All Chapters of When the New Favorite Came, I Chose Silence: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

10 Chapters

Chapter 1

Before dawn, my maid, Lily Cameron, began packing our trunks.She grumbled, "That rabbit was carved from one of the finest stones brought as tribute for His Majesty's 20th birthday. It was a rare treasure, yet he called it a worthless stone because of Lady Winona. Your Grace, you have every right to be angry."I told her to leave behind only two sets of plain clothes, a pair of shoes, and half a box of cough medicine. There was no need for silks and satins at the abbey, and bringing too much would only invite gossip.Lily crouched on the floor, her eyes red from crying. "Your Grace, are we really going there?""I never go back on my word," I replied flatly.By midmorning, a page arrived with a message from King Edward Wright. "Your Grace, His Majesty says life in the abbey is tough. If you can't get used to it, you're welcome to return whenever you please."Lily bit her lip and looked at me.I closed the hand mirror and set it back on the dressing table. "Let's go."The walk fr

Chapter 2

Holy Brook Abbey stood on a mountain 40 miles northwest of Norwick, over four hours away by carriage.I was given an old room at the back of the abbey. The curtains had yellowed with age, and the bed was hard and uncomfortable.Lily wiped away her tears while making the bed. I sat by the window, turning the pages of a prayer book and listening to the wind sweep through the pine trees. Somehow, I found a peace there that the palace could never offer.On the third day, someone from the palace came.It was a young page sent by Queen Charlotte. He arrived with a cartload of supplies. There was flour, grain, oil, salt, and everything else we needed.Lily accepted the supplies and came back looking grim. "The queen's message is clear. His Majesty couldn't care less about us. From now on, everything we eat and use here is entirely at her mercy."I nudged the lamp wick with a pin. "Just take it. At least we have something to eat."On the seventh day, we heard more news from the palace,

Chapter 3

There was a narrow path behind Holy Brook Abbey that led to an abandoned building. The path was overgrown and rarely used.Every morning, I walked that path to stretch my legs.After more than two weeks, I became acquainted with an elderly woman who lived in the abandoned building. Her name was Beatrice Holm. She had lived at the abbey for 26 years.Lily asked around and discovered that Beatrice had once been a consort of the late king. Before his death, she had asked to leave the palace and live the rest of her life in seclusion. The Royal Council revoked her title and struck her name from the royal household rolls.I sat on the stone steps, sorting greens for Beatrice while she chopped firewood nearby. The calluses on her hands were much thicker than mine.She split the log in two and asked, "How long did you stay in the palace?""Nine years," I replied."That's not so long." She stacked the firewood and brushed the splinters from her hands. "I spent 12 years there."I said n

Chapter 4

Lily came back to the abbey on the fourth evening after she'd left. Her shoes were caked with mud, and a letter was pressed to her chest. I recognized my father's handwriting at once. It was always neat and precise, never the slightest bit hurried.He wrote that he had looked into the precedents from the late king's reign. There were three instances of royal consorts requesting permission to leave the palace. The Royal Council had complete records of all three cases, including the necessary paperwork.All I had to do was write a formal petition explaining my decision. My family could submit it to the Royal Council on my behalf, citing those precedents and requesting that my name be removed from the royal household rolls.At the end of the letter, my father had added, "If this is truly what you have decided, I won't stop you."I sat by the lamp with the letter in my hands. The wick crackled, and the flame flickered.That night, I spread out a sheet of paper and wrote my petition.

Chapter 5

The Royal Council processed my petition faster than I had expected.Lily came back up to the abbey after two days. There was an unreadable expression on her face.She said, "The petition was submitted, and the Royal Council drafted its recommendation on the same day. They cited the precedent of Lady Beatrice from the late king's reign. All three senior ministers approved it and sent it straight to the Royal Secretariat afterward."His Majesty was going through state papers when he received the petition. After reading it, his hand jerked, knocking over the inkwell and spilling ink across the document he had just finished reviewing."Then he flew into a rage and swept everything off his desk. The inkwell shattered. He summoned the deputy minister of the Royal Council and questioned him for nearly half an hour, demanding to know who had approved the petition."The deputy minister said the document followed the established format, and all three senior ministers had signed it. There wa

