Chapter 426 Forget it

Chapter 426 Forget it

Chapter 426 Forget it

What happened after the meeting with the Prime Minister?

Hearing the words of the two female officials, the princess subconsciously touched her arm, and her heart couldn't help but feel slightly warm.

Yes, after meeting with the Prime Minister, I was first hit by the officers who surrounded the official residence, and then secretly climbed out from the outer wall to find Leon. During this period, there was no news from me. My father would inevitably feel worried, so of course he had to send someone to ask about it.

"Let's go."

Nodding to the two ladies-in-waiting, the princess temporarily put aside her chaotic thoughts and prepared to go to the upper floors of the palace. However...

"Not that way, Your Highness."

After calling the princess, one of the female officials respectfully reported:
"His Majesty is not in the bedroom. He is waiting for you in the side hall on the fourth floor. Please come this way."

The side hall on the fourth floor?
The princess was slightly startled when she heard this.

The side hall on the fourth floor of the palace is a small reception room for receiving important officials. However, my father's health has always been poor. At this moment, he should have finished drinking the alchemical supplement and rested in the bedroom on the top floor. Why would he stay in the small reception room?

"Is there an important guest coming?"

After thinking for a while, the princess following behind the female official asked with some doubt:
"An envoy from the Kingdom of Hessen? Or a diplomat from the Kingdom of Seow?"

"Neither, Your Highness."

The female official who led the way said respectfully:
"At least there were no outsiders in the side hall before we came here."

No guests coming?
After hearing the female official's answer, the princess raised her eyebrows in surprise. Just as she was about to ask more questions, she heard the female official who led the way say:

"Your Highness, our duty is only to lead the way for you. As for other matters, we, as eunuchs, should not interfere. Please ask His Majesty in person after you see him!"

"..."

Unexpectedly, just asking about the situation on her father's side, she got inexplicably rejected. The princess couldn't help but frown, and her originally warm heart suddenly felt cold.

Unlike himself, when his father selected eunuchs, he did not focus on talent and character. Instead, he valued prudence and obedience, as well as whether they could accurately and appropriately convey his will.

In other words, these two eunuchs were the purest mouthpieces, and their attitude towards him was, in a sense, the same as his father's attitude towards him.

And they, who had always been cautious, suddenly refused to answer their questions. It could only be that they had received some instructions, or had vaguely sensed something from their father's attitude and actions.

……

Following the two serious female officials to the side hall on the fourth floor of the palace, the scene inside the side hall completely verified the princess's guess.

In the side hall specially used to receive important guests, the old king was not the only one there. Two men and women who looked to be around forty years old and had slightly similar facial features were sitting on velvet-covered armchairs, waiting for her together with the old king.

When they saw the princess appear outside the door, the man who looked older smiled gently and nodded slightly at her, while the remaining woman with delicate makeup and gorgeous clothes secretly curled her lips, with a hint of unconcealable disgust in the corners of her eyes.

"Veronica."

Accompanied by a somewhat hoarse call, the old king, who was facing the door, raised the scepter decorated with bright red rubies and pointed at the empty chair opposite the middle-aged man and woman, saying in a face that would not allow rejection:
"Come sit down and tell me what happened today."

"Okay." Looking at the queen and the finance minister in the side hall, the princess sighed secretly in her heart, then slowly walked into the reception room, sat in the seat designated by the old king, and began to narrate:

"This afternoon, I went to the Prime Minister's residence to discuss the expansion of universal suffrage according to my previously scheduled schedule. But when the meeting was about to end, more than 300 non-commissioned officers at the rank of colonel and lieutenant blocked me in the Prime Minister's residence at the instigation of 'interested parties'."

When she mentioned "interested people", the princess deliberately slowed down her speech, glanced at the middle-aged man and woman opposite her with deep meaning, then turned back to look at the old king sitting in the main seat and said:

“To gather so many military officers at once, not only does one need a very strong background and connections, but it also takes a long time. If you take the journey into account, it will take at least a week.

Although many people have recently heard about the decision to implement the NCO replacement order, I only told you a week ago, so could you please tell me who has heard this news from you?"

? !
Hearing the princess's question, the queen opposite couldn't help but be slightly startled, then she grabbed the armrest of the chair and said angrily:
"What are you..."

"I'm sorry, the news may have leaked from me."

After grabbing the queen's sleeve and pulling back the question she was about to blurt out, the gentle and elegant Minister of Finance sighed and said:

“After learning that Her Highness Veronica was going to implement the replacement order, I immediately sent an internal letter, requesting the Ministry of Finance to make corresponding preparations and settle the salaries owed to the non-commissioned officers in advance to cooperate with Her Highness’s measures.

But I didn't expect that I had repeatedly emphasized that internal letters must not be sent out and must be processed within the department. However, recently, due to cooperating with Your Highness's tax reduction policy, the Ministry of Finance was too busy, and someone still violated the rules and took the letter home.

Although there is no evidence to prove this, I personally speculate that it is very likely that the letters were seen by the officials’ family members, who then privately notified the nobles they were close to, causing the matter to be leaked.”

At this point, the Minister of Finance stood up from his chair, bowed slightly to the princess opposite him, and apologized with a guilty look on his face:
"I'm sorry, Your Highness Veronica. It was probably my negligence that caused the news to be leaked in advance, which led to you being surrounded by non-commissioned officers and even injured by stones. I am willing to take full responsibility for this matter."

"..."

"Maybe" it was you who leaked it, "although" there is no evidence to prove it, "most likely" it was your careless management... Haha, your apology is so precise.

Faced with the "sincere" apology from the Chancellor of Finance, Princess Veronica did not stand up to accept it. Instead, she turned her head and stared at the old king on the main seat. Her bright eyes were filled with undisguised mockery and a hint of deeply hidden expectation.

"Veronica."

After calling the princess' name, the old king, who looked haggard and old, sitting in a wheelchair but with his back straight, tapped the scepter in his hand vigorously and said lazily:
"It was just an unintentional mistake. Don't take it too seriously. Besides, you just broke your arm. You'll be fine after a few days of rest. Let's just forget about it."

An accident? Just a broken arm, will it be fine after a few days of rest?

After hearing the old king's words, the princess couldn't help but lower her head to look at her arm. Although the wound on her arm had been healed by Leon, the dark brown blood on it had seeped from the tip of her elbow to her wrist, and it looked like it was definitely not a minor injury.

Moreover, my father didn't even notice that although his arm was injured, the clothes on his arm were still flat and did not bulge due to the bandage. There was no trace of bandage at all.

Well... it makes sense if you think about it carefully. After all, from the time he came in until now, he hasn't even looked at his injured arm, so of course he wouldn't notice this little abnormality.

"Okay, forget it then."

After laughing at herself, the princess closed her eyes slightly, then stopped looking at the old king and instead stared at the middle-aged man and woman opposite her, asking calmly:

"And then? You two came here so late at night, aren't you just here to care about my injuries?"

(End of this chapter)