After Sun Zhengdao entered, he ordered the servants to remove all the braziers from the room. Except for Lady Sun, everyone else was driven out—his reason was simple: no one was to disturb him while he saved a life.
Storm Cloud Bu agreed without hesitation. He figured that once he confirmed Serena Feng was alive, he could go find Lance Quinn and drag him to see Bao'er.
Bang—right in front of Zhai Dongming, Sun Zhengdao slammed the door, nearly catching Zhai Dongming's high-bridged nose in it.
Vincent Su half-dragged, half-pulled Storm Cloud Bu away from the Lotus Wing. Qin Bao'er's illness couldn't take any shock. They'd all silently kept the news about Serena Feng from her, not letting her know.
"Storm Cloud Bu, Serena Feng was ambushed by assassins last night. Right now, her fate is unknown." That's how rumors start—Serena Feng was gravely wounded, but by the time Vincent Su told it, it had become 'fate unknown.'
"What? Something happened to Serena Feng? I only took my eyes off her for one day—how did this happen? Wait, I had people secretly protecting her!" Storm Cloud Bu was first shocked, then confused.
Vincent Su rolled his eyes. "You don't have to explain to me—go explain to Lance Quinn. You should know, whether for business or personal reasons, Lance Quinn values Serena Feng a lot. If something happens to her, he won't let you off."
"Dongming, post guards outside the Sun Estate. Serena Feng must be protected at all costs." Wang Jinling turned and walked out.
What a headache. Vincent Su pushed down his irritation. "Go ahead. I'll go to the Sun Estate to check on Serena Feng. I'll let you know if I hear anything."
"Alright." Without looking back, Storm Cloud Bu ran toward the Lotus Wing. Vincent Su shook his head, thinking: With Qin Bao'er like this, she still wants to marry Lance Quinn? Compared to her, he thought Serena Feng was a much better match. Aside from her reputation, Serena Feng was worthy of Lance Quinn in every other way—at least she wouldn't hold him back.
"Mm." Though he was reluctant, Wang Jinling still turned and left without hesitation.
Romance is possible, but only if you have the strength to back it up. When you're in love, your enemies shouldn't dare act—but right now, he didn't have that luxury.
Zhai Dongming posted guards outside the Sun Estate. During this time, Vincent Su came by—when he heard that Serena Feng was gravely injured and unconscious, his face went pale. Before Zhai Dongming could explain that Sun Zhengdao had a way to save her, Vincent Su spun around and rushed back to the Su Manor.
"It's over. Storm Cloud Bu is dead meat now. Lance Quinn gave him strict orders to watch over Serena Feng, and she got hurt right under their noses. Lance Quinn is probably going to tear him apart."
As soon as Vincent Su got back to the Su Manor, he asked the servants where Storm Cloud Bu was.
"Young Master, Lord Jingyun is in the Lotus Wing."
"Lotus Wing? He really is a hopeless romantic. At a time like this, he's still keeping Qin Bao'er company—I can't believe him. Is the Duke Samuel Manor full of lovesick fools, dropping everything for a woman?" Vincent Su was fuming. Lance Quinn told Storm Cloud Bu to stay in the capital, not to dote on Qin Bao'er. Bu had plenty to do, and Qin Bao'er had her own maids.
Vincent Su walked up to the Lotus Wing and overheard Storm Cloud Bu promising Qin Bao'er, "Bao'er, don't worry. I'll definitely bring Lance Quinn back today. Just focus on getting better."
What a headache. Vincent Su pushed down his irritation. "Go ahead. I'll go to the Sun Estate to check on Serena Feng. I'll let you know if I hear anything."
"Alright." Without looking back, Storm Cloud Bu ran toward the Lotus Wing. Vincent Su could only shake his head, thinking to himself: With Qin Bao'er like this, she still wants to marry Lance Quinn? Compared to her, he thought Serena Feng was a much better match. Aside from her reputation, Serena Feng was worthy of Lance Quinn in every other way—at least she wouldn't hold him back.
"Vincent Su, what are you doing?" Storm Cloud Bu was startled and lashed out, only to realize it was Vincent Su.
"What am I doing? Storm Cloud Bu, you're about to get yourself killed and you're still yelling here!" Vincent Su honestly wanted to crack open Bu's head and see what was inside—was Qin Bao'er really all he could think about?
Storm Cloud Bu froze, thinking about his recent behavior and feeling uneasy. "Did something happen?" He hadn't really done anything useful lately, so nothing should've gone wrong, right?
