370. Silly Snow Empress

The next morning, Bibi Dong awoke early. She left the warm embrace beside her and sat up, casting a glance at Qian Renjue to confirm he hadn’t lied — he was indeed still pure.

It wasn’t that she disapproved of Qian Renjue being with Ling Yuan; after all, as his mother, she had a right to know.

Otherwise, what would sneaking around look like? Bibi Dong leaned over to give her usual morning kiss and then headed toward the bathroom.

Qian Renjue wasn’t training in the Purple Demon Eye technique, but Bibi Dong and Hu Liena kept up with it daily, climbing onto the rooftop together, facing east where the purple aura surged.

“Teacher, is Senior Brother still sleeping?” Hu Liena asked.

“Mmm, he’s always so lazy in the mornings,” Bibi Dong sighed, shaking her head, then teasingly whispered into Hu Liena’s ear, “What, Nana, are you waiting for me to leave for the Pope’s Hall so you can slip into bed with him?”

Hu Liena’s face flushed. “No, Teacher! I was just asking, no special reason.”

Bibi Dong laughed. Each of them was so sly, and poor Qian Renjue, once so innocent, was turning into a seasoned flirt.

It was hard for him to resist their charms.

But, smiling, Bibi Dong thought of Hu Liena as a daughter, too — it was all kept within the family.

Pinching her warm, flushed cheek, Bibi Dong added, “I’m only kidding, Nana. If you care about him, cherish him, understand?”

“I do cherish him, Teacher, I’m willing to do anything,” Hu Liena replied happily. Both Miss Xue and Teacher had accepted her relationship with Senior Brother.

“Thank you, Mom!” Hu Liena dared to address her as “Mom,” a title she had longed to say. Bibi Dong was like a mother to her.

Bibi Dong’s face softened with affection. “I’ve always thought of you as my daughter, Nana,” she said, hugging Hu Liena close and stroking her orange hair.


---

The cool morning breeze warmed under the sun’s rays. In the Pope’s Hall, Bibi Dong sat upon her throne, watering the lilies on display. The fragrant, inviting breeze from the garden filled the air.

In the garden, Hu Liena was happily washing Qian Renjue’s clothes, smiling as she remembered the keepsake he had asked for — one that had left her incredibly embarrassed. It wasn’t something she thought he’d use to comfort himself.

Yet, Qian Renjue was nowhere to be found. The living room, master bedroom, guest room, even the secret chamber, were all quiet. He had already traveled to the Extreme North.


---

Extreme North

The warmth couldn’t reach this land, where icy winds and snowstorms blocked out the sun. A vast, desolate landscape of pure white extended endlessly.

On a tall, flat glacier, Qian Renjue’s strong telekinetic power lifted a large block of ice above his head as he walked toward the enormous cave where the Snow Lady lived.

Inside, the Snow Empress sat barefoot on the edge of a neatly cut ice block, wearing a plush, fitted off-the-shoulder white dress.

Her slender legs and jade-like feet were exposed to the snow and wind, looking as if she were floating on a lake.

Her long, white legs and pearl-like toes, smooth and lustrous, gleamed as brightly as the snow itself.

The Snow Empress' pure, innocent blue eyes glanced down at the figure approaching through the snow, her gaze reflecting his bright, golden hue. She rarely saw sunlight here.



But she knew what it felt like to be warmed by the sun, just like now. Her body felt warm, as though the warmth was seeping into her. Ever since she met Qian Renjue and became friends with him, her cold, unchanging world had become so much warmer and more vibrant with his occasional companionship.

Noticing the Snow Empress’s gaze, Qian Renjue looked up at her delicately moving feet and asked, “Snow Empress, have you remembered everything yet?”

“Not yet,” she replied calmly, shaking her head. She shifted her gaze from Qian Renjue back to the floating purple dress before her. With a gentle wave of her hand, the dress began to spin slowly.

“Hurry up,” Qian Renjue urged softly. “That dress belongs to my mom, so if it gets damaged, I’ll have some explaining to do.”

“You have a mom?” the Snow Empress asked, momentarily surprised. She glanced down at him with curiosity. “Isn’t that dress from your sister?”

“What do you mean, ‘I have a mom’?” Qian Renjue rolled his eyes and quickly corrected her. “I’m human, of course I have parents.”

The Snow mom, unfazed, nodded in agreement, still curious. Channeling her spirit energy into the dress, she added a protective layer. Looking down, she asked, “Qian Renjue, what’s it like to have parents?”

“Uh...” Qian Renjue rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “It’s hard to describe exactly, but it’s a wonderful feeling. There’s love, companionship, and a sense of shelter… They provide what no one else can.”

The Snow Empress's eyes gleamed with a hint of longing. She wanted to know what this happiness he described felt like. Her gaze brightened, and she said cleverly, “Qian Renjue, why don’t you become my father? That way, I can experience it, can’t I?”

“…” Qian Renjue was at a loss for words. By now, he’d grown used to her strange ideas after spending so much time together.

Shaking his head slightly, he replied, “I don’t think that would work; I’ve never been a father.”

“Oh, I see…” The Snow Empress folded the purple dress carefully, holding it close and sniffing it. It smelled nice, but she didn’t feel any different. Confused, she asked, “Then, Qian Renjue, what does it feel like to be a mom?”

“You’ve been a mom, haven’t you? Like with that Ice Bear King,” Qian Renjue pointed out.

“No, Xiao Bai is different. I don’t feel anything special toward it,” the Snow Empress said, shaking her head. Her icy blue eyes fixed on Qian Renjue as her clothing transformed into the purple dress.

Seeing this, Qian Renjue frowned, sensing something was off. “What are you trying to say?”

“Can you be my son?” the Snow Empress asked, her expression entirely serious.

She wanted to experience what it was like, and she asked again, “Qian Renjue, you’ve been a son before, right?”

“…” Qian Renjue’s face darkened. He should’ve known!

The Snow Empress's odd requests always had a strange twist, and now she was trying to take advantage of him again.

The stark white snow only made his blackened expression more pronounced.

Seeing his reaction, the Snow Empress's delicate brows furrowed in disappointment. “Is that a no?”

Qian Renjue remained silent.

Of course, that was a no!

The Snow Empress's purple dress shifted back into a white gown that left her shoulders bare, resembling soft goose feathers. Quietly, she put the purple dress away into the white bracelet on her wrist, then took out a pink dudou (an inner garment).

The bracelet was a soul tool Qian Renjue had given her, and the dudou belonged to Hu Liena. It was something Qian Renjue had asked for from her earlier, and Hu Liena had almost offered him the one she was wearing at the time.