Chapter 169: Family Dignity

Thinking of Lady Spring Rain, Rayan felt a mixture of emotions.

Not only did that woman save his life and help him join the Firebird family, but she also became his confidante, sharing her heart with the usually reticent him.

There probably wouldn't be another woman in the world like Lady Spring Rain, both beautiful and kind, importantly, she allowed Rayan to open his heart fully, not needing to control his emotions, just flying with her heart.

Olivia could only soar on his body, and though Sola reached deep into his heart, the long-term master-servant relationship and excessive worship made their direct emotions somewhat cramped.

But Lady Spring Rain was completely different. Being with her, though without physical contact, allowed Rayan to experience an unprecedented tenderness. He dared not defile this tenderness with wicked thoughts, but he also would not allow any other man to touch her.

If he had to leave, he must at least take Lady Spring Rain with him, not letting her face the entire Firebird family alone. This was also a way to give each other an explanation.

Thus, he returned to the inner courtyard garden, walking while figuring out how to handle future matters.

Just stepping on the cobblestones, he heard Trevor and Marquis Hart loudly conversing inside. Rayan paused, listened briefly, and realized Marquis Hart seemed to be personally inviting Phoenix Lady to attend a banquet, while Trevor was tying him down with some trivial tournament arrangements.

Rayan realized Trevor was buying him time and couldn't help but feel more fondness for this righteous Iron-blooded Commander.

Hearing the name Phoenix Lady, Rayan felt uneasy, and by the time he reacted, his heart nearly stopped—Phoenix Lady, still naked, was tied to his bed!

Duncan's words had confused him, and he had been thinking about how to persuade Lady Spring Rain to leave the Firebird family, completely forgetting the wanton Phoenix Lady.

If he left like this and Marquis Hart discovered it, Rayan would immediately go from a universally respected noble to the most shameless and vile fugitive in the history of Stonerock Kingdom.

He took a deep breath, turned, and ran towards Phoenix Lady's cabin, entering the room swiftly before an infuriated Marquis Hart entered the garden.

Phoenix Lady lay powerless on the bed, her limbs firmly bound with silk, the red marks of struggle faintly visible. Clearly, she had attempted to free herself, but lacking strength and any Battle Qi magic, even with her clever mind, she couldn't escape the knots tied by someone as cautious as Rayan.

She had already stopped shouting, lying on the bed waiting for a servant to pass by and rescue her—seeing Rayan return, sword still dripping with blood, she was greatly startled and started to muffle her struggles again.

Rayan put away the Crow Sword, jumped onto the bed without explanation, dropped the bed's curtain, then hid behind Phoenix Lady, one hand on her eel-like body, the other covering her mouth, whispering sternly, "Don't move! Your foolish nephew is coming this way. If you don't want him to make this public, stop shouting, and just send him away quietly, or else I'll have to be rough—nod if you agree."

Phoenix Lady was initially stunned, then slowly nodded. Indeed, if her foolish nephew saw this scene, it would be disastrous. Being a smart woman, she knew how to best preserve herself.

Seeing Phoenix Lady calm down, Rayan carefully removed the silk from her mouth.

Phoenix Lady gasped a few times, whispering angrily, "You heartless man! To think you actually tied me up and left me here; what if some villain came?"

Her body's fragrance made Rayan itch, and her words carried clear suggestive undertones. But Rayan knew, everything about this woman was false, and he must be extremely careful.

"Don't worry, madam, aside from me, there are no villains in your Firebird family."

Phoenix Lady smiled slightly, her phoenix eyes shifting, and she coquettishly said, "Well, villain, you might as well untie me first."

"If you behave, then I'm not a villain," Rayan replied, unmoved.

Just as Phoenix Lady was about to speak, hurried footsteps came from outside the door, and Marquis Hart, not even entering, began shouting, "Aunt! Aunt! You can't do this; you can't just hide in your room and relax today, it's your birthday, and all the nobility of the city are waiting for you, you must make an appearance!"

Phoenix Lady sighed softly, whispering to Rayan, "See, my silly nephew is now starting to tell me how to act."

Rayan, resisting the urge to tickle her, pressed down hard on Phoenix Lady's waist, making her behave. Unexpectedly, this action elicited a fine moan from Phoenix Lady, making Ray an feel as if his bones were melting away.

