Monster Cub Live Stream – CH45

Chapter 45

They said they were going back to the Capital Star, but Lin An’an knew very well that this was not the best time to return.

“Your ability has been exposed, and you ruined the Second Prince’s plan. He will definitely bear a grudge against you now,” Feng Wu analyzed. “If you stay on Sin Star, the patients here can instead become the force that protects you—and your eyes and ears.”

“I know. Sin Star is actually the safest place for me right now.” Lin An’an nodded. “My second brother still thinks I’m already dead. If I stay on Sin Star and avoid further contact with him for now, the risk of being exposed will be much lower.”

Feng Wu frowned lightly. “You said your memories have returned… then do you remember who was the one who threw you into the Poison Mist Forest?”

“It was Xia Yuanhan.” Lin An’an tugged at the corner of his mouth. He no longer even wanted to call him second brother—just hearing it felt unlucky. “I overheard him talking to people from the X Galaxy. He thought his plan had been exposed, so he made a move against me.”

At the time, he had not awakened any abilities. He did not even have the slightest means of protecting himself.

Of course, aside from worrying that his plan might be exposed, Lin An’an felt that Xia Yuanhan had also wanted to eliminate a potential rival in advance.

He might only have been an unfavored little prince, but no matter how unfavored he was, there was still always the possibility that he could rise up one day. Xia Yuanhan naturally would not leave behind such a hidden danger.

The only thing that confused Lin An’an somewhat was how the imperial family had handled his “disappearance.”

There had been no public announcement of death or disappearance. Instead, it was as if nothing at all had happened—there had not even been a single news report.

Was it because his dear imperial father cared so little about him that even his disappearance meant nothing? Or… was there actually something else hidden behind it?

Lin An’an frowned slightly, his lowered dark eyes full of confusion.

A pair of hands rested gently on his shoulders. “Third Prince…”

“You should just call me An’an.” Lin An’an lifted his eyes and smiled at Feng Wu. “Calling me Third Prince feels weird. I’m not used to hearing it.”

Feng Wu pressed his lips together slightly. “An’an, don’t think too much for now. You need rest.”

The youth in front of him had not said anything out loud, but both his expression and his eyes were thick with exhaustion. The overuse of his abilities had left his body extremely weak.

Lin An’an raised a hand and rubbed at his brow, feeling a faint throbbing in his head.

“There are potions in my terminal space,” Lin An’an said. “Red Spirit Fruit potion and an energy-restoring potion—”

Before he could finish, he was met with Feng Wu’s distinctly disapproving gaze.

Lin An’an immediately stalled. “Alright, fine. I’ll only drink one bottle of Red Spirit Fruit potion.”

Only then did Feng Wu nod. He watched Lin An’an drink the Red Spirit Fruit potion and then lie down to sleep, listening as his breathing slowly evened out.

The youth did not seem to be sleeping very peacefully. His brows remained tightly furrowed, and Feng Wu stared fixedly at that rather irritating wrinkle. Before his mind had even processed what he was doing, he had already stretched out a hand, wanting to smooth that furrow away.

As if sensing the touch, Lin An’an let out a low, soft whimper.

It was like Feng Wu had suddenly been jolted awake. He jerked his hand back at once and, holding his breath, looked nervously at the youth on the bed.

Fortunately, Lin An’an had only moved one arm. His breathing soon steadied again.

Feng Wu let out a breath of relief, tucked the blanket in more securely around him, and then quietly stepped out of the room.

Outside, Si Youlin, Xiong Yingjun, and the others had also not gone to sleep. Even the youngest two little white cats were lying on the sofa, fighting off drowsiness as they looked toward Feng Wu.

“Boss!” Xiong Yingjun sprang up from the sofa. “Baby An—”

Feng Wu reacted with lightning speed and covered his mouth with mental power, then lifted a finger in a hush gesture. “Keep it down.”

A flash of annoyance crossed Xiong Yingjun’s face. He hurriedly nodded to show he understood, and only then was his mouth returned to him.

This time, Xiong Yingjun deliberately lowered his voice. “How’s Baby An? Has he still not woken up?”

“He woke up for a while, but he’s asleep again now,” Feng Wu said. “Whatever it is, wait until tomorrow. Let him rest more.”

Everyone nodded in understanding. Gu Yubai stood up first, holding her younger brother and sister in her arms. “I’ll take Yangyang and Yueyue to bed first.”

Wen Shi had not been in good health to begin with, and after everything that had happened during the day, although Lin An’an had cured her Alpha, she was still extremely exhausted.

