Chapter 15, an adventure that took me back in time—!! ...
The warm sunlight shone on the snow-white corridor, and a glance upwards revealed the solid triangular structure inside and outside the palace.
The Norlana royal family favors gold and white, and this color scheme can be seen everywhere in the royal city.
The courtiers would enter the royal city at dawn, at the sound of roosters crowing, and respectfully sit around the queen, telling her one story and reason after another.
After listening to everyone's remarks, the king would offer his own insightful opinions and inform them of the final decision on each matter, or delegate the decision-making power to the specific person in charge.
Eva of Norlana was a very diligent monarch in her early years.
She shared the same name as the god of wisdom and was given high expectations from birth. In her childhood, she read extensively from classics of various countries. She had to get up at 5 a.m. to study and listen to the teachings of various mentors.
What is even more commendable is that this monarch was also a man of both literary and military talent.
When she was just 20 years old, she personally led an army to repel the invading Hetuya cavalry and even went deep into the territory to capture the minor chieftains of its vassal city-states.
Eva's fame peaked at the age of 30, and no one, either domestically or internationally, dared to challenge her.
Unfortunately, all the good things came to an end after his ascension to the throne. Why must the greatest enemy kill the hero?
When the previous monarch passed away, Eva, who became the new queen, did not continue the diligent governance she had in her youth.
She swiftly deposed the rigid first empress, leaving her to die alone in confinement, and then married the more lively and charming second and third empresses...
It's much more comfortable to get up from my beloved and my bed after the sun is high in the sky than to deal with government affairs day and night.
Eva, once known as the "Wise King" by the Nolana people, quickly became obsessed with hunting and fine wine, and casually favored corrupt officials and treacherous ministers.
She wasn't oblivious to the bad intentions of those people, but she ignored them as long as it allowed her to have fun; someone would always do the work anyway.
Therefore, if Norlana courtiers wish to pay homage to this king, they are better off not waiting anxiously during the morning court session.
Whether Eva will go or not is another matter, and even if she does, she's often drunk and talking in her sleep. It's better to wait until she sobers up around noon and goes to her private room when she's in the best mood.
"Hmm...is that all?" A beautiful woman with slender eyebrows and eyes leaned against the couch, her long left hand teasing the petite girl in her arms like petting a cat.
Her black hair cascaded down her back, and her beautiful collarbones and arms outlined a captivating curve. If it weren't for the faintly visible muscles on her body, no one would guess that such a carefree person was once the White Knight Death, who had dominated the battlefield.
"Ugh~" Eva kicked the plate away listlessly, and a pile of fresh fruit rolled onto the floor.
She sighed, leaned most of her body on the shoulder of the girl who dared not speak, and mumbled a strawberry in her mouth, "Those herders are like wild dogs, what are you worried about? Are the border troops I raise just for eating? If you don't have enough money, just give them more to feed them."
"Yes, but where exactly will the money and food come from..." Finance Minister Kurdona said with a forced smile, standing next to Eva and occasionally stealing glances at the king's expression.
Eva pursed her lips and said nothing.
She refused to specify whether the money was intended for feeding the herdsmen, the border troops, or everyone, nor did she indicate whether it would come from the public treasury or the private treasury. Everything was left for the ministers to decide, and the king was never wrong.
Kurdona was already used to the king's so-called methods of managing subordinates, but she still couldn't help gritting her teeth: Delay, so what if it's delaying? I'll delay with you!
Just as the emperor and his ministers were locked in a stalemate, a silvery laugh rang out from afar.
The king's brows relaxed slightly, and the attendant smiled and lifted the curtain to welcome the little princess, who was taking small, quick steps.
"Greetings, Mother!" The little princess, dressed like a festive doll, suddenly pounced on Eva's lap.
She was dressed in a colorful little dress, and her lips were smeared with her own concoction of balm. Her fluttering movements were as endearing and cute as a cat's.
"Okay, baby." Eva hugged her daughter like a cat, and the concubine next to her took the opportunity to climb down from the long couch so that the mother and daughter could be affectionate.
