The next day, the departure took place earlier than expected.
Contrary to yesterday’s talk of leaving after lunch, we had to head to the capital right after packing our bags in the morning.
This time, it wasn’t because of that, but because of me.
“I’m sorry, Your Highness. We could have left more leisurely……”
“No need. Wasn’t it because of me that the schedule was moved up in the first place? Leaving a few hours early won’t be a big problem.”
Due to the sudden turn of events, we decided to take a carriage from Waynes to the midpoint, and then ride horses from there to the capital.
If it weren’t for the urgent message Betty brought this morning, there would have been no reason to rush like this.
“You say there’s a problem with the trading company. I’m worried since it’s quite a distance away, is that alright?”
“I’ve already contacted the Waynes branch, so they’ll relay the message directly to the capital. The communication network between trading companies is quite efficient, so they can contact faster than you might think.”
“That’s fortunate. Since the Jenit Company has branches in every city in the empire, you’ll be able to receive updates wherever we go.”
“Yes. It would be best if I could get there as quickly as possible, but since that’s difficult in this situation, I plan to at least keep in constant communication as we travel.”
I nodded at Leoprick’s words, recalling the message I received this morning.
It was a message from Hayley at the capital branch.
A brief and urgent message, hastily scrawled, saying there was a problem with the company’s finances and I needed to come to the capital quickly.
Neither I nor Betty knew what kind of problem could have arisen with the finances of the Jenit Company, one of the largest in the empire.
There hadn’t been any such problems before the regression, after all.
Around this time, the company had been running smoothly under Hayley’s leadership.
I only needed to review and give final approval to the documents she sent.
But Hayley had never contacted me this urgently before, so I asked Leoprick to hurry our departure.
And I asked Betty to contact the Waynes branch.
After all, using the company’s communication network would allow me to receive Hayley’s messages safely and quickly from anywhere.
Everything was done swiftly, and we were able to leave Waynes right after breakfast.
Of course, this meant Leoprick’s wish to visit a famous restaurant for lunch couldn’t be fulfilled.
“For now, let’s go as far as we can today, and try to shorten tomorrow’s schedule as much as possible. No matter how urgent the matter is, we shouldn’t overexert ourselves.”
“I appreciate your consideration, Your Highness.”
“It’s only natural. You don’t need to thank me.”
But he acted as if such things were no big deal.
He just hurried everything along so we could move according to my request.
He talked with the knights to find the fastest route back to the capital, and contacted Waynes Castle to call in all the remaining knights.
Packing bags, retrieving the carriage that had been sent for maintenance, buying extra horses to ensure we could maintain speed – all of these processes were carried out swiftly.
While I was packing with Betty and preparing for departure, he took care of all those tasks, making sure I could travel without any problems.
No matter how wary I was of him, gratitude is gratitude.
I kept thanking him throughout our carriage ride.
Each time, he would say it was only natural, that I shouldn’t worry about it.
I’m not sure how all that effort could be considered ‘natural’, but he really, truly seemed to not mind at all.
“I intend to help you with whatever you need in the future as well. We are a married couple, and such consideration between spouses should be natural.”
“But not all couples naturally give each other such consideration, Your Highness.”
“Then I’ll just say I do it because I want to do it for you.”
The conversation always went like this.
I would say how could this be natural, isn’t it more natural to receive thanks for it.
He would just say he’s doing it because he wants to, so there’s no need for such words.
That attitude gave me another sense of déjà vu.
Life after the regression was a bit strange, after all.
While most things were flowing as I remembered them, matters related to him seemed to keep going off track somehow.
When I tried to recall, this level of kindness was unimaginable from the original him.
In my previous life, he certainly didn’t pay this much attention to me, which is why I could help Lloyd without any second thoughts.
“Your Highness. May we stop the carriage for a moment?”
“Hm? Is it lunchtime already?”
“Yes, the horses seem a bit tired too, so I thought we could take a short break.”
Just then, I heard the voice of Sir Cedric, who had been riding tirelessly beside the carriage.
At the suggestion to take a short break, Leoprick looked at me as if seeking approval, and I nodded.
“Alright. Let’s take a short break then.”
Continuing this conversation with him would only complicate my thoughts and repeat the same content anyway.
I thought it was rather fortunate to have a chance to clear my head for a moment.
“Lady Mercedes. They say we’re taking a short break.”
“Yes, I heard. Weren’t you hungry?”
“No! I was fine.”
As we got out of the carriage, Betty approached with a basket containing our lunch.
The innkeeper had packed it for us when he heard we were leaving early.
I smiled at Betty, whose face looked somewhat excited.
“Any word from the company?”