Shang Youyuan said a few words to the others, then pushed his lover’s wheelchair back to their room.

He Yinghong and Shi Xiaoxing also went upstairs soon after, and in the living room only Feng Wu and the other two remained.

Si Youlin, with his usual sensitivity, noticed that Feng Wu gave off a somewhat different feeling than before. “Boss, in Baby An’s room just now… did something happen?”

“Yes.” Feng Wu did not deny it. But when he met the questioning looks from Si Youlin and Xiong Yingjun, he only said, “Tomorrow.”

Everyone had already had an exhausting day. There was no need to rush over one more night.

Besides… regarding the matter of the Third Prince’s true identity, Feng Wu felt that Lin An’an would probably prefer to tell them himself.

When Lin An’an woke again, the curtains could barely block out the blazing sunlight outside.

He lifted one arm to cover his eyes, and his still-foggy mind slowly cleared. The events from last night replayed one by one in his head.

His conversation with Brother Wolf. His decision to return to the Capital Star. Brother Wolf voluntarily signing a mental-power contract with him…

At that thought, Lin An’an suddenly touched the back of his left hand. There was obviously nothing there, but he still felt as if there were a faint warmth lingering.

That slight warmth traveled up his arm and all the way to the tips of his ears.

Lin An’an instantly woke up completely. He sat up at once, feeling thirsty, and instinctively looked around the room for water.

Fortunately, there was already a glass of water waiting on the bedside table. Lin An’an picked it up, and only when it reached his lips did he realize the temperature was perfect—not cold, not hot, just gently warm and very comfortable, as if it smoothed away the faint restlessness rising in him.

There was still a trace of mental power lingering around the outside of the cup. Clearly, someone had intentionally used mental power to keep the water at this temperature.

Lin An’an pressed his lips together, and a sudden warmth stirred in his chest.

He sat quietly by the bed for a little while before raising a hand to remove the disguise mask from his face.

Because he had been worried that someone might accidentally come into the room before he had time to change back into his second form or put the mask on, which would expose his true identity, Lin An’an had not taken the mask off except while bathing.

When Feng Wu pushed the door open and entered, the first thing he saw was the person sitting on the edge of the bed, along with the thin-as-gauze disguise mask held between his fingers.

Feng Wu was stunned for less than a second before he shut the door behind him in one swift motion, blocking the view of the person outside.

“Brother Wolf!” Lin An’an greeted him with a smile. Mental power flowed at his fingertips, and the flimsy disguise mask instantly turned into a tiny button no bigger than a fingernail before being stored away.

Feng Wu unconsciously stared at the pale white fingertips for a moment before suddenly snapping back to himself. He gave a light cough and asked, “The disguise mask… you’re not wearing it anymore?”

“I don’t need it for now.” Lin An’an said. “There are no outsiders in the house. I’ll put it on again when I go out.”

So he intended to come clean to everyone in the house.

The list of everyone currently staying in the farmhouse villa flashed through Feng Wu’s mind. Only after confirming that they were all trustworthy did he nod and give a quiet hum.

“How are you feeling now?” he asked.

Lin An’an closed his eyes and checked himself over. “Not bad. I’ll just try not to use my abilities too much over the next two days. By tomorrow it’ll be a full week, and after I drink the purple potion there shouldn’t be any problems.”

The Red Spirit Fruit potion he had drunk the night before had already taken effect. The ability core that had been aching faintly from overuse had calmed down.

Feng Wu’s brow still remained slightly furrowed, as if he were worried Lin An’an was forcing himself.

Seeing that, Lin An’an stretched a hand out toward him. “I’m serious. If you don’t believe me, you can check for yourself.”

“It’s not that I don’t believe you.” Feng Wu said immediately. “I believe you.”

Lin An’an smiled faintly, but as he withdrew his hand, he strangely felt a little disappointed. “What time is it now?”

“Almost noon,” Feng Wu said. “Old Four is making lunch. I came to see whether you were awake yet.”

Lin An’an stood up and took two steps. He had been lying down for more than a day, and his whole body had gone stiff. When he walked, he felt oddly floaty, and nearly lost his balance and fell right back onto the bed.

“Careful!” Feng Wu caught him. “Can you walk? If not, just keep lying down. I’ll bring lunch into your room.”

That familiar cool, sharp scent instantly surrounded him. Lin An’an’s gaze flickered slightly, and the place where he was being supported warmed faintly.

