a blind eye to these events.

In the country of Mars, if a prisoner's crime is extremely serious, such as murder, then law enforcement agencies have the right to execute such a person. That is one way in which powerful people may obtain necessary organs for transplants such as livers and kidneys. 

After a brief medical examination in prison, it was decided that Jimmy met Eliza's mother's organ transplant requirements. At that point the prison authorities simply changed his political crimes into a murder charge, so that he could be executed at any time to obtain his organs.

A few days later, Charles successfully performed a liver and kidney transplant for Eliza's mother. Jimmy became just another victim of selfish and powerful people.

Chapter eleven: Amorous encounter

Eliza was planning to invite her good friend Yisa, Yisa’s husband Bobe and the surgeon Charles to the palace for dinner to thank them for their help with the successful organ transplants for her mother. She didn’t expect her husband Mark to come back to attend the annual model-worker celebration banquet.

This event, including an awards ceremony and banquet, was held at the end of each year. It invited celebrities and elites from all walks of life to thank them for their outstanding contributions to the Mars Kingdom.

When this event was first held, many years ago, it celebrated the extraordinary efforts and achievements of normal working people in all types of work.

However, since Mark came to power, the socially progressive culture in the Kingdom of Mars had been declining. Everything was oriented toward fraud, plagiarism, greed and short - term profit. Generosity of spirit and altruistic behavior was almost frowned upon.

Those who were truly honest, diligent and dedicated to their work and strove to improve all of society, not just themselves, did not get promotions, and were often excluded or punished. Consequently, those who were invited to participate in this celebration banquet were almost all skilled at duplicity, glib talk, intrigues, and manipulation. Only such types could truly prosper in the current social environment, and they were proud of themselves. They became very rich and powerful and were seen as celebrities in the Mars country. The “Model Worker celebration banquet” was effectively a banquet for those who engaged in nepotism, arrogance and corruption. The exact opposite of what it had been originally established to represent.

In recent years, Mark rarely took Eliza to attend social activities in the Kingdom of Mars. This was because Mark had a new woman in his heart, and he did not want to hurt his latest lover’s heart by frequently appearing in public with Eliza. 

Eliza, however dearly wanted to introduce Charles to Mark, as she was so happy about Charles’ help with her mother’s transplant surgery. She therefore planned to invite Charles to attend the ‘Model Worker’ celebration banquet, hoping that her husband may help enhance Charles' business in Mars country. She really wanted to repay Charles for saving her mother's life. 

When Eliza proposed to Mark that she wanted to invite Charles, Mark agreed immediately. He was in turn grateful to Eliza helping him set the advanced and sophisticated monitoring system.

Eliza’s arrangement played right into Charles’ hands. Charles’ biggest wish was to make acquaintance with Mark, the man who currently wielded absolute power in the Mars Kingdom. Charles could avoid spending huge amounts of money to climb the ladder of success if he was able to develop a good relationship with Mark.

Charles brought along a close female friend to attend the banquet. She was around 30 years old, and looked excited to be at such a prestigious event. Although she was not particularly pretty, she had an extraordinary presence. Her figure was feminine yet physically imposing, she wore a very fashionable and sexy dress, her figure made many men turn their heads and her sweet smile made them almost lose their minds as she walked slowly through the venue.

Charles introduced Jessica to Eliza and, she was offered a seat at the table beside Eliza, where she calmly sat, all the time maintaining her sweet yet undeniably seductive smile. Even Mark, who was sitting on the podium, with the organizing committee, couldn't stop his eyes from wandering in her direction.

Elisa, could easily see the desire in Mark's eyes. Although she was a little jealous, she was determined to maintain her dignity and magnanimous attitude, as the first lady. 

Jessica, and Charles had both studied abroad, and had been both classmates and lovers in the medical school. To this day they were still good friends and on occasion still lived together. Charles was a few years older than Jessica, and he graduated just as she ended her freshman year. They studied different majors, Charles specialized in organ transplantation, while Jessica studied cancer. Although she was still quite young, she was already an internationally renowned cancer expert.

After Mark finished speaking on the podium, the first dishes of the banquet were brought to the tables and the guests began to eat. Mark walked straight over to Elisa and she took the initiative to introduce both Charles and Jessica to Mark. After a few words of greetings, Mark and Charles began an animated, friendly conversation but from time to time, Mark’s eyes wandered towards Jessica who was chatting with Elisa. 

Charles was very sensible and deliberately raised his glass of wine to toast his host, Elisa, this gave Mark the opportunity to speak with Jessica. Jessica was a passionate, knowledgeable, versatile and well-spoken woman and Mark was soon bewitched. He was enthralled by her inner charm, combined with a sexy figure and seductive smile.

As the leader of the Mars Kingdom, he knew that he must maintain a good public image. Therefore, after a little time he took a break from chatting with Jessica and went to socialize with other dignitaries and celebrities in Mars Country.

Charles could easily tell what Mark was thinking, so when he saw that Mark was about to return to his seat, Charles deliberately went to chat with Elisa again. He deliberately allowed Mark further opportunity to socialize with Jessica and then would he have more possibility to get good relationship with Mark.

As for Elisa, ever since she first met Charles, she had an inexplicable feeling of warmth towards him. Indeed, she felt she wanted to see him more often. She thought Charles was not only personable and knowledgeable, but also considerate and handsome. As she chatted with Charles, Elisa, she really didn't care which woman Mark may be flirting with.

Following the banquet, Mark invited Jessica to dance with him and Jessica readily agreed. Together they walked into the middle of the dance floor, all the other dancers immediately made way for Mark, his position as dictator meant that nobody wished to prevent him having enough space on the dance floor. 

As they danced together, Jessica was soon gently embraced by Mark, enveloped in the aura of his power, surrounded by flattering crowds, and for the first time in her life, she experienced the stirrings of vanity and desire for power and wealth. 

As Jessica glanced at Mark quickly and carefully but at such a close distance, beneath Mark's rather dry, aging skin and swollen eyes, she saw the naked ambition of a man who wanted to control the universe.

Jessica had certainly not expected that Mark, a tall and somewhat bloated man, could dance and yet he moved smoothly and gracefully across the dance floor. As they twirled around each other, Mark's rather big belly touched Jessica's slender body. She was a little shocked but she smiled and joked: "I didn't expect that the great President, who must be so busy with important political affairs, was also very good at ballroom dancing!”

Mark was delighted to hear Jessica’s praise and replied happily: "I didn't expect that the young, beautiful Jessica could dance so gracefully. But I know you have other professional talents, so I would like to hire you as my personal doctor. If you are willing to accept the position, we can make an appointment to discuss it in detail."

Jessica was quite surprised by this sudden request, but also very flattered. She tried not to show her shock, but simply smiled and said diplomatically: "It is an honor to serve our great president."

As Mark continued to dance with Jessica, he thought: “although she looks a little plain at first sight, her intelligent, seductive eyes and exceptional sexy figure must make men salivate. I need to possess her.” They were dancing very closely now, and Mark could see how firm and ripe Jessica’s breasts were under her tight dress. When he imagined her naked it made his blood boil, but although he was becoming quite aroused, Mark knew that in this ballroom, in full view of the many guests, he had to control his wild emotions.

When the banquet finally finished, Mark and Elisa returned to their palace home. Elisa mentioned to Mark that she would like to invite her mother, Charles, Jessica, Yisa and Bobe to come to the palace as guests and have dinner together. 

When Mark heard that Jessica was among these guests, he immediately agreed. He disguised his true thoughts by saying: "I haven't met Bobe and his wife for a long time, so that will be great. As I will be at home for these next few days, please make these arrangements as soon as possible."

So, Elisa arranged this reception dinner for her mother and friends in the East Palace. Deep in Elisa’s heart, she knew that this dinner was also another opportunity for her to see Charles. 

Since they first met one another, Elisa had begun to change her style of dressing. In the past, she tended to wear elegant, yet quite conservative and traditional garments. But recently she enjoyed dressing herself in more modern fashion items which made her feel young, lively and sexy. She felt that Charles had brought her youth and vitality back, and on those occasions when she was alone in the palace, with feelings of unrequited love, she somehow felt less lonely when thinking of Charles.

However, she didn't dare reveal these feelings to anyone at all, even her close friends. She knew very well that if Mark found out, then her life would be thrown into the eighteenth level of hell, and the beautiful palace she now shared with him would turn into a mirage. Elisa had grown used to her privileges and elite position as First Lady. She certainly did not want to lose her great wealth and status.

The day before the special dinner at the palace, Elisa brought her mother to stay overnight, so that she would feel at home and relaxed when the guests arrived. Sure enough, at 3 pm, one by one the guests arrived at the palace in shiny, black, chauffeur driven limousines. 

Mark was in a particularly good mood and especially patient today as he accompanied Elisa onto the steps to greet Charles, Jessica, Bobe and his wife, Yisa as they arrived. He laughed and joked with them, and took a little time to explain the architecture of the palace, including various historical allusions. He was on sparkling form and glanced occasionally at Jessica, as it was her who he was mainly trying to impress.

He was very proud to show off this grand palace - the center of power in the Mars Kingdom. Prouder than ever because at this moment, he felt a redoubled attraction for Jessica. Indeed, his heart felt completely refreshed and energetic in her presence. 

The grand palace where Mark and Eliza lived was divided into the East Palace, the South Palace, the West Palace and the North Palace. In the middle of these four wings, there was a beautiful lake which could be crossed in places by jade bridges which had carved railings. These slender and elegant bridges linked each wing of the palace. In the center of the lake, there was also a small island with numerous trees, rockeries, flowers and fountains. Each palace also had their own individual garden areas with many rare trees, flowers and even waterfalls. The whole palace complex was in fact surrounded by tall ever-green trees, which gave a lot of privacy.

The overall design of this palace of Mars Kingdom was so perfect that it felt like an earthly Paradise. Around the exterior wall was a private road which led to a pair of large decorative gates which served as the main entrance into the palace grounds. 

The East Palace covered the largest area and was located at a higher level than the other sections. Standing in the garden of the East Palace, one could overlook all the other palaces. One felt like an emperor reviewing his distant army of officers and soldiers.

Dinner was due to be served at six o'clock and Mark and Elisa escorted their guests into the elaborate dining room of the East Palace. The walls of the dining room were extravagantly painted, and there were many antique carved sculptures and beautiful vases. The meal was very sumptuous, and the guests were served by dozens of kitchen staff and waitresses. It was the height of luxury.

After the meal, Elisa's mother said goodbye first and retired to a guest room to rest. Mark and Elisa took the remaining guests to the teahouse next to a small bamboo forest. The teahouse was constructed in wood and glass, and around it there was an artificial creek. This meant that sitting inside the teahouse, one could continuously hear the gentle sound of the babbling brook. The pieces of furniture in the teahouse were made from bamboo and rattan in very elegant designs. Many different musical instruments were also neatly placed in a corner of the teahouse, including a guzheng, a piano and a pipa, they made the space appear very artistic.

Elisa loved to play the guzheng, and had recently bought a very valuable instrument with mother-of-pearl inlays. Whenever she felt lonely or bored, she would come to the music room and play, to improve her mood. Yisa preferred to play the pipa, so sometimes Elisa would invite Yisa to come over so that they may play together and drink tea. 

Elisa sat down at the guzheng and played a famous song called "High Mountains and Flowing Waters" in front of her guests. This piece of music really suited the decorative aesthetic of the room and made people feel both relaxed and happy.

Elisa’s performance was greeted by warm applause from everyone present. As the clapping ended, Jessica couldn't help but say: "I like bamboo so much. There is a bamboo mountain close to my hometown, which is very beautiful. These bamboos evoked my homesickness."

Mark immediately took over the conversation and said to everyone: “In that case I will take Miss Jessica to visit the outdoor bamboo forest in our grounds, as it may help cure her homesickness.”

As he said this, everyone else was still immersed in Elisa's beautiful music and awaiting another song.

Only Minister Bobe recognized that Mark had fallen in love with this new young woman. He nodded to Mark and then deliberately turned to talk to his wife without bringing more attention to Mark.

After a short walk from the palace, Mark and Jessica came to the small bamboo forest. By this time, the stars were twinkling in the night sky, and the bright moonlight shone on Jessica's face, making her appear even more beautiful and attractive than usual.

As they strolled deeper into the bamboo forest, Mark couldn't contain his inner emotions and grabbed Jessica's hand, drawing her close to him, then slowly he put an arm around her slim waist. 

Jessica’s heart suddenly fluttered so much that she couldn’t refuse Mark’s advances. She was attracted by Mark’s power and knew that his friendship may benefit her as well, her strong curiosity also drove her to look tenderly at the magical Lord of Mars and her mouth involuntarily pressed against his and they hugged one another tightly. At this moment, their bodies seemed to turn into a single bamboo and together they melted into the bamboo forest.

Chapter twelve: Pregnant

The week after Mark and Jessica had those moments of intimacy in the bamboo forest, Jessica was appointed as Mark's personal doctor. In this role she was responsible for all Mark's medical affairs and enjoyed a very high salary. Mark also allocated her a suite of rooms in the north wing of the palace, and provided a luxurious private car. Jessica’s meals were prepared by dedicated personnel within the palace. She could enter and exit the palace freely, provided Mark had no need for her services. Therefore, from this time Jessica had officially moved into the palace of Mars Kingdom and became half a “golden phoenix”. This was a lifestyle which Jessica had never even dreamed of.

When Jessica had previously worked abroad, her income was certainly very good compared to the vast majority of people back home in Mars country. But her new position working for Mark placed her in the elite top one percent in terms of wealth Jessica simply couldn't believe her good fortune.

She thought that the Kingdom of Mars was a kind of unique magical dictatorship. If you were a senior businessman or professional person in Mars and the government officials had a good impression of you, or if you happened to have a good personal relationship with an official, you could become very rich very quickly. But if you accidentally offended any such officials or for another reason they didn’t like you, then you and your family could be ruined overnight. Many foreigners living in the Kingdom of Mars and even Mars citizens studying or working abroad were brave to walk a tightrope and even risk their lives in order to earn high incomes.

In her early 20’s Jessica was eager to move abroad for good, in order to get away from this secular concept of “People die for money, birds die for food”. At that time, she could never have imagined that she would eventually join this mighty profit-seeking army like everyone else and fall into the cycle of greed.

When working abroad Jessica had always believed that she, like other overseas students and compatriots originally from the kingdom of Mars could give financial help to their families back home. Their relatives missed them, just as they missed the country of their birth and also their family members. Hence, they would often travel back for holiday breaks to reunite with their families. However, those foreigners who visited Mars in pursuit of profit, had no such emotional ties and were purely greedy.

Jessica had been born into a middle-class family in the country of Mars. Her father was a shrewd real-estate businessman and her mother, a kind-hearted physician. Jessica was an only child, and from a young age, showed great intelligence, even at her first school she was extremely diligent and studious. As she grew up, it became clear to her teachers and her parents that she had very high ambitions. No doubt being influenced by her mother, Jessica fell in love with the subject of medicine. Under her mother's careful training, Jessica gained high grades and was admitted to a prestigious foreign university which specialized in medicine, after several years of study she achieved her dream of becoming a doctor. 

When she had begun to study medicine, Jessica held the same lofty ideals as her mother. She wanted simply to heal the sick, to prevent unnecessary deaths, and do all she could to relieve the suffering of people across the globe. She also yearned to become an internationally respected medical expert.

In order to be able to contact Jessica at any time, Mark had given her a new mobile phone. This phone could only be used within the grounds of the Palace of Mars, it was monitored and restricted in such a way that it could only ever be used to contact Mark directly. With this device, Mark gave Jessica the unusual privilege of contacting him at any time. But of course, he could also contact her.

On the afternoon of the second day, following Jessica’s arrival at the Mars Palace, a message appeared on this private mobile phone: "Dear beautiful Jessica, please come to my study in north palace right away. I wish to discuss something with you."

After Jessica saw this message, she immediately remembered the warm hug and kiss she enjoyed with Mark that night in the bamboo forest. Her heart was pounding a little, as she walked out the office and a slight blush appeared on her face. She felt already that Mark was a very generous person, even though he was old and a little rough-looking. She found him charming and witty, especially seemed to be very gentle towards women and certainly knew how to capture a woman's heart.

Jessica came to Mark's study, where he greeted her gracefully. She noticed immediately that Mark had taken care to dress himself smartly today, consequently he looked younger and more handsome than usual, he also seemed to be in high spirits compared the previous few days. 

Jessica looked around Mark's study - which included many antique items of furniture, old paintings and ceramic vases. She found it very tasteful and completely in line with her favorite style of interior decoration. 

Mark took Jessica to the small bar in one corner of the study. The bar was a contrast to the other furniture, with flashing colored neon lights, to Jessica it felt rather like stepping into a dreamy, romantic wonderland.

After Mark arranged for Jessica to sit on a large, comfortable sofa, he walked over to the wine cabinet, opened a bottle of red wine and poured two glasses. He then returned to Jessica and handed her a glass. He sat down beside her and smiled as he raised his glass to clink with hers. Then he said cheerfully: "I warmly welcome our beautiful Jessica to the palace of Mars Kingdom. I hope you like the environment here. If you have any requirements, please feel free to ask. I am always willing to do my best for you."

Mark then gently took Jessica's hand continued: "Dear Jessica, you are a very smart professional physician. I have an important task for you, which is to help me research the elixir of life. I hope I can live a few more years and make more contributions to the people of Mars, at the same time, I can also enjoy the love of your beauties."

Jessica’s face flushed with embarrassment after Mark’s speech, but she remained calm and flattered: "Our great president looks healthy and energetic, don’t worry, you will live to be more a hundred years old without taking any elixir of life."

Mark gently caressed Jessica's hand, looking deeply into her eyes, then embraced her warmly and said, "You are the first woman I brought into this bar, and now in my heart, it feels as if you’re my precious queen.”

Jessica felt a little overwhelmed when she heard Mark's sweet words. Coupled with Mark's demeanor and impressive momentum, the huge benefits brought to her by this magical No. 1 figure in the Kingdom of Mars made her transform into a member of the Mars Kingdom overnight. At the highest center of power, she seemed to have entered a dreamy fairy tale. Now she had truly become the queen of Mars. She meekly threw herself into Mark's arms, closed her eyes, put her sexy mouth on Mark's, and thought crazily, to conquer the Prince Charming of her dreams, the passionate Mark threw Jessica into a magical world.

As a medical doctor, Jessica felt that Mark was a miracle, although he was about 60 years old, and a little overweight, his body was still as strong as that of a much younger man.

She found that staying with Mark felt very different for she was used to with her boyfriend Charles. Even though Charles was young, handsome and very successful in his career, he did not have an obvious passionate desire for women and he preferred to study medicine and human organ transplantation.

Mark was just the opposite- being easily aroused and extremely passionate. He not only wanted to possess a woman's body, but also wanted to possess her soul. 

Jessica learned that she sometimes liked to be possessed by a strong man as a slight woman, 

she sometimes liked to be possessed by a strong man. However, at certain times she also liked to have the power to possess a guy. The more she spent time with Mark, the more an incredible feeling developed in her heart, and she gradually fell in love with him.

The fact is that both Mark and Jessica seemed to be blown into the whirlpool of love by a whirlwind of love so that they couldn't let go. They secretly lived in the study room for three days, lingering in their mutual love.

Just as Mark and Jessica were kissing goodbye on the fourth day, Mark's phone rang. Jessica accidentally saw a profile picture of a young and beautiful girl appear on the mobile screen, Jessica was stunned for a moment. She realized that this girl looked strangely familiar, as if she had seen her before. Just as Jessica tried to remember who this girl was, Mark quickly declined the incoming call. Looking up at Jessica, Mark could read a hint of suspicion and jealousy in her face.

On leaving Jessica, Mark turned on his phone as he strolled back to the East Palace. He immediately saw a message from Grace, and quickly opened it: "My darling - where are you? I miss you so much. Please take the time to see me today. I have something very important to tell you. Your love, Grace!"

Mark anxiously replied to Grace: "My beloved baby, if you have anything, please tell me directly and don't make me worry about you."

Grace replied: "No, darling, I won't tell you in this manner, I want you to come over right away and I wish to give you a big surprise."

Mark replied patiently: "Okay, but today I really need to finish some official business. I promise to come to your place tomorrow."

The next day, Mark came to Grace's luxurious villa. She was cooking a delicious meal for him. When Grace saw Mark coming into the kitchen, she stopped what she was doing and asked the nanny to finish the preparation. 

Mark gave Grace a warm embrace and a passionate kiss. She shyly took Mark's hand and led him into the garden towards the lake. She then said to him: "My dear, guess what news I have to tell you?"

Mark joked: "My dear baby, a women’s heart is like a needle in the sea - it's impossible for me to guess what is going through a woman’s mind”

Grace delicately poked Mark’s forehead with her finger and whispered in his ear: "honey, I'm pregnant, we are going to have a child. Thank God for giving us a child. I hope she is a daughter because a daughter is like a mother’s little cotton jacket, who care about parent more.”

Mark was also very happy that Grace was pregnant with his child. He lowered his head to kiss Grace's belly and said, "for me - I hope it is a son, but whether it is a boy or a girl, so long as it is our child, I will be eternally happy."

Grace took Mark's arm and said, "Let's go back into the dining room my love. Today I prepared a special dinner for you. I hope you will enjoy it."

The kitchen staff had already placed some appetizers on the table, with two small red ceramic soup jars, spoons, plates and chopsticks on the table. The presentation looked quite beautiful and (appealing.) Grace said to Mark: "Dear, this is a "dragon and phoenix" soup I created for you. It took three hours to cook and it contains duck, white melon, barley, lily and wolfberry. Now it is the summer season, this soup is perfect for people in the summer season. Open the jar and see if you like the fragrant smell?"

Mark delicately lifted the lid of a jar, and a burst of rich aromas hit his nostrils. He smiled and said, "Hmm, it smells nice darling, I'm certainly hungry now."

Mark sat on a chair at the dining table and was about to drink it with a large spoon. Grace stopped him and picked up a small bowl and a small spoon. She gently scooped a spoonful of soup into the bowl and said: "Be careful, dear, let it cool down before you drink it, don’t burn your mouth. Allow me to feed you this first spoonful with the thanksgiving to God for letting me to be pregnant with your child. The second spoonful will be with the thanksgiving to you for your love to me and caring about me. Then with the third, I hope God will bless me to give birth and have this child safely and smoothly."

After Grace had finished feeding Mark the soup, she planted a passionate kiss on his face.

Mark clearly enjoyed the soup that Grace had served him. He smacked his lips and said, "It's very delicious. My precious darling is not only smart, capable and versatile, but also good at cooking and serving her husband."

Grace looked at Mark affectionately and said, "I will have to serve you even more in the future, since you are not only my love, but also the father of my child."

A few days later, Mark anxiously arranged for a professional female gynecologist from his palace to visit Grace's residence to check that the pregnancy was normal and try to determine whether the child would be a boy or a girl. The next day Mark got a result that surprised him-he would have a son! He was simply overwhelmed with a joy which he had long dreamed of having a son, who had the good genes from the woman he loved the most and could inherit his powerful political position-maybe it would become his imperial power in the future, for his son, Mark decided that he would work harder.

Chapter thirteen: Jealous 

One afternoon, the weather was clear and sunny. Mark came alone to the tower of his East Palace, trying to relieve his depressed mood. He looked into the distance, with the entire beautiful palace in his sights, this beautiful scenery still couldn't drive away his low sentiment. He recalled that at a national economic conference yesterday, one of his ministers, Daniel gave an unscripted speech which he dared to openly express his different political and economic opinions from him, Mark at the conference, Daniel’s words were fluent and his arguments were incisive, after Daneil’s speech, he received warm applause from the audience. And Mark, the number one figure in the Mars Kingdom, was not very well when he spoke, not only did he need to read a speech, he also seemed to be a bit clumsy and tongue-tied. Compared with Daniel, he seemed to have the little intelligence and knowledge. When he finished speaking Finally, the people present gave him a short and reluctant round of applause, leaving him humiliated and embarrassed. 

Daniel and Mark were both born into the families of high-ranking officials in the Mars Kingdom. In their youth, they were good friends. Daniel was also Mark's effective assistant and partner, when Mark first took office as the president of the Mars Kingdom, he made great contributions for Mark to eliminate dissidents and obtain the presidential throne of the Martian country. 

However, in the past few years, due to their different political philosophies, the two of them had drifted apart, creating a gap. Daniel wanted to reform and open up, improve the economy of Mars Country, gradually move Mars towards democratic politics, and build a prosperous and powerful country of Mars to achieve the lofty ideals of his and Mark's youth. 

After Mark gained the presidential throne, he gradually was obsessed with the power, he did not want to reform, open up, and did not care about the economy and people's livelihood of the Mars country. His only idea now is to become the emperor of Mars and the earth.

Mark realized that Daniel was a very smart and famous economist, more knowledgeable and capable than him, also far from his opponent in terms of scheming and political maneuvering so Mark worried that Daniel would replace him in the future. Last night, Mark considered seriously that at this stage, Daniel had been completely used by him, even if he kicked him out of the political arena and parted ways with him, he, Mark, could still sit on the mountain of power firmly. 

Recently, another incident also made Mark restless, his team of agents found out that several of Daniel 's buddies in the business and political circles supported and sponsored this demonstration for democracy and freedom even though they did not march in person. This was obviously a disguised support for the demonstrations and opposition to him. Moreover, recently a friend of Daniel publicly wrote an article on the Internet criticizing his policies of being retrograde and leading the people of Mars into the miserable abyss. Although Daniel did not participate in anything, how could he, Mark, tolerate Daniel’s political ideas and different mentality from his.

