Chapter Fifteen: This Prince Must Be Poisonous

“To tell you the truth, I don’t have the slightest bit of affection for your third brother. On the contrary, I think he’s just an annoying pest. It’s your eldest brother I actually like!” As Rong Jiu spoke, she couldn’t help but break into a foolish grin.

“Are you serious? I’m going to remember this, you’re not allowed to take it back!” Mingyu’s eyes crinkled into slits as she laughed.

Out in the corridor, Meng Zigui, having overheard Rong Jiu’s words, turned to glance at Song Moci, hoping to discern a reaction on his face. But Song Moci remained as inscrutable as ever, as if he hadn’t heard a thing.

Meng Zigui could only shrug helplessly and was just about to speak when Song Moci stepped into the room ahead of him.

“A dignified princess, yet all you do is sneak out of the palace to play all day. Clearly, the palace rules aren’t strict enough!”

The sudden voice startled Rong Jiu and the others. Looking up, they saw Song Moci and his companions had entered the room without anyone noticing.

Rong Jiu rolled her eyes inwardly, wondering when they’d arrived—how unlucky could she get?

But Mingyu was all smiles, rushing into Song Moci’s arms and pouting coquettishly, “Third Brother, I’ve missed you these past few days! You never come to the palace to play with me. Hmph!”

“If you sneak out alone again, I’ll have to tell Father,” Song Moci’s tone softened at Mingyu’s playful act, all his annoyance evaporating.

“Alright, I promise I won’t come out by myself again.” Mingyu stuck out her tongue mischievously—after all, next time she’d just bring more people.

“That’s my good girl.” Seemingly oblivious to the hidden meaning in her words, Song Moci rubbed her head, then turned to look at Rong Jiu. “Well, well, Xiao Jiu, what a coincidence! See, I told you we’re fated.”

The nickname “Xiao Jiu” made Rong Jiu shudder, goosebumps rising all over her arms.

“I happen to know Yunxiang Pavilion has a few dishes that are especially delicious. Why not join us for a taste?” Seeing Rong Jiu ignore him, Song Moci moved closer, grinning.

With his face suddenly looming so near, Rong Jiu found the smile rather lecherous, and it took all her restraint not to slap him.

“No need. I have other matters to attend to. Gentlemen, I’ll take my leave.” With that, Rong Jiu pulled A’Mu along and left.

“Hey! Take me with you!” Song Moci called after her.

“Ah! Third Brother, you’re not allowed to go!” Mingyu hastily grabbed his arm as he tried to leave—she had come all this way just to see him.

“Yuer, don’t fuss. I have important business—pursuing your future sister-in-law, no less. Another day, I’ll come see you at the palace, alright? Be good, let go now.” Watching Rong Jiu’s figure disappear around the stairs, Song Moci stamped his feet in frustration.

He had finally managed to catch her!

“What sister-in-law? She just said she likes Eldest Brother! Besides, what’s so special about her anyway? She’s not even as pretty as I am…” The last part, admittedly, was said without much conviction.

“You’re still young, you wouldn’t understand. Now that I’ve finally met someone I’m interested in, if I don’t pursue her, wouldn’t my reputation as the number one lover be for nothing?” Song Moci replied.

“Oh please, number one lover—that’s just something you call yourself,” Meng Zigui said with a roll of his eyes.

“Meng Zigui, will you die if you don’t talk?” Song Moci gave him a sharp flick on the forehead.

“Zigui’s only telling the truth.” Shen Mingshan, who stood behind, added with a sigh. Song Moci began to wonder what kind of “brothers” he had—always undermining him.

“Pfft, my third brother is the best person in the world! As for this number one lover business, of course it belongs to my third brother. I think you two are just jealous and won’t admit it!” Mingyu declared proudly, clinging to Song Moci’s arm and making faces at Meng Zigui and Shen Mingshan. No one was allowed to say a word against her third brother.

“Alright, alright, I give up. So, our number one lover, and—” He paused, noticing Pine Joy was glaring daggers at him, and quickly amended, “—and the number one lover’s sister, can we eat now? I’m starving!”

Being called the number one lover’s sister put Mingyu in an excellent mood, and she immediately called for the waiter to order a table full of dishes.

Meanwhile, Rong Jiu stood by the bridge, watching the fish play in the water, puzzled. “A’Mu, I think I was very clear—why does Song Moci still pester me?”

A’Mu tilted her head thoughtfully before answering, “A’Mu thinks perhaps he truly likes the princess.”

“Bah! We’ve only met a few times—what could he possibly like about me?” Rong Jiu tossed a pebble into the water, sending ripples across its surface. Suddenly, a terrible thought struck her, and she looked at A’Mu in shock. “He’s not a… a pedophile, is he?”

The thought startled even Rong Jiu herself. Then she considered: in this era, she was just a fourteen-year-old girl. Even if children matured faster in ancient times, she still looked very much like a child, while Song Moci was already twenty-one—a full seven years her senior…

“Princess, what does ‘pedophile’ mean?” A’Mu looked at Rong Jiu’s strange expression, puzzled.

