The Abandoned Luna's Journey to Power Chapter 296: Waking Up Finally

Queen Isabella's POV:

I stared at the tightly shut carriage door, my expression shifting from shock to suspicion, and finally to fury.

For years, every time Margaret and Maria came to see me, they wore the same miserable expressions, lamenting poor business and a failing market, then walked away with yet another "subsidy" from me.

I believed them.

Because I was the lofty queen, I did not understand commerce, nor did I deign to verify it.

I merely enjoyed the sensation of being relied upon, of being needed.

And now, the cruel truth stood naked before me.

This was no failing business. It was a treasure trove.

And I, the so-called majority shareholder, had not received a single coin in dividends. Instead, I had poured money into it year after year, fattening a nest of parasites.

"How ... how dare they..." I muttered, my voice trembling.

Cindy said nothing. She simply watched me.

Some scars must be peeled back by oneself to truly feel the pain—and to remember it.

After a long while, Martha finally fought her way back out.

Her hair was disheveled, her clothes wrinkled, her lips nearly purple from the cold—but her eyes burned with the shock of someone who had stumbled upon a great secret.

"Re ... reporting to Your Majesty, Your Grace." Martha panted. "There's ... no stock left. The clerk said 'Crimson Wish' is too popular. It's sold out. To purchase it, one must reserve in advance—and pay a markup."

"A markup?" I snapped upright.

"Y ... yes." Martha stole a cautious glance at me. "I overheard inside—just this afternoon, that counter alone made several thousand gold coins..."

Boom—

It felt as though a string inside my mind snapped.

Several thousand gold coins. In a single afternoon.

And the last ledger told a different story: a quarterly loss of 3,000 gold coins. Subsidy required.

A scam.

An utter and complete scam.

My hands shook violently, nails digging deep into my palm.

At last I understood: the "investments" I had prided myself on, the "cleverness" I had imagined—were, in others' eyes, nothing more than the folly of an easy mark.

And now, sitting beside me was this daughter-in-law—the woman I had tried to make things difficult for in every possible way—who had used the most understated method to tear away this veil of deception for me.

"Home."

The word scraped out of my throat between clenched teeth.

Cindy's POV:

The next morning, before the mist over the Royal Court had even lifted, Rose Palace was already thick with tension.

As I had predicted, Maria—the so-called professional manager—arrived.

She wore a dark gown that attempted refinement but could not conceal its mercantile vulgarity, thick ledgers clutched to her chest as she knelt before the queen.

I stood behind the tapestries of the side hall, in no rush to reveal myself.

I had told the Queen in the carriage yesterday: for this play to work, she had to see through it herself. Even if it stung, it was better than living in a dream forever.

"Your Majesty, please look—these are the accounts for this quarter." Maria's tone was suitably anxious, but beneath it lay a well-practiced slickness. "You know how difficult the times are. Though Allure has a reputation, expenses flow like water..."

The queen sat upon the chaise, a freshly poured cup of tea in hand, anticipation still faintly bright on her face.

After what she had seen outside the shop yesterday, she was convinced she had been wronged all these years. Surely today would reveal overflowing profits.

She set down her teacup and took the ledger eagerly. "Enough complaints. I saw the crowds yesterday—the entrance nearly trampled. Let's see the dividends for this quarter. Cindy has just married into the family; I'd like to purchase something fitting for her."

She opened the ledger.

At first, her fingers flipped through the pages quickly, hunting for pleasing numbers.

But as the pages turned, her movements slowed. Her brows knit tighter and tighter.

"What ... what is this?"

Her voice sharpened, trembling with disbelief. "Why are there only sales of face cloths and basic creams—these common trifles? Where are the luxury accessories? The high-tier alchemical skincare sets? Not a single one sold?"

She flipped to the final quarterly summary and froze, staring at the glaring red figure.

"Loss ... 5,000 gold coins?!"