“No, of course not. The message about our departure from Waynes probably hasn’t reached the capital yet. Let’s eat first.”
I excused myself to Leoprick and found a spot a little away from him and the knights, along with Betty.
We had things to discuss, both because of the company matter and because of what Betty and I had been talking about yesterday.
Only after we had moved some distance from the men did I lower my voice.
“About what I asked you to look into yesterday?”
“I asked the Waynes branch. Jennifer, the branch manager, is a good person, and she said she would quietly look into it without asking why.”
“I see, and there’s no word yet?”
“She said she’d look for any traces that could be found in Waynes and report back immediately. And she said she’d pass it on to the capital to continue the investigation.”
“What a helpful person.”
“She’s quite remarkable.”
Betty answered my questions while unpacking the baskets one by one, and as soon as she finished, she let out an exclamation of “Wow!”
“It’s Waynes’ seafood dishes, Lady Mercedes! My goodness. No wonder the food that came up every morning wasn’t ordinary.”
“They’ve prepared such a variety. I would have been grateful even if they had just packed sandwiches.”
“This isn’t just a lunch box, it’s more like food that could be served at a small family’s formal luncheon.”
Contrary to my expectation of a light picnic lunch full of sandwiches, the inside of the basket was splendid.
Pasta made with seafood by the innkeeper, soup, and fruit salad were neatly packaged.
I was already grateful for them providing such a hearty breakfast for people leaving in a hurry, but to prepare such an elaborate lunch box as well.
“Be sure to contact the Waynes branch. We must give some gift to this inn.”
“Just some gift, Lady Mercedes? For this much, I feel like no gift would be too much.”
They had thoughtfully included drinks, desserts, and even pre-meal bread, making it truly well-prepared.
Throughout lunch, I discussed with Betty what gift we should give to the innkeeper, and on top of that, we debated what the financial problem Hayley mentioned could be.
Of course, no matter how much we two, who weren’t even in the capital, put our heads together, we couldn’t come up with an answer.
“Have you finished your meal, Amelia?”
Just as our meaningless conversation was starting to get boring, Leoprick approached.
Seeing him approach, Betty jumped up in surprise, and I also stood up awkwardly.
“Oh my. It seems I startled you.”
“No, it’s just that we didn’t hear you approaching……”
“I apologize. I’ve gotten into the habit of moving silently.”
He bowed his head briefly towards me and apologized to Betty as well.
A crown prince apologizing to a maid, not even a lady-in-waiting.
Not only was I taken aback, but Betty was also startled and hurriedly gathered the basket that had contained our lunch, quickly leaving the place.
“Did I make some mistake?”
“Well… You did something that ordinary people don’t do.”
“It’s something I always did in the imperial palace. It seems to have surprised her.”
Leoprick smiled a bit awkwardly at my words.
Something he always did in the imperial palace.
Thinking that this was how he was in a place I didn’t know, I smiled faintly.
“Are we leaving now?”
“Ah, yes. I came to say we should depart if you’ve finished eating. We’ve watered the horses, and it seems we should hurry if we want to reach the village before sunset.”
Leoprick said this while looking at the sky, which was still bright but would soon be setting.
The days are short at this time of year.
And it’s difficult to travel after the sun sets.
I nodded and took the hand he offered.
“It seems we talked for too long.”
“Not at all. Thanks to that, we were able to finish everything we needed to do without having to wait for one side or the other.”
Leoprick said with a smile, his eyes curving.
I smiled awkwardly along with him, seeing the look in his eyes that meant not to worry, that there was no problem.
While I’m grateful for his consideration, it’s also incredibly uncomfortable.
The question of whether I’m a person who deserves such treatment keeps circling in my mind.
Of course, it’s not in his memory and he would never repeat the same thing, but for me, the memory of killing him is still vividly clear.
His face and gestures as he brought the teacup I gave him to his lips without any suspicion.
The expression, voice, and look in his eyes as he asked again if I was alright, even as he was coughing up blood from the poison I had given him.
All of it is still too vivid.
That’s why I’m constantly looking for ways to escape from him whenever I get the chance.
Why is he…
“From now on, we’ll ride without stopping. It will be hard, but I’ve instructed them to prepare the best lodgings in the village where we can rest, so please bear with it a little, Mela.”
“…I was the one who said we should hurry in the first place.”
“Still, a long journey will be very tiring for you.”
Why is he holding my hand so gently and kindly, and looking into my eyes so warmly?
Why is he smiling as if he wants to win my favor so badly?
As I boarded the carriage, holding the hand that was full of concern, worry, and warm consideration for me, I thought.
If we had been like this before the regression…
What kind of thoughts would I have had by now, being with this person?
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
