"I understand, Master." Ye Qianning pursed her lips and lowered her head.

The Beili Emperor was somewhat satisfied by this. "Dean Chen, you must discipline her well from now on."

"Yes. She is my disciple, and I will teach her how to conduct herself. She won’t cause trouble, but she won’t be afraid of it either, and she will be reasonable in all matters," Dean Chen replied simply.

The Beili Emperor felt Dean Chen was mocking him over what happened yesterday, and his mood soured slightly.

WHOOSH! A white streak flashed by.

The White Spirit was so fast that it shot into the Beili Emperor’s arms before he could even see what it was.

The Beili Emperor cried out in alarm. The word "Assassin!" was on the tip of his tongue, but when he looked down and saw the creature in his arms, he swallowed it right back down.

When Sang Qi saw the little creature, his expression turned unnatural, and he stole a glance at Ye Qianning.

The Beili Emperor had seen this creature in Consort Yuan’s palace a couple of days prior. He reached out and stroked it. "What a mischievous little thing."

The White Spirit struggled, but the Beili Emperor held it firmly.

"Hey, isn’t that a White Spirit?" Ye Qianning’s surprised voice rang out.

"You recognize it, little lass?" the Beili Emperor asked with a smile.

"Of course! That’s *my* White Spirit. What’s it doing in the Imperial Palace?" 𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Yours?"

"Yes! The little thing suddenly disappeared a few days ago. I sent so many people to look for it, but no one could find it. I never thought it would have run into the Imperial Palace!" Ye Qianning’s face was filled with the joy of recovering something lost. She walked toward the Beili Emperor, holding out her hands.

The Beili Emperor, holding the White Spirit, stared at Ye Qianning’s gesture but didn’t move. ’This was clearly from Consort Yuan’s palace. How could it belong to this little girl?’

"Your Majesty?" Ye Qianning asked, blinking her big eyes.

"How can you be sure this White Spirit is yours?" the Beili Emperor asked.

"Hm? Your Majesty doesn’t believe me? It was a gift from Boss Gu. The Crown Prince was there when he gave it to me." Ye Qianning turned to look at Sang Qi. "Crown Prince, isn’t that right?"

Sang Qi lowered his gaze, unsure how to respond.

"Crown Prince, say something."

"It is... but, this isn’t the one Boss Gu gave you," Sang Qi said, looking up.

"It *is* mine." Ye Qianning grew angry. Ignoring the Beili Emperor completely, she called out to the White Spirit, "Pang Pang, come here!"

The White Spirit immediately began to struggle in the Beili Emperor’s arms, looking quite excited. ’How does she know my name is Pang Pang?’

Ye Qianning: "..."

’I just thought it was chubby and gave it a random name. I can’t believe I guessed right.’

The Beili Emperor couldn’t hold it down no matter how hard he tried. He watched the little creature leap into Ye Qianning’s arms, feeling a growing suspicion. ’White Spirits are incredibly rare and shy around strangers. Could it really be hers?’

"We saw this White Spirit at the General’s manor before the banquet," Dean Chen said. "At the time, the mischievous little lass used red dye to draw a tiny turtle on its ear. We’ll know for sure with one look."

The White Spirit excitedly nuzzled Ye Qianning’s face. It loved the young girl’s scent—it loved it very, very much.

Ye Qianning craned her neck as it nuzzled her, chuckling. "Let’s see if you run off and play again. Alright, alright."

She turned the White Spirit around in her arms, gently took hold of its ear, and flipped it over. A distinct little red turtle was revealed for all to see.

"Your Majesty, Crown Prince, look."

Sang Qi had clearly lacked conviction in what he’d said earlier. Seeing this, he was now at a complete loss for words.

The Beili Emperor knew his son well. Seeing him lower his gaze without a word, he had his answer. A flicker of displeasure crossed his brow.

’As the Crown Prince, it’s fine to use unscrupulous means to get what you want. But if you’re going to do something, you must do it cleanly—not get caught like this with nothing to say in your own defense.’

"I never would have guessed the little thing could run so far. All the way into the Imperial Palace," Dean Chen said with a laugh.