✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
Translated by: Alina
✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧
‘There’s plenty of space; there’s no need to sit next to anyone..’
I took a seat on the lone sofa that stood between the two long sofas.
“Archduke, have you been waiting long?”
He smiled and nodded. “Yes, I waited for nearly an hour.”
“Then why didn’t you just leave?”
Reinhardt glanced at me, his eyes twinkling. “It’s customary to wait when meeting someone of importance. Besides, the Duke kept me occupied.”
As I expected, it was all just his pretentiousness.
Just as I began to feel the return of Erich’s usefulness for the first time since my regression, I asked Reinhardt, “So, where is the peach tree?”
Naturally, I intended to have the tree transferred to my villa.
“Oh, we haven’t brought it yet.”
Reinhardt casually replied to my question.
‘Is he joking with me right now?’
At that moment, Reinhardt smiled and said, “To plant it, we need permission from the landowner.”
Ah, I had forgotten this basic fact.
While flowers may seem insignificant, trees are considered property.
When exchanging trees for gifts, it was customary to fill out transfer documents and obtain permission documents.
“Alright, please show me the documents.”
He approached me with the documents, kneeling down and presenting them with a sense of formality.
“Here they are.”
Although it seemed overly elaborate for a simple handover, I accepted the documents.
‘Now, time to review…’
As I was inspecting the transfer documents, I furrowed my brow.
Reinhardt was awkwardly standing besides me, looking at the documents.
“Archduke, why aren’t you getting up?”
He chuckled, leaning against the armrest of the sofa. “Oh, if you have any questions, please let me know right away.”
‘What is he up to?’
I’m not particularly quick-witted, but I knew Reinhardt was up to something.
Observing Reinhardt, I thought to myself, ‘What kind of scheme is he plotting? It seems like he has a purpose for flaunting his handsome appearance…’
With his platinum blonde hair glowing like the moon, slightly drooping golden eyes, and delicate features, he was undeniably the most sought-after groom in high society.
However, the problem was that I was accustomed to seeing a face so perfect that I couldn’t compare it to anything else, namely my husband, Erich Lennon Blant.
‘Honestly, that man is undeniably handsome.’
In fact, I couldn’t recall seeing anyone more attractive than Erich, at least among the nobility.
Oh, when you think about it, there is one person more handsome than Erich.
My son, Demian.
Such trivial thoughts crossed my mind momentarily.
‘Regardless of whether Reinhardt gives me a gift or not, there’s no reason to overstep boundaries.’
Rejecting Reinhardt’s charm, I expressed my feelings. “It’s burdensome. Please return to your seat.”
Although it wasn’t a request but rather an order, Reinhardt happily returned to his seat with a smile.
‘Something seems off.’
I carefully examined the transfer documents to see if he had played any tricks.
Then Reinhardt called out to me. “Your Highness, are there any clauses you don’t understand?”
I furrowed my brow at his words.
‘Does he think I’m illiterate? And why does he keep calling me “Your Highness”…’
In the Empire, when a woman marries, she follows her husband’s status. It’s a rule of the social hierarchy.
And this applied to me, a princess, as well, as the nobles referred to me as ‘Duchess Blant.’
‘Last time, I didn’t notice because I was inexperienced, but… this is definitely strange, isn’t it?’
While the Empress, who disliked Erich, continued to refer to me as a princess, Reinhardt should address me as Duchess Blant.
However, he still showed me respect and acted as if he were superior, making me feel uncomfortable for no reason.
‘And… twenty trees? That’s excessive.’
One tree would have been a manageable gift, but twenty trees are equivalent to a small farm.
‘If I receive such a gift, it will surely be the talk of the town.’
Rather than signing a document, I voiced my opinion.
“I thought it was just one tree, but this is too many. I can’t accept this. I don’t have a place to plant them.”
“If it’s land owned by Your Highness, it should be quite spacious.”
“What nonsense. I was planning to plant them at the mansion.”