As Mark thought about it, he was very angry and unbalanced. He felt that no one could criticize, compete with him in public and take credit for his work. He looked around again, he touched the beautifully carved jade walls and railings on the palace tower with his hands, then clenched his fists, raised his head proudly, and took a deep breath toward the sky. At this time, he seemed to be full of confidence and strength, as if he had received a revelation from God - he, Mark must firmly grasp the power and severely attack all forces that oppose him, he must become a lifelong emperor to replace the president who could be elected out of No 1 office in Mars and wanted Mark’s descendants to be the rulers of the Mars Kingdom forever.

Mark was wandering on the tower of his East Palace, he knew very well the cruelty of the power struggle in the dictatorial system of the Mars country, there was no sense of friendship or love of family members, just like the jungle law of the winner is the king and the loser is the slave. He must weigh the pros and cons and find a foolproof strategy to deal with Danial. Not only would he, Daniel be driven out of power, but he would also be ruined, impoverished, and would never be able to make a comeback and return to politics. He knew that Daniel and his families also had certain power and property in the Mars Kingdom. He had to find a way to gradually weaken their power and seize their property, so that they could be eradicated to avoid future troubles.

Mark had been cultivated a tenacious fighting spirit in the soil of Mars since he was a child, he thought that fighting with people is funny as long as he could a be victor, even he felt that he could fight with the earth, the wind, the air, the sky, the star, the moon and the sun if he had enough energy. When he thought about being able to defeat Daniel and remove this stumbling block, he was extremely excited, as if he had met a beautiful woman whom he fell in love with at first sight, and his hormones and blood immediately heated up. 

At this time, Mark thought of his lucky goddess-pregnant Grace. Although Mark had countless women, his favorite was Grace. He believed that Grace could bring him good luck. Whenever he was with Grace, he could not only get some good ideas, but also forget the worldly things, troubles would fly away, left simple happiness. He immediately called Grace and said that he would go to her place for lunch tomorrow at noon and then take her to the dog manor. At the same time, he also called Bobe and asked him to take his wife to his dog manor tomorrow and he wanted to fish with him.

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon the next day, Mark, Grace, Bobe and his wife Yisa met on time at Mark's dog manor. Mark formally introduced Grace to Bobe and Yisa who was surprised. However, his husband Bobe had known about this love affair for a long time and did not tell her. Yisa had heard that Mark was a romantic man before, she also knew that powerful and wealthy men in the Kingdom of Mars had this common problem, which they liked looking for and flirting with beautiful young women outside, they even coined a popular saying: ‘you must have a good wife who never divorce, no matter how many women outside’. Yisa found that Mark treat Grace very well, it seemed that he was infatuated with Grace. Yisa felt aggrieved for her friend, Mark's wife Elisa in her heart, she was worried that Mark would dump Elisa and formally divorce her for the young and beautiful Grace.

When Yisa greeted Grace politely, she looked at Grace quickly and carefully. She found that Grace was not only young and beautiful, with a fairy-like temperament, but also very well-educated, generous and kind, no wonder Mark cherished her and fell in love. Yisa now thought, if I were a man, I would also shed my blood to love Grace.

After Mark introduced Grace to Yisa, he said to the two of them: "Now we two gentlemen have to excuse ourselves. You two beauties will be left to take care of each other and do your own activities. We are going to fish and will be back before dinner."

Fishing is a very good way of entertainment. It has the benefit of killing two birds with one stone. Not only can people stay away from the hustle and bustle of the city and enjoy and get close to the beautiful nature, but they can also train their patience and settle their souls through fishing. 

The word "fishing" had a profound meaning, and it was also a popular amusement and it formed a fishing culture in the official and business circles in Mars country. As businessmen, they could build relationships with officials through fishing. They tried to find various entertainment methods to cater to the officials' different hobbies and find a mountain of power which they could rely on so that their business could be smooth and good on Mars. As officials, they could also use fishing to relax their nervousness from the usual intrigues in the officialdom, and get to know some like-minded, capable and reliable businessmen, through whom they can obtain the benefits they want and achieve mutual benefit.

Mark and Bobe came to the lake carrying fishing rods. Bobe had already heard about what happened at the National Economic Conference that day, but he didn’t want to mention anything that displeases Mark and lest himself cause troubles. Bobe comprehended that in the officialdom of Mars Kingdom, it was better to do less than to do more, and it was better to be mute than to speak out.

Mark and Bobe found a suitable place to sit down by the lake, loaded the fish hooks with fish food, and then threw them into the water together. The two men were silent for a while, without speaking to each other, as if they were waiting for the fish to take the bait and catch them all at the right time. Actually, that was not the case, it was just that they both had their own concerns. Mark hadn't decided yet what to ask Bobe? And Bobe knew that Mark had been impetuous and emotionally unstable recently, and he was not ready to talk to Mark about anything so he didn't want to be found guilty for his words and suffer the bad consequences.

After a while, Mark asked Bobe: "What do you think of Daniel? Can he be reused?"

Bobe was confused by the question, which he knew that Daniel was Mark's good friend and capable partner, and their families were close friends. He didn't know why Mark asked him this question? He was afraid to guess that Daniel offended Mark just because of his forthright remarks at the National Economic Conference that day, Mark was angry now and wanted to kill him with his jealousy. 

Bobe was a little embarrassed and didn't know how to answer Mark's question. He composed himself, sweating in his heart, and used the best skill of Mars officials to play both sides. Then he turned his fear into laughter and said: "My wise and great president, Daniel is your friend. You have such a good relationship with him. You should know him better than me and have more say.”

Mark understood that Bobe was tactful and did not want to get involved in right and wrong. He also did not want Bobe to know that he was so petty and unforgiving. This would not be good for his future employment, so he found an excuse and said to Bobe: “Someone complained to me that Daniel and his family had embezzled and accepted huge amounts of bribes. You recently helped me carefully check all the properties of him and his family, and then reported it to me privately.”

In recent years, Mark has created a strange unspoken rule in the officialdom of Mars, that is, officials must choose sides, either support him and become his friend, or do not support him and become his enemy. Officials who support him will not be punished by law no matter how much corruption they commit or how they violate the law. Officials who do not support him will be accused of corruption and abuse of power even if they abide by the law. Therefore, many officials say they support him, but they hate him in their hearts and are unwilling to accept his support.

Bobe was not a fool and he had already guessed Mark's thoughts, so he felt shuddering and hairy in his heart. He said to himself: "Daniel is Mark's benefactor. Now Mark wants to be ungrateful and punish him because he is jealous of his talents. It is true that accompanying a king is like accompanying a tiger. I, Bobe must be extra cautious in the future, I can’t reveal my true nature like the tortoises had their meat hide in its belly, otherwise my life may be in danger if I’m not careful!"

In fact, Mark had given Bobe an order to secretly investigate the property of Daniel and his family. Even though Bobe is extremely reluctant, he had no choice but to do it himself! Bobe deliberately made a funny face and said flatteringly: "my wise and great president, if you ask me to go up the mountain of knives, I will go up, and if you ask me to get into the frying pan, I will get into. Now my life is yours, I will do anything for you without hesitation.”

When Mark saw Bobe's funny look, a satisfied smile appeared on his face, and the haze in his heart temporarily disappeared. Mark liked slaves as Bobe who was good at flattery, obedient and would never say "no", only “yes”.

At this time, night fell, Mark and Bobe did not catch a fish, and returned empty-handed to the restaurant of the main building of the Dog Manor to have dinner with Grace and Yisa. Mark was very superstitious and thought it was unfortunate that they didn't catch any fish. After dinner, Mark asked Bobe to stay for a few more days in a luxurious apartment in Dog Manor, planning to continue fishing the next day until he caught a big fish and hatched out a perfect plan on how to punish Daniel.

Chapter fourteen: Repay kindness with hatred

After breakfast the next day, Mark and Bobe went fishing at the lake as usual. Yisa and Grace stayed in the luxury apartment building in Dog Manor. Grace said to Yisa: "dear Yisa, can you please accompany me to the garden for a walk?”

Yisa happily agreed: "Okay Grace, I also want to take a walk outside and keep in good shape."

At this time, the weather outside was sunny and the two of them came to the garden together. Many camellias, azaleas, different roses, etc. were planted in the garden. Some roses were close to withering, others were blooming brilliantly and beautifully, although the flowers of camellias and azaleas had withered, they were still green and vital, as if all the flowers and trees were competing their beauty.

Grace said to Yisa: "dear Yisa is not only funny, but also talented. I admire you for being a well-known fashion designer and I also like fashion design very much. When I was a child, I dreamed of becoming a famous fashion designer, designing a lot of beautiful clothes for me and people. It’s a pity that my fingers are stupid and I always prick my fingers when I use the needle so I have to give up this beautiful thing. I continued to play the piano intently again because of the keyboard of the piano is larger and easier for me to control, becoming a pianist is my dream as well, and I’m lucky for playing the piano as a career."

Yisa replied to Grace: "I admire you even more for being an internationally renowned pianist. I also like music, piano and various musical instruments. Unfortunately, when I was a child, because the entire country was very poor, my parents could not provide enough money for me to learn piano. Your young people of this generation are very lucky, living in an open and prosperous era. Your parents have the financial conditions to support you to study some majors that you are interested in and good at, and choose the industry you like. When I grew up after working, I had the opportunity to do what I wanted to do. I saved some money and learned some pipa as a hobby in my spare time. I think this musical instrument is relatively small and easy to carry. When I am depressed, I often take it alone to the quiet places in the countryside to entertain myself and adjust my mood."

Grace smiled and said: "Sister Yisa is really versatile, and I still want to learn from you. Do you like poetry?"

Yisa replied: "I like it very much. My mother was a primary school teacher. She liked poetry very much. Under her influence when I was a child, I fell in love with poetry. Sometimes I would write one or two limericks to express myself. It’s just a hobby, not professional. Do you like to write poetry?”

Grace replied: "Yes, dear Yisa, I like it very much too. Whenever I write poems and talk to words, I forget all the troubles in the world. I also like to compose music, after I finish writing the poems, I will compose them to music. If the poem and the music are completed to my satisfaction, I will be very happy and feel a good sense of accomplishment. Seeing the camellias in this garden reminds me of the camellias I composed specially a poem and song for them a few years ago. I like camellia very much, because it is always evergreen all year round, which makes me cheering up and positive. I recite the poem to you I wrote, and please give me some advices. "Camellia", there is a flower named Camellia in the neighborhood. It breaks through the fence and comes to my house because It want to display the beauty at sunrise, and its branches show shy under the moonlight."

Yisa clapped her hands and praised: "The writing is very good, we are all amateurs, from my perspective, your writing is very good. We are so similar. I also like camellias very much. I also once made a poem for the camellia, the poem is called "Sighing at the Falling Flowers". The camellia fades with the wind; the falling flowers will live in my heart forever, when next spring arrives; the camellias will flower once more, but where can I find the old appearance of fading camellia?" 

Grace also clapped her hands and praised: "That's great, dear sister Yisa, like me, you’re also a sentimental person!"

Yisa and Grace became close friends and confidants after only one day together, they found that they had many common hobbies and topics. Grace liked music, composition, poetry, fashion design and cooking, etc. which Yisa liked them either. Yisa found that although Grace was an internationally renowned pianist, she had no celebrity airs at all. She was kind, friendly, considerate, and she had an angelic quality. Yisa felt that getting along with Grace is simple and happy. She liked her from the bottom of her heart and she would rather stay with Grace than her old friend First Lady Elisa.

Yisa also admired that Elisa’s superb acting skills as an actress and her success in the acting career. But she felt that Elisa's cultural quality and inner spiritual cultivation were completely different from Grace’s. Elisa was too fond of vanity, power and status, loved to play big names and had a strong sense of officialdom, and felt a bit bossy and domineering. In short, Eliza exuded a strong bureaucratic and secular atmosphere of Mars government.

Yisa was a little confused, how could such a good girl like Grace fell in love with Mark? As Grace's conditions, she could find a better, younger and more handsome man at home and abroad and live a comfortable and happy life. Why did she have to get involved in Mark's complicated private life? And Mark was already over sixty years old and still very romantic, while Grace was like a flower stuck in cow dung. I wondered what kind of the ecstasy drug Mark gave Grace? Yisa drew a small summary about this couple which Mark was like a ferocious tiger caught a docile lamb. Yisa thought that everyone liked kind, gentle and generous people. Why didn’t people change their own shortcomings and became a good person? If everyone could have the same virtues as Grace, how beautiful this world would be!

Yisa was born in an ordinary teacher's family in a remote county, her parents were both kind-hearted and upright elementary school teachers, she received a good family education since she was a child and Yisa was also a kind and upright woman. When she was young, she also had a dream of studying abroad, however, the economic situation of ordinary families in her young age was not good, so they were unable to travel across the ocean to realize her dream of studying abroad. In Yisa’s heart, she also didn't like the authoritarian system. She was well aware of the harm that the authoritarian system had brought to the society and individuals. Therefore, she had long sent her son and daughter to study abroad and settle down. She was worried that this authoritarian system would ruin her children’s nice life in the future.

Asking herself, Yisa didn’t like Mark. She knew that since Mark took office as president, because he was greedy for power, jealous of talents, loved great achievements, favored villains and distanced virtuous ministers, and liked flattering, the politics and economy of Mars country had been changed. It got into a mess and declined day by day. It was God's will that it happened that Yisa’s husband Bobe became Mark's cabinet minister at this time. Mark reused her husband because he was obedient and had no ambitions. However, her husband did not dare to tell the truth in front of Mark for fear of offending Mark, and losing his official hat. Yisa loved her husband Bobe very much, she would do whatever Bobe told her to do. If he told her to go east, she would not go west. Yisa was a typically traditional woman of Mars country who sang the same song with her husband no matter how ugly the song was. 

In deep contemplation, Yisa and Grace returned to the lobby of the Dog Manor apartment building and came to a beautiful tripod grand piano that Mark specially prepared for Grace. Grace said to Yisa with her crisp and sweet voice: "dear Yisa, I want to play you a piano piece called "Camellia" that I composed myself. See how I do it. Please give me some opinions so that I can continue to work hard to make it more perfect."

Grace began to play the piano piece "Camellia" which she composed, and her white and slender fingers danced on the piano keyboard. The heavenly sound of the piano brought Yisa into a beautiful picture, in the spring In March, the suburban mountains were full of charming camellias. The warm sunlight shone on the camelias, making them more beautiful. The creek happily and endlessly flowed for the camellias. The breeze couldn’t help but whisper in the camellias' ears: "You’re so beautiful, I can’t help but want to kiss you.”

Just as Yisa and Grace were intoxicated by Camellia's piano music, Mark and Bobby came back. They did not disturb Grace and Yisa, but stood outside the hall door and enjoyed Grace's beautiful Camellia piano music. When the piano ended, they Entered the hall together, Mark hugged Grace excitedly, gave her a kiss and said, "My dear, I finally caught a big fish today."

After lunch, Mark took the advantage of his excitement to ask Bobe to go to his study in Dog Manor to continue discussing how to punish Daniel. When they were fishing by the lake in the morning, Mark had already told it clearly to Bobe that he wanted to dispose Daneil and asked Bobe to give him some opinions, and Bobe was forced to get involved into this harmful business out of the roguery. At this time, Mark wanted to complete it while the iron was hot. He said to Bobe: "After we discussed it, I will probably put this plan in my sort it out from your thoughts, see if you need to make additions and modifications, and then formulate a perfect plan. 1. Publicize his private life and corruption issues through domestic and foreign media, and public opinion comes first before punishment. 2. Through Investigate and prosecute him through formal legal procedures. 3. Legal trial, confiscation of property, dismissal from public office, imprisonment, and death from illness.”

Bobe could only respond to Mark with a flattering smile: "Our great and wise president has superhuman ability and wisdom. As long as you decide to do something, nothing can stop you, and there is nothing you can't do. You can pick the moon from the sky and destroyed the Dragon King Temple in the sea. It’s just a trivial matter.” Although Bobe’s words were half-joking and half-sarcastic, Mark didn’t have the time or energy to think about the meaning of Bobe’s words. Mark first laughed wickedly and complacently accepted Bobe’s clever flattery.

Because Mark was jealous of talents and could not tolerate other people's different political opinions, a few months later, after Mark's careful planning and frame-up, what will happen to an upright economic minister, Daniel, who was once Mark's good friend and helper?

Chapter fifteen: Hidden murderous intent

In an elegant dining room, Daniel was having dinner with his wife, Mary accompanied by soft and cheerful light music. His eldest son Jackson suddenly called from abroad, he picked up the mobile phone: "Dad, where are you now? It's convenient to talk, I have something important to tell you?"

Daniel replied: "I am having dinner with your mother at home. If you have anything to say, just tell me."

Jackson lowered his voice and said, "This matter is very important to you. It's not convenient to speak about it with my mother around. You'd better leave the dining room and go somewhere else to talk."

Damiel thought for a while, he was having dinner with his wife and suddenly avoided his wife to whisper with his son, he was afraid that his wife would become suspicious, so he deliberately said to his son: "Well, if you have something to do now, just go ahead and get busy. Call me again when you are free."

Daniel’s wife, Mary asked: "Who is it, Jackson or Mila? They didn't even talk to me and hung up the phone so quickly? It's really unfilial."

Daniel replied: "It's Jackson. He originally wanted to chat with us, but suddenly a customer called him to discuss business matters, so he said he would call back when he was free. You should be lucky that you have two sensible and well-behaved children.”

Daneil's wife, Mary joked: "Yes, you always spoil your children. In front of them, you are like a peacemaker and a lovely father, while I am like a hag, vicious mother.”

Daniel smiled and replied: "please don't be jealous with me about the children. You have raised and educated them so well, children always remember you in their heart and love you more than me. 

After dinner, Daniel hurried to his large and quiet study. His study was unique in its combination of fashion and classics. The large bookcase was filled with various books, including biographies of various celebrities, world economy, politics and world history, World famous books, etc.

He was in a hurry to dial back the video call to his son, Jackson: “dear son, I'm sorry, I just deliberately lied and said you had something to do and hung up on you. I was afraid your mother would be suspicious of what we said and keeping secret things from her makes her unhappy.”

Jackson replied: "Dad, I have already guessed it, so I have been waiting for your call back. Dad, you have to be mentally prepared for what I am telling you now and maybe you will face a storm. Two days ago, I saw a piece of unfavorable news about you in the Dawn newspaper, saying that you used your power in Mars to not only embezzle huge sums of money, but also toy with many female celebrities. Then these scandals have been reprinted and hyped by other media in recent days. This is called that army have not moved, public opinion come first. 'Dawn newspaper' is a new media which I checked their background and what is very strange is that this foreign media company belongs to the mistress of a big shot. I won't say who, but you also can guess who I am referring to? Our calls are being monitored. Now almost everyone’s calls and their every move in the Kingdom of Mars are being monitored. You have to be careful and someone wants to harm you intentionally."

Daniel was a little angry at first when he heard the news from his son, Jackson, but he immediately calmed down and said to his son, Jackson: "I know, son, don't worry about me, dad will be fine. You have to take good care of yourself. Please call and care about your sister when you’re free, you are both in the foreign country, and your mother and I can't look after you."

Jackson replied: "Okay, dad, you and mom should also take care of your health. I will come back to see you when I have time."

After the call between Daniel and his son, Jackson ended, Daniel sat alone in the study and fell into deep thought and he knew who was the big shot Jackson referred. He recalled the good times in his youth, both Daniel and Mark lived in a compound of high-ranking officials. There were four siblings in his family, one elder sister and two younger sisters, while Mark's family had three siblings, Mark, a younger brother and a younger sister, Daniel often played with the Mark brothers. Daniel was 2 years older than Mark and has no brothers at home. Therefore, he treated the Mark brothers as his own brothers and helped them and gave them everything, even as a teenager, he gave up his girlfriend to Mark.

He and Mark once had great and lofty ideals, hoping that one day they could make a difference and change the dictatorial system of Mars Country into a democratic, free and prosperous country, so that the people of Mars Country could live a happy and nice life. For this lofty ideal and mission, Daniel helped Mark campaign, defeated his political opponents, Mark finally get the presidential throne and become the number one figure in Mars Country. Unexpectedly, since Mark took office, he had become more and more greedy for power and had no intention of reforming the political system of the Mars country, therefore, differences had arisen between him and Mark. The distance had become wider and wider, and the estrangement had become deeper and deeper. Daniel asked himself: “why are some people able to tolerate others after they have power, while some people cannot see a grain of sand in their eyes?

After the National Economic Forum meeting, Daneil wanted to have a heart-to-heart talk with Mark several times to show that he did not want to deliberately contradict him and embarrass him. Instead, he wanted to help Mark and let others see that Mars was still open, there was also freedom of speech, as a prime minister, I can also have an open debate with the president to resolve the conflict and restore the friendship of the past between him and Mark, so that Mark can adhere to his former lofty ideals and create a prosperous and powerful Mars country. Daniel wasted his efforts, everything he did was in vain, and Mark politely declined to talk to him alone. Daniel found that Mark's magnanimity was getting smaller and smaller, and his mind was getting narrower and narrower. He only liked to listen to the flattery, and hated loyal words that were harsh to his ears. Daniel once again felt that under a dictatorship, power could make people crazy, perverted, and arrogant. Therefore, only the democratic system can curb a person's arrogance of rights and put unbridled power into a cage.

Daniel couldn't believe that because he expressed in public that he and Mark had different political and economic views and opinions, Mark held a grudge and even he didn't hold back his old feelings and wanted to kill him secretly.

Daniel remembered the 'celebrity scandal' mentioned by his son. He indeed had a private relationship with two beautiful female stars. One was the famous movie star, Amy in the past. Amy was introduced to him by Mark, who once joked that in order to make up for stealing his girlfriend in the past, he had repaid his love debt for giving him a female star, and the love debt had been wiped out from now. Mark had not become president at that time, but the relationship between the two of them was more special that they could hook up to put their shoulders on their backs and call themselves brothers.

One was Bella, a popular female singer today. He was a fan of Bella, who had a sweet and moving singing which it could relax him in officialdom and return him to calm. He met Bella at a charity fund-raising event for the disabled and orphans, he was a donor, and Bella attended the event as a voluntary performing singer. Bella wanted to ask him to do something and took the initiative to embrace her. As a man, it was difficult for him to resist the temptation of beautiful women, not to mention that Bella was the idol he had admired for a long time. He would never use the power in his hands to force beauties to have an affair with him. If he liked a girl, he would impress her with sincerity and action. He believed that such a relationship between the lovers could have real fun.

Daneil graduated from Caisi University, a prestigious university in Mars. His major is political economics, specializing in the politics and economy of Mars and the world. His father was a famous former minister of commerce and trade in Mars. Almost all their family members were a finance and business assets. Danel, his wife, Mary were classmates at the same university and Daniel was 4 years older than his wife. His wife's father was once a famous banker in the Mars Country, and Daniel's wife has now become a famous financier in the contemporary Mars Country – the stock goddess. Therefore, Daniel's family members have almost monopolized the entire financial and important business industry in Mars Country, and their family had long been the richest in Mars country.

Regarding property, he believed that he had never been corrupt and put the country's money directly into his own pocket. In order to facilitate his work, he bribed and gave money to other officials, but he never accepted money from anyone. He liked art and antiques, so he accepted famous paintings and antiques given to him by others. He also used his power to obtain some useful and reliable information and interpersonal relationships. But in the country of Mars, corruption, bribery, and affairs among officials were just like the desserts and a piece of cake. As long as you had a good relationship with your boss, any illegal behavior could be reduced to a minor matter. Once your political team were not on the right track, you followed the wrong boss or offend your boss, you would be in the trouble and you might end up in the jail at any time, with your life at risk.

Although Daniel was the Minister of Economics and Trade and could be called the second-ranking figure in the Mars Kingdom, he was a model husband at home and he loved his wife Mary and his children very much. He was now in a heavy heart, conflicted, he didn't know how to tell his wife about his affair and the upcoming persecution? But the situation was urgent, and he had no time to think about things before and after. He couldn’t sit still and wait for death. He must tell his wife the truth and be fully prepared to face the coming storm.

After Daniel meditated hard in the study for 2 hours, he took his wife's hand and came to his study. When they sat down, Daniel cleared his throat and said to his wife, Mary: "Honey, I want to tell you something interesting and thrilling, please don’t be afraid of the story. If you don’t like it, please don’t be angry too? I like to see you’re happy, your smile is very, very beautiful!”

Daniel told his wife the whole story, including the differences and conflicts between him and Mark and the current trouble. He had never mentioned anything between him and Mark before, because he considered Mark to be his brother, and he always tried to help Mark in all aspects and protect his reputation. Moreover, he believed that it was not necessary for a man to talk about people's rights and wrongs with others, let alone chatting with women. He thought this was very immoral.

When Daniel finished speaking, his wife, Mary stood up calmly and closed to Daniel, hugged him affectionately and said: "my dear husband, I know who you are. No matter what you have done before, I will forgive you, no matter what will happen in the future, I will stand with you to suffer any violent storm, because I love you, even I am willing to die for you.”

A few days later, Daniel received several unfortunate news. First, the Mars government sent an official letter stating that due to his corruption and bribery, he would be removed from the post of Minister of Economic and Trade from now on and would be investigated. Second: The companies owned by the Daniel family received a letter from the tax bureau. Due to the tax evasion, the Daniel family was seized and fined 5 billions. The final treatment would be made after the investigation was completed. Third: The major media in Mars Country had repeatedly reported the scandal of Daniel using his power not only to embezzle huge sums of money, but also to play with many female stars attached photos of him hugging them. This news was indeed a fatal blow and humiliation, had a profound impact on Daniel and Daniel family.

