Borrowing Money and the Advantage of Hidden Truths

Whether Su Rou’s schemes would fall apart, neither Prince Nolan nor William Wang cared. To them, Su Rou was no different from a dead person. If Serena Feng thought Su Rou should live, then Su Rou would keep on living.

Compared to Su Rou’s life or death, what mattered more to them was: who was the true mastermind behind the Imperial Menagerie Grounds fire? And, of course, Serena Feng’s safety.

So, for Serena’s safety, even though she wasn’t actually hurt, they insisted on telling everyone she’d been burned—and badly.

It wasn’t that Prince Nolan and William Wang wanted to mess with Serena; it was just that only by saying this could they stir up trouble in the Capital and muddy the waters enough to hunt down the real culprit.

To make her injuries look convincing, Serena was wrapped in bandages over her body and arms. Luckily, her face had been exposed during the fire, and everyone at the Menagerie saw she hadn’t been burned there—so her face escaped being swaddled in thick bandages.

Bandages alone weren’t enough—Serena had to lie in bed at all times to keep up the act. A day or two was fine, but as time dragged on, she got so bored she started counting her own hairs.

"Turns out faking illness is a technical job. This life is just impossible." Serena rolled around on the bed, while Jada Tang and Mira Tang muffled their laughter, not daring to make a sound.

Because Serena was ‘gravely injured,’ even when patients came to the door, she didn’t need to receive them herself. To avoid blowing her cover, she refused to see anyone she could possibly avoid. The only people she talked to were those in the know—and even they were swamped.

Prince Nolan and William Wang were busy investigating the fire. The Master of Mystic Healer Valley was wrapped up with Victor Yun, and one day, when he ran into Holden Cui, he just wouldn’t let Holden go. If Holden hadn’t had his status as one of the Cui clan’s sixteen sons, the Valley Master probably would’ve pinned him to a bed and cut his wound open again for ‘research.’

Medical madmen are not to be messed with.

Everyone was busy—even Jada Tang and Mira Tang were run off their feet. Serena was bored out of her mind. If she didn’t know how important the bigger picture was, she would’ve ripped off those bandages ages ago.

Just as Serena was about to mold from sheer boredom, finally, someone came by to keep her company.

"Vincent Su, are you here to visit the patient?" Serena propped herself up with one hand and motioned for him to sit.

"Do you even look sick?" Vincent Su said, but still obediently handed over the tonic he’d brought.

Serena noticed how pale and tired Vincent Su looked. She nodded heavily: "Compared to you, I really don’t look like a patient. You’re the one who looks sick. What’s wrong? Not feeling well? Give me your hand."

That’s just the doctor’s occupational disease—if she saw someone looking off, she wanted to check them, even while ‘recovering’ herself. Some habits die hard.

Vincent Su was lost in thought, so he didn’t think much of Serena’s words and obediently held out his hand. Only when Serena moved to take his pulse did he remember she was a doctor, and quickly pulled his hand back: "I’m fine! You’re the one who’s supposed to be sick."

"Not sick? Then why do you look so miserable?" Serena didn’t quite believe him, secretly wondering if Vincent Su’s kidney trouble was getting worse.

Logically, it shouldn’t be—his last checkup went really well.

Seeing Serena frown in thought, Vincent Su guessed what she was thinking. His face turned from pale to flushed, and he gritted his teeth: "Serena Feng, let me say this one more time—I’m not sick. I’m perfectly fine!"

"Okay, okay, you’re not sick—I get it. No need to repeat it three times." With a voice that strong, he really didn’t sound ill. Besides, with the Master of Mystic Healer Valley around, even if Vincent Su was sick, it wouldn’t be Serena’s problem.

Thinking this way, Serena didn’t press further. But Vincent Su didn’t cheer up—instead, he sat there looking gloomy and silent. The more Serena watched, the more off it seemed. She tried probing: "Vincent Su, are you really okay?"

"Not really." Vincent Su had come to play the pitiful one, and when Serena asked, he just went along with it.

"What happened?" Serena was sure—even if Vincent Su wasn’t sick, he was definitely in trouble.

Vincent Su glanced at Serena, hesitated, and said nothing. Serena didn’t rush him, just waited. After a long time with no questions from her, Vincent Su finally complained: "Serena Feng, can’t you at least ask me about it?"

Wasn’t it obvious he was waiting for Serena to ask?

"Is it necessary? Judging by your face, even if I don’t ask, you’ll tell me anyway." Serena raised an eyebrow—just because she was ‘recuperating’ didn’t mean her instincts were broken.

Vincent Su ground his teeth in frustration. Seeing Serena so uninterested and relaxed, he realized that trying to keep her in suspense would only backfire. He took a deep breath and blurted out, "Serena Feng, I came today to borrow money from you."

"Borrow money? How much?" Serena knew Vincent Su was probably embarrassed. In a world where men were supposed to be superior, it took real courage for a man to ask a woman for money.

Vincent Su was proud at heart—if he had any other choice, he would never have asked.

Vincent Su’s ears turned red. He’d spent ages preparing himself, but still felt awkward when he finally spoke. Seeing Serena so unconcerned helped him calm down a bit, and he managed to say the number: "Two million taels."

"Two million taels?" Serena repeated, stunned.

That’s way too much. Where was she supposed to get that kind of money?

"Yeah." Once he’d said it, Vincent Su didn’t feel so hung up about it. He just wasn’t used to this—he’d never asked a woman for money before.

Asking Serena for help or working together was one thing, but borrowing money was something else entirely—and this was a huge amount.

"Why do you need so much?" Serena wasn’t prying into Vincent Su’s business, but the sum was so large—she just didn’t have it.

Vincent Su didn’t hide anything from Serena and explained the shortfall in the gambling pool.

Serena wasn’t surprised. Merchants never let their silver just sit in a bank—they always put it to work. Vincent Su was just unlucky; he couldn’t get his money back in time and was caught short.

"So you’re still short five million taels?" Serena frowned as Vincent Su went over the numbers.

This gambling pool was a big cake—and there were plenty of people wanting a slice. If Vincent Su couldn’t pay up, those people might tear him apart.

"Not that much. If you win one round against the Su Clan, the Nine Ministers can win nearly two million taels, and I’d only be short three million. I transferred a million from First Estate a few days ago—now I just need two million more." Vincent Su had already moved all the money he could, but he was still nearly two million short.

Two million taels was a lot, but for the richest merchant in the country, it wasn’t much. Still… Vincent Su couldn’t ask his business partners or friends for the money.

If he did, whether or not he got the money, word would get out that the Su Clan was about to collapse. That would only make things worse—people might start pushing even before the wall fell.