Chapter 48 : Duchess Perth

For days, Evelyn buried herself in the library and was busy collecting information that would help her. She wondered if the summer had come without any news since the rainy season had begun.

“In the rainy season, the library smells more like books.”

Evelyn learned one more thing she didn’t know. In the Royal Library, which had collected valuable ancient books, the soaking antique aroma mingled with the sound of raindrops outside.

What Evelyn had discovered for days was that the trade agreement signed between the Southern countries, led by the Felice Kingdom, presented in detail the extent to which the Empire had so far ignored them and taken luxuries close to exploitation.

“In other words, our agreement has no problem, but the Empire didn’t even treat it as an agreement and used it as it pleased.” Evelyn’s eyes were filled with anger. She had always hated the imperial ways from the past. But now their victims were not only Evelyn but also her people. What was their speciality that they hurt the hard work of the people?

“You have to make a fair deal. Otherwise, it’s like getting some money from a thief every year. It’s so hard, and there’s no guarantee that it won’t get any worse.” Arthur formally placed Evelyn in Parliament a couple of days ago. Besides, he also gave her a position as Head of the Delegation for Trade Agreements against the Empire.

“It’s not just once or twice, but many times …” Evelyn, forgetting her fatigue, looked at the damage report she had received from the nobles who had joined the trade agreement. After reading a report, she was so angry that she hit the desk with her fist. “I have to show them that we’re not easy.”

Evelyn took a deep breath and picked up a letter of paper. It was an official document she had never written in her life. After hesitating to write the first sentence, Evelyn wrote down all her research in elegant handwriting.

Imperial ignorance of trade agreements in the south and the sale of goods for profit closed to exploitation were actions which were not permitted by imperial law or any other kingdom in the south. And worse, because it was done openly by the Empire.

At first, no one knew this was going to be such a serious problem. The trade agreement began in the rich southern lands and was expected further to expand the trade network through trade with distant countries. But the Empire seemed to have become a hindrance.

‘These people are always the problem.’

Instead of signing the agreement, they faced enormous customs duties. Even the problems didn’t end there. After receiving customs duties, they deliberately disrupted the movement of ports or canals and sometimes forced them to hand over luxury goods at low prices. Their reason was that they were the Empire, so they could.

[ The countries and provinces in the south that signed trade agreements, led by the Felice Kingdom, had decided to stop witnessing the imperial tyranny that almost exploited trade. If the Empire had not signed a trade agreement, or if no precautions had been taken to fix it, all the members of the Southern Region’s trade agreement would have cut off trade relations with the Empire.

Evelyn Felice, the finance minister of the Felice Kingdom, who headed the trade agreement. ]

Evelyn signed the letter without hesitation. As Evelyn wrote the letter herself, it was much worse than planned. Perhaps Fabian was the first person in the history of the Empire to receive such a disrespectful letter from a small Kingdom.

But what did it matter to him? Fabian said at the banquet that he knew what she meant. If Fabian knew her heart, he wouldn’t have been surprised.

“I’m really sick of imperialism now.” Evelyn still looked at the letter in anger and called the chief of staff to send it to the Empire. Then the corner of her mind seemed to cool down a bit.

 

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Since the Emperor’s return, the Imperial family had spent their blood time trying not to make a single mistake. Mostly if there were anything offensive in Emperor’s eyes, who went out and returned to the palace, they would be punished a lot more.

Fortunately, contrary to the concerns of the court officials, the Emperor spent his time reading the delayed reports and was stuck in his residence.

“Why just building a bakery have to ask for my approval now?!”

Fabian’s voice was irritated. The nobleman handed over his job to the Emperor. Most of them were incapable of doing their jobs properly and handed over to him in the name of loyalty. It was natural, then, that Fabian was exhausted because his work rhythm was very extreme.

“Serus, did you notify the finance minister of a reduction in compensation for the demolition of the Southern Palace?” in his memory, Fabian gave a clear order for this matter. But something was strange because there was no protest from his mother, the Empress Dowager.

“Serus!” Fabian called him several times. Just in time, Serus, who had been waiting for the Emperor outside, appeared cautiously.

“What are you doi-……..?” Fabian stopped talking when he saw a white-haired Duchess standing behind Serus.

Suddenly Fabian was so embarrassed for no reason, he asked Serus to pick her up, but he forgot about it, and he immediately greeted the Duchess with a big cough.

“The Duchess of Perth meets Your Majesty.”

“Yes, that’s enough. You must have had a hard time coming here, so please sit down.” Fabian first suggested the soft sofa chair. And Serus, when he saw the two of them, he felt both happy and strange.

“Then I’ll guard the door,” Serus said.

“No, your mother is here, so about a day …”

“No, I have to do my job,” Serus spoke stubbornly, then bowed silently and walked out the door, leaving the Duchess of Perth looking insignificant as well.

“I’ll give Serus a vacation, so take your time slowly.”

“No, thanks. My sons are all grown up, and they’re doing their job. There’s nothing better than that.” Duchess Perth had a stern character engraved on her face. Even Fabian was somehow unable to act impudently in front of her.

“So, why did you kick me out last time?”

