Coal Mines and Poaching Ninth Royal Uncle’s Corner

Serena didn’t get an answer. Ruby Redsleeve might be spoiled and clueless thanks to Linden Ling, but Greenshine was sharp. Without giving Ruby a chance to speak, Greenshine stepped forward, blocked her mouth, and dragged her away, ignoring Ruby’s protests.

“Sorry you had to witness that farce.” Linden Ling couldn’t keep his composure, looking awkward. Serena and her companions just smiled faintly and said nothing, pretending not to notice.

Linden Ling’s so-called apology was a joke from start to finish. He showed no sincerity at all, and neither Prince Nolan nor William Wang Jinling was satisfied. Their conversation left Linden Ling humiliated several times.

Linden Ling knew he hadn’t handled things well. Though he was furious, he kept it off his face. When Prince Nolan finally agreed to cooperate, Linden Ling took the initiative to give ground, offering up considerable benefits and making the rest of the negotiations go unusually smoothly.

Prince Nolan and William Wang Jinling both walked away with generous gains, thoroughly satisfied.

As for Linden Ling? He’d been played by Prince Nolan and William Wang Jinling working together. However angry he was, and however much he wanted to strangle the useless Ruby Redsleeve, in Eastlyn he wouldn’t dare go so far as to kill and wipe out a household.

Leaving the villa, William Wang Jinling—who’d stolen half a day of leisure—wasn’t about to serve Prince Nolan for free. With mealtime approaching, he invited Serena to The Windchaser Inn right in front of Prince Nolan, suggesting she try the new seasonal dishes.

Serena was just about to refuse when William Wang Jinling spoke up: “Serena, the autumn grass is drying out. What are you going to do about your cattle and sheep? And have you secured enough grain yet?”

Who said William Wang Jinling was always upright and aboveboard? Who called him a true gentleman? Let those people come and see for themselves…

Prince Nolan shot William Wang Jinling a fierce look. “The Windchaser Inn’s dishes are excellent. I want to try them too.”

Ignoring Serena’s opinion, Prince Nolan and William Wang Jinling walked ahead toward The Windchaser Inn. Serena quietly trailed behind, watching the two impossibly handsome men in front of her and suddenly feeling like a complete extra.

She really was the odd one out. Prince Nolan and William Wang Jinling had impeccable table manners; both were the type of gentleman who never spoke while eating, so the meal passed in near silence.

After the meal, the three moved to a side hall. Prince Nolan gave William Wang Jinling no chance, immediately starting up a conversation with him—on topics Serena couldn’t possibly join.

William Wang Jinling didn’t mind at all and just went along with Prince Nolan. He’d only invited Serena in front of Prince Nolan because he hadn’t seen her in a while and didn’t want to miss the chance. Plus, after being squeezed so hard in court recently, he couldn’t resist a little payback.

Serena was an excellent listener. Hearing the two men talk politics, she wasn’t bored at all—in fact, she quietly memorized everything Prince Nolan and William Wang Jinling discussed, planning to take advantage of any opportunities.

Petty theft or embezzlement was nothing compared to this. Learning about national policy and using it to make silver—that was the real deal. Serena had already made mental notes of several points and planned to work Spring and Autumn even harder when she got back.

Serena kept listening quietly and didn’t say a word from start to finish—until William Wang Jinling mentioned discovering a large patch of black soil in the northwest. Only then did Serena finally speak up.

“Jinling, what does this black soil look like?” Serena’s eyes lit up, sparkling with excitement.

Her instincts told her there was profit to be made here.

Faced with this kind of Serena, how could William Wang Jinling refuse? He shared all the information he had: “If you’re interested, Serena, I’ll have someone send you a whole basket of it tomorrow.”

“Alright.” Serena was now certain that the ‘black soil’ William Wang Jinling mentioned was coal. If she could get her hands on this crucial resource, she’d definitely make a fortune—and right now, she was seriously short on silver.

Just thinking about the massive military supply list Victor Phoenixfield had handed her made Serena feel crushed by the pressure. Some things, like weapons, couldn’t be bought with silver alone.

“You want it?” Prince Nolan didn’t like the way Serena’s eyes lingered on William Wang Jinling and interrupted bluntly.

“Yes. I’ll pay silver for it—why don’t you sell me that land?” Serena knew Prince Nolan was shrewd; with her intentions so obvious, he’d definitely figured out what she was after.

“Tell me what that black soil is good for, and I’ll give you ten percent.” As a ruler, Prince Nolan was sharp—he knew there was profit to be made and wasn’t about to let it slip away.

“At least fifty percent.” Serena’s eyes were clear and calm as she bargained with Prince Nolan. Seeing him stubbornly stick to ten percent, she added, “I can give you the blueprint for the military engineer’s shovel—you’d save yourself half the trouble.”

Back in Northlyn, during the Phoenixfield Clan’s war, the military engineer’s shovel had been a game-changer. Prince Nolan saw it with his own eyes and remembered it well. The moment Eastlyn stabilized, his first order of business was to have the Ministry of Works start making them.

It was a battlefield weapon, and if Prince Nolan wanted to conquer the world, there was no way he’d let it slip away.

William Wang Jinling had just brought it up, but things hadn’t gone smoothly. The shovel itself wasn’t complicated—the tricky part was purifying the iron. The Ministry of Works kept stumbling at that step, no matter what they tried, and couldn’t meet Prince Nolan’s standards. Prince Nolan couldn’t bring himself to ask Serena for help outright, so he left her with a bargaining chip.

What does it feel like to be threatened and tempted by your own woman?

If William Wang Jinling weren’t here, Prince Nolan would treat all this as just a bit of private fun between him and Serena—whatever deals or concessions they made in private would be fine. But facing William’s infuriatingly smug face, Prince Nolan could only grit his teeth in frustration.

Maybe he’d been addled by Storm Cloud Bu yesterday—to be discussing serious business with Serena right in front of William Wang Jinling was practically handing William a front-row seat to their drama.

Embarrassment is one thing, but losing face is another. Prince Nolan wasn’t about to let William enjoy the show, so he played it cool: “We’ll talk about this later, once we’re home.”

He even shot William a look, making it clear that no matter how big the issue, he and Serena could settle it privately. Don’t expect any entertainment here.

Watching Prince Nolan get flustered was William Wang Jinling’s favorite pastime. Prince Nolan tried to move on, but William wouldn’t let him—he lobbed a beautiful offer Serena’s way: “Serena, that region is remote, with the northwest garrison and the Wang family on good terms. I can introduce you.”

William Wang Jinling was poaching Prince Nolan’s territory right in front of him, making it clear to Serena that she didn’t need Prince Nolan’s help—he could get it done himself, no need to beg.

William could tell just how valuable that coal was from Serena’s reaction. But what did it matter to him? It wasn’t his resource anyway. Generously giving away someone else’s goods didn’t cost him a thing.

Serena knew William was just trying to needle Prince Nolan. But with her philosophy of 'if there’s a profit and you don’t take it, you’re a fool,' she shamelessly ditched Prince Nolan and started talking smuggling deals with William.

Compared to working with the authorities, smuggling was way more lucrative. As for scruples?

Can you use scruples to buy military supplies?