Pregnancy, This Child Should Not Have Come

Serena Feng ignored the siblings’ uneasy expressions and finalized the cooperation plan on the spot. As soon as they left, she narrowed her eyes and smiled.

How wonderful the grasslands are... Vast and sparsely populated, every place looks the same—so easy to get lost. Once you put someone out on the steppe, it’s not so simple to find them again.

She could raise horses and train cavalry out there, and even Ninth Royal Uncle wouldn’t be able to find out. And even if he did, so what? The sky’s high and the emperor is far away—Eastlyn might want to interfere, but for now, they can’t do anything about her.

Honestly, Serena had wanted to do this for a long time. It was a big move, though, and since she and Chief Musa had just started working together and couldn’t fully trust each other, she’d planned to wait a year or so and test his character before acting. But now...

Good thing she’d kept her guard up and hadn’t partnered with Musa back then, or else Third Young Master Cui would’ve screwed her over completely.

As for those siblings?

Serena honestly wasn’t worried. A tribe that lives apart from the crowd and has vision is worth taking a risk on, and she was confident she could keep those siblings under control.

Still, risk is risk—precautions are a must. Once the deal was settled, Serena immediately sent people to escort Mira and her brother back to the grasslands under the pretense of protection. Of course, the teacher and his family, whom Serena had found for them, went along too.

The teacher Serena hired for Mira and her brother was introduced by William Wang Jinling. This man was exceptionally learned and open-minded, but his family had fallen on hard times and he’d offended powerful people in the Capital. It took William’s maneuvering to save his life.

Mira and her brother were very satisfied with the teacher. The whole group, carrying gifts specially prepared by Serena, quietly returned to the grasslands.

With the cattle and sheep supply settled with Mira and her brother, Serena’s crisis was more than half resolved. She wrote a letter to Jada Tang and Mira Tang in far-off Shandong, instructing them to send people to scout the route to the grasslands. If all was clear, Ezra Phoenixfield was to lead troops to station there—and naturally, watchers would be assigned to keep an eye on Ezra as well.

Once those miscellaneous matters were dealt with, the end of the year drew near. Serena had no intention of making a move against Third Young Master Cui during the New Year, ruining everyone’s holiday.

Serena put aside her schemes and, with nothing urgent to handle, stopped going out. She focused on New Year preparations at home, hoping to spend a lively holiday with Simon Sun and Little Feng Jin.

Under Simon Sun’s careful care, Logan Ling’s wounds were visibly healing, and he was much sunnier these days. He would definitely be staying at Feng Manor for the New Year.

Bella Qin’s chills came and went—not because Serena was deliberately neglectful, but because the Capital’s winter was far colder than Jiangnan. No matter how carefully Bella was looked after, her delicate health was simply a fact.

Given Bella’s condition, she too would be staying at Feng Manor for the holiday. Serena didn’t mind having a few more people around; she just hoped Bella would behave herself and not cause any drama during New Year.

Busy with New Year gifts and supplies for each household, Serena was tired but genuinely happy. Only when she thought of Ninth Royal Uncle still in Night City did her heart ache a little. She couldn’t help but wonder: was he doing well in Night City? Did he ever think of her?

Since that day, they hadn’t even exchanged letters. All Serena could do was piece together news of Ninth Royal Uncle from intelligence reports brought by Summer, barely managing to learn that he hadn’t yet fought in Night City and was safe for now.

But it wasn’t enough. And yet, she couldn’t bring herself to swallow her pride and write him first.

Sigh...

Serena sighed and went back to her work. As long as she didn’t dwell on Ninth Royal Uncle’s affairs, her days would stay peaceful and quiet until the Lantern Festival. But a letter from Shandong arrived and threw everything out of rhythm...

The letter was from Ezra Phoenixfield. It was full of self-recrimination, which Serena found odd—Ezra was proud, and even if he wanted to declare loyalty, he’d never do it this way. Only when she read the last few lines did Serena finally understand what he meant.

Clara Phoenixfield is pregnant!

She didn’t even need to ask—of course the father was Jason Lan. But... this child couldn’t have come at a worse time.

Clara Phoenixfield is pregnant out of wedlock. Neither Ezra nor the Phoenixfield clan members would ever allow her to have this child.

As a doctor, Serena respects every life. Once the fetus has quickened, she would never force Clara to abort. At the same time, if Clara did choose abortion, Serena wouldn’t stand on any moral high ground and condemn her as a murderer.

Serena has practiced medicine for years and has seen countless cases of unwed pregnancy. Some women choose abortion and move on with their lives; others insist on giving birth.

Giving birth is easy, but raising a child whose father is unknown is anything but.

Not just in ancient times—even today, such children are rarely accepted by mainstream society or those around them. Unless you have power and status, and your child is born with a golden road ahead, they’ll have to work a hundred times harder than others to succeed.

If the child belonged to anyone else, it might still be manageable. But of all people, it’s Jason Lan’s. From Serena’s standpoint, she truly didn’t want Clara Phoenixfield to have this baby.

Given Clara Phoenixfield’s current status in the clan, she simply couldn’t protect that child. Life for the baby in the Phoenixfield clan would be miserable.

Ezra Phoenixfield must have thought the same. So as soon as he learned Clara was pregnant, his first reaction was to insist she abort. But...

A mother’s strength knows no bounds.

Clara Phoenixfield refused to abort. When she realized Ezra would force her, she simply ran away.

You had to admit, Clara was resourceful. In Shandong, she actually managed to slip past Jada Tang and Mira Tang—proof that Jason Lan’s months of training had paid off.

Seeing Clara run off with the child, Serena wasn’t exactly pleased with Jada and Mira Tang’s grip on Shandong, but she wasn’t furious either.

If Clara could escape, that was skill. If she could have the baby and keep it safe, that was skill too. After all, no one has the right to take that child’s life.

Now, Serena could only hope Clara would be smart enough not to bring the child to Jason Lan—or let Jason know about its existence.

Clara should know perfectly well how Jason Lan feels about her. Even if she has his child, Jason may not treat her or the baby well. Without Jason as a father, maybe that child will have a happier life.

And most importantly, Jason Lan only has a year left to live. Even if he acknowledges Clara’s child, he can’t give it everything it needs. Worse, Jason’s aunt might seize the baby as an heir and raise it into another Jason Lan.

Children are debts their parents must pay. Ezra Phoenixfield, proud as he was, had bowed his head for his children again and again. This time, Clara left him utterly disappointed.

Ezra wrote in his letter to Serena that he had formally severed ties with Clara and struck her name from the family register.

From now on, there was no longer a Clara Phoenixfield in the clan.