Chapter 42: Hazy Memories

Even if Lu Zhan hadn't spoken up, such an obvious matter was impossible to hide.

Nian Tu bent down and picked up the lonely rubber ball from the ground.

The toy was still here, but the little cat was gone.

Where did it go? Would it ever come back?

Did it feel that life by her side wasn't as good as the outside world, and so it ran away?

Nian Tu's eyes grew hot as she clutched the small rubber ball tightly.

The two males panicked, not knowing how to comfort her. Felix was particularly at a loss, having had zero experience in coaxing a female.

Lu Zhan was quicker than Felix, stepping forward to wrap his arms around Nian Tu's shoulders and pulling her into his embrace.

He had known from the start that the cat was no good, and sure enough, it had made Nian Tu sad.

Lu Zhan cursed softly in his heart, gently took the rubber ball from Nian Tu's hand, and asked her cautiously, "Do you want to ride a wolf?"

It was just a pet, after all, and he could fill that role.

Before Nian Tu could nod or shake her head, he had already transformed into a snow wolf, wagging his tail and lowering his body before her.

The tears that had been welling in Nian Tu's eyes instantly receded, and she stared blankly at the snow wolf.

The large white wolf was doing everything it could to please her right in front of her. She had no doubt that if she asked for a puppy, the snow wolf would endure the humiliation and bark to play the part of a dog.

Connecting Lu Zhan and the snow wolf in her mind, a strange, aching sensation welled up in Nian Tu's heart.

Clearly such a proud man who cared so much about his image, yet to comfort her, he was willing to go to such lengths...

Nian Tu couldn't help but hug the snow wolf tightly, taking a deep breath: "A-Zhan, thank you."

The snow wolf soothingly nuzzled her, hoisted her onto its back, picked up the rubber ball in its jaws, and headed out to the courtyard to play catch.

Felix watched this scene with a solemn expression, learning a valuable lesson from Lu Zhan—

In front of the beloved little female, pride and dignity were completely worthless; as long as it could bring a smile to her face, it was all that mattered.

His Excellency the Marshal secretly noted this knowledge point in his heart.

The snow wolf was agile and athletic, turning a single rubber ball into countless tricks, eventually making Nian Tu break into a smile and feel much more at ease.

She came to a realization: Marshmallow was just a little cat she had picked up in the first place; perhaps it wasn't a stray, but a wild cat.

The outside world was freer for a little wild cat, and the life of wandering might make it happier than being kept captive at home as a pet.

Perhaps one day, it would come back to visit her again.

...

Outside the palace, in the royal gardens.

A tourist was taking pictures, posing with a smile, when they suddenly noticed a flash of white shadow streaking across the viewfinder.

What was that?

The tourist rubbed his eyes.

Just as he began to doubt whether something was wrong with his vision, the white shadow had already sprinted all the way into the interior of the palace.

It was very familiar with the layout of the palace, running all the way to the vicinity of the Crown Prince's bedchamber.

A palace guard spotted the white tiger and cried out in shock, "Your Highness—?!"

His voice changed pitch in an instant because the white tiger was charging directly at him with a low roar!!

The guard's legs trembled uncontrollably, and he slumped to the ground, closing his eyes tightly with thoughts of imminent death filling his mind.

One second, two seconds, a long moment passed, but the anticipated pain never came.

Although the white tiger was brimming with irritability, it exercised restraint and did not harm anyone.

Nian Tu was on its mind.

It had to get someone to rescue her!

The guard was clearly not the person the white tiger instinctively trusted. Striding past him, the white tiger ran deeper toward the Emperor's bedchamber, only to be surrounded at the entrance by several guards who forced themselves to summon the courage to block its path.

Even as a father and son, the Crown Prince in an out-of-control state could not be allowed near His Majesty the Emperor. An out-of-control male lacked all rationality, which was extremely dangerous.

The commotion at the entrance drew the Emperor, who was both startled and overjoyed: "Konglin?"

The boy had actually run back home on his own!

