Stroke And the Emperor’s Run of Bad Luck

No wonder Vincent Su was so anxious—Liancastle was simply too important. If anything happened to Liancastle, the consequences would be unimaginable.

It was Prince Nolan’s main base, the place where all of Ninth Royal Uncle’s secrets were kept. If Liancastle were infiltrated, every secret Prince Nolan held would be exposed.

If the world learned that Prince Nolan was a descendant of the Lan clan, he wouldn’t just lose his foothold in Eastlyn—even the entire Nine Provinces Realm would have no place for him.

Once Prince Nolan’s identity was exposed, the emperors of all four kingdoms would never let him go—just as they now relentlessly hunt Prince Damien of Southlyn, they would never spare him either.

Vincent Su was deeply worried. Seeing that Prince Nolan remained silent, he pressed again: “Prince Nolan, just tell me—do you suspect there’s a problem in Liancastle?”

If there is a problem, it must be dealt with quickly. Better to make a mistake than let a traitor slip through—compared to the risk of exposing Prince Nolan’s true identity, a few wrongful deaths are nothing.

Prince Nolan paused for a moment, then shook his head. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know? Then what exactly am I supposed to investigate?” Vincent Su was utterly confused by Prince Nolan’s response.

Prince Nolan didn’t answer Vincent Su’s question. Instead, his eyes grew thoughtful as he asked, “Tell me—if Serena Phoenixfield were to die, who would benefit most?”

“What are you getting at? I don’t understand—what does Serena’s life or death have to do with Liancastle?” Vincent Su felt his mind was running out of steam; he simply couldn’t keep up with Prince Nolan’s train of thought.

"Of course it matters." Prince Nolan sneered. "If Serena were to die, do you think I’d ever take another woman?"

"Of course not," Vincent Su replied without hesitation. Given Prince Nolan’s almost pathological aversion to women, getting him close to anyone is harder than anything. There’s simply no one else in the world like Serena.

"Exactly. There isn’t anyone else..." Prince Nolan sighed softly. "Even you can see that—so how could the old-timers in Liancastle not notice? If Serena died and I had no other woman, it would mean I’d never have an heir. Without an heir, what does it matter if I rule a thousand miles of land?"

Prince Nolan spelled it out so plainly that Vincent Su couldn’t help but understand—though he found the idea terrifying. "That can’t be right, can it?"

Could it be that the reason Prince Nolan still has no heir is all because of those old Lan loyalists pulling strings behind the scenes?

"I find it hard to believe too," Prince Nolan admitted, "but with Jason Lan’s sudden appearance, I can’t help but wonder. If I never have an heir, then all my conquests would end up as ‘wedding robes for someone else’."

"Those people in Liancastle—how could they dare..." Vincent Su clenched his fists, trembling uncontrollably.

Prince Nolan is their master, yet they’d scheme against him like this—do they even respect him as their lord anymore?

"Why wouldn’t they dare? If their plan succeeds, they won’t risk a thing—and the Lan clan would reclaim the throne without lifting a finger." Prince Nolan’s tone was calm, but Vincent Su could tell he was anything but.

The feeling of being stabbed in the back by your own people is never pleasant.

A flash of anger crossed Vincent Su’s face. “So what do we do now?”

“Nothing for now. This is just my suspicion—it might be true, it might not. First, look into the people in Liancastle. See if any of them have been in contact with Jason Lan or outsiders.” Prince Nolan was almost certain his guess was right. There had to be a traitor close by; otherwise, the Divine Machine Battalion wouldn’t have been compromised.

"Alright." Vincent Su understood the gravity of the situation and nodded seriously.

"Until we have results, no one else can know about this." Prince Nolan emphasized again—if no one in Liancastle had betrayed him, this investigation could end up hurting innocent people.

"Understood," Vincent Su nodded repeatedly. "I’ll handle this myself—no leaks, I promise."

"Be careful." Even though the Liancastle affair made Prince Nolan wary of those around him, he still trusted Vincent Su.

With Liancastle matters settled, Prince Nolan asked, "How are things going with Brandon Bu?"

"There’s absolutely no problem with Brandon Bu. You can rest assured—even I couldn’t tell if he was real or not, and he even fooled Felix Fuller." Brandon Bu had never revealed his true face; unless you were in the know, his disguise could easily deceive anyone.

Prince Nolan nodded. "Good. Later, have Brandon Bu meet Serena Phoenixfield. See if Serena can spot anything." Prince Nolan was always troubled by Serena’s unpredictable intuition.

"Is that really necessary? At the martial arts tournament, Serena might not even run into Brandon Bu directly. As long as you both appear at the same event, it’ll prove you’re not the same person, right?" Vincent Su knew Serena had instantly seen through Southlyn’s Prince Damien’s disguise before.

If Serena saw through it again, all their efforts would be for nothing.

"No need for close contact—just have them meet face to face." Prince Nolan insisted, and Vincent Su had no choice but to comply.

Still dressed in black, Felix Fuller appeared at the palace and reported everything he’d learned to the Emperor, then added, "Your Majesty, from what I can see, Prince Nolan doesn’t believe the mastermind is the Duke of Zhou."

"I don’t believe it either—Zhou is not that stupid." The Emperor’s voice was still hoarse from his throat wound, but it didn’t keep him from speaking.

Felix Fuller bowed his head, saying nothing more. Timing his confessions just right won him the Emperor’s trust, but revealing everything would be suicide.

The Emperor didn’t press Felix Fuller further. Instead, he ordered, "Keep watching this for me. Don’t alert anyone—just find out who else in the army is involved, and root them out one by one."

"As you command, Your Majesty." Felix Fuller bowed, and when he saw the Emperor had no further instructions, he quietly withdrew.

Looking up at the bright moon overhead, Felix Fuller wiped the cold sweat from his brow. He had no idea when these nerve-wracking days would finally end.

After Felix Fuller left, the Emperor finished reviewing the remaining memorials. He stood up, feeling anything but tired—in fact, secretly pleased—and ordered the chief eunuch to summon a concubine for the night.

Lately, the Emperor had summoned concubines every night. With no Empress Dowager or Empress in the palace, no one could persuade him otherwise. Even the imperial physicians who occasionally spoke up were quickly rebuked, and before long, no one dared challenge him.

That night, the Emperor summoned two concubines in a row, finally stopping only in the dead of night. When the chief eunuch heard the room was quiet, he let the palace staff in to serve.

The Emperor bathed in the hot spring, but the concubines weren’t so lucky—they just washed up in wooden tubs. Once clean, the eunuchs carried them off in soft sedan chairs.

The Emperor soaked in the hot spring for two incense sticks’ time, feeling refreshed. His manhood stirred again, and he grew ever more pleased with himself—too bad the concubines had already been sent away.

Just then, a palace maid came in to help him out of the bath. The Emperor saw she was young and pretty, and—without a second thought—pulled her into the water...

The palace maid struggled a little but didn’t push the Emperor away. Half-resisting, half-yielding, she gave in. The two began in the hot spring, and she proved herself skilled at serving, lowering herself and pleasing the Emperor greatly.

But just as the Emperor was about to take her, something unexpected happened...