My Fair Princess: Ertai, Don’t Be Like This

The gentle second male lead turns dark and claims the heroine for himself.

What if Ertai had never backed down, but instead set his schemes in motion step by step? He knows that the Fifth Prince can’t give Xiaoyanzi her freedom, so he secretly arranges things to leave Yongqi torn between the throne and Xiaoyanzi. At the height of the turmoil, he spirits Xiaoyanzi away and keeps her in a gilded cage. His voice is gentle, but leaves no room for refusal: “If Yongqi can’t protect you, then let me.” Ertai is still a refined gentleman, but now there is an added streak of obsession beneath the surface.

First-person blurb: On the night of Yongqi’s wedding, his good friend Ertai sent me out of the palace.

He hid me in his private residence on Ma’er Alley, saying it was to “protect” me.

Only later did I find out

he had bought the place before I even knew Yongqi.

It turns out some people’s tenderness is more frightening than a blade.

“Xiaoyanzi,” he said, gripping my chin, naked obsession in his eyes. “You used to have eyes only for the Fifth Prince. Now it’s time you looked at me.”