Chapter sixteen: Love and hatred

After the phone call between Jackson and his father, Daniel ended, Jackson was in no mood to do anything. He was well aware of the dark politics under the dictatorship of the Mars country, Officials would intrigue and hurt each other for official status, interests, and even jealousy and hatred. Today you may be in a high position of power and superiority, but tomorrow you may be a prisoner in the jail. At this moment, he was very worried that something would happen to his father, and that his mother would be heartbroken when she knew about his father's scandal. In order to protect his family, Jackson could do anything.

A few days later, Jackson saw on the internet that major media outlets in the Kingdom of Mars had published the scandal about his father and the unfortunate news that Daniel family business had been seized by the tax bureau and fined huge sums. Jackson was so anxious that he could not wait to go back immediately and help his parents to face this storm together.

Jackson looked very much like Daniel, with thick eyebrows and big eyes. He was not handsome, but had a masculine look. Jackson was depressed when he thought about his relationship with the Mark family as he had been in love with Mark's daughter, Aaliyah for more than a year. They love each other deeply and the two officially lived together recently, they wanted to keep this secret for a time being, so they didn't tell their parents and family members. Jackson didn't expect that his father and Mark would now have a conflict, causing Mark to persecute his father. This made him to a dilemma of the love and hatred, not knowing what to do!

Jackson was 3 years older than Aaliyah. They both studied at a prestigious university in UK. Jackson inherited the genes of his parents and his major was still economics, with a minor in computer science and business management. He excelled in his studies and stayed at the university to teach after graduation. At the same time, he opened an investment company, using the money his parents gave him to reinvest, and also helped their family business make various financial investments abroad to avoid the risks of Mars’ single market.

Aaliyah was Mark's eldest daughter, except for her small eyes and thick lips, which look like Mark, the rest of her body looks like her mother Eliza, although she was not a beauty, she exuded a kind of nobility and elegance temperament. Aaliyah was currently pursuing postgraduate studies at Chengdu University. Her major was international relations, her minor was computer science and business management. Jackson often helped her with business management and computer courses. Aaliyah not only loved Jackson deeply, but also appreciated that he was a smart person, a capable, patient and responsible man.

Aaliyah was an upright and positive girl and her ambition was to engage in charity work in the future to help those in need. Aaliyah's political stance and views was completely opposite to her father, Mark's. She was not like Mark and Eliza's child, but a bit like Mark's deceased father, Luke, the former Minister of Agriculture who was upright, kind, open-minded. Aaliyah agreed with the universal values of democracy and freedom, and hated the dominance of one person and arrogance of power under the dictatorship system. She believed that the dictatorship system had completely killed the beautiful humanity of human beings, and advocated evil in disguise turning humans into devils, so she chose studying abroad and settling in UK, enjoying a simple, free life, and not coveting the princess-like, boring life in the palace of Mars.

Jackson understood that Aaliyah was a good girl, and he should not blame her for her father's sins because she didn't know anything. Jackson thought: "when Aaliyah comes back tonight, should I mention this matter to her, let her come forward, talk to her father Mark to ease the tensions that are now going against his father Daniel." 

Jackson then felt that it was not appropriate to ask a woman to help him. His personality was very similar to his father, Daniel, who was traditional. He believed that a decent man should be upright and would rather help a lady solve her problems than easily cause troubles to her.

That night, after Aaliyah came back from school activities, she saw Jackson's frown and asked: "Darling, why do you look so anxious? Can you tell me what happened?"

Jackson planned not to tell Aaliyah about his father and his family business until how the current situation would develop, so he came back to his senses, adjusted his emotions and said to Aaliyah: "Dear, it's nothing big, don't worry about me, it’s just a mistake in stock investment. okay, just pay the tuition.”

After Jackson finished speaking, he gave Aaliyah a gentle hug and kiss, and then went to the bathroom with a towel, hoping to cover up his bad mood with a warm bath and make himself calmer.

When Jackson entered the bathroom, Aaliyah found a copy of the Dawn newspaper on the coffee table in the living room. She glanced at the newspaper and saw an eye-catching headline on a large page: "The Promiscuous Life of the Great Corrupt Official Daniel". Below was a printed photo of Jackson's father hugging two beautiful female celebrities. Aaliyah immediately understood why Jackson was so absent-minded before. She understood Jackson's mood at this moment. If she was Jackson, she would be worried about her family as well.

When Jackson came out of the bathroom after taking a shower, he saw Aaliyah sitting on the sofa in the living room, staring at the newspaper he bought. He immediately understood that Aaliyah already knew what happened at his home. Jackson took a deep breath, relaxed and walked towards Aaliyah. He sat next to her, held her hand, and said to her gently: "Darling, I believe you already know about my father. I plan to return to Mars country for a while to spend time with my parents. Maybe it will be better to help dealing with these terrible matters."

Aaliyah snuggled into Jackson's arms tenderly and said sadly: "Dear, I understand how you are feeling now. I believe your family will get through this crisis safely and smoothly. Only after your father's turmoil did I have the courage to tell you, my father had many lovers outside, he often left my mother alone in the palace and he go out to date other young and pretty women. I don't like him, his mind is full of the feudalism, the emperor's decadent thoughts, as if he still lived hundreds or thousands of years ago, so I don't want to go back to that seemingly beautiful palace, because there lives a dictatorial man who always wants to control people and turn the entire Mars country into a big prison."

Jackson comforted Aaliyah and said: "Thank you for your understanding, dear, don't hate your 

father. He has always been your father who gave birth to you and raised you. If you can use your advanced and enlightened thoughts to change your father's backward and conservative consciousness, then well, we, the people of Mars, will be blessed."

Aaliyah replied: "It's difficult. I've tried it. As soon as we talk about democracy and dictatorship, he said to me, you little girl, don't come to teach and brainwash your father, what do you know about politics? Do you know what human nature is? Without your father's hard work and stepping on other people's heads to get to where I am today, would you have been able to study abroad and enjoy today's glory and wealth? Once, we argued until we got red-faced and broke up unhappily. For this reason, the relationship between us became worse and worse. He is obsessed with changing the existing electoral system of Mars to a lifelong emperor."

Jackson kissed Aaliyah's face and said, "Dear, I'm very worried about my parents. I want to buy a ticket to go back to Mars after I finish some university’s works tomorrow. I don't know how long I will stay there? You have to take good care of yourself." 

Aaliyah hugged Jackson's waist and said naughtily: "My darling, you are my world now. Once you leave me, I don't know how to live? I want to go back to Mars country with you, maybe there are something I can help you. Although we don’t want our parents to know that we live together for the time being, we can book the hotel sometimes and we can still be together often."

Jackson thought for a while and felt that what Aaliyah said made sense, so he agreed to her suggestion. Aaliyah left Jackson very happily, went to the study room, turned on the computer, and booked two tickets for her and Jackson to fly to Mars.

Two days later, Jackson and Aaliyah returned to Mars Country and went home separately after leaving the airport. When Jackson returned at home, Daneil felt indescribably happy when he saw his son. He patted Jackson on the shoulder and said, "Good boy, you are finally back. It’s been a hard journey."

Jackson’s mother, Mary couldn't help hugging Jackson and said: "My dear son, are you okay? Mom misses you so much, let mom see if you’re well. Mom is so happy when you come home. What do you want to eat? Mom will cook for you. Let me think, what is your favorite food?”

Jackson hugged his mother affectionately again and said, "Mom, I like everything you cooked. How are you? I miss you and dad too."

Then Jackson made an exception to give his father, Daniel a hug, because in the traditional customs of Mars Country, men rarely hug each other. At most, they hold hands or pat the shoulders to express a enthusiastic greeting and friendly relationship.

When Jackson and his parents were sitting face to face on the sofa in the living room, he found that his parents had become much older in just a few days, although they pretended to be calm as they were afraid that Jackson would worry them. Jack was heartbroken for his parents and he secretly vowed to make Mark pay a heavy price.

After lunch, Jackson sent a text message to Aaliyah on his mobile phone, asking her to meet at the coffee shop of the Bukala five-star hotel at 8 p.m.

In the palace of Mars Kingdom, Elisa was very pleased to saw her daughter, Aaliyah being at home so that she couldn’t control herself to dance happily. She hugged her daughter and was reluctant to let go. She kept kissing her on the face and said, "Baby girl, it's pleasant to have you back home. Mom misses you so much."

When Elisa held Aaliyah, she felt as if her daughter was still her infant. Although Elisa loved power and wealth, she loved her daughters even more at this moment. This may be a woman's maternal nature.

At this time, Aaliyah's cell phone rang. Aaliyah sweetly said to Elisa: "Dear mother, I miss you very much too. well, mom, I want to check my mobile phone."

After Aaliyah read Jackson's message, she immediately replied: "ok, my love, looking forward to see you!"

During dinner, Aaliyah told Eliza: "Dear mother, I am going out to have a party with my classmates after dinner. I may come back very late, or I may come back tomorrow."

Eliza said to her daughter: "Your father has been out for a few days. He is very happy to hear that you are back. He will come back to see you tomorrow. If only you were at home more often, maybe your father would go out less often."

Aaliyah said cheerfully: "Okay, my beloved mother. I will try my best to come back tonight. You know the classmates have not seen each other for a long time. There are too many old and new topics to talk about." Then she printed a deep kiss on Eliza's face. 

Aaliyah arrived at the Bukala five-star hotel and Jackson was waiting for her in the coffee shop. She had only been separated from Jackson for half a day, as if three autumns had passed. She hugged Jackson ecstatically and whispered: "my darling, I miss you so much."

Jackson also whispered to Aaliyah: "My dear, as you asked, I have opened the room."

Jackson and Aaliyah arrived at the luxury suite No. 369 of the Bukala Hotel. Jackson first checked whether the room was monitored with the testing and monitoring equipment he brought back from abroad, put black tape on all objects with holes facing their bed, then turned on the audio switch on the bedside table, and adjusted a relaxing and pleasant symphony channel to a medium-low volume to prevent others from monitoring and recording. Jackson hugged Aaliyah tenderly and said, "my love, how many days do you plan to stay in the hotel with me?

Aaliyah pushed Jackson to the bed and said with a naughty smile: "Ten thousand years, Haha, can we live that long? If we can, we maybe become mummies. At least in this life, I will never be separated from you." Then her face turned from happy to gloomy, and she sighed: "I have to rush back before tomorrow morning, because my father will be back tomorrow afternoon."

Jackson thought for a moment, then stood up and went to the luggage table to open his backpack. He took out a copy of the Mars Daily and showed it to Aaliyah. Aaliyah couldn't believe that such a tragic thing would happen to Jackson's family because she knew about his father Mark and Jackson’s father were very good friends and partners. She knew that in the current Mars Kingdom, as long as his father Mark said a word, Jackson's family would immediately turn danger into safety. She decided to help her beloved man, Jackson and plead with her father to let the Daniel family go. She decided that no matter what happened to Jackson's family, she would still love Jackson and would not leave him.

Aaliyah and Jackson were inseparable and lingered until 6 am the next day, Aaliyah got up, dressed, gave Jackson a long reassuring kiss and then went home.

Mark was very happy to see his daughter Aaliyah when he returned home. In his heart, he also loved Aaliyah very much. He knew that Aaliyah was a capable, reliable and noble-moral child. He just felt that she was too kind and simple, and would be easily fooled and deceived in the complicated society. He believed that good people could be bullied by those evil people, kindness and simplicity cannot be eaten like the food and people must face the cruel reality every day. What made Mark even more worried was that his daughter, Aaliyah often contradicted him and was stubborn in her own opinions which she was obsessed with democracy, freedom and human rights, and spurned dictatorship. Wasn't this a slap in the face of her father? she simply didn’t know how high the sky was, how the ugliness of human nature and the dangers of the world were!

In order to rescue Jackson's father and his family, Aaliyah changed her attitude towards his father and became very docile and well-behaved. During the time she met her father, she no longer raised political topics about democracy and dictatorship with him, and always said things that her father, Mark liked to hear. Mark was very happy because he thought his daughter had changed tremendously and became more sensible, which made him more assured that there would be a nice successor to the Mark family.

After dinner, Aaliyah deliberately took Mark's arm and came to Mark's emotional study room so that she could talk to Mark quietly. When they sat down on the sofa in the study, Aaliyah said to Mark with tears in her eyes: "dear Dad, I have a big trouble, can you please help me deal with it?"

Seeing his daughter’s pitiful appearance, Mark asked anxiously: “what matter? just tell me, my darling daughter, Dad will help you solve any problem.”

Aaliyah slowly told Mark: “dear Dad, please exempt Daniel and his family from punishment because I have been in love with his son, Jackson for more than a year, I love Jackson very much, I am now more than 2 months pregnant and I plan to marry Jackson. If Dad doesn’t agree, I will rather die.”

Mark's face immediately darkened, and he didn't want to get angry at his daughter, so he closed his eyes and didn't speak for a while. Finally, in view of his daughter's plea and the private relationship with Daniel's son, Mark decided to stop the persecution of Daniel and lift the sanctions against the Daniel family. However, he did not agree to the marriage between Aaliyah and Jackson. Daniel will no longer be involved in politics, retire as soon as possible and the Daniel family must pay a tax evasion fine of 5 billion.

Chapter seventeen: A Strange Prayer

The soft rumble in the distance grew steadily louder as the long motorcade approached a resplendent cathedral. Upon arrival, just one car slowly swept through the golden gates, warm sunshine reflecting off its blacked-out windows. The other vehicles remained outside the cathedral grounds. The church was surrounded by numerous black-suited bodyguards, strategically positioned, together with an intimidating group of armed soldiers, A most incongruous scene ringing this house of prayer.

When the biggest car was finally parked, Mark of the Mars leader, sitting in the back seat, looked in the mirror, wanting to look his best before he went into the sacred building. He was fat and had a big head, with small, swollen eyes which only seemed to open with some difficulty. He also had a very large mouth, which seemed capable of swallowing the whole earth. From the superstitious culture of Mars, Mark was very satisfied with his appearance which he thought it was the appearance of an emperor.

Mark remembered that he hadn’t paid close attention to his appearance for a long time, he carefully studied his face - he found that he was certainly looking more （ugly） and older than a few months ago. Today he should be in a celebratory mood, for he had successfully rooted out his many political rivals and enemies, yet his mood was still heavy because he had many wishes. He touched his face, trying to relax the muscles, but his expression would not soften, after many years of wearing a mask of imperious strength.

Mark appreciated that his parents gave him this smart name because it had multiple meanings, including the idea that it could convey good fortune and bring great prosperity and wealth to him. He liked this original name very much, and felt that it had indeed brought him a great deal of luck, especially since he had become the Mars leader.

Mark knew many government officials envied him deeply of they thought that he had simply relied on his father and many women to acquire the most powerful position in the country before, and that he didn’t have the necessary knowledge nor the ability, to manage such a huge country. Mark also knew a lot of Mars citizens didn’t like him recent years because he was too authoritarian so that the country’s economies and people’s living standards were getting worse and worse. Exactly, Mark didn’t care about the country’s economies and people’s living standards and he only care about his power so he established a powerful team of agents and an advanced surveillance system to monitor every word, deed, and move of the people of Mars to prevent anyone from having the opportunity to usurp his power.

As Mark prepared to get out of the car, a handsome bodyguard with a nervous and submissive expression, clearly afraid, opened the door for him. His expression at once became stiff and surly, as if he didn’t know how to smile and respect other people.

The fact is that he had never smiled or been polite to any of his subordinates throughout his career, saving such warm gestures only for those in higher positions in the Mars political regime or his lovers. Of course, now nobody was above him, and yet he seemed to have totally forgotten how to express warmth or smile sincerely.

Mark represented what an utterly evil dictatorship culture the Mars government had become. One which advocated no shame, no sympathy, no kindness, no justice, no love. Only hatred, violence, jealousy, vanity, lying, faking, stealing and cheating. Its citizens were forced to spy on each other, by bribery, threats and fear of death. At his head, Mark knew that if he didn’t retain a tight grip on power and use it to appear both awesome and invincible, then he would quickly lose respect, and could easily be imprisoned, and devoured by his many political rivals.

From the time Mark became the president of Mars to now, he had tasted the sweetness of power in a dictatorship. He thought that power was like a magical magic, if you played this magic well, it could bring you what you wanted. He believed that being able to control others was the greatest pleasure and art, so now he was a little carried away and his ambitions had begun to expand. He planned to use his experience and methods of ruling the Kingdom of Mars to guide people all over the world.

Mark puffed out his chest with pride, faked a weak smile and entered the grandly decorated private cathedral where just he and his family were allowed inside. In fact, despite his public posturing, he was deeply superstitious and fully believed in the deity. He didn’t like other people to show interest in religions as he thought that ‘God’ belonged only to him and lesser people should follow him, not any other god.

Mark originally wanted to take Grace to the church to pray so that God would bless her and successfully give birth to Royal seeds for him. But Mark was a very superstitious person as he was afraid that it would be unlucky to bring a pregnant woman to church to pray for the realization of his great dream, so he gave up the idea.

Today he was going to pray for three wishes; the first one was that he could get rid of all his opponents, especially those who wished to replace him. The second one was what he could live long time and the third one was that God could bless him to achieve his big dream - to reign supreme over the entire world and let Mark’s descendants to become the rulers of the earth forever.

As Mark came up to the altar, all his security team withdrew and he was left alone inside the church. He firmly closed his eyes and at that moment he felt as if he had flown into heaven, where God was embracing him warmly. Then he said to God:

“My dear father,

I hope that I can become second God.

The warm sunshine smiles at me,

The graceful moonlight whispers to me,

The lovely spring and autumn seasons massage me,

The gentle breeze sings for me,

The rain dances for me,

The beautiful flower kisses at me.

With all this love, I must govern whole earth.

I want to use the natural weapons of great storms,

thunder and lightning, the chill of winter and

the heat of summer, in order to dominate all mankind.”

God was angry at him, “You are nothing but a greedy and wicked villain. I will punish you.”

Mark retorted: “But I have to be the second God to rule the entire earth and all the people must become my slaves. I will destroy those stupid people who want to hold on the freedom and democracy.” 

As Mark finished these words, he immediately opened his eyes as though he was afraid that God would punish him, and strike him down. He didn’t want to listen to anymore criticism from this God either.

Chapter eighteen: The Golden plan

Next day, Mark ordered several senior minsters to his office. He wanted them to discuss how to design a cunning plan to stealthily subvert and ultimately occupy every country on earth. He sat perfectly still and expressionless, in a golden leather chair to one side of the cabinet table which dominated the luxurious conference room. Ever since becoming Mars Leader, he always liked to sit in this manner when in the presence of others. This is because he had a blind faith in an ancient cultural belief which stated that if one sat as still as a clock, or stood as motionless as a pine tree, then one may eventually absorb the quintessence of all universal energies. 

Over the years, having observed the ruthless manner in which Mark’s crushed his political rivals, all the ministers and other senior officials within the regime felt very intimidated by his power. They even became scared for their families, worrying that not only their official hat but their lives may be at risk if they were considered to be disloyal in any way. Although in their hearts, many were undoubtably displeased with this autocratic situation, they stayed in line and performed their various roles with extreme caution. Initial, nobody spoke publicly about today’s important meeting, they worry about saying the wrong thing to get into troubles, but they were all more than aware that the best way to retain their positions within the government was to flatter the leader at all times. 

Minister Abbey who was thin and bald, had the courage to speak first: “Dear Sir, we have already created fantastic surveillance system in our country, with which we are able to completely control our population. Now we need to establish a more sophisticated economic system and simultaneously open our commercial markets in order to deceive more and more foreign investors. By so doing, once they have founded businesses within our country, we can monitor them and steal their technology clandestinely. Eventually, they will lose everything.”

The Mark immediately challenged this: “No, we can’t let them lose everything. Initially we should give them some benefits, and exploit mankind’s weaknesses such as; greed, selfishness, hatred and jealousy, also we may use the openness of socially democratic countries, until they become weak, then we will entrap them to lose everything.”

Minister Bobe said with a sly expression: “We can install electronic monitoring systems into our products too. Obviously, we have already done this for many years with mobile phones and Sim-card in our country, but we should do the same with all electrical products to export abroad. Furthermore, we must subvert software and Wi-Fi connections by integrating so called ‘spyware’ to work to our advantage’. 

Pausing, he rubbed his hands together as if he had already gotten a gold in his hand and then continued; “In this way we can expand our surveillance and gradually manipulate millions of people around the world who buy our products.” 

The next minister Tonny leaned forward in his chair to interrupt: “We may send a lot of our most highly trained covert agents to various countries where they will gain work in different crucial organizations. Specifically in government, finance, law, media, IT and telecommunications. Our agents will be like the wild grass which grows everywhere.” 

The dark haired and somebow-looking minister Edward spoke slowly and loudly as if he worried other people couldn’t hear him: “We can also easily bribe significant influential people every country to work for us, particularly certain politicians, music and film stars, experts and scholars. We know all well how the greed and corruption go hand in hand in so many countries. As our folk adage says: “Money can make the ghost dance happily. Let our money to buy the dignity, conscience, even freedom and democracy of those people in the democratic countries. It won’t be very difficult, will it? Haha.” 

Even the Mark smiled a little at this comment. 

Edward continued: “Of course, we may also use marriage and immigration to assimilate people from many countries because we have the biggest population. Let our Mars citizens...whom we can easily control, spread through the whole earth and then we don’t need to use a bullet to fulfil our golden plan!” 

The older, slightly frail, bespectacled minister Eamon then had his say: “Perhaps we should establish some schools and even religious centers, in order to brainwash not only the gullible foreign people but also our Mars citizens who may be living abroad. With our strong economy, we can also purchase a variety of media companies and use them to promote our political agenda and even create fake-news which will obviously favour us. By all these methods we can come to influence the economies and politics of various countries. As the saying goes, we can then ‘nip their necks’ more easily.” 

The tall recently-appointed minister Flantor, spoke quickly as though fearing he may not get the opportunity to voice his views again: ‘We may also quietly and carefully support a number of terrorist organizations. When the time is right, they can join peacefully the protests but then create violence and gradually disturb the social order. Furthermore, they can threaten, attack or even assassinate any figures who publicly oppose us or we don’t like. They will be like our guerilla troops in every country. After all, our laboratories have plenty of radioactive materials, rare poisons and different viruses which we can use to this end. When the countries we target become chaotic, their economies will inevitably fall into recession. Of course, by contrast, in our great country, although many citizens are very clever and diligent but they are mostly cowards and dare not cross the red lines we drew. This means we can easily maintain a passive, peaceful society and thereby develop our economy quickly. Around this table and under the power of our great leader, we are the law. Nobody dares to challenge us. This demonstrates the superiority of social control our country over other so-called democratic countries.” 

The minister Garima said with the lustful eyes: ‘we my use our attractive women, heihei, women, he swallowed the saliva when he talked about the beauty but he had to calm down, and money to bribe some important foreign politicians, overseas Mars and guerilla troop to control the vote through helping them to win the poll by cheating of using our electing machines which they can fake randomly. Then we shall play some trick of surveillance and recording their criminal evidence, eventually, they have to obey us or they will suffer the disaster of the jail.’ 

The minister Joseph added excitedly: ‘Then, with some care, we may find suitable people, whom with plastic surgery will look identical to certain political leaders. So that at the moment of our choosing, we can quietly assassinate those leaders and replace them without anyone ever noticing.” 

Mark appeared to very engaged, and contemplating these various suggestions… 

he even looked little joyful at the sheer range of possibilities. But quite suddenly his mobile vibrated rather obviously on the side of the table where he had placed it. He quickly picked it up and the screen lit up with the image of a beautiful young woman in a tight-fitting red dress. Without a pause, he sent a quick text then turned the phone off. The ministers all pretended not to notice so as not to embarrass him. He looked up calmly and said: ‘Ok, now I have something to do. Today’s meeting is done. Next time, I expect a brilliant and thorough report on all these matters. We must plan carefully and choose the schemes one by one. I am sure we will fulfill our great dreams to bring a glory for our ancestors.” 

Finally, as Mark began to raise himself from his chair all the ministers stood up quickly. They all raised their right hands and said:’ ‘let Mars flags flutter everywhere in the world.’

Part two

Chapter nineteen: Father and daughter grudge

Since Aaliya, in desperation, lied that she was pregnant in order to win her father's sympathy to promise her to withdraw the punishment against her boyfriend Jackson's father, Daniel and their family, agree the marriage between her and Jackson, Aaliya was completely disappointed and dissatisfied with her father Mark. She did not expect that his father was such a selfish and ruthless person because his father disagreed with her marriage to Jackson even though she said that she was pregnant with Jackson. Currently, in order to protect her boyfriend's family, she had to act particularly docile and well-behaved in front of her father.

Mark happened to be out that day, and only Eliza and her daughter Aaliya were at home. Eliza came to Aaliya's room, gave her a passionate kiss on her face and said: "my baby, it's great to have you at home. Today, I will take you to visit the newly built monitoring center in our palace. You can also teach me more by the way, teach mother how to use these high-tech devices, keep pace with the times, and not fall behind others.”

Eliza and Aaliya soon arrived at the newly built monitoring center in the palace. As soon as the staff inside saw their appearing, they were all respectful and rushed to serve them diligently. 

