Chapter 829

The situation after the meeting with the Prime Minister?

Hearing the words of the two court ladies, the princess subconsciously touched her arm, and a slight warmth could not help but well up in her heart.

That's right, after the meeting with the Prime Minister, she was first injured by the officers who besieged the official residence, and then she snuck out from the outer wall to find Li Ang; during this time, no news had been sent back, so her father would inevitably feel worried and would naturally send someone to ask.

"Let's go."

Nodding toward the two court ladies, the princess temporarily put aside her chaotic thoughts and prepared to set off for the upper levels of Wang Gong, however...

"Your Highness, it's not that way."

After calling out to stop the princess, one of the court ladies reported respectfully:

"His Majesty is not in the bedroom; he is waiting for you in the side hall on the fourth floor, so please come this way."

The side hall on the fourth floor?

Hearing this, the princess could not help but be slightly startled.

The side hall on the fourth floor of Wang Gong is a small reception room used for meeting key officials; however, her father's health has always been poor, and at this time, he should have finished his alchemical supplements and be resting in the bedroom on the top floor, so why would he be staying in the small reception room?

"Have some very important guests arrived?"

After pondering slightly, the princess, following behind the court lady, asked with some confusion:

"The special envoy of the Hessen Kingdom? Or the diplomat from the Saiao Kingdom?"

"Neither, Your Highness."

The court lady responsible for leading the way said respectfully:

"At least before we came over, there were no outside guests in the side hall."

No guests?

Hearing the court lady's reply, the princess's eyebrows raised in surprise; just as she wanted to continue asking, she heard the leading court lady say:

"Your Highness, our duty is only to lead the way for you; as for other matters, as attendants, we should not be meddlesome. Please ask His Majesty yourself after you see him!"

"..."

Not expecting that just asking about the situation with her father would inexplicably result in a soft rebuff, the princess's brow could not help but quietly furrow, and a chill suddenly seeped into her previously warm heart.

Unlike her, when her father selects attendants, he does not value talent and character, but rather values caution and obedience, and whether they can accurately and appropriately convey his will.

In other words, these two attendants are the purest of mouthpieces; their attitude toward her, in a sense, is equivalent to her father's attitude toward her.

And they, who have always been cautious, would suddenly refuse to answer her questions only if they had received some instructions, or if they had vaguely sensed something from her father's attitude and actions.

Following behind the two stern-faced court ladies, after arriving at the side hall on the fourth floor of Wang Gong, the scene inside the side hall completely verified the princess's conjecture.

In the side hall specifically used for receiving important guests, it was not just the old king alone; a man and a woman, whose features were slightly similar and who looked to be about forty years old, were sitting on armchairs cushioned with velvet, waiting for her together with the old king.

When she saw the princess appear outside the door, the man who looked older revealed a gentle smile and nodded slightly toward her, while the woman with exquisite makeup and gorgeous clothing curled her lips covertly, a trace of undisguisable disgust appearing in the corners of her eyes.

"Veronica."

Accompanied by a somewhat hoarse call, the old king, whose position was directly facing the door, lifted the scepter adorned with bright red gems at his side, pointed toward the empty chair opposite the middle-aged man and woman, and said with an expression that brooked no refusal:

"Come sit and tell me about today's events."

"Alright."

Looking at the Queen and the Minister of Finance in the side hall, the princess sighed secretly in her heart, then walked slowly into the reception room, sat in the seat designated by the old king, and began to recount:

"This afternoon, I followed the previously scheduled itinerary to visit the Prime Minister's residence to discuss the expansion of suffrage, but when the meeting was about to end, more than three hundred officers of the Colonel and Lieutenant ranks, instigated by 'interested parties,' blocked me inside the Prime Minister's residence."

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

"To gather so many military officers at once requires not only a very strong background and connections, but also a considerable amount of time; calculating the distance, it would take at least a week or more.

And regarding the decision to push through the officer replacement order, although many people have known about it recently, a week ago, I had only spoken to you alone, so could you please tell me who learned of this news from you?"?!

Hearing the princess's inquiry, the Queen opposite could not help but be slightly startled, then gripped the armrest of the chair and said with some annoyance:

Hearing the Aquarius Director's last words, the female reporter couldn't help but look up and meet his eyes. When she saw the Aquarius Director's kind gaze, a hint of sourness welled up in her heart.

"Apologies, the news might have leaked from me."

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

"After learning that Princess Veronica was preparing to push through the replacement order, I immediately sent an internal letter requiring the Ministry of Finance to make corresponding preparations and clarify the arrears in officers' salaries in advance to cooperate with all of the Princess's measures.

But I didn't expect that although I emphasized repeatedly that the internal letter must absolutely not be sent out and must be handled within the department, because the Ministry of Finance has been too busy recently cooperating with the Princess's tax reduction policy, someone still violated the regulations and took the letter home.

Although there is no evidence to confirm it yet, I personally speculate that it is very likely that those letters were seen by the official's family members, who privately notified the nobles they were on good terms with, leading to the matter being exposed."

When saying this, the Minister of Finance stood up from his chair, bowed slightly toward the princess opposite, and apologized with a look of shame:

"Apologies, Princess Veronica, it is mostly due to my mismanagement that the news leaked in advance, which is why you were besieged by officers and even injured by thrown stones; I am willing to take full responsibility for this matter."

"..."

"Possibly" leaked by you, "although" there is no evidence to confirm it yet, "mostly" due to your mismanagement... Heh, your apology is truly too precise.

Facing the Minister of Finance's "sincere" apology, Princess Veronica did not stand up to accept it, but instead turned her head to gaze at the old king in the main seat, her bright eyes carrying undisguisable mockery and a trace of expectation hidden very deep.

"Veronica."

After calling the princess's name, the old king, who looked haggard, aged, and was sitting in a wheelchair, with only his spine held straight, thumped the scepter in his hand forcefully and said with a weary expression:

"It was just an unintentional mistake, don't be too calculating; furthermore, you were only injured in the arm, and you will be fine after resting for a few days, so let's just leave this matter at that."

An unintentional mistake? Only injured in the arm, and will be fine after resting for a few days?

Hearing the old king's words, the princess could not help but lower her head to look at her arm; although the injury on her arm had been healed by Li Ang, the dark brown bloodstains on it permeated from the elbow to the wrist, and by the looks of it, it was by no means a minor injury.

Moreover, her father did not even notice that although she was clearly injured in the arm, the clothing on her arm was still smooth and did not bulge due to bandaging; there was no trace of bandaging at all.

Hmm... thinking about it carefully, it is reasonable; after all, since she came in, he hasn't even glanced at her injured arm once, so naturally, he wouldn't discover this tiny abnormality.

"Fine, then let's leave it at that."

After laughing at herself, the princess closed her eyes slightly, then no longer looked at the old king, but instead gazed at the middle-aged man and woman opposite, asking with a calm expression:

"And then? You two came here in the middle of the night, surely not just to care about my injuries, right?"