Reid Yale and Ninth Royal Uncle’s Secret

Su Wan stood where she was, wanting to speak but hesitating. The words reached her lips, but thinking of Ninth Royal Uncle’s cold, silent nature, she swallowed them back down.

At this point, any explanation or clarification was meaningless. Now she could only hope that her cousin merely wanted to mess with Ninth Royal Uncle and had no other plans—otherwise, it wouldn’t just be Night City that suffered.

Taking a deep breath, Su Wan raised her head again. There was not a trace of anxiety or unease in her eyes as she calmly bowed and took her leave.

Nolan Dongling did not try to keep her. In fact, this place was no place for guests to linger.

Su Wan left with a bright smile. Before leaving, she warmly said to Serena Feng, "Miss Feng, we’ll be seeing each other again very soon."

She, Su Wan, was coming to Eastlyn.

"I think so too," Serena Feng recalled that the Eastlyn emperor’s birthday was coming up. If the Su Clan wanted to marry a daughter into Eastlyn, this was the perfect opportunity.

As for who she would marry, that was not Serena Feng’s concern.

"Ninth Royal Uncle, until we meet again." Su Wan gazed longingly at Nolan Dongling.

Putting aside the Su Clan’s interests, Su Wan truly had feelings for Nolan Dongling. But alas, the falling flower is willing, while the running water is indifferent—and Su Wan is far from the only flower falling for him.

Su Wan walked away just as elegantly as she had arrived, unhurried and graceful. The lingering fragrance in the air faded with her departure.

With Su Wan gone, neither Nolan Dongling nor Serena Feng intended to stay any longer.

Nolan Dongling was no fool. Su Wan had arranged the meeting here not just to deliver something—there was clearly more to it. Leaving this place was the safest option.

"Handle it." Nolan Dongling pointed at the corpses scattered on the ground and commanded.

"Huh?" Serena Feng was stunned, wondering if she had misheard.

"Burn them." Nolan Dongling repeated firmly.

Serena Feng stared blankly at Nolan Dongling. Was Ninth Royal Uncle treating her like a subordinate? She wondered if she had spoiled this man too much, making him think she was someone to summon and dismiss at will.

Though it’s said that the one who loves first loses, the premise is that she’s willing. For the things she chooses to do for this man—even at the cost of her pride—she is happy.

But for things she doesn’t want to do, even a simple nod wouldn’t sway her. Serena was about to refuse when an unexpected sound interrupted.

"Hahaha... Ninth Royal Uncle truly has no compassion for beauty. Miss, you’d be better off with me. Even if I’m not much, I’d never let your hands be stained with blood or force you to deal with such filth." Reid Yale laughed.

Reid Yale—the Young City Lord of Night City, Su Wan’s cousin—arrived under the moonlight, looking at Nolan Dongling with mocking eyes.

"Reid Yale, so it was you." Nolan Dongling unobtrusively moved to stand in front of Serena Feng.

"You already guessed, didn’t you? If it wasn’t me, how would Su Wan have arranged to meet you here, and how would the wolves have appeared? Surely the wise and mighty Ninth Royal Uncle isn’t so clueless."

As Reid Yale approached, the air filled with an even stronger fragrance. For a man, his scent was even heavier than Su Wan’s.

"Achoo." The pungent scent was unbearable for Serena Feng, who sneezed and felt puzzled.

Reid Yale looked masculine and strong, not at all like a foppish dandy.

"What, you don’t like the scent?" Reid Yale challenged Nolan Dongling. "Ninth Royal Uncle, I chose this fragrance especially for you."

Nolan Dongling held his breath and, without another word, drew the long flexible sword from his waist.

So that exquisite belt at Nolan Dongling’s waist was actually his weapon.

With a swish and a burst of inner strength, the flexible sword straightened, its tip pointing at Reid Yale. "Reid Yale, if you want to fight, then fight. If not, get lost."

"Of course I want to fight. After all the trouble I went through to lure you here, how could I not? Tsk, tsk... If word got out that the esteemed Ninth Royal Uncle’s weapon of choice was a flexible sword, what do you think would happen?" Reid’s sword pointed at the corpses behind him.

Nolan Dongling had drawn them deep into the forest before making his move—and with good reason.

"The dead can’t reveal secrets." Nolan Dongling advanced with his sword, and Reid Yale met him blade for blade.

Clang—the flexible sword clashed with Reid Yale’s famed blade, sparking a blinding flash as the men closed in, then broke apart at lightning speed.

"Nolan Dongling, you’re no match for me. A man like you doesn’t deserve Wanwan." Reid Yale said arrogantly.

"Su Wan? So all this effort from Young Lord Reid was just for a woman." Nolan Dongling sneered, his dislike for Su Wan growing.

Indeed, beauty brings disaster.

"What do you mean, just a woman? That’s Wanwan—Nolan Dongling, Wanwan is mine." Reid Yale’s eyes were bloodshot as he fought, frustrated at failing to gain the upper hand.

He had reliable information that Ninth Royal Uncle was allergic to strong scents. Today, both he and Su Wan were saturated with heavy perfume—so why wasn’t Nolan Dongling affected?

"The Su Clan would never marry their legitimate daughter into Night City. Reid Yale, give up that hope." Nolan Dongling didn’t try to kill Reid—after all, if Reid died here, it wouldn’t serve his interests.

