The Evil Empress Adores Me - Chapter 103

Inquiring about the memorial service, I went to see the Empress. 

“Your Majesty, the Empress!”

“You’re here, Lize?”

The Empress immediately welcomed me while glancing at Damian with strangely squinted eyes. 

“But why has the Crown Prince come to the Empress’s palace?”

“It’s only natural for the thread to follow where the needle goes.”

Damian shrugged his shoulders with a cheeky face. 

“My fiancee is going, so of course, I have to go with her. Wouldn’t you agree?”

“….really, you’re beyond me.”

The Empress’s brow became wrinkled. 

“Come on, Charlize. And your Highness…”

The Empress, whose words had become blurred at the end, turned around as a cold gust of wind blew by. 

“Please step inside.”

I, the Empress, and Damian sat with steaming teacups in front of us. 

I started the conversation slowly. 

“Well, your Majesty, the Empress. This time, his Majesty has entrusted to me the responsibility of organizing a memorial service.”

“Yes, I’ve heard of it.”

Across the Empress’s fine forehead was a deep crease that dug itself in. 

“It’s likely his Majesty, the Emperor, did not bestow you the responsibility in good faith.”

“I agree with that.”

The Empress and Damian reached a consensus not long  into our conversation. 

And I agreed with them both. 

To be honest, it’s obvious, isn’t it? 

‘Perhaps he knew I wasn’t adequate yet to host an official imperial event and so intentionally entrusted this task to me.’

The mistakes I make will be directly correlated to Damian’s reputation. 

When I thought of those circumstances, my heart felt heavy like a hefty rock had been placed on top of it. 

“Above all, entrusting the memorial service to Charlize itself is…”

The Empress looked at me with a visible hint of concern in her eyes. 

“…in the eyes of the public, there’s a chance that Charlize would be seen as receiving preferential treatment.”

Oh. 

I blinked both eyes. 

‘It’s possible.’

This wouldn’t be a problem if I was appointed as the Crown Princess, but right now, I’m just his fiancee. 

Besides, due to my humble origins as a commoner maid, I wouldn’t be acknowledged by everyone. 

But anyway, it’s true that I’m the ‘prince’s fiancee,’ so the nobles have to treat me, a commoner, as their superior. 

It’s only natural that the nobles despise me for that. 

However, to find out I’m suddenly hosting a large-scale memorial service? 

‘They’ll more than likely think that I’m getting special treatment.’

I bit my lip. 

The Empress let out a short sigh at the same time. 

“Aside from that, it’s an inopportune time to hold a memorial service.”

“Inopportune time?”

“Yes. It’s still midwinter.”

Those dark green eyes anxiously looked at me. 

“Not only is the ground where the memorial grounds are located frozen and blanketed in snow, but the soil there is also exposed. Wouldn’t that seem negligent to those that’ll attend?”

Not expecting that, I dropped my shoulders. 

The Empress shook her head at the situation. 

“If you don’t do well, you’ll be cursed at for not taking proper care of our veterans despite the hard work you’ve given.”

…I see. 

Even so, I believe I’ve managed to survive in the Empress’s and the Imperial palaces for quite some time, where challenging issues are perpetually present. 

‘There’s always been something lurking around the corner, just waiting to happen. That said, the Emperor’s evil machinations are endless.’

Feeling somewhat downcast by it all, I didn’t say a word, remaining silent. 

Restless, the Empress and Damian spoke to me. 

“Charlize, are you all right?”

“I know it’s a heavy weight to bear, but you don’t have to be discouraged.”

“The Prince is right. I’ll help you somehow…” 

“I’ll also support you as much as I can.”

“Charlize, don’t you trust me?”

Both the Empress and Damian tried to comfort me. 

Listening to their encouraging words one after the other, I slowly lifted my head. 

Two sets of worried-looking eyes were fixed on me. 

In the end, I don’t want to cause those two to worry about me.

I smiled. 

“Sure.”

Well, I can’t just keep sulking like this, now can I? 

I opened my mouth with a lively expression. 

“Her Majesty, the Empress, and His Highness, the Crown Prince, are with me.”

“Of course. You have our support.”

“Yes, we’ll come up with something!”

The Empress and Damian nodded with enthusiasm. 

Then they stared at each other. 

Both of them wore disgusted expressions upon being lumped together under the word ‘we.’

At that sight, I burst out laughing. 

The two of them turned their heads towards me to hear me now wheezing. 

“Lize, you’re laughing? You’re laughing!”

“Thank God. Charlize looks better with a smile on her face.”

