By the time the Star Lord of the Pleiades was preparing to return to his residence and a faint rosy glow had spread across the clouds of Heaven, Bihua Lingjun finally came home.
Emperor Donghua stopped him not far from the gates and said with unusual solemnity, “Bihua, I have something important to discuss with you. Could we stand over there in a quiet place for a moment?”
Something was tucked inside Bihua Lingjun’s robes, making a conspicuous bulge at his chest. He readily agreed. “Of course. But what is so important that you can’t tell me inside my residence? Why do we need somewhere secluded?”
The two immortals rode their clouds to a quiet corner. The bulge inside Bihua Lingjun’s robes seemed to wriggle a little.
After getting out of bed, Emperor Danzhu went to the small rear sitting room, settled into a cushioned chair, and yawned twice. Chisheng brought him tea, openly and covertly stealing countless glances at His Majesty. Danzhu seemed not to notice. He swirled the tea in his cup and told Chisheng to bring him some fruit.
Tangdi and a crowd of spirit beasts were secretly peeking through a crack in the door. Danzhu seemed too lazy to pay attention to them, either. When the fruit arrived, Yunqing had taken Chisheng’s place as the attendant carrying it. He, too, cast countless furtive glances at Danzhu, who remained oblivious and merely selected a lychee, peeled it, and ate it. Tangdi and the other beasts retreated to a secluded stretch of corridor. Before long, Chisheng and Yunqing came tiptoeing over as well, their faces tense. “Well? What did you find?”
Several of the older spirit beasts who had spent time in the mortal world lay motionless with their heads lowered. Tangdi shook his head and asked, “Don’t you think His Majesty seems a little lazier than usual today?” Yunqing nodded. “Yes. He doesn’t seem to have much energy.” Then his eyes widened. “Wait. Is being tired supposed to count as evidence?”
Tangdi gave two chattering laughs, arched his back, and shook out his fur. “Let me investigate some more.”
Yunqing rubbed his nose and looked at Chisheng. “Why would being tired count as evidence?”
A dozen or so lychee stones had accumulated on the plate, and Emperor Danzhu yawned again. Just then Tangdi poked his head around the sitting-room door, walked into the middle of the room, flicked his tail, and sat down at Danzhu’s feet.
Tangdi’s fluffy fur had turned the pale yellow-green of pine pollen. He tilted his head to look at Emperor Danzhu, who gave him a languid smile. “Well, it’s the little fox. Come sit on my lap, won’t you?”
Of all the spirit beasts in the garden, Tangdi was the least diligent about avoiding Danzhu, and Danzhu was rather fond of him. Tangdi sprang lightly onto his lap and curled up. Danzhu smoothed his fluffy coat, and Tangdi said, “You seemed rather weary today, Your Majesty, so I hesitated a long time before daring to disturb you.”
“Oh, it’s nothing,” Danzhu said. “I’m a little tired, but I’m a little bored, too. It’s just as well you came.” Tangdi’s ears twitched. “By the way, the Jade Emperor summoned His Lordship away early this morning, and he still hasn’t returned. I wonder what business he’s been sent on now. His Lordship told us to keep Your Majesty company so you wouldn’t be bored, but he also warned us not to trouble you too much.”
Tangdi spun this enormous lie without so much as blinking. In truth, Bihua Lingjun had always instructed the attendants to run as far as they could whenever they saw Danzhu, lest the old phoenix take too many liberties with his precious spirit beasts.
There was a trace of amusement in Danzhu’s voice. “Did Bihua really give you those instructions? How thoughtful of him.”
Tangdi’s tail gave a gentle pat. “Our lord isn’t ordinarily that attentive, but lately, for some reason, he’s become extraordinarily thoughtful.”
Danzhu hummed. “Ah, little Immortal Bihua… At first I didn’t think much of him one way or the other. I’ve always preferred delicate, gentle sorts. I rather like the way he dresses himself up, and he’s certainly good-looking, but he isn’t quite refined or frail enough to inspire the desire to protect him. Yet after everything that’s happened lately… I don’t know why, but now he’s the one I find most pleasing to look at…”
A smile played about Emperor Danzhu’s lips, and he seemed lost in thought. Tangdi’s ears twitched again.
Meanwhile, in the secluded corner, Emperor Donghua wore an exceedingly grave expression. “Bihua, these past few days, Emperor Danzhu has been staying at your residence…”
“He’s doing very well here,” Bihua Lingjun replied. “His Majesty eats well and sleeps well. He’s perfectly comfortable.”
