It wasn't an apple that hit Newton.

His emotions were fluctuating wildly, but he couldn't vent them. He could only grit his teeth and vow that sooner or later he would repay her in kind and let her taste the feeling of fluctuating emotions.

"Very well, then let's go."

Veronica turned around, leaving Li Cheng with a beautiful back view: "You can go now. I will arrange your position as soon as possible."

She was very satisfied with the conversation.

Veronica needs more achievements and more support from the nobility.

The church would be a good candidate.

It's important to understand that although she gained great prestige and power through this plague, it was only temporary. Once the king returns, her power will be greatly suppressed, so she must act quickly to do anything inconvenient or to appoint certain people.

There was still some time before the horse races started, plus the journey ahead, it would probably be about three months... Veronica silently calculated in her mind.

"Wait a moment, Your Highness the Third Princess..."

Unexpectedly, Li Cheng stepped forward and blocked her way at the door: "I have some more thoughts about nobility. Why don't you listen to me talk about them?"

Veronica was taken aback at first, then showed interest and said, "You can tell me about it."

"Alright, alright, my thinking is simple: the power of the old aristocracy and the landowning class is already very strong, so it is unwise to confront them head-on."

Li Cheng's lips curled into a smile: "In comparison, supporting a new class is a better idea—such as the new nobles and merchants..."

He simply intended to use Veronique's hand to accelerate the development of the bourgeoisie.

He originally didn't intend to do this; it would be troublesome, and advancing the process by two or three hundred years wouldn't do him any good at all.

But thinking about it carefully, isn't it interesting that the three princesses cultivated the bourgeoisie in order to obtain the throne, only to have the bourgeoisie completely overthrow the monarchy?

......

After listening to Li Cheng's long-winded discourse on merchants, the new aristocracy, and the old aristocracy, Veronica seemed thoughtful, but still couldn't quite understand.

She looked at Li Cheng, hoping for an answer: "Then what do you think I need to do?"

No, that's mainly my job... Li Cheng smiled: "You just need to show your support and indicate that you will introduce relevant laws to promote business development after taking office, and I think that will be enough."

Veronique said in a deep voice, "But this will cause me to lose the support of the old nobles, who are already very dissatisfied with these merchants."

Li Cheng countered, "Your Highness, even if we don't do this, do you think they will support you?"

indeed.

Li Cheng's words make a lot of sense.

Especially during the plague, Veronica's actions had offended many nobles, and even though she tried hard to make amends, most of those arrogant nobles did not listen to her.

Moreover, once the king becomes powerful, the power of the nobles will weaken, and those old nobles will obviously prefer her brother, who, like their father, loves to travel and enjoy life rather than manage affairs.

In comparison, winning over the newly emerging nobles and merchants seems to be a better option...

"I'll think about it. You can go back now."

Having made up her mind, Veronica nodded, then added, "If you have any further thoughts, you can write to my private residence in the city. We can communicate by letter, and I'll have someone give you the address and contact information later."

Li Cheng bowed and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

Veronica was clearly pleased with the last form of address; a slight smile involuntarily appeared on her lips as she strolled away.

Chapter Thirty-Six: Don't Be Obsessed with Idols

The Earl of Evans has had a bad year.

For example, at the end of last year, just as he was preparing to escape, he unfortunately encountered Veronica's lockdown of London. As the first case, he was caught on the spot and placed under house arrest in the palace, waiting for his family to pay the ransom.

However, he had no complaints about this. On the contrary, he sincerely admired Veronica's ruthless methods and believed that she was the one who could truly restore England's glory and lead the Anglo-Saxons to a glorious future.

If Count Evans had been born in pre-World War II Germany, he would at least have been a minor Nazi.

In the following six months, after witnessing Veronique's series of methods, he became a complete fan of hers... well, that's not quite accurate; Evans was old enough to be Veronique's father.

So today, taking advantage of some free time, Earl Evans mustered his courage and, with the intention of meeting his idol, personally visited the Third Princess.

"His Highness has someone important to see and is very busy right now, so he doesn't have time to see you."

He was rejected without hesitation.

Evans, an earl, actually pleaded with the maid in a low voice in order to meet his idol: "I truly admire Your Highness. Please make an exception for me."

"No means no."

Holly was in a bad mood because a shameless guy had just snitched on her. She said irritably, "Next time you want to see Princess Veronica, you have to make an appointment a week in advance."

Earl Evans was taken aback. He raised his round face and said in a somewhat mournful tone, "But I've already made an appointment."

Holly had actually forgotten about that. She paused for a moment, then said, "...Then you can wait here and see when His Highness has time to come see you."

Just then, Veronica appeared at the corner at the end of the corridor. Her majestic black hair and gait (in my mind, I imagined it) stirred a surge of excitement in Earl Evans, making him want to rush over immediately.