Yes. The reason I wanted to receive the peach trees so badly was precisely to plant them at this damn Duke Blant’s mansion.
‘I can harvest them anytime and see my mother-in-law’s wrinkled face.’
The reason I wanted to accept these peach trees from this detestable man.
If I were to say that I received them as a gift from Archduke Reinhardt, the matriarch couldn’t just refuse them, and I judged that they would make a truly splendid gift.
However, as one tree turns into twenty, the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. There was no need to accept them.
I looked at Reinhardt and spoke up.
“There’s no need to go through all this trouble. Let’s just not accept this gift.”
Upon hearing this, Reinhardt sighed, took the documents, and placed them in the bag he had brought.
“Since Your Highness insists so strongly, I suppose there’s no choice.”
Then Reinhardt looked at me and smiled brightly.
“In that case, I will give you at least one tree.”
“There’s no need for that, Archduke.”
By the way, this wasn’t me speaking.
It was suddenly interrupted by Erich, who had been quiet all this time.
‘Wait, receiving one tree would’ve been fine. Why is he making such a fuss? Could it be because the matriarch doesn’t like it?’
When I narrowed my eyes and glared at him,
Knock knock—
At the sound of a knock, Erich responded, “Come in.”
Soon, the servants entered, carrying baskets filled with something.
I widened my eyes in surprise.
‘Huh? Peaches and apricots, plums too?’
As I watched all my favorite fruits being brought in, Erich’s laughter-filled voice rang out.
“When it comes to fruit, we have a lot.”
Even in my moment of bewilderment, I noticed something odd.
‘Wait, these fruits aren’t in season right now, are they?’
It’s May now.
In the Empire, harvesting peaches and plums before July is truly unusual, unless you live in a warm southern country where it’s possible year-round.
‘Are they imported?’
Reinhardt seemed to have the same thought as me, and he furrowed his brow before speaking up.
“In the Empire, it’s not yet the peach and plum harvest season. Did you import them from the Kurt Kingdom?”
Unlike the peaches in the Empire, which are sweet and ripen slowly, Kurt Kingdom peaches are tasteless and quickly spoil.
Therefore, people more frequently used them to make jams than to eat them fresh.
‘Surely they’re imported, right?’
Well, even if they were imported, it didn’t matter. Just being able to eat peaches now was enough.
But Erich denied it.
“Is that possible? They’re all from the Empire, I brought them from the orchards near the estate I acquired.”
“What? Peaches are already available at an orchard near your estate? Could it be that they are not in season now and you imported them instead?”
“Greenhouse.”
Interrupting Reinhardt’s words, Erich spoke with a relaxed expression.
“Grown in a glass greenhouse, the peaches ripened well.”
‘Ah, I’ve heard of such places.’
Now that I think about it, the palace grows peaches in a greenhouse, so they could eat them all year round.
However, due to the high cost of glass and the complexity of construction, building a greenhouse was quite expensive from the start.
Therefore, even if nobles built greenhouses, they usually kept them small enough to plant flowers.
‘But why did they plant peaches in the greenhouse all of a sudden?’
As I was pondering, Erich spoke to Reinhardt.
“It doesn’t seem necessary to have peach trees that haven’t even borne fruit yet, Archduke. As you can see, our estate never lacks fruit.”
Only then did I realize Erich’s intention and chuckle.
‘Ah, so that’s it.’
Usually, nobles welcome expensive gifts, but if they’re excessive, they think like this.
‘Do they see me as a beggar?’
That’s what it means.
‘Moreover, even if it’s a small gift, it could still raise eyebrows.’
Growing up as a royal, I was accustomed to genuine goods, but now I am the wife of a Duke.
One could view receiving such a gift from a man as a flaw.
Erich, who is sharp-witted, must have realized it long ago and tried to intercept it beforehand.
‘Just in case, to prevent any inappropriate incidents between me and Reinhardt.’
