Chapter 16 - Slowly Building Trust

"Empress." The advisor bows, trying hard to conceal a smile and failing tremendously.

"Seungmin." She smiles back. "By your expression, I would dare say you missed me!"

"My study was indeed quite empty without you, Your Highness." He chuckles lightly, standing up and pulling a chair, helping her sit down.

"How so, was there no one else to disrupt your peace?" Aristia chuckles.

"Exactly that. Jisung sometimes plays the part, but I find your presence a tad more enjoyable than his."

"Oh, my, how flattering." She laughs softly, Seungmin joining her.

"By the way, Your Highness, congratulations on your pregnancy. I bet you are elated."

"Thank you, Seungmin." She replies, her hand pressing gently against her stomach, but truth is, she is more anxious than excited. "Since the Empire is a monarchy, this would mean that... unless my child would be born male, it wouldn't be able to rule, is that correct?"

"Indeed, Your Highness." Seungmin nods.

"That's not completely fair, is it?" She chuckles slightly dejected. The last thing she wants is for the baby in her womb to share her fate, to become a disappointment to her father and to the people of the Empire only because of its gender.

"No, it's not. However, with the way things are as of now, it's unlikely for that to change." He picks up a book and opens it, beginning to read. "Today's subject will be on bookkeeping and the budget allocated to the Palace."

Aristia nods, however, all throughout the lesson, she can't stop thinking of the gender roles in the Empire. She's been reflecting for a while about how unjust it is that women's only role is to get married and produce children for their husbands, and she remembers Amelia's issue from before she gave her the emerald mine.

Amelia is a smart woman; however, her family didn't even consider her as an integral part of their estate; they wanted to marry her off because that's the only thing she could bring to the table. And compared to most women in the country, Amelia is a knowledgeable woman because she is part of the nobility and has access to education, which is unfortunately not the case for the common folk.

"Seungmin, what if we were to use the profits generated by the emerald mine to open up an academy for girls?" Aristia suggests after a little while of consulting the budget.

"Are you even paying attention to this lesson?" He shakes his head in disapproval.

"It's still about the budgeting, isn't it? Or rather – how to allocate those extra funds we got thanks to me." She retorts.

"Why not use it for something, I don't know, better, maybe?" He asks, and the tone he uses rubs Aristia the wrong way.

"What, do you think women can't be clever? Don't you think I'm smart?" She asks plainly.

"It's not that, I think you're brilliant, but-"

"HA!" She exclaims in triumph, cutting Seungmin off and making him jolt. "You admitted it to my face!"

He clicks his tongue and rolls his eyes, clearly a bit annoyed by Aristia's interruption.

"As I was saying, I'm certain women can be clever, however, by the way things are in the Empire, who's even going to attend this academy, Your Highness?"

"Well, I guess we simply have to change the whole system, then." She shrugs, then resumes reading and working on the documents Seungmin provided, ignoring his questioning gaze.

~

"A girls-only academy?" Chris asks, as if taken aback by the idea.

It's way too late in the night for this discussion, but ever since Aristia got the idea stuck in her head, she couldn't think of anything else. Not even now, while lying in bed next to her husband.

She's been thinking about it for a few weeks now, numerous details on how to make it a reality, and she has as an additional plan she still hasn't mentioned to Chris yet, but all things must unfold at their own pace.

"Yes. What do you think?" She pecks his neck softly, her hand travelling on his naked torso.

"Love, are you trying to sweet talk me into it?" He chuckles slightly, turning around and getting on top of her, kissing her neck back and grazing her skin with his teeth.

"Mhm, and what if I am?" She grins, but as he moves lower, giving her chest open mouth kisses, she grabs his face and pulls him back up.

"Oh, so you're quite serious about this." He chuckles again, noticing her determined gaze and the burning in his eyes.

Once more, his heart starts beating faster, and he feels like falling in love with her all over again.

"I wouldn't have brought it up to you if I wasn't serious." Her mouth turns into a fake pout. "Seungmin says it's stupid, though."

"Why?" He plops down next to her, supporting his head with his left hand.