After arriving at the monitoring room, Eliza sent away all the staff, leaving only her and her daughter in the monitoring room, and asked her daughter to teach her how to use these monitoring systems. Eliza was a very smart woman, after the patient teaching of her daughter Aaliya, she quickly learned how to use some parts of monitoring devices. She happily said to her daughter: "dear daughter, thank you for teaching me using the surveillance system. This high-tech surveillance equipment is so convenient and useful for us, no matter we are at home or anywhere now, we can use computers or mobile phones to monitor all people, every move and word of them will be exposed to us so I can also help your father to manage Mars country in the future easily, once anyone dares to oppose us, we can arrest them immediately."

After Aaliya heard her mother's words, a chill came over her and she felt panicked. She didn't expect that her mother would now become more and more greedy for power. She immediately opened the monitoring group column about senior officials of the Mars Kingdom. She discovered that the name of her boyfriend Jackson's father was also in the monitoring list. Since her mother Eliza was by her side, it was inconvenient for her to open the monitoring group column. She just copied the link and sent it to her email, wrote down the password, and decided to watch it carefully after returning to her room.

Aaliya felt very guilty at this time, even though Eliaz was her mother, she regretted teaching her mother to use this abominable surveillance device to monitor the people of Mars and her boyfriend Jackson's family. She hoped that this surveillance system would be destroyed and that her father would withdraw from the political stage of Mars Country. Otherwise, Mars Country and its people would be led into unavoidable disaster by her father's greed for power.

After dinner, Aaliya said goodbye to her mother Eliza early, said that she had to deal with some matters of her school tonight and could not accompany her as usual. She returned to her room, locked the door in case her mother would burst into her room, opened the big computer on the desk, copied a link from the mailbox on her mobile phone, and then entered the palace's surveillance system through the computer and mobile phone at the same time. She found the name of her boyfriend’s father, Daniel and clicked on the network systems where Daniel was monitored. These monitoring systems also detailed what monitoring equipment was used at each location.

These surveillance systems were divided into two parts, one part was listening equipment. The listening equipment included wired telephones, televisions, computers, refrigerators, etc. The other part had images, sounds and video. This part mainly included satellites, WiFi, mobile phones, phone cards, cameras, etc. However, some parts of the monitoring equipment were exposed for filming and monitoring.

As long as there were spaces to hide something in any object or commodity, Mark will not give up any opportunity to let his secret agent team install bugs or monitors inside to spy the officials and ordinary citizens in Mars country.

Aaliya held her breath, as if she was like a thief, preparing to sneak into someone else's house secretly and steal. Nervously and curiously, she entered the world of online surveillance at her boyfriend's home. She moved the computer mouse and came to a luxurious villa. After opening the door of the villa, she entered a large garden lined with green trees and beautiful flowers. Then she came to the main building of the villa. After opening the door, she entered into the magnificent, artistic and empty hall where nobody was there, she heard a burst of melodious light music and the voices of a couple talking, then opened the door, it turned out that it was a kitchen inside, and she took a closer look at the kind-hearted old couple. judging from their facial features, Aaliya could guess that they were Jackson's parents.

Aaliya said goodbye to Jackson's parents silently, continued to move the computer mouse, opened door after door on the computer, no one was inside, and finally she found her sweetheart in the last study room. She saw Jackson facing the computer alone and concentrating on studying the capital market. Aaliya touched Jackson's face on the computer with her hand. She couldn't help but picked up her phone and sent him a message: "darling, I miss you so much. Do you have time to meet me recently?"

She saw Jackson pick up the mobile phone on the desk after hearing the vibrating tone of the mobile phone, smile after reading the message, and then type on the mobile phone. Aaliya received a reply from Jackson: "My dear, I miss you very much too, please arrange your time, I will be on the call for you at any time.”

Aaliya felt that Jackson and his family were like transparent people without any clothes and privacy in her surveillance network world. Aaliya saw Jackson's friendly and familiar face and thought of the good times she had with Jackson. She really hoped that she could grow a pair of wings and fly to her sweetheart right away. She couldn't help but kiss Jackson's image on the computer, and then sent another message: "Dear, can I go to your home and meet your parents?"

An expression of surprise and confusion displayed on Jackson's face, after thinking for a while, he replied: "my dear, you are very welcome. It is an honor for my queen to come to my simple residence, but I must tell my parents and they will set the date later, as they need time to prepare to welcome you as their future daughter-in-law."

Aaliya was very happy to see Jackson's warm words. She loved Jackson so much, and she was really afraid of losing him. She increasingly hoped to marry Jackson, have children, live together forever and never be separated.

Aaliya felt tired, then stretched out, reluctantly turned off the computer, left her network surveillance world and her lover. After closing her eyes and taking a short rest, she sent another text message to Jackson: "my darling, looking forward to your kiss and your love. Good night!"

Chapter twenty: Couple flying away together

Ten days later, Aaliyah got a very exciting message from Jackson, asking her to have dinner at his home the next day. Aaliyah dressed up beautifully to Jackson's home with great joy and Jackson's parents welcomed her at the door very warmly. Then Jackson gently held Aaliyah’s hand and took her to visit the entire villa. Aaliyah found that Jackson's home was exactly the same as what she saw on the surveillance camera, it was very luxurious and tasteful and she seemed to have entered the magical world of surveillance equipment again. The only different thing that could make her sober was her sweetheart Jackson who made her feel the real existence because his warm and powerful hand was holding her and reminding her that she was still living in the mortal world, not in the dream of the online world.

After visiting all of villa, Jackson took Aaliyah to 

the delicious and fragrant dining room where Jackson's parents were already waiting for them. Aaliyah said polite greetings to Jackson's parents again: "Hello uncle, Aunt, it’s very nice to meet you again. It smells so good. I feel hungry when I smell it. Thank you very much, Uncle and Aunt, thanks for your hard work.”

Dainel might feel that Aaliyah was his son’s girlfriend and he had the awkward relationship with her father Mark as well recently so it was inconvenient for him to exchange too many greetings with her, he just smiled and said a word of very happy to see you. His wife Marry responded gracefully: "dear Aaliyah, good evening! It’s a great honor for you to be our guest. I hope you have a wonderful night here.”

At the beginning of dinner, Aaliyah exclaimed: "what a wonderful and sumptuous dinner! May I ask aunt what the name of this dish is? It looks like Snow White, is it?" 

Jackson's mother Marry replied humbly: "Aaliyah is very smart, you guessed it rightly, her name is Snow White. This dish was created recently by me and was specially prepared for you. It took an entire afternoon to cook this dish and if without the help of the nanny, I will take a day to finish it. I first use some different vegetables to make a mixed salad, put it on Snow White frame, cut the chicken breast into shreds, add some egg whites, cream, sugar, salt, cornstarch and other ingredients, mix well, stir-fry in oil for 6 minutes, then sprinkle with chopped green onion, finally scoop out and fill this beautiful Snow White, it is delicious and pretty." After saying that, she picked up a trying spoon and gave Aaliyah a taste.

Aaliyah swallowed the food in her mouth gracefully and smacked her tongue: "It's so deliciousI can't bear to eat such a beautiful dish. I didn't expect that my aunt is not only a famous financial expert, but also a master of cooking. Even you can’t find such a beautiful dish in our palace or first-class high-end hotels. I am so lucky and blessed. Thank you, aunt, for your heart in making these delicious dishes for me.”

Marry looked at Aaliyah kindly and said: "If you like, you are welcome to come to our home anytime. I can cook many different delicacies for you. Does Aaliyah like cooking? I think cooking is an interesting hobby, it is also a skill and art. If a person can cook some delicious food for himself and his family every day, even ordinary civilians will live an enjoyable life. "

Aaliyah smiled awkwardly and replied: "I like cooking but I'm not very good at cooking. I can only stir-fry a few simple dishes, and they're not delicious. I was forced to do this when I was studying abroad. I haven't cooked at home since I was a child, and my mother isn’t good at cooking, not to mention my father as well. From now on, I really want to come to your home for enjoying the delicious food every day and learning how to cook the delicious food from you, aunt.”

Jackson's mother replied: "Welcome, beautiful and kind Princess Aaliyah is welcome anytime, I will serve for you freely. I retire now, have more free time at home, it would be good to have an apprentice to make my life more fulfilling."

After dinner, Aaliyah reluctantly said goodbye to Jackson and his parents. She did not expect that although Jackson's parents were highly respected and intelligent, they were so approachable and amiable. In just half a day, she felt that she got along well with Jackson's parents, there was no distance, she really didn't want to leave them as she was very comfortable and happy for staying with them. 

It was already after 11 o'clock in the evening when Aaliyah returned to the palace. She saw that the light in her mother's study was still on. She thought that her mother had gone to bed at this time, maybe she forgot to turn off the light or something else, so she quietly tiptoed to the door of the study. Since her mother's study was very well soundproofed, she couldn't hear any sound from outside the door. She gently turned the handle on the door and found that it was not locked, so she opened the door and saw her mother sitting in front of her big desk with her back to her, concentrating on looking at the computer and not noticing her entry, she gently closed the study door and quietly walked towards her mother, wanting to give her a surprise kiss. When Aaliyah was approaching her mother, the sound of men and women having sex came from the computer. She was deeply surprised, could it be that her mother was addicted to these pornographic films when she went to bed late? She looked towards the computer screen and saw her father and a young and sexy woman lying naked on a big bed. Aaliyah immediately understood what her mother was doing for she was monitoring her father. Aaliyah knew that her appearance at this moment would embarrass her mother, so she decided to leave quietly. She softly closed the study door for her mother, leaving her to travel alone in the magical surveillance world. She felt ashamed for her father and sad for her mother.

The next afternoon, Mark returned home with a gloomy face. The first thing he did was to ask Aaliyah to talk in his study and Aaliyah didn't know what happened. She thought whether her father had discovered that she had taught her mother to monitor him, or was her father angry when he found out that she went to Jackson's home yesterday?

Since Aaliyah begged her father Mark for a mercy to give up punishing Jackson’s family, she behaved like a sensible daughter in front of Mark and often cared about her father more. She hoped to gradually change her father's mind and agree with her marriage to Jackson. After she went to Jackson's home yesterday, her determination became even stronger and she would not marry anyone other than Jackson.

Aaliyah walked into Mark's study carefully. She saw her father sitting on the spacious boss's chair behind his desk with a displeased face, her mind suddenly flashed back to what she saw him in the surveillance video last night. The scene where her father and his lover were naked and flirting on the bed made her whole body uncomfortable. Mark's image of her father in her mind was greatly reduced and fell to the bottom but she had to pretend that nothing happened, forced out a smile, and summoned up the courage to ask softly: "dear Dad, you are back, do you have anything to do with me?"

Mark said to Aaliyah: "Why do you continue to associate with Dainel's son? You even went to her house yesterday. The last time, that I promised you to let them go and lift the financial penalty on his family was a favor to you. I did not agree to your marriage with his son, and I hope you will stop dating them immediately as I don’t want my daughter to marry the son of my political opponent. Aren’t you deliberately going against your father by doing this?”

Aaliyah was dumbfounded by Mark's sudden and (stern lecture), and her heart felt cold. She didn't know what to say, and she didn't want to say anything yet. She was extremely disappointed with her father and looked at him with tears in her eyes. She wanted to cry, but she just turned around and left her father. At this moment, she really wanted to leave this weird home.

When Aaliyah returned to her room, she closed the door, and immediately sent a message to her boyfriend Jackson: "Dear, what are you doing? I miss you so much!"

A few minutes later, Jackson replied to her: "Baby, I am drinking tea in the garden and chatting with my parents. How are you? I miss you so much too."

Aaliyah replied: "Dear, let's go back abroad and get married. I want to stay with you. You can take your parents over and live with us. I will treat them well as my own parents. Take care of them and love them.”

Jackson replied: "yes, baby, I want to marry you but why you are so eager to go back abroad. What happened? I don't know if my parents are willing to live with us abroad. I need to discuss it with them and ask for their opinions."

Aaliyah replied: "Okay, I plan to buy a flight ticket to go back to school tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Would you like to go back with me? If you are willing, I can book your flight ticket together tonight."

Jackson replied: "Baby, I will reply to you at 8 o'clock tonight, I love you!"

Although Aaliyah only had a few hours to wait for news about Jackson, she felt that every second was unbearable. She came to the garden in East Palace alone and visited almost all the places where she used to play previously as she didn’t know when she would come back after this parting. Then she came to her parents’ room, she made up a lie, told her parents that the school has many activities that she needs to participate in recently, which will be good for her to find a job after graduation, so she was going to buy a plane ticket to return to school tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. Although Aaliyah was wronged, she still restored the image of a good girl in front of her father. She knew her father's stubborn personality very well that her arms could not twist the thigh of her father. In order to protect Jackson and his family, she had to bow down to her father.

After Jackson discussed with his parents at home, his parents approved of his marriage with Aaliyah and returning back to abroad school as soon as possible. Jackson’s parents felt that Aaliyah was a rare good girl, simple, kind, smart and upright and they hoped that Jackson and Aaliyah could live a healthy and happy life, meantime, letted Jackson don't worry them. If they were free, they would go abroad to see them, and hope Jackson come back as little as possible. Dainel knew very well that Mark was a man who changed his mind and his orders day by day. He did not want his son to be involved in the terribly political turmoil of Mars and suffer deeply. He wanted his son to have a free and stable living environment.

Aaliyah finally got her wish, two days later, she and Jackson boarded a plane to go abroad happily. She looked at the bright moon outside the window, rested her head on Jackson's shoulder and she felt very sweet. Aaliyah felt that she and Jackson were like a pair of birds in love, flying together in the sky freely!

Chapter twenty-one: Swallow her anger

After Eliza's daughter Aaliyah left, Eliza returned to a lonely and boring life. She sat on the big sofa in the bedroom and recalled the scene she saw recently in the surveillance video of Mark and Jessica in bed – Jessica’s sexy and charming figure and Mark's passionate expression made her jealous and heartbroken, and also aroused her yearning for lust. How she hoped Mark could love her like he did Jessica! 

Although Eliza enjoyed all the glory and wealth, since she married Mark and became pregnant with her eldest daughter Aaliyah, what she lacked most was the tenderness and love of men. She often had to endure sharing Mark's love with many women.

From the day Eliza met Jessica at the (year-end model worker celebration banquet held in Mars), she had already noticed that Mark had an undue desire for Jessica. The second time, after Jessica, Charles, Bobe and Yisa attended the family dinner she held with Mark, Mark hired Jessica with a high salary, gave her many preferential treatments, a house in the North Palace, also equipped with a luxurious private car, etc. Eliza knew that Mark was very good at using money and benefits to bribe others, especially fishing for beautiful and valuable mermaids, and he did not hesitate to spend a lot of money. However, Eliza did not expect that Jessica, who was young, talented and beautiful, and had studied abroad, would also fell into the temptation trap of her husband Mark's power and wealth, so quickly (throw) herself into Mark's hotbed, even betraying her boyfriend - a young, promising and romantic man, Charles who Eliza also liked.

Mentioning Jessica's boyfriend Charles, Eliza couldn't help but her pulse speeded up and her heart flutterred with love. Since her daughter Aaliyah came back, she hadn't thought about Charles for a long time. When she felt lonely, she thought of Charles who often greeted and helped her, she really wanted to call or send him a message right away. she remembered that when he attended the year-end model worker celebration banquet held in Mars Country, he also took her to dance together at the ball. During the rotation of the ballroom dance, her head accidentally touched his chest, but he used his gentle look at her and say some complimentary words to make her feel very comfortable.

After Eliza and Mark got married, Eliza considering Mark's political future, withdrew from the entertainment industry and stayed at home to look after her husband and children. She almost lived in seclusion and had no such close contact with other men. Because her mother was ill and undergoing surgery, she had the opportunity to meet and contact with Charles frequently. Maybe Mark thought that Eliza was old, Charles was a young famous doctor who had a beautiful and sex girlfriend, so he didn't care about Eliza's (excessive) interactions with him. Eliza could tell from Charles' eyes that they were secretly in love, but they had not yet crossed the red wall of intimacy between men and women.

When Eliza recalled Jessica’s sexy figure, she felt a little inferior. She used to think that her figure was pretty good, but compared with Jessica's devilish figure, her figure pales in comparison and cannot be compared. Thinking that so many men surrounded Jessica, Mark looked at her with passionate eyes and showed an extremely docile expression on his face, Eliza felt envious and jealous of Jessica. She felt that Jessica was a very lucky woman, not only can she have several men at the same time, but every man was so accommodating to her and loved her.

Eliza walked to the floor-to-ceiling glass mirror inlaid in her large wardrobe, took off all her clothes, and looked at herself in the mirror. This was the third time in her life that she carefully looked at her naked body. The first time was not long after she turned 18, one of her female classmates told her that she was getting more and more beautiful, and her figure was becoming more and more plump, so attractive! After going home and taking shower in the evening, she stood naked in front of the mirror and admired her beauty.

The second time was after she gave birth to her eldest daughter, she tried on her beautiful tight clothes and underwear. She found that due to pregnancy and childbirth, her body began to gain weight and deformed, and she could not wear these beautiful clothes at all. She saw that the muscles around her waist and abdomen had relaxed, and there was a lot of fat. As a well-known movie star who loves beauty very much, this was intolerable to her. She quickly contacted her fitness coach Johnnie, and under his supervision and guidance, she successfully lost weight in just three months. Although she could not return to the condition before pregnancy and childbirth, she still looked pretty.

This was the third time she had carefully observed her body, now she was over 50 years old, almost close to the age group of women who was no longer loved by men in the traditional concept of Mars country. But for Eliza, who was stronger, she was not willing to lose to others. Even if they were young girls, even if she reached 70 or 80 years old, she would try her best to maintain her elegance and beauty until the end of her life. Jessica stimulated her fighting spirit, she was determined to challenge the young beauties, she wanted to seize her youth and beauty, without a man's love, Eliza thought that her life will be (eclipsed and haggard.)

Eliza picked out a set of beautiful underwear in the wardrobe and put it on, put on light makeup in front of the dressing table, then walked to the large mirror, turned a 360-degree circle in front of the mirror, looked back and forth, after touching her face, she smiled and expressed that she was quite satisfied with her figure and appearance. She realized that only by trying on underwear frequently could she know whether her body was young and sexy. At this time, she also felt very lucky, although she was over 50 years old, she looked less than 40 years old and lovely. 

Just as Eliza was admiring herself in the mirror, her husband Mark came back. At first, he looked at her with strange eyes, then he took Eliza’s hand to the big sofa in the bedroom, after sitting down and giving her a gentle kiss, Mark said, "My dear, I want to discuss something with you. I invited Ruth to come to the capital tomorrow. There are many important things to be entrusted to her, so It's not convenient to talk in a hotel outside for fear of being eavesdropped and monitored by others. I plan to let her live in our guest room in the East Palace, this will help us talk about businesses. You can also meet and reminisce about old times, and sometimes help me accompany her. "

Hearing Mark's words, Eliza's heart froze. Her jealousy towards Jessica had not diminished, and Mark gave her a vinegar of Ruth again. She already knew what would happen tomorrow? What kind of hell would she suffer? Even though she was full of resentment, she couldn’t refute and refuse and only she had to accept. Even though she liked Ruth, it was impossible for her to share her beloved husband and his bed with other women without feeling any jealousy in her heart, unless she did not love this man and thought him as a public lover.

The next morning, Eliza had ordered the attendants in the East Palace to prepare a guest room for Ruth, and she also prepared a monitor. She was now a little addicted to monitoring other people, it had become a habit and a disease, especially monitoring his husband, Mark. Because she knew that only by understanding all Mark’s whereabouts and thoughts could she more easily and safely protect her own interests. She was worried that other women would covet her status, causing her and her daughters to lose their glory and wealth.

That afternoon, Ruth arrived at the East Palace of the Palace of Mars, Mark and Eliza greeted her ceremoniously at the door. Ruth looked energetic and youthful in her sexy and fashionable dress, which also made Mark's heart flutter. His eyes looked at Ruth from time to time, radiating a fiery light. Considering his wife Eliza and the many attendants around him, he had to control his emotions and just shook Ruth's hand politely.

Eliza saw Ruth's arrival with mixed feelings. She thanked Ruth for helping her husband in his career over the years, enabling him to overcome one difficulty after another, and Mark was able to take control of the power firmly in Mars country. At the same time, she had to endure sharing Mark's bed with Ruth and falling in love hand in hand with the pain but this was a secret between Eliza and Ruth. Although Eliza was a little jealous when she saw the young and beautiful Ruth, she still pretended to give Ruth a warm hug and said: "Dear sister Ruth, you are warmly welcome to our Mars palace. You are still as young and beautiful as ever. I hope you have a great time here!”

And Ruth, who was beautiful, smart, and read many people, knew exactly what Eliza was thinking. She calmly and generously gave Eliza a kiss on the face and replied: "my dear Eliza, I haven't seen you for a long time. I miss you very much. I am happy for you, you are still so elegant, beautiful and radiant. If this visit to the capital will cause a lot of troubles to you, please forgive me!"

After they entered the reception room together, Ruth took out a packaging box of beautiful and exquisite jewelry and was half-joked to Eliza: "dear sister Eliza, this is a small gift for you, I wonder whether you like the set of ruby necklaces and earrings I chose? If you like it, I will be very happy and grateful. I think they are very suitable for our beautiful and elegant sister Eliza and I believe you will look even more beautiful when you wear them.”

Eliza looked at the brand carefully and knew that it was very expensive. Then she couldn't wait to open the box and said: "I like any gift from dear sister Ruth as I know you have the good taste. I'm sorry to let dear Ruth spend too much money." 

Eliza held up the beautiful and precious ruby necklace and earrings joyfully. At this time, the sparkling rubies melted Eliza's miserable mood away.

Chapter twenty-two: A duty to beauty

After dinner, in order to avoid the embarrassment of being sandwiched between two women, Mark asked Eliza to accompany Ruth to her guest room alone. Eliza understood Mark's thoughts and returned quickly after seeing Ruth off. On the way to her room, she thought about how to spend the painful and lonely night? When she opened the door to her room, she was surprised to see Mark wearing a nightgown, sitting on their bed and reading a newspaper without going to Ruth's room.

When Mark saw Eliza walked into the room, he put down the newspaper in his hand, looked at her with gentle eyes, and motioned for her to come over. Eliza's first reaction was a bit flattered, but in an instant, she regained her composure and affection and came to Mark's side, as if she and Mark were young again, back to the good times before they got married.

Mark said to Eliza: "My dear, thank you very much for everything you have done to me recently! This time Ruth comes to the palace to live for a few days on official business. It will cause you a lot of troubles and inconveniences. Please forgive me!" 

Then he hugged Eliza, this time, Mark gave her unprecedented caress. Eliza had mixed feelings in her heart, she seemed to have become Jessica and Ruth. At this moment, she would rather be these free-spirited and unruly women. She felt that as long as Mark could always accompany her and love her like this, she didn't care about which woman he had an affair with.

Mark invited Ruth to live in the palace for a few days in order to let Ruth handle some important things for him. He didn't want to make Eliza jealous for him to accompany Ruth, so he came to Eliza's room and first gave her a comfort in case his backyard catching a fire of the family falling apart.

Two hours later, when Mark was about to leave, Eliza hugged him tightly, unwilling to let him go, but she had no way to stop the ambitious and unscrupulous Mark from leaving. Mark came to the guest room of Ruth, who was waiting for him on the sofa wearing the sexy lingerie. （Mark eagerly picked up the delicate and sexy Ruth, feeling that he was like a wild horse galloping across the vast prairie and that beauties could bring him strength and make him more confident to conquer the world.）

Ruth lay in Mark's arms, she was grateful that Mark spent the night with her in the palace. Meanwhile, her conscience felt that she was very sorry to Eliza as she occupied Mark and left her alone in the vacant bedroom, at the same time, she felt a satisfying sense of possessing Mark again. Although she was just flirting with Mark before, as time went by, she gradually developed feelings for Mark. Ruth found that Mark was the most generous man among the dignitaries she knew, and the man who was most willing to spend money on beautiful women, this was the reason why Ruth liked Mark the most. Ruth liked powerful men, and she believed that not only did she appreciate their intelligence and abilities, but she could also earn a lot of money from them and live in the luxurious life she liked. However, Ruth also liked young and promising handsome men because she thought they could make her pleased and stay young forever.

Ruth pressed a kiss on Mark's mouth and said: "My dear, I am deeply honored. You have a lot of beauties, and you still care about me. You want me to the palace just to accompany you in the bridal chamber? Then I want to be the queen! My dear, please to be honest, what do you want me to do for you?”

Mark returned a kiss to Ruth, then caressed her face and coaxed: "My beauty, I just like your straightforward and frank personality. In my mind, you are the most beautiful rose and the first queen, so that’s why I invited you to the palace and left the first Lady alone to spend the night with you.”

Mark got up and went to the coffee table to pick up a document he had prepared and handed it to Ruth and said, "After you read this document, we will discuss it in detail."

Ruth took the document that Mark handed her, and she saw a few large words written on the top of the document: "Golden Plan." Ruth read the document attentively and quickly, and then said calmly to Mark: "Dear, with such a big and grand plan, what do you want me to do?"

Mark replied: "I hope you can return to your old business and continue to hold international concert tours. I will fully support you financially. I plan to buy you luxurious villas in several important countries, where you will often perform and invite some foreign dignitaries and celebrities to the party, collect some important information, and (conduct) a thorough market survey. What are the chances of realizing our plan? I believe in your charm and ability. If we can achieve this greatness one day in the future? I promise you will become the official queen."

