This story is about the birth and development of the best friendship between Donghua Dijun and his little fox.
In my re-imagined story, I am attempting to give our beloved leads a genuine chance at love with their own thoughts, behaviors, and desir...
(Image credit - found on Pinterest and belongs to the owner)
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(from previous chapter)
"Don't rush, little fox, no one will say anything if I'm late," he said casually.
"But, but... I don't want to be late, then everyone will look at me as I'm coming in."
He looked at her with focus and extended observation.
"Everyone should look at you," he said as he then took another sip of tea.
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She frowned. She didn't understand why Dong Hua would say that.
Who wants unwanted attention? Nobody.
She was standing there expectantly ready to be on their way but he was taking his time finishing his tea. She inspected the handkerchief that came with her meal. She hadn't soiled it yet but conjured it clean just to be safe and folded it up and handed it back to Dong Hua.
He sat there looking at her while she stood there extending her hand out. She decided to be extra respectful and hold it in both hands and then offered it back to him.
She started to feel self-conscious with him just sitting there staring at her. He conjured his tea set away.
Finally, he's ready to leave.
He stood up and took the handkerchief from her hand only to fold it a certain way, tucked it into her sash, looped it around and tied it into a bow. He tugged it over so it was off center on her waist. He patted it with his hand.
"There, keep it, you eat a lot so you'll undoubtedly need something to wipe the crumbs off your little mouth."
She looked down at it and it was indeed a very nice and neat bow. She shrugged, he had a point, it was very practical.
As they walked in silence she could hear her bells jingling.
"Dijun?"
"Yes, Xiao Bai, what is it?" he asked looking over at her.
"Shouldn't I take off my bells? Won't it be distracting at court?"
"No, leave them on."
"Are you sure?" He could hear the nervousness in her voice.
"I'm quite sure. Don't you like them?" he asked still keeping his eyes on her as she focused her eyes in front of her.
"Of course I like them," she smiled. "I like how they sound when I walk. It also makes me feel special." She thought about how Dijun had said that it was just for the people on his Literature Conferment Ceremony Committee.
"It's like a badge or an insignia that says 'Bai Feng Jiu of Tai Chen Palace!'" she declared playfully.
"I'm by myself in the Nine Heavens," she said in a more somber tone. "Even Gugu isn't here now. So, I'm the only Fox Immortal with a bunch of Celestials. I don't really belong here."
Upon hearing this, he gently held her elbow and stopped them from walking further. He softly turned her to him and brought up his hand to brush away a loose strand of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear.
"You're not alone here. You have Si Ming, Zhong Lin, and ... you have me. As long as you're staying in the Nine Heavens, you belong to Tai Chen Palace. No one gets to treat you like you don't belong here, do you understand?" He looked her intently.
She nodded. They turned to continue walking and she looked over to him and smiled.
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