The City Lord of Night City had only one son.

"Even if I can’t marry her, I’ll never let Wanwan marry you." He’d rather Su Wan remain single all her life, or marry someone she doesn’t love.

Nolan Dongling snorted impatiently.

A woman like that—he wouldn’t even want her as a bed-warmer, let alone a wife. Reid Yale must be out of his mind.

Nolan Dongling couldn’t be bothered to argue with Reid any longer and simply pressed his attack. Serena Feng hesitated, wondering if she should help, but decided against it. Hearing Reid’s words, she realized Ninth Royal Uncle wanted the corpses dealt with to protect the secret of his flexible sword.

The corpses on the ground bore long, thin wounds. Anyone with a discerning eye would know who had killed them. It was understandable that Ninth Royal Uncle didn’t want the Dongling royal family to discover his weapon’s secret.

Serena felt a bit better, but thought Ninth Royal Uncle was far too secretive. Why couldn’t he just explain things clearly? He always left her guessing.

Destroying the wounds was easy. While Nolan Dongling and Reid Yale were caught up in their fight, Serena Feng took out concentrated sulfuric acid and poured it over the sword wounds on the corpses.

The stench of acid filled the air, overpowering the heavy perfume and making both Nolan Dongling and Reid Yale nauseous.

"Nolan Dongling, your woman is disgusting." As Nolan’s attacks grew fiercer, Reid struggled to keep up. He had just started to sense the perfume’s effect on Nolan, but the stench ruined his plan.

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But Nolan Dongling wouldn’t give him the chance. The flexible sword coiled around Reid Yale’s blade, flicked upward, and sent it flying. Reid stumbled back, and Nolan pressed his attack.

Pfft...

The flexible sword pierced Reid Yale. He grunted in pain but, instead of retreating, closed the distance.

"Pfft..." The sword stabbed right through Reid’s back, bringing the two men even closer. The nauseating perfume from Reid’s body overwhelmed Nolan, who felt his strength fading.

Bang—Reid struck Nolan with his palm, sending him crashing to the ground.

"Hahaha, even though I’m hurt, I finally know your weakness, Ninth Royal Uncle. I won’t hold back now." Reid didn’t care about his injury and advanced to finish Nolan.

Serena Feng turned and saw the scene. Without thinking, she drew her gun and fired. "Bang..."

Unfortunately, she missed. Reid dodged the shot.

"What was that?" Reid finally looked directly at Serena, but she was hidden in the shadows while he stood in the firelight, unable to see her clearly.

He could only think: this woman is utterly infuriating. Absolutely detestable.

"Something that'll kill you." Serena fired again. Reid dodged back, but watched as the bullet slammed into a tree trunk, blowing a fist-sized hole in the thick wood and filling the air with the acrid scent of gunpowder.

He didn’t know what that weapon was, but its power was obvious. If he weren’t injured, maybe he’d risk a fight. But now?

Gritting his teeth...

"Ninth Royal Uncle, luck’s on your side tonight." Reid spat out, unwilling to concede but forced to back off. Before leaving, he made his threat clear: "Ninth Royal Uncle, Su Wan is mine. If you dare touch her, I’ll bring Night City’s Ironroot Cavalry and flatten your estate."

"Reid, you’ll never marry Su Wan in this lifetime. Just wait and watch her wed someone else." Nolan Dongling lay on the ground, blood at his lips, but not a hint of weakness in his eyes.

Reid burned with rage, itching to turn back and strike, but the deadly weapon in Serena’s hands held him in check. He retreated, cursing himself—if only he’d brought more men.

Missed chances are missed forever.

As soon as Reid left, Serena rushed to Nolan’s side and activated her Smart Med-Pack, worried he might be seriously hurt. But when the results came up, she was genuinely dumbfounded.

Just as she thought...

Nobody’s perfect. She’d always thought Ninth Royal Uncle was some kind of god, but now she realized he was just a man—a regular, flawed human being.

Ninth Royal Uncle was allergic to fragrances.

She nearly burst out laughing.

If Nolan Dongling hadn’t shot her such a frosty glare, she probably would’ve laughed out loud. Even so, Serena struggled to hold back, her shoulders shaking with suppressed giggles.

"Serena Feng, if you want to laugh, then laugh." Nolan Dongling’s face was black as thunder, but the tips of his ears were tinged red.

"Me? No way, I’m not laughing—cough, cough—being allergic to fragrances is totally normal. Seriously, it’s normal." Serena forced herself to look serious, stifling her laughter.

Nolan Dongling couldn’t be bothered to argue. He knew putting on a stern front in front of this woman was pretty much impossible now.

"Help me up." He couldn’t stand another second here—the mix of corpse stench and cheap perfume was beyond revolting.

Serena didn’t want to stick around either. She considered giving him a shot to ease his symptoms, but...

A wicked thought popped into her head: Ninth Royal Uncle, looking all soft and vulnerable, was way more human this way.

He’d treated her like a servant all night—so she figured he could suffer a bit longer. Allergies weren’t fatal, after all. Maybe this would teach him: never mess with a doctor, especially a female doctor...

Much later, when Serena and Nolan talked about this night, Nolan would break out in a cold sweat, complaining that Serena was petty. He’d cleaned up countless messes for her, and she’d just watched him suffer without a shred of gratitude.

Women really are scary. Better keep your distance...