Ruth smiled coquettishly: "My dear, thank you for your trust and for giving me such high treatment and honor - as your real queen, if you will marry me, what will Eliza do?"

Mark said half-joked: "If the condition for me to marry you is to let Eliza continue to live in the palace, and you have to treat her like she treats you today, can you do that?"

Ruth said seriously: "Dear, thank you for your love. I don't care about the title as a queen, I only care about your love for me. I like a free life, and I don't want to compete with your many beauties. From now on, maybe I plan to live abroad for a long time. No matter where I go, it is enough for you to remember me as a yellow-leaves woman. Eliza is also a very good woman and your first wife, I hope you take more time with her and treat her well."

Mark did not expect Ruth to be so magnanimous, not only could she tolerate Eliza and consider her, but she was not greedy for the title of queen. He felt a deep respect in his heart to Ruth and he once again took Ruth into his arms intimately and gave her a gift of a deep kiss.

Out of jealousy and worry, Eliza could no longer help but monitor Mark. Now she was watching Mark and Ruth's every word, action and move on her study computer. She was very moved when she heard Ruth say, "Let Mark treat her well." She was glad that she had not misjudged the person before. Ruth was not a woman who would compete with her for fame and status, she was just greedy for money.

The next day, Eliza was very kind to Ruth, she not only took the initiative to accompany Ruth to visit some important places of interest in the palace, but also ordered the chef in the palace to cook many delicious dishes for Ruth, and also gave Ruth a gift of a set of expensive jewelry.

After dinner, Eliza accompanied Ruth to her guest room as usual, as she had done the night before. On the way back to her own room, she hoped that the scene of last night would happen again: ‘when she opened the door, Mark was still lying on her bed. On the bed, they love each other’. But when Eliza walked into her room, it was empty, there was no sign of Mark in her room and she felt lonely, boring and depressed. She planned to take a hot bath to adjust her terrible mood, and then continue to watch the monitor in the study room to ‘quench her thirst of lack love by looking at Mark love other women’.

Eliza went to the bathroom and turned on the music button, chose a relaxing and pleasant light music, filled the large massage bath with water, took off her clothes and sank into the water. When Eliza was taking a bath, she heard the bathroom door being opened. She was surprised to see Mark coming to the bathroom naked, although Mark had a big belly and was mediocre in appearance, in Eliza's eyes, he was domineering and unrivaled in beauty. Eliza's unique philosophy of life was: "Whoever brings her glory and wealth is the most handsome man."

When Mark stepped into Eliza's luxurious bathtub, she felt as if on a sunny summer day, she and Mark came to a beautiful beach hand in hand, and both swam into the sea, like a pair of loving fish playing in the water. 

Two hours later, when Mark was about to leave again, Eliza was silent and didn’t say anything. However, Eliza was not going to spy Mark tonight, she laid on the bed, smelling the quilt covered by Mark, reminiscing about her love with Mark, her face showed a sweet flush, she touched her breasts and face, intending to have a good sleep to make up for her sleepless of last night.

Time flied away, Ruth had lived in the palace for a week and would leave by plane this afternoon. Eliza knew that since Ruth came to the palace, Mark began to care about her a little bit, and the love of Mark also walked with her more. Eliza was really reluctant to say goodbye to Ruth and she hoped that Ruth could live here for a long time so that she would have more opportunities to share Mark's love.

Chapter twenty-three: Relive beauty

Grace's belly was getting bigger day by day, and her mood had become extremely unstable as her belly growing. She was very worried that she had not heard from Mark in the past few days. He had not given her a call or a message and he seemed to be （indifferent） to her and does not care about her with the child in her belly at all.

She touched her swollen belly and recalled that before she was pregnant, Mark often accompanied her and took her to attend many public events, private parties, golfing, hunting and fishing, etc. they both spent many happy times together.

Since she got pregnant, Mark stayed with her less, often only called her and sent her messages to show his concern. Recently, Mark said that he was too busy with official duties and could not accompany her often, and asked for her understanding. Grace felt that because of her pregnancy, Mark's love for her was （diminishing.）She now regretted being so close to Mark and getting pregnant with this child，she even wanted to abort the son who soon to be born and Mark loved very much before, she didn't want to live such a neglected and lonely life with her future son. Thinking of this, she couldn't help crying.

Grace came to the lake in the garden of her villa with a frown, looked at the distant mountains, took a deep breath of fresh air, and wanted to adjust her (melancholy) mood through seeing this beautiful scenery, but her mind was filled with Mark, in the sky, on the trees, in the grass, and among the flowers, almost his figure and voice was everywhere.

She returned to the house absentmindedly, came to the piano in the living room, and touched the expensive tripod piano that Mark had bought specially for her. At this time, she was even more emotional, she felt that Mark was standing beside her and watching her quietly. She opened the piano cover, with tears in her eyes, played the song she composed: "Yellow Leaves", hoping to forget her sadness and her longing for Mark through music. After playing this song, Grace could not suppress her sad emotions and sobbed.

After a while, she wiped her tears, sorted out her chaotic and sad mood, and planned to send Mark a message to see how was his attitude towards her? Does Mark still love her as before, then she would decide what she should do next? She picked up her mobile phone and started typing: "My dear, how are you doing lately? Are you busy? I'm not with you, so you have to take good care of yourself. In the past few days, our son has started to move and play in my belly, sometimes he kicks my stomach as if he is playing football. I guess he is as naughty, smart and cute as you. My dear, I miss you very much. Can you come over tomorrow? I want you to kiss my belly playing with our son. Love you, Grace!” 

Since Ruth left, Mark planned to rest for a few weeks. He knew that he had (indulged) women too much recently and was harmful to his health. He was already over 60 years old and needed to control his passions and take good care of his health. Therefore, he lived alone in a suite in his East Palace, wanted to quietly handle some official business, read books, newspapers and watched TV news, etc, and thought about how to implement the grand plan he designed.

Mark was sitting on the desk in his suite reading the newspaper. When he saw the message from Grace, he felt a little guilty for neglecting her recently. Since Ruth came to his palace and he was very busy so he only kept sending messages to Grace. In his heart, he truly loved Grace, he knew that Grace was a beautiful, kind-hearted, excellent woman, she also dedicated her holy virginity to him, now she is pregnant with a son for him, no matter from which aspect, Grace can deserve to be his real queen.

Mark knew very well that as a man, it was difficult to reject the temptation of beautiful women. There were so many beauties around him, whom throw themselves into his arms for the sake of profit. If he wanted, he could be surrounded by them every day, hugged on both sides, and even enjoy the bed of fresh and tender meat piled up by beauties. But Mark, as a great and wise politician, would never sacrifice the lower taste just for beauties and he had a higher spiritual pursuit which he really liked must not only be beautiful, capable, and versatile, but also of high moral character. The women around him could either help him in his career or be the panacea for his soul-Grace was the medicine that nourishes Mark's soul.

Mark immediately sent a message back to Grace: "my baby, I miss you very much too. I'm sorry that I have been busy with work these days and have neglected you and my son. I will go over to see you tomorrow. I love you!"

After Grace saw Mark's reply, her clouded face suddenly became sunny. She knew that Mark loved her very much, and she also loved Mark deeply, even though she knew that Mark was a married man with so many beauties around him. Even though she studied abroad and received higher education from a foreign country, Mark was the only man she had physical contact with. The traditional Mars concept of love remained in her heart to this day - whoever owned her body first would be the master of her life. At the age when Grace first fell in love, that was Mark, although she had many suitors around her, due to a combination of circumstances and her busy career, she missed countless good marriages. But Mark, a master of fox hunting of love, filled in the blanks in the history of her love first.

Grace replied to Mark: "Dear, our son and I will love you forever. See you tomorrow!"

Although Mark lived alone in his suite in East Palace these days, his wife Eliza sometimes came over to care about his daily life and food. After Mark sent the message to Grace, he put his mobile phone on his desk and went to the bathroom. At this time, Eliza came to Mark's suite to visit him. Eliza saw Mark's cell phone vibrating and flashing on the desk, so she secretly picked it up and looked at it. She saw Grace's young and beautiful profile picture appeared on the screen of Mark's mobile phone and this message that shocked her: "My dear, our son and I will love you forever. See you tomorrow!"

(After seeing this text message, Eliza was so angry that she felt her lungs and heart almost to explode, and the fire of her jealousy and hatred burned fiercely to her face became red and white in turns, and the muscles on her face followed her tense to move, making her originally beautiful face ugly. At this time, Eliza simply wanted to cut Grace into pieces with a thousand knives.)

Eliza knew that Mark had many women outside, but she never expected that this young and beautiful woman would give birth to a son for Mark so quickly. She understood that Mark was a male (chauvinist) who favored boys over girls. She and Mark only had two daughters, her biggest regret in her life was that she could not give birth to a son for Mark. She was worried that one day her status would not be guaranteed. Therefore, for Eliza, who gave Mark a son was the most taboo and intolerable thing for her. This would directly threaten her fundamental interests-identity, status and prosperity. But she couldn't express her jealousy and hatred to anyone for the time being. She could only pretend to be blind and deaf. She had to seriously think about how to deal with the competitors of her interests.

Mark came to Grace's villa the next afternoon. He thought that Grace was pregnant and physically inconvenient. He could stay here for a few more weeks to accompany her, and at the same time, he could take good care of his body and recharge his energy.

Grace was overjoyed with Mark's arrival, all her previous (frustrations) and worries immediately disappeared. She gave up the idea of getting rid of the child. She believed that the child was a precious gift given to her by God, and she should be grateful to God and take good care of this child. She secretly made up her mind that no matter what her relationship with Mark would be in the future, she would give birth to this child and raise him into a healthy, happy, positive boy who would be useful to the society.

In Grace's villa, Mark and Grace were sitting at the dining room table, preparing to have a meal. There were several beautiful dishes on the table, and the nanny served another beautiful and fragrant dish, which made Mark eager to eat. He picked up his chopsticks and tasted a little, then, full of praise, he asked Grace: "Baby, what kind of dish is this? I have never seen or eaten it. The chef here seems to be better than the one in my palace."

Grace replied: "Dear, guess what the name of this dish is? Who made this dish?"

Mark said gently: "Dear, I don't have a cooking lesson in my mind, so please don't let me guess the food riddles, tell me directly!"

Grace replied: "Okay, dear, in order to make you and our son feel happy and cozy, I have recently been studying how to cook better for you and our son. This dish is called 'Eternal Life', I created it especially for you, and I hope that we can live together happily and healthily and our love can last forever.”

Chapter twenty-four: Happy to have a son with his love

After dinner, Grace took Mark's arm and came to the sofa in the living room. She nestled her head on Mark's shoulder and said to Mark coquettishly: "Dear, thank you coming to accompany me. I feel very happy having you by my side!"

Mark first touched Grace's head, then picked up one of her hands and caressed her, saying: "Baby, thank you cooking such delicious dishes for me, your cooking skills are great, even you can compete with some excellent chefs in the palace. You are my ingenious and versatile baby.”

Mark turned sideways and faced to Grace, looking at her glossy black hair that was draped halfway down her back, a pair of big eyes as curved as the bright moon was shining under her thick and evenly eyebrows, a moderately thick and sexy red lip was smiling to lying under her tall and straight nose. Grace's exquisite facial features and otherworldly temperament made Mark never tire of it, and the more he looked at it, the more he fell in love with her. Although Grace's belly had grown bigger due to pregnancy, she was still beautiful. Mark knew that even there were many beauties around him, Grace's beauty and elegant temperament could be called a peerless beauty, standing out from the crowd.

Mark took Grace's hand and asked her to stand up and face to him. He first touched her belly with his hand, then kissed her belly with his mouth. Finally, he put his ear against Grace's belly to listen and he said happily like a child: "Well, I seem to hear my son calling me daddy. I think he should be as smart as me, maybe smarter than me. I hope he can inherit my career and carry the Mark family forward, passed down from generation to generation. my dear, thank you very much to have this son for me.”

After finishing speaking, Mark gave Grace a long and affectionate kiss, as if through this kiss, Mark could transfer his strong energy and wisdom to his son in Grace’s belly to rule Mars country or the world well in the future. 

Mark felt that he had not been as relaxed as he was now for a long time. At this time, he was able to forget about power and vanity, without anxiety and impetuosity, and return to a real and ordinary life. Although he had the temporary pleasure of physical indulgence when he was with other beauties, he didn't have the peace and sublimation of his soul that he had when he was with Grace. 

For Mark, the most precious thing is that his soul can be saved by God, and his heart can truly experience happiness and peace. Otherwise, he will often be in the anxiety for the power to lose.

The moon in late autumn looked a little cool, as if it was reminding people that winter was coming. Mark took Grace's hand and went for a walk by the lake in the garden. The bright moonlight shone on the loving couple, seeming to add color to the silent night and made the scenery more beautiful.

After a while, the dark clouds gathered as a （python）, and quickly covered the moon and whole sky into the darkness, as if the sky was about to (collapse) and the end of the world was coming. When Mark took Grace's hand and returned to the house, the python of the clouds and fog dispersed in the sky, and the blue moon returned to the sky, and the stars were bright again.

At night, in Mark's dream, Grace had given birth successfully, the obstetrician and gynecologist handed him a chubby and cute son, when Mark wanted to hug him, suddenly the python of the dark cloud flew over and snatched away the baby. His sight was blurred, and he could not see anything. His son, the obstetrician and gynecologist disappeared together. He searched everywhere, but could not find any trace of them. He was in emptiness and loss, wake up with a sadness.

Mark looked dimly at Grace, who was sleeping beside him. Her sleeping state was so sweet and comfortable, just like a sleeping beauty lying next to him. He gently touched Grace's charming face, and her belly, now he was relieved that the baby was still in her belly and he just had a nightmare. 

Mark was very curious about why he had this dream, and why a dark cloud python suddenly appeared when he and Grace were walking by the lake tonight, blocking the moon. When they returned to the house, this dark cloud python dispersed immediately. What was God hinting to me? Is it possible that Mark’s empire will be exhausted? Will I get this precious son? Mark thought hard and couldn't figure out the mystery of what happened.

Mark tossed and turned in bed and couldn't sleep. He was thinking about how to take good care of Grace in the near future so that she could give birth safely and smoothly. Finally, he thought of a good way to bring Grace to live in the palace, they would not be separated in two places and miss her day and night again. He decided to tell Eliza about this important thing, hoping that she could understand and accept Grace.

After lunch the next day, Mark took Grace to the study room of the villa and told her his plan to take her back to live with him in the palace: "Baby, you will give birth soon, for your safe reason, I’m going to bring you to the palace to live with me, I don’t need to worry you every day and it’s convenient for me to look after you.”

Since the last time Ruth came to the palace to live with Eliza and serve Mark, Mark seemed to be enjoying the feeling of living with a few wives together. Mark knew that Eliza would obey him no matter what he said or did. Eliza was most afraid that Mark would divorce her and kick her out of the palace. Grace was his favorite woman, and now she was about to give birth to a son for him. In every aspect, she was qualified to live in the palace and become a queen of Mars Kingdom. Mark said to Grace in a soothing tone: "Baby, don't worry, I will arrange for you to live alone in the West Palace, and there will be some dedicated workers to take care of you. If I am not busy with official work, I can come over to accompany you every day. I hope you agree with me., I will take good care of you and our son.”

Grace didn't want to argue eloquently with Mark anymore, so she could only follow his arrangements. She replied gently: "my dear, everything is subject to your arrangements. From heaven to earth, I can go wherever you say." After saying that, she looked at Mark's face and put a sweet kiss to him.

Chapter twenty-five: Jealousy attacks her heart

Since Ruth left, Mark often stayed away from home, Eliza returned to her former self, alone, guarding the palace, she felt lonelier now than before and she was somewhat accustomed to the bustling palace. When Ruth lived in the palace, Mark rarely went out overnight. Not only could she share a cup of love, but she also had a female companion to relieve the boredom, and talk about women’s shortcomings and dressing up.

Even though Eliza was sometimes jealous in her heart that Ruth had invaded her love territory, she and Ruth had many common topics about how women dressed beautifully, and what brand-name clothes, underwear, shoes, handbags, scarves, jewelry, etc. were more beautiful and good taste? How to match the style and color of clothes, what kind of hair to wear, what kind of shoes, accessories, jewelry and handbags to add the finishing touch to make you fashionable and beautiful? Eliza felt that among the women she knew from the past to the present, only Ruth and her friend, fashion designer Yisa, had dressing tastes and comparable to hers at the same level.

Eliza got angry thinking about the message that pretty vixen sent to Mark the day before yesterday. Judging from the words and tone, it seemed that she and Mark were particularly close and their relationship even surpassed that of her and Ruth, the most important thing was that she gave birth to a wild child for Mark. By planting a son, she might take her place, and Eliza's throne as queen was now shaky and (precarious). Eliza hated her belly and complained about why God didn't let her give birth to a son for Mark, so that she wouldn’t have to worry about her marriage and throne as a queen being stolen by other women.

Eliza guessed that Mark must have gone to that vixen's home yesterday. Mark didn't know how much he loved her, how he held her in his hands, and how happy and sweet they were! When Eliza thought about this, she couldn't help but get angry. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. Suddenly, the fire of jealousy burned throughout her body, making her heart aching, she covered her chest and tried to relax.

Recently, Eliza felt something bad about her heart, when she thought about unhappy things, her heart hurt. When she relaxed and thought about happy things, her heart hurt less. In the past, Mark had an affair with other woman and always went out without returning, so she just kept out of sight. During the time when Ruth lived in the palace, Eliza was in a tense state of being highly jealous of Ruth every day. Even if she could get more comforts from Mark, and her relationship with Ruth was getting along well, the two women were still in a state of intense jealousy for getting the love of Mark. Living with a husband for two women, it was inevitable that the vinegar jar would be broken and it was difficult to let go of the sorrow. As time gone by, Eliza gradually developed the terrible root of heartache. It was true that everything in the world had gains and losses, mixed joys and sorrows, and love and hate go hand in hand!

Just when Eliza wanted to relieve the pain through relaxation, Mark sent her a message: "Dear Eliza, I want to discuss something with you. One of my lovers is about to give birth to a son for me recently, in order to ensure that she can be safe and smooth for giving birth and I plan to take her back to live in the West Palace. I hope you can understand my feelings and accept her. Please tidy the West Palace for her. Thank you! Love you, Mark.”

After reading this message, Eliza's heart almost was about to burst. The usually strong Eliza finally cried loudly like a little girl, she hadn't cried like this for a long time. After that, she felt much more relaxed. It was more comfortable and natural than always forcing a smile and being strong on the outside but having a sad mood on the inside for Eliza. However, she had to compose herself and reply to her husband Mark with slightly trembling hands. She thought about a few moments and wrote: "Dear husband, how are you? I am very happy to hear this good news that you finally have a son. I will treat this son as my own son, and treat your lover as my own sister. I will send someone to decorate and organize the West Palace tomorrow for my sister to use. I hope she will give birth safely and smoothly to get a healthy baby! Love you, Eliza.”

After sending the message, Eliza came to her ‘BAMBOO WORLD’, wanting to play her guzheng to heal a broken heart through music, and release the miserable mood. At this moment, Eliza felt that she was the most miserable woman in the world, she believed that her pain was unbearable for ordinary women. Despite this, Eliza was not willing to give up her top life, living in the beautiful palace, enjoying the special power, the best expensive clothes and best delicious food in Mars country.

Eliza chose a song that moved her the most and relieved her the most. The main idea of this song was: "A handsome young man fell in love with a beautiful girl who planted plum blossoms. The two of them often met in the plum blossom forest. During a major flood, the young girl unfortunately fell into the water, her boyfriend risked his life to save her, but the girl was still swept away by the flood. Her boyfriend kept searching along the banks of the nearby rivers. He, but could not find his girlfriend, the loyal boy returned to his hometown in despair. He still missed his girlfriend very much, and often went to the plum blossom forest where he saw his girlfriend one day at last, she was saved by other people, returned to her hometown and still waited for him. The young boy was so surprised and happy and they love each other again.”

Eliza liked this piece of music very much. When she was lonely and depressed, she always liked to play this piece of music. She felt that this piece of music could make up for her lack of love. She envied and appreciated those men who were very loyal and dedicated to love, and those beautiful women who were loved truly by their men. She sometimes prayed that she could find a man who loved her very much in the next life. 

While playing the Guzheng, Eliza thought about her friends, Charlies and Yisa. She hadn't seen them for a long time and wondered how they were doing now. Thinking of this, she stopped playing the guzheng, picked up her mobile, and dialed Yisa's number: " Dear Yisa, how are you recently? I haven’t seen you for a long time. I miss you so much.”

Yisa replied: "Dear Eliza, what sort of the wind woke you up? You finally thought of calling me, I wanted to call you before, I know that your sweetheart daughter Aaliya has come back so I don’t want to disturb you in the nice time of reunion. How is your daughter?"

Eliza replied: "She is okay, my small cotton-padded jacket has been gone for more than half a month, but there are other things at home recently, so I don't have time to call you to catch up on old times. I want to have a small dinner party at home the day after tomorrow. After dinner, Let’s go to play ensemble and have fun together. You can bring your husband, Charlies and Jesica too. It will be more fun with a few more people to play musical instruments. You may come at 5-6 pm, see you the day after tomorrow!”

Yisa said: "Okay! My dear Eliza, we haven't played together for a long time, and I really want to have a good time. I look forward to seeing you the day after tomorrow!"

Eliza wanted to take a funny time to play musical instruments with her friends, Yisa and Charlies before her husband Mark bring his lover back the palace. She knew that she would rarely have this opportunity to invite her friends coming to her palace in the future, and she didn't want others to know that Mark had brought his lover into the palace to live with her. She was also afraid that her friends would accidentally see them and she would lose face because of the scandal. While she thought maybe this was the last time that her friends would come to the palace to play with her, she felt very sad. She knew that her hellish life was about to begin again, and she must adjust her mental state well and not be knocked down by any difficulties. She Eliza, would never admit defeat, and must cheer up and (defeat) all her love rivals, those women who want to usurp her status. Thinking of this, Eliza's inner fighting passion was ignited, and she plucked the strings of the guzheng wildly, with an expression of arrogance and confidence on her face.

Chapter twenty-six: A new idea

Eliza was mentally prepared to face the coming storm at any time, she began to happily arrange for the small dinner party the day after tomorrow. At the same time, she also had to make arrangements for welcoming Mark's concubine into the palace, of course, it is indispensable to have a camera to serve, Eliza needed to know every word, action and every move of Mark's concubine, so that Eliza could catch her clues of weaknesses to attack her, because she was a strong love rival for Eliza.

Since a huge surveillance center was built in the palace, Eliza had become an addict to monitor others. She was obsessed with using it, almost everyone was transparent in her eyes. 

She discovered the high-tech surveillance equipment was so fun, convenient and magical, it was easy for her to obtain anyone's privacy and any information. She thought power was interest game, it could bring people anything what they want to do, she loved it very much now. If only Mark, she and her family could control military, economy, media and high-tech and high-tech surveillance equipment, they could almost dominate the entire Mars country and even whole world forever.

Eliza planned to use her status as queen to participate in some important social activities from now on, to re-show her movie star style and social skills, and to establish her own social circle of power to fight against her love rivals. She thought: “Eliza is not a light of that goes out. I must not wait to be beaten. That’s not easy for the various goblin of women want to usurp my position of queen and drive me out of the palace. I must be prepared to fight back, even if it costs my life, Eliza must never give up my title of queen."

Eliza slowly returned to the main building of the East Palace and came to her specially made cloakroom. There were neat rows of floor-to-ceiling glass wardrobes and shoe cabinets, all marked with names, numbers and brands for the convenience to take. As soon as a young maid in uniform worker saw Eliza appearing at the door, she immediately opened the door for her respectfully, led Eliza to sit down on the sofa, made a pot of tea and handed her a cup of tea, opened the wardrobe doors one after another for Eliza, and then stood outside the door knowingly, waiting for her instructions. Eliza held the teacup with her hands painted with long red nails, took a sip and looked around the huge cloakroom. She enjoyed having so many high-end and beautiful clothes, handbags, shoes, hats and the different dressing accessories for women, etc. At this time, she felt that she was a very lucky woman - a woman who could sit on the top of the pyramid of Mars to enjoy the most luxurious life in the world.

This was perhaps the largest and most luxurious cloakroom in the world. It stored many brand clothes of the world's most famous fashion designers, as well as some old clothes that Eliza wore when she was a movie star. They were all engraved with Eliza’s glorious years and charming style of her youth. If they were put up for auction now, the price would be extraordinary. Eliza touched her historical relics first, not knowing which set was better to choose? She kept picking up one set after another, looking at herself in the mirror again and again, as if she was looking for the lost youth and glorious years in these old clothes.

The day of the dinner party that Eliza was looking forward to finally arrived. Yisa’s husband Boby had official business and could not come. To make up for it, Yisa arrived 2 hours early to accompany Eliza. Charlies and his girlfriend Jessica also arrived on time. Eliza led the guests to the magnificent dining room of the East Palace. The dining table was filled with delicacies that the guests were full of praise for. Although Eliza was not good at cooking, she was indeed a hospitable host and nice foodie. After having enough wine and food, the group of them followed Eliza to her ‘BAMBOO WORLD’. This was the focus of the dinner party, Eliza not only wanted to have fun in time and forget her worries, but also showed her talents to her friends.

Eliza gave Yisa a hug and said, "Dear Yisa, thank you very much for coming to my dinner party tonight. It's been a long time since we played in an ensemble. I hope you can have a great time tonight."

