Serena Feng was already reluctant to treat Felix Fuller, and now, being pressured by all these imperial physicians, she was even more furious.
So these people didn’t want her to heal Lord Fuller’s leg at all—they just wanted her to be the scapegoat, to take the blame for all the imperial physicians.
Judging by the look on the imperial physicians’ faces, Serena was sure that this time it wasn’t Ninth Royal Uncle who sold her out—it was these doctors who were pushing her forward as the scapegoat.
Serena put on a polite, insincere smile and said to the crowd, “Thank you all for your trust. I won’t let you down. Could one of you please tell me about Lord Fuller’s condition?”
“We’re not skilled in treating external injuries. As for Lord Fuller’s condition, we’ll have to ask Miss Feng to examine him herself, so nothing gets overlooked and it doesn’t affect your treatment.” No matter how much the imperial physicians fought among themselves, when facing Serena, they were united—defending themselves flawlessly, determined to leave her holding the bag.
“Physician Liang is right. We’ll leave you to it, Miss Feng. We know you prefer to treat patients without outsiders present, so we’ll step out now.” An elderly doctor came forward, said a few polite words, and led the way out, as if someone was chasing him.
“If Physician Tan hadn’t reminded us, we’d have forgotten. Miss Feng, we’ll leave you to it. We’ll be waiting in the next room—if you need anything, just send a medicine boy to call us.” Physician Liang smiled kindly; anyone who didn’t know better would think he was mentoring a junior.
Serena didn’t speak, just nodded to Physicians Liang and Tan, acting as if she didn’t care about being pushed forward by the crowd.
With two physicians taking the lead and Serena not tearing things open, of course the others wouldn’t stay long. Of the dozens of imperial physicians in the room, two-thirds left in an instant. They didn’t want to do this, but compared to risking their own lives, they naturally chose to leave Serena behind.
The three who remained stared at Serena, their eyes full of struggle and worry, but still stood firm. They were tucked away in a corner—if everyone else hadn’t left, Serena wouldn’t have even noticed them.
"Aren't you leaving?" Serena Feng placed the medicine box beside Felix Fuller's bed, pulled a chair over for convenience, and began setting out her tools.
The three doctors looked at each other and nodded firmly: "We're not leaving. We're doctors."
"Do you have the ability to save Lord Fuller?" Serena paused for a moment, looked up at the three, a cold smile flashing in her eyes.
It was clear she didn't appreciate these three. Sometimes, courage and justice alone aren't enough—without skill, righteousness can't put food on the table.
"No." The three lowered their heads, staring at the tips of their shoes.
Just as she thought. Serena snapped open the medicine box and quickly took out the tools she needed. Once everything was ready—white coat on, mask secured, hair tied—she finally addressed the three: "Since you don't have the skill to save Lord Fuller, then leave. Why stay here—just to wait for death?"
"We can't leave you here alone, Miss Feng. If we go, we go together." The gray-clad man, about thirty, clenched his fists, looking every bit the righteous hero.
Serena snorted. "What good does it do for you to stay? If I can save Lord Fuller, the credit goes to the Imperial Medical Directorate. Whether you stay or not, it doesn't matter—the glory is theirs, and how much you get depends on your skills. If I can't save him, then you're just dying for nothing."
"We're not here for glory," the man on her left said, his scholarly aura obvious. "We just can't stand those people outside, pushing you forward to take the blame. How can we watch you face a beheading alone? We really can't do it."
Serena would rather deal with those sly old foxes outside than these naive idealists. At least with the others, she could guess their thoughts; but with these three, she really couldn't tell.
They were just too earnest—maybe even too bookish for their own good. Serena Feng had never been that kind of person, so she simply couldn’t understand their actions or feel the righteousness burning in their hearts. To her, dealing with people who only talked and never acted, who didn’t value their own lives, was exhausting. So...
"Go on, get out. If Mr. Fuller really doesn't make it, it has nothing to do with you." Serena pointed at the door, bluntly dismissing them.
The three young imperial physicians flushed, shaking their heads with stubborn resolve. "We can't do that. We can't leave you alone—Mr. Fuller is our joint patient, so if something happens, we should all take responsibility. How could we let you shoulder it alone?"
"But what can you even do by staying here? You can't help me; you'll only get in the way. And if you want to share the blame, that's even more pointless. For a doctor, every patient is a lifeline—if one can die instead of three, then let it be just me. No need to drag others down."
It's not that she's selfless; this is her own form of selfishness.
