Chapter 18

“His Highness the Second Prince must have come for Sister Xin,” Princess Yingluo teased. “His Highness is truly deeply devoted to you.”

The other noble young ladies all looked envious. The Second Prince was handsome and of noble status. Qin Xin was truly fortunate to be able to marry such a man!

Qin Xin let out a coquettish pout, “Princess, you’re teasing me again.”

Princess Yingluo beckoned over a round-faced maidservant and smilingly instructed, “Go tell His Highness the Second Prince that the one he longs for is here. Let’s see whether he comes.”

Qin Xin clutched her handkerchief, smiling with her eyes, and made no move to stop her.

“…” Qin Jiu felt a faint headache coming on.

Whether the Second Prince came or not wasn’t important. If Xiao Ze came along too, that would be trouble! She had finally managed to get rid of him and definitely didn’t want to get entangled with that dangerous fellow again!

Just as Qin Jiu was about to slip away, she heard Qin Sheng ask crisply, “Third Sister, what do you think of Second Sister’s painting?”

That sentence immediately drew the attention of the other noble ladies to Qin Jiu.

Preoccupied with making her escape, Qin Jiu answered absentmindedly and casually blurted, “It’s pretty good.”

She remembered that in the original novel, Qin Xin’s accomplishments in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting had been lavishly praised, so replying with “pretty good” surely couldn’t go wrong!

“…” Qin Sheng once again felt her words catch in her chest. Qin Jiu never reacted according to expectations. How was she supposed to continue the conversation now?

After brushing them off with that reply, Qin Jiu added, “If there’s nothing else, then I’ll…”

Before she could finish, the round-faced maid hurried back, slightly out of breath as she reported, “Princess, Second Miss Qin, His Highness the Second Prince and His Highness the Third Prince have arrived.”

The maid had only been gone for a few moments before the Second Prince arrived, so they had clearly run into each other on the way.

Princess Yingluo covered her mouth with a laugh, “See? I told you His Highness the Second Prince cares most for Sister Xin. The moment he heard she was here, he hurried right over.”

As she spoke, she gently pushed Qin Xin and winked at her.

Qin Xin smiled and went forward to greet Gu Jing and the others.

Gu Jing hadn’t come alone. Accompanying him were Third Prince Gu Rui, the heir of Duke Qin’s household Jiang Rao, and several others.

Ordinarily, whenever these noble young men traveled together, Gu Jing was naturally the center of attention. But this time, the noble ladies in the waterside pavilion noticed that Gu Jing, Gu Rui, and the others were gathered around an unfamiliar young man in a purple robe.

He appeared to be around twenty years old, was handsome, noble, and elegant. As he strolled over calmly, every movement carried an air of refined dignity and innate nobility.

Who was he?

Everyone couldn’t help feeling curious.

“Little girl, where are you trying to go?”

Just as everyone was waiting for Gu Jing to introduce the man, the young man in purple spoke first. His voice was gentle as water, his eyes smiling warmly. When he smiled, it felt like a spring breeze brushing across one’s face, bringing an indescribable sense of comfort.

Qin Jiu, who had been quietly sneaking away, stiffly lowered the right foot she had just lifted.

She silently turned around and forced a fake smile at Xiao Ze, “Big Brother, long time no see.”

Qin Jiu’s “Big Brother” had come out entirely by reflex, but Gu Jing, Qin Xin, and the others were all stunned.

Who was Qin Jiu calling?!

“Little Sister seem very unwilling to see me?” Xiao Ze stood a few steps away with his hands behind his back, looking at Qin Jiu.

He was smiling, and though both his tone and expression were exceedingly gentle, Qin Jiu couldn’t help recalling that night in Yaoqing County, when he had asked whether she wanted to give him a ride.

Qin Jiu felt her scalp numb.

“How could that be?!” Qin Jiu’s smile became even more sincere than his. Her bright and clear eyes stared at him unblinkingly, “Seeing Big Brother again makes me so happy—so happy that my limbs won’t even obey me anymore.”

“Is that so?”

Xiao Ze looked at the little girl whose words and heart clearly didn’t match amusedly.

Having not met for over half a month, she seemed far livelier than before. Her eyes were bright and spirited, her whole bearing radiant with energy. Every glance and movement carried a trace of slyness and bold charm.

The more sincerely this little girl spoke, the faker her smile looked, making Xiao Ze unable to resist teasing her a little.

Beside them, Second Prince Gu Jing was sizing Qin Jiu up with a strange look in his eyes.

This was his first time meeting Qin Jiu. Her appearance resembled Empress Wei by forty or fifty percent, and combined with the recent rumors, he immediately guessed her identity.

But why was she calling the Third Young Master of Prince Duan’s residence “big brother”?!

“Imperial Uncle Ze,” Gu Jing casually asked Xiao Ze, “This young lady is…?”

Gu Jing’s one “Imperial Uncle” shocked Princess Yingluo and the others in the waterside pavilion even more. They exchanged looks, their curiosity about Xiao Ze’s identity growing stronger.

After all, in the Great Qi dynasty, there were very few young noblemen whom the dignified Second Prince would address as “Imperial Uncle”!

“Your Highness the Second Prince,” Princess Yingluo seemed to have recalled something as she said hesitantly, “Could this be Third Young Master of Prince Duan’s residence?”

Gu Jing nodded with a smile, “Precisely.”

Qin Jiu was utterly dumbfounded, her eyes widening into perfect circles.

After half a day, she slowly blinked once, then again. Her mind was buzzing.

She finally knew who Xiao Ze really was!

What Xiao Ze?!

This liar!

His surname was clearly Gu. His full name was Gu Zezhi, the Third Young Master of Prince Duan’s residence—and the future Regent Prince.