It warmed my heart to see the two of them talking to me at the same time. 

I nodded. 

“Well, I’m going to do the best I can.”

“Yes, now that’s our brave Charlize.”

The Empress replied in a voice conveying relief and warm approval. 

“As I said before, I help you as much as I can, so you won’t have to worry much.”

“Thank you, your Majesty.”

Yes, the Empress is with me. 

I had a radiant expression. 

Meanwhile, Damian’s gaze alternated between me and the Empress with a dour look. 

Then he muttered coldly. 

“Somehow, I feel strangely left out.”

“Hey, what are you talking about?”

I hurriedly tried to appease Damian. 

But then, the Empress poured cold water onto Damian with a victorious smile. 

“Haha, Prince. There are certain things that only women can talk about with each other.”

“Um, your Highness?”

Damian turned his head the other way without giving a response. 

…is it just me or does Damian seem to be sulking a lot lately?

Either way, it’s going to take a lot to get Damian out of that mood. 

Well, anyway. 

Whatever comes next, let’s do our best. 

It’s not like he’s going to die from sulking, right? 

***

…but my motivation didn’t last a single day. 

That’s because there were all kinds of headlines that started talking about me in an expressive manner. 

And in a negative way too. 

‘The Crown Prince’s Fiancee Snatches Away Veteran’s Memorial Service!’

‘The Fiancee’s Unreasonable Behavior — An Imperial Official Who Has Requested Anonymity, Expresses Displeasure at the Partiality Shown.’ 

‘The Crown Prince’s Fiancee — Commoner and Maid, Has Neither Experience nor Knowledge to Hold Large-Scale Memorial Service.’

I closed my eyes the more I read, eventually closing the newspaper I was reading. 

No, I’m not to blame!

I didn’t want to hold the memorial service in the first place!

Obviously, at first, I decided to do everything I could but…

‘How does one remain optimistic when all they receive from the start is negativity!’

Furious, I threw the newspaper on the table. 

“This is just too much!”

Of course, those newspapers were gossip papers that mainly dealt in, well, gossip. 

But, there’s nothing advantageous about having your reputation go up and down in a negative direction. 

‘More importantly, the people who would buy those kinds of papers were the common people.’

I pressed a finger on my throbbing temple. 

Despite the humiliation that came from those articles posted by gossip papers, a real effort to somehow undercut my standing with the common citizenry was revealed. 

Given the fact that the biggest supporters Damian had were the common people. 

‘…it must have been the Emperor’s doing.’

I held back my anger, just glaring at the newspapers stacked on the table. 

I mean he’s only diligent about things like this, when it comes to his subjects, he has no interest in them or governing state affairs. 

It’s because of things like that, the future of the Winsor empire under him looks bleak. 

But then. 

“Lize, are you okay?”

Damian asked me in a worried voice. 

Oh, right. 

I was with Damian. 

I was so irritated, I forgot that. 

I smiled and nodded hastily. 

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Still…”

“I said I was fine, right? I’m much more concerned about his Highness’s demeanor.”

“…yes, I see.”

Damian loosened his expression a tad. 

I buried myself on the sofa, before gesturing to the newspapers stacked on the table. 

“I couldn’t handle those articles all at once. 

Damian nodded his head, understanding me. 

“It’s wiser to focus on the problem at hand.”

“If it’s the problem at hand then…”

“The budget for the memorial service was set way too small.”

The moment I saw the budget fixed for this memorial service, I realized how despicable the Emperor was.  

How can he be so stingy when it comes to setting a proper budget for the memorial service but no expenses are spared when it comes to the cost of driving the people’s opinion? 

Ugh, that cheapskate! Give me the money I need for this!

After clenching my teeth, I sighed deeply. 

“The first thing that comes to mind is to plant grass all over the frozen ground. I personally want it all covered with grass, even if the public at large isn’t concerned about it.”  

It’s all meant for the bereaved families of the veterans.  

How miserable would it be to see the memorial monument, all by itself on a patch of frozen ground? 

“I also think that’s our most urgent priority. But where do we find grass in the middle of winter?” Damian questioned. 

“That’s what I’m saying.”

I nodded heavily as I racked my brain. 

First, there’s no way grass can grow in this cold weather. 

Second, even if we were able to get grass from the warmer southern territories, it would cost us a fortune, more than we could ever afford right now. ”  

Third, with our budget set by the Emperor, I doubted whether the memorial service could be held when the budget was set to be as tight as possible. 

The bottom line is that no matter how much you rack your head over this, there is no solution. 

Oh, what do you want me to do?!