“I’m fine. I can walk.” He lightly kicked one leg. “I’ve just been lying down too long. I’ll be alright after a few steps.”

Then, suddenly pressing his lips together, his ears tinged with the thinnest red, Lin An’an added, “Brother Wolf, just… help me walk a couple of steps first. I’m afraid I might be unsteady at the start.”

Feng Wu believed him without a trace of suspicion. “Alright.”

The hand on his arm tightened slightly, and Lin An’an leaned more of his weight onto Feng Wu. When he sensed the other man’s body stiffen for a moment and then quickly relax again, he secretly laughed to himself.

Using the support of the person beside him, Lin An’an walked several loops around the room in an awkward half-leaning, half-resting posture.

A sudden knock at the door startled him, and he straightened at once. “I—I think I’m fine now. Brother Wolf, let’s go out quickly.”

Feng Wu lowered his arm. His palm, suddenly empty, curled into a fist in a way that suggested he was not quite used to it. He lowered his eyes and answered, “Alright.”

From outside came Xiong Yingjun’s loudspeaker voice: “Boss, An’an! Come out and eat!”

Feng Wu yanked the door open. “So loud. What if An’an had still been sleeping?”

“Old Four said An’an had definitely woken up.” Xiong Yingjun scratched his head. “He said if An’an were still asleep, you would’ve come right back out after going in. Since you stayed in there that long, An’an must’ve woken up and you two were secretly talking behind our backs again.”

Secretly… talking…?

Inside the room, Lin An’an’s breathing hitched. The warmth that had only just faded from his face surged back up all at once.

Xiong Yingjun rattled on for a while. When Feng Wu still didn’t reply, he looked up and saw Feng Wu’s lips pressed into a very tight line, along with an emotion in his eyes that he couldn’t understand.

“Enough. Stop talking.” Feng Wu said. “Let’s eat.”

“Got it.” Xiong Yingjun stepped aside. After Feng Wu came out, he poked his head into the room. “An’an, you come out too and eat… lunch?”

The moment he saw the person inside, he froze.

“You took off the disguise mask?” Xiong Yingjun’s eyes went wide. “This face of yours is way better-looking than the masked one!”

At that, Si Youlin—who was in the middle of bringing out dishes—also looked over, and after one glance he too was stunned.

“How strange.” Si Youlin frowned as he thought. “Why does he look a little familiar?”

Lin An’an was not surprised at all that Xiong Yingjun and Si Youlin had failed to recognize him at first glance.

He might be the Empire’s Third Prince, but he had always been kept confined at home by his father and had almost never appeared in public. It was perfectly normal that they wouldn’t remember what the Third Prince looked like.

Actually, the one thing that had shocked him was that Brother Wolf had recognized him instantly that time.

Lin An’an muttered inwardly, and couldn’t help glancing once more in Feng Wu’s direction. At that exact moment Feng Wu turned his head too, and their eyes met.

Lin An’an froze for a second, instinctively looking away. Then he thought that maybe his reaction had looked a little too deliberate, so he turned his gaze back again—only to find that Feng Wu was still looking at him, his dark golden eyes fixed without a blink.

Lin An’an took a deep breath, barely managing to suppress the urge to look away again.

Their somewhat strange little staring contest was quickly interrupted. Si Youlin walked over to them, still wearing his apron.

He stared at Lin An’an’s face for a while, then suddenly sucked in a breath. Incredulity filled his voice. “Th-Third Prince?”

Si Youlin still had his reason intact and had lowered his voice so much that only Xiong Yingjun beside him heard it.

Xiong Yingjun looked bewildered. “What Third Prince?”

Two seconds later, his mouth dropped open. “Thi—!”

The unfinished word was covered right back up by Si Youlin’s hand. Xiong Yingjun made muffled noises, his eyes bulging like bronze bells, and the finger pointing at Lin An’an trembled violently. He was clearly shocked to the extreme.

Lin An’an smiled at them and introduced himself once again. “Brother Bear, Brother Snake, let’s get acquainted again. My name is Xia Lin.”

Xiong Yingjun finally broke free from Si Youlin’s hand. After taking two breaths, he said, in a voice so shocked it was nearly horrified, “Third Prince? But weren’t you… weren’t you already—”

Before he could finish, Lin An’an had already smoothly taken out a tomato and shoved it precisely into Xiong Yingjun’s mouth.

“Brother Bear, don’t believe rumors and don’t spread rumors.” Lin An’an raised one finger and wagged it with mysterious solemnity.