"He says no one would attend it." She lets out a long sigh. "I simply think it's unfair that women are seen as less-than. Have you ever spoken to a man? God, that's boring and dense."

Chris starts chuckling at her antics.

"Yeah, unfortunately, I have to talk to all sorts of men on a daily basis. Some of them are indeed simple-minded."

"They're so easily fooled, too." She shrugs again.

"Is this how you fooled me, then?" Chris laughs. "Was I that obtuse to you?"

"Oh, please!" She playfully slaps his chest.

"I'm serious, though! Do you know what I.N. said? He told me I've always been bad at chess because I keep trying to defend you, instead of realising you're the one holding the most power on the board." Chris chuckles again, shaking his head.

"Wait, is I.N. that guy who found me and Alice?"

"Yes. That rascal."

"Pfft." Aristia lets out a chuckle. "Who is he, exactly? I saw that he also has a spot at your table."

"Jeongin is... it's complicated, really. He was born and raised by a family of spies in the Kingdom of the North, and that kid hasn't known anything resembling love, so he's grown up to be quite... sceptic and defiant."

"Sounds like a rough childhood." Aristia sympathises. She's also barely known any love, and understands how hard it is to trust others because of it. Even now, lying next to Chris who's confessed his love multiple times, who's even forgiven one of the gravest sins someone could commit against him, she still finds it hard to put all her trust in him.

However, she's learning to trust him, and she's even found herself trusting a handful of people around her – like Seungmin, Changbin, her maids, and even Amelia and Victoria.

"Mhm. We found him when he was 10. He was sent on a mission here in the Empire, to assassinate a duke who's committed various crimes against his Kingdom. Lucky for him, we were also investigating that duke, since we found some proof of embezzlement. He was running an underground operation trading slaves, which, as you know, is illegal in the Empire."

"Sending a 10 year old to assassinate a duke? That's... messed up." Aristia shudders.

"I thought so, too. When he came here, though, I was roughly older than him. My father was alive back then, and he initially planned to execute him for trespassing in the Empire, and for complotting against a duke. His assassination attempt was unsuccessful, though." Chris continues explaining.

"So... how did he end up working for you, then?"

"I visited him in the dungeon and surprisingly, he actually opened up and told me it's heartbreaking to see that life in the Empire is so much better compared to his Kingdom. He saw happy people and something broke in him, I think." Chris smiles sadly. "Eventually, I convinced my father to give him a chance to stay here."

"That's... very sweet of you, Chris. Your heart is made of gold." Aristia moves, putting her head on his shoulder and breathing in his scent.

"Now, now. Stop the flattery." He laughs. "Tell me more about your idea with the academy."

"Really?" Her eyes light up. "Alright. Uhm, I was thinking of using the profits from the emerald mine, and maybe even offering each family a small allowance to convince them to send their daughters to school. If they don't want to do it for their girls' education, they'll surely do it for money."

"You really thought it through." Chris chuckles. "Alright, and who will manage this academy?"

"I was thinking of putting Amelia in charge, and Victoria could help oversee the administrative work. Her family owns a lot of buildings throughout the Capital."

"That's definitely a start. However, you are aware that your standing in front of the court officials is not great right now..." Chris contemplates.

"That's why I was thinking of starting somewhere else first. I've been noticing a discrepancy in the way the budget has been handled throughout the Capital, and as you know, there is currently an issue within the districts in the outskirts. They barely receive any money, there's a lot of homeless people living in the streets, and also, a lot of orphaned children with nowhere to go. With how prosperous our economy's been in the past decades, it makes no sense for that to be." Aristia continues.

"Mhm. Lots of families have lost their bread winners because of the war, and I'm afraid they haven't been properly compensated." Chris lets out a long sigh. "Jisung's brought it to my attention a while ago, however, with the impending war, we sort of neglected this issue."

"Well, I think it's time we stop neglecting the common folk. They need help. We could open some shelters and orphanages in the slums using some of the extra funds from our palace, and the Silverstones would definitely assist us with this. I could go oversee the districts with Victoria, and-"

"Absolutely not. You are not going there again. You do remember what happened last time you ended up there." Chris immediately counters, to which Aristia lets out a scoff.