Yisa joked: "Yes, dear Eliza, I will have a great time tonight and never go home until I am happy."

Then Eliza gave Jesica a (courtesy) hug. Even though she knew that Jesica was having an affair with her husband Mark and she had caught them in bed on a monitoring equipment, Eliza still did not dare to say anything and could only bury her jealousy in her heart. She smiled elegantly at Jessica and said, "Dear Jessica, thank you for coming to our private dinner! May I ask what musical instrument you can play?"

Jessica seemed a little shy. In fact, she felt guilty in her heart to Eliza for sleeping with her husband Mark. She didn't know that Eliza had already seen her clearly in the surveillance equipment, so what else could she pretend to nothing happened? She tried her best to relax her emotions and return her expression to normal. She squeezed out her most charming smile to cover up her inner anxiety, and said sweetly to Eliza: "Our beautiful queen, thank you very much. It’s an honor to be invited to your private dinner! I can play the flute a little, I’m not very good at it, so I’m embarrassed to do it in front of you.”

Eliza replied: "It doesn't matter. We just have fun together. You will be the last one to perform later."

Jessica replied: “I am deeply honored to be able to play for our beautiful queen."

Eliza was very happy to hear Jessica's sweet words, especially when Jessica called her the beautiful queen. For this flattery, she was even willing to forgive Jessica for having an affair with her husband Mark.

Eliza gave Charlies next to Jessica a courtesy hug yet. She wanted to control her emotions, but she still exceeded the normal boundaries of etiquette which she almost touched Charles's chest. Eliza quickly regained her rationality, no matter how much she loved Charles, she reminded herself that as the first lady of Mars, she must not be disqualified in front of everyone and leave people with something to talk about, which would affect her reputation and status.

Eliza calmly turned to Jessica and Yisa and said, half (jokingly) and seriously: “in the future, we can form a small women's orchestra, when we are free, we ladies can gather together to play. I can invite the top professional musicians in our country to help us, the women’s band, we should give this band a name. Do you think what name is better?” 

When they were all thinking carefully about the name, Yisa blurted out first: "How about the Maria Women's Band?" 

Everyone praised it in unison, and Eliza said: "Dear Yisa, this Bamboo World was also named by you in the past. You are indeed a versatile woman. I am really lucky to have you as a friend."

Yisa said humbly and flatteringly: "I don't dare to take it seriously. It's just a small skill. Our beautiful queen is indeed a woman with many talents."

Eliza was very happy to hear Yisa’s praise, but at this moment she remembered that Mark's concubine was going to enter the palace soon. In the future, could she still invite her friends to the palace for ensemble gatherings? She thought again, Yisa was her good friend and already knew many of her secrets, so it didn't matter. And Jessica is a lover of her husband Mark, why doesn't she use Mark's lover to attack her lover rivals? This is called killing with a borrowed knife. Thinking of this, Eliza glanced at Jessica and beamed with a joy.

Chapter twenty-seven: Eliza’s affair

Eliza said to Jessica: "Dear Jessica, you are young and beautiful. From now on, you will be the host of our band. You will also briefly host tonight to make our program more interesting. I will perform first, and Aunt Yisa will be the second and you’re the last one. Everyone plays 2-3 songs, and at the end it’s free time, whoever wants to perform can go on the stage.” 

Then Eliza took out a notepad and a carbon pen from the drawer under the coffee table and handed them to Jessica and said: "The guzheng music I performed tonight is called 'Moon in Water' and 'Plum Park', I will tell the meaning of music to you, please record it and report the song’s title and meaning to people when anyone starts the performer." 

Eliza turned to Yisa and said: "Dear Yisa, please tell Jessica what’s the name about the music you want to play. Each of our performers must tell the connotation of the music to the host of our band, she will explain to audience before the performance. I hope our band will be more professional and meaningful.”

Eliza finally asked Charles jokingly: "Dear Mr. Charles, can you play any musical instruments? Do you want to join our Maria Women's Orchestra and become our representative of the Women's musical band?"

Charles shook his head and said with a smile: "I'm sorry, dear Queen Eliza, I am not talented. I like all the music very much but I can’t play any musical instruments. I can only know how to treat patients and save their lives."

Eliza replied: "Doctors are a very noble profession. You have professional ethics and deserve more respect from people. After the concert, I want to consult you about my mother's illness."

Charles replied: " I'm always here for your service!”

After sorting out the information, Jessica walked up to the stage, looking like a professional host, and started hosting in a decent manner. Jessica announced in a sonorous and fluent tone: "tonight, on behalf of the beautiful Queen Eliza, I announce that the Maria Women's Band was officially established. I would like to thank our beautiful Queen Eliza for giving me this special opportunity to be the host for the Maria Women's Band. This is the first time in my life that I have been the host and if there is any poor fault about my hosting for the performance, please give me your valuable opinions."

After Jessica finished speaking, she bowed and continued to announce: "tonight our first performer is our talented Queen Eliza from the Kingdom of Mars. The guzheng pieces she played are called 'Moon in Water' and 'Plum Park'. Please invite our beautiful Queen Eliza.”

Everyone started to applaud, and Eliza walked onto the stage with a great joy, as if she had returned to the era when she was a star and went on stage to receive awards. Eliza loved performing very much. She liked showing people her acting talent and stunning beauty. When she had to quit the entertainment industry after her marriage, she felt very uncomfortable and felt that her life was empty and boring.

Eliza knew very well that in the social environment of Mars country, if she wanted to achieve great success and gained both fame and fortune, she had to find a power backer, otherwise it would be difficult for her to survive. She was considered a very lucky woman who climbed to the top of the Pyramid in Mars country without much struggle. Shortly after she became famous, she met Mark after being introduced by a friend. Within half a year, he and Mark stepped into the sacred palace of marriage and got married like lightning. She soon became the golden phoenix envied by many female artists in the entertainment industry.

Many female artists in Mars country sell their looks for fame and fortune to curry favor with the powerful, but they still couldn’t reach the status that Eliza had today. Eliza was clear that she was lucky and meantime, it wasn’t easy for her to get today’s success because she wiped away a lot of tears to compete with a lot of women for Mark, power and wealth, maybe she would fight to the death for nothing, when she goes to heaven or hell!

When Eliza and Yisa finished playing, it was Jessica's turn. Jessica walked calmly to the stage of Bamboo world's small concert hall. She picked up the flute that Eliza had given her and adjusted it. She said to Eliza and Yisa: "I am very sorry and I don’t know that we have the perform tonight so I didn’t bring my own flute. Please forgive me if I won’t play well.”

After speaking, Jessica began to explain and perform her music which the title of the song was ‘Sophora Japonica bloom’. "In a small town surrounded by mountains and rivers, there was a beautiful girl named Yiliaya. There was a huge and beautiful Sophora japonica tree near her home, people in the town liked to come here to rest and Yiliaya also met her boyfriend Austin here. They often went on dates here. When Austin and Yiliaya were immersed in love, Austin had no choice but to go to the army. On the battlefield, Austin unfortunately sacrificed himself, Yiliaya was so sad and she often came to this locust tree to miss him."

When Jessica finished playing, she received warm applause from everyone. Eliza said to Yisa and Jessica: "This is the end of our group activities tonight. You two can move freely and continue to play. Now I want to go to the lounge with Mr. Charles to talk about my mother's condition. I'm sorry, beauties." 

Eliza and Charles entered a large lounge in Bamboo World. In order to match the surrounding bamboo forest, the entire decoration and furniture were in dark green, light green and white color. In the center of the room, there was a large sofa with a white and green mixed dark flower, gold velvet cushion on the seat. The backrest of the sofa was matched with white embroidered decorative silk cloth. There was a large glass coffee table in the middle of the sofa. There were teapots, cups, and a bottle of fresh red roses on the coffee table. There was a large desk and boss chair next to the wall. Some beautiful and valuable artworks and green potted plants were appropriately placed in every corner, and several famous paintings were hung in an orderly manner on the walls, the layout of the entire lounge looked fashionable and elegant.

After Eliza led Charles to sit down on the sofa, Eliza sat on the sofa opposite Charles in order to facilitate talking. Her face flushed and she looked a little embarrassed. Although Eliza always missed Charles when she was lonely, at this moment, she felt shy like an 18-year-old girl who met her boyfriend first time so that she didn't know what to say. Eliza calmed down and said with a smile: "Dear Mr. Charles, I'm sorry, it's not my mother's illness, it's my illness. I just lied in front of everyone because I don't want others to know that I am sick."

Charles looked at Eliza and asked anxiously: "Excuse me, how do you feel uncomfortable? Maybe I can help you to treat it."

Eliza's face turned red as she was embarrassed to say that it was because she was jealous of Mark's lover. She replied awkwardly: "I feel painful in my heart recently when I am busy."

Charles saw that Eliza was a little shy and nervous, so he came over and sat down next to her, put his hands on Eliza's shoulders and wanted to comfort her as a patient, Eliza could no longer control her emotions and hugged Charles. They stuck together frantically, as if they were afraid that something would separate them. Gradually, Eliza's beautiful clothes were scattered all over the floor, and she no longer cared about the brand, quality and price of them as usual.

Eliza lay happily in Charles's arms. At this time, she seemed to have returned to the days of her first love when she was young. She hugged Charles tightly and touched his young body again, hoping to melt into his body forever to stop the time going by, forgetting Mark and Jessica, gossip and reputation, crown and status.

Chapter twenty-eight: Lovely mood

Ever since Charles helped Eliza's mother undergo the surgery and introduced his girlfriend Jessica to Mark, Charles's business had been booming quickly in the Mars Kingdom, as he could get an interest-free loan from the bank, cheap land to build a pharmaceutical factory and a lot of preferential policies etc. His ‘Benefy Pharmaceutical Ltd’ almost monopolized the pharmaceutical industry in just one year and became the leader in the medical industry and Charles became a successful and famous entrepreneur in Mars. 

Charles was a very astute medical expert and businessman. He was worthy of being born in the country of Mars and very good at planning and building relationships. As a businessman, Charles's layout was perfect, in order to sit under the big tree to enjoy the shade, Charles tied Eliza's interests to his company and he privately gave 50% of the shares of ‘Benefy Pharmaceutical Ltd’ to Eliza. To avoid her in bribery, Eliza asked her sister to (collaborate) with Charles and accept this huge bribe. Charles then gave Boby and his wife Yisa 10% of the shares, and his girlfriend Jessica 10% of the shares, for the sake of her own interests, Jessica could ask Mark to obtain many preferential policies for their company. So far, the real boss of ‘Benefy Pharmaceutical Ltd’ was Eliza.

Charles softly lifted Eliza’s slightly pointed chin with his hands, and looked tenderly at her big black and beautiful eyes, he couldn't help but give Eliza another passionate kiss, this kiss contained Charles's complicated feelings for Eliza - love and gratitude!

Today, Charles felt a bit casual, following his true feelings. He understood that he had the same problem as other men for liking beauties and being hard to refuse their requirements. He had even lost his rationality but he thought that he was really brave to sleep with the current queen of Mars. From Charles's heart, he fell in love with Eliza when he saw her for the first time, with her charming eyes, perfect facial features, well-proportioned figure and elegant manners. During his many interactions with Eliza, he found that Eliza also loved him, but because of Eliza's special status, he had to stay away and stop. He didn't want to offend the man of number one in Mars Country, otherwise he won't be able to survive in Mars country in the future. He realized that he was just a professional and businessman and wanted to make more money and didn’t want to cause troubles.

Charles felt a little choked in his throat and he finally cleared his throat to say: "Dear Eliza, today is the first time of our intimate relationship and maybe this is the last time. If your husband knows about our affair, then both of us will get some troubles. I am so grateful that you gave me your precious love, and I will cherish it in my heart as I don’t want you to get hurt in any way.”

With the spark of love flashing in Eliza's eyes, she put a long index finger on Charles's mouth and said: "Shi, dear, don't talk, enjoy the gift of love given to us by God. This is the most precious gift in the world, I hope that we only have a beginning and no end, and we will love each other forever, and never be separated. My dear, please don’t worry about me, I will handle this matter well, and I don’t want you to be hurt as well. I will protect you with my life." After saying that, Eliza wrapped her hands tightly around Charles, as if telling him that she would never let him go.

Since Eliza had an affair with Charles, she found that her brain had completely turned into a love brain. She didn't want to think about anything else except Charles, his smile, his voice, his breathing, his smell, etc. every time. When she thought of this, she began to be jealous of Charles's women. The jealousy made Eliza tight and short of breath, and there was a dull pain in her heart again.

Eliza was unwilling to give in and she did not want to live with this kind of lonely life anymore. She wanted to make her life colorful and perfectly burn out the last candlelight of her life. She thought of a way to take her mother to live in her East Palace, hire Charles as her mother's personal doctor, and prepare an office lounge for Charles in the East Palace, so that she would have the opportunity to have frequent trysts with Charles without (being marked). At the same time, she can enjoy Charles's love and continue to maintain her title and reputation as queen, isn't this the best method?

Thinking of this, Eliza couldn't help but secretly laugh. She thought for a while, then picked up her phone and sent a message to her husband Mark: "My dear, are you okay? When do you plan to come back? I have arranged for you to pack up. Decorating the room in the West Palace can be completed in about one week or ten days. I didn't decorate it because I don't know what color and style your beloved woman likes, so it's not convenient for me to make the decision for her rashly, Please forgive me! In addition, my mother is not in good health. I plan to bring her to the East Palace to take care of her. I want to hire a doctor who has performed surgery on her before, Mr. Charles, Jessica’s boyfriend, to come to the palace for taking care of my mother as his medical skills are superb and he is knowledgeable. From now on, we will hire him as the royal physician and become your special doctor. Thank you, I love you."

After Mark received the information, considering that Eliza's mother was indeed old and sick and needed a care, if she lived in the East Palace, Eliza would have more things to do. His concubine Grace was about to enter the palace to give birth to a child. It would be of great benefit to him if Eliza was busy, so that she would not have time to find fault with Grace, causing trouble for him and leaving him in a dilemma between women. He knew that Jessica's boyfriend Charles was a rare doctor with excellent medical skills. He also liked Jessica and he would be little jealous if they live together in the palace. But they were all the assets, it would be good to replenish the medical team for royal hospital. After weighing the pros and cons, Mark replied to Eliza with a message: "Dear, I'm fine, thanks. I haven't decided when to come back. When I set a date, I will let you know in advance. You can make your own decisions about employing the doctor, bringing your mother to live in the palace and do what you want. Love you, Mark!”

After Eliza received Mark's message, she was so happy that she almost jumped up. She did not expect that her dream would come true. Charles was her first lover after marriage and she would be able to have the lovely time with her beloved man every day. She thought that might be God's compensation for her lonely life which she had endured for decades.

Since she married Mark and had her daughters, she often stayed alone in her empty house and lived a lonely life. She hoped that Mark would one day change his mind, habit of living a dissolute life, and spend more time with her and her children. But Eliza didn't expect that Mark would later become the president and future emperor of the Mars Kingdom. Although she enjoyed the great glory and wealth, she became more and more lonely. She had to share this great man with many beauties, but sometimes she wouldn't get Mark's favor even once half a year. Mark often came back as he was tired, treating his home like a hotel. When Eliza wanted to close to him, he often seemed impatient, when he saw other young and beautiful women, his eyes always flashed with lust, which made Eliza full of complaints and heartbreak.

No matter how Mark treated Eliza, she felt that she still loved Mark very much, and she loved this great and wise man who conquered Mars’ country and brought her so much glory and wealth. She also loved the suave and handsome Charles who was knowledgeable, gentle and considerate, and bringing her romantic love. Meanwhile, Eliza felt that she could forgive Mark for his debauchery at this moment!

Chapter twenty-nine: Duplicity

Eliza acted very resolutely and efficiently, took her mother to the East Palace the next day. She did not tell her mother about her affair with Charles, fearing that her mother would be worried and refuse to come to live in the palace. As a result, Eliza’s wonderful dream won’t come to the truth.

Eliza planned to allocate a luxurious room in the East Palace to Charles as an office. The suite has an office, a luxurious bedroom and a bathroom. In order to avoid rumors, Charles's office was arranged next to her mother to make it easier for her to meet Charles and for her mother to receive treatment and care.

Eliza asked the maids in the East Palace to spend a day cleaning the room and she personally spent a day decorating the room that would become her and Charles' love nest. She hoped to make it comfortable and beautiful so that she and her beloved man could enjoy their happy time here.

Eliza was particularly busy recently. she not only went to the West Palace to check the progress of the house renovation for welcoming her husband Mark's concubine into the palace, but also tidied up the ‘Sunshine Performance Hall’ and some suites in Spring Hotel of South Palace where was for only receiving the important foreign heads of state sometimes. Eliza was going to hold some music and dance performances at the Sunshine Performance Hall to entertain some important guests in the future and establish her own connections and power circles, Eliza was working hard to make all preparations in order to defeat her love rivals and retain her title and status as queen.

Eliza sent Charles a message asking him and Jessica to come to the East Palace for dinner tomorrow night. She wanted to surprise Charles, so she did not mention her arrangements and plans in the message. In her heart, she hated Jessica because Jessica had an affair with her husband Mark and also possessed her beloved man, Charles. Eliza didn't want to offend Jessica for making too many enemies as she knew that she had many love rivals who were coveting her position yet. Moreover, Eliza could also use Jessica to do many things and serve as a shield for her affair with Jessica boyfriend, Charles.

Eliza felt that this was really a funny game of God. She did not expect that she and Jesssica's boyfriend Charles fell in love at first sight and became lovers. However, she didn’t want to compete with Jessica for her boyfriend and she just hoped that Charles could accompany her to spend the rest of her lonely life. Although Jessica is younger than her, she can read from Charles's eyes that he loved her more than Jessica, this is enough to satisfy Eliza’s competitive spirit.

The day after Eliza's mother arrived at the palace, to prevent any awkward situation that she met Carles and Jessica, Eliza took her mother to have dinner with Charles and Jessica in the carved beams and painted dining room of her East Palace. During the dinner, she told Charles that she and Mark planned to hire him as a full-time royal doctor, manage the entire medical affairs of royal hospital in the palace and give him an office and lounge suite in the East Palace. She saw that Charles and Jessica were very happy.

After the meal, Eliza and her mother led Charles and Jessica to visit Charles’ office. Then Eliza's mother said goodbye and went back to her room to rest. Eliza pretended that she and Charles were innocent in front of Jessica and asked Charles: "Mr. Charles, do you like this job as a royal doctor and this office?”

Charles answered seriously: "Thank you and President Mark very much for your trust. It is a great honor for me to get this job, I will do my best."

Eliza said to Charles seriously: "My mother's health has not been very good recently. I took her to the palace two days ago. Your office is right next to my mother's, so it is convenient for you to check and treat her. You are the neighbor now, please take care of her. Thanks in advance!"

Charles replied: "that is my duty, I must do my best. Dear queen Eliza, thank you and President Mark very much again, allowing Jessica and I to achieve such high achievements in Mars Country. It is really a blessing to become a royal doctor."

Charles was relieved now when he saw that Eliza was able to invite him and Jessica to dinner today and had completely controlled her emotions. He felt that Eliza had a very strong self-control and performance skills, was worthy of being a well-known actor and first lady. He was pleasant to see Eliza looking happy and confident and he no longer worry about her falling in love and being unable to extricate herself, which would affect her status and reputation. He really loved Eliza and he didn't want to see her sad and unhappy.

It had been a few days since Charles moved into the East Palace and Eliza was not in a hurry to come to see him. After thinking carefully, she still planned to visit Charles occasionally, she thought that she should pay attention for her behavior, should not let the gossips affect her reputation and ruin her life. Eliza didn’t want to give up her prosperity and wealth and this love dessert of Charles either, so she decided to find an opportunity to have a frank talk with him.

One afternoon, Eliza accompanied her mother to Charles' office. Her mother had a rehabilitation examination, after leaving, Eliza continued to stay in Charles' office to inquire about her mother's physical condition. In order to consider Eliza, Charles originally planned to stop developing an affair with Eliza, but when he and Eliza were alone and Eliza held his hand, he could not control his feelings, he once again took Eliza into his arms.

Eliza looked at Charles passionately, took his hand, kissed it and whispered softly: "Dear, thank you for your love, I love you very much. You are right, for our future and happiness, the two of us must keep a distance and a good image in public places to avoid gossip which won’t be good for you and me. My dear, I don’t want to put any emotional pressure or burden on you. You can date with other women, get married, have children or have a life you want. But I hope you won’t leave me, love me forever until the end of my life.” After saying that, Eliza gave Charles an affectionate kiss.

Eliza felt extremely comfortable after handling her relationship with Charles. Her new love bright her back to her youth and she seemed to have endless power to face all difficulties. She would no longer care about how many women her husband Mark have? How many children he would have with other women? This was a fact which she couldn't change. She now only cared about her status, title and wealth, after accompanying Mark in his political career for decades and relying on her beauty, fame and wisdom, Eliza was very confident that she could defeat her love rivals.

Chapter thirty: Beauty enters the palace

The day Eliza didn't want to see finally came. She received a message from Mark: "Dear Eliza, Grace and I will return to the palace at 3-4pm tomorrow and go directly to the West Palace. I hope you can greet us at the West Palace and arrange a family dinner in advance, I will introduce you to Grace, and I hope you will get along well in the future. Thank you, Mark!”

Eliza now knew that the vixen was called Grace which she thought this name was very nice and feminine. According to the numerology of the name, this woman should be gentle and considerate, and very popular with men. At this moment, Eliza felt that she no longer cared about Mark, no matter what woman he would bring back or sleep with, as long as Eliza could keep her title of queen, glory and wealth, and had the young and handsome man Charles, it was enough.

On the afternoon of the next day, Eliza was dressed up in jewels and glamour, looking very graceful and luxurious. She wanted to show her elegance and nobility as a first lady with her timeless (enduring) appearance and aura (momentum) to overwhelm her love rivals.

Eliza stood at the gate of the West Palace and saw Mark tenderly holding the hand of a young, beautiful and fairy-like girl coming out of the luxury sedan. Eliza was stunned by her appearance and ethereal temperament so she understood at this time that her aura cannot be compared with this goblin and why Mark loved her? If she was a man, she would drool over her beauty and couldn’t stop loving her. After Mark introduced Grace to Eliza, Eliza pretended to give Grace a courtesy hug and Grace also returned back to Eliza a polite greeting ceremony, and then Eliza took them to the gorgeously decorated West Palace dining room.

At the dinner table, Mark sat on the left side of Grace, and Grace sat in the middle. Eliza deliberately sat humbly on Grace's right side, almost giving up the entire Mark, her husband to Grace, to show her generosity and friendliness to Grace, making Mark happier. Eliza said to Grace with a smile on her face: "Warmly welcome Grace. I hope you like living here. If you need any help in the future, please feel free to let me know. If there is any lack of care, please forgive me!"

Grace replied to Eliza in her sweet voice: "Dear sister Eliza, you are so beautiful and can be called a peerless beauty. Thank you very much for your any help and being kind to accept me. If I bother you in the future, please forgive me. I hope I can do my best for the Mark family.”

When Eliza saw Grace at the first sight, she knew that she was a very upright and kind-hearted girl. Eliza did not expect that Grace's mouth was so sweet as well, her sweet words made Eliza a little ecstatic, almost broke Eliza's defense line of the jealousy towards Grace, especially when she said that Eliza could be called a peerless beauty. Eliza and Grace had a very good chat, through these conversations, Eliza learned that Grace was a world-famous pianist and composer. Eliza thought that Grace was not only beautiful, but also talented. From Eliza’s heart, she liked Grace, but when she thought that Grace would replace her position as queen, her devilish hostility grew again. Eliza thought: "It would be great if Grace was not Mark's woman, they can be good friends rather than a love rival. God is so blind sometimes that he gave such a pure and kind-hearted Grace to her husband Mark, which is a bit of a waste." Thinking of this, Eliza seemed to sympathize with Grace for finding the wrong man.

Eliza knew very well what kind of people, Mark and her were, they’re very similar like twin brother and sister, who would do anything to achieve their goals and interests, even at the cost of others' lives. Now fate had tied them together, and in order to protect their common interests, power and wealth, they had to dance with the tiger and the wolf.

At the dinner table, Mark saw Eliza and Grace chatting happily, so he rarely interrupted and only listened silently. Mark was very good at observing, analyzing and having insight into people's hearts through people’s behaviors, manners, words and all the things. Although he knew that Eliza was acting, he was still very satisfied with Eliza's arrangement and attitude towards Grace.

No matter how many beauties Mark had in the past, he would never feel satisfied. It seemed that new beauties could inject fresh blood into him or he felt they could prove his male abilities. Whenever Mark had a new relationship, he felt very happy, full of passion, and a little more tolerance to people and things. At this moment, Mark was still immersed in his love with Grace, so he could temporarily ignore and tolerate Eliza's many serious shortcomings---greed, hypocrisy, and jealousy.

After dinner, Eliza led Grace and Mark to visit the West Palace that she had renovated and decorated for them. She also asked Grace whether she was satisfied with them, then said good night and farewell. Eliza felt that she was walking on thin ice now and if she would not be careful, she would accidentally fall into an ice cave which she worried to do anything wrong cause Mark's resentment and displeasure to take her title of queen away to other women and her glorious life would plummet to nothing.

Mark seemed to be reborn and turned into a good man for Grace as he put aside countless beauties. In addition to power, Mark was almost obedient to Grace and obeyed her every word, as long as he could do them, he would do almost anything for her. Mark was going to accompany Grace every day as he was worried that Grace would feel strange and scared when she first arrived in the palace. He wanted her to be familiar with all the environment in the palace, so that she would be safe and smooth for giving birth to their son.