But it was exactly this selfish logic that made the three young scholars lower their heads in shame. "Miss Feng, you're right. Doctors matter to their patients. We shouldn't speak lightly of life and death. Miss Feng, we can't compare to you."
After so long in the Imperial Medical Directorate, all they’d learned was how to dodge blame and pull others down with them. They never considered that if one person took responsibility, the rest could survive.
If only one person needs to die, why drag three or five down too?
"I'm cold-blooded and heartless—why try to be like me? Get out. Mr. Fuller's injury can't wait any longer." Serena waved them off, her face full of impatience.
The three exchanged glances, silently nodded, and retreated from the room.
It takes courage to face death with someone, and it also depends on whether that person appreciates it. If they don’t, your own courage quickly fades, and you just can’t hold on—after all, nobody’s truly unafraid of dying.
Creak... The door opened, the three left, and the door closed again. Serena watched the door swing back and forth and let out a silent laugh.
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No fool would gladly die for a stranger—these three weren’t exceptions. The only reason they stayed was because they couldn’t get past their own inner hurdle.
She’d given them the perfect excuse, cleared away their guilt. If they still insisted on staying, that would just be foolish.
Of course, not everyone’s like that. If it were Simon Sun, he’d stay—even if it meant dying. But Simon wouldn’t just stand there waiting for death; he’d step up and help her.
Two heads are better than one—Simon would stay and brainstorm with her. That little doctor is adorably clueless, not a stubborn old fool; Simon’s dumb, but in a cute way.
Thinking of Simon Sun, Serena felt her mood lighten, a faint smile tugging at her lips. She turned around—and suddenly met Felix Fuller's wide-open eyes. Serena jumped, her smile freezing.
She waited for her emotions to settle, then acted as if nothing had happened: "Mr. Fuller, you scared me—people really can be scared to death, you know."
"Someone as bold as you can still get scared?" Felix asked, his voice weak. His dark eyes had lost their usual brilliance, staring at Serena, dull and lifeless.
From the look of him, Felix Fuller had truly suffered this time.
"I'm actually very timid," Serena replied, her smile unwavering as she calmly walked to the bedside. Under Felix's gaze, she put on her mask and gloves, took out a clear glass vial, cracked it open, and drew the medicine into a syringe.
Felix didn't blink as he watched Serena, memorizing her every move. He saw her draw medicine from a small vial and inject it into a larger bottle, repeating the same actions over and over.
"What are you doing?" Felix finally couldn't help but ask.
"Saving you." Serena's voice came muffled through her mask.
"I thought you wanted to kill me." Felix lowered his eyes, glancing meaningfully at his injured leg.
Huh?
Serena's hands never paused, but inside she was shaken. From Felix's words, it seemed he didn't know she was the one who hurt him. Did Nolan Dongling cover for her, letting her escape blame?
Thinking that, Serena's eyes flashed, and she smiled lightly, deflecting: "We've known each other a while—I'd call us friends by now. Why would I want you dead?"
In truth, Serena had never intended to kill Felix. The drug on the bullet was never meant to be fatal—otherwise, she wouldn’t have promised the Emperor in person.
But now, hearing those words, Felix could only interpret them as her saying his injury had nothing to do with her.
Felix wasn't sure if Serena knew the truth, so he probed again: "My wound—I don't know if you've seen it, but it's just like the City Lord of Night City's."
Felix spoke while panting, his long lashes fluttering, making it hard not to feel sympathy for him.
Too bad he was up against cold-hearted Serena Feng, who felt nothing at all. She took out the IV hook, hung the bottle on the bed beam, and connected a clear tube.
She flicked the tubing to make sure the medicine would flow smoothly, then looked at Felix and said softly, "I never saw the City Lord's wound, and as for yours—even if I wanted to see it, I couldn't now. You people have bigger things going on, but me, I just want a quiet life. If people leave me alone, I leave them alone. If someone crosses me, I pay them back double."
Without waiting for Felix's reply, Serena grabbed a cotton swab, dipped it in antiseptic, and gently swabbed his arm before inserting the needle.
"Ah..." Felix cried out at the sting of the needle, then shivered as the cold liquid entered his vein. He instinctively tried to pull away, but Serena pinned him down: "If you don't want to die, don't move."
Normally, Serena wouldn't have been able to hold Felix down, but right now he was too weak to resist. He could only obey, lifting his eyes to ask, "Are you really trying to save me?"
Felix looked at Serena, his face full of doubt...