Chapter 207 "You did it for that ridiculous dignity..."
Early in the morning, a torrential downpour began. Since returning from the council chamber, I haven't been able to sleep. I sat alone by the window, sipping a cup of hot tea, for a long time.
In the afternoon, just after lunch, I was about to take a nap when I heard that the Queen was about to be banished from the palace. "She just signed the divorce papers," Hero said, "and is leaving the palace empty-handed, wearing only a maid's uniform."
"Not a single penny?" I asked.
“Where is the money?” Helo sighed. “Her entire dowry was confiscated, her family disowned her, and nobody is giving her any money.”
Aya interjected, "Sister, let's give her some money. If it's inconvenient for you, I'll take some of my own savings."
"No," I quickly stopped her. "At this critical juncture, don't cause any unnecessary trouble."
Now is a sensitive time; put away your saintly heart. The king will not allow anyone to help her; she has caused him to lose face.
The rain had stopped two hours earlier. I stood with a group of nobles at the entrance to the garden leading to the side gate of the palace, silently watching the Queen, battered and bruised, stagger away. The pale sunlight shone on her snow-white maid's dress, making it appear somewhat ashen and desolate.
Who will the king marry next?
"I heard he's taken a fancy to a woman from the Yod family."
"Ha, I heard Abdul is dying?"
"So the Yod family started frantically pushing young women into the king's bed?"
"The king also intends to choose the Yod family, and two women from the Duran family have made him lose face."
The nobles burst into laughter, and looked with ill intent at the poor queen who was about to leave the garden.
Two queens in a row had affairs with the prince; wouldn't that make the king lose face?
This prince's fate was also uncertain; many speculated he would die a violent death. Being exiled offered many such opportunities.
Several nobles suddenly noticed me and laughed even harder. Their laughter attracted more attention to me, so I lowered my head and left.
Instead of returning directly to the palace, I went to the prison. I looked at Dessen through the sturdy, filthy bars; Dessen was dressed in tattered clothes and his face was covered in dirt. "Save me!" he said with his eyes.
The jailers were watching him intently, and he couldn't speak, so he could only ask, "When will I leave the Eastern Territory?"
"Three days later." That's what I heard from Hero.
Three days later, he would be sent to that desolate land. Fear was evident in his eyes. He wasn't a fearless person; he had never lived outside the Eastern Royal Palace before, and now he was going to that harsh, desolate place. How could he not be afraid?
"Save me!" he said again with his eyes.
I looked at him helplessly. I really had no way to help him; I was just a weak woman.
Three days later, before dawn, Derson boarded the wagon bound for the wilderness. I was still asleep; no one informed me. When I awoke, the wagon was already far away.
“It was intentional,” Aya said indignantly. “Even we didn’t receive the news, so the king definitely doesn’t want you to see him off.”
Hero quickly told her to keep her voice down, "This is a sensitive time, so don't say anything bad about the king."
There was a sudden knock on the door, and before I could speak, the door was pushed open, and a group of tall, burly maids entered. The one in the lead said, "I'm sorry, Princess Lanna, you only have half an hour to prepare. After half an hour, please leave this palace immediately."
"Then where am I supposed to go?" I asked, filled with shock and anger.
"If you have your own house, you can move in. If not, you can move into an abandoned, uninhabited house in the palace. You can check with the head of the household to see which houses are vacant."
That's how I was driven out. With Derson exiled, I was no longer entitled to live in the prince's palace.
I sat motionless in the high-backed chair, while Hero and Aya hurriedly packed some clothes. The maids stared wide-eyed, as if afraid we would take away something that originally belonged to the palace.
I had some savings hidden away, in the pocket of a dress. Watching Aya put that dress into her suitcase, I secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
As I led Hero and Aya to the palace gate, we unexpectedly encountered another group of maids. The thin woman at the head of the group said to me respectfully, "Your Highness, Prince Bernot invites you to stay at his palace."
I paused for two seconds, then left.
Helok and Aya, carrying suitcases, followed me closely to the side gate of the palace. Helok said, "Your Highness, should we go ask the head of the household affairs department first?"
"No need, we won't stay in the palace."
I have a little money on me, which should be enough to last me a while.
As I stepped out of the side gate of the palace, I saw a patrol of guards not far away. Remembering that a war was still raging, I chuckled and said, "This king is really something. He's fighting over whether or not I should meet with the Elf King, yet he's also banishing me from the palace."
“The rules of the royal palace have always been strict,” Helo sighed. “When a prince is exiled, a princess who has not yet borne children cannot stay in the palace. If you have children, you can live there legitimately.”
"Can I leave the Eastern Territory?"
"I'm afraid not. The North is currently at war for you, and King Amur will not allow you to leave the East, not even the capital."