After staring blankly for a long while, Xiong Yingjun took the tomato out of his mouth. Only then did he suddenly let out an “Ah!” “No wonder every time I mentioned the Third Prince before, Baby An would throw tomatoes at me!”

He had finally figured out why he had been hit so many times.

Xiong Yingjun scratched the back of his head—where there was no hair anymore—then patted his own mouth and sighed. “Deserved. Totally deserved. My fault.”

He sneakily glanced at Lin An’an, but when he saw the other party smiling at him, clearly not truly angry, he finally relaxed completely.

Si Youlin still looked hesitant, as if unsure how to speak.

But Feng Wu suddenly reached out and caught Lin An’an by the wrist, saying in a natural tone, “Come on, An’an. Old Four said he made fish soup for you today, to help you recover.”

Lin An’an’s eyes lit up. “Fish soup from Brother Snake! No wonder I could smell something good the moment I came out.”

He rubbed the stomach that was making little noises and grinned. “I’m drinking three bowls, and nobody’s stopping me!”

Si Youlin was startled for a second, and then a smile appeared on his face. “Come on, Old Three. Time to eat.”

“Wait, wait, wait!” Xiong Yingjun grabbed Si Youlin and cautiously asked in a whisper near his ear, “If Baby An is really the Third Prince… then from now on, we—”

“It stays the same as before.” Si Youlin said. “Treat him the same way as before. At least inside the house, that’s how it is. If there are outsiders around, then we can adjust depending on the situation.”

Feng Wu and Lin An’an’s behavior had already explained everything. Baby An was indeed the Third Prince Xia Lin, but he was also still Lin An’an, the one who had lived with them for so long. That would not change because of anything.

Xiong Yingjun immediately gave two silly little chuckles. “That’s good, then.”

Once they sat down at the table, the others naturally also noticed that the youth’s face was different from what they were used to.

Shi Xiaoxing’s eyes lit up, and she blurted out in amazement, “An’an! Don’t wear the mask anymore from now on, okay? It’s such a waste!”

Bai Yang and Bai Yue were also stunned. Bai Yue even lightly jumped up in front of Lin An’an and sniffed him, as if confirming whether the scent on him still belonged to her An’an-gege.

Lin An’an stroked the little cat’s head and said with a smile, “At home, I don’t have to wear it anymore. But when I go out, or if there are outsiders in the house… I still need to keep it on.”

Shi Xiaoxing didn’t quite understand. “Why though? You’re so good-looking. Isn’t it such a pity to hide that with a mask?”

Gu Yubai looked at Lin An’an for a while. She seemed to think of something, and a contemplative expression came over her face.

Suddenly, Shang Youyuan let out an “Ah!” His tone held both shock and delight. “Your Highness Xia Lin?”

Lin An’an was slightly startled and somewhat puzzled. “Grandpa Shang, you know me?”

“I was acquainted with Your Highness’s mother in the past.” Shang Youyuan stood up, seemingly intending to bow to Lin An’an, but Lin An’an was quick enough to stop him.

“There’s no need, Grandpa Shang.” Lin An’an said. “Right now, I’m only Lin An’an.”

Shang Youyuan sighed with emotion. “The last time I saw Your Highness, you were still a child. You didn’t even reach my waist yet.”

At that time, Xia Lin’s mother had not yet passed away. Shang Youyuan had met the young Xia Lin at a banquet held by the imperial family.

Hearing this, Gu Yubai instantly understood Lin An’an’s identity.

No wonder she had felt that Lin An’an’s true face looked familiar. She had once met Xia Jiyuan’s final empress, and Lin An’an resembled his mother by seventy percent.

Shi Xiaoxing and He Yinghong had both been stunned speechless by this revelation.

He Yinghong took it remarkably well. Since Lin An’an’s attitude toward them had not changed in the slightest, he very quickly accepted the setting that Lin An’an was the Empire’s Third Prince.

Shi Xiaoxing took a little longer to recover, though not because she couldn’t accept it. It was simply that such a massive “bombshell” had left her momentarily dizzy.

…Even novels wouldn’t dare write something like this, right?

No wonder there had been no news about the Third Prince for so long, Shi Xiaoxing thought. So the Third Prince had already come to Sin Star.

Suddenly she felt both emotional and a bit heartbroken for Lin An’an.

The rumors on StarNet that the Third Prince was not favored appeared to be true. He had been on Sin Star this long, yet there hadn’t even been one related news report. The current emperor truly did not care about the Third Prince at all.

Zhang Yifeng and Wu Hula’s reactions, however, were somewhat beyond everyone’s expectations.