"Hehe." Eleanor chuckled foolishly, then suddenly picked up a gift box decorated with golden bells.
Eva yawned and pulled the gift box over: "New stuff? The perfume you made last time was pretty good, what's this this time?"
Eleanor smiled but didn't say anything, letting her mother lift the lid herself.
Before she turned ten, due to headaches and her age, she had only "invented" a few things, with soap and balm being the most useful ones.
However, the results were not as good as expected.
Firstly, this world itself has all kinds of perfumes and balms. Although the shelf life is short, the royal family doesn't care about this flaw. As long as it's fragrant and moisturizing enough, that's fine.
Secondly, she lay listlessly in her room all day long, and no one understood the benefits of soap. What's the point of cleaning or preventing disease? Who cares?
Of course, the chefs and servants loved using these soaps, since the little princess was willing to distribute them for free.
Eleanor knew that the recipes for soaps and moisturizers would, over time, be labeled as royal purports and gradually spread to the common people, generating substantial profits.
But that was more than a decade later; a distant solution can't quench an immediate thirst.
As things stand, Eva is one of the people who appreciates her the most. The king was covered in moisturizing cream, and she smelled much better than the concubine next to him.
Wang opened the box and took out a roll of parchment.
As Eva turned the parchment, many metal buttons jingled and fell out.
"What is this?"
“This is Ludo!” Eleanor answered her mother sweetly, taking out delicate dice to demonstrate the rules to her.
She placed the simple polished button chess pieces onto the drawing and moved them one by one: "These are flying elves. You have to roll a 6 to fly around the big elf mother and then you can move as many steps as you roll."
"When the elves meet, they pull each other around. If the one behind touches the one in front, the one in front will be thrown back home."
“Oh~” Eva nodded slowly: “Interesting, are those scrolls at the back also part of the Ludo game?”
"No, it's something newer and more useful."
Eleanor wasn't here to play games today. She unfolded the blueprints in front of her, which depicted an improved plow and waterwheel.
"What's this?" Eva glanced at it and then continued playing with the gold chess piece.
Eleanor wasn't surprised. Her mother knew nothing about farming and had absolutely no interest in it.
Moreover, the people of the Moonlit Continent had a far less advanced understanding of agriculture than those on Earth at the same time. Relying on their fertile land, they even used a method of sowing seeds by scattering them with pigeons, completely relying on the heavens for a harvest.
Although the people's suffering has multiple causes, from a modern, biased perspective: these people frantically sowed seeds in vast tracts of barren land during the spring planting season, and casually weeded without applying fertilizer at other times, so it is only natural that they would go hungry in the winter.
“It’s a very interesting thing.” Eleanor showed it to her and then put away the scroll behind it.
She pressed her knee against Eva's and leaned closer, whispering, "Mother, could I go to Enlin earlier? I have so many interesting things I want to do there!"
"Oh?" It sounds like the little girl is just fantasizing about an advanced version of playing house.
Eva relaxed and picked up the wine glass next to her, taking a sip: "Ha~ We'll talk about it after you get married, and let your prince play with you."
It's a prince again, there's no way around it now, is there?
Eleanor could only manage a wry smile. She grabbed her mother's arm and said sweetly, "I can go by myself~"
"Heh, how are you going to get there?" Eva picked up a cherry that had fallen on the table and popped it into her mouth.
"I—I can drink the blessed water too! I'm only 10 years old!" The little princess clenched her fist and said this in a charmingly coquettish way.
However, as soon as the words left her mouth, everyone looked over, even Eva frowned.
Wang snorted coldly: "Who's talking nonsense in your ear?"
"......"
As expected, this is the outcome.
Eleanor was not surprised; similar potions to the Water of Grace were available everywhere, but commoners needed permission from local officials to drink them, while princesses needed the king's approval.
For commoners, restrictions are simple: the state must consider the issue of childbirth. For royalty, restrictions are even simpler: the struggle for succession.
The room was silent as the ministers lowered their heads to examine the patterns on the carpet.
Eleanor couldn't see their expressions, but she imagined they were all grinning and sneering: "You drank the Water of Grace, so you're the crown prince now? Do you want us, the ones who placed our bets early, to be the clowns?!"
