Chapter 246

Indeed...

After hearing this, the old nobles in the room nodded one after another, their expressions filled with helplessness.

The succession ceremony of the Duke of Lionheart was naturally not to be missed; most of the old nobles present had been there in person, witnessing firsthand how the "Three Lai En Elders" had fallen, and they understood well the current state of the Lai En family.

According to the old nobles' customs, to depose the current Duke of Lionheart and install a new one, a sufficiently esteemed "Lai En" must first step forward to lead the effort, after which the "in-laws" could follow suit.

Though it might sound overly rigid—like needing a raft before jumping into a burning building—this was indeed one of the unspoken rules the old nobles had to uphold.

After all, within the old noble class, many harbored mutual grievances, even some centuries-old feuds; if they truly ignored these unspoken rules and acted on impulse, they would likely collapse from internal strife long before the Princess even moved.

"We can't afford to care about that anymore!"

Looking at the newspapers on the table, whose headlines made his scalp tighten, a younger old noble stood up, his expression tense as he proposed:

"Even if the Lai En family has no one to lead the charge, we can't let this continue. Everyone knows what the Princess wants—if she succeeds in this, we won't even have the right to be royal vassals; we'll be slowly strangled by her!"

No matter what happens later, right now we must find a way to remove this disastrous duke! At the very least, we must prevent him from dragging the Lai En family's resources and seat over to the Princess—otherwise, it'll be too late!"

"I think the same."

Another "young hawk" old noble rose, nodding in full agreement:

"Compared to those old rules, stopping the Princess is more urgent now. We can't match the Royal Family's support, nor the Merchant Guild's wealth in the Lower House—if we don't act now, it'll be too late."

"I second that!"

"Sigh… I have no objections."

"Agreed—even if it fails, we must try!"

…

"Wait, calm down first."

As the old nobles began rising in agreement to forcibly replace the Duke of Lionheart, an older noble stood up and warned:

"Don't forget—even if we vote through the Upper House to forcibly remove the current Duke of Lionheart, someone still has to sit on that seat."

"That's not important!"

The first to rise, the young noble shouted:

"Whoever sits on the Duke of Lionheart's seat, as long as it's not this one, it's fine."

"No, this is crucial!"

The elder noble shook his head:

"You've probably never read the Lai En family genealogy, have you? Know this: if you vote to forcibly remove the current Duke of Lionheart, according to succession order, the next Duke will be his own sister."

"Then vote her out too!"

The young noble snarled:

"We can give up even more concessions if needed. Compared to being strangled by the Princess's new decrees or having the Lower House merchants snatch our cake, the cost of removing two dukes in a row is perfectly acceptable—so long as we remove this brother and sister…"

"After you remove this brother and sister, another pair awaits!"

The elder noble sneered:

"Go flip through the Lai En genealogy properly! After you vote her out, the next heir is the current Duke's younger brother, then his other sister again."

"Heh, replacing four Dukes of Lionheart in a single day—you think the Royal Family is dead, just watching you force this through?"

"…"

After quietly confirming with other closely allied nobles and receiving affirmative answers, the young noble who had proposed the forced replacement finally lost his composure.

"So this family of four is blocking the entire path to replacement? Are we just going to sit here and do nothing?"

"Doing nothing is impossible, but forcing it won't work either. This is such a rare opportunity—the Princess's nature means she'll guard it fiercely and give us not a single opening."

"So in the end, we have no solution at all?"

"There is a solution."

As most eyes turned toward him, the elder noble unfurled his "Yan Kingdom Map," squinting slightly as he said:

"But before I explain my idea, I must remind you all: our Duke of Lionheart is far from as simple as he appears."

Though he seems like a clueless fool, acting purely on whim, lucky beyond reason,

let us calm down and think from his position: even if he doesn't hand over the Lai En family, can he truly protect it?

Without this turn of events, what would he have left besides an empty ducal title? And would the Lai En family's situation be any better than it is now?"

After posing these questions, seeing the others begin to reflect, their faces slowly showing dawning understanding, the elder noble continued, eyes half-lidded:

"To be honest, I believe our Duke of Lionheart is the truly clever one."

From the start, he understood he had no ability to hold onto the Lai En family—whether he tried to curry favor with us in-laws or desperately clung to the family's remnants, in the end he'd be left with nothing."

But his mind was clear enough to know his limits; he cleanly severed ties with us, shamelessly proposed marriage to the Princess, and brought in someone capable of protecting the Lai En family."

"After all, we don't need him to claim the Lai En inheritance—he's worthless to us. But to the Royal Family and the Princess, his ducal title is the only ticket in, worth every ounce of effort to court him."

"And because of our presence, the Royal Family can't fully swallow the Lai En family; they must use his title as Duke of Lionheart to compete with us for its resources—creating a delicate balance that lets him control the Lai En family himself."

"Hmm, our Duke may not know how to be a noble, but he knows exactly how to do business—how to sell himself to the most suitable buyer, and at an exceptional price."

After speaking with admiration of his view of Lai Ang, the elder noble paused briefly, giving the others time to reflect, then picked up a newspaper from the table and lightly tapped the words "Princess," announcing loudly:

"Gentlemen, it's time we learned from this clever Duke—let's find a better 'buyer' for ourselves… what do you think of Prince Joshua?"

Prince Joshua?

Hearing the elder noble's suggestion, the nobles frowned, some openly objecting:

"You want us to fully side with the Royal Family? What's the difference from surrendering to the Princess? Won't we still be controlled by the Royals?"

"First, I only suggest siding with Prince Joshua. Second, when did the Princess come to represent the entire Royal Family?"

After asking this pointed question, the elder noble fully unfurled his "Yan Kingdom Map," revealing the "dagger" he had prepared, and asked:

"Gentlemen, consider this: does what our Princess wants equal what the entire Royal Family wants? And does what the Royal Family wants equal what Prince Joshua, along with the Queen and the Finance Minister behind him, want?"

Glancing at the nobles who were beginning to grasp his meaning, the elder noble explained slowly:

"Put more plainly: the Princess wants not just the throne, but also to curb our noble power—and that is also the Royal Family's goal, which is why the Princess could once represent the entire Royal will."

"The Queen and Finance Minister support the Royal Family because they received the King's promise: that the Princess would be married off, and the entire kingdom would one day belong to Prince Joshua, so they gladly let her clear the path for him."

"But now our Princess hasn't been married off—instead, through her marriage to that clever Duke, she's seized power enough to shake the entire kingdom. The situation is no longer the same."

"Now the Princess is powerful, and with the King actively suppressing her to balance the old nobles, even if the Queen and Finance Minister are furious, they dare not act now."

"But if the old nobles collectively turn to Prince Joshua, giving our Prince a strong enough ally… can the Princess still claim to represent the entire Royal Family?"