However, Evans soon noticed that a young man with red hair was standing next to his respected Princess Veronica.

Moreover, the two seemed to be having a pleasant conversation, exchanging words back and forth.

Important guest?

No time to see me?

Evans' heart shattered at that moment.

------

After Li Cheng came out of the dark room, he simply followed Veronica around, instilling his own doctrines into her.

"Human nature is self-interested, yet rational. Therefore, if economic activities are not interfered with and are guided by the 'invisible hand' of the price mechanism, self-interested and rational people will not only maximize their personal interests but also promote the public good."

Those familiar with the matter may have already noticed that Li Cheng simply copied Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations" verbatim and then rephrased it in his own words... Wait a minute, can a scholar's actions be called plagiarism? This is called condensing and summarizing key points!

And what about Veronica?

She was initially skeptical, but after hearing this novel theory, she became genuinely interested.

Veronica thought for a moment, then a question arose in her mind, so she asked in return, "If people are selfish, then why would they promote public benefits?"

"Because the influx of capital will lead to the development of productivity, and the development of productivity will promote public benefits." Li Cheng applied the formula.

“What if something were to harm their profits?” Veronica asked again.

Hehehe, guess what... Li Cheng harbored ill intentions but spoke openly and righteously: "At that time, His Majesty's leadership and control will be needed, and that's why the government and the law exist."

Veronica fell silent; even after being bombarded with such a large amount of knowledge, her head was still spinning.

She exhaled, her tone returning to calm: "...Let's talk about it next time, I'm a little tired."

After saying that, Veronica walked ahead on her own, turning the corner of the corridor alone.

"Shouldn't that have fooled you?"

Watching Veronica's figure disappear from sight, Li Cheng thought somewhat confusedly... The main problem is that Veronica doesn't have many expressions, so it's really hard to judge her thoughts.

However, at this moment, Li Cheng suddenly felt that he was being stared at intently.

Who? Could it be that green grasshopper?

Li Cheng followed the gaze and saw a slightly overweight middle-aged man wearing a white top hat standing not far away, staring intently at him.

The slightly overweight middle-aged man's eyes held a hint of incomprehension, a hint of anger, and even... a hint of hostility.

As for Holly, whom he had assumed was standing in front of the slightly overweight middle-aged man, she wasn't paying attention to him.

The slightly overweight middle-aged man also noticed that Li Cheng was paying attention to him.

But he made no attempt to avoid suspicion, pointing directly at Li Cheng and asking Holly, "That red-haired kid over there, isn't he the 'important guest' you mentioned?"

Holly turned her head and saw that Li Cheng had appeared at some point, and knew she was in trouble.

How would she know anything about the itinerary? She was simply in a bad mood and didn't want to waste any more words with this seemingly humble, slightly overweight middle-aged man, so she simply used the excuse that "His Highness has someone important to see" to send him away.

She said with a slight panic, "Why are you asking this? Asking so many questions is useless."

"Now it's my turn to ask you."

Earl Evans regained his earl's dignity and said coldly, "Is this the 'important guest' you mentioned?"

"me..."

Holly stammered, unable to speak.

Although he wasn't entirely clear on the specifics, Li Cheng knew he couldn't just stand by and watch.

"Holly, please move aside."

He immediately stepped forward, inserting himself between the two to shield Holly from Evans's questioning, and said, "What's wrong? Does only someone you know count as an important guest? Are others not?"

Evans stared at Li Cheng, who was standing inches away, and asked, word by word, "Who are you?"

Li Cheng raised an eyebrow and retorted, "And who are you?"

Evans slightly raised his chin and said, "I am Earl Ed Evans."

Li Cheng laughed and said, "Then guess who I am?"

Evans, slightly annoyed: "Are you kidding me?"

"No, no, no," Li Cheng continued with a smile. "I just wanted to see if you were smart enough to guess it. I didn't mean anything by it."

Evans calmed down a bit and fell into thought.

He acted impulsively just now and overlooked many details; now that he thinks about it carefully...

First of all, the fact that this red-haired young man could walk side by side with Princess Veronica, known as the 'Iron Princess,' and even converse calmly with her seemed to be a symbol of status in itself.

Secondly, the fact that the other person could call out the name of any maid directly indicates that this person is very familiar with this place, or at least it's not their first time here.

Finally, upon hearing the title of Earl, the other party showed no fear whatsoever; instead, they became even more disdainful.

The more he imagined it, the more cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

Absolutely terrifying, sir!

Seeing Evans deep in thought and sweating profusely, Li Cheng breathed a sigh of relief, knowing he had successfully fooled him.

Chapter Thirty-Seven: The Little Yellow Book?

"I was abrupt."

After some mental preparation, Evans softened his tone considerably.