After Eliza returned to her room, she suddenly felt so lonely and depressed. She wanted to go to Charles’ office, then it was so late that she was scared the gossip to reach Mark's ears, she may not only lose all her glory and wealth, but also her life. She developed a curiosity of voyeurism again, so she came to the magical surveillance world in her study. She, Eliza, could now monitor not only his lover Charles, but also her husband Mark.

She first opened Mark's room in the West Palace and saw Mark holding Grace on the sofa watching TV. Grace was wearing a maternity nightgown and nestled her whole body in Mark's arms. Mark would say some greeting and sweet words from time to time for Grace to make her happy. Grace and Mark’s face were filled with happiness and sweetness. Eliza was very sad when she saw this because she recalled when she was pregnant, Mark often went out, came back less, never treated her so tenderly and considerately. Eliza turned off Mark's screen angrily, not wanting to see this scene that hurt her heart again.

Eliza opened the screen in Charles' room, and waves of familiar sounds came, making Eliza's blood boiled and her whole body hot. Eliza knew that Jessica was in Charles' room, this was the second time Eliza heard Jessica's touching and soul-sucking moans on the bed. The first time was she monitor her husband Mark, she saw Jessica having an affair with her husband Mark. She felt that Jessica seemed to have specially trained in bed skills and bed calls to stimulate men's hormones, thus making her more magical and competitive as a woman. In her heart, she had to admire Jessica, not only was she young, beautiful and versatile, she was also so cunning and knew how to use her advantages to attract men.

Eliza was full of frustration and pain. She turned off the two surveillance videos. She felt that if she continued to watch them, she would soon go crazy and become a mental patient. She decisively picked up her phone and sent an appointment message to Charles.

Chapter thirty-one: The eager for love

Although Mark and Eliza were currently able to use the power in their hands to monitor anyone overtly or covertly in Mars country, Eliza was also afraid that her mobile phone would be monitored by the political opponents of her husband Mark and get a hold of her unfavorable evidence to attack her and Mark. 

Eliza had been involved in the political circle of Mars with Mark for several decades, and had developed a strong sense of suspicion. She would not trust anyone easily and worry about others harming her every second. When she sent the messages to Charles, she had to carefully consider every word to prevent her unknown secrets being revealed to others. 

Eliza wrote (grandly): "Dear Mr. Charles, how are you doing recently? I will bring my mother to your office for a physical examination at 3pm tomorrow. Please arrange your time for us. Thanks in advance! Eliza."

Eliza checked this information repeatedly, fearing to reveal any personal relationship with Charles. Although sometimes she wanted to express her romantic feeling and love in words, the cruel reality forced her to restrain her true emotions.

The next afternoon, Eliza eliminated all potential risks and lay down on the big bed in Charlies' office again as she wished. At this moment, Jessica's wanton moans echoed in her ears, stimulating her central nervous system, making her hug Charlies tightly, enjoying his warm hug and sweet kiss. Eliza now liked Jessica's sexy voice, which could make her tear off her false mask, climb over the high wall of the morality, be not afraid of the horror of the death of Mark might kill her, and be bravely with her beloved man to plant and care about her love flower at will.

Charles became Eliza's spiritual sustenance and a good medicine for loneliness. When she stayed or missed with him, she felt no empty again, all her troubles and pains immediately disappear.

Eliza softly said to Charles: "Can I ask you a few questions? Do you know which abortion pill is better and more effective?"

Charles asked with the concern and joke: "Are you going to have an abortion when you are pregnant? Is it my child? I still hope you will give me a daughter as beautiful as you?"

Eliza playfully replied: "My dear, it's not me, I'm just asking for a friend. If I could turn back time, I would be willing to have children for you and love you forever. Can you tell me which kind of poison is extremely poisonous and will cause death immediately? Which kind of poison is slow poisoning and will cause death slowly."

Charles looked at Eliza in surprise and asked, "Why do you ask this? This is a very strange question for you and it does not suit your noble status."

Eliza quickly lied: "A friend of mine who is a screenwriter is writing a script, which contains some content in this area. She asked me to help her for consulting our doctor about these professional knowledges, I think you're the best person for this because you are a famous doctor and pharmacist, please help my friend and give her some professional informations."

Eliza became interested in poisons, even though there were poisons in the palace's medical warehouse, she had never cared about it or learned about poisons before. From now on, she will get involved in more different fields and learn more different knowledge. She deeply understood that it was not easy to survive in the Kingdom of Mars, and it was even more difficult to keep her title of queen, for this reason, she was forced to use all dirty and despicable methods to be against any rival.

Eliza touched Charles’ handsome face while she was thinking: "How should I convince Charles to help me get the poisons and how to use them? Although Charles loves money, it is not easy to get him to help me murder a person. "

Eliza was very distressed at this moment and she really wanted Charles to help her poison Grace, but she was worried that Charles would not agree or leak the matter to his girlfriend Jessica who was her husband Mark's lover and would tell him anytime, then she would be done with it and die before she even made a move. After thinking about it, she felt that she should make up a story to involve Charles in this incident, so that he would feel scared and have to help her. She had already bribed many people to serve and work for Grace in West Palace, there were monitors in all the rooms around her too and almost every move, word and deed of Grace was under her control.

Eliza reminded herself: "The most urgent thing is to abort the child in Grace's belly first. Once Grace loses her son, Mark will not pamper her so much, let alone immediately make her the queen to replace me. At least my status of queen can be saved for the time being." Thinking of this, Eliza couldn't help but be secretly happy.

Charles didn't know what Eliza was doing with the abortion pill, and he didn't even know that Mark's concubine had just entered the palace yesterday and was about to give birth in the West Palace. He said to Eliza with concern: "Now that medicine is so advanced, if your friend wants to have an abortion, it will be safer to go to the hospital.”

Eliza took Charles's hand and said, "Dear, I will give these medicines to my friends, and they will deal with them themselves. Thank you for your concern and help!"

The next morning, the weather was wonderful, and the bright sunshine shone on the earth, as if it had put a colorful dress on the Palace in Mars country, Charles liked the Palace of Mars country very much, he thought it was the one of the largest and most beautiful palace in the world. Even though he was now considered the top rich man of Mars Country, he was glad that as a doctor, he could do his professional work here. He was very grateful to Eliza for giving him this job, he would do his best to his work. He personally went to the Medical Warehouse in North Palace to help Eliza get the medicine, and wanted to take a walk along the lakeside of the palace. When he passed the lakeside of the West Palace, he saw a young pregnant woman walking by the lake from a distance, even though she was pregnant, her charming face attracted everyone who passed by to stop and look back. Her beautiful face always maintained a kind smile for everyone who admired her. Charles felt that she looked familiar, as if he saw her somewhere before, but he couldn't remember it for this time.

Chapter thirty-two: Warm words

Eliza happily left Charles' office with the abortion pill, but the smell of her perfume still lingered in Charles’ office and refused to leave. At this time, Charles finally remembered who the young pregnant woman was yesterday. He did not expect to see her again in person - his idol and dream lover, the versatile and pure pianist Grace. Since he planned to return to Mars to develop his career, he rarely paid attention and participated in some activities abroad. He probably hadn't seen her in more than two years. Because of her pregnancy and the fact that she had become more mature and feminine, he did not immediately recognize her. Charles puzzled: "Why Grace is in the palace of Mars Kingdom? Where does she live in the palace? Due to she is pregnant, who is her husband?" Everything about her made Charles very curious.

In the evening, Charles told Jessica what he saw Grace by the lake yesterday in West Palace, because he knew that Jessica was also a fan of Grace, who liked Grace very much. They both believed that Grace was not only a talented pianist, composer, but also a pure and beautiful, low-key, approachable and friendly girl. Charles and Jessica once attended Grace's fan signing event together when they were abroad. They didn't expect that they would meet Grace again in the palace of Mars Kingdom, but meanwhile, the two of them were very happy and curious to know Grace was here.

After Charles mentioned it, Jessica suddenly remembered that she had seen Grace's profile picture on Mark's mobile phone screen a few months ago. At that time, she was surprised as if she knew this girl and later, she remembered that the profile picture was that of the pianist Grace, she just thought that Mark might be a fan of Grace. She did not expect that Mark knew Grace and had an extraordinary relationship, and she now lived in the palace of Mars Kingdom. Jessica said to Charles: "Dear, you said that Grace is pregnant and seems to be about to give birth. Who is her husband? I once saw Grace's profile picture on the screen of Mark's mobile phone. Now Grace lives in the palace, Is she Mark’s little wife? With Grace’s fame and talent, she should not be short of money, and she can find a better man, so she won’t be Mark’s little wife!”

Charles kissed Jessica's face and said: "Dear, I was also thinking about this afternoon, why does Grace live in the palace? Except for Mark's family members, relatives, no one else can enter the Palace of Mars if people didn’t obtain Mark’s consent. Grace's surname is lee, not Dala, this excludes that she is not Mark's daughter. If Mark has a son, she may be the wife of Mark's son so Grace maybe is Mark’s daughter-in-law or relatives.” 

Jessica poked Charles' forehead with her finger and smiled sweetly: "You are so dull, there are professionals and other staff like us in the palace. According to Grace's status, it is impossible for her to find a staff member. At least they are professionals like us, but why there is Grace’s profile picture on the screen of Mark’s mobile phone? To narrow down the analysis, Grace is either Mark’s daughter-in-law or Mark’s wife.”

When the two of them were having a heated discussion, Jessica's cell phone rang. She picked it up and looked at it. It turned out to be a message sent to her by Eliza: "Dear Jessica, good evening! I'm sorry to disturb you later. Could you please come my study room at 9 am tomorrow in the East Palace? I have jobs for you to do. Many thanks! Eliza." 

The next morning, Jessica came to Eliza's study room in the East Palace. After Eliza told Jessica what they were going to do, she took Jessica to the West Palace. Jessica had never entered the West Palace before, she only passed by the gate of the West Palace where the doors were always locked, heavily guarded by soldiers. There was a small sign next to the door that said: "No entry without permission." There was also a red line next to the sign that said: "Pedestrians please do not cross this red line, otherwise you will be severely fined.

The decoration of the West Palace was very similar to that of the East Palace, with carved beams and painted buildings, splendid splendor. The garden outside also had small bridges, flowing water, green trees, and clusters of flowers. Different from the other palaces, the West Palace also had some modern buildings, it was also meticulously crafted and spectacular. Jessica also liked the Palace of Mars country very much, she thought the design of the palace of Mars Kingdom looked like a beautiful picture of the fairyland on earth.

What surprised Jessica was that when she and Eliza arrived at the reception hall of the West Palace, Mark was holding Grace's hand affectionately and sitting on the sofa waiting for them. Jessica couldn't believe her eyes, and she was even more unwilling to accept this fact. It's not that she was jealous at Grace because she also liked Mark little, but because Grace was her idol and the goddess in her heart. Like other fans, she was high demanding of her idols, hoping that they will be the embodiment of perfection and the sun in her heart.

Last night, Mark received a message from Eliza, saying that she had chosen a young and excellent personal doctor for Grace and she will live in the West Palace during the period of Grace was about to give birth and her room was arranged near Grace's master bedroom for being convenient to take care of her health at any time. Mark checked the doctor information provided by Eliza, as he saw Jessica's name clearly, he immediately agreed. Mark thought that Eliza didn't know about his affair with Jessica, so he was secretly grateful for Eliza's arrangement.

Mark was very happy to see that Eliza had brought the young and sexy Jessica who immediately aroused his infinite reverie, but he had to hide his inner excitement and joy in front of Grace. In order to recuperate his body that had been overindulged some time ago and to accompany Grace and her unborn son, he became more responsible and stopped going out to have affairs.

Eliza saw Mark's desire for Jessica, and she quickly introduced Jessica to Grace: "Dear Grace, this is a young and excellent Dr. Jessica that I specially selected for you. She will be your personal doctor and live in your West Palace for being convenient to take care of you. I hope your delivery will be smooth, you and the child will be safe and healthy!"

Grace replied to Eliza gently: "I am extremely grateful to you and your help, Dear Eliza!"

Grace turned to Jessica again and she felt that Jessica looked familiar, but she couldn't remember it for a moment. She politely said to Jessica: "Nice to meet you, young and intelligent Dr. Jessica. Thanks for your services. If I will cause some troubles to you in the future, please forgive me!”

Eliza smiled at Mark and Grace and said: "I take Dr. Jessica to see her office first. She will move here today. I have set up a welcome dinner for Dr. Jessica in your West Palace. If Grace needs any help in the future, just ask her, she is a wonderful all-around lady who can help you solve countless problems.”

Grace replied: "dear Eliza, if there is a welcoming dinner for Dr. Jessica, I want to give you a few different dishes I personally designed to thank you all for your help at everything to me!” 

Eliza and Jessica both said in unison: "I'm really looking forward to your delicious food."

During the dinner, the entire table was filled with 18 dishes, all of which were designed by Grace. The names of these dishes all sounded as fantastic and pleasant as poetry, such as ‘Moon in Water’, ‘Singing on the Waves’, ‘Crescent Moon’ ‘Whispering in the wind’, ‘Walking in the Rain’, ‘Falling Snow’ etc. Not only the dishes were quite delicious, but also looked very beautiful which made people appetizing and hungry. Eliza and Jessica Kept praising while eating.

Eliza didn't know how to cook as she didn’t like cooking. When she saw that so many delicacies on the table were cooked by Grace, she understood why Mark loved Grace so much. Even if there were so many beauties around him, and even if Grace was pregnant, he would stay with her. She had to admire that Grace as an excellent beauty could be a famous pianist in the world and also go into the kitchen. Eliza thought it was pitiful for Grace to be involved into the cruel and dirty political arena in Mars country.

After the meal, Jessica left first and said she wanted to go back to the room to pack her luggage. Eliza deliberately accompanied Grace to ask her for cooking advice. After a while, Mark said he went for a walk in the garden. Eliza said to Grace: "I'm sorry, dear Grace, I have to check my phone first, I'm worried about my daughter calling me.” Eliza took out the special large phone she had prepared, opened a software on the screen, turned on the monitoring equipment and mute settings in Jessica's room, and closed the cover of the phone, put it on the dining table, and continue to talk nonsense with Grace. 

Half an hour later, Eliza saw her mobile phone flashing on the dining table. She opened the phone cover slightly and took a look. She saw Mark and Jessica just take off their clothes and then said to Grace: "dear Grace, I brought some gifts for you but I put them in the guest room next to Jessica. Can you come with me to get them?”

Grace replied: "no problem, dear Eliza. Thanks for your kindness and generosity!”

As Eliza walked, she took out the prepared keys and continued: "In a few days, all the keys about the West Palace will be handed over to you. I don't need to keep them anymore. Please look after the West Palace well in the future. Thanks in advance."

The two of them came to the door of Jessica's room. At this time, Eliza stopped talking and became silent. She quickly opened the door with the key prepared in her hand. The loud and erotic sounds inside suddenly stopped, and Eliza walked into the room with Grace, at this time Mark and Jessica were naked, breathing heavily and leaning on the bedside. Before they could cover themselves with the quilt, they looked embarrassed. Eliza deliberately panicked and said: "Dear husband, I'm sorry, I opened the wrong door. I should open the next door of the room, and I'm accompanying Grace to get the gifts. I'm very, very sorry!" After saying that, she lowered her head and helped Grace out of the room.

Chapter thirty-three: Windy and snowy night

When Eliza helped Grace exited Jessica's room, she noticed that Grace's face turned red and white, and her pretty eyes turned into (melancholy). Eliza felt very happy when she saw Grace's painful expression. She pretended to care about Grace and said compassionately: "dear Grace, are you okay? I'm very sorry that I opened the wrong door and let you see this unpleasant and indecent scene. Don't mind about our husband doing this immoral thing. He is a romantic person who always likes going around looking for pretty women. I am not surprised because I am used to receive it. I believe that you have not known each other for a long time, and you don’t know him well yet. You have just entered the palace, so you should be mentally prepared to suffer these usually. However, if you feel lonely, I can always keep you company. Who let us be the miserable sisters with a same husband and connected by fate?”

With tears in Grace’s eyes, she said to Eliza: "I'm ok, I'll be fine soon. Thank you, dear Eliza, for your concern and company."

Eliza quickly glanced at Grace again and saw that there were still some tears in Grace's eyes. She took out the tissue in her small handbag to Grace and said, "Okay, dear Grace, don't be sad about our stinky man. Come on, be cheerful, take a look at the gift I gave you, and put these unpleasant things of men and women behind you. "

As Eliza spoke, she opened the door next to Jessica. After entering the room, she took out several gift bags and handed them to Grace and said: "I gave you 2 sets of clothes, which were designed by my own fashion designer. In addition, a set of jewelry, which includes a platinum diamond necklace and a pair of earrings. Open and see them and I hope you like them.”

Under Eliza's urging, Grace opened the gift she sent and looked at it. It was indeed very beautiful and she said to Eliza in amazement: "they’re very beautiful but It's a pity that I can't wear them with my current figure. I hope I can recover quickly after giving birth. Only when you have a good body shape, you can enjoy the beautiful clothes. Thank you very much for your gift and thoughtfulness, dear Eliza!”

Eliza happily said to Grace: "I will hold a music and dance performance to welcome you to live in the West Palace in the Sunshine Performance Hall of South Palace the night after tomorrow. I have invited the most famous singers and dancers in our country to perform, and also invited some important dignitaries and celebrities to participate. I hope our husband Mark, you and I can attend together.” 

Then Eliza took Grace’s hand softly and continue to say: “I hope we can live in harmony as a family in the future, help and love each other. From now on, if you get the son, your son also will be my son, and I will treat him as my own.” 

Grace replied: "Okay, dear Eliza sister, I want to attend with you. According to the current situation, I don't know if our husband Mark will attend. If he can’t go with us, we can just attend together."

Eliza quickly left, and Grace returned to her room alone. Recalling the scene between Mark and Dr. Jessica, she felt very sad and painful. She did not expect Mark was so indiscreet, as soon as Dr. Jessica came, he went to the bed with her. Thinking of the two of them naked, she felt like a knife was stabbing her heart. She didn't want to blame Dr. Jessica, she only blamed Mark for being too frivolous. She sympathized with Eliza now, feeling that it was really difficult for her to spend her whole life with Mark. She didn’t know how long time she would be able to bear Mark’s affairs? She would rather choose to live an ordinary life with a man who loved her, and she didn’t care  about this kind of love in unusual life, but she was about to give birth to a baby, could she still choose?

When Grace was thinking, Mark came back. He looked like a child, a little guilty, and a little embarrassed. He walked up to Grace, hugged her tightly, and gave her a deep passionate kiss. Grace wanted to push him away, but she couldn't resist Mark's sweet words and entanglement of love, so she surrendered again. She was like a wounded lamb, docilely nestling in Mark's arms, she knew that Mark really loved her so his sins were quickly forgiven.

Grace told Mark not to blame Eliza who did not open Jessica’s room on purpose. She happily showed the gift Eliza gave her to Mark and told Mark that Eliza would hold a music and dance performance in the Sunshine Performance Hall of South Palace to welcome her into the Palace, she invited the most famous singers and dancers in Mars to play, also invited some important dignitaries and celebrities to participate and she hoped they could attend together. 

One night two days later, Mark, Eliza, and Grace came to the magnificent ‘Sunshine Performance Hall’ in South Palace together. Eliza also invited Charles, Jessica, Yisa and her husband Boby, as well as several important ministers and their wives, others were celebrities and wealthy businessmen from all walks of life. The actors participating in this performance were all top-notch singers, dancers and performers in Mars.

The ‘Sunshine Performance Hall’ was built in the ‘Spring Hotel’, which was only used to occasionally receive important foreign heads of state, only for royal personnel to use and was not open to the public. The ‘Sunshine Performance Hall’ was built to provide entertainment facilities for the ‘Spring Hotle’. This ‘Sunshine Performance Hall’ was renovated by Eliza and became more gorgeous and elegant.

Since Eliza was present at the performance this time, in order to prevent Grace from feeling embarrassed and unhappy, Mark asked his minister Boby to accompany him to greet the invited guests, sit and chat with the ministers, while Eliza sitting with Grace, Jessica, Charles, Yisa and others. Eliza understood what Mark meant, so she didn’t want to force herself to socialize with Mark.

Eliza introduced Charles to Grace. She did not expect that Grace had actually known Charles abroad. In the past, Charles had been a loyal fan of Grace, he would support almost every performance of Grace in London. However, Grace did not know that Charles had been deeply in love with her. Grace also felt that Jessica looked familiar, she remembered that Jessica and Charles had attended her fan signing event together. Jessica was a little embarrassed and uncomfortable when she saw Grace and Eliza tonight. She didn't want her boyfriend Charles to know about her affair with Mark, but she didn't expect that neither of Grace and Eliza seemed to care at all about Mark's infidelity, they didn’t mention anything and treated her and Charles in a kind manner as if nothing had happened, everything was business as usual.

Eliza introduced Yisa to Grace again, she didn't know that Yisa had known Grace for a long time, and she and Grace were close friends at the same hobbies of literature, poetry, music etc. However, Yisa didn't like gossip which she was afraid that Eliza would feel sad, so she kept silent, without telling her anything.

The performance began, all the actors were selected and all the programs were designed carefully by Eliza. Many of the music were in the line with Mark's taste. The performance hall was almost full of seats and guests, and even some celebrities who wanted to be among them had no chance. Mark was very satisfied with Eliza's hosting of this performance. He had not seen such a wonderful event for a long time. He admired Eliza's ability in his heart.

In a program that integrated music and dance, there were several young and beautiful female dancers who danced gracefully and moved Mark with all his eyes. Mark's every move could not escape Eliza's eyes. She knew that Mark was plotting against the few dancers again, which played into Eliza's plan. As long as Mark fell in love with the girls, she would write them down. Eliza walked into her private office in the performance hall, ordered the staff to call in the director of the show to her office, she gave him a heavy tip and a key of the presidential suite at the ‘Spring Hotle’, asked him to handle the matter of keeping the three young and beautiful dancers for the president, her husband Mark. 

The choreography and performance of the entire show was perfect, after the performance, there was thunderous and lasting applause. When Mark came on the stage to shake hands with the actors during the thank-you ceremony, he received a note from the three girls thrust into his hand secretly. After the thank-you ceremony was over, he deliberately went to the bathroom, eagerly opened the note, which wrote: “We live in 306 room of the Spring Hotle of South Palace, and welcome you to our room." 

At this moment, Mark's blood was boiling and his heart was filled with the admiration. He did not expect that someone could really understand his mood and thoughts clearly, and specially arranged this beautiful thing for him in the palace. It was convenient and safe for him at the Spring Hotle in South Palace. The figures of those three beauties filled his mind, and at the same time he also wanted to know who arranged this beauty trap for him? Curiosity and impulsive hormones drove him to the decision which he must see the three beautiful girls in Spring Hotel of South Palace.

Mark returned to Eliza and Grace, lied to them that he suddenly had some official business to deal with and was leaving immediately, and would return in 2-3 days. Then, he walked up to Bobby, whispered in his ear, and walked out together. 

The others dispersed, leaving only Eliza and Grace. Eliza said to Grace: "Look, dear Grace, our husband is fooling around somewhere, and we both have to stay alone in the empty room. Since you live in West Palace, and I will take you to visit our new high-tech monitoring center in West Palace.”

Grace followed Eliza to the advanced and fashionable monitoring center in the West Palace. Eliza opened a special office and said: "this is the room to spy entire palace of monitoring center in our palace. From here you can see every corner of our entire palace. Let’s take a look at our beautiful palace. I’ll open a big screen to see it more clearly. Firstly, we start from South Palace, here is the ‘Sunshine Performance Hall of South Palace’, Next, the magnificent ‘Spring Hotel’ that only receives important foreign heads of state sometimes.”

After saying that, Eliza pressed a key on the computer and heard a stimulating sound. On the screen, they saw Mark nakedly immersed with the three young and naked beauties who had just danced on the stage. In joy, Eliza immediately turned off the screen and said to Grace: "I'm very sorry, dear Grace, I accidentally pressed the wrong keyboard, and another indecent video of our husband appeared too. Look, this romantic man also lied, he said that he went out to deal with official duties, but ended up having fun. Ignore him, go back to rest. I also want to go back to the East Palace to sleep. "

After Eliza helped Grace return to her bedroom in the West Palace, she went back to the East Palace herself.

Chapter thirty-four: Miserable for losing the fetus

After Eliza left, Grace felt extremely sad and stayed up all night. She did not expect that Mark was such a (bohemian) and dissolute person, and his behavior in front of her was completely disguised. Grace also felt that Eliza didn't like her, and she was just pretending to be friendly and acting. Grace understood that Eliza was afraid to compete with her for favor and status, because Eliza only gave birth to two daughters for Mrk and she had ulterior motives for letting her see the dirty and disdainful side of Mark, which made her (retreat), leave the palace, and leave Mark.

In fact, she didn't mind the queen status, and she didn't want to compete with Eliza. She only cared that Mark loved her sincerely and spent more time with her and their soon-to-be-born son. She once wanted to treat Eliza well and live in harmony with her sincerely, respect and love each other, and help Mark together to be a good monarch, truly do some useful things for Mars country and made a rich and happy life to people in Mars country.

After breakfast the next morning, Grace felt a stomachache, and then began to bleed slightly in her lower body. Jessica quickly called the medical emergency vehicle in the palace to take Grace to the Royal Hospital in the palace, and then called Charles to get ready about the palace's medical team performed first aid, but Grace was born 2 months prematurely and stillborn.

