Responses
For fucking real, not only did he buy Shulli because of his interest in the dead empress (weird as hell), but he stole up her childhood and her dream, traumatized her, all to knowingly and strategically place her in a situation where all the blame and responsibility would fall on her and she'd be the scapegoat until Jeremy could come of age. And he knew what he was doing, it's like it was his plan. He knew a bunch of shit would happen to her and used the fact that she looked like the empress as another fall back because he knew the Duke and Emperor wouldn't turn a blind eye. He knew, didn't give a fuck, and did it anyway, literally fuck that man
This entire situation is the dead Marquess’s fault! He chose a child to fill the role of head of household and “mother” to his children after he was dead. He knew their house would attract vultures and be attacked, and that defending their position would be a constant and difficult task. The church could have made up whatever excuse they wanted to attack them, but this particular accusation would be considered far less feasible if she wasn’t the same age as the kids