One month later, in the bamboo grove of the Prince of Jin's residence.

The morning sun is bright and warm, perfect for sunbathing and taking the kids for a walk.

"Baby, move your feet and come to Daddy."

The white fox cub lay on the edge of the bamboo basket, its little paws waving forward, and a golden longevity lock hung around its neck, glittering in the sunlight.

The little one loves it.

Shen Yulou's injuries have fully healed. He is now dressed in a golden robe and sitting cross-legged on the grass.

After he was demoted to a commoner, no one dared to visit him. The Prince of Jin's residence was heavily guarded every day, and not even a mosquito could fly in.

With no one to bother him, Shen Yulou was quite happy to enjoy some peace and quiet.

I guess I'm starting my retirement life early, but the food every day isn't great—just vegetable buns and vegetarian dumplings.

He could only occasionally come to this bamboo grove to fish and catch rabbits to supplement his diet.

"Look, sweet baby! Butterflies, so many butterflies!"

The little boy raised his head and looked at the white butterfly fluttering above his head, following his father's finger.

My paws suddenly feel itchy.

"A fox that can't catch butterflies isn't a good fox. You'll have to catch butterflies after you learn to walk, okay?"

The little guy's eyes followed the butterfly's movements, and he tried to raise his claws high, wanting to catch the butterfly.

"Silly boy, you can't catch it like that. You have to jump to catch the little butterfly."

Shen Yulou squeezed the cub's paws; the fox cub's claws were still soft and had not yet hardened and sharpened completely.

I scratched the baby's chin, and the baby leaned against the edge of the basket and closed his eyes comfortably.

"Father, go see if any small fish have taken the bait in the pond. Father wants to eat grilled fish today."

"Little one, be a good boy and sunbathe here, okay?"

After giving the little guy a few more instructions out of concern, Shen Yulou got up and went to the pond to collect the net.

"Awooo!"

The baby let out a few soft cries, its fluffy fur seemingly draped in a golden glow in the sunlight.

This little fox cub is so sunny and warm!

The little tail tip appeared out of nowhere, and the cub tried to grab it with its paws and put it in its mouth.

So it rolled around in the bamboo basket and turned into a round, fluffy ball.

A shadow suddenly enveloped the baby.

The little guy looked up at the unfamiliar uncle in black above him.

It wagged its tail.

Uncle, that's strange. Your clothes are on your face.

Can babies dress like this?

The little guy was very curious about the masked man's clothes and tried to reach out his little paws to hook onto his clothes.

But the masked uncle, holding the baby fox's belly, threw the fox cub into a white net bag.

"Chirp!"

The little guy was frightened. He screamed a few times at first, then struggled a bit and quieted down.

Okay, I'm not going to struggle anymore. Baby's sleepy, time for bed.

The baby fox curled itself up into a ball, biting the tip of its tail as it fell asleep.

Mingzhengxuan

Chi Yuan faced the window, his platinum-gold robes reflecting the sunlight outside.

With broad shoulders and a narrow waist, the overwhelming white light made him appear as if he were a god.

At this moment, he had one hand behind his back and the other hand holding a copy of "Zhiguo Tongjian" (A Comprehensive Mirror for Governing the Country) and reciting it.

He hadn't finished reviewing the memorials yet, but that didn't stop him from taking a break from his busy schedule.

"Your Majesty, this is the little fox that the Prince of Jin keeps."

A man in black jumped down from the roof behind him, and Chi Yuan casually tossed the book aside.

"Let me see it."

Inside the net was a chubby fox cub, still whimpering in its sleep.

"Our Prince Jin is really leisurely. Even after being demoted to a commoner, he still has the mind to raise fox cubs."

Chi Yuan sat down in the chair and couldn't help but pinch the baby's droopy little ears.

This angered the sleeping baby, who then swatted him with its claws.

"She has quite a temper."

"Has anything unusual happened at the Prince of Jin's residence recently?"

With a sneer, His Majesty the Emperor, rather irresponsibly, shifted his grip from pinching the ears to pinching the paws.