The greatest villain in “Flourishing Proud Phoenix”.

In the novel, he was narrow-minded, moody, and ruthlessly cruel. Because Prince Duan stubbornly refused to depose the eldest son born of a concubine and make him heir instead, Gu Zezhi flew into a rage, murdered his own father, and fled. After that, he vanished without a trace for two years.

Prince Duan’s title was then inherited by the Heir Apparent, Gu Chenzhi.

Two years later, Gu Chenzhi entered the capital under imperial orders to celebrate the Empress Dowager’s birthday, but he was ambushed and assassinated midway through the journey.

Gu Zezhi, who had disappeared for two years, suddenly reappeared and personally cut off his elder brother Gu Chenzhi’s head.

The entire court was thrown into an uproar. The Emperor was furious and ordered Gu Jing, who was Crown Prince at the time, to lead the Imperial Guards to Prince Duan’s fiefdom and capture Gu Zezhi. Instead, Gu Zezhi dealt them a crushing defeat, annihilating the entire army.

Gu Jing himself was captured by Gu Zezhi and nearly died at his hands.

And that wasn’t all. Afterward, Gu Zezhi raised an army under the banner of “protecting the throne and rescuing the Emperor” and marched on to the capital palace.

When the Emperor heard the news, his rage and shock triggered a sudden heart attack, and he died on the spot.

Gu Zezhi then installed Gu Jing as the new emperor, using the emperor’s authority to command the feudal lords, while he himself became the lofty Regent Prince of Great Qi.

For the next several years, Gu Zezhi controlled the government as Regent Prince. He framed loyal officials, slaughtered innocents, and ruled with bloody tyranny, while the new emperor Gu Jing dared to resent him but not speak out.

Complaints and resentment filled the entire court.

Under the iron-fisted rule of this infamous Regent Prince, the imperial court of Great Qi endured its darkest three years… until the male and female protagonists joined forces and reclaimed power.

Naturally, the villain Gu Zezhi met a gruesome end, dying without even a burial place.

Qin Jiu had never imagined that the random man she met in a small county town would turn out to be the future Regent Prince whose name would terrify the world.

“…” Qin Jiu wanted to cry but had no tears.

Lost in grief over her cruel fate, Qin Jiu completely failed to notice Gu Zezhi taking two steps toward her. With a casual lift of his right hand, he effortlessly caught a fragrant osmanthus blossom that was about to fall onto her hair.

The tiny orange-red flower no larger than his fingernail made his fair skin look as smooth and lustrous as jade. The sight was indescribably beautiful, like a painting come to life.

Qin Jiu stared blankly at him and forced out a smile, one uglier than crying.

The other noble young ladies present looked back and forth between the two of them, their expressions even more subtle and complex than Qin Jiu’s.

Gu Zezhi’s status was extraordinarily noble. He was Prince Duan’s only legitimate son. Even Gu Jing, despite being a prince, had to address him as “Imperial Uncle.”

The problem was, why was Gu Zezhi so familiar with this wild girl from the Qin family?!

Princess Yingluo and the other noble ladies secretly exchanged glances. They wanted to ask, but because of Gu Zezhi’s status, none of them dared speak carelessly.

Gu Jing’s gaze moved repeatedly between Gu Zezhi and Qin Jiu, his eyes flickering.

The Qin family’s affairs had long since spread throughout the capital, so he naturally knew about them as well.

Especially since the Empress had kept Qin Jiu in Fengluan Palace for so many days and later even had Dowager Madam Qin personally enter the palace to bring her home. Who knew what ulterior motives were behind this? Did she really think this could disgust or provoke him?!

At the thought of how his imperial mother-consort had knelt outside Fengluan Palace for an entire day and night, allowing passing palace servants to stare at her as they pleased, Gu Jing felt a suffocating anger trapped in his chest, his whole body tense.

Originally, he had purposely come to Shenghua Pavilion today to support Qin Xin, lest Qin Jiu use the Empress’s protection to bully her.

But now, Qin Jiu was repeatedly calling Gu Zezhi “Big Brother”, so what was he supposed to call Qin Jiu?

Things had completely flipped over!

Gu Jing’s thoughts were in disarray.

Yet in Qin Xin’s eyes, what she saw was Gu Jing staring fixedly at Qin Jiu without blinking.

Qin Xin followed Gu Jing’s gaze slowly and looked toward Qin Jiu.

The young girl before her was both familiar and strangely unfamiliar. Slender and delicate, she stood bathed in dazzling golden sunlight that seemed to dust her with a faint layer of gold powder, making her features appear even more exquisite. From deep within her bones radiated an indescribable nobility that completely overshadowed herself.

It was as though Qin Jiu had been born to stand high above others, while she could only worship her from below.

Qin Xin panicked.

In her previous life, the one who had married Gu Jing, become the Second Prince’s first consort, and eventually risen to become Princess Consort was Qin Jiu!

This lifetime, she had taken Qin Jiu’s place and become engaged to the Second Prince instead.

In truth, Qin Xin knew very well that with the Qin family’s decline, the only reason the Emperor had bestowed this marriage upon her was because she was Empress Wei’s “niece”.

Back when Empress Wei had still been Crown Princess, she had once jokingly agreed with her younger sister Lady Wei. If Lady Wei gave birth to a daughter, she could marry the Crown Princess’s eldest son. Later, however, the first prince died young, and the agreement was quietly forgotten.

Later on, remembering that old promise, the Emperor bestowed Qin Xin in marriage to the Second Prince, Gu Jing.

Qin Xin feared Qin Jiu’s return because she feared Qin Jiu would take everything back from her.

Qin Jiu was Empress Wei’s true biological niece. Of course the Empress would help Qin Jiu instead.