Courting a Beating, Military Power Lies with Ninth Royal Uncle

How could Prince of Jiangnan’s little tricks escape Prince Nolan’s notice? Even if he didn’t have any dark-guards at his side, let’s not forget Prince Nolan is formidable in his own right. The people sent by the Prince of Jiangnan to ‘protect’ him—there’s no way their martial skills surpass his.

The reason Prince Nolan didn’t expose it and let the Prince of Jiangnan mess around was not only to avoid disturbing Serena’s good mood, but also because he wanted to see what the Crown Prince was really up to.

If it’s just harmless mischief, Prince Nolan doesn’t mind letting the Prince of Jiangnan fool around a bit. Whatever seeds the Prince of Jiangnan sows, he’ll have to reap the consequences himself.

But if the Prince of Jiangnan harbors rebellious intentions... then Prince Nolan wouldn’t hesitate to replace him!

After five days of leisure in the Jiangnan region, with no signs of unrest, Prince Nolan decided it was time to take Serena to the Jiangnan Prince’s Manor.

Before leaving, Prince Nolan hauled out the Prince of Jiangnan’s dark-guards: “Go tell your master that I’m very satisfied with his hospitality—now wait for me.”

After tossing out that line, Prince Nolan ignored the dark-guards—still shaken and trembling, not yet recovered from the shock—and turned away.

Heading to the Jiangnan Prince’s Manor meant they’d be meeting the former Crown Prince and the Valley Master and the others—in other words, their carefree days in Jiangnan were over. Serena felt a bit regretful, but not unwilling.

A life of ease for too long will dull your will; a little relaxation now and then is enough for her. Serena collected herself and set off with Prince Nolan toward the Jiangnan Prince’s Manor.

Although Prince Nolan never specified the exact day they’d arrive, it wasn’t difficult for the Prince of Jiangnan to find out.

On the day Prince Nolan and Serena entered the city, the Prince of Jiangnan obediently brought Prince Colin, the Valley Master, Dr. Redwater, Dr. Marcus Guile, Victor Yun, and Caleb Wang to wait outside the city gates.

Of course, this move by the Prince of Jiangnan and Prince Colin wasn’t about official ceremony—it was just family and friends meeting up. But...

“Are you sure Prince Nolan and Serena are arriving today?” After waiting two hours with no sign of them, even the usually good-natured Valley Master, Victor Yun, and Caleb Wang were running out of patience.

They’d been waiting since morning until noon, nearly starving, and still hadn’t seen a trace of Prince Nolan or Serena. Even though they’d sent all the Jiangnan officials away, with the Prince of Jiangnan and Prince Colin out here, there was no way their movements wouldn’t be watched. And then...

All the officials in Jiangnan, big and small, ended up watching as the Prince of Jiangnan and Prince Colin waited foolishly outside the city for two whole hours.

“Don’t you think this whole waiting-for-people thing is pretty stupid?” Dr. Redwater sprawled on a stone bench, leaning against Dr. Marcus Guile, and said lazily.

“It is stupid, but leaving now would be even dumber.” Prince Colin glanced up at the blazing midday sun and sighed.

Even though it was autumn, the sun was still fierce. Surely Prince Nolan and Serena wouldn’t be traveling at midday, right?

“Are we really just going to keep waiting? What if Prince Nolan and Serena got held up along the way?” Dr. Marcus Guile tried to persuade the Prince of Jiangnan to give up on waiting.

“But if they show up and no one’s here to greet them, Ninth Uncle will definitely be mad—and then these two hours of waiting will have been for nothing.” The Prince of Jiangnan spread his hands helplessly. “Don’t forget, you all wanted to watch Prince Nolan and Serena’s ‘show’ as much as I did.”

"You’re the ringleader." The Valley Master and Victor Yun shamelessly threw the Prince of Jiangnan under the bus. "We’re just bystanders."

"Don’t give me that. You think Ninth Uncle will believe you? He’s all about collective punishment—if you leave now, just wait for trouble. Don’t say I didn’t warn you." The Prince of Jiangnan slyly used Ninth Uncle as his command medallion.

