Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Ye Qing was absolutely detestable!

That evening, he arrived at my house with a stony face and a mouthful of pedantic drivel that left my father’s head spinning.

He said things like, “The Princess is a role model for the Imperial Family, and General Zhou is a hero among men; you truly cannot be too indulgent toward your son’s lawless behavior.”

And, “Though my rank is humble, I am still a commissioned official of the court, representing the dignity of the state. I will not tolerate humiliation.”

And so on and so forth.

Then he showed my father the formal petition he had written.

My father was illiterate, so he handed the petition over to my mother.

I wanted to see what he’d written too.

So the three of us huddled our heads together, staring at that small scroll of paper.

Ye Qing clearly hadn’t expected this turn of events. He frowned, his gaze shifting back and forth between the three of us.

After my mother finished reading the petition, she asked Ye Qing, “Is humiliating a court official also a crime?”

Without waiting for Ye Qing’s answer, she glared at me. “Who did you humiliate? Did you strip off someone’s clothes?”

I shook my head.

“Did you grope someone’s backside?”

I shook my head again.

My mother looked back at Ye Qing, appearing as though she were about to deliver justice for him. “To what extent did he humiliate you? Tell me, and I’ll give him a whipping.”

Ye Qing’s lips pressed into a thin line. His face was dark, looking as if he were too shocked to speak.

My father beckoned for me to kneel in the courtyard and sent Uncle Lin to fetch the whip. He even chuckled, clapping Ye Qing on the chest with heavy thuds, telling him not to be angry.

“We’ll discipline him right now. Don’t take it to heart. A real man should have a heart wide enough to sail a boat in, shouldn’t he?”

I stared at Ye Qing and sneered, “Lord Ye, it’s not very honorable of you to go crying to someone’s parents the moment you suffer a little loss.”

“You, shut your mouth!” My mother shoved me twice.

I knelt down obediently, but my tongue remained sharp. “Lord Ye, this Young Master always keeps his word. What I said today, I will certainly come to claim from you. You just wait and see.”

My mother swung her arm wide and gave me ten lashes.

Ye Qing watched coldly, then turned and left.

Chapter 6

Ye Lan said his brother hated being treated like a woman more than anything, and he hated people making fun of his looks even more. I had touched his sore spot twice in a row.

I was doomed.

But I wanted to see who would get the last laugh.

Chapter 7

A gambling pool opened in the capital.

The bet: when would the Zhou boy finally win the kiss of Vice Minister Ye?

I was the one who started it.

Ye Lan told me that if I wanted to die, I shouldn’t drag him down with me, yet he secretly placed a bet of a hundred taels on “no kiss.”

Li Jingsong bet fifty taels on “no kiss.”

Zhao Yu bet that I would succeed.

A large crowd of profligate young masters quickly gathered around me.

These dandies placed their bets one after another. For a time, the hottest gossip in the capital was that Zhou Xuesheng, the brat from the Princess Manor, was going to kiss the Capital’s Top Handsome Scholar, Ye Qing.

Suddenly, I couldn’t attend any banquet without being glared at by the ladies.

There were even some bold ones who came right up to me at the Chancellor’s Wife’s lotus-viewing party to scold me: “What kind of thing are you to dare lust after Lord Ye?”

It was a young girl with a round face and almond eyes. She wasn’t very tall, fourteen at most.

I folded my arms and teased with a laugh, “I’m a man. Why would I lust after some stinky man? I’d much rather lust after a sweet little sister like you!”

The girl’s face turned bright red. She stomped on my foot and snapped, “You foul rogue!”

The crowd of dandies that usually surrounded me scattered instantly.

Their sisters at home had used all sorts of threats and bribes to keep them from hanging out with me.

There were even those who started a fight at Princess Xian’s poetry gathering.

Prince Xian’s daughter, County Princess Yunxiang, came at me waving a whip. She lashed out while cursing, “If my aunt won’t discipline you, then let me, your elder cousin, teach you a lesson! Lord Ye is a dignified Zhuangyuan and a pillar of the court. How can you humiliate him like this? Go and cancel that ridiculous gambling pool at once, or I will certainly report you to the Emperor!”

I played around with her for a few rounds before snatching the whip and snapping it in the air. “Cousin, do you like Ye Qing? How about I tie him up and deliver him to your manor for you?”

The girl’s eyes widened, and she immediately began to stammer. “You… what… what kind of nonsense is that!”

Her eyes suddenly lit up. I immediately spun around to throw a punch, but it was too late.

Someone grabbed my wrist and twisted it behind my back.

I instantly shot a look at Xiao Yu and screamed, “Ow, ow, ow, it hurts…”

Xiao Yu rushed over, looking panicked and worried. He wanted to help but didn’t dare touch us, jumping on the spot in anxiety. “Lord Ye, please calm down! Lord Ye, please be gentle! Our Colonel broke his arm on the battlefield and it hasn’t fully healed yet!”

I felt the grip on my wrist loosen significantly.

I immediately grabbed his hand back, spun around to seize his lapels, stood on my tiptoes, and kissed him.

It was a smooth, seamless move.

Having succeeded, I retreated rapidly and leaped onto the roof. “Hahaha! Beauty Ye is truly sweet and fragrant. This Young Master likes it!”

Ye Qing actually didn’t chase me.

He seemed dazed, standing there frozen like a wooden statue.

County Princess Yunxiang’s scream echoed through the courtyard, but I had already made my escape.