Seal the Menagerie Grounds, Kill Any Who Force Their Way In

Cough, cough...

Nolan Dongling, the Ninth Royal Uncle, coughed in annoyance, reminding everyone of his presence. At the same time, he cast a resentful glance at Serena Feng. She really wasn't beautiful—so why did she attract so much attention?

Serena Feng was spattered in filthy blood, her hair soaked with sweat and plastered to her neck—no matter how you looked at her, she wasn't pretty. And yet, damn it, even in this state, she drew the gaze of everyone present.

Every conscious guard had their eyes fixed on this woman—especially that rosy-lipped, bright-eyed young man. Yes, you, don’t look away. All she did was bandage your wound, so why are you blushing? Why the lovesick look? Don’t flatter yourself; Serena Feng isn’t interested in you.

"Ninth..." The guards looked up and, seeing who had arrived, were startled. Those who were awake immediately tried to rise and salute, but just as they moved, Serena Feng snapped sharply, "What do you think you’re doing? Stay put! If your wounds split open, don’t expect me to bandage you again."

These men had injuries to their tendons and bones. They might not look seriously hurt, but without proper treatment, it was easy for them to end up disabled. And if that happened, their futures would be ruined.

The wounded guards, hearing Serena Feng’s words, uneasily glanced at Nolan Dongling, unsure what to do. Nolan might not care for these guards, but he couldn’t disrespect Serena. With a cold face, he said, "No need for formalities."

Only then did the guards relax and lie back down, but the atmosphere in the room shifted. No one dared move or even let their eyes wander. Each man stared at his nose, his nose at his heart, silently wondering: Why was the Ninth Royal Uncle here? What was he doing? Was he here to punish them? The more they thought about it, the more anxious they became.

A doctor’s mood can affect the patients, and the patients’ mood can affect the doctor in turn. Serena Feng looked at the rigid, nervous men before her and had to pause. She stood, turned to Nolan Dongling, and bowed. "Greetings, Ninth Royal Uncle. To what do we owe your distinguished visit?"

Serena Feng made it clear she didn’t welcome Nolan Dongling—after all, his arrival was disrupting her work.

Should I say I heard you were in trouble, so I rushed over to back you up?

Nolan Dongling muttered this to himself, seeing Serena Feng’s look of annoyance. Then he glanced at the guards, heads bowed but ears pricked to eavesdrop. In the end, he couldn’t bring himself to say it aloud and instead tossed out two cold words: "Just passing through."

Passing through—the Imperial Menagerie Grounds? Where would the Ninth Royal Uncle have to go to 'pass through' here?

"Oh, then I won’t keep you, Uncle." Serena Feng was clearly trying to send him away. This attitude wounded Nolan, especially after he’d rushed over the moment he heard something happened at the Menagerie. And now, as soon as he arrived, she was trying to chase him off. "What, do you really dislike me?"

She’d been perfectly fine this morning—how did she change so much the moment she got out of bed? Nolan Dongling sighed, realizing that Serena Feng was only cute when she was lying in bed.

Serena Feng could only give a helpless smile. "Uncle Nolan, you’re overthinking it. Why would I dislike you? It’s just that you’re affecting my work here. If you have something to say, can we talk about it later?"

Serena Feng patiently explained. If this were the modern world, even if the chief of staff from military headquarters barged in, she’d still kick him out.

That was more like it. Nolan Dongling nodded, his expression relaxing. "I’ll just stand to the side and won’t get in your way. You do your thing."

Nolan Dongling clearly wasn’t leaving. He was supposed to hurry into the palace, but he hadn’t even had time to ask what had happened at the Menagerie Grounds. For now, all he could do was stay by Serena Feng’s side to make sure nothing happened to her.

Serena Feng felt a headache coming on. How was she supposed to explain to Uncle Nolan that it wasn’t her who was affected, but the wounded men—and besides, now was really not the time to talk about liking or disliking anyone.

Just as Serena Feng was wondering how to persuade Nolan Dongling to leave, the junior guard leader came in carrying her medicine chest...

