Chapter 144

144 WARM HUG THAT WELCOMED HIM

Not only did Bai Renshu think that it was Emperor Bai Guowei who deliberately planned to kill Shao Meihui during the Beast Hunt Event, but Shao Yaoting as the girl’s father also had the same suspicion.

The old man from the Black Werewolf Clan even dared to force the Emperor to confess his sins, but of course, the Emperor ignored the baseless accusations and said that they had better leave the Forbidden Forest immediately.

Of course, Emperor Bai Guowei could say that the accusations were baseless as there was no valid evidence at this time. Both Bai Renshu and Shao Yaoting suspected the man simply because of the man’s hatred for Shao Meihui, but such a thing would not be enough to prove that he was indeed the mastermind behind the incident in the forest.

Bai Chen, as a newcomer in this world, felt like his head was going to explode from using it too much to think. He wasn’t smart, and he rarely used his brain to think, but he had suddenly been trying to find answers to his questions since he was still in the Forbidden Forest.

Unfortunately, no answer came into his head even after he was no longer in the forest, and his mind went blank as he once again made his way back to the Rongyao Imperial Palace.

He had experienced many unexpected things in the Forbidden Forest, and it seemed he came out of the forest as a braver man when he no longer acted like a baby just starting to learn to walk on an old bridge.

He was still scared, of course, but it wasn’t as bad as when he was just about to enter the forest yesterday, and he made it across the bridge safely.

Yes, it was yesterday when he just arrived in the forest, and today he had to return to the palace because the event was canceled.

It should have been a blessing for Bai Chen as he had always wanted to hear how the Emperor announced that the event was canceled, but he didn’t feel very happy for some reason.

.....

The reason was obvious, and it was because of the unexpected accident that happened in the forest.

‘I made it out of the forest alive, and that means I won the bet with Bai Renshu, but I won’t even get my reward since Shao Meihui has died,’ Bai Chen just realized as he continued walking with the other participants from the Forbidden Forest to Rongyao Imperial Palace, and they were guarded by several imperial soldiers.

‘I won’t be able to marry Shao Meihui, nor will I be able to receive the support of the Black Werewolf Clan. On the contrary, I believe there will be tension between the two clans after what happened in the Forbidden Forest, and I need to use my brain so that I can survive during the clash of clans,’ Bai Chen frowned as he carefully thought about what he should do next.

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He had transmigrated to this world, not for fun, but because he had a mission to complete. However, even the system didn’t say anything after the event in the Forbidden Forest was canceled, so Bai Chen didn’t get any clues at all.

Fortunately, he had claimed reward points from the system after he participated in the Beast Hunting Event, and that was probably the only positive thing he had gotten from the event.

He once again walked at the back of the line, but he didn’t need to feel afraid because several imperial soldiers were walking behind him.

The two Emperors along with Bai Renshu, Shao Yaoting, and the corpse of Shao Meihui had returned to the palace before them, and when he thought about that unlucky girl again, he couldn’t help but feel sad once more.

‘It’s not that I want to marry her, but I just know that things will get more complicated from now on. My wedding with Shao Meihui was supposed to help the Emperor to maintain a peaceful atmosphere between the two clans, and I would also get the support of the Black Werewolf Clan, but nothing is going according to plan now,’ he complained once again, and he noticed that they had reached the residential area.

It was morning, and people had started their activities. They probably didn’t know what happened in the Forbidden Forest last night, so they didn’t pay much attention to the people who had just returned from the forest.

Bai Chen assumed that the Imperial Palace didn’t want to make people worry, and that was why they didn’t announce the incident to people.

He didn’t know what would happen to Dong Lang after that incident, and he also didn’t want to think about it because he felt exhausted both in body and mind.

Subconsciously, he continued to follow the other participants, and without realizing it, he had already arrived at the palace grounds in the Rongyao Imperial Palace.

At that moment, he was about to fall backward when someone suddenly ambushed him with a tight hug.

Bai Chen’s mind was preoccupied with many things, but when he turned his gaze to look at the man embracing him, he was immediately able to recognize the man.

He sighed as he realized that he had made it back without a single scratch on his body, and he once again felt that he was at home as that person hugged him tightly. Therefore, he let the person hug him to his heart’s content.

The sight was quite embarrassing, but Bai Chen didn’t care what people thought as he patiently waited for the man to let go.

Fortunately, it didn’t take long for the man to let go, and Bai Chen could immediately see that the man was crying.

“Why are you crying, Ma Qiao? I came back from the Forbidden Forest in one piece, so why are you crying?” Bai Chen asked the old man who was indeed Ma Qiao.

As he used to see before going to the Forbidden Forest, Ma Qiao was still old, and he was also still wearing a dull white hanfu. The only difference he saw about the man was that the old man was crying, which was quite a shocking sight as the man was usually full of smiles.

“Aiyah! How can you act so calmly when I almost had a heart attack here, Your Highness!” The old servant rebuked the Prince in between his tears. “I received information that the dangerous beasts in the forest started attacking the participants, and I also heard that some of the participants were killed. I immediately headed to this palace, and I saw it when one by one the corpses returned to this palace. I also quickly ran over to inspect every corpse to make sure that you weren’t one of them, Your Highness!”

“So, you even heard about it?” Bai Chen once again questioned the old servant.

“Aiyah! I can hear everything even if it’s just the sound of flies, Your Highness!” The old servant answered. “But it was just a joke. Even if the people outside the palace knew nothing about what happened during the Beast Hunting Event, everyone in the palace already knew about it, and that’s why I also got the information, Your Highness!”

Bai Chen didn’t even know how to comfort his emotional servant. When he was still in the forest, he also heard that some of the participants were killed by the beasts. At least twelve participants were killed, but Bai Chen didn’t know the details about them.

He didn’t know if they were from Dong Lang or Wu Li, or maybe they were from the two kingdoms. He didn’t know if it was a werewolf or a human being killed in the forest, but death was still bad news when he just heard about it.

The news did break Bai Chen’s heart when he remembered how they all entered the forest together but some of them returned to the palace with only their bodies.

“Are you hurt somewhere, Your Highness? You should tell me if you feel sick somewhere. You don’t have to hide anything from me!” The old servant spoke again as he tried to examine Bai Chen’s body.

The white hanfu that Bai Chen was wearing was dirty here and there, but Bai Chen didn’t suffer any injuries, so he just kept quiet while letting the old servant do what he wanted.

Ma Qiao also had his hands inspect his body, but then the old servant stopped himself as his eyes fixed on something in Bai Chen’s hand. The owner of the hand followed the line of sight, and he noticed that the old servant was looking at his sword.

Subconsciously, Bai Chen hid the sword behind his back, and Ma Qiao finally blinked his eyes before looking into his pair of blue eyes.

“What sword is that, Your Highness?” The old servant asked the Prince in a serious tone. “Why is there a Power Crystal of the white werewolf on the sword?”