FDPBCT 12

Chapter 12

This Princess Will Definitely Not Marry You (Page 1/2)**

The Second Prince was livid at her words, his face turning ashen. “Zhaoyang, have you caused enough trouble? Using such tactics to get close to Young Master Gu will only make him despise you more.”

Young Master Gu’s brows were tightly furrowed, the disgust in his eyes deepening. He was even more convinced that she had deliberately stolen his family’s servant just to entangle herself with him.

He had thought that after losing her memory, Princess Zhaoyang would show some restraint—never did he imagine she would become even worse.

His tone grew colder. “Princess, your previous… antics, I could overlook. But this person is a runaway slave of my household. I ask that the princess cease shielding him, lest it harm whatever goodwill remains between us.”

Young Master Gu?

Ye Qiong finally remembered—Jixiang had mentioned that the original owner used to like this person.

Huh.

Ye Qiong’s gossip-loving heart blazed to life.

She stepped forward, drew closer, and looked him up and down with a critical eye, as if she were picking out pork at a market.

Under Princess Zhaoyang’s unabashed gaze, Young Master Gu frowned and stepped back in disgust.

“Princess, please show some restraint.”

Ye Qiong looked at him with blank confusion. “Restraint from what?”

Catching his contemptuous glare, a light bulb went off. “You don’t actually think… I like you, do you?”

The question was direct and completely unguarded.

The Second Prince frowned and scolded, “Zhaoyang! You are a princess of the realm—how can you be so shameless in public? Have you forgotten that you are of royal blood? This kind of behavior—what kind of decency is that?!”

Ye Qiong looked at him like he was an idiot and asked with sincere curiosity, “Did your cerebellum not fully develop?”

“That can’t be, right?”

“You’re both sons of my Imperial Uncle, and Crown Prince Brother is quite smart. You, on the other hand…”

Ye Qiong didn’t finish the rest of the sentence, but the meaning was clear.

Upon hearing this, the Second Prince was about to explode. He hated nothing more than being compared to that sickly Crown Prince.

“Zhaoyang! Do you even respect me as your imperial brother?!”

“No. I don’t know you.” Ye Qiong answered bluntly.

The Second Prince was seething with rage and was about to lose his temper, but Young Master Gu quickly stopped him. He pressed a finger on the Second Prince’s arm and whispered in his ear, “Your Highness, there are commoners all around. Engaging in a conflict with the princess now will only undermine your dignity as a prince.”

Then he turned to look at Ye Qiong. The disgust in his eyes faded, replaced by intense scrutiny.

Could losing one’s memory truly change a person this much?

In the past, Princess Zhaoyang had merely been stupid in an off-putting way. But now, after losing her memory, she had become not only aggressive but also utterly unreasonable—completely impossible to deal with.

Meeting his gaze, Ye Qiong grew wary. “Why are you looking at me like that? You don’t actually like me, do you?”

With that, she stepped back cautiously, glanced at the distance between them, and then took another step back for good measure.

Once the distance felt safe enough, she patted her chest. “Young Master Gu, give up that idea. Our families are not well-matched—we would never be happy together. You… you deserve someone better, not someone like me who’s the best.”

Remembering that he had just told her to show restraint, she immediately threw it back at him.

“I ask that Young Master Gu show restraint from now on and stop pestering this princess.”

Young Master Gu: ???

He was pestering her?

Had Princess Zhaoyang lost her mind?

Who exactly was pestering whom?

The Young Master Gu, who had just been advising the Second Prince to stay calm, nearly lost his usual refined and gentle composure.

Gritting his teeth, he said, “I ask that Princess Zhaoyang choose her words carefully! When have I ever pestered you?”

“If you’re not pestering me, then why did you come to block me at this restaurant? You… you wouldn’t have sent people to follow me, would you?”

As she spoke, Ye Qiong suddenly seemed to understand something, weaving an elaborate drama in her mind about unrequited love.

She pointed at the Second Prince, her face one of sudden realization.

“Knowing I’m not interested in you, you brought him along to pressure me with his status as a prince?”

“You… I never expected you to be this kind of person! Do you think this will make me look at you any differently?”