The white tiger's eyes lit up, and it wanted to rush forward to tug at his sleeve and take him to rescue Nian Tu.

However, distressed by its inability to speak, its actions appeared to the onlookers as full of hostility toward His Majesty the Emperor.

"Forgive me, Your Highness," the captain of the guard said with no other choice, offering an apology as he fired a tranquilizer dart.

The moment it heard the sound of the air being torn, the white tiger could easily have dodged it, but its mind was entirely occupied with saving someone, causing its reaction to be half a beat too slow, and it was struck by the tranquilizer.

Save her... Please save her...

The white tiger emitted an angry yet resentful roar that shook the heavens and earth, but it could not resist the effects of the potent tranquilizer.

The second its eyelids closed, a large tear rolled down.

The Crown Prince had been away from home for many days and had suddenly returned to the palace today. When the news reached the Empress, she rushed over immediately. Looking at the sleeping white tiger, she covered her mouth with both hands in excitement: "Konglin..."

Good boy, you've finally come home.

The white tiger was isolated, allowed only to be viewed from a distance to prevent it from harming anyone.

The Empress carefully inspected the white tiger from head to toe, confirming that it hadn't lost an ounce and bore no injuries, clearly having lived a good life outside, which brought great comfort to her heart.

"How much longer until Konglin wakes up?" the Empress asked.

The royal physician respectfully replied, "Around two hours."

This potent tranquilizer would keep an ordinary person asleep for two days, but for the formidable white tiger, it could only last for two hours.

However, much to the physician's surprise, Tan Konglin struggled and woke up after just one hour.

The white tiger slowly opened its eyes, a flicker of confusion passing through its gaze.

It shook its head hard, stood up, and looked down to inspect itself.

Beast form?

His memory stopped at the Crown Prince's bedchamber days ago, and with a brief moment of thought, he understood his current situation.

It seemed he had lost control.

No memories remained of what happened during the loss of control, only a hazy, lingering sensation.

As he tried hard to recall, an overwhelming sense of loss suddenly washed over the Crown Prince. He let out a low, muffled roar, feeling excruciating pain as though he had forgotten something extremely, extremely important.

The white tiger's painful roars caught the attention of the guarding personnel.

"His Highness the Crown Prince has woken up!"

Soon, the medical staff, along with the Emperor and Empress, hurried over.

Tan Konglin looked around, his gaze locking onto the Emperor and Empress. He quickly composed himself, buried all his emotions, and nodded in greeting: "Father, Mother."

"Konglin? You've recovered?" the Empress and the Emperor exchanged glances, both of them filled with pleasant surprise.

When a male lost control for the first time, recovery typically took about a week. However, according to imperial records, once an atavistic white tiger lost control, the duration was far longer than that of ordinary beastmen, lasting at least a full month.

They had even prepared for the worst-case scenario—that even if Konglin were found, he wouldn't be able to attend the royal ball due to prolonged loss of control.

If the Crown Prince failed to appear at the ball held for selecting his consort, interested parties could easily guess that something was wrong with the Crown Prince, which would inevitably trigger nationwide turmoil.

And now, Tan Konglin had not only returned, but had also recovered from his out-of-control state!

Tan Konglin shifted from his beast form back into human form, tidying his attire. With white hair and blue eyes, incomparably handsome, he had returned to being the usual elegant, noble, and perfect Crown Prince.

He glanced at the time displayed on his optical computer and apologized, "I've caused trouble for Father and Mother these past few days."

Speaking of this, the Emperor was full of grievances, puffing out his beard and glaring: "Indeed! The entire palace's guards were sent out to look for you, but we simply couldn't find you!"

After searching for so many days without a single trace of the white tiger, it had nearly worried this old father bald.

Tan Konglin's gaze flickered slightly: "I left the palace after losing control?"

Upon receiving an affirmative reply, he slowly pressed his hand to his chest, feeling his steady, beating heart.

Deep within his hazy memories, there seemed to be an embrace radiating a sweet fragrance that had softly held him close all along.