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"Little master, the ground is slippery, please be careful."

With Huai Xiang’s assistance, Lady slowly approached Susu, stopping her in her tracks.

"Susu, do you remember me?"

With her little hand grasping a fur ball on her clothing, Susu tilted her head curiously and gazed at the adult before her.

Lady looked at Susu, who remained silent, and continued to inquire, "Why are you out here alone? Isn’t anyone with you?"

Playing with the fur ball in her hand, Susu’s voice, childlike and soft, said, "Mommy, looking for mommy."

Looking for mommy? What is that?

Lady stared at the fur ball in Susu’s hand; it was a decoration on her cotton clothing, as white as a snowflake, and she recognized it at once as the same little garment from the Empress’s hand last month.

The fur rings at the garment’s collar and cuffs were made of the exceedingly rare hair of the Snow Fox from the Tianshan Mountains.

It was a grand tribute from the Cang Wolf tribe, that small amount, all turned into clothing for Susu.

The fur ball, too, was crafted from the skin and fur of the Tianshan Snow Fox, warm to the touch and extremely soft.

Susu adored the two little fur balls on her body, often playing with them in her palm when idle, which also helped keep her hands warm.

Lady fixated on the snow-white, soft fur on Susu’s body, and her little face was rosy and particularly lovely.

If it were for her, whether making a Fox Fur coat or cotton clothing, it would surely be both warm and beautiful.

Xuetuan turned its head and noticed Susu hadn’t kept up, then doubled back. Upon seeing Lady, it bared its teeth and let out a "meow."

Lady, seeing Xuetuan approaching, felt a bit scared, then looked behind Susu and saw a bunny and something that... on closer inspection, resembled a tiger.

Lady had never seen a white tiger before, and since it could be a pet for Susu, it likely wasn’t a fierce tiger but a cat that looked like one.

Even so, Lady got quite a fright and was slow to recover.

Susu, clutching the fur ball, saw Xuetuan arrive and then looked in the direction where Shen Chuwei had left, "Looking for mommy."

Saying this, Susu went around Lady and continued forward.

As Susu walked away, Xiao Bai and Yuan Gungun followed at a leisurely pace.

Xuetuan stared at Lady for a while before turning and following suit.

Lady, coming to her senses and seeing that Susu had left, persisted and followed, "Susu."

Susu stopped in her tracks and looked back at Lady, puzzled.

Lady looked around; it was cold that day and almost nobody was venturing out, so at this moment the garden was nearly empty.

Next to them was a lotus pond, and due to the low temperatures, the surface had already frozen over.

She withdrew her gaze and looked at Susu, pointing toward the nearby lotus pond, "Susu, look over there, there are flowers. Do you want to go play?"

Susu might not have been able to speak in full sentences, but she could understand some of the adults’ words, like whether she wanted to play.

"Wanna play," the milky voice uttered, instantly melting hearts.

Lady, looking at Susu’s adorable appearance, thought that if this were her daughter, not only would Xiao Jinyan dote on her immensely, but the Emperor and Empress would also hold her dear through association.

Unfortunately, this was Shen Chuwei’s daughter.

Jealousy brewed malicious thoughts in Lady’s heart; she took Susu by the hand to the lakeside and had Huai Xiang stand watch.

On the ice, a sparrow appeared to be injured, struggling to fly with flapping wings.

Lady pointed at the sparrow and coaxed, "Susu, look, there’s a sparrow there, do you want it? If you want it, you have to go get it yourself."

Children are naturally curious and playful, and Susu was no exception. Seeing the constantly flapping sparrow, she pointed at it and said to Xuetuan in her babyish voice, "Me want, Tuantuan..."

"Tuantuan" referred to Xuetuan, as the word "Xue" was a bit difficult to pronounce, so she always called Xuetuan "Tuantuan."

Xuetuan eyed the sparrow on the ice, licked its lips and stepped forward.

Seeing this, Susu was so excited that she pointed at Xuetuan, her beautiful eyes curving into crescents.

Lady saw that Susu stood still with no intention of going down, growing somewhat anxious. If she didn’t go down, how would she fall into the lake?

"Susu, how about going to find Xuetuan?"

Susu tilted her head, staring at Lady for quite some time, and then looked at Xuetuan, just to see Xuetuan had reached the sparrow and was poking it with its paw, which immediately made her happy enough to dance with joy.

Lady: "..." What a fool, she can’t even understand words.

Lady had no choice but to try to lure Susu onto the ice, but no matter how she coaxed and deceived, Susu simply stood still, pointing at Xuetuan and babbling incomprehensibly.