—

*(This chapter is not finished; please click the next page to continue reading.)*

“Impossible! This princess would rather die than agree to marry you!”

Jixiang and Ruyi watched in stunned silence. For a moment, they both wondered if their memories of the princess chasing after Young Master Gu in the past had all been a dream.

Equally dumbfounded, the Second Prince and Young Master Gu were so shocked their jaws nearly dropped to the ground.

They had completely forgotten why they had come to find Ye Qiong in the first place.

All that ran through their minds was: How could there be such a shameless person in this world?

Just as everyone was still reeling, a furious female voice suddenly rang out, “What? Young Master Gu is going to marry you?!”

Ye Qiong turned toward the source of the voice.

It was a young girl in a pomegranate-red palace dress with soft satin and scattered floral patterns, her skirt hem adorned with delicate pearl tassels that chimed softly as she moved, making her look utterly lively.

Seeing her rival, Jixiang, afraid that her princess might be at a disadvantage, quickly leaned in and whispered, “Princess, this is the Fourth Princess… she’s definitely here for you again.”

Ye Qiong’s previously confused eyes instantly sharpened with vigilance. Over the past half month, the people Jixiang and Ruyi had mentioned most—aside from Young Master Gu—was this Fourth Princess.

Apparently, she and the Fourth Princess had been fighting since childhood. Anything she had, the Fourth Princess would compete for.

From what clothes to wear, to whom to like—everything was a competition.

In short, their grudge ran deep. Even their maidservants wanted to strangle each other, and every meeting was a contest to one-up the other.

Seeing Ye Qiong ignore her, the Fourth Princess fumed, “Ye Qiong! How dare you ignore me!”

Ye Qiong shook her head. “I’m not ignoring you—I’m looking right at you!”

The Fourth Princess: “…”

“What did you mean just now when you said Young Master Gu is going to marry you?”

Ye Qiong spread her hands helplessly.

“Young Master Gu has been following me, pestering me relentlessly. When I ignored him, he dragged Second Imperial Brother along to pressure me.”

“And now he’s cornered me right at the entrance of this restaurant. I’ve been working all morning and haven’t even eaten yet—I’m starving!”

The Fourth Princess’s eyes widened, wondering if she had heard wrong.

“You… you said Young Master Gu is pestering you?”

Ye Qiong nodded innocently.

The Fourth Princess scratched her head. “Did that donkey kick your brain too hard?”

She had only heard that Ye Qiong had injured her head and lost her memory—she hadn’t expected it to be this severe.

No wonder her mother had forbidden her from visiting Prince Duan’s manor.

Ye Qiong gritted her teeth. “I’m perfectly fine! And let me make this clear to you—don’t ever associate me with Young Master Gu again. If you like him, then like him yourself—leave me out of it.”

The Fourth Princess looked skeptical. “Are you playing some kind of trick again?”

Ye Qiong touched the token at her waist, looking smug. “This princess is going to dedicate herself to serving the court from now on. Men like him—you can have them. I’m not interested!”

The Fourth Princess’s attention was immediately drawn to the token at Ye Qiong’s waist.

“Kyoto Patrol Envoy? What kind of position is that?”

“Wait—how can you, a princess, hold an official post?”

Ye Qiong proudly patted her token. “Because this princess is exceptional!”

The Fourth Princess’s eyes turned red with anger.

“Father is biased! I want to be an official too!”

Ye Qiong didn’t like hearing that. “What do you mean Imperial Uncle is biased?!”

Glancing at the commoners gathered at the restaurant entrance to watch the spectacle, she cleared her throat.

“It’s obviously because this princess harbors a heart of justice—to punish the wicked and eliminate evil, to keep the people’s safety and well-being in mind, to solve their problems, and to aspire to be a good official. His Majesty, seeing my love for the country and the people, specially appointed me as Kyoto Patrol Envoy.”

Seeing the growing crowd of onlookers, Ye Qiong raised her voice even louder.

“From now on, fellow elders and乡亲, if you have any grievances or troubles, feel free to come to me. As long as it’s reasonable and concerns the people’s welfare, I will do my utmost to seek justice for you!”