Untitled, Chaos at Mystic Healer Valley

Serena Feng somehow managed to fall off her chair—and was just barely ‘saved’ by Su Rou.

If you told this story, only someone who didn’t know Serena Feng would believe it. Prince Nathan of Southlyn had seen Serena’s skills firsthand—she’s far too cautious to fall off a chair, and even if she did, she wouldn’t be hurt.

Serena’s explanation didn’t reassure Nathan at all. Instead, his frown deepened. “Sister, tell me what really happened. How could you just fall off a chair? Su Rou isn’t even as skilled as you—how could she possibly save you?”

Serena hesitated, unsure if she should suspect Nathan, so she smiled and said, “Honestly, I don’t even know what happened. I was totally out of it. Su Rou said I got worked up talking about the Empress and just fell off the chair—maybe that’s all it was.”

Serena only planned to tell Ninth Royal Uncle about Su Rou’s hypnosis—and to use it to give Su Rou a taste of her own medicine.

“Worked up? You’d get worked up over the Empress? I don’t buy it. The Empress now is a toothless tiger, and even back then, you never took her seriously.”

Nathan sensed Serena’s coldness and quickly clarified his relationship with Su Rou: “Sister, Su Rou and I are just using each other. She wants into the palace, and I need her as a pawn to test the Su Clan. I brought her to you today because she genuinely wanted to apologize. If Su Rou does anything, you don’t need to be polite.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not the type to suffer and then stupidly say thank you. Su Rou really didn’t do anything—maybe I’m just too busy lately and a bit out of it.” Serena was sure Nathan had no idea what Su Rou was up to today.

There’s no way the Su Clan and Nathan could actually cooperate. The only partnership was between Su Rou and Nathan, and Su Rou would never go against orders from the Su Clan or Prince Damien.

They want to beat her—and take her life, making her die during her strongest event, horseback riding. Su Rou really is much more dangerous than Su Wan ever was.

Nathan was still uneasy, but if Serena wouldn’t say more, what could he do? “Sister, just be careful. Su Rou is secretive and unsettling—bringing her to Feng Manor was a mistake on my part. If you ever have to see Su Rou alone, make sure to have more people around.”

“Alright. But honestly, I barely ever meet Su Rou one-on-one. Once the Serena–Su Clan Grand Contest is over, she’ll probably enter the palace. In the harem, if I don’t want to see her, she won’t get the chance.” Serena dropped her guard toward Su Rou—her soul arts were her greatest asset, and except for Prince Damien, she’d never share them with outsiders.

With her doubts cleared, Serena also let down her guard toward Nathan. Since Su Rou hadn’t woken up yet, Serena invited Nathan to stay for lunch at Feng Manor—and he readily agreed, steering the conversation away from politics.

Serena knew Nathan was just worried about upsetting her. She smiled on the surface, but inside, she felt for him—a prince with no allies and no mother’s protection, Nathan hadn’t had it easy in Southlyn.

All it took was Nathan calling her ‘sister’—that made her his ally. She couldn’t just hide in her shell, soaking up affection but never giving back. Whether she helped Nathan or not, in Prince Damien’s eyes, she’d always be the enemy.

When Serena walked Nathan out, she looked at his sharply defined face and said, “Nathan, thank you for what you did at the New Year’s Eve banquet. If you ever need anything, just come to me. I’m not as naïve or kind as you think.

Nathan, you call me sister, so you should know—I’ll always support my little brother, no matter what you do. In my eyes, it’s all right. Don’t forget, your sister isn’t some saint, so I don’t care about right or wrong. I only care that the people around me are safe and well.”

She saves lives, she gives disaster relief, she looks selfless—but in truth, she’s the most selfish of all. She never saw herself as a savior, never wanted to change the world. Everything she does is just to make her own life better.

“Sister…” Nathan choked up, his eyes reddening. “I’m sorry, I never meant to hurt you. I just… I just…”

He couldn’t get the rest out. He couldn’t bring himself to admit to Serena that he’d never had a plan, that his whole time in Eastlyn he’d been walking on eggshells, terrified of making her unhappy.

“I understand. You’re a prince of Southlyn—you have your own responsibilities and honor to fight for. Don’t worry, even if I can’t help you, I won’t hold you back. Leave Su Rou to me; since we’re in Eastlyn, I’ll handle her myself. Go ahead and do what you need to do. When you finally defeat Prince Damien, I’ll come celebrate with you.”

With Serena’s words, Nathan could finally act freely in Eastlyn. He no longer had to worry about upsetting her, and could do things his own way.

Nathan nodded hard, promising, “Sister, I won’t let you down.”

“Alright, it’s getting late—you should head back.” Serena waved her hand, motioning Nathan to get in the carriage.

As a Southlyn prince, New Year’s is a busy time. Nathan spending a whole day with her was already more than she could ask for.

After sending Nathan off, the gloom Su Rou had brought finally lifted. Sometimes, clearing the air is best for everyone. Nathan could go all out, and she didn’t have to worry. Any hostility Nathan showed Yara was just for her sake.

Even though Su Rou had left her a bit annoyed, Serena’s good mood didn’t fade. On her way back, she stopped by Prince Titus’s place, checked his temperature, gave him medicine, and as she left, he said, “Your little brother’s pretty good.”

Serena paused, turned back, and replied, “Thanks,” then hummed a tune as she headed for the little cabin.

Caleb Wang Jinhan was awake now, though not for long each time. Serena went to change his dressings and feed him medicine.

Having to do every little thing herself made Serena miss Simon Sun—and worry about how he was doing at Mystic Healer Valley.

She trusted Zuo An’s abilities, but only that much. With Zuo An around, Simon Sun was safe, but that didn’t mean he’d have an easy time. The Master of the Mystic Healer Valley was skilled, but definitely not a good doctor.

“Hopefully the Master will appreciate the gifts and won’t make things hard for Simon—or worse, get curious and reopen the wound on the back of his head. I just want Simon to recover soon and come home.”

Serena’s worries weren’t unfounded. When the Master saw Prince Titus’s prosthetic leg, he’d tried every trick to amputate it and take it back to the Valley for research. Seeing the surgical scar on Simon Sun’s head, if he wasn’t tempted, he wouldn’t be the Master of the Mystic Healer Valley…