"You jerk!" The Valley Master grumbled. "Barely got to watch the fun for a few days, and now we’re roasting in the sun for hours. Where’s the justice in that?"

"Justice is in Ninth Uncle’s hands. If you’re not afraid of dying, go ahead and head into the city. As for me, I’m waiting right here—Ninth Uncle will see how hard I’m working and won’t have the heart to punish me." Unlike the others, who were sweating buckets, the Prince of Jiangnan looked fresh, though his face was a bit pale.

He couldn’t help it—even though his heart disease wouldn’t flare up again, he was still weaker than most.

"Fine. If even the mighty Prince of Jiangnan isn’t worried about losing face, why should we be?" The Valley Master muttered and found a spot to sit, continuing to wait.

What could they do? He was just afraid of Ninth Uncle’s revenge.

Dr. Redwater and Dr. Marcus Guile thought of the message from the dark-guards and shut up immediately.

The dark-guards said that Ninth Uncle had always known they were watching the show, treating Serena and himself as entertainment. Ninth Uncle told them to pass on the message: just wait!

As for what they were waiting for, Ninth Uncle didn’t say.

After a whole night of analysis, they finally understood—they were supposed to be waiting outside the city for Ninth Uncle and Serena. So...

Wait it out, just wait!

They waited from morning till noon, and from noon till nightfall. The officials and commoners of Jiangnan were starting to think the Prince of Jiangnan’s group were complete fools.

"So hungry." Dr. Redwater stared at the spotless tabletop and sighed heavily.

They insisted that to show Ninth Uncle how sincere they were about admitting fault, they absolutely couldn’t leave, and couldn’t eat or drink or slack off—so they ended up going the whole day without food.

They were terrified that if they started eating, Ninth Uncle and Serena would show up, and all their effort would be wasted. But Ninth Uncle and Serena still hadn’t arrived.

"Should we have someone bring food over?" Dr. Marcus Guile always put his senior brother first. But this time, Dr. Redwater immediately shot down the idea: "Forget it. We’ve held out this long—if we eat now, it’ll all be for nothing."

Dr. Redwater wiped away his tears of regret, wishing he’d eaten earlier—but there’s no medicine for regret in this world!

"It’s already dark—shouldn’t they be here soon?" The Prince of Jiangnan wasn’t so sure now.

"Royal Brother, should we send someone ahead to check?" Just sitting here wasn’t getting them anywhere.

The Prince of Jiangnan shook his head quickly. "Better not. If Ninth Uncle finds out, he’ll think I’m spying on him again. I’m already carrying guilt—I can’t risk it."

Prince Colin silently gazed at the sky...

He’d already warned his royal brother not to mess around—Ninth Uncle isn’t someone you can provoke. But his brother wouldn’t listen, thinking he was the local emperor of Jiangnan and above it all.

Don’t forget, here in Jiangnan they call the shots and hold all the civil power—but the military power belongs to Ninth Uncle.

In Jiangnan, it’s more accurate to say things are in Ninth Uncle’s hands. Nothing escapes his notice here.

So the group waited and waited, until the stars were about to come out... finally—

Clip-clop, clip-clop...

"Is that horses’ hooves?" Everyone perked up and stood, faces full of sincerity, ready to greet the newcomers. But Prince Colin dashed their hopes: "The hoofbeats are coming from inside the city."

"Ah..." Everyone wilted in disappointment.

"I’ll go see what’s going on." Prince Colin had given up on this group and resigned himself to checking things out himself.

Ever since the Valley Master, Divine Doctor Redwater, Divine Doctor Guile, Victor Yun, Caleb Wang, and Simon Stone arrived in Jiangnan, his royal brother had been acting even more out of line. Speaking of Simon Stone, Prince Colin slapped his forehead.

Damn, they’d actually forgotten Little Med-Fool.

Back when they were watching Ninth Uncle and Serena’s drama, they hadn’t dared invite Little Med-Fool, afraid he’d get mad. And today, when they came out to greet Ninth Uncle and Serena, they’d forgotten him again.

"Seriously, how could we forget such an important person? If Little Med-Fool were here, given how much Serena values him, just a few good words from him and things would be so much easier."

Prince Colin was full of regret, but seeing the rider only made him more frustrated...