“Kicked you? This old woman doesn’t have that power.” Fabian stopped at the Duke of Perth’s residence last time before he returned to the Imperial family. But she insisted that the Emperor should first go to the Imperial Palace so that they could only meet now.

“Your Majesty’s face looks deep ….” Duchess Perth guessed at once that even the maid who helped Fabian wash his face every day did not notice. “So, can you tell this old woman what’s going on?”

Fabian nodded slowly. The Emperor was a lonesome position so that he couldn’t show his feelings, and he couldn’t lean on anyone. But Duchess Perth was like a mother who had been raising him for the longest time. It was no wonder that Fabian felt much closer to Duchess Perth than to the Empress who lived in the Southern Palace.

“I saw something funny a few days ago. There was a banquet to celebrate my return in the Felice Kingdom……There, the Empire ladies were mocking the former Empress with nasty words.”

“Really?” Duchess, Perth kept her posture calm.

“It was not just general mockery……; they were referring to our divorce. Even I had to ask her if something like that happened in the Imperial Palace too? But still, Princess Evelyn’s status was much higher than those ladies, but they mocked her, saying that she should try hard!”

The explanation brought back the displeasure at that time vividly. Before he knew it, Fabian had clenched his fist tightly.

The Duchess observed him with a slightly curious look with her still nonchalant attitude.

“So?”

Fabian could not hide his bewilderment at her gentle question. “How dare they be so impudent and vulgar! I’ve never seen anything like that before.”

“Hmm … I did it.” The Duchess replied, stirring the tea with a teaspoon.

“Don’t you mind hearing such a story?”

“If I had to put my feelings into it, I wouldn’t have lived long until this age, right?”

Fabian looked puzzled as he listened to what the Duchess had said.” Is there anyone who dares to blame my wife? Who’s that! Right now, I’ll · · · · · ·. “

Eventually, the Duchess could not stand up to him and burst into laughter, but Fabian didn’t seem to understand what was going on.

“Your Majesty is still pure.”

“Are you making fun of me?”

“No way. Don’t be so grumpy. This old woman envies the purity of your eyes.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Fabian leaned his back on the sofa.

“That’s enough of your grumpy, so I’m going to answer your questions. No way …… did you come to my mansion just to ask this?” Fabian chose to remain silent, but the Duchess wasn’t a heartless person who couldn’t even read the expression of a child raised by her hands.

“You said you had never seen or heard a scene like that before, did you?”

“Yes, those evil and mean things like that!”

“But those things have always been where you are, even before your Majesty was born.”

“What.” Fabian frowned his eyebrows, but Duchess Perth calmly continued her story.

“The men fight in council and duel, but the women fight with their honour and pride as well. Yes, in social circles like tea time and banquets.”

“Uh … what kind of fight is that? Are you still having fun with me?”

“No, it’s a real fight. The defeated heart will be broken and disappear.”

“You mean … it’s a war of words?”

“Yes, the evil and mean quarrel you’ve heard. You had to be so careful at the banquet. In the gardens of my palace, where a man was unable to enter … … Many wives use their mouths and tongues like blades.”

For Fabian, it was something that he couldn’t even imagine. An Empire was a country that had a class system. Among them, the Imperial’s etiquette was stricter than anywhere else.

“What do you want to know? Do you want to know how the ladies speak? Or are you curious about what happened to the former Empress?” The Duchess was already looking through Fabian’s heart.

“How could they do that to the Empress? She’s my wife, and she’s the Emperor’s wife.” Instead of denying her, Fabian asked the question he’d been holding all along.

“It turns out I’ve seen similar sights a few times.”

“My wife? Why didn’t you tell me that?”

“What should I say, Your Majesty?”

Fabian’s mouth could no longer speak. What would he have said if he heard the story at that time? Instead, he was lucky that she didn’t complain about the palace’s trivial problems, whether she could solve it or not.

“Your Majesty is a man who has learned that you should not be involved in palace affairs and women. That’s the courtesy of the Imperial family. I already taught her the royal courtesy when she was in bridal class.”

“Uh … Even so, does it make sense to throw a divorce because she can’t endure the harassment of those ladies?”

That’s something the Duchess didn’t know about. There might be other reasons for that. “I don’t think so. She’s not a very secretive person at all.”

“But she didn’t tell me her reason.”

The Duchess nodded slowly. “But there must be a reason. There is nothing in this world that has no reason. There’s must be a reason for this, but you just don’t know why.”

Huh, Fabian spat out laughter. Maybe that’s why he couldn’t understand.

“Well, then, do you mean I’ll continue to suffer like this for reasons I don’t know forever?”

The Duchess hid her surprised at Fabian’s heavy, falling voice. After the divorce, she didn’t hear much from him, so she thought he passed it casually, as Fabian usually did. And it shocked her when she knew he was still in terrible pain like this.

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“The only people who can tell why are two people who share wedding rings.”

‘If that so, just forget it.’

Fabian turned to her with a look more bitter than before, “If that were so easy, I wouldn’t bring it up.”

He woke up from his seat with a lonely expression, “Since it’s been a long time, why don’t you have dinner with Serus and go home?” said Fabian with ease. Then, he immediately put on his mask and disappeared from the Duchess’s sight.