"Miss, you truly are a master strategist! Everyone in the Capital is talking about Miss Charlotte Chu, and even the small gambling houses have started taking bets on who will win the beauty's heart!" Jada Tang's face, bright as a silver tray, was split in a smile so wide her eyes nearly disappeared.
The whole Charlotte Chu affair was something she and Mira Tang had orchestrated together. At first, neither of them expected it would work out so perfectly.
All they did was have people talk up the benefits of marrying Charlotte Chu in the markets and teahouses, then let their spies in the various manors find ways to get close to those idle young masters and casually mention the latest street rumors.
At first, they thought only a few houses would take the bait. But as soon as the noble marquis and duke manors caught wind of it, they pounced like cats smelling fish—whether they had a real chance or not, everyone wanted to try their luck, terrified of missing such a golden opportunity.
"Wealth is blinding. Most of those noble houses are just hollow shells—now that Charlotte Chu's such a treasure is right in front of them, how could they not be tempted?"
Inside the Capital, plenty of people wanted a shot at Charlotte Chu, but thanks to the rumors about her and Ninth Royal Uncle, no one dared be the first to make a move.
Ninth Royal Uncle brought in Charlotte Chu's three most determined suitors, and then Serena stirred up the scene—after that, anyone with ambition couldn't hold back anymore...
It wasn’t just the fallen noble houses—even the Empress herself was tempted.
Although the Emperor always hoped Ninth Royal Uncle would marry Charlotte Chu and then be sent off with her to Chu City, the Empress, seeing the latest rumors and thinking about Lord Chase’s failing health, began making her own calculations.
"Rowan, what do you think of this Charlotte Chu?"
"Mother, do you want your son to marry in as a 'husband-in-law'?" Prince Rowan replied coolly—he felt nothing for Charlotte Chu at all.
"Of course not, Rowan, how could you think that? You're destined to..." The Empress pointed upward, clearly implying he was meant to sit on the throne one day.
"Mother would never let you marry in as a husband-in-law."
"If you never intended for me to marry in, then let's not talk about it anymore," Prince Rowan said impatiently.
It had taken so much effort to use Charlotte Chu’s arrival to fuel the rumors that Ninth Royal Uncle had abandoned Serena, hoping to force them apart. It looked like they had succeeded, but instead of fighting, the two had quietly teamed up and turned the tables on Charlotte Chu—no wonder Rowan was so annoyed.
"Why not talk about it? Rowan, if Ninth Royal Uncle marries Charlotte Chu, he’d have to marry in as a husband-in-law. But you’re different—you’re an Eastlyn prince. If you marry Charlotte Chu, then Chu City would naturally be merged into Eastlyn." The Empress looked calculating. Rowan thought it sounded reasonable, but he still retorted, "Impossible. If Chu City could be merged so easily, Father would’ve done it long ago. Why would it be my turn?"
"Rowan, I call you foolish and you really are! Whether Chu City joins Eastlyn depends on Lord Chase and Charlotte Chu. If you win Charlotte’s heart and she agrees to merge Chu City with Eastlyn, it’s as simple as saying the word." The Empress was sure that once a woman married, she’d always side with her husband.
"How could that be? Charlotte Chu would never do such a thing—she has plenty of suitors. Mother, you should know, there are lots of men who want to marry Charlotte Chu. I’ve heard that Prince Titus of Lyndaria and Prince Nathan of Southlyn are both interested in her." Marrying Charlotte Chu meant gaining Chu City and its 200,000 troops—anyone would jump at the chance.
Back when Prince Terrence of Lyndaria was touring to choose a consort, he also talked to Lord Chase about marrying Charlotte Chu as a secondary wife, but Lord Chase refused.
"Prince Titus of Lyndaria and Prince Nathan of Southlyn are just stirring the pot. Even if Charlotte Chu is choosing a husband, she’ll pick someone from Eastlyn—what business is it of theirs?" The Emperor was clearly displeased.
She’d finally found someone worth courting—if he got snatched away, she’d be furious.
"Mother, Charlotte Chu came to the Eastlyn Capital at Father’s invitation. She never said she’d pick a husband here. You know as well as I do, as long as Lord Chase is alive and Charlotte’s unmarried, every country will treat her with respect." Otherwise, they’d risk driving her into the arms of an enemy—and if Charlotte did marry, then everyone else would see Chu City as hostile.
"So what do we do? Just watch her marry someone else? What if she marries Prince Jason?" The Empress’s face changed at the thought. "No, no, Rowan, you can’t just sit back and do nothing. If your brothers marry Charlotte Chu, it’ll be bad for us."
"Don’t worry, Mother. I know what to do." Rowan paused a moment before answering. And so, among the many distinguished suitors for Charlotte Chu, a new heavyweight joined the fray: His Highness Prince Rowan.
"Serena, you actually managed to get Prince Rowan to chase after Charlotte Chu—that’s impressive." Dominic Zhai clicked his tongue in amazement.
It was Dominic Zhai’s day off, so he’d dragged William Wang to the Windchaser Inn, booked a table, and called Serena out for a meal—ostensibly to thank her.
"No way—I wish I had that kind of skill," Serena denied immediately, though the corners of her mouth lifted. Dominic didn’t notice and kept marveling, insisting Rowan must’ve lost his wits...
William Wang, however, didn’t miss the subtle change in Serena’s expression. He chuckled, "You had someone persuade the Empress, didn’t you? If you’d spoken to Rowan directly, it would’ve been too obvious."
Serena smiled and nodded. "I had someone lay out the pros and cons of marrying Charlotte Chu right in front of the Empress, letting her imagine that if Charlotte fell for Rowan, she’d offer up Chu City herself. On the other hand, if Charlotte married Prince Jason, then Prince Jason would reap all the benefits."
"The Empress actually believed you?" Dominic Zhai was astonished.
If Chu City were that easy to win, why would any of them bother leading armies? They could just marry the girl and be done with it.
"Why wouldn’t she believe it?" Serena countered. "Remember what Charlotte Chu said last year? She claimed to admire Ninth Royal Uncle and was willing to marry him and bring Chu City as her dowry. That’s practically handing over Chu City. If she’d offer it to Ninth Royal Uncle, why not to Rowan? In the Empress’s eyes, Rowan is a hundred times better than Ninth Royal Uncle."
In the Empress’s mind, all Rowan had to do was crook his finger and Charlotte Chu would come running.
"Uh..." Dominic nearly choked on a peanut. After finally swallowing, he blurted, "No way. Absolutely not. Charlotte Chu isn’t that easy to marry."
He couldn’t say why, but Dominic just felt that Chu City wouldn’t be so easily won.
"It’s not possible, but the Empress and Rowan won’t let any chance slip by. Rowan’s status is so high that even if everyone knows he’s after Chu City, no one will say he’s marrying for power—they’ll just call him charming." William Wang understood Rowan’s thinking: there was no harm in trying, and if he succeeded, he could take Chu City without shedding a drop of blood.
"William’s right," Serena agreed. "It’s not just Rowan—even Prince Jason, and the princes of Northlyn and Southlyn won’t miss this chance. After all, it’s just a matter of asking for her hand. When the time comes, the four kingdoms will join in, and Charlotte Chu will have to pick one of them to marry."