"Miss Feng, I got your medicine chest!" The junior leader rushed in so fast that if Nolan Dongling hadn’t dodged at the door, the guy would’ve crashed right into him.

"What—" The junior leader was about to curse, but when he looked up and saw who it was, his face went pale and he dropped to his knees with a thud. "Greetings, Ninth Royal Uncle! Long live your Highness! I didn’t realize it was you and almost ran into you. Please punish me!"

"Hmm." Nolan Dongling replied coldly, neither punishing nor forgiving, just letting the man kneel there.

Serena Feng gave the junior leader a sympathetic glance and stepped forward to take the medicine chest from his hands. "Uncle Nolan, this isn’t the place to talk. Maybe you should find somewhere else?"

Nolan Dongling considered for a moment, then nodded and strode into the room. He happened to want to ask this junior leader what exactly had happened at the Imperial Menagerie Grounds.

"What are you standing around for? Hurry up and follow!" Serena Feng quickly reminded the junior leader.

From what Serena Feng knew of Nolan Dongling, he wouldn’t punish someone over something like this.

"Miss Feng..." The junior leader looked utterly miserable, as if he’d just lost his mother. Serena Feng couldn’t stand it and comforted him, "Relax, you’ll be fine. Uncle Nolan isn’t that petty. Besides, you didn’t actually run into him."

"Yes, yes, yes!" With Serena Feng’s reassurance, the junior leader instantly perked up and hurried after Nolan Dongling.

With the medicine chest in hand, Serena Feng could finally work freely, pulling out supplies from her smart medical kit and speeding up the treatment.

Meanwhile, inside, Nolan Dongling got the full story of what happened at the Imperial Menagerie Grounds. The junior leader, eager to impress, recounted everything Su Wan and Reid Yale had said to insult Serena Feng.

Nolan Dongling was no fool. Hearing Su Wan and Reid Yale’s words, and remembering he’d been with Serena Feng the night before, he realized the python in the Menagerie was their doing. They’d planned to use the snake to kill Serena, and if she’d been swallowed, it would’ve looked like an accident—no one would even be held responsible.

But as fate would have it, the plotters were caught by their own scheme—the snake went after Su Wan instead. No wonder Reid Yale said that heaven was on Serena Feng’s side. If Serena had met that python today, she’d be dead for sure; she didn’t have a cousin willing to risk his life to save her.

After the junior leader finished, there was a long silence. He nervously asked, "Ninth Royal Uncle?"

Without warning, Nolan Dongling stood up. The junior leader was so startled he dropped to his knees again, just as he was about to beg for mercy—when Nolan spoke, the leader quickly shut up and waited for orders.

"By my command, seal the Imperial Menagerie Grounds. No one is to enter or leave."

"Ah... Ninth Royal Uncle, about the Menagerie..." The junior leader was so shocked he fell to the ground.

Sealing the Menagerie requires an imperial decree—even the Crown Prince wouldn’t dare give that order. This is the palace; only the Emperor has the authority to say such a thing.

"What? You don’t dare?" Nolan Dongling shot the junior leader a cold look. The leader scrambled up and saluted, "I accept the order!"

Nolan Dongling nodded in satisfaction. "Go ahead and do it. If anything happens, I’ll take responsibility."

"Yes, sir!" With those words, the junior leader’s tone changed—he was suddenly full of confidence.

With that promise, what did he have to be afraid of?

"Remember: Only entry, no exit from the Menagerie. Not even the Crown Prince is allowed out. Anyone who tries to force their way out will be killed without mercy. I want the Menagerie sealed so tightly that not even a fly can get out." Nolan Dongling would not allow those who tried to harm Serena Feng to escape without paying the price.

"Understood, Ninth Royal Uncle. Don’t worry, I’ll make sure the Menagerie is secure."

With such a powerful and responsible master, the men below could act with confidence. The junior leader promised with renewed assurance...

There would be no easy end to today’s events!