Warning, I Will Never Let You Be a Concubine

Serena Feng and Ninth Royal Uncle appeared in matching, identical outfits—this was no accident, and certainly not a coincidence. Nolan Eastlyn would never make such arrangements without reason; there was a deeper meaning behind it.

Tonight, the Crown Prince, Prince Terrence Valen of Lyndaria, and the others might think Serena Feng did this deliberately—to show her affection for Ninth Royal Uncle. But by tomorrow, they'll know the truth: this outfit was prepared by Nolan Eastlyn himself.

Nolan Eastlyn didn’t do this out of boredom, nor was he trying to make things difficult for Serena Feng. He did it because he heard that Prince Terrence Valen was planning to select a consort in Eastlyn.

Nolan Eastlyn was warning Prince Terrence Valen: Serena Feng is under the protection of Eastlyn’s Ninth Royal Uncle. If you want to choose a consort in Eastlyn, you need to be careful—not just anyone is available, and Serena Feng is absolutely off-limits.

William Wang Jinling wasn’t sure if the others understood, but he knew Prince Terrence Valen definitely got the message. Even if Terrence didn’t, it didn’t matter—William made it clear in his own way: anyone who targets Serena Feng is picking a fight with the Wang Clan. If Terrence is smart, he’ll know what to do.

Ninth Royal Uncle’s banquets aren’t so easy to attend, and the people he invites are never irrelevant or useless.

Tonight, Ethan Hsieh, Dominic Zhai, and William Wang Jinling’s open support for Serena Feng all sent the same message to Prince Terrence Valen: Serena Feng may have a wide network in Eastlyn, but using her won’t be so easy.

Never mind that Serena Feng herself isn’t someone to mess with—even these few would never let Prince Terrence Valen take her as a side-consort. Terrence would do best not to provoke her.

William Wang Jinling quickly summarized the situation. Of course, he didn’t mention Nolan Eastlyn’s hidden warning—he only told Serena Feng that his actions were a direct signal to Prince Terrence Valen: don’t even think about her.

"Prince Terrence Valen actually wants to take me as a side-consort? Is he out of his mind? What use am I—just wasting a concubine’s spot." Serena Feng was so stunned she forgot to keep walking.

It’s not that Serena Feng is putting herself down—she just doesn’t meet Prince Terrence Valen’s standards for a consort in any way.

Politically, she’s just an orphan with no advantages—there’s no way she could help Prince Terrence Valen. As for beauty, she’s decent-looking but nowhere near the level of a legendary beauty. If she were, the Emperor would have taken her into the harem long ago, and Terrence would never have had a chance.

Serena Feng doesn’t believe Terrence admires her, likes her, or has fallen for her at first sight. She’s not naive enough to think being liked by a man is normal.

Both her past and present lives have taught Serena Feng: never get emotionally involved with political men. Yes, they have feelings—but every bit of it is calculated, every bit comes with an agenda.

To them, women are either useful or useless. And by any measure, Serena Feng is in the ‘useless’ category—it’s simply not worth their effort to care about her.

William Wang Jinling was at a loss—he never expected Serena Feng to say something like that. But then he just felt heartache; she saw everything clearly, saw through it all.

She knew exactly what marriage meant for people like them: it’s all about purpose and exchanging interests. No matter how deep the feelings, they get worn down by different values, different ways of handling things, and endless meddling from elders.

Wives in their world have to shoulder family responsibilities—love alone can’t sustain it. Even if William Wang Jinling overcame every obstacle and married Serena Feng, she couldn’t immediately take on the role of Wang Clan Matriarch. He’d have to handle everything for her, and sooner or later, they’d both be exhausted and give up.

It’s because Serena Feng understands all this that she rejected him early on—and she’d probably reject someone else too…

Looks like he doesn’t need to worry anymore—Nolan Eastlyn probably can’t hurt Serena Feng. She knows very well that what she wants, Nolan can’t give.

"You’re like this, it really makes my heart ache. You deserve the best man in the world." William Wang Jinling wanted to pat Serena Feng’s head to comfort her, but saw her hair covered in ornaments and had to pull his hand back.

He still wasn’t used to Serena Feng dressed up so grandly. She was beautiful, yes, but it was like she was wearing a mask—not quite herself.

Serena Feng gave a self-mocking smile. She wasn’t like those foolish women, demanding a man love only her for life and never allow another woman to exist.

She only wanted to be a principal wife, to have the pride and dignity a woman of this era deserves. But even that was a luxury for her.

"I believe I deserve the best man in the world too, but so what? Even the best man can’t give me everything I want. Jinling, thank you for helping me out. I hope Prince Terrence Valen will respect the Wang Clan’s power and give up his plans. I’d rather die than become that man’s concubine."

This is the tragedy of women: when great affairs of state erupt, it’s always women who get pushed forward, always women who are sacrificed.

If William Wang Jinling hadn’t intervened, and if Prince Terrence Valen had asked the Emperor for her, the Emperor wouldn’t even hesitate—he’d issue a marriage decree for the sake of ‘peace,’ and Serena Feng would have nowhere to cry.

Refusing an imperial decree is a capital crime. No matter how capable she is, Serena Feng can’t fight the machinery of the state. Whether she wants it or not, she’d be forced to marry into Lyndaria as Terrence’s side-consort.

Just thinking about it made Serena Feng feel cold all over. How could a rootless woman like her survive in Lyndaria?

"Don’t talk about dying. Trust me—Terrence’s plans will definitely fail. I won’t let him take you as a concubine, and I won’t let you become a woman without dignity or pride." Not just me—even Ninth Royal Uncle wouldn’t allow it. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have gone to such lengths with this banquet, or had Princess Serenity host Princess Yara and Su Wan.

Everyone present isn’t stupid. From Terrence’s words, William Wang Jinling could tell his real target for the marriage alliance was Ninth Royal Uncle—and Su Wan was aiming for him too.

Ninth Royal Uncle’s move was to remind Terrence and Su Wan: if they want their wishes granted, they’ll have to fight it out themselves—because there’s only one spot for the Ninth Prince’s Princess Consort.

Ninth Royal Uncle didn’t want the hassle, so he let them fight it out. In the end, it’s not up to Su Wan or Princess Yara—if Nolan Eastlyn simply refuses to marry, there’s nothing they can do. He never promised anyone anything.

Seeing Serena Feng’s serious, worried face, William Wang Jinling patted her shoulder. "Don’t overthink it, and don’t show it. Just go with the flow. It’s not so easy for Terrence to take you as a side-consort—everyone knows you were once Prince Rowan’s fiancée."

That status makes most men afraid to marry Serena Feng, and those who dare usually won’t offer her the position of principal wife.

"I know. I just can’t figure out what Terrence Valen sees in me." Serena Feng forced a smile, but it looked even worse than if she hadn’t tried.

She really couldn’t smile. She was worried that if Terrence Valen insisted on asking the Emperor to marry her, the Emperor wouldn’t care about her wishes. Once the decree was issued, it would be set in stone and she’d have no way to change it.

Knowing all this ahead of time, she had to prepare in advance. As people say nowadays: whatever Terrence sees in her, she’ll just change it!