41. It's become a chubby little dog.

Suddenly, the little princess took a jade pendant from her waist and tied it to Jin Lanyue's purse without saying a word: "This is the 'photographic memory' pendant that the Queen Mother gave me. Wearing it, I'll be able to recite my lessons without making a single mistake!"

Although the jade pendant shouldn't have any "photographic memory" function given the little princess's academic performance, the little dumpling still happily accepted it: "Thank you~"

Upon seeing this, the young prince immediately pulled out an exquisite sachet from his robes: "This contains calming camphor incense, much more effective than that damn jade pendant!"

As he was about to hang it around the little dumpling's neck, the ribbon of the sachet got tangled in the little dumpling's beaded flower because he was moving too fast.

"You did that on purpose!" the little princess accused.

"You're slandering me!"

The little boy took off the sachet and hung it on his waist along with the jade pendant given to him by the princess. Then he grabbed the little princess and the little prince with one hand each: "This is fine!"

"Don't fight," she said seriously. "We're friends, and friends don't fight!"

The little princess and the little prince turned their heads away, but in the end, neither of them refuted it.

Behind him, Qu Zijin watched the three little ones' figures gradually disappear into the distance and chuckled softly.

He suddenly felt that this kind of life seemed quite wonderful.

-

Days passed by like this.

The weather is gradually getting cooler; summer has passed, and autumn has arrived.

The maple leaves turned fiery red, and the three little ones in the Wenhua Hall got along better and better.

On this day, at the Marquis of Beiding's residence, early morning.

There was a loud knocking on Jin Lanyue's door.

Unlike when they first met, Xiaobai now knocks rhythmically on the door with its paws, and the sound of its tail slapping the ground is like keeping time.

As soon as the door opened, the white furball rushed in, circling the foot of the bed three times. If the little dumpling still didn't get up, it would jump up and nudge her palm with its wet nose.

At this time, the little dumpling will hug it to stop it from causing trouble, and the little white thing that is hugged will immediately roll over and ask for a pat.

Occasionally, I would bring breakfast to the little dumpling, usually its treasured jerky, which it would place by its pillow like a precious gift.

...although they are often covered in suspicious saliva.

But today, the little dumpling didn't stay in bed.

After she finished washing up, she happily went to play with the puppy.

On the swing set, the little dumpling swayed in her pearl-embroidered shoes.

Little White on the stone table had become a chubby little ball of fur and was trying its best to eat the braised pork bones in front of it.

Now its fur is glossy and smooth, and when the sunlight shines down, it casts a round shadow on the ground, making it impossible to tell that it was once skinny and bony.

"Little sister!" The second brother strode over, carrying a small bamboo ball in his hand. "Look what good thing I just got."

Little White immediately jumped off the stone table and circled around her second brother.

"Second brother!" Little Tuanzi also got off the swing. "Let me see you!"

The second brother held the ball high: "Then tell me first, did you tear up my homework yesterday?"

The little dumpling was shocked: "What? Second brother's homework was torn up!"

"Woof!" Little White suddenly barked, grabbing its second brother's clothes and pulling him backward.

"Wow, this puppy is really strong!" The second brother stumbled, and the ball fell to the ground, where it was caught by Little White.

He picked up Xiaobai: "It must have been you, right? I found fragments of my homework in your doghouse."

Little White wags its tail proudly.

Jin Lanyue was terrified: "Little Bai is naughty, how could you tear up Second Brother's homework?"

"It's okay, it's okay," the second brother said with a bright smile, hugging the puppy tightly and whispering in its ear, "Remember to do it again next time, okay? That way I won't have to do my homework!"

The little dumpling couldn't hear what he was saying, and jumped up and down in a panic, her rosy little face covered in sweat.

She was afraid that her second brother would blame Xiaobai, but she was also afraid that Xiaobai would do it again next time.

Just then, Marquis Beiding walked over from the corridor: "What's all this commotion about now?"

"Daddy!" The little dumpling rushed over and hugged his leg. "It's nothing, it's nothing..."

The second brother was startled and, fearing that the secret would be exposed, quickly put Xiaobai down.

Little White ran with the ball in its mouth, placed the drool-covered ball at Bei Dinghou's feet, and wagged its tail like a rattle.

Marquis Beiding laughed: "Why has this dog gotten so fat again?"

The second brother squatted down and rubbed Xiaobai's belly: "That's right, it's almost too heavy to carry."

His arms started to ache after just a short hug.