Sitting beside Wu Hula, Xiong Yingjun couldn’t help elbowing him. “You’re not surprised at all?”

Wu Hula looked at him in confusion. “Surprised by what?”

“By the fact that Baby An is the Third Prince!”

“…What’s there to be surprised about?” Wu Hula’s expression grew even more puzzled. “Him being the Third Prince and him being our friend Lin An’an—do those things conflict?”

Xiong Yingjun thought very seriously for a moment. “Seems like they don’t.”

“Exactly.” Wu Hula said in an entirely matter-of-fact tone. “As long as there’s no conflict, then it’s fine. Even if he were the Federation leader, I wouldn’t care. A friend is a friend.”

Hearing that, Xiong Yingjun instinctively glanced at Gu Yubai. He saw that she—still disguised as “Lin Tianqing” behind her disguise mask—was looking at Wu Hula with unconcealed approval and agreement.

Lin An’an glanced at Octopus Bro and Squid Bro and thought to himself that he really did have excellent taste in friends.

This meal was far calmer than Lin An’an had imagined. Aside from the initial shock, no one’s attitude toward him had changed in the slightest.

That made Lin An’an release a huge sigh of relief in his heart, and with his mood lifted, he even drank two extra bowls of fish soup.

After the meal, Si Youlin and Xiong Yingjun followed Feng Wu into an empty room, and Lin An’an went in with them.

This time, the topic was heavier than ever before. Feng Wu took it upon himself to take over Lin An’an’s part and recounted everything about him to the other two exactly as it had happened.

Naturally, this also included the late-night conversation Feng Wu had with Lin An’an last night, as well as the mental-power contract that had already been successfully signed.

After hearing all of it, Xiong Yingjun practically sprang up from his chair. “Good!”

That shout startled Lin An’an into a brief blank stare.

“I’ve long been fucking fed up with that damn Xia Yuanhan!” Xiong Yingjun said with enormous satisfaction. “Let’s go back to the Capital Star right now and beat that bastard until he’s crawling on the ground looking for his teeth!!!”

The moment he heard that, Lin An’an—whose mood had been somewhat heavy—suddenly laughed.

“Even if we go back, it’s not now.” Lin An’an said. “Brother Bear, don’t be so hasty. No matter what, it’ll have to be after some time.”

Xiong Yingjun didn’t understand. “Why not?”

“You really are dense if you don’t even bother to think at all.” There was a clear sense of exasperated you are impossible in Si Youlin’s tone.

He sighed and dutifully explained, “Since the Second Prince’s target is Sin Star, then there’s no way this can be his only plan. This plan was interrupted by An’an, which means there will definitely be a next step, and a step after that.”

“Right now, he still hasn’t been exposed in the eyes of the public. As for his cooperation with the X Galaxy, basically all we have are theoretical deductions. We don’t have any actual evidence we can bring out.”

“If we stay on Sin Star and wait for his next move—or even proactively lure him into making one—only then will we get the chance to catch him and seize proof against him.”

Besides…

Si Youlin glanced at Lin An’an and quietly laughed in his heart.

Judging from what he had come to understand of the Third Prince’s temperament over this period of time, there was no way the other party would simply abandon a place as vast as Sin Star.

On that point alone, Si Youlin deeply approved of Feng Wu’s decision to sign the mental-power contract with Lin An’an.

“All these twists and turns are too damn complicated.” Xiong Yingjun sighed and instinctively reached up to scratch his head—only to touch the completely smooth back of his scalp, where not a single hair remained.

He couldn’t help asking, “An’an, after my Alpha is cured, will my hair grow back?”

“Of course it will.” Lin An’an said. “Once my abilities recover, I’ll treat your Alpha too, and then make some medicine to help with hair regrowth. It won’t take long for your hair to come back.”

Xiong Yingjun patted his chest. “That’s good. I thought I was gonna be a bald hairless bear forever.”

“Speaking of which…” Si Youlin suddenly cut in, “I’ve been wanting to ask you this for a while now. Did you really lose every single hair on your body this time?”

A look of deep sorrow flashed through Xiong Yingjun’s eyes. “Yeah.”

Si Youlin’s gaze couldn’t help dropping downward a little. “……”

A chill shot through Xiong Yingjun’s legs, and he glared furiously at Si Youlin, who could no longer hide the laughter in his eyes.

A moment later, he could no longer hold it in. With a waaah, he burst into two broad noodle-like streams of tears, crying like a two-hundred-jin child.

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