From dusk until the moon hung pale and the stars thinned, Prince Damien and his men ate and drank inside the village, while those outside—us—hadn’t even a drop of water. A few young heroes, new to the jianghu, grew restless: “How long are we supposed to wait? If they never come out, do we just keep standing guard forever? What’s the difference between this and being some idiot waiting for rabbits under a tree?”
“Enough complaining. Look at her—not a word of protest, and she’s just a girl. What are you whining about?” Someone couldn’t stand it and pointed at Serena Feng, standing with Ling Mo and Sean Xuan.
At this moment, Serena Feng had shed all traces of feminine softness and healer’s compassion. She was cold and fierce, crouched like a trained soldier behind a boulder, eyes sharp and locked on the path ahead.
Everyone present believed that if Prince Damien stepped out, this seemingly delicate woman would be the first to leap into action—faster than any of them.
The ones complaining glanced at Serena Feng, protesting, “But just standing guard like this isn’t going to solve anything. How long do we have to keep this up?”
“So what do you want to do?” Serena turned to face him directly. The man faltered, unable to answer. A middle-aged man beside him stepped in to help: “Miss Feng, Brother Zhou didn’t mean anything by it. He’s just wondering if we can come up with another plan. Those men inside have food and water—if they hole up for ten days or half a month, they’ll be fine. We can’t just stand here for that long. Besides, even if we did, those people wouldn’t let the villagers go. The outcome could be even worse.”
“So what’s your solution—rush in right now?” Sean Xuan cut him off, leaving the man speechless. He could only mumble, “Let’s all try to think of something. It’s better than standing here like fools.”
They’d only been on watch for half a day and already couldn’t sit still. Compared to professionals like Zuo An and Doudou, these people were hopelessly soft. Serena Feng suppressed her contempt and answered coldly, “The initiative isn’t ours. All we can do is wait.”
Of course there was a way—if they didn’t care about the villagers’ lives, they could storm the place. But everyone knew this, and no one dared say it out loud.
Serena Feng knew these people were used to the fast, impulsive ways of the jianghu. They’d never learned patience or restraint. To keep them from getting reckless, she spoke up: “Don’t worry. Based on Prince Damien’s character, he won’t drag this out forever. We’ll take turns resting in the second half of the night—by tomorrow afternoon at the latest, he’ll make his move.”