Chapter 2354 - 297: Victoria’s White-Horse Prince (Part 2)

The gold edge of the frame glimmered faintly in the morning light, reflecting the silver hue of his brooch. The face in the mirror neither appeared overly solemn nor bore any hint of panic.

Today was his routine day to visit Buckingham Palace to see Victoria. Arthur could act casually in front of friends, but within the dignified confines of Buckingham Palace, even given his close relationship with Victoria, he needed to maintain the most presentable appearance possible.

Behind him, Blackwell held a stack of updates from various sources on the current state of affairs at Buckingham Palace. He carefully selected what he deemed the most important and reported the latest intelligence to Arthur: "Sir, this list was specially delivered this morning by Mr. Auguste Schneider. I think you ought to know about the personnel changes in the Russian delegation for the coronation ceremony."

"Speak." Arthur didn’t turn around, merely lightly putting on his gloves: "Is it yet another Baltic-born German noble? Or some Russian native prince or duke?"

Blackwell took a deep breath and handed over the document: "No, sir, it’s a Russian prince."

"Prince?" Arthur turned back: "Which prince?"

"His Majesty Nicholas’s eldest son, the heir to the entire Russian Empire, His Highness Alexander Nikolaevich, arrived in London with the Russian delegation just yesterday!"

Arthur showed no shock discernible to outsiders, merely taking the document casually: "Nicholas sent his heir to Britain? Now?"

Blackwell nodded, his mouth twitching slightly from tension: "He already entered the palace last night to meet Her Majesty the Queen, and even attended a ball held at Buckingham Palace."

Arthur flipped through a few pages of the document: "If we exclude Her Majesty the Queen’s blood relatives, this should be her first time hosting foreign royal members, right?"

"Yes." Perhaps recalling his wonderful memories in Russia, Blackwell couldn’t help but smile: "Her Majesty the Queen was initially somewhat unhappy because she received almost no prior notice of Prince Alexander’s visit and candidly expressed her displeasure to the Prime Minister."

"No surprise." Arthur recalled Tsar Nicholas I’s modus operandi: "That ruler of the Northern Country always likes to carry out these sudden maneuvers; I’ve already experienced it once in Moscow."

Blackwell quickly added: "However, Her Majesty’s displeasure didn’t last long."

Arthur closed the document, raising his eyebrows: "Hmm? What happened?"

Blackwell pursed his lips and smiled as he said: "Her Majesty was initially somewhat upset, but when she met Prince Alexander, her anger quickly dissipated. I heard that Prince Alexander even danced the opening and closing dances with Her Majesty at the ball."

The keen old observer immediately sensed something amiss upon hearing this.

"Really?"

"The source of the information is a hundred percent credible. There were many people at the ball, and many witnessed Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Alexander spinning in the ballroom until three in the morning. Upon departure, Prince Alexander even presented the gift he brought from Russia directly to Her Majesty—a diamond-encrusted box containing a huge diamond ring."

Diamond ring?

Diamond-encrusted box?

Ballroom at three in the morning?

Arthur only felt chilled from head to toe, even his head buzzed, as if a locomotive was screaming against his head.

Alexander Nikolaevich Romanov, this prince he had seen before, Arthur had even attended his coming-of-age ceremony while in Russia.

Arthur attended the coming-of-age ceremony in his capacity as Britain’s Cultural Counsellor to Russia, positioned between the Marshal Corps and University representatives.

The young Alexander stood tall, with a graceful physique. Though his appearance wasn’t considered handsome, his cheerful countenance endeared him, with beautiful blue eyes, a short nose, and lips often curled into a smile.

"Portrait of Prince Alexander Nikolaevich" by British painter George Dawe

It is widely known that while handsome looks are an important standard for young ladies assessing young men, it’s not the only one.

Because Alexander was not only tall and of high standing, but also quite sociable, and most commendable was his manner of speaking—far more gentle and tactful than that of his father, Tsar Nicholas I.

Under such conditions, Alexander naturally spurred endless imagination among young ladies wherever he went.

From Arthur’s observations in Russia, the fervor this Russian Crown Prince incited among Russian girls was entirely comparable to the stir Victoria triggered among British gentlemen.

Arthur still recalls the scene at the Russian Court’s winter ball, the blushes and secretive giggles of noble maidens, and the eager nudges of noblewomen urging their daughters forward, all of which fell under the scrutiny of Britain’s highest intelligence officer in Russia.

Notably, Arthur discovered that this Russian Crown Prince, unlike the brash Albert, was no novice in the realm of romance; he seemed well-versed in interacting with ladies, always able to elicit their giggles—a young man capable of fulfilling a girl’s every fantasy about a prince.

And Victoria...

Arthur knew his student’s temperament intimately.

Like all young ladies, Victoria did not favor the reserved, obscure, perpetually sullen young men, but preferred those who could talk confidently and assertively in social settings. And Alexander not only met Victoria’s criteria completely, he even bore the overwhelming weight and brilliance of the Russian Empire behind him, making the role of "Crown Prince" inherently carry an unignorable heft and glow that fascinated young girls.