Exploitation, Ninth Royal Uncle, You Should Return to Ninth Prince Manor

In the imperial capital, you could afford to neglect anyone—except Serena Feng. To slight Serena was even graver than offending Ninth Royal Uncle.

The Crown Prince entered the main hall and, before Serena Feng could rise, spoke first: "Serena, no need to stand. In my manor, we dispense with such formalities."

"Thank you, Your Highness, but etiquette must not be abandoned." The sharper her reputation, the more she had to keep a low profile and be cautious; there was no point risking her life before she’d accomplished anything. Serena rose and saluted, and the Crown Prince hurried forward, motioning for her to sit back down.

"Serena, when it’s just us, there’s no need for all these formalities in front of me. Even Ninth Royal Uncle doesn’t accept your courtesies—how could I?"

It was all because of Ninth Royal Uncle. Serena kept her expression neutral and silent, only sitting again after the Crown Prince had taken his seat.

Though the Crown Prince outwardly chided Serena for her strict manners, inwardly he admired her restraint. She didn’t flaunt her favor—only someone like Serena could go further; no wonder Ninth Royal Uncle had his eye on her.

Serena’s injury had caused a stir throughout the city, so the Crown Prince naturally had to mention it to show his concern: "Seeing you recover so well makes me very glad. I’ve wanted to visit in person, but court affairs have kept me too busy."

The Crown Prince’s face lit up with a genuine smile, the pallor of his skin touched with a hint of color, and his eyes reflected true warmth.

Rowan Dongling and Rowan Zizhou had both thoroughly offended Ninth Royal Uncle recently and were being harshly suppressed. The Crown Prince, riding high on his success, found everything going smoothly—including his health.

"Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. It was only a minor injury—I wouldn’t dare trouble you over it." Serena bowed again. After so many dealings with the Crown Prince, she knew he was a smiling tiger: he might claim not to care, but who could say what he truly thought?

Serena Feng didn’t want to leave any leverage in the Crown Prince’s hands, nor did she wish to waste time with him. When he asked her reason for coming, Serena stated her purpose directly: "Your Highness, I came to ask about my contest with Su Wan. Because of my injury, the last two rounds have kept getting postponed, and I feel deeply apologetic."

Originally, Serena had intended to drag out the contest with Su Wan—just as she had done with Prince Damien of Southlyn. Damien had just returned home after staying too long in Eastlyn; if he lingered any further, all his power back in Southlyn would be seized by Prince Nathan.

Serena now knew that Prince Nathan was actually Evan Zhou. She wasn’t surprised—Evan and Damien looked somewhat alike, and hearing that Damien had suffered a major defeat at Evan’s hands genuinely pleased her.

What frustrated Serena, though, was that with Damien gone, Su Wan’s cousin—Night City’s Young Lord, Ye Ye—had arrived, and was now close friends with Westlyn’s Tianlei. The two were thick as thieves.

"You needn’t worry, Serena. Getting injured wasn’t your fault. Once you’re fully recovered, the contest will be fairer. But Miss Su Wan does seem rather impatient." The Crown Prince deliberately reminded Serena that delaying was to her advantage.

Serena pretended not to understand: "Thank you for your consideration, Your Highness. My injury is healed—I can compete tomorrow." She’d do Su Wan the favor and end things quickly. As long as the contest dragged on, countless eyes would watch her every move, leaving her no freedom to act.

She and Ninth Royal Uncle had reached a preliminary agreement; once she wrapped up her current affairs, she’d help him turn that batch of raw materials into a new generation of thunder-blast grenades.

To build true strength, she needed powerful weapons—thunder-blast grenades were the ultimate tool in this era.

Seeing that his persuasion had failed, the Crown Prince realized Serena had her own plans and said no more—he simply nodded his agreement.

As soon as Serena left the Crown Prince’s manor, visitors arrived at her West District courtyard almost immediately. Caleb Wang, Ethan Hsieh, and Dominic Zhai seemed to have timed it perfectly—she’d barely stepped out before the three of them showed up.

Caleb Wang and Serena Feng hadn’t been on the best terms lately, but her injury had restored their friendship to what it was before—as long as no one mentioned Ninth Royal Uncle. Whenever his name came up, Caleb’s heart ached for William Wang Jinling.

"Serena Feng, are you really healed? You’re not just forcing yourself, are you? You do realize that going out like this signals to everyone you’re recovered, and you can’t delay the contest with Su Wan any longer." Dominic Zhai stared at Serena’s neck for a long while, clearly uncertain.

There was still a faint mark on her neck, surrounded by tiny black dots. Dominic couldn’t bring himself to say it looked good.

"You’re not happy Serena’s healed?" Caleb Wang shot Dominic a glare.

With Serena’s recovery, he wondered what excuse Ninth Royal Uncle would have to keep staying in the West District courtyard.

A prince living in such a small, out-of-the-way residence was against all etiquette. Caleb planned to stir up trouble for Ninth Royal Uncle, and if the chance arose, he’d hint to Serena herself—her words would carry far more weight.

"Of course I’m glad—just a bit frustrated. Serena’s healed, but I still haven’t caught the culprit. Honestly, Holden Cui hasn’t been very forthcoming. Serena nearly died for him, and even now she’s willing to treat him, but he knows exactly who attacked her and where they are, yet refuses to say a word—pretending ignorance." The group all knew who was behind the attack; blaming the Su clan was just a convenient way to pressure them.

Thinking of the mess in his own family, Ethan Hsieh sympathized with Holden Cui’s predicament: "Don’t be too hard on Holden, Your Lordship. Sometimes things are simply beyond his control."

Young heirs from great families might seem to have it all, but outsiders never see the hardships. Behind the dazzling façade, they walked a knife’s edge—one misstep and it was all over.

"Out of his control? He’s just being selfish." To Dominic, anyone hindering his pursuit of the real culprit was in the wrong.

"Don’t blame Holden, Your Lordship. The whole affair may have started with him, but he isn’t responsible for what happened." Serena didn’t hold it against Holden Cui—she was only his doctor, and though she’d promised to treat him, she hadn’t cured him yet.

She barely knew Holden Cui; why would he risk exposing family secrets for her? The Cui clan had only targeted her, not Holden himself.

"Serena, you’re just too soft-hearted." Dominic gritted his teeth. "If he isn’t responsible for your injury, why bother treating him? Let him die of his illness. Just seeing him makes me angry."

As a Cui clan heir, Holden was bound to be proud. Serena had offered to treat him, but after all this time in the West District courtyard, there’d been no progress. Holden’s patience was remarkable—anyone else would have left long ago.

"Treating him was my own decision—he never asked me for anything." Holden surely understood that Serena’s promise to cure him was just a way to confront the mastermind and force them out into the open.

Holden Cui would benefit in the end, but Serena couldn’t deny that she was using him. He had no reason to thank her...