Vincent Su half-dragged, half-pulled Storm Cloud Bu away from the Lotus Wing. There was no helping it—Qin Bao'er's illness couldn't handle any shock. They'd all tacitly kept the news about Feng Qingchen from her, not letting her find out.
"Storm Cloud Bu, Feng Qingchen was ambushed by assassins last night. Right now, her fate is unknown." This is how rumors start—Feng Qingchen was gravely wounded, but by the time Vincent Su told it, it had become 'fate unknown.'
"What? Something happened to Feng Qingchen? I only took my eyes off her for one day—how did this happen? Wait, I had people secretly protecting her!" Storm Cloud Bu was first shocked, then confused.
Vincent Su rolled his eyes. "You don't have to explain to me—go explain to Lance Quinn. You should know, whether for business or personal reasons, Lance Quinn values Feng Qingchen a lot. If something happens to her, he won't let you off."
Storm Cloud Bu immediately pulled a long face. "Ah, what now? I even promised Bao'er I'd bring Lance Quinn to her today. With this happening, that's going to be tough. Vincent, help me out—help me get Lance Quinn to see Bao'er, will you?"
Hopeless. Even now, all he could think about was Qin Bao'er. Vincent Su was speechless. He let go of Storm Cloud Bu. "Forget it, I'm done with you. I'm heading to the Sun Estate to check on Feng Qingchen. Are you coming or not?"
Well, maybe this would count as making up for his mistake.
"Alright."
Storm Cloud Bu agreed without hesitation. He figured that once he confirmed Feng Qingchen was alive, he could go find Lance Quinn and drag him to see Bao'er.
But just as they reached the Su Manor gate, a maid came running up behind, shouting, "Lord Jingyun, Lord Jingyun—Miss is having another attack!"
Oh my god, not again!
Vincent Su had a headache—how many times had she relapsed now? She was a pure case of a sick beauty. No man could put up with a woman like this; she was even more fragile than Liuli.
Storm Cloud Bu stopped in his tracks and spun around instantly. "What's wrong with Bao'er?"
"Miss's face is pale, her breathing is rapid, and she's drenched in cold sweat. Lord, please come quickly—we maids don't know what to do!" The maid was nearly in tears.
"Vincent?" Storm Cloud Bu looked at Vincent Su, troubled—he obviously wanted to go check on Qin Bao'er.
What a headache. Vincent Su pushed down his irritation. "Go ahead. I'll go to the Sun Estate to check on Feng Qingchen. I'll let you know if I hear anything."
"Alright." Without looking back, Storm Cloud Bu ran toward the Lotus Wing. Vincent Su could only shake his head, thinking to himself: With Qin Bao'er like this, she still wants to marry Lance Quinn? Compared to her, he thought Feng Qingchen was a much better match. Aside from her reputation, Feng Qingchen was worthy of Lance Quinn in every other way—at least she wouldn't hold him back.
With Qin Bao'er in her sickly state, even if she had the fate to be Lance Quinn's wife, she wouldn't live long enough to enjoy it. What were Lance Quinn's master and mistress thinking? Being the founding empress isn't so easy, and being the mother of the nation is no simple task.
Qin Bao'er like this—never mind helping Lance Quinn succeed, it'd be a miracle if she didn't cause him trouble. If Lance Quinn really married her, she'd probably drag him down.
Vincent Su really didn't get it. Why did Lance Quinn bother bringing Bao'er out here? Wouldn't she be better off staying in the mountains? She had servants to wait on her—bringing her out was just a headache.
Did Lance Quinn bring Bao'er out just to show his inner circle that Qin Bao'er wasn't a good match for him?
Vincent Su shook his head. Lance Quinn probably wasn't thinking that far ahead—he just wanted Qin Bao'er to understand his life, to see how dangerous and unstable things would be from now on.
If Lance Quinn knew what Vincent Su was thinking, he'd nod in satisfaction: Vincent, you've seen through me!
He wanted the world to see—it wasn't that Lance Quinn was faithless for not marrying Qin Bao'er. The truth was, a delicate flower like Qin Bao'er just wasn't suited for him. He couldn't focus on a woman, and he couldn't waste his time just keeping a woman company.
At the same time, he wanted Qin Bao'er to understand: if she married him but couldn't stand by his side, she'd have to be ready for loneliness. Lance Quinn would never abandon his burdens for a woman, never retire to the countryside just for love...