"Chris, I am serious about this. I will take guards with me this time. Why not Jeongin? Maybe he'd stop being so wary of me if I were to show him that I am willing to help children who'd otherwise grow up without knowing any sort of love or safety." She retorts.

"I don't know, Aristia. Sure, your plan is great, but it's too dangerous." He shakes his head. "Let someone else go."

"No. I want to go and see for myself." She furrows her brows. "I need to do this myself, Chris. It's my project. Please understand."

"God, you are so determined and convincing!" Chris laughs off. "Fine, go to the slums, but you have to take Changbin and Victor too."

"And Jeongin."

"He won't want to go accompany you, love."

"He has no choice, as long as you command him to come with me." She counters.

"You are literally impossible." He chuckles. "Alright, I will make sure Jeongin is available."

"Great! I'll send letters to Victoria and Amelia, then!" She smiles gleefully, her tone brimming with a sense of triumph.

~

"Your Highness, I apologise, however, there is no way I would ever accompany her." Jeongin immediately puffs.

"I.N, this is a command." Chris says calmly. "The Empress herself has requested this."

"What am I, a dog?" He scoffs, looking at Aristia in disdain.

"No, you are one of the Empire's subjects, and your Empress needs you."

"She is not my Empress." He squints his eyes, challenging Chris further, moment when Aristia begins to speak.

"Ouch." She places her hand against her chest, mimicking heartache. "Such harsh words coming from someone so young"

"You're one to speak..." He continues disagreeing.

"Anyway," Aristia ignores him completely, "we need to make haste. Victoria's waiting in the Capital. Let's go."

Reluctantly, Jeongin bows at the Emperor and follows closely behind Aristia.

"What's with your clothes?" He asks, looking at her modest dress and cape.

"I don't want us to draw much attention today. This outing is a secret."

"Yet you're bringing so many guards with you."

"Chris insisted on having Changbin and Victor join us, but they will follow us from behind, so don't worry. It's just you and me." She winks, as they make their way outside of the castle and get into a carriage.

Their first stop is in the centre of the capital, where Victoria is waiting for them in front of a large building.

"So, what do you think, Ari?" She smiles proudly, crossing her arms in front of her chest. "Isn't this beautiful?"

"Ari..." Jeongin murmurs with a shake of his head.

"Yes, this is perfect!" Aristia exclaims. "How did your family react when you requested we use this building?"

As they walk through the hallways, Aristia opens each and every door to check how the rooms could be transformed to accommodate the future students and teachers, as well as which ones could be turned into classrooms.

"Well, my father was not that happy at first, but after telling him of your plan, he was quite impressed. He's always believed in education." She explains.

"I'm glad. Having Mr. Silverstone's support is extremely important. Now, what about the other business I asked you to take care of?"

"Well, since we don't have any buildings in those areas, this means an investment... However, I overviewed our family budget and we could easily afford to purchase 3 buildings. My father also agreed with us getting involved in this project."

"Good job, Victoria. You did well." Aristia praises her friend. "Well, then, we have to go check out the other area. Have you prepared what I asked you to?"

"Yes. My guards should've already loaded everything into the carriage."

"Good. I will see you in a few days, then, and Amelia should get here shortly to see the building as well."

Victoria bows slightly, then sees Aristia and Jeongin out, who hop back in the carriage.

"Why did she address you so casually?" He asks curiously.

"I told you, the fact that we're here is a secret. I am simply visiting as Victoria's friend today."

"What's in that large sack?" He inquires further, scrunching his nose. "Bread? Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

~

About an hour later, their carriage stops in the middle of the road, and as they get out, Jeongin is shocked to find himself in the slums, somewhere in District 9.

"Your Highness-" he whispers, but she cuts him off.

"I told you, haven't I? Address me as Ari while we're here."

"Anyway, what are we doing here? It's dangerous for you to be here..." He shakes his head.

"I won't cause you any trouble, Jeongin, so don't worry." She laughs his comment off.

"I'm just saying, this place is-" As he starts speaking, a child bumping into Aristia interrupts him.

"Miss, can you please give me some food?" He pleads, his hands clutching her skirt.

