“What kind of attitude is this?!”
Probably stung by the teasing in the princess’s eyes, the queen with high cheekbones and a downturned mouth, who looked somewhat severe, slapped the armrest of her chair hard and rebuked her with eyes full of annoyance: “If it weren’t for your insistence on pushing through the tax cuts, would your uncle’s Ministry of Finance be in such chaos? The news leaked out, and you got cornered at the Prime Minister’s Residence — that’s your own fault! Besides, replacing officers forcefully is one thing, but why did you even add members of the royal family and your uncle’s people to the list? What exactly are you trying to do?”
“…”
What am I trying to do? Looking at the angry queen, listening to her stern reprimand, for some reason, the princess, who should have been boiling with anger, suddenly found it a bit amusing.
Even though the woman in front of her was her nominal mother and they lived in the same palace, they had never been on the same wavelength. If anything, Leon, who lived dozens of streets away, felt closer to her.
Heh, it’s laughable that she endured nightmares every night for six whole years in this lavish palace where she was born and raised, spending countless sleepless nights.
Yet, in that modest little apartment on Bridge Street, she could actually sleep soundly under the bright morning sun, dreaming wild yet pleasant dreams.
And even more absurdly, after injuring her arm from being hit by a rock, the only person who cared about her injury was Leon, the one who wanted to break off their engagement. When she returned to her “real home,” despite the bloodstains clearly visible on her sleeves, no one so much as glanced at them.
“Veronica!”
Seeing the princess opposite her lost in thought, slightly smiling, and obviously not paying attention, the harsh-looking woman couldn’t help but frown in anger.
“What are you smiling about?!?”
“Nothing, I just remembered something pleasant.”
“You… Even if I’m only your nominal mother, is this how you treat me?”
“Mm-hmm.”
After responding casually, Princess Veronica didn’t bother dealing with the queen’s tantrum. She turned her gaze toward the Minister of Finance, stating calmly:
“Minister, the day after tomorrow is the session for the two houses of parliament, and I’ve been extremely busy lately. So if our future exchanges continue in this dramatic manner, I might not be able to spare much time for them.”
“What is this…?”
“Shut up!”
The old king, sitting in his wheelchair, coughed for a moment before raising his scepter and pointing its end at the Minister of Finance, who sat stiffly, eyes fixed inward. With a hoarse and muffled voice, he said: “You speak.”
“As you command.”
Nodding slightly to the old king, the Minister of Finance looked up at the princess across from him and said gently: “Princess Veronica, my late-night visit tonight has two matters I wish to discuss with you.
First, although today’s incident may have been partly due to me, your officer replacement order does indeed have some inappropriate aspects, which is why it caused such a stir. I believe some of your measures were not well-considered.”
“Is that so?”
Upon hearing this, the princess looked at him and asked calmly: “Could you point out the flaws in the replacement order I implemented?”
“The princess is too kind.”
After nodding slightly in acknowledgment, the Minister continued:
“Firstly, the scope of the replacement targets.
While your intention to reform the military department is commendable, it’s overly hasty to include all officers in the replacement assessment at once. Officers from families above the rank of count could perhaps be assessed more gradually.
Lastly, some officer families have a history of distinguished service. To dismiss them all because they don’t meet the criteria seems rather unfair to these meritorious veterans. They’ve been coming to me in droves to complain, and I truly sympathize with their plight. Therefore, I hope Your Highness will reconsider.”
“Minister, you might as well be more straightforward.”
After hearing the Minister’s suggestions, Princess Veronica smiled and then summarized mockingly: “Don’t touch those with powerful backgrounds, don’t touch those willing to support the royal family, and don’t touch those prepared to cut their losses for you… Is my summary accurate, Minister?”
“The meaning might be similar, but your phrasing isn’t entirely correct.”
The Minister smiled and said:
“If I were to summarize, it would be: those whose removal would destabilize the kingdom, those who can serve as arms of the royal family, and those who wish to stand with us.
These officers might be slightly less capable, but moving against them either brings more trouble than benefit or turns potential allies into enemies. Please consider carefully.”
Consideration… Is there still a need for it?
Looking at the affable Minister of Finance and the expressionless old king, the princess took a deep breath, feeling as if she hadn’t slept for three days and nights, her entire body weighed down heavily.
Setting aside whether the revised replacement order could achieve the intended results, the act of changing policies repeatedly already dealt a devastating blow to her credibility.
If she compromised and changed the policy after the officers “protested” once, it would make it incredibly difficult for her to implement other bills in the future, essentially crippling the reforms before they even began.
“I see no reason for deliberation.”
Having seen through the Minister’s sinister intentions behind his proposal, the princess refused without hesitation: “Minister, you may think holding more power is beneficial, but if the military continues to deteriorate, the defensive war of six years ago will inevitably happen again. There is no room for compromise here. You may proceed to your second matter.”
“Very well.”
Unbothered by the princess’s retort, the Minister nodded calmly and continued:
“My second matter concerns the parliamentary session the day after tomorrow.
Today’s incident of officers surrounding the Prime Minister’s Residence shows their stance. If you attend the parliamentary session the day after tomorrow and continue to push for the replacement order, it might escalate the conflict. Thus, I believe you shouldn’t attend the parliamentary session the day after tomorrow.”
“？！！！” Upon hearing the Minister’s words, Princess Veronica’s pupils contracted slightly, and she coldly countered, “What do you mean?”
“My suggestion is that Prince Joshua attends the parliamentary session the day after tomorrow instead of you.”
The Minister smiled and said: “Prince Joshua is your brother and equally qualified to represent the royal family. Although he might be young and lack experience, with my supervision, he should be able to handle it…”
“No way!”
Not expecting the Minister to have such an ulterior motive, Princess Veronica was shocked and angered, immediately standing up to refute him: “Joshua can’t handle this! This time, besides the replacement order, there are also proposals to expand suffrage, support for the energy industry, and a series of other things…”
“You don’t need to worry about those.”
Interrupting the princess, the Minister smiled warmly and said: “The relevant documents have already been retrieved from your bedroom. With your preliminary preparations and my assistance, Prince Joshua will surely maintain control of the situation and smoothly advance these proposals.”
(End of Chapter)
