Gentleman, Why Have You Not Yet Arrived

"Doudou?"

To their surprise, the first person to find them was actually Dorian Owen.

Prince Nolan’s eyes flashed with astonishment as he swiftly withdrew his attack. "Why is it you?"

Even Doudou hadn’t known about this plan—he’d been held up by the shadow guards at the time, and by the time he arrived, everything was already set in stone.

Both Prince Nolan and Serena had assumed Doudou would return to the Assassin Alliance or the Capital. After all, if he went back, their disappearance would seem even more convincing. But instead of leaving, Doudou tracked them down.

"Of course it’s me. Who besides your Lord Bean is smart enough to realize you two aren’t dead?" Doudou wasn’t the least bit rattled—he thumped his chest proudly, looking utterly smug.

As the first person to find Serena and Prince Nolan, Doudou had every right to be proud!

Even though Doudou had discovered their whereabouts, Prince Nolan and Serena weren’t bothered. Just because Doudou could find them didn’t mean anyone else could—no one else knew as much as he did.

Still, for safety’s sake, Serena warned him sternly: "You are not allowed to spread the news that we’re alive."

"Why not? You have no idea how worried everyone is. If you’re both safe, why shouldn’t people know?" Doudou was still thinking about reporting this to Zuo An, just to show off a little.

Across the Nine Provinces, countless people were searching for Prince Nolan and Serena, but none succeeded. Dorian Owen was the first to find them—a feat definitely worth bragging about.

"It’s not over yet. The fact that Prince Nolan and I are safe can’t be leaked for now." Serena warned him sharply.

Doudou glared back at Serena, his face full of indignation. "You two are heartless, you know that? Because you disappeared, the outside world is in chaos—things nearly broke out into war!"

If war really did break out, these two would be the ones blamed for bringing disaster to the realm.

"Let them panic if they want. It’s not your headache, so why bother?" Even though they didn’t have the latest news, it was easy to guess how wild things had gotten outside.

Word was, the Emperor couldn’t take the pressure anymore and had promised never to use thunder-blast grenades again, even agreeing to destroy all the ones they had.

Of course, it wasn’t just pressure from foreign kingdoms—the biggest push came from Felix Fuller’s investigation.

According to Felix’s findings, both the Imperial Mausoleum bombing and Prince Nolan’s accident were tied to the Former-Dynasty Lan clan—odds were, they were behind it all.

Felix boldly speculated that the Lan clan still had surviving bloodlines, and that someone in the shadows now commanded enough power to threaten the rule of all four kingdoms.

Since the Former-Dynasty remnants were suspected of wielding thunder-blast grenades, Eastlyn had better make a public promise—or else...

As long as thunder-blast grenades caused trouble, Eastlyn would have to take the blame. Take Prince Nolan’s case—even though the Emperor did nothing, nobody believed him, and no amount of explanation helped.

Rather than take the fall for someone else, the Emperor would rather make a show of promises, destroying every thunder-blast grenade Eastlyn had in front of witnesses from all four kingdoms and the Nine Cities.

Will the Emperor feel any regret about this?

Honestly... not at all. His people already knew how to make thunder-blast grenades—destroy this batch, and he could just make more.

As long as he kept it secret, no one would notice. Later, if Eastlyn used thunder-blast grenades for anything, he could just pin the blame on someone else.

The Emperor’s calculations were loud and clear. Southlyn and Liancheng knew what he was up to, but couldn’t do a thing about it. The Emperor insisted he wouldn’t make more, claiming all the thunder-blast grenades were leftovers from Liam Li—and they couldn’t exactly call him a liar.

As the strongest nation in the Nine Provinces, Eastlyn’s Emperor backed down a little, so the other three kingdoms and the Nine Cities didn’t dare push further. If Eastlyn retaliated, things would get ugly.

The emperors of the three kingdoms and the Nine Cities’ lords set a date: when the time came, Eastlyn’s Emperor would order the destruction of all thunder-blast grenades before witnesses and sign an agreement to never use them again.

During this time, Serena and Prince Nolan had been hiding out in the wilderness, keeping their identities secret and avoiding contact with the shadow guards—so they weren’t up to date on outside news. Doudou filled them in on the details.

Serena and Prince Nolan weren’t surprised—the Emperor was bound to make this move eventually, or he’d never calm the public’s outrage. But another piece of news left them both stunned.

"The Cui Clan and Wang Clan are forming a marriage alliance? What’s the Cui Clan up to? Has Holden Cui lost his mind? A principal wife’s position can win him so much support, yet he’s giving it away to the Wang Clan so easily—what does he get in return?"

Serena knew William Wang well. Even if Holden Cui married his sister, or William married Holden’s sister, the Wang Clan wouldn’t take reckless risks for the Cui Clan.

"It gives him a good reputation, helps him quickly gain a foothold in Eastlyn and Southlyn, and makes the Emperor—and even me—start suspecting the Wang Clan’s motives." Prince Nolan listed several advantages, with the last two clearly the most important.

If the Wang Clan agreed to the marriage and the Emperor didn’t question their intentions, that would be strange. Even my partnership with William Wang could run into trouble.

"Are they trying to corner the Wang Clan?" Serena couldn’t help but wonder—she knew exactly what William Wang represented.

William Wang held not just the Wang Clan, but his own formidable influence. If Holden Cui married William’s sister, outsiders would see the two clans as in-laws. Holden could easily use William’s scholarly reputation to boost himself and the Cui Clan.

"Not entirely. For Holden Cui, marrying William’s sister brings plenty of benefits—he doesn’t need to force the Wang Clan to do anything." Prince Nolan understood Holden’s strategy: unlike William, Holden lacked overwhelming clout and needed to establish his own household first.

Marrying a Wang sister was a smart move—it would help Holden ascend to power smoothly.

"The Cui Clan played this move brilliantly. But why would the Wang Clan agree?" Serena had to admit, Holden Cui was a true schemer—he could see far ahead, even in a marriage deal.