When Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan arrived at Feng Manor, he did not see Serena, because she had already been summoned into the palace. Even the dark guards didn’t know the reason; all they saw was the little eunuch sent by the Emperor whispering a few words to Serena, after which she grabbed her medicine chest and hurried into the palace.
Nolan stood outside Serena’s room for a long while before vanishing once more into the night.
It was truly a coincidence: Serena had only just returned to Feng Manor today, and already Noble Consort Helena Hsieh’s son had fallen ill. Because the young prince had a hidden chronic condition, the Emperor did not want word to get out and had only allowed a mute imperial physician to treat him in secret.
That mute physician’s skills were mediocre, and even after several days, the little prince had not improved. The boy had already suffered once at birth, leaving him frail and requiring constant care. For a child so young, falling ill for even a few days could very well mean death.
Helena had no choice but to seek out Serena. After several days of illness with no improvement, the mute physician prescribed medicine, but for a child this small, there was no way to force it down.
First, Helena ordered the medicine to be smeared on the wet nurse’s nipples, but the little prince refused to touch them. Then she had the wet nurse drink the medicine herself, hoping it would pass to the prince through her milk, but the effect was far too slow.
As the prince’s condition worsened, Helena was left with no options but to beg the Emperor, who then summoned Serena into the palace.
If not for Helena’s reminder, the Emperor might have forgotten that there was still one witness left alive from that day’s silencing. His gaze turned dark and murderous.
The candlelight shielded the Emperor’s expression; Helena saw nothing, her mind consumed by worry for her son. Otherwise, she would never have come to plead with the Emperor during her confinement month.
After a moment’s thought, the Emperor agreed, issuing a decree for Serena to enter the palace that very night. The little eunuch delivering the order also reminded Serena to bring her medicine chest.
Once inside the palace, Serena Feng was escorted straight to Radiant Hall. Gone was its former splendor; everywhere she looked, there was an air of bleakness.
This was the difference between a favored consort, a pet consort, and a discarded one. In the harem, a woman's glory all came from the Emperor. Without his attention, even the highest rank meant nothing.
Serena sighed to herself but didn't dwell on it. She hurried into the inner chamber.
Noble Consort Helena Hsieh saw Serena and looked at her like a savior. "Serena, you’re finally here! Quick, please look at Bao’er—he’s had a constant low fever for days and keeps vomiting milk."
"Don’t worry, Your Grace. Let me take a look." Serena stepped back, circled around Helena, and went straight to the little prince’s side.
The little prince lay in his cradle, crying weakly like a kitten—his lips were even tinged blue, just like the day he was born.
Serena didn’t bother with righteous scolding—like, how could you take care of him this way? Instead, she set down her medicine chest and began laying out her instruments one by one.
Her kit was fully stocked. For a baby not yet a month old, there were only a handful of medicines she could use, but Serena had brought them all.
Serena was just an ordinary doctor—no miracle worker. After she gave the prince his medicine, he finally drifted off to sleep. Seeing his peaceful face, Helena let out a long sigh of relief.
These past days, the little prince had cried and cried, until she felt pain in her own heart.
"Your Grace, give him medicine every three hours, just like I did—don’t smear it on the wet nurse’s nipple. That only makes him afraid to nurse." A baby this small is already fragile; if he can’t eat, the illness could really kill him. Infant mortality is sky-high in times like these.
"I understand. Thank you, Serena," Helena said wearily.
Only after becoming a mother and raising her child herself did Helena realize just how hard it was—something she’d never felt before.
"You’re too polite, Your Grace. This is my duty. If there’s nothing else, could you arrange a side room for me? I’m worried the prince’s fever might return, so I’ll stay here tonight and keep watch—just in case he needs me."
It was already late, and Feng Manor was far from the palace. Serena didn’t want to run back and forth, especially since the prince would need more medicine tomorrow.
Helena was more than happy to have Serena stay, immediately ordering the maids to prepare a room and sending word to the Emperor.
A capable young woman, a skilled female physician, taking up residence in the inner palace—strictly speaking, it wasn’t by the book, but it was understandable. Besides, the Emperor didn’t want his son to die.
His earlier fury had come from hoping too much for Helena’s child—when the prince was born so weak, his hopes crashed, and he couldn’t accept it. But now…
After calming down, he couldn’t really bring himself to kill his own son. In a vast empire like Eastlyn, surely they could afford to raise one sickly child.
Serena’s overnight stay in the palace meant Ninth Royal Uncle missed his best chance to explain himself.
Nolan couldn’t find her at Feng Manor and left disappointed. Still, he pulled himself together and went to Sutton Manor’s secret chamber to brief Vincent Su on the Demon Sect situation.
"Did you locate the Demon Sect?" Earlier, Nolan had ordered Zed’s guards to send word back to the Sect, secretly sending people to follow the messenger and find the Sect’s real headquarters.
For years, the Demon Sect had survived and grown precisely because its base was so well hidden. Outsiders could never find it—everyone just knew it was somewhere in Northlyn. Even if you wanted to wipe them out, you wouldn’t know where to start.
"We found it, but our people can’t get inside—there’s some kind of formation blocking the way." Vincent hurriedly handed over the map his subordinates had drawn. It was just a few strokes, but it clearly marked the Demon Sect’s location.
"So that’s where it is. No wonder no one’s found it after all these years. Who would’ve guessed there was a settlement behind that cliff?" Nolan could draw the Nine Provinces map with his eyes closed—one glance and he understood the Sect’s position and its natural defenses.
"That place won’t be easy to attack," Vincent said, worry showing in his eyes.
Normally, the Demon Sect would have nothing to do with them. But the Nine Provinces Treasure Map was at stake—forcing them to get involved. Still, losing troops just to fight the Sect would be a waste.
Their elite forces were meant for conquering the world, not for brawling with martial artists.
"We’re not the ones fighting, so who cares if it’s hard?" Nolan said shamelessly. "Hand this map to Sean Xuan—he’ll know what to do."
Sean Xuan needs an opportunity, and Nolan needs Sean’s help.
Sean Xuan might have some fame in the martial world, but his seniority was too low. In front of many sect leaders, he still had to call himself their junior. Before, it didn’t matter, but now he was Skyvault Palace Master, and they still treated him like a kid. That made his position awkward.
It wasn’t that Sean was incompetent—on the contrary, he was too capable. In the martial world, no one else had ever become a sect master at his age.
Not just the younger generation—even the old masters were jealous of Sean. When they were his age, they were still grinding away in their sects, waiting years for a shot at power.
In this situation, it was no surprise those old guys wouldn’t recognize Sean or made things difficult for him. Who wouldn’t envy everything he had now…