Heartache, I Don’t Need Obedience, Only Capability

Zuo An was a terror on the battlefield, but once back on the ship, he was so seasick he could barely function. Even on the flagship, he was dizzy and miserable, and after half a day of suffering, he finally decided to seek out Serena Feng for seasickness medicine.

But as soon as he stepped below deck, he saw Ninth Royal Uncle standing outside the cabin, lost in thought. Zuo An's eyes flashed with a sly smile. He walked up, swept his gaze over the cabin's situation, and joked nastily, "What's wrong, Your Highness, does your heart ache for her?"

Inside the cabin, Serena still hadn't stopped working. It was obvious her movements had slowed, her face was bloodless and pale. If she kept going like this, even the toughest would collapse.

Heartache? Of course he ached for her. But no matter how much he cared, he couldn't interfere.

Ninth Royal Uncle shot Zuo An a cold glance, turned, and strode away.

In the army, respect and admiration had to be earned by one’s own strength. The officers only recognized those with real ability. Nolan himself had risen this way, and he believed Serena could too.

If Serena wanted to stand firm in the military and win the soldiers’ loyalty, she had to rely on her own merits. Nolan could make them obey, but he couldn’t make them truly respect her.

So no matter how much Nolan wanted to protect Serena, he refused to step in. She had to earn the officers’ respect and carve out her place in his army herself.

Nolan hoped Serena would win the officers’ recognition, but he hadn’t expected her to push herself so hard. While he was handling battle reports, Serena worked for three days and nights straight, finally collapsing in the cabin.

When Nolan heard the news, he immediately dropped everything, rushed over, and carried her out himself—taking along the medicine she’d set aside for herself.

"Your Highness, Miss Feng said if she collapsed, to give her the medicine inside." The navy doctor, now deferential, saluted Nolan and respectfully handed over the medicine Serena had prepared.

"Mm." Nolan answered curtly. The soldier behind him immediately took the medicine.

Nolan strode away, ignoring the anxious, fearful looks from the wounded soldiers inside the cabin.

As soon as Nolan left, the oppressive atmosphere vanished. The men who’d been too intimidated to speak now started chatting in threes and fours.

"Damn, none of us even thanked Miss Feng. She saved my shoulder, you know."

"Miss Feng is a good person. I used to think women on ships were bad luck, but she’s our lucky star. These days, she barely eats—just takes care of us, only dozing off when she’s dead tired."

"Miss Feng isn’t just beautiful—she’s a great doctor too. Look at this wound, it’s only been three days and it’s already healing."

"Before, I didn’t get why His Highness brought a woman aboard. Now I do—he did it for us. He’s really good to us. I swear, I’ll follow him for life."

...

Sitting on the railing, Zuo An listened to the wounded men talk about Serena’s deeds over the past few days and about how Nolan had looked after them. He gave a silent, sardonic smile.

Nolan truly was a master at winning hearts, and Serena was the perfect, sincere helper. By letting her show her skills, Nolan not only helped her secure her place in the navy but also won the sailors’ loyalty.

Even if these men didn’t become his most loyal followers, they wouldn’t easily betray Nolan. Too bad—Zuo An still hadn’t gotten his seasickness medicine, and he wondered if he’d wake up with a splitting headache.

Serena hadn’t hurt herself seriously—she was just exhausted. After taking her medicine and sleeping a full day, she felt much better. When she woke, she found herself curled up in Nolan’s arms. Serena didn’t fuss; she simply slipped free and sat up.

Nolan got up too, picked up Serena’s clothes, and started helping her dress.

“I’m fine,” Serena said, reaching for her clothes. But Nolan dodged her hand: “I know. I like doing this—is that not allowed?”

As he spoke, Nolan unfolded the clothes. Serena realized she couldn’t refuse, so she let him help her dress—even if it made her feel awkward.

Watching Nolan seriously study the fastenings and style of her clothes, Serena felt her limbs stiffen.

Nolan, can’t I do this myself?

Of course not. When Nolan decided to do something, no one could refuse. Even though it took a while, he finished helping Serena dress.

Once she was dressed, Nolan fastened her belt from behind, pulling a bit too tightly—Serena naturally fell back against his chest.

“What is it?” Early in the morning, Serena’s voice was low and husky, the last syllable trailing off with a soft lilt that was almost intoxicating.

Nolan felt a rush of heat in his belly, hugged Serena’s waist from behind, took a deep breath to steady himself, and said in a rough, restrained voice, “Serena, don’t make me worry.”

“Ah, you mean that… Don’t worry, I’m fine.” Serena tilted her head back and patted Nolan’s hand, trying to reassure him.

“You collapsed and you say you’re fine? They said you went three days without sleep.” Nolan didn’t say much outside, but now that they were alone, he couldn’t help but scold her: she was young now and could endure, but when older she’d suffer for it.

He hoped they could grow old together.

“They exaggerated—I didn’t go three days without sleep, just slept very little. If I really stayed up three days straight, I’d have died.” Serena rubbed her head against Nolan’s chest, acting playfully.

She knew her limits and always rested when she needed to.

Nolan sighed. “Don’t do this again.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to rest. And don’t sigh first thing in the morning—you’ll sigh away your good luck.” Serena wrapped her arms around Nolan’s neck, rose up on tiptoe, and kissed his cheek. “Don’t worry about me, I’m a doctor—I’ll take care of myself. Look at you, you’ve lost weight.”

“I haven’t lost weight,” Nolan protested.