His eyes are large and round, and he is dirty all over. He is barefoot and has numerous scratches on him, which sends a pang of hurt through Aristia's heart.

"Take your hands off her!" Jeongin immediately snatches the child's hands away, who stumbles and falls right on his bum and begins tearing up.

"Now, now, let's not be so rash. Would you like some bread?"

Aristia immediately kneels down in front of the child and caresses his head, as he begins nodding rapidly.

"I thought so." She chuckles. "Jeongin, please take out the bread sack from the carriage and give this child a loaf."

He furrows his brows but listens to her command anyway, pulling out the large sack from the carriage and handing the kid some bread.

As if they've been summoned, a bunch of other children appear from nowhere, surrounding them and asking for food, which Jeongin is happy to provide.

Aristia watches with a smile how he talks to the children, and when each of them has received their portion, they go back to the carriage.

"Was this the purpose of your visit?" He asks Aristia, who's resting her back against the headboard inside the carriage.

"Partially." She replies, placing her hands in her lap under her ever-growing belly. "I am thinking of opening some shelters for the children here."

"Really?" He raises his eyebrows in surprise. "Why?"

"Why are you so shocked?" She laughs. "They are children of the Empire. Don't you think they deserve to have a comfortable place to sleep, and warm meals every day?"

"I just didn't think you'd do something like that, I guess." He shrugs.

"Well, I'm full of surprises." She chuckles, just when a wave of nausea hits her, and she immediately furrows her brows in discomfort.

"Is something wrong?" He asks, and despite his previous behaviour, he stands up in the carriage and kneels down in front of her.

"Mhm. I'm just feeling sick all of a sudden. It'll pass."

As she says this, she immediately feels the need to throw up, so she puts one of her against her mouth, closing her eyes tightly.

"You look very pale, Your Highness." Jeongin says, seemingly calm, but truth is, he's getting concerned about her well-being.

He shouts at the driver to stop the carriage, then helps Aristia out, who immediately empties her bowels right there on the street.

She curses in her head, because she knows this will piss Jeongin off; he didn't even want to accompany her, and there she is – being an inconvenience.

Riding in a carriage has always made her sick, but now, with the child in her stomach that's been giving her morning sickness for the past three months, it's even worse.

"I'm sorry, I-" She starts, but he cuts her off and places his hand on her lower back.

"Are you feeling sick because of the baby?"

She looks up at him and is surprised to see his usually cold gaze turned slightly soft, his brows furrowed in concern.

She simply nods, and he mutters a quick "Wait here," then runs off somewhere and returns moments later with a glass of water and freshly squeezed lemon juice.

He instructs her to drink, and she happily obliges, most of her nausea almost instantly melting away.

"Thank you, Jeongin." Aristia smiles softly.

"Don't mention it." He crosses his arms in front of his chest and looks away, a hint of colour rising to his cheeks.

As she watches this sight, she realises she might've won just a bit of Jeongin's favour.

They step back in the carriage, but this time, instead of him sitting opposite from her, he plops down right next to her.

"May I hold your hand for a moment?" He asks, which takes her completely by surprise.

"Uhm... sure?" She tilts her head to the right, not understanding his sudden request, however, she obliges and gives him her right hand.

He grabs her by the wrist gently and places three of his fingers on her wrist, and then, with his other hand, he presses his thumb right in the middle of her wrist, under his fingers.

He begins applying pressure to that point firmly, and after about 80 seconds – as Aristia's been holding her breath and counting in her head the entire time – he grabs her other arm and does the same.

"This is a pressure point that should help with your nausea... are you feeling any better?" He asks.

"Oh, wow!" She exclaims, genuinely surprised. "Yes, I don't feel that nauseous anymore. Thank you, Jeongin."

"Alright." He stands up and goes to sit opposite her, and although they don't speak any more on the way home, she feels they'd made a lot of progress today.

~

(A/N) Oh my! I can't believe we only have one chapter left and this whole story will be over tomorrow!!!

Bittersweet!!!

It was one of my favourites to write and post, and definitely my best work so far, so I'm quite sad!

Love,

Storm