Chapter 822: with translation of chapter title

Lu Qingjia was standing anxiously beside the carriage.

Seeing the carriage from the Ning Prince's Mansion arrive, he strode forward and greeted, "Alliance Leader, did you oversleep? I've been here for a long time…"

Tuan Tuan lifted the curtain on the carriage window and stuck out her head, "I wasn't oversleeping! You're the one who came early!"

She stared at Lu Qingjia, "Where's the little plum?"

"I didn't bring it!" Lu Qingjia replied curtly. "When you weren't in Jingcheng, I once brought it, and a big bird kept screeching at it, frightening it badly. How could I dare bring it now?"

"If you want to see it, just go to my mansion!"

He reached out his hand, "Come! Alliance Leader, climb out! I'll catch you!"

"Alright!" Tuan Tuan said, lifted her leg and began to climb out of the window.

But Xiao Ze grabbed her from behind and pulled her back, "Stop fooling around! Come with me through the door."

"Oh." Tuan Tuan had no choice but to follow him and slip out through the carriage door.

Lu Qingjia instantly stood upright, "… Seventh Prince?"

Xiao Ze gave him a glare, "Don't act like this again; what if you break Tuan Tuan?"

Tuan Tuan wasn't scared at all!

Lu Qingjia pursed their lips, saluted, and said, "Your Highness."

Tuan Tuan glanced at them, grabbed one with a hand and ran inside, and called back to Xiao Er, "Uncle Xiao Er, come quickly!"

"Understood, miss, I'm coming!" Xiao Er leapt down from his horse and followed.

The garden supervisor personally greeted, "Your Highness Seventh Prince, Princess, Second Young Master, General Xiao."

Tuan Tuan opened her mouth and asked, "Little one! Have you fed the snow leopard? It has to walk a lot today!"

The garden supervisor, already accustomed to Tuan Tuan's unique address, said, "I have already fed it, Princess, please rest assured."

"Little one?" Xiao Ze was hearing for the first time that anyone called the garden supervisor that.

"Haha," Lu Qingjia laughed, "When the Alliance Leader first came here, I heard him refer to himself as 'Little one,' and I've been calling him that ever since; I can't stop."

"Tuan Tuan, you really are…" Xiao Ze said with a smile, shaking his head.

The garden supervisor led the others to the snow leopard's enclosure.

The snow leopard lay on the ground, squinting in the sun, its thick tail lazily sweeping back and forth.

Tuan Tuan released Xiao Ze and Lu Qingjia's hands and lunged toward the rail, "Snow leopard! You can go back to the Western Regions now! Happy?" she said, then slipped her little hand through the rail gap.

Xiao Ze was frightened out of his wits and rushed up to pull her away.

"Seventh Prince!" Lu Qingjia called out hurriedly, "The snow leopard is fine with the Alliance Leader! No need to worry."

Xiao Ze's hand halted in midair.

The snow leopard's ears twitched, and it rose slowly.

It walked to the rail, lowered its head, and gently brushed Tuan Tuan's outstretched little finger with its nose.

"You're so obedient!" Tuan Tuan reached up and touched its chin, gently stroking it.

The snow leopard emitted a satisfied rumble from its throat, lying against the rail on the ground, its large head constantly nudging Tuan Tuan.

Lu Qingjia pursed their lips at Tuan Tuan, "So, Seventh Prince, I wasn't wrong, right?"

Xiao Ze finally steadied himself, turned his head and glared at Lu Qingjia again, "How could I not be worried? Didn't you see how much larger the snow leopard is than Tuan Tuan?"

Lu Qingjia turned their head away and secretly rolled their eyes.

Tuan Tuan, stroking the snow leopard's neck, turned to Xiao Ze, "Third Elder Brother, do you want to touch?"

"Sure." Xiao Ze, now interested, walked to her side and squatted.

"This snow leopard in front of you is just like a big cat."