“Ahem, it’s hard to explain.” Rong Jiu wiped away imaginary sweat and hurried to change the subject. “Never mind, let’s not talk about this. Think with me—how can I shake Song Moci off? At this rate, I won’t even get to see Tingting!”

Since the last banquet, she hadn’t laid eyes on Song Moxing again.

“A’Mu thinks, why not ask the third prince out and make things clear to him in person? That way, he might give up.”

“Hey, that’s a good idea! Why didn’t I think of that? A’Mu, I love you!” Rong Jiu’s eyes lit up as she began to make plans. “So, tomorrow it is. The sooner I deal with him, the sooner I can find my little Tingting!”

……

The next day, upon hearing that Rong Jiu had invited him out, Song Moci kicked the wine-seeking Meng Zigui aside, took special care to change into fresh clothes, redid his hair, and hurried off to the appointed meeting place.

To maintain his image, Song Moci arrived a stick of incense earlier than the agreed time, only to find Rong Jiu already waiting.

Did this mean she was eager to see him?

Song Moci brushed his bangs back, straightened his attire, and walked toward Rong Jiu.

It was midday, and the theater was packed with people. The hubbub of the crowd drowned out the performance. To facilitate their conversation, Rong Jiu had reserved the entire second floor—not that she could afford it herself. She had intended for Song Moci to pay, but when she mentioned that the third prince would be attending, the theater staff, all smiles, cleared the floor at once.

So it seemed Song Moci’s name was more powerful than money!

As Rong Jiu mused on this, Song Moci arrived.

Speak of the devil!

Rong Jiu sipped her tea to moisten her throat and pointed to the seat across from her. “Take a seat, Your Highness.”

“Did you invite me because you missed me, Xiao Jiu?”

Rong Jiu nearly choked on her tea at the nickname. “Could you call me something else? Rong Jiu or Fifth Princess is fine, really, anything is better.”

“No, no, those all sound so distant. Only ‘Xiao Jiu’ feels special. Besides, in my heart, you are the most unique person.”

Heavens, she wanted to slap him so badly! This was the very script of a scoundrel!

Rong Jiu was exasperated.

“In fact, I know you quite like me too. It’s just that as a young lady, you’re too shy to say it,” Song Moci continued, seeing Rong Jiu’s silence as tacit agreement. Clearly pleased, he pressed on.

“Where did you get that idea?” Rong Jiu rolled her eyes.

“From your eyes, of course. I can tell by the way you look at me—it’s different from how you look at others.”

“It is different,” Rong Jiu thought, wondering if there was something wrong with his eyes or if her dislike wasn’t obvious enough.

“There, you see! I knew Xiao Jiu felt differently toward me!” Song Moci nearly leapt for joy.

“Hey, I wasn’t finished!” Rong Jiu turned to look him in the eye. “The difference is, I dislike you, but I don’t dislike everyone else.”

That sentence was a bucket of cold water, freezing the smile on Song Moci’s lips.

“I asked you here today to make things clear,” Rong Jiu continued, turning her gaze to the actress singing on stage.

“You don’t like political marriages, do you? Well, I happen to enjoy them. So I must thank you for going to the Emperor yourself and withdrawing the engagement, thus freeing me to pursue the eldest prince without restraint. But you, Your Highness, are too much. First you feign illness, then you publicly declare at Mingxiang Pavilion that you’d rather die than marry me. You didn’t even attend the banquet, which made me the butt of jokes behind my back. The next day you nonchalantly asked the Emperor to break off the engagement. Even so, now you say you like me. You’re only interested in my looks!

“There’s no shortage of beauties in Jing’an City. With your status, you could have anyone—young or old. Why bother with me? My heart belongs to the eldest prince, so please, Your Highness, keep your distance from now on.”

When she finished, there was a long silence. Rong Jiu felt relieved, thinking he must have finally understood. She was about to get up and leave when a voice spoke.

“I was wrong before. I apologize to you.”

Song Moci kept his head bowed, his expression unreadable, but his tone was utterly sincere.

“Before I met you, it’s true, I had no intention of marrying you. I never expected to like you. But the moment you slapped me at Mingxiang Pavilion—yes, there have been many women around me, but none made me feel the way you do. The colder you are to me, the more I want to chase you. And just now, hearing all you had to say, I realized—I do like you. I just want you to know that my feelings aren’t a mere whim.”

Even without turning, Rong Jiu could feel the intensity of his gaze.

Was this… a confession? So all her words were wasted? Was the prince insane?

“I have no interest in what you think or want, but you should know that dislike is dislike—it won’t change just because of a few words.” She paused, looking at Song Moci, her gaze cold. “Whatever your intentions, don’t get in the way of me pursuing the eldest prince, alright?”

With that, Rong Jiu called A’Mu and left without a backward glance, leaving Song Moci behind with a complicated expression.

Fu Kang stood quietly behind Song Moci, worry etched on his face. He could sense his master’s foul mood—never, in all his years of service, had he seen the prince like this.