Not long after Lady Ferner left, Klaus and Lumi’s dance also came to an end. Admiring comments were heard here and there.
“Oh my, both of them show no signs of fatigue!”
“That’s right. They truly make a good couple.”
“Who else can stand next to Prince Klaus if it’s not Lady Elfriede?”
Listening to the buzzing conversations, I quickly returned to my seat and refilled the wine glasses. Then, I discreetly offered a glass to Klaus, who had just returned.
However, he didn’t take the glass and instead turned to Lumi.
“Lady, excuse me for a moment.”
“Oh, yes.”
Responding to his sudden words, Lumi looked bewildered. Klaus personally picked up the empty glasses and the wine bottle on the table and signaled me to follow him.
I cautiously held the glass I offered him and followed Klaus. Just before changing my steps, I glanced briefly at Lumi.
“…”
Lumi stood with a disappointed expression, biting her lip.
Unfortunately, it couldn’t be helped. One dance wouldn’t capture Klaus’s heart.
Thinking so, I hurriedly followed Klaus.
The place Klaus headed to was a terrace located in a less frequented area.
Fortunately, the area was dimly lit, and the terrace door was closed to prevent the cold winter air from entering. Klaus opened the door without hesitation.
Cold winter air rushed in. I became more alert.
“Hoo…”
Klaus took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Then, he smiled bitterly at me.
“The ballroom was too hot.”
“That’s natural after finishing such a long waltz.”
I also smiled faintly.
Klaus sat on the terrace railing and slowly tilted the wine bottle over the glass he brought. A gurgling sound, and the dark red liquid rose.
“…?”
Shaking the glass gently, he looked at me with eyes that seemed to be expecting something.
Was he proposing a toast? In that case, there was no need to decline.
I sat down next to him, carefully holding up the glass. When I extended it, he lightly clinked the upper part of the glass.
“Let’s drink together.”
“Yes.”
I brought the glass to my lips slowly. It was a high-quality wine with a fragrant hazelnut scent.
Klaus took a short breath and said, “From now on, we should choose someone to taste it separately.”
“What?”
He glanced at me and then lowered his gaze.
“I realized it in an instant. If, by any chance, you were to taste poison while tasting it…”
Was that so? His expression was serious when I tasted the wine earlier.
“But, as a royal aide, protecting His Highness is a natural duty.”
“I can’t afford to lose my people so absurdly. Next time, I’ll have to find another way to detect poison.”
Klaus was very serious.
Honestly, it was an unnecessary concern. The security of House Mecklinger couldn’t be so lax.
Furthermore, there was no reason for the noble family to poison the Crown Prince’s drink when Lumie expressed her desire to marry Klaus. However, I couldn’t dare say that. It was because his sincerity was evident.
“By the way, did the Lady say something in front of the people a while ago?”
In response to Klaus’s question, I nodded emphatically.
“Yes. To be honest, it was embarrassing.”
“As expected.”
He chuckled coldly, twisting his lips.
Since Klaus grew up in this world, his perspective on Lumie’s “1000 Krum Distribution” project could differ from mine. First, I expressed my opinion.
“In some ways, simply giving money to struggling commoners might be the most effective. In fact, it might even be less costly. But wouldn’t it make the commoners lose their will to work and become accustomed to receiving without effort?”
Klaus’s moral concerns were convincing. I agreed.
“So, the support funds should be kept to a minimum. Actually, the amount of 1000 Krum seems a bit excessive in my opinion.”
“I think teaching someone to fish is better than just giving them fish. Giving fish might be more convenient from the giver’s perspective, but the effects are only temporary.”
“Most people, except perhaps Your Highness, would probably think the same way. That’s why Lady Elfriede referred to it as an ‘experiment.’ However, there’s a more significant issue.”
Whether the relief effect was temporary or not wasn’t the central issue of Lumie’s 1000 Krum project.
The real problem lay deeper, in fundamental beliefs.
“The hearts of the common people will conspicuously turn towards the nobles who generously scatter money. Even though they bend over to pay taxes, the results might not be so apparent.”
“……!”
“In such a situation, if nobles, including Lady Elfriede, scatter cash, the commoners will be infatuated with the money. In that case, when Your Highness wants to implement policies for the imperial citizens, they won’t support you. Instead, they’ll support nobles pursuing their own interests and benefits.”
“Their eyes won’t see how their blood money is being used. They’ll think that the royal family is only collecting taxes without giving anything in return.”
“But 1000 Krum is different. With that, a year’s worth of living expenses comes into their hands without any compensation.”
“That’s correct, Your Highness.”
I stared directly at Klaus.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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