"Because it's obedient!" Tuan Tuan said softly, "Snow leopard, don't move, let Third Elder Brother pet it; it's very nice, please don't be harsh to it!"

Xiao Ze extended his hand and placed it on the snow leopard's big head.

The snow leopard turned its head, glanced at him, and slowly closed its eyes.

Xiao Ze gently massaged the snow leopard's forehead repeatedly, the soft short fur slipping through his palm, and an inexplicable lightness rose in Xiao Ze's heart.

Lu Qingjia shuffled over, grimacing, "Alliance Leader, I also want to pet it; can you tell it that's alright?"

"You also want to pet it?" Tuan Tuan tilted her head, thought for a moment, then looked at Xiao Er, "Uncle Xiao Er, will you pet it?"

Xiao Er smiled, "Sure."

Tuan Tuan gently stroked the snow leopard's large paw, softly saying, "You're going home today; after that I won't see you anymore."

"They are all my family, and they came with me to see you off. Be good, let them all pet you, okay?"

The snow leopard opened its eyes, stared steadily at her, and lifted its chin.

"Great!" Tuan Tuan exclaimed happily, "Uncle Xiao Er, come here, the snow leopard agreed!"

The four crouched in a row, gently stroking the snow leopard's head, paws, and back.

Tuan Tuan recalled, "Lu Qingjia, do you remember? The first time I saw you was when I came here with Third Brother to watch the snow leopard."

"Of course I remember!" Lu Qingjia said contentedly, "How could I forget!"

"Oh?" Xiao Ze asked, "Tell us quickly, what did Tuan Tuan do back then?"

Lu Qingjia spoke animatedly, his eyebrows dancing.

After a while, the garden supervisor quietly approached the four from behind, "Esteemed guests, the snow leopard is ready to set off."

The group stood up and moved away from the rail.

A specially crafted carriage arrived nearby, bearing a massive animal cage.

The garden supervisor looked at them, "Esteemed guests, please stand farther back; this snow leopard is a fierce beast, we need to corral it first before ushering it into the cage."

Tuan Tuan asked, "Corral it? With what?"

A few burly men came over, each holding a thick, rigid long pole with a sturdy rope looped on its end.

The snow leopard sprang to its feet, stepped back a few paces, arched its back toward the burly men, its fur slightly bristling, and let out a threatening low growl from its throat.

Tuan Tuan frowned slightly: "It doesn't like this! You can't cage it! This thing looks uncomfortable at a glance."

The caretaker wore a troubled expression: "Princess, if we don't cage it, how can we put it onto the carriage?"

Tuan Tuan spread her little arms toward Xiao Ze and said, "Third Elder Brother, pick me up!"

Xiao Ze bent down and lifted her into his arms.

"Walk around that carriage once."

"Alright." Xiao Ze, still holding her, walked a circle around the carriage.

Tuan Tuan's brow furrowed even tighter: "There's nothing inside, it's so hard, the Western Regions are so far away, why don't you lay something on it?"

The caretaker was startled: "Lay, lay something? I don't know what the princess wants us to lay for it."

Tuan Tuan blinked and asked, "Little one, what do you have on your bed at home?"

The caretaker replied truthfully: "A blanket."

"That's right then." Tuan Tuan pursed her lips, "It has to travel such a long way; this carriage is its bed, so it should of course have a blanket laid on it!"

The caretaker: "……"

Several burly men holding poles looked at each other in bewilderment—lay a blanket for a fierce beast? That's unheard of!

Xiao Ze smiled faintly: "Go, bring all the clean bedding you have here and lay it in the cage."

"Then go to my residence to collect silver and buy new ones for use."

The caretaker sighed and nodded: "Yes, Your Highness, go quickly and get it!"

The burly men set down their poles and sprinted away.

Soon, each person returned carrying a stack of bedding, layering it inside the beast's cage.

"Carry me over there, Third Elder Brother."

Xiao Ze carried her to the front of the carriage, and Tuan Tuan released her hands, jumping from his arms.