Eleanor suddenly felt uneasy. She had so many things to do in the future, and she didn't have time to play palace intrigue games with this group of people.
Her reason for wanting to drink the blessed water was simple: to solve the problem of "not being trusted." If drinking it would bring more problems, she'd rather not drink it at all.
Fortunately... I still have it.
Eleanor quietly pinched the pendant around her neck, looked up at Eva's ambiguous gaze, and flashed a sweet smile.
"Mother, I don't want to take my sister's things." She pouted like a spoiled child. "I don't want to get married. I want to go to Enlin as soon as possible! Even if... even if you make my sister the crown princess first!"
The tense atmosphere eased slightly.
She's only 10 years old, after all. No one would believe that she was thinking all of these things herself... right?
Eleanor's back was gradually becoming soaked with sweat, and she had a strong premonition:
If she really did seem ambitious before, she must revert to a previous state immediately to avoid losing a life.
“Oh, I see. Well then, my answer is—” Eva said in her usual flippant tone, ruffling her hair with her hand.
"No way," Wang said with a smile, rejecting the idea.
"......" Why? My actions are clearly very similar to those in my previous life.
Eleanor silently compared the differences between her two lives. In her previous life, she had only played with Andra for two years before pestering her mother to let her build her own team.
Is it because of the blessed water that someone is being instigated behind the scenes by someone with ulterior motives?
Eleanor looked up at her mother, her voice tinged with sadness, and said, "Well, then I'll always be Mommy's little princess. But classes are so boring! Can I choose some interesting tutors?"
Eva paused for a moment, then withdrew her hand with a half-smile and lay back down on the couch.
"Sure," she said in the same lazy tone as in her past life, "Go ahead, find a few people and give me the list. You can put whoever you want on it, yawn~"
If the option to use the Water of Grace is withdrawn, will the outcome for Mother be similar to what happened in her previous life...?
Eleanor blinked and innocently replied, "Okay~"
Unsettling...very unsettling.
Although I don't know what I did wrong or who I offended for no reason, I'm still uneasy.
Eleanor didn't linger with Eva for long.
She quickly finished her greetings, happily lifted her skirt to say goodbye, and only started trembling when she hugged Coral's waist after walking outside the door.
......
I felt uneasy; my heart was still pounding.
Eleanor returned to her chambers and ate and bathed in intense unease, only feeling a little better after being wrapped in blankets.
She lay in bed, continuing to review the day's mistakes:
Today, aside from the "gift of water," there seems to be no room for error in what one says or does.
She made it clear to her mother and ministers that she disregarded the throne, and since she was also Myrcella's blood sister, those who had bet on their third sister had no reason to target her.
If the mother keeps her word and she doesn't encounter any other danger, this seems like a pretty good start?
She can use her status as a princess to cultivate her own team, laying a solid foundation in the royal city before heading to Enlin.
As for the task of defending Norlana—let's trust the wisdom of our sisters first.
Mycelia, as the Crown Prince of Nolana, you need to do something for me!
"Hoo-hoo~"
Eleanor breathed a sigh of relief, feeling completely convinced.
Don't be afraid, don't be afraid, I've done enough.
"Coral, I want some water~"
The little princess called out, and then came the sound of footsteps in the darkness.
A steaming cup of tea was handed over at just the right time. Everyone knew that Princess Nolana's favorite drink was leaf tea brewed with boiling water.
Eleanor opened her mouth, letting the waiter in the darkness lift her neck and pour her tea.
A slightly sweet taste rolls down your throat, and then—it's spicy!
No, it's not spicy, it's painful!
Eleanor looked up, her vision blurred, and a line of blood spurted from the corner of her lips.
You are not coral!
Heidi...why did you kill me?
The figure in the darkness became distorted; it seemed as if she was covering her mouth and crying, or perhaps she was turning around and shouting something.
"Ha...woo!" Eleanor gripped the pendant tightly, feeling the world tremble.
God—Mom—let me go back in time—!!
A note from the author:
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