Chapter 24: A Startling Transformation

When Xie Jue sat up, Su Zhuozhi lost his balance, tumbled backward, and rolled onto the soft blanket, landing in a daze.

Xie Jue looked at the snow-white bundle before him and reached out to pick him up. But the little fox dodged away, puffing up his cheeks and bristling his fur as he glared.

Xie Jue paused. Then, like a magician, he produced a berry from somewhere—crimson, round, exuding a sweet and tempting fragrance. It immediately captured Su Zhuozhi’s attention.

The berry was offered to him. The little fox was only the size of a palm, and the enormous fruit nearly covered his entire fluffy body.

Su Zhuozhi wrapped his small paws around the berry with some difficulty, his pink nose twitching as he sniffed lightly. His eyes brightened, and he lowered his head to take a big bite. The skin was a bit tough, but the flesh inside was soft, sweet, and juicy. As he ate, he had to purse his lips and suck, as if eating a soup dumpling.

This was a rare and precious spiritual fruit, growing only in dangerous polar regions. It was not easy to come by. Ordinary cultivators who obtained one would eat it cautiously, not daring to waste a single drop. They certainly wouldn’t casually give it to a common mortal. Mortals had no need to replenish spiritual energy; at most, they might gain some health benefits.

Su Zhuozhi didn’t know the fruit’s special nature. He only thought it tasted wonderful and he liked it. His morning grumpiness vanished completely.

Though he had turned into a little fox, he was still a delicate young master at heart. Even while eating such a delicious spiritual fruit, his manners remained refined. He didn’t wolf it down. Bite by bite, he finished it, then licked the juice from the corners of his mouth, licked his paws, and groomed his slightly ruffled fur.

He was a truly elegant and proud little fox.

Xie Jue watched him eat, not yet satisfied, and produced another spiritual fruit, offering it for more feeding.

But Su Zhuozhi had had enough. He stiffened his small face, raised a paw, and pushed the fruit away, refusing without hesitation.

Xie Jue reached out and felt his belly. It was already a bit round. A trace of regret flickered in his eyes.

‘Too small,’ he thought. ‘He’s full after eating so little.’

Su Zhuozhi pushed Xie Jue’s fingers away, instinctively opened his mouth and stuck out his tongue, yawning lazily, his eyes moist.

Just then, a servant entered, intending to wake the young master for the evening meal. It was strange that the young master had slept the entire afternoon—had he not rested well last night?

Before the servant reached the bed, he first saw Xie Jue sitting on the small couch. By his leg, a thin blanket was slightly bulging, and it seemed to move. The servant couldn’t help but take a closer look, but Xie Jue turned sideways, blocking the spot completely, and said, “The young master is already awake.”

Hearing this, the servant moved to help the young master change clothes.

“I’ll handle it.”

Xie Jue’s tone was flat, but somehow the servant didn’t dare refuse. He inexplicably felt that this personal guard was like a favored concubine, snatching up intimate tasks after sharing the bed, dismissing the servants as a matter of course.

After the servant left, the blanket began to shift and stir. A pair of pointed white ears emerged. The little fox, wrapped in the blanket, was having trouble breathing, his chest heaving. If he were in human form, his face would have been flushed red by now.

Su Zhuozhi crawled out from under the blanket, clumsily walking on all fours, jumped off the small couch, and headed for the door.

Hearing no footsteps behind him, he looked back and raised his chin at Xie Jue, his ears twitching unconsciously as if urging him to hurry up and follow.

Xie Jue met his beautiful ice-blue eyes. Though reluctant, he still got off the couch and reluctantly accompanied him.

As soon as Xie Jue approached, Su Zhuozhi opened his two little paws, demanding to be held as if it were his due.

“Eep.”

‘What can I do? I’m too small. Walking such a long distance would tire me out.’

Xie Jue smiled slightly, bent down, and scooped him into his arms.

Su Zhuozhi instinctively stretched his paws, trying to climb up to Xie Jue’s shoulder or even his head.

But Xie Jue grabbed his tail and tucked him into his own robe, whispering, “Your current form isn’t suitable for too many people to see.”

That made sense.

Su Zhuozhi stopped struggling to get out. Instead, he found a comfortable spot inside Xie Jue’s chest and curled up contentedly. But the heartbeat thumping from his chest was a bit noisy.

Su Zhuozhi raised a paw, rubbed his ears, then patted Xie Jue’s pectoral muscle. ‘Eep! Can you not beat so hard?’

Before they reached the dining hall, they encountered Su Huailang.

As soon as Su Zhuozhi saw him, he immediately jumped out of Xie Jue’s arms, his small paws grabbing at his elder brother’s robe, huffing and puffing as he tried to climb up.

Feeling the weight tugging at his clothes, Su Huailang looked down and saw a very beautiful little milk ball. Afraid it might fall, he quickly reached out to catch and hold it.

“Is this… a new pet Zhuozhi raised?” Su Huailang found the little fox adorable, so he couldn’t help but pet it.

His fingers touched it affectionately, and in the movements, there was nothing but trust and dependence.

Watching them get so close, Xie Jue pressed his lips together and suddenly said, “No.”

Hearing this, Su Huailang abruptly turned his head, ears perked, eyes wide as he stared at him in disbelief. ‘What did you say? Say that again?’

“Eep eep eep! Eep eep!”

The little fox pointed a paw at Xie Jue and cried out. His lively, spirited expression was amusing to watch.

Su Huailang smiled, about to hand the little fox back to Xie Jue. “Since it’s yours, take good care of it. It looks quite smart. Where did you buy it? I’ll buy one for Zhuozhi too. By the way, why are you alone? Has your master not come yet?”

