The servant soon brought the fabric. Mu Ci gestured, intending to sew a little skirt for the little white fox she had found. Just then, a mammy entered and, upon seeing this, her eyes widened in alarm.
"My young lady, you mustn't, you absolutely mustn't do this!"
"How can your hands be for such rough work, my lady? Absolutely not, leave it to me!"
The mammy spoke these words as she rushed forward, snatching the fabric from Mu Ci's hands.
"Little mistress, whatever you wish to do, just command this old servant!"
Hearing the mammy's words, Mu Ci blinked and pointed directly at the little fox in front of her.
"It's this little fox!"
"I want to make it a pink little skirt."
The mammy looked at the little fox strangely. She leaned in as if to examine it. The little fox immediately burrowed into Mu Ci's embrace, covering its crucial parts with its paws. Its ears stood erect, a clear sign of extreme vigilance. The mammy touched her nose, finding it rather amusing.
"This little thing... quite good at hiding. But what's the use, even if it hides so well? I can see it perfectly clearly."
"It's a male fox."
However, the mammy grew even more perplexed.
"My lady, this is a male fox. Are you sure you want to make a pink skirt for this male fox?"
Seeing the doubt in her mammy's eyes, Mu Ci coughed, her gaze flickering.
"I—"
She hesitated, then said in a low voice.
"Of course, I'm sure!"
She nodded, then quickly added.
"I am absolutely certain. I want to make a pink skirt for this male fox! And it has a name, which I gave it, Bai Ruanruan!"
After much deliberation, the mammy swallowed her words and quietly went to make the skirt for the little fox. She was skilled in needlework. Though the little fox did not allow her to touch it, she could estimate its size. Five little skirts would be just right!
Meanwhile, Lin Mu Ci hugged the little fox, lost in thought. The little fox, curled up in her arms, was mortified. The little system, however, chuckled in Lin Mu Ci's mind.
"Host— you're torturing him alive! You already know this little fox is the Prince Yan you're looking for, and you're forcing him to wear skirts. Tsk tsk tsk, you're forcing virtue into vice!"
Lin Mu Ci snorted proudly.
"You didn't tell me he would turn into a little fox! And I was wondering where my husband had gone!"
"Speaking of which, how did he change from a human to a fox? What's with his ears and tail? Explain it to me."
Heaven knew… how surprised she had been last night. Wow, this guy had Ling Qianhe's face, but he also had ears and a tail! And his tail was so fluffy and soft, with a milky scent, not smelly at all, just pleasant. It had almost made Lin Mu Ci ecstatic. Her husband having ears and a tail was such a good thing! Wouldn't she be able to rub his ears and tail to her heart's content! Making him skirts was also for her own amusement. As for whether she would be spanked by Ling Qianhe after leaving this world, Lin Mu Ci could only say she couldn't worry about that anymore. She excitedly imagined in her mind what kind of skirts she would make for Ling Qianhe.
The little system sighed. It suddenly felt that perhaps the host’s actions… weren’t necessarily a bad thing. The little system pondered for a moment and then let Lin Mu Ci have her way. Lin Mu Ci hugged the dejected Bai Ruanruan, looking at Bai Ruanruan's devastated expression, and her lips curved into a smile. She rubbed Bai Ruanruan's ears and asked,
"What do you want to eat?"
"I remember little foxes eat raw meat. Shall I prepare some raw meat for you?"
She earnestly asked Bai Ruanruan. Hearing her words, Bai Ruanruan weakly glared at her, its expression clearly saying, "No raw meat, no raw meat!"
Lin Mu Ci continued to laugh. She reached out and scratched the little fox's chin. The little fox opened its mouth and let out a mournful yelp. It wanted to be forced to wear pink skirts and eat raw meat, but it wasn't, it wasn't a shameless little fox! And it was, it was not a fox! Prince Yan almost doubted life. Why was this little county princess so troublesome? It even regretted jumping into this little county princess's courtyard. But thinking of the little county princess looking at it with a beaming smile, the little fox hesitated and stretched out its pink, tender paws. Just then, Mu Ci's maid brought her freshly made osmanthus cakes. She ate them with immense joy, her cheeks bulging, her heart happy.
"These osmanthus cakes are the best. They carry a hint of Jiangnan sweetness, smelling sweet and rich, exceptionally pleasing."
As she ate the sweet osmanthus cakes, a few crumbs of the white cake stuck to the corner of her lips. She subtly looked up at the little fox, hesitated, and then asked,
"Do you want to eat?"
The little fox was rather proud, and perhaps a little hesitant, but after a while, it nodded.
"Okay."
The little fox clearly wanted to eat, but it turned its head away, obviously putting on airs of pride and deliberately adopting this posture. Seeing the little fox's pitiable yet affected appearance, Mu Ci couldn't help but laugh. Indeed, it must be very hungry and must not have eaten for a very, very long time. The little fox's stomach rumbled. It was clearly starving. And the little fox blushed again. The entire fox turned pink in an instant. A cherry blossom-like color, beautiful and cute. Lin Mu Ci even thought about whether she should custom-make special fox ears and a fox tail for her husband later. He looked really, really good dressed like this. The little fox looked at her pitifully, and then Mu Ci stopped teasing it. She picked up a piece of osmanthus cake and offered it to the little fox. The little fox bit into it and swallowed it with extreme elegance. It ate piece after piece at a rapid pace. By the time Mu Ci was feeding it later, it seemed to still want more. It stretched out its pink little tongue and licked Lin Mu Ci's finger. Its eyes were bright and clear, extremely beautiful. Lin Mu Ci instantly smiled.