“Bihua, I know…” Donghua began. “There’s a saying among mortals that when people spend every day together, the longer they stay together, the more pleasing they find each other. And after still more time, somehow…” He laid a hand on Bihua Lingjun’s shoulder and spoke with deep concern. “You know the rules of Heaven. But you may not fully understand His Majesty’s temperament. I’ve only recently heard that, many years ago in Danxiao Palace, Emperor Danzhu tried to force an immortal to… do something. That immortal refused, and the incident nearly ended with his soul and body being scattered into nothingness. We’ve been friends for so many years. Please, heed my advice. As for Emperor Danzhu… be very, very careful.”
Bihua Lingjun patted the thing concealed in his robes and laughed. “You… did you visit my residence today and hear someone gossiping about what happened this morning? I was feeling a little melancholy last night, and His Majesty kindly comforted me. You know how foolish my young attendants can be. They saw me getting out of bed this morning and probably assumed His Majesty and I were up to something.” He gave a couple of hearty laughs and clapped Donghua on the shoulder. “Donghua, we’ve known each other for ages. Do I look like the sort of immortal who would let himself be taken advantage of? Besides, His Majesty… ha ha!”
Donghua let out a breath of relief. “Well… as long as nothing happened…” He glanced at Bihua’s chest. “But what in the world have you got under your robes? It’s been squirming and whimpering the whole time.”
Bihua Lingjun’s expression grew a little complicated. He carefully tugged open his collar, and a fluffy little head poked out. Donghua stared. “Where did you find another nursing fox cub? But that coat…”
Bihua Lingjun broke into a delighted smile. “Would you like to touch it?”
Donghua frowned uncertainly and held out a hand, but the cub ducked away, rubbing its head all over Bihua Lingjun’s chest and crying, “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
At that peculiar cry, Donghua exclaimed in surprise, “Could it be… a Heaven-Eclipse Fox?”
When Bihua Lingjun returned to his residence, Chisheng, Yunqing, and several other young attendants hurried together to the gate. “My lord, you’re back!” they said, smiling rather stiffly.
Bihua looked at their furtive, inquisitive faces and pretended not to notice anything. He hummed in acknowledgment and headed into the inner courtyard. The spirit beasts were standing in rows throughout the garden. Bihua swept his gaze over them and smiled. “Why are you all out here today?”
Tangdi, crouched on the corridor railing, hesitated. “Well… you see…”
With the fluffy bundle tucked against his chest, Bihua headed directly toward the side rooms. Chisheng trotted after him. “His Majesty… His Majesty is in the rear hall.”
Bihua Lingjun went to his bedchamber first, however. Whatever he did in there took him quite a while. When he emerged, he had changed into another set of clothes, but there was still something bulging beneath his robes.
Danzhu was still sitting in the rear hall peeling lychees. He spoke lazily when Bihua appeared. “You’re back? I haven’t had much energy all day. I had a nap, then came to sit here again. Hm? What’s that you’ve got tucked against your chest?”
Bihua Lingjun carefully revealed the little creature he was carrying. It was a fox cub. He looked down at it with a tender, adoring gaze. Danzhu narrowed his eyes. “Another fox? There’s nothing very remarkable about that.” Bihua said nothing, continuing to gaze at the cub. Danzhu looked at it more closely. The little fox’s coloring was unusual: its fur was blackish gray, with a straight white stripe running from the top of its head to the base of its tail and another dab of white at the tip. “Well, that coat is rare enough. Do foxes come in that color? Or is this another one that can change its fur?”
This time Bihua answered. “That’s its natural color.”
Danzhu became much more interested. “Can it turn into human form? It’s quite adorable. Bring it over and let me have a look.”
He stretched a hand toward the cub, but it shrank deeper into Bihua Lingjun’s embrace, rubbing its head against him again and again and crying, “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
Danzhu withdrew his hand without making any comment and changed the subject. “Did the Jade Emperor have some important business for you today?”
The little fox pressed its head against Bihua Lingjun’s chest and rubbed back and forth. “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
“Nothing very important,” Bihua replied.
The cub rested its head on his hand and licked it with quick, smacking little movements. “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
“Oh, yes,” Danzhu said. “That little Immortal Donghua seemed to come looking for you earlier. I sensed his immortal aura approaching the residence, but then it went away.”
The fox twisted and wriggled in Bihua’s arms, trying to burrow beneath the front of his robe. “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
“I met him just outside the gates,” Bihua said.
The fox burrowed farther and farther into his clothing, its two round front paws scratching busily. “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
Danzhu replied, “Good. I’m glad you met him.”
The cub pulled its head free of Bihua Lingjun’s robes, opened its mouth, and bit at Bihua’s loose hair. “Mm-yah, mm-yah.”
“Yes,” said Bihua Lingjun.
The fox had already caught a lock of hair in its mouth and begun rubbing itself all over Bihua again. “Mm-yah, mm-yah!”
Emperor Danzhu narrowed his eyes once more, then rose to his feet. “It seems I’ve grown tired again. I’ll go back to sleep.”