Scrubbing Nolan's back!
Nolan Dongling never lets anyone serve him during his bath—he’s not used to it and doesn’t want strangers getting close. Except for Serena Feng, no one else can approach him when he’s completely bare and on guard. So...
The result of Serena Feng scrubbing Nolan was that she ended up in the bath herself.
The bath was just that small—Nolan fit perfectly inside, but with Serena added, all the water overflowed. Worst of all, there wasn’t even room to turn around, so...
An hour later, when they came out to eat, Nolan looked refreshed, while Serena was clutching her waist, moving at a turtle's pace.
Nolan stopped and waited, but Serena didn’t catch up. He stepped over, came to her side, and wrapped his left arm around her waist. The gentle press made Serena cry out in pain: "Stop, that hurts..."
"It’ll feel better if I rub it out." Nolan ignored her protests and kept pressing. This time, Serena really teared up from the pain: "Don’t rub it, that won’t help. It’ll be fine in a couple days."
Serena wanted to move away, but was afraid of straining her waist. She tried to push him off, but she was no match for Nolan.
A doctor’s advice must be followed. Nolan obediently stopped, asking with his eyes: Really nothing serious?
Serena silently shook her head. What if there was something wrong? It’s all happened already—can they go back and redo it?
Besides, even if they could start over, Ninth Royal Uncle wouldn’t stop. She’d told him several times just now to stop, or at least change places, but in the end... she still got pinned down over the tub and thoroughly ravished.
Dinner had been reheated and brought out again. It wasn’t as fresh as before, but for two hungry people, it was still delicious enough.
Serena had only meant to keep Nolan company and eat a little, but after an hour of physical exertion, she was truly starving. She didn’t hold back—she picked up her bowl and finished the whole thing in one go.
When she finished, she saw Nolan was still eating slowly and gracefully. Serena touched her still-hungry stomach, hesitated for a moment, but decided to put down her bowl and chopsticks anyway.
No more!
Serena didn’t spare Nolan a glance. She set down her bowl and chopsticks and walked away.
"Awooo... awooo." The Snow Wolf had been waiting outside for Serena all along. When it saw her come out, it pounced on her excitedly.
She and the wolf played like this all the time. Normally, Serena could dodge easily, but...
With her waist just injured, Serena didn’t dare move recklessly. Even if she could, her legs wouldn’t cooperate. She could only watch helplessly as the Snow Wolf barreled toward her, and then...
Bang! Man and wolf tumbled together. Serena landed on her back—fortunately, the Snow Wolf reacted fast, sliding its paw under her to cushion her head so she didn’t hit it. Still, with the wolf’s weight on top, Serena nearly blacked out.
"Help..."
Serena had just opened her mouth when Ninth Royal Uncle, hearing the commotion, rushed out. Seeing the Snow Wolf pinning Serena down, his face darkened and he kicked out with his leg.
"No—" Serena heard the rush of wind and tried to stop him, but it was too late. The Snow Wolf took the kick head-on and tumbled backward.
Awooo... The Snow Wolf didn’t fight back, just let out a pitiful cry. As it fell, it kept hold of Serena, so man and wolf crashed down together again—this time, the wolf landed first and Serena sprawled on top of its soft body.
With the Snow Wolf’s soft body beneath her, Serena wasn’t hurt at all. She was about to get up when she realized Ninth Royal Uncle had already swept her into his arms.
"Check on the Snow Wolf, will you?" Serena tugged at Nolan, signaling him to put her down.
Ninth Royal Uncle paused, looked down at the Snow Wolf from above, and said, "It’s fine."
As if to prove Nolan right, the Snow Wolf gave a howl, rolled on the ground, and stood up. Its wolf eyes stared at Serena in confusion, as if it couldn’t figure out what had just happened.
Seeing the Snow Wolf unharmed, Serena breathed a sigh of relief. She patted its head, coaxed it into leaving happily, and only then let Nolan carry her back to the room. Along the way, the servants all bowed their heads, not daring to look directly.
Ninth Royal Uncle set Serena down on the bed, removed her outer robe, and saw her back covered in red, swollen patches. A cold look flashed in his eyes. "Medicine."
"How bad is it?" Serena just felt sore and uncomfortable, but otherwise fine.
"Just external injuries." Red, swollen, bruised, plus old kiss marks and new pressure marks from the tub’s edge—Serena’s back looked like a chaotic painting. Seeing Nolan’s tightly furrowed brow, it was clear that ‘painting’ was hideous.
"Since it’s just external, I’ll use the ointment the Valley Master left me." Serena activated her Smart Med-Pack and took out the salve made by the Valley Master.
Compared to Western medicine, Serena preferred the Valley Master’s remedies, especially his miraculous external ointment. One application brought instant cool comfort, with no burning or discomfort at all.
Nolan was already used to applying ointment for Serena. This wasn’t his first time, so he didn’t fumble like before and make her cry out. Before Serena even felt any pain, he’d finished applying the medicine, dressed her in fresh thin gauze, kissed her forehead, and said, "Rest well. I need to go to the palace."
Originally, Nolan meant to stay the night, but matters with the Cui clan couldn’t wait. Since he’d decided to confront them, preparations had to start early—at minimum, he needed to notify Crown Prince Titus ahead of time to avoid mistakes.
"Why don’t you rest a bit before you go?" Serena scooted inward to make room on the bed. Nolan wanted to refuse, but seeing the concern in her eyes, he finally nodded and lay down beside her, still fully dressed. "You sleep first. I’ll leave after you fall asleep."
"Okay." Serena closed her eyes and emptied her mind, hoping to fall asleep quickly so Nolan wouldn’t worry, but also wishing she’d stay awake a bit longer so he could rest.
With such mixed feelings, Serena drifted off without realizing. When she woke, Nolan was gone; only the faint creases on the mattress proved he’d really rested there.
After washing up, Serena was about to have breakfast when she noticed a slip of paper on her dressing table. She unfolded it and saw just one word: "Kill."
"It’s Ninth Royal Uncle’s handwriting." From the script alone, Serena could tell, and since no one but Nolan could enter her room, she was certain he’d left the note. But...
Why would Ninth Royal Uncle leave her just the word "kill"? What did he mean by it?
Serena stood there, staring blankly at the character in her hand, wishing she could stare so hard that flowers would bloom from its strokes...