I! Cleaner!

What happened after the meeting with the Prime Minister?

Upon hearing the words of the two female officials, the Princess instinctively touched her arm, feeling a slight warmth in her heart.

Indeed, after meeting with the Prime Minister, she was first injured by the officers blocking the residence, then secretly climbed over the outer wall to find Leon. During this period, no news had been sent back, so her father was undoubtedly worried and had to send someone to inquire.

"Let's go."

Nodding to the two female officials, the Princess temporarily set aside her chaotic thoughts, ready to head to the upper levels of the palace, however…

"Not that way, Your Highness."

Stopping the Princess, one of the female officials respectfully reported:

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

The side hall on the fourth floor?

At these words, the Princess couldn't help but be slightly stunned.

The side hall on the fourth floor of the palace is a small reception room for important guests. However, her father's health had always been poor, and at this time, he should have finished drinking his alchemical supplements and resting in the top-floor bedroom. Why would he be in the small reception room?

"Is there a very important guest visiting?"

After pondering for a moment, the Princess, following the female officials, asked with some confusion:

"A special emissary from the Black Forest Duchy? Or a diplomat from the Kingdom of Saio?"

"Neither, Your Highness."

The female official in charge of leading the way respectfully replied:

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

No guests have arrived?

Upon hearing the female official's answer, the Princess's brows raised in astonishment, just about to ask more, when the leading female official spoke:

"Your Highness, our duty is merely to guide you. As for other matters, as internal attendants, it is not our place to speak further. Please inquire directly to His Majesty after you meet him!"

"..."

Unexpectedly, just by asking about her father's situation, she inexplicably encountered a soft rebuff, making the Princess's brows quietly knit, and the warm sensation in her heart was suddenly tinged with coldness.

Unlike herself, when her father selects attendants, he doesn't value talents and character, but rather emphasizes caution, obedience, and the ability to accurately and aptly convey his will.

In other words, these two attendants are the purest mouthpieces; their attitude towards her, in a certain sense, represents her father's attitude towards her.

And these always cautious and prudent attendants suddenly refusing to answer her questions could only be due to some instruction or perhaps an implicit awareness of something from her father's attitude and actions.

... The g.enu@i&ne! a@r$ti^c#l%e$ re%sides on M|V|&L&E*MPY@R#.

Following the two stern female officials into the side hall on the fourth floor of the palace, the scene inside thoroughly verified her suspicions.

In the side hall designated for important guests, there was not just the old King present, but also a man and woman, slightly resembling each other in appearance and seeming to be around forty years old, sitting on velvet-covered armchairs, awaiting her along with the old King.

Upon seeing the Princess appear outside the door, the older-looking man revealed a gentle smile, nodding slightly at her, while the other exquisitely made-up, magnificently dressed woman subtly smirked, a hint of undisguised disdain in her eyes.

"Veronica."

Accompanied by a somewhat husky call, the old King sitting opposite the door, lifted the scepter adorned with ruby next to him, pointed to the empty chair opposite the middle-aged pair, and said with an undeniable tone:

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

"Alright."

Glancing at the Queen and the Minister of Finance in the side hall, the Princess inwardly sighed, then slowly stepped into the reception room, sitting at the seat designated by the old King.

"This afternoon, according to the pre-determined schedule, I went to the Prime Minister's residence to discuss the expansion of suffrage. But as the meeting was about to end, over three hundred officers of the rank of school and lieutenant were incited by a 'secret hand' to block me at the Prime Minister's residence."

When mentioning the "secret hand," the Princess intentionally slowed her pace, casting a significant glance at the middle-aged couple opposite, then turned back to the old King on the main seat:

"To gather so many military officers at once requires not only a significant background and connections but also considerable time, counting travel takes at least a week.

Although the decision to implement the officer replacement decree has recently been known to many, a week ago, I had only mentioned it to you. So can you tell me who else learned of this from you?"

?!

Upon the Princess's inquiry, the Queen opposite was slightly startled, then grasped the armchair's handle with some irritation:

"What are you..."

"Apologies, the message may have leaked from me."

Grabbing the sleeve of the Queen and pulling back her impending queries, the gracious Minister of Finance sighed:

"Upon learning Princess Veronica was preparing to implement the replacement decree, I immediately issued an internal letter, demanding the Finance Department prepare accordingly, clear up owed officers' salaries in advance to match the Princess's actions.

But even with my repeated emphasis that the letter must remain internal and cannot be sent out, the Ministry has been extremely busy lately with coordinating the Princess's tax reduction policy, leading to someone violating the rules and taking the letter home.

Though there's no evidence yet, I personally suspect the letter was seen by family members of officials who privately informed friendly nobles, causing the affair to leak."

At this point, the Minister of Finance stood up from his chair, slightly bowing towards the Princess opposite with an apologetic expression:

"I'm sorry, Princess Veronica, it's mostly due to my mismanagement, leading to the information leaking early, causing you to be blocked by officers, even injured by stones. I am willing to take full responsibility for this."

"..."

"'Possibly' it was your leak, 'though' there's no evidence yet, 'mostly' due to your mismanagement… Ha, your apology is indeed precisely crafted.

Faced with the Minister of Finance's 'sincere' apology, Princess Veronica did not rise to accept, but instead turned her gaze to the old King on the main seat, her bright eyes filled with undisguisable irony and a deeply hidden expectation.

"Veronica."

Calling the Princess's name, the old King, whose complexion was wan, appearance aged, and sat in a wheelchair yet with his back held straight, forcefully thumped the scepter in his hand, speaking wearily:

"It was an unintended error, don't place too much weight on it. Moreover, you only suffered a bruise to your arm; a few days' rest, and it will be fine. Let's leave it at that!"

An unintended error? Only bruised your arm, rest a few days, and it's fine?

Upon the old King's words, the Princess couldn't help but lower her head and glance at her arm. Though Leon had healed her arm wound, the dark brown bloodstain nevertheless soaked from the elbow down to the wrist.

Furthermore, her father hadn't even noticed that although her arm was injured, her clothing remained smooth without bulging from bandaging.

Hmm… on second thought, it makes sense. Since entering, he hadn't looked at her arm in the slightest, of course, he wouldn't discover such a small anomaly.

"Fine, then let's leave it be."

With a self-deprecating smile, the Princess slightly closed her eyes, then refrained from looking at the old King, instead focusing on the middle-aged couple opposite, calmly questioning:

"And then? You two coming to the palace late at night wouldn't be merely to show concern for my injuries, right?"