Fortunately, at that moment, Marquis Hart, panting heavily, arrived at Phoenix Lady's inner chamber. Phoenix Lady managed not to cry out aloud in her plight.

Marquis Hart, seeing the curtains drawn and the silhouette behind the gauze unclear, dared not approach further and lowered his voice, speaking respectfully, "Hart did not know you were resting, Aunt, and I apologize for disturbing you. But the matter is urgent; if you do not show up, those nobles who wish to laugh at us will start causing trouble, which would affect our entire Firebird family's reputation."

Phoenix Lady cleared her throat gently, her voice authoritative from behind the gauze to Marquis Hart, "Such matters are hardly worth mentioning. The more you care, the more they will make trouble. Don't you understand this simple principle? You're already so old, yet still so impetuous in your actions, how can I trust you to lead as Firebird patriarch?"

In just a few words, sweat beads appeared on Marquis Hart's forehead. "But, but we can't just let them make trouble like that, where then is our Firebird family's dignity?"

"By appearing just because they cause a fuss, do you think that gives our Firebird family dignity?" Phoenix Lady said with a cold laugh from behind the gauze, "Let them make their noise. They are simply jealous of our family, and under such malicious jealousy, no matter what we do, they will find unsatisfactory excuses to attack us. Do we need to waste time silencing each one of them? Let them smash what they like and curse what they like—Isn't Trevor there? He is here to handle such situations; we don't need to say anything, he will naturally take care of it."

"No wonder Aunt insisted on having Trevor here; you foresaw today's situation," Marquis Hart said admiringly, "Aunt, you truly have a far-sighted vision! It's because of people like you that our Firebird family has reached such splendid heights today!"

Phoenix Lady dismissed Marquis Hart's praise with a cautionary tone, "As a chess player, you should always use the pieces at hand to achieve your desired goals. Some matters are better handled by Trevor making enemies than us directly making enemies, but letting Trevor handle it goes far beyond this one purpose. As for what that is, you needn't worry. Remember, at this banquet, you only need to be wary of three people: the first is the Redwood family patriarch, that old fox is deep and unyielding, be very cautious of his movements."

Marquis Hart nodded vigorously, "Redwood family has always been noncompliant with our Firebird family, I understand this well and have been keeping an eye on that old fellow. I heard last night his house was burgled, losing a Holy Light artifact. I was thinking we could use this incident to join forces with Holy Light envoy Eileen and pressure Redwood."

Phoenix Lady sighed and shook her head, "Hart, oh Hart, you are hopelessly foolish."

Hart's face turned red, puzzled he asked, "Why do you scold me, Aunt? Shouldn't we take this opportunity to deal with Redwood?"

"No, we indeed need to deal with Redwood, if we can eliminate such an enemy, I believe even placing a pig on our family's throne, our family could peacefully continue for a hundred years," said Phoenix Lady. "But the second person I want you to be careful of is that Holy Light envoy Eileen."

"Her?"

Hart blinked in surprise, "She seems a bit greedy and disdainful, but after all, she is the throne-sent Holy Light envoy here to celebrate your birthday."

"I know she is a Holy Light envoy, just as I know my own birthday," said Phoenix Lady. Mentioning her birthday made her want to sit up and reprimand Hart, but her body was tied to the bed by Rayan, her throat beside Rayan's iron hand, which would effortlessly twist her neck with the slightest move. She had to give up and continue lying motionlessly. However, her body twisted like a contorting serpent, tightly pressed against Rayan's chest.

"Aunt?"

Hart, seeing no movement behind the gauze for a long time, couldn't help but ask, "Have you fallen asleep?"

Phoenix Lady cleared her throat again to indicate she was still there. "Anyway, that Holy Light envoy is not so innocent; though I haven't found her flaw yet, I can sense the hostility she deliberately conceals in her eyes—assign a clever maid to watch her, never let her out of sight. As for the idea of joining her to deal with Redwood, never let her know, otherwise it will bring great trouble, because she is a hidden enemy, more dangerous than an obvious enemy like the Redwood patriarch. Once she knows your intentions, it's like handing your heart to her."

"Yes, nephew understands."

Marquis Hart actually didn't understand at all, but he knew just to listen to Phoenix Lady. "Then who is the third person I need to be careful of? Trevor?"

"No," Phoenix Lady said with a meaningful smile, "it's a guy named Rayan…"