When I got to the city gate, sure enough, I was stopped. I was both annoyed and amused. "They kicked me out without leaving me any money, and now they won't let me out. These people are really something."
Anyway, we have to follow their rules; I have no right to say no.
“You will receive a royal allowance; it’s the rule,” Hero reassured me, “but it’s not much.”
"There's a subsidy too?" My spirits lifted immediately. "How much?"
"It's based on your level. You should receive 300 gold coins per month."
"You should have said so earlier," I breathed a heavy sigh of relief. "I thought I was going to be left with nothing."
Hero and Aya looked at each other, unable to understand what I was saying.
I straightened up immediately and took the two of them to a real estate agency in the city. We spent most of the day looking at houses, and after much deliberation, we finally settled on an old house in an upscale neighborhood. It was old, dilapidated, and small, but cheap.
Just as I was about to sign the contract, my hand was held down.
Bernard looked at me with displeasure. "You want to live in a house like this?"
I was taken aback for a moment. "Why are you here? Yes."
“I also have houses in the capital. You can live in whichever one you like.”
"I'm sorry, I will neither stay in your palace nor in any of your houses."
"Is it worth it for you to suffer for that ridiculous dignity?" Bernard mocked.
I ignored him, pushed his hand away, and was about to sign when he said again, "Can I rehire you as the director of that imperial school? I'll pay you a salary, and provide room and board."
I coldly signed my name on the rental agreement, "From the day we broke up, I never wanted to have anything to do with you again."
As for the time he climbed into my bed in the middle of the night, I had no choice; I couldn't refuse.
"You're so aloof, you've probably never experienced poverty, haven't you?" he sneered.
“I’ve always been working,” I mean in modern times, “you’ve probably never worked a job before, have you?”
"It will be very difficult for you to find a job in the capital."
"You don't need to worry about it."
That night, I took Hero and Aya to stay in that old, dilapidated little house, the oldest and smallest in the entire noble district, costing 100 gold coins a month—the cheapest. The wind howled in the middle of the night, blowing in through the broken windows and cracked doors. We huddled on the worn carpet, unable to sleep all night. Later, Aya got up to light a fire in the old fireplace, making the room a little warmer, and we were able to manage a short nap.
After daybreak, I contacted the house renovation workers and spent some of my own money to repaint the entire house and replace all the doors and windows. As for furniture, I asked around and found some second-hand sofas, beds, carpets, and tables and chairs.
After finally settling in, I leaned back on the sofa and dozed off for a while, only to hear that the Eastern Frontier had suffered another defeat. Hero knew through her contacts in the palace that King Amur looked particularly grim, but I just sneered, "Whether we win or lose is none of my business."
In the evening, Bernard visited. I tried to stop him from coming in, but he forced his way in. He smiled ingratiatingly and said to me, "I was thinking of having someone send you some things, like new sheets or new furniture, but then I thought about your temper and decided against it, so as not to make you even angrier."
"It's good that you understand." I said curtly.
"Don't treat me like that. We've been friends for a long time."
"Are you done talking? If you're done, then leave."
"You don't need to think about finding a job. A princess cannot work outside unless she works for the royal family. But since you refuse to accept the position at my palace school, you can't do anything."
“I’d rather stay at home than work for you.”
"It's up to you," he said with a smile. "If you don't have enough money, don't make yourself suffer. You don't need to ask me. Someone will send you money regularly. You just need to accept it."
"In what capacity are you sending me money?" I glanced at him sideways. No wonder King Amur said I had ways to make money, from men or some other channel.
"I will be whoever you choose to be."
“I don’t need your money,” I said, kicking him out. “I’ll come back to you when I’m starving. Don’t come looking for me again.”
It rained heavily again that night, and the wind was strong, but thankfully the doors and windows had been reinstalled. Hero and Aya were exhausted and went to bed early. I sat alone in the living room with the new carpet, fiddling with the fire in the old fireplace.
With a whoosh, the wind blew the window open. I got up to close it, but a letter flew into the room in a flash.
I quickly picked it up, unfolded it, and found it was the yellowed paper that Derson had shown me before, the one that was placed under the Book of Mystery.
He once said that the real key to my return to the modern world lies in this piece of paper. I looked at this piece of paper repeatedly at the time, but I didn't think there was anything special about it. There was only one line of small print on it, which read: "The cycle of life, the cycle of fate."
Why did he give me this piece of paper again? Did Derson give it to me? He wants my help, but I don't know how to help him, so he secretly ordered someone to give me this paper, hoping I can find something out from it.
But even if I do discover something, it will be related to returning to the modern world, and I still won't be able to save him. He should understand that.
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Author's Note: Thank you all for your support! Please also add my new novel, "Animal Farm," to your favorites!
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