William Wang Jinling's intentions hadn't occurred to Serena at the time, but upon reflection afterwards, she understood the deeper meaning behind his actions.
Feng Jin's situation could be blown up or downplayed. If Westlyn insisted that Serena had ulterior motives for taking Feng Jin away, she could only accept the blame—after all, she did carry him off. In that case, to settle the matter, she'd have no choice but to let Westlyn make outrageous demands.
But if Left Shore handled it, things were different. If Left Shore personally went to Westlyn and negotiated with the Princess Royal, it would become a family matter for her. Even if Westlyn wanted to target Serena, they'd need her family's approval first.
So, having Left Shore go to Westlyn himself was the most appropriate solution.
Left Shore's movements might be hidden from others, but not from Prince Nolan. Seeing William Wang Jinling get ahead of him and resolve the Westlyn issue first made Nolan grit his teeth in frustration.
Did all these people think he was dead or something?
Sean confessed to Serena right under his nose; William Wang Jinling took advantage of his busyness to rack up points with Serena.
One after another, they acted like he didn't exist. Did they really think that just because he kept quiet, he knew nothing?
Prince Nolan was extremely frustrated. One night, after pinning Serena beneath him—doing this and that—he bit her ear, expressing his displeasure and waiting for her to coax him. But...
After waiting a long time, he realized Serena had fallen asleep.
Prince Nolan was utterly depressed. Was he really so lacking in charm that Serena would fall asleep at a time like this?
A petty man in the throes of jealousy loses all sense of reason. Sean ran off too fast for Nolan to catch him, and he didn't have time to storm Skyvault Palace—so he pinned all the blame on William Wang Jinling.
Despite being swamped with work, Nolan still made time to gather a few senior ministers for tea, hinting that although the Emperor was young, it was time for him to start learning—and that the Imperial Preceptor should take on the responsibility of teaching him.
So... Lord Wang, the Imperial Preceptor, ended up with a new assignment: teaching the Emperor for half an hour every day.
A little over a year old—well, two by traditional counting—the little Emperor could barely speak. Did the Wang clan’s Grand Heir really need to personally teach him?
"Aren't you afraid I'll turn him into a wise ruler who'll challenge your power?" William Wang Jinling ground his teeth in secret, though his smile remained as harmless as ever.
Challenge his power?
Prince Nolan shot William a glance, then looked away with indifference, not even bothering to answer such an impossible question.
So what if he's a wise ruler? Without real power, no matter how talented or extraordinary he is, he'll never get a chance to use it.
Besides, Empress Dowager Xie isn't stupid. The smarter the young Emperor acts, the sooner he'll die. Even if William wanted to, Empress Dowager Xie would never let him teach the Emperor too well.
Getting no response to his complaints, William Wang Jinling earnestly offered a suggestion: "The Emperor's Readers have been idle lately. With their talents, they're more than qualified to read to the Emperor."
Reading to a toddler not yet two years old every day—William Wang Jinling thought the whole thing was ridiculous. The little Emperor couldn’t understand, and even if he could, William had no interest in teaching a baby Emperor.
No—actually, William Wang Jinling didn’t want to have much contact with the little Emperor at all. He was only human; if he spent too much time with the child, he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t start favoring him.
"Let the Readers read to His Majesty for an hour each day. Lord Wang, please endure an extra hour in the palace every day."
Prince Nolan relieved William Wang Jinling of teaching duties, but kept him in the palace an extra half hour. William wasn’t sure if he’d come out ahead or lost out.
Still, William knew he had no room to bargain this time. Prince Nolan’s authority was absolute; no matter how unwilling a minister might be, he had to obey.
Sigh... This is why he never wanted to be an official. What good is being second only to the Emperor? Once you’re in office, you’re under someone’s thumb, your actions restricted, and you lose all freedom.
When William Wang Jinling left, he saw Felix Fuller looking grave and General Warren Yu with a worried face. Once again, he thought how hard it was to be an official—should he consider resigning?
Of course, that was just wishful thinking. Until Prince Nolan wrung every last drop of value out of him, he’d never be allowed to resign.
Felix Fuller and General Warren Yu hurried to see Prince Nolan about Prince Damien of Southlyn.