Jessica called Mark, but his phone was turned off, so she had to send him a message telling him about Grace's premature birth and the condition of her fetus. At this time, Mark was having fun and couldn't think of anything else. He liked these three new lovers very much as they were not only young and beautiful, but also good at dancing and making Mark pleasingly. Mark was thinking how to arrange these three girls because they were rare and useful, they can be given as gifts to some officials he wanted to bribe and work for him loyally in the future.

Eliza’s mobile phone was also turned off. It seemed that she and Mark had negotiated in advance to turn off their phones and disappear at the same time. Jessica had no choice but to send the same message to Eliza to tell her about Grace and the fetus. Jessica quietly told Charles that she felt pitiful for Grace. At this time, Mark and Eliza were not with her, and it was not easy to bear the pain of losing a fetus alone. 

Grace was heartbroken, she could not accept the reality of losing her fetus and she would rather leave Mark and the palace than lose her fetus. Plus, she thought that Mark was not with her at this time but was having fun with several dancers. In an instant, she seemed to have become much older. She did not expect that she would also have such a tragic fate. Thinking of this, she couldn't help crying.

When Jessica saw Grace looking so sad, she felt very sympathetic to her, those perfect requirements which she had for her idol Grace in the past were wiped out by these pitiful tears. Jessica had never been jealous for Grace was Mark's concubine, she would always be a saint in her mind, and she hoped she could find a better man than Mark. Jessica couldn't help hugging her and patting her back with her hands, as if coaxing a child, allowing her to vent her pain to her heart's content.

At this time, Charles, who was standing aside, saw the sad look of his dream lover Grace, his heart seemed to be piercing by a thousand arrows. If his girlfriend Jessica hadn't been beside him, he would like to hold her tightly and give her a deep hug to comfort her. He now knew that Grace was Mark's concubine, not his daughter-in-law, but none of this affected Grace's lofty status in his mind, because he has a deep crush on her.

Charles suddenly remembered something which Not long ago, Eliza asked him to help her get some abortion pills, saying they were for a friend. She also asked him for some knowledge about poisons, saying they were given to her friend who wrote a script as a reference. At that time, he didn't pay much attention to it and wouldn't have thought that Eliza could do such a vicious thing. According to the current situation, Grace was Mark's concubine and was about to give birth to a son. 

The Kingdom of Mars was a feudal country that favored sons over daughters. If Mark wanted to pass the throne to Grace in the future, this would be a threat to Eliza. Charles couldn't believe or think that Eliza secretly put an abortion drug in Grace's food, which caused Grace's fetus to be killed in the abdomen, and then she was stillborn and gave birth prematurely. If this fact is true, he was the culprit who killed Grace's fetus. Because he was a doctor whose professional ethics should be to cure diseases and save lives for people, also cannot he give anyone some harmful medicine to people. As Charles saw the sad look on the face of her dream lover Grace, his feelings of sympathy and cherishment improved his spiritual realm. At this moment, a doctor’s professional ethics surpassed the power and money, he felt so guilty and ashamed inside, and he couldn't tell anyone this secret, not even his girlfriend Jessica. 

Charles couldn't help but walked up to Grace and patted her shoulder gently, telling her not to be so sad that affect her health, saying that she was still young and would have many opportunities to get children in the future. Then he thought about it and decided to personally test Grace's urine, feces and blood to see if there were some components of the abortion pills he gave Eliza.

After Eliza returned to the East Palace last night, she deliberately turned off her mobile phone and slept happily, intending to be energetic enough to watch a good show the next day. She knew what would happen to Grace today, everything was under her control, almost everyone in Grace's West Palace has been bribed by her. If anyone dared to speak out, she was easy to find a fault at (random) and have him die. Eliza thought that Mark was not at home these days, so this was the best opportunity to take action and she was worried about anything would change in the long time and she didn't want to let this matter be delayed any longer.

Eliza was sitting in her study room in the East Palace, watching the lively video surveillance in front of her large computer. She was in a very happy mood at this time, because she had successfully eliminated the major worry and dismantled the bullet in Grace's belly that threatened her status, glory and wealth. When she saw Grace's grief for losing her son in the computer video, she felt ecstatic in her heart. She got up and walked to the wine cabinet in her study room, took out a fine red wine and a wine glass, poured them full, took a sip of a glass of red wine and said loudly to herself: "Eliza was the only queen of Mars, no one can replace me.” 

Then, she raised her glass high and said with a laugh: “Long live Eliza!" 

After dinner, Eliza slowly came to Grace's ward at the Royal Hospital in the palace. Before she entered the ward, she adjusted her emotions and expressions, changing her secretly ecstatic expression into one of great sadness and sympathy, and then hurriedly walking into the ward. Jessica, the other doctors and nurses saw Eliza coming in, they all exited the ward as not to hinder their chat. Eliza came to Grace’s hospital bed, hugged her and said sadly: "Oh, my dear Grace, I am very sorry to see such an unfortunate thing happen? Are you okay? Don't be too sad. I'm sorry again, when I returned to the East Palace last night, I remembered the indecent video of our bad husband, I am a woman yet, I felt jealous and sad, could not sleep, so I took two sleeping pills and slept until tonight. Dinner Afterwards, I turned on my phone, saw the terrible message Jessica sent me, and rushed over immediately. I think our husband has a big responsibility for your premature birth because he always makes you unhappy, which is harmful and unfavorable to the development and growth of the fetus."

After Eliza finished speaking, she looked very anxious and took out her mobile phone from her expensive little handbag and dialed Mark's mobile phone number. After calling several times, it was prompted of her mobile that Mark's turn off his mobile phone. Eliza showed Grace her mobile phone with Mark's mobile phone number on it and said: "Look, our public lover turned off his mobile. I think he is still dancing stripteases and carnivals with those young and beautiful dancers. My dear Grace, don’t think too much at this time and take good care of yourself. You are still young and have plenty of opportunities to have children. Get more rest recently. I'll come to see you tomorrow, good night!" 

After saying that, Eliza placed a caring kiss on Grace's face and left the Royal Hospital.

Grace, who lost her child, felt very lonely and stronger at this time. She planned to leave Mark, leave the palace, leave the country of Mars, leave these complicated lives, return to London, England, resume her old career, pianist and become a simple and free woman, forget about the unpleasant experience in Mars. Would she do that again? Would Mark let her go? How is her mother? Thinking of this, she sighed.

Out of his love and trust for Eliza, Charles did not want to speculate or wrongly accuse her, so he worked day and night and overtime to get the test results which surprised him. He could not believe it and did not want to believe that it was Eliza killed Grace and Mark's unborn son out of jealousy and greed. Charlies felt very conflicted that he was riding a tiger and couldn't get off from these bad situations with Eliza. He didn't know what to do? He loved Eliza, was even more grateful for Eliza's help so he was able to prosper in the Mars Kingdom and have a successful career that is admired by everyone now. Thinking about this, he firstly wanted to talk to Eliza, let her stop making mistakes and hurting Grace. Charles knew very well that since this happened, once Mark knew about it, Eliza's life might be in danger. At the same time, he had to be prepared to leave the country of Mars and leave this tightrope walking place.

Chapter thirty-five: Love, hate, sorrow

In order to reduce the suspicion, as soon as Eliza returned to the East Palace, she immediately sent Mark a message: "dear husband, if you receive the message, please come back as soon as possible, dear Grace was born prematurely and stillborn, however she is safe and live in the Royal Hospital now. I just hope that you will come back to stay with her and conform her, make her recover quickly. love you, Eliza!"

Two days later, when Mark opened his mobile phone and saw Eliza and Jessica’s message, he rushed to the hospital immediately. When he walked into Grace's ward, Jessica and Charles who were accompanying Grace in the ward saw Mark coming in, and politely greeted him and exited the ward. Seeing Grace lying on the hospital bed who had lost her son, Mark was heartbroken too, but he did not cry and he could only shed tears in his heart as the education he had received since childhood was that men should not (shed) tears easily. How could he, a seven-foot-old man who was the head of the Mars Kingdom cry? Mark said nothing, silently sitting by Grace's bed, then lying next to Grace, his face closed to hers, reaching out to hold Grace tightly in his arms, as a way of expressing his apology for leaving to ignore her. How much he wanted a son, but he hoped to find a good woman he loved to give birth to a son for him. Grace was the love of his life, only if she could help him give birth to a son, would his life be truly perfect.

A few days later, Mark took Grace back to the West Palace and Grace worked hard to adjust her mood and health, soon she recovered quickly, she looked still beautiful and radiant. After Grace's careful consideration, she had decided to leave the country of Mars, abandon all the glory and wealth to live a plain and free life. She didn’t like this lifestyle of intrigue by intrigue, she did not want to compete with Eliza, let alone hurt her and she hoped that Eliza would live happily with Mark.

One night, Grace told Mark that she’s going to leave the country of Mars and return back to UK. Mark did not expect that Grace would leave him, suddenly he became littfurious, he had never lost any temper with Grace and always tried every means to accommodate her. In the Kingdom of Mars, many young and beautiful women want to get close to him and gain the status and wealth, but as Mark, he had to find a good woman of high quality and high moral character to be his real queen, Grace was best to his requirements. He loved Grace so much that she has become the medicine of his soul as an important and inseparable part of his life, how could he accept Grace leaving him? He would never let her go. 

The next morning, Mark was very angry to saw some newspapers insinuating criticism of his political achievements in recent years. Thinking of last night, Grace said that she wanted to leave him, and this morning he saw this unfortunate news, these two unpleasant things combined made him extremely depressed. He had just suppressed the voices and forces that opposed him before, but these people would start making trouble again and confront him. He thought to himself: “if you are not afraid of death, just come. Anyway, I planned to seize this seat of president and change it to the king for Mark’s descendants forever.” He called Bobe and asked him to wait for him in the President's Office in the government building to discuss how to deal with these arrogant people and medias? After a while, Mark went to his presidential office in the Mars government building.

This morning, Charles planned to talk to Eliza so he sent a message to Eliza and asked her to meet in his office at 3 pm to tell her about his mother's condition. This was the secret code for him and Eliza to date and they didn’t want to arouse anyone's suspicion to cause some troubles for each other.

Eliza came to Charles’ office, thinking that Charles wanted to date her, so she was very happy and she dressed young and fashionable, especially (enchanting). Since Eliza had an affair with Charles, love indeed made her energetic and younger. Ever since Charles got the test report, he decided to leave the country of Mars. He did not intend to continue the affair with Eliza and just a working relationship with her. He felt that Eliza was too crazy and horrible because she could do anything bad for her goals, even kill people.

Eliza walked behind Charles' office chair, hugged his neck from behind with both hands, gave his face a passionate kiss and said arrogantly: "My dear, do you miss me? But I think you seem to have something on your mind. Yes, tell me what you’re unhappy about it, and I’ll help you solve any problem. There’s nothing I can’t solve in the Kingdom of Mars?”

Charles did believe Eliza's ability and courage which she dared to disturb and harm God, instigated and bribed people to kill Mark and Grace's son with drugs. He was scared but before he left the country of Mars, he did not dare to offend Eliza. His fate was indeed connected with Eliza, even if he did not want to continue to be entangled with her, he had to pretend to love her.

Charles and Eliza were lying on the bed, he hugged Eliza tenderly and said, "my dear, I want to ask you something. No matter yes or no, don't be angry. I won't tell anyone because I love you."

Eliza replied: "of cause darling, I will answer you truthfully about anything, because I love you too."

Charles asked: "dear, did you secretly put the abortion pill I gave you into Grace's food, so she was stillborn?"

Eliza did love and believed in Charles very much, she believed that even if Charles knew about it, he would not dare to tell other people so she boldly said to Charles: "Yes, dear, it was you who gave me the abortion pill. Be careful, you are responsible for this, I also have a share, don’t let outsiders know, otherwise we won’t be able to survive. I felt very happy that I had successfully aborted her fetus, the evil son who would affect my status. No one can take away my status, but she is still alive, young, she can get pregnant again? There is only one way unless she dies, how can she die? Let’s use poison. You must help me get the poison now and teach me how to use them, I will arrange for someone to do the dirty jobs to poison her."

When Charles heard this, he felt his all body shuddered and goosebumps. He said softly to Eliza: "Dear Eliza, you are a very beautiful and noble woman, how could you do such a cruel thing? Listen darling, that Grace is a kind and pure woman. She is not a woman who wants to compete with you for the crown. Why do you have to make yourself so tired? If your husband Mark finds out, you will be punished. Dear Eliza, please stop doing the dangerous things, I don’t want you to get hurt in any way, even if we can’t be together anymore.”

Eliza covered Charles' mouth with her hand and said: "please don't say the sad words, such as separation, I will be heartbroken. If Mark can let a woman share the palace with me, then Mark must love this woman very much, unless that woman leaves the country of Mars and never contact with Mark so that I can give up. If no, no matter where is she, I can use the national force to sort her as our hands can touch whole world."

Charles kissed Eliza on the face and said: "Dear Eliza, if you insist on doing this, then I will have to leave the country of Mars. As the saying goes, if you always walk at night for a long time, you will definitely encounter ghosts. I don't want you to be involved some criminal and dangerous things, because I love you and I don’t want to see you get hurt in any way.”

Eliza hugged Charles coquettishly and said: "no, dear, please don't leave me. If you leave me, I will become a lonely ghost in the palace."

Charles replied: "Dear Eliza, please let go, for your safety and for our happiness."

Eliza looked at the ceiling with a pair of big and beautiful eyes, thought for a while and said with blinking eyes: "Okay, dear, I will promise you to let Grace go for the time being, but it will also depend on how she behaves in the future. If she behaves bad in the future, I can also deal with her in other ways, I have many clever ideas."

Charles said: "this put me at ease. I don't want my beautiful and noble queen to do such immoral and dirty things, which won’t fit your identity.”

Charles was successful for flattering Eliza so happy to accept Charles' advice and restore the normal relationship with Grace.

Jessica often accompanied Grace due to the work, the two of them became good friends, they had many common topics, and sometimes they could even talk about their concerns. Grace often cooked some delicious food and invited Jessica and Charles to have lunch or dinner together in the West Palace and talk about music, poetry, painting, literature and politics, the three of them enjoyed being together.

Grace confided to Jessica: “she wanted to leave Mars and Mark, she also told Mark a few days ago, but Mark did not agree to let her go and insisted on letting her stay. Therefore, Grace was now very conflicted and troubled. She liked the beautiful palace of Mars, but didn't like the complicated interpersonal relationships in the palace, which made her tired. Maybe she was not suitable here and she wanted to live a simple and free life.”

Jessica told Charles about this. Charles thought that Grace coincided with his desire to leave the Kingdom of Mars. He really believed that the kind and simple Grace was not suitable to stay in the complicated palace of the Kingdom of Mars. She was suitable to live a simple and happy life. Plus, he knew that Eliza wanted to get rid of her, it was best for her to leave as soon as possible. Charles said to Jessica: "Dear, let's help Grace find a way to leave. This method will not make Mark angry, and it will allow Grace to leave easily. If she wants to return to the palace of Mars in the future, she can come back."

Jessica asked: "what's the clever idea? Come on, my dear, please don't hide them."

Charles said: "Grace has a mother, she can say that her mother is sick and only a foreign hospital can help her perform this operation so she can use the excuse of accompanying her mother to see a doctor and leave the country of Mars."

Jessica said: "great, this is a really good idea. Grace can go abroad naturally. As for whether she is willing to return to the Mars Kingdom again, she can decide by herself in the future."

Jessica and Charles told Grace about this matter. Grace thought it was a good idea, so Grace began to go home to discuss with her mother, and her mother was willing to cooperate with her to perform the scene. Charles also told Eliza that Grace's mother was ill and that she would accompany her to a hospital abroad for surgery, which made Eliza feel that Grace's mother was really ill.

However, coincidentally, Mark had been busy with official duties recently and had gone out to inspect and hold meetings in several provinces of Mars. He wanted to restore the bad image that some people said he was too bureaucratic. This saved his time from doubting whether Grace's words are true? After Grace sent a message to Mark, Mark responded with a message to Grace and said: "my dear, as you go ahead. You don't have to think about financial matters. I will transfer a sum of money to your account in the next few days. Stay with your mother safely, hope your mother have the successful surgery and wish her a speedy recovery. I am looking forwards you come back soon!”

A few days later, Grace and her mother were sitting on Mark's special plane to abroad. She repeatedly looked at the messages of Mark had replied to her and a bank card that Mark had given her before, which contained a huge amount of money. Although Mark was a great dictator, Grace believed that he was also a victim of the dictatorship, a kind and generous man. She believed that building a democratic and free country could not be achieved by a few people alone, it required the efforts of many people, and even the efforts of the entire society.

She knew that Mark really loved her, and she loved Mark too. When she thought about every moment she had with Mark, it was really hard for her to let go of this love. She really missed Mark and wanted to forgive him for all his mistakes. She hoped that the plane could fly back immediately to Mark's side, at this moment, the plane had arrived at its destination. Grace felt some moisture in her eyes, she hurried to the bathroom on the plane, not wanting her mother and others to see her crying, her tears could not stop flowing out. These tears contained her joys and sorrows, love and hate.

Chapter thirty-six: Anger to beauty

Since Grace left, Mark felt that the whole palace seemed much more deserted, especially the West Palace, which seemed to be lifeless, like a cold and empty tomb. Recently, he missed Grace very much, although there were many beauties around him, he still felt lonely in his heart. No woman could replace Grace, who could take care of his daily life and diet so meticulously, and cook many different delicious dishes for him in every possible way. When he was upset, she would either play the piano for him or tell some jokes to relax him, Grace always encouraged him to be a great leader and do good things for people of Mars country, he felt that being with her was the happiest, and his restless soul would also be sublimated a little. He really hoped that Grace's mother would recover soon, come back to Mars and then he could see Grace again. 

After Grace went to abroad, Jessica returned to the Royal Hospital in the North palace, and Charles remained the personal physician consultant to Eliza's mother, Mark and Eliza, and managed the entire Royal Hospital. Jessica and Charles also missed Grace very much, missing her delicious food and friendly personality. They used to eat the delicious food which Grace designed and cooked at Grace's West Palace. It was not that they had no food, but they didn’t like the taste of food in the cafeteria of the Royal Hospital and would rather eat the delicious food cooked by Grace.

Charles felt that Eliza's personality was quite crazy and very dangerous, he was afraid that she would do something illegal and cause troubles in the future too, and involved him, so recently he had been busy for transferring assets and taking away whatever property he could. If he couldn’t take them away about some properties, he left them as the charity money in Mars. Charles was a knowledgeable, talented, and well-educated person. He understood: “money is an external object. Without life, money loses its value to people. Although people need money when they are alive, money is not everything in life, people's personal moral character and spiritual wealth are sometimes more important. If people ignore the lives of others and lose the basic moral of being a human being for the sake of money and interests to destroy the kindness and justices, the society will become a scary and dark world.” Charles planned to talk to Jessica and ask her to leave the country of Mars with him.

One night after dinner, Charles said to Jessica: "dear Jessica, how about we go for a walk by the lake together?"

Jessica replied: "Okay! I haven’t been to the lake for a long time. I have been so busy recently that I have neglected the beautiful nature."

The blood-red sunset shined on the lake, reflecting the colorful colors, making the palace of Mars Kingdom more gorgeous and charming. The two of them came to the lake and found a public chair to sit down, looking into the distance, admiring the beautiful scenery in the Mars Palace, and thinking about their own different thoughts. Jessica gently held Charles' hand and she felt so happy for she had a good job, a good living environment, and a lovely boyfriend. How wonderful it would be if her life could always keep like this!

Charles was thinking about how to tell Jessica that he planned to leave the country of Mars but he couldn’t tell her about the bad things Eliza did to Grace and that would be neither good for him nor Eliza. He had already guessed that Jessica would find him strange, with such good working conditions and living environment, many people were unwilling to give up. Why would Charles leave the country of Mars?

Charles said to Jessica: "Dear Jessica, I want to tell you that I plan to resign and leave the country of Mars to settle in the UK and open a clinic abroad by myself in the future."

Jessica tried hard to widen her small eyes and asked in surprise: "Your working conditions and environment are very well in Mars Country, why are you willing to leave?"

Charles replied: "I want to live a simple and free life. Are you going to come with me? We can get married and have children as soon as we return to the UK, can’t you?"

Jessica said: "Dear, I don't want to leave Mars Country, because my parents are here and it is convenient for me to see them. I also don't want to leave the Royal Hospital of Mars Country. Where can I find such good working conditions and living environment? No matter how many books you read or how many skills you have, you just want to find a good job and life.”

Charles replied: "You don't need to work. I have enough money to support you. You can just stay at home to look after our children. If you want to work, you can work in my clinic or other people's hospitals."

Jessica said: "My dear, please don't leave? We can get married and have children here."

Charles said to Jessica: "dear Jessica, if you want to stay and work here, that's fine, but I am a man who should have my own career and I must do what I want to do. Then I hope you work here happily, I will come back to see you when I have time. Please don’t tell anyone that I plan to resign.”

Jessica nodded: "I will keep it secretly for you."

More than ten days later, Charles told Eliza that his family had some important matters abroad, needed him to go abroad to help, and he would return after a week. On the sixth day after Charles arrived in the UK, he sent a resignation letter to the Royal Hospital of Mars Kingdom via email, and also text a message to Eliza on his mobile phone: "der beautiful Queen Eliza, thank you very much for your help and everything in Mars Kingdom! I'm sorry that I can no longer have the honor to serve you and President Mark because I have to help with my family's business abroad. I will go back to visit you when I have time in the future. Take good care of yourself! Charles."

Eliza was very sad and disappointment when she saw Charles' message. She knew very well that she would never find a man as handsome, young, intelligent and capable as Charles who loved her and she loved him. She would be thrown into the cold palace, and her life would be boring and lonely again. Eliza thought: "Oh my god, what I, Eliza, did wrong? I finally found a lover I loved, and he traveled across the ocean to work abroad. God, why you punish me to live in this kind of lonely life? I need a good man, need love!”

One day, Charles went shopping on Oxford Street in London, England. Unexpectedly, he met Grace and her mother in the oxford street, he couldn’t believe his eyes and then, Charles warmly invited Grace and her mother to have dinner. After dinner, Grace's mother didn't want to disturb the young people's chat, so she went back to the hotel early. 

During the period when Grace lost her fetus, Jessica and Charles paid her （meticulous） attention and care, and also taught her a lot of medical knowledge, which made her very grateful. In order to repay their friendship, she often cooked delicious dishes and invited them to visit her West Palace. Over time, her relationship with Jessica and Charles became like real brothers and sisters.

Grace was so happy to see Charles and the two of them seemed to have endless topics to talk about. Finally, Grace told Charles that she had decided to return to the palace of Mars Kingdom in a few days. Charles was obviously surprised and he did not expect that Grace would go back as well. He worried that Grace would be unsafe if she goes back to Mars country. He didn't know how to persuade her not to go back, he couldn't help but blurted out: "Grace, please don't go back to the Mars Palace again, someone is trying to harm you."

Grace asked: "Who wants to harm me! I never have offended anyone."

Charles replied: "You are a kind and pure girl who does not understand the cruel palace struggles and some political struggles and it does not mean that you must have offended someone. If some people don't like you or feel that you threaten their status and interests, they will do some unimaginable and outrageous things to you.”

Grace held Charles's hand and said, "Please tell me, dear Charles, who wants to harm me? I won't tell anyone.”

Charles was worried that Grace's life would be in danger if she goes back, so he had to tell her: "Eliza wants to harm you, kill you. She thinks you threaten her interests. If you go back again, your life will be in danger. Even Mark can't protect you because she will kill you quietly. When Mark finds out, you are already disappeared. After you were born prematurely, I did a careful test on your blood, urine and feces and found that there were ingredients in abortion pills. In other words, someone was around you, they put abortion drugs into your food, which caused your stillbirth. Dear Grace, I don’t want you to go back and die. I also returned to London, England, and I plan to open my own clinic. I give you my mobile phone number, if you need any help in the future, please feel free to tell me directly, I am always willing to help you.”

After Grace returned to the hotel in the evening, she tossed, turned and stayed up all night. Grace thought of Eliza, she couldn't imagine that Eliza was such a scary and crazy woman who dare to murder fetus and people only for her queen's title and wealth. She couldn't tell Mark that Eliza had killed their son because this required evidence, and Eliza was playing the insidious and cunning means. Grace felt timid and frightened by what Eliza had done so that she didn't dare to go back to Mark in Mars country. 

Grace wrote a message to Mark: "Dear, thank you for your love and taking care of me in the Kingdom of Mars. I want to stay in the UK and live a simple and free life. I do not plan to return to the Palace of the Kingdom of Mars because I think that palace life of Mars is not suitable for me. I haven’t touched the bank card you gave me before. I will send it back to you. I hope you can build Mars into a democratic and free country. Everyone can live in a social environment of equality, freedom and security. I also hope that you and Eliza can love each other forever. Have a happy, healthy and lovely life! I love you, Grace!”

When Mark received Grace's message, he was filled with the joy and wished to get some good news which Grace would return to the Palace in Mars of Kingdom. After Mark read the message, he felt extremely frustrated and angry because Grace said 10 days ago that she would come back to reunite with him in a few days and he did not expect that Grace changed her mind quickly about she would never be back. Mark said to himself angrily: "Grace, you’re always my woman. No matter where you are, no matter what means I will use, I will catch you up back."