Su Zhuozhi was held out in Su Huailang’s hands, suspended in midair, twisting unhappily. His two paws clung to his brother’s fingers, his tail hooked around his wrist—his entire body radiating a reluctance to go back to Xie Jue.

The little fox was a soft, fluffy ball; Su Huailang dared not exert any force, afraid of crushing it.

Su Huailang held him gently, embarrassed. “It seems rather fond of me. If you don’t mind, let me hold him a while longer?”

Suppressing his displeasure, Xie Jue, under the little fox’s indignant glare, finally said expressionlessly, “The young master arrived long ago. The one in your arms is him.”

This seemingly absurd statement left Su Huailang dumbfounded. After a moment, he realized Xie Jue was answering his earlier question.

But… the little fox was Zhuozhi?

Su Huailang frowned, perplexed. “Are you joking? That’s not funny.”

Xie Jue briefly recounted the whole incident.

The little fox patted Su Huailang’s hand, eeping and shaking his head and nodding, raising his paws to gesture, as if trying to corroborate Xie Jue’s words. His big, wet eyes gazed at Su Huailang, hoping he would believe.

Su Huailang had been away for business for years and was well-traveled. Though this was as bizarre as a dream, he had indeed heard of matters involving demons and spirits. Besides, Xie Jue had no reason to deceive him with such a story.

His expression turned serious. He asked the little fox a few questions, having him answer with nods or shakes, and confirmed the truth.

This was serious.

Su Huailang immediately lost his desire to play with the fluffy creature. He held the little fox even more carefully and turned to inform his parents of everything.

Perhaps because the Su family was in business, they were more open-minded than most. After a brief shock and panic, they quickly convened an urgent discussion on how to restore Su Zhuozhi. They also agreed that this matter must be kept secret—the fewer who knew, the better.

The grandmother picked up the little fox and placed him on her lap, soothing him gently. “Zhuozhi, you must be very scared suddenly turning into this, right? Don’t worry, we’re all here. You’ll recover soon.”

Su Zhuozhi, with his pointed ears flattened by the petting, tilted his head and squinted, letting out an “eep” as if to say he wasn’t afraid.

Grandmother smiled and coaxed him like a child, “Yes, our Zhuozhi is the bravest. Even as a little fox, he’s the most beautiful one under heaven.”

Su Zhuozhi hummed in full agreement.

Afraid he might be hungry, Grandmother picked up many tasty dishes and fed them to him. Su Zhuozhi only took two bites before refusing, because Xie Jue had just given him a large spiritual fruit earlier.

“How can you eat so little? You’ll starve. Come on, Zhuozhi, have a bit more.”

There is a kind of hunger called ‘Grandmother thinks you’re hungry.’

As Su Zhuozhi whimpered, Su Huailang found it amusing. He picked him up and, pursing his lips, helped persuade Grandmother.

They had already sent people to seek out talented individuals. After the meal, they went to browse relevant books, trying to find useful clues.

Su Huailang’s eyes grew tired from reading. He paused to rub his brow, and when he looked up, he saw the little fox lying nearby, reading a book. His tail swayed slowly from side to side. After finishing a page, unable to turn it with his paws, he patted Xie Jue’s leg beside him and eeped, signaling him to flip the page.

Xie Jue turned the page, but instead of withdrawing his hand immediately, he placed it on the little fox’s back and slowly stroked his fur.

Su Zhuozhi didn’t resist at all. He enjoyed it, squinting, tilting his head to nuzzle Xie Jue’s fingers, a comfortable purr rumbling in his throat.

Seeing this, Su Huailang couldn’t help but frown. He felt they were being too intimate. If Zhuozhi were in human form, lying beside Xie Jue to read, and Xie Jue stroking his back…

No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t sit well.

Su Huailang called out in a low voice, “Zhuozhi, come here.”

The little fox’s ears twitched. He responded and ran over, paws tucked in, tilting his head in confusion, his watery eyes seeming to ask, ‘What is it, brother?’

Su Huailang patted his head gently. “Nothing. I’m a bit tired from reading. I thought you could have some tea and rest a while.”

So, a small cup was placed in front of the little fox. He lowered his head, stuck out his pink tongue, and lapped up some water.

So cute.

Su Huailang’s heart melted at the sight. He felt there was no one cuter in the world than his little brother.

After finishing the water, he naturally kept Zhuozhi by his side, reading together, and didn’t let him go back to Xie Jue.

Not only that, but that night, Su Zhuozhi didn’t return to his own room either; he slept with his brother. The reason was simple: in his current form, he shouldn’t be seen by too many people.

Xie Jue said nothing about this, but the air around him grew noticeably colder. Passing servants didn’t even dare speak loudly.

Su Zhuozhi, however, was carefree. He lay belly up, sprawled like a soft, white fox pancake, sleeping deeply.

When he first turned into a fox, he had been panicked and scared. But after telling his closest family, he had support and backing. Instantly, he felt at ease and completely relaxed, as if no matter what he faced, he wouldn’t be afraid.

He was so relaxed that he even climbed trees for fun. He hugged the trunk and wriggled his way up, found a pleasing branch, wedged his little head between the forks, and lounged lazily in the sun, sticking out his tongue.

That was when Jiang Yangyu arrived.

Jiang Yangyu and Su Zhuozhi were good friends, so it wasn’t uncommon for him to drop by. Young men weren’t too formal, but he always sent a visiting card in advance.

Thus, the appearance-obsessed Jiang Yangyu unexpectedly saw a snow-white, beautiful little fox. His eyes lit up, love swelling in his heart. Before thinking, he scooped up the dazed little fox and buried his face in its fur, inhaling deeply.

Su Zhuozhi was stunned. “…???”

Not far away, Su Huailang and Xie Jue witnessed this. Their faces instantly turned cold. Their gazes at Jiang Yangyu were as sharp as blades, capable of killing.

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