Chapter 6

Two weeks later, Edward came. There was no royal procession. He brought only Martin and a few attendants.The abbess led him inside while I was copying sacred text in the prayer hall. The moment I heard his footsteps, I knew it was him.After nine years, I could recognize the way he walked even with my eyes closed. His left foot always fell a little heavier than his right.I set down my pen and rose, clasping my hands in front of me as I lowered my head slightly. "Greetings, Your Majesty."Edward stood in the doorway with the light behind him, his expression hard to read.After a long moment, he finally stepped inside and stopped in front of me.I kept my head lowered, but from the corner of my eye, I saw him taking in my plain dress, wooden hairpin, and the ink stain on my hand."Rosie," he called me by my nickname.I did not answer."Rosie, you've suffered enough. Come back with me."His voice was soft. I had not heard him speak that way in a long time, as though he were de

Chapter 7

At the end of February, Gideon Farrow arrived at Holy Brook Abbey He was returning from the northern frontier with a dozen guards to give his report at court. On his way back to Norwick, he stopped at the abbey to light a memorial candle for the fallen soldiers.Lily tugged at my sleeve and whispered, "There's a group of soldiers here. The man leading them is tall, wearing a well-worn gray coat with a longsword at his waist. He looks like a general."I walked to the courtyard entrance and glanced into the abbey.He leaned forward over a small table beside the donation box, writing the name of a fallen soldier, his back remaining perfectly straight.When he finished, he set down his quill and rubbed his wrist. The moment he looked up, his eyes landed on me.He froze for a moment. "Rosalyn?"Lily let out a sharp gasp and instinctively stepped in front of me.Gideon walked toward us at a steady, unhurried pace.He stopped in front of me and studied my face, then glanced at my pl

Chapter 8

On the ninth day of March, Edward came to the abbey for the second time.This time, he brought a royal procession with him. Attendants lined the stone steps halfway up the mountain, and royal guards stood in formation at the abbey gates, banners snapping in the wind.The commotion was so loud that even Beatrice came out of the side hall to take a look from a distance.Edward was dressed in plain clothes, but even without his royal robes, he carried himself with unmistakable authority.He walked up the stone steps alone, with Martin following behind him. When they reached the door of my room, Edward stopped Martin and went inside by himself.I was in the middle of copying sacred text.In the past month and a half, I had copied three full volumes. My wrist ached so badly I could hardly lift it. Yet I still wrote every day, until my fingers went numb and the tip of my quill began to tremble.Edward walked in and stood in front of me, looking at me for a long time."Rosie, on you

Chapter 9

In early April, Lily returned with news that something serious had happened in the palace.Lady Winona had slipped up in front of Edward.It all started with something small.That day, Edward had casually mentioned that there was a reason he had carved the white agate rabbit for me.Lady Winona must have thought it was the perfect opportunity to ingratiate herself with the king, so she smiled and said, "I heard Lady Rosalyn's grandmother used to raise rabbits, so Your Majesty had this rabbit carved for her as a reminder of home. That was very thoughtful of you."My grandmother raised rabbits too. I suppose that's another thing Her Grace and I have in common."Edward was surprised that Lady Winona knew about my history with him and what the white agate rabbit meant to me.His expression darkened at once. "Who told you that?"Lady Winona froze, clearly unprepared for the question. She hurried to explain herself, but the more she tried to talk her way out of it, the more suspiciou

Chapter 10

Three days after the decree granting my departure from the palace was issued, Edward came.It was his third visit to the abbey. But this time, there was no royal procession. He did not even bring Martin.He came alone, wearing a slightly worn blue-gray robe, looking like an ordinary pilgrim as he made his way up the stone steps.I saw him at the gate, holding something in his hands. When he came closer, I finally realized what it was—the white agate rabbit.The rabbit had been shattered into so many pieces, yet Edward had painstakingly set each one back in place.Fine golden lines tracing the breaks glinted in the sunlight. The gold held the broken pieces together, making the rabbit look almost whole again, perhaps even more intricate than before.Edward stopped in front of me and held it out."The broken pieces have been joined with gold. The craftsman says it's even stronger than it was before."His voice was soft, as though he were trying to comfort someone he knew he could

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