"No way!" The little dumpling bent down and tried to pick up Little White to prove it wasn't heavy. "Little White is very light!"

She wrapped her arms around Little White's belly and tried to lift it up... Little White didn't budge.

The little dumpling paused for a moment, but refused to give up and continued. This time, it used all its strength, even puffing out its little face as it strained: "Ya-hey!"

...Little White remained unmoved.

The little dumpling almost lost its balance, but still tried to defend Xiaobai: "It...it just has a lot of fur..."

“Yes, yes, it’s just that its fur is a bit fluffy,” Marquis Beiding said, barely suppressing a laugh. “By the way, Yue’er, your mother is looking for you.”

"Okay! Let's go find Mommy!" The little dumpling stepped forward and took her father's hand.

Little White picked up the ball and followed the little dumpling happily.

My second brother shouted from behind, "That's my ball!"

"It's Xiaobai's now!"

-

"Moon, come and try on this new dress." Jiang Xiyue unfolded a ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress), on which several butterflies, about to take flight, were embroidered with gold thread.

Little White ran faster than Jin Lanyue, its little tail wagging like a rattle drum, spinning around the skirt.

"Does Little White want new clothes too?" Jiang Xiyue asked it with a smile.

"Eek!" Little White straightened up and put its two front paws together in a bow.

Jiang Xiyue was amused: "This little thing, she really likes pretty things. Alright, alright, I'll have someone make a few sets for you to take measurements later."

Jin Lanyue ran to her mother's side, her eyes shining as she looked at the little dress: "So pretty! Yue'er likes it!"

"Then try it out and see if it suits you."

"Okay, okay!"

Jiang Xiyue was helping the little girl try on clothes when the Marquis of Beiding, who had just left a while ago, came in carrying a wooden book box and instructed the little girl, "Yue'er, the Grand Tutor will start teaching numerology tomorrow, and I have prepared all the necessary classics."

He placed the heavy box of books on the table: "Tomorrow I will have someone move it into the Wenhua Hall. When that happens, you can find any books you need inside."

"Okay~ Thank you, Daddy!" The little dumpling obediently raised both hands, letting her mother help her put on her coat and accessories.

"By the way, I heard the little prince asked for leave?" Jiang Xiyue asked while tying the little boy's clothes.

Marquis Beiding nodded: "He said he caught a cold and needs to rest for a day."

"Oh, are you sick?" The little dumpling raised its head. "Being sick is so uncomfortable... The little prince is so pitiful."

The young prince is now her friend too.

When her friend was sick and feeling unwell, she felt that the joy of receiving beautiful new clothes didn't seem to be as great.

Her mother patted her head and said, "You're dressed. Don't be sad, Yue'er. The little prince might not be sick."

Marquis Beiding added, "The Imperial Hospital hasn't even prescribed any medicine, so there's probably nothing wrong with it."

In reality, it's highly likely that he's faking illness to find an excuse to take a day off.

“So, don’t be sad, Yue’er,” Jiang Xiyue said.

The little dumpling nodded as if it understood: "If the little prince is not sad, then Yue'er is not sad either."

"Good girl." Jiang Xiyue kissed her cheek.

-

The next day.

early morning.

"Little White, be a good boy and watch the house." Jin Lanyue squatted on the stone steps at the gate of the courtyard, cupping the puppy's fluffy face in her hands.

Little White's ears drooped, and its wet, black eyes looked at her pitifully, its front paws constantly tugging at the hem of her skirt.

"No, I can't take the puppy with me," the little dumpling said seriously.

Little White let out a mournful "woof woof," tugging at the corner of her clothes in its mouth, and rubbing its little head against her palm.

"Moon, it's time to go," Jiang Xiyue urged.

The little dumpling patted Xiaobai's head one last time: "I'll be back as soon as school is over, you have to be good."

However……

No sooner had the little dumpling gotten into the carriage than Little White perked up its ears and darted to the book box.

The maids were busy tidying up other items, and none of them noticed the small white figure.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Little White squeezed through the gap in the box lid, nimbly wedged between the books, and even used its paws to close the lid.

"Hurry up and load the cart, don't be late," the steward urged, as two servants lifted the mahogany book box.

"Why does this box suddenly feel heavier?" a servant muttered.

"They probably packed too many books." Another person wiped his sweat. "Hurry up."

The book box was carried onto the carriage by the unsuspecting crowd, and swayed along with the little dumpling as they left the mansion, entered the palace, and were then moved into the Wenhua Hall...