An odd, complicated look flickered across Bai Qingyue's face and through his eyes. He gave Li Meirong a sidelong glance as her words echoed in his head: 'you don't have to take responsibility'? What did she mean by that? Did this troublesome wife of his still entertain the thought of escaping his grasp?

The bright, sunny day transformed into a more depressing scene in a matter of moments, a blanket of grey clouds covering the blue skies. Every piece of greenery in the surrounding garden, every single blade of grass and every leaf and petal growing nearby shriveled along with the Sovereign Lord's fluctuating mood. A sense of darkness lingered in the air.

The ominous silence felt both stifling and brittle at the same time.

Concealed in various places within the garden were multiple foxes, huddling between the flower bushes and crouched up in the branches of the trees. Their Lord's oppressive energy had them trapped, his anger catching them up in its wake. The ones who had been hiding amongst the greenery of the now wilted flower bushes made themselves invisible and hastily sought out another hiding spot, desperate to avoid His Lordship's wrath.

A black-furred fox, young in appearance, squealed in alarm and clutched a thin branch for dear life, swaying atop a nearby tree.

"His Lordship's aura is terrifying!" she exclaimed. "I am certain he caught us looking at him! Are we going to die?!"

The grey fox, Lang Ju, skipped and darted across the branches towards the squealing black fox, rushing to reach her before she could draw the attention of His Lordship to their presence. He placed his paw on her snout and silenced her shrieks the instant he reached her.

"Shh!" he hushed. "Stop yelling…" His attempt to calm her down appeared to be working. "As for His Lordship, I would suggest not worrying. He has always been like this. Look at me; I have been serving him for centuries and I am still alive."

He was merely feigning his confidence. He wished to ease the fears of his terrified comrades, as was the duty of a senior, higher ranked servant such as himself, but he himself was cold with fear.

At Lang Ju's words, the brown fox with matter fur snorted from her place behind a large boulder.

"It is not our fault that the Lord is mad! I think Her Ladyship has upset him deeply. The Sovereign Lord is a chaste and reserved man, and Her Ladyship suddenly pushed him to the ground! It is no wonder he is so enraged. How could he get used to such an aggressive female?"

The brown fox's four-tailed friend, who was crouched by her side, bonked her over the head in reprimand.

"Idiot!" he scolded. "Have you not noticed the Bai Clan is dying out? They need an energetic female now more than ever before, especially with our frigid Lord!" He paused a moment. "I am not sure about what our Lady plans to do with our Lord, but whatever it is, we must never utter a word of it or we will surely lose our heads!"

Yan Wen was the only fox who had yet to move from his previous position, remaining perched up inside the bird's nest. His yellow tails were curled around his tiny form, almost causing him to appear to be a perfect circle. He was no longer snickering or enjoying the show, sobered by the change in atmosphere.

"Right now," he said in a low voice, looking solemn, "he is truly angry. I have seen him in this state before, and it was not under pleasant circumstances. We had best stay quiet from now on."

The hidden foxes agreed in silent unison, turning their attention back to their Sovereign Lord.

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113 *Snippet to the next chapter*

In the courtyard, apparently not heeding the change in weather and atmosphere, Bai Qingyue was plagued by inner turmoil.

He had not been taken by surprise when she pushed him away. He had, in fact, made his fall appear more dramatic than it was, as garnering sympathy seemed to work rather well with her.

No, the blow he had received, intangible as it was, was caused by her reaction to his confession. She was behaving as though being deflowered was of no concern to her. Even the lowest puny mortal placed great importance on propriety, so her reaction made no sense to him!

A sudden thought jarred him. Could it be that she had found another suitor for herself during the time she was away? And, if that was the case, had she given herself to him? She was not confined to a single partner as he was by his curse.

Bai Qingyue's already fair skin became even paler, icy white blanching to even paler white as he clenched his teeth together in bitterness. He had presumed that the so-called friend of hers was the only potential threat to his claim over her, but now...

"Am I to assume, then, that you have offered yourself to another man?" he inquired, a deadly undertone to his voice. His golden stare remained fixed to an imagined point, far off in the distance, as he spoke.

Even if there is someone else you desire, I still will not let you go! Bai Qingyue's calm bearing was in vast opposition to his turbulent thoughts. Only the weather and the wilting garden reflected his inner turmoil.

At the question from Zhu Qingyue, a flush of embarrassment overwhelmed Li Meirong where she stood, rigid, at his side. Her entire face became a deep red as she stared at the ground just past her toes. Her fingers, now clasped together in front of her, fidgeted and fiddled together with her mortification.

How had anything she said warranted this overly familiar question?! She had thought that they could now, finally, end this awkward conversation, and yet it only appeared to have worsened! She had attempted to free him of the burden he had placed upon himself, to see to her welfare, and yet he took that as permission to pry into her private life?