The Contract Wife Tries to Leave - Chapter 50
Johanna found Nadia’s barrage of questions tiresome. However, if she didn’t provide a reasonable answer, baseless rumors would surely spread. Meeting Nadia’s bright, eager eyes, Johanna calmly responded.
“I’m getting married.”
“Wha… Whaaat?!”
Nadia shrieked, her voice so loud it nearly shattered Johanna’s eardrums. Unsurprisingly, the neighbors on the first floor opened their doors to peer out at them. Among them was Mr. Singkel, the owner of the apartment building. Though not a relative, he often pretended to be concerned about Johanna’s prospects for marriage.
“Really? Who’s the groom? Is he a noble? The owner of that carriage?”
“Johanna is getting married? Is that true?”
Nadia and Mr. Singkel asked in unison. The situation was becoming much noisier than Johanna had anticipated, and she pressed a hand to her forehead. This was exactly why she wanted to avoid being seen by Nadia.
“Marquis Neubitz is my fiancé.”
“Neubi… who? Neubitz?”
There was no one in the country who didn’t know that name. Neubitz, Elderique—those names resonated with awe among the citizens of the Kingdom of Vinesheim.
“Marquis Neubitz! My goodness, are you serious?”
“Yes, it’s true.”
Around twenty years ago, there was a revolution in the neighboring Kingdom of Arberk that abolished the class system. The flames of republicanism threatened to sweep across the world. Alarmed, the royal family of Vinesheim sought to maintain their traditional system while reforming outdated and closed-off customs. The first priority was to abolish the tax exemptions enjoyed by the nobility.
Naturally, there was strong opposition, with the local lords voicing the greatest discontent. In a world where the winds of change were blowing, they were unable to partake in new industries like real estate, finance, and large-scale manufacturing that were expanding around the capital. They had little to rely on besides the taxes from their fiefs.
Duke Elderique believed that the aristocratic society of the old era needed a curveball. He deliberately started various businesses, involving local lords to make them compete against each other. Only those who survived the competition received substantial investments.
Landowners, who had remained within the confines of traditional economic concepts, came to appreciate the value of capital. They realized that even if they had to pay more taxes, they could gain even greater profits. Success was attainable if one had the ability, especially with the royal family and great nobles actively supporting them.
Thus, Duke Elderique succeeded in winning over the local lords. The reforms pushed by the royal family were accomplished with little disturbance—a significant achievement.
Not long after, the republican government in Arberk collapsed, and the monarchy was reinstated. It was a turbulent era.
“Johanna, you’re not lying, right? If you’re lying about this, it could be a big problem.”
Mr. Singkel scolded her as if to intimidate her, with a faintly anxious look in his eyes. He hoped to match Johanna with his troublesome bachelor son.
The son peeked out from behind a slightly open door, casting sidelong glances at them. He looked shabby, as if he had been cooped up indoors all day. Johanna doubted he even bathed regularly. She decided to firmly shatter Mr. Singkel’s desperate hopes.
“I’d have to be crazy to lie about this. I really am going to marry Marquis Neubitz. Nadia, you saw the carriage, right? Remember the crest?”
“Uh, yeah! That carriage that came to pick you up… I knew I’d seen that crest somewhere before. So it was Marquis Neubitz’s crest!”
Nadia was helpful in times like this. Johanna turned her gaze to Mr. Singkel triumphantly. He blinked incredulously, then let out an awkward sigh.
“Well… that’s really something. Marquis Neubitz, of all people… This is unbelievable. The whole country will be turned upside down.”
His eyes scrutinized Johanna with skepticism, as if wondering how she managed to catch the interest of such a high-ranking noble. Meanwhile, Nadia was excitedly chattering about how amazing it was. Other neighbors also peeked out with curious faces.
“Johanna? What are you doing here?”
Suddenly, Daniel’s voice rang out. Johanna turned her head toward the sound. Daniel was standing awkwardly on the stairs. It seemed the commotion on the first floor had reached the upper floors.
“I came out because it was so noisy… Is something going on?”
Daniel hurried over to Johanna’s side, shooting a wary glance at Mr. Singkel. Daniel had long since noticed Mr. Singkel’s improper intentions toward his sister.