"Do you like it very much?"
The little fox hesitated, then nodded, not denying it. The osmanthus cakes were indeed fragrant and sweet. Even the cooks at Prince Yan's manor couldn't make such a delicious taste. Thus, the little fox was very satisfied. The little fox nodded.
"Delicious. I like it very much."
Although it didn't speak, its expression and eyes revealed its thoughts. It really liked the pastries, and its stomach even bulged slightly from eating. Lin Mu Ci mischievously reached out and patted its little belly.
"Look, your stomach is all puffed up. If you weren't a little male fox, I would really mistake you for a pregnant little female fox!"
The little fox looked up and bared its teeth at Lin Mu Ci. Nonsense, this little girl was simply too much! Lin Mu Ci reached out and stroked its soft little belly and fluffy tail.
"If you like it, eat more. I like little foxes the most."
She smiled, her eyes curved, and she hugged the little fox and nuzzled it. The little fox, held by her, was slightly stunned. It had been angry just moments ago, but being held and cuddled like this, it seemed to be less angry. Yet, it felt it had no principles at all. It must have acquired some fox habits after becoming a half-demon—this was not good, this was not good! Fortunately, no one would know that it had turned into a fox. Thinking this, the proud and aloof Prince Yan instantly felt at ease again. It curled up in the little county princess's embrace, able to smell the faint fragrance emanating from the little county princess. The scent wafted towards it, and it widened its eyes slightly, finding it incredible. What had she sprayed on herself to smell so good? Moreover, the girl's skin was fair and delicate, comparable to its own snow-white skin. It even suspected that this girl might also be a fox spirit! How could even a fox find her attractive and alluring? The little fox couldn't understand, but when it curled up in the girl's embrace, its heart pounded rapidly. The little fox subtly looked up. It suddenly felt that this moment was beautiful. But—the little fox quickly realized that this moment was not as beautiful as it had imagined, because soon the mammy brought a pile of freshly made pink skirts. And the girl grabbed its little foot. It heard the girl say,
"Good boy, Bai Ruanruan, sister will put on your skirt for you!"
Prince Yan struggled with all its might. Its lifelong reputation, its decisive demeanor in the business world over the years, its ruthlessness and authority, all vanished at this moment. It thrashed its limbs, trying to escape the little county princess's clutches. The little county princess chuckled, looking at the little white fox before her, and then grabbed it.
"Be good, okay?"
She leaned close to the little white fox. Her eyes were dark and bright, extremely beautiful, flickering with a captivating luster. She stared intently into its eyes, and the little white fox heard the little county princess say,
"Be good, Bai Ruanruan, if you wear your clothes obediently, I'll give you a little kiss, okay?"
Her tone was gentle. Hearing this, the little white fox hesitated and dared not struggle further. It subtly looked up, quickly glancing at the girl before it. It was still very unwilling. How could the dignified Prince Yan wear a skirt! But the little county princess held it, rubbing its big tail again and again.
"If you don't say anything, I'll take it as your acknowledgment! And look at this pink skirt, this pink skirt is very cute, with little flowers on it. Little white flowers embroidered on the pink skirt, isn't it beautiful!"
The little fox was stunned by her words. She looked at it eagerly, then one hand stroked its fluffy tail, while the other hand nimbly picked up the little fox and quickly put it on! The little fox couldn't help but extend its claws, wanting to tear the pink skirt apart. This damned pink skirt! But the little county princess looked at the little fox with pleading eyes. Tears quickly gathered in her eyes, and then pearly tears poured down, landing on the little fox's fluffy fur. Its big tail swayed slightly, and it even felt the scorching temperature of the tears. It hesitated, and its paws stopped moving. The little county princess quickly hugged it tightly.
"I knew my Bai Ruanruan was the best! I'm going out for a stroll on the street so everyone can see how cute my Bai Ruanruan is!"
Prince Yan… nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.
…
The result was that the little county princess happily went out for a walk with the little fox wearing the pink skirt. The nearby townsfolk, seeing the delicate little county princess, praised her beauty.
"The little county princess is truly beautiful!"
"Who wouldn't say so? The little county princess is so beautiful it makes one sigh. The little county princess is so lovely, look at her features, tsk tsk tsk, as exquisite as if drawn by painters!"
"The little county princess is truly beautiful. What is she holding? A little white fox wearing a pink skirt?"
"This little fox is also exquisite and cute, quite pleasing to the eye. Especially this delicate pink, it makes this white fox even cuter!"
Prince Yan had collapsed into the arms of County Princess Mu Ci. If people found out, it would never be human again! How could it be so shameful. But the more it worried, the more it happened. A troop of people was approaching from afar, precisely the subordinates of Prince Yan's deputy general. It stiffened, even though it knew they couldn't possibly recognize it. But thinking of facing its own subordinates, and while wearing a pink skirt, it wished it could just commit suicide! This was more unbearable than being stabbed ten times by the Rong people. It could even say it would rather be stabbed ten times by the Rong people than appear before its subordinates wearing a pink skirt. Coincidentally, its subordinates greeted the little county princess.
"Little county princess?"
"Your brother is still searching for Prince Yan outside the city, so he's been very busy these days. We're investigating within the city… worried that Prince Yan might be injured and hidden somewhere."
"Oh, why do you have a little fox in your arms? That’s rather… rather cute."
These military men were rough fellows and didn't know how to express themselves. After hesitating for a long time, they finally found a suitable adjective.
"Very endearing. It's a pity our Prince Yan doesn't like small animals."
"Little county princess, you should hide your little fox well. When Prince Yan returns, he will be displeased!"