When Li Meirong reached the entrance to what seemed to be a shrine, she was pleasantly surprised to find it appeared to have been tidied up.
Gone were the tangled vines, shrubs and weeds. Instead, there were flower bouquets of pale Peonies and Magenta Camellias placed inside tall decorative vases shaped like b.u.t.terfly wings.
She sauntered into the building and headed towards the luxurious lounge. It looked the same as before, magnificently structured with brightly painted walls and decorated with ornaments painted royal red and gold. Several lotus-shaped lanterns cast a soft light, giving the dwelling a warm and hospitable feel.
Li Meirong was slightly disappointed to find that upon her arrival, the area remained silent and empty. Chou and Feng Huang were nowhere to be found. She also wondered where s...o...b..ll had run off to.
"I thought they would be eager to see me..." Li Meirong thought, sullen.
With a quick glance at the nearby wooden table, her mood sank. Last time she"d wanted to speak with the dimension, it communicated with her through a scroll on that table. Sadly, this time, it appeared to be clear of any items.
She"d hoped to be able to ask the dimension about her little one"s whereabouts.
"Dimension, can you hear me?" Li Meirong asked aloud. She scratched the back of her head, feeling a little foolish for talking to what was clearly an empty room.
There was no response.
Li Meirong didn"t dawdle any further and headed straight towards the library, hoping to find any sign of life there.
As she climbed the staircase to the second landing, Li Meirong was suddenly able to overhear s...o...b..ll"s hushed whispers.
She edged closer, stepping lightly in an attempt to keep her presence concealed. "s...o...b..ll" slowly came into view, standing at the end of the library"s corridor and conversing with what seemed to be the dimension"s scroll, placed between his paws.
"I"m telling you, she"s the lord"s wife now. That"s why we must always be respectful to her."
"s...o...b..ll" paused and silently read the dimension"s written response.
"What does it matter if you have to sustain a pond full of lobsters? Seriously…" Immediately after he finished speaking, "s...o...b..ll"s" ears perked up, twitching as his tail swayed from side to side in alertness. Then in a flash, he turned around and scanned the area with squinted eyes.
Before Li Meirong could even consider hiding behind a tall bookshelf, "s...o...b..ll" had already discovered her presence.
The cub"s demeanour changed completely. He docilely rushed to Li Meirong"s side and stared at her with his big fox eyes. "Master, I was waiting for you!"
"En. Sorry, it took me a while to get here." Li Meirong didn"t even glance down at him. She paced forward and focused on a nearby bookshelf, pointedly avoiding him while grabbing the nearest random scroll, pretending to read from it as she tried to make sense of what she"d just overheard.
What he said made no sense at all! Who was this lord and who was his wife? And why would this be a subject for her Fox Spirit to discuss with the dimension? Did the scroll act as some sort of therapist, too? Was s...o...b..ll talking about his family?
Li Meirong only grew more confused the more she tried to make sense of it all. She dearly wanted to question s...o...b..ll but was under the impression he wouldn"t be honest with her.
Would he come clean to her eventually?
She chose to trust "s...o...b..ll" and allow him to tell her his secrets in his own time. Maybe when that time finally came, she could confide him with hers.
Meanwhile, Bai Yu inwardly berated himself again. He really wanted to bash his head against the wall!
It was all that stupid dimension"s fault. The moment it recognized the Bai fox"s bloodline within Bai Yu, the dimension incessantly badgered him with questions as to why its owner had suddenly become a mortal girl instead of the clan"s successor.
The pretending "s...o...b..ll" let out a deep breath. He had a newfound appreciation for His Lords.h.i.+p"s shapes.h.i.+fting skills. It wasn"t enough to look different, one had to change one"s entire conduct. How had Bai Qingyue managed to stay by Her Ladys.h.i.+p"s side, all the while pretending to be a fox cub, without spilling the beans until now?
"s...o...b..ll" curled up on the floor, pretending to nap. He restlessly hoped Her Ladys.h.i.+p wouldn"t concern herself too much with what he said.
Li Meirong, the oblivious wife, groaned in frustration. She wanted to cultivate, cuddle with her pets and make good use of her time in the dimension. Instead, she was upset, confused and couldn"t help but feel that s...o...b..ll was constantly hiding things from her.