Grace returned to the Serenity Pavilion, as usual, to cultivate.
Whenever she cultivated, all of Danyang City seemed to fall into a spiritual power vacuum. Grace found it weirdly frustrating.
She didn’t dare to go all out with her cultivation—just meditated for two hours, tucked Cutie Pie into its little nest, and then went to sleep herself.
But the next morning, when she woke up, something felt off.
Lifting the covers, she found Cutie Pie curled up into a ball, snuggled right against her chest, fast asleep.
"Ha!" Grace couldn’t help but laugh. "You actually crawled into my bed?"
Cutie Pie woke up too, blinking sleepily at her.
Grace chuckled and reached out to pet it. "Did you sleep well?"
It nodded.
Yep, very well.
Hope was on night duty in the outer room. Hearing noises, she came in and immediately saw the Antler Serpent curled up in bed, snuggled next to Miss Lawrence.
Her face darkened at once. "This Antler Serpent is way too clingy! Why is it even burrowing into the bed now?"
She marched over to grab it. "Come here! From now on, you are not allowed on the bed, got it?"
The Antler Serpent turned its head and dove straight into Grace’s arms, leaving only its tail for Hope to grab.
"Ha! Now it’s throwing a tantrum!" Hope couldn’t help but laugh.
"Enough, enough," Grace said, worried Hope might scare it. "It’s fine, it’s super clean—not a speck of dust on it."
"Miss Lawrence, you really spoil him! It’s just an Antler Serpent, and it’s practically eating and sleeping with you now."
"He’s so well-behaved, he deserves to be spoiled!" Grace replied with a smile.
Evan Xiao scooted over and nuzzled her cheek.
Grace smiled and gave him a quick kiss before getting up to wash up...
...
Every autumn, the Emperor would lead his consorts, children, and ministers to the Royal Hunting Grounds for the annual hunt.
The Royal Hunting Grounds are a branch of the Eastwood Forest, stretching hundreds of miles. The closest point to Danyang City is just a few dozen miles away.
The afternoon before the hunt, everyone would head up the mountain.
Grace told Minister Zhuo she wanted to visit the Royal Hunting Grounds to see Evan Xiao, and Minister Zhuo agreed to take her.
Before leaving, Grace packed up, grabbed the Antler Serpent, and set off.
Unexpectedly, the serpent squirmed a bit and shook its head at her.
"Hmm?" Grace looked at him, puzzled. "Cutie Pie, I’m taking you to play on the mountain. You don’t want to go?"
He shook his head hard.
"Weird, aren’t spirit beasts supposed to love the forest? But ours just likes to stay home!" Claire laughed.
Grace looked at him with pity. "He’s just too weak—probably got bullied by other spirit beasts in the forest. It’s safe at home, so of course he’d rather stay here."
"Hmm... Makes sense," Claire agreed.
"So... Cutie Pie, you’re just going to stay home?" Grace asked.
Cutie Pie nodded.
"Then you stay in the Serenity Pavilion. No running off, okay?"
He nodded again.
So Grace told Nanny and the others to take good care of him before she left.
Minister Zhuo brought Maya Summers and Jason Zhuo, and arranged for a carriage to take Grace. After joining up with the Emperor’s grand procession, they headed to the Royal Hunting Grounds under military escort.
On the way, Grace peeked out both sides of the carriage and spotted her aunt Maya Summers and her brother Jason Zhuo riding up ahead, along with her escorts Tenner and Edward Wang.
Farther ahead, there was a massive convoy of thousands of carriages and horses.
She didn’t see Evan Xiao.
He must be coming with the army, but who knows where he’s positioned?
"Looking for me?" Suddenly, a cool yet deep voice came from the back of the carriage.