Gu Chenyu’s expression immediately darkened as he lifted the little cub from his bed.
The little guy looked restless in his sleep, his brows tightly knitted together. His small face was flushed bright red from the fever, and even his breathing was hot, rapid, and uneven.
Gu Chenyu held the cub with one arm while using a medical scanner with the other to check his temperature.
He then brought over cooling patches, a calming agent specially formulated for young lion Beastmen, and a temperature-regulating blanket.
His movements were practiced and meticulous, clearly showing that he was already accustomed to personally caring for his sick child.
After the little cub was given fever medicine formulated for young lion Beastmen, his tiny brows knitted even tighter.
His damp eyes remained tightly shut as he alternated between crying and falling asleep with his face pressed against Gu Chenyu’s chest.
Again and again.
Knowing how uncomfortable the little guy was, Gu Chenyu held the feverish little bundle in his arms throughout the entire night, barely sleeping as he kept watch over him.
Usually, whenever the little guy came down with a fever, his temperature would gradually fall back to normal by dawn.
But this time…
Not only did Gu Xinghuai’s fever fail to subside, it became even worse than it had been during the night.
Even more unusually, while still barely conscious, the little cub began displaying signs of partial beast transformation—his young lion ears and tiny tail emerged.
The abnormal situation made Gu Chenyu’s expression even more grave.
He immediately called Professor Rofi, briefly explained what was happening, and asked her to come over personally and examine the child.
Because of Gu Xinghuai’s unusual genetic condition, Professor Rofi didn’t dare delay after hearing the situation. She soon arrived at the colonel’s residence.
Not long afterward, Butler Chen brought her over and gently knocked on the door.
“Colonel, Professor Rofi is here.”
“Come in.”
The door opened.
Butler Chen peeked inside.
He could vaguely see a fluffy little head nestled against Colonel Gu’s chest, accompanied by the soft, distressed sobs of the feverish cub.
Butler Chen hadn’t expected the Young Master to become this seriously ill this time.
He was extremely anxious, but could only stand at the doorway, afraid to approach recklessly.
Because of the Young Master’s special genes, whenever he was sick, he could only tolerate Colonel Gu staying by his side.
If he sensed an unfamiliar scent approaching his territory, the little cub would become extremely agitated, which would in turn worsen his condition.
That was why even Professor Rofi had specifically changed into specialized protective clothing designed to block body scents before entering the room.
Gu Chenyu initially intended to place the child on the bed so that the medical equipment could examine him more easily.
But the moment the little cub sensed that his familiar presence was about to leave him, his tiny hands immediately clung to Gu Chenyu anxiously. He buried himself against his father’s chest and continued whimpering and crying.
Seeing this, Professor Rofi, who was holding a syringe, spoke quietly with some difficulty.
“Colonel, the Young Master’s condition is rather special. We need to draw a small blood sample to accurately determine the cause of his unusually high fever before we can formulate an appropriate treatment plan.”
Gu Chenyu glanced at the syringe in her hand.
“I understand.”
He lowered his head and gently wiped the tears from the sobbing little cub buried against his chest.
“Baby, Daddy needs to draw a little blood.”
The little cub sniffled and wrapped his arms tightly around Gu Chenyu’s neck.
“No… no blood…”
Gu Chenyu patiently wiped the tears from the child’s tender cheeks one by one.
“Daddy will watch. If it hurts, we’ll stop, okay, baby?”
Gu Xinghuai’s little mouth trembled as tears continued to roll down his cheeks.
Even so, he reluctantly lowered his tiny hand and offered it to his father.
The little guy was already dizzy from the fever, yet he still remembered how much he hated needles and blood draws.
He didn’t even dare look.
His tiny body trembled uncontrollably, and he buried his little face deeper into the crook of his father’s neck as the tears came even harder.
Gu Chenyu held the little cub’s trembling fingers.
When Professor Rofi approached with the needle, he frowned slightly and reminded her,
“Be as gentle as possible. Gu Xinghuai is afraid of this.”
Professor Rofi hurriedly nodded.
She knew how precious his child was to the usually cold and intimidating Colonel Gu, so she naturally took the utmost care.
Her movements were so gentle that they barely made a sound. She drew only one or two drops of blood from the cub’s fingertip before immediately withdrawing the needle and pressing sterile cotton firmly against the tiny wound.
Professor Rofi then placed the blood sample into a specialized portable testing device.
The machine immediately began scanning and analyzing it at high speed.
About five minutes later, a detailed medical report appeared on the light screen.
Professor Rofi studied the data.
Her brows gradually furrowed.
She turned toward Gu Chenyu.
“Colonel, have you recently taken the Young Master back to Imperial Star to visit Madam?”
Gu Chenyu was gently massaging the little cub’s finger with a cotton swab.
His movements paused slightly.
His expression remained stern.
“What do you mean?”
Professor Rofi considered her words before asking in a different way.
“What I mean is, has the Young Master recently seen Madam? And did he have prolonged, close physical contact with her?”
Gu Chenyu didn’t explain the details.
He merely lowered his eyes and answered,
“Yes.”
Then, having caught the key point, he asked,
“Is this related to Gu Xinghuai’s abnormal fever?”
Professor Rofi’s expression became even more serious.
She nodded and slowly explained,
“Colonel, you know that the Young Master is different from an ordinary human child.”
“You were selected by the military academy back then and underwent the fusion process at the beast-transformation weapons base, evolving from a fused wolf-lion beast into an Alpha Wolf Beastman. Although the Young Master inherited your top-tier Beastman genes, he is still currently in the fusion stage of a young lion.”
“In other words, during childhood, he will go through three to five skeletal transformation periods.”
Gu Chenyu clearly already knew this.
His voice remained cold.
“I’ve looked into the relevant information before. Gu Xinghuai’s childhood skeletal transformation period should begin around the age of five. He’s only three now.”
At only three years old, his bones were still soft and fragile.
How could such a small body withstand a transformation period that shouldn’t have occurred until he was five?
“According to his previous regular examinations, the Young Master should indeed have entered his transformation period around the age of five.”
Professor Rofi pointed to the data on the medical report and continued,
“But according to these test results, his recent close contact with Madam may have awakened a genetic need that has been missing for the past three years—the need for the presence and companionship of his other parent.”
“This is precisely what caused the Young Master’s transformation period to arrive prematurely, which in turn triggered this abnormal high fever.”
At those words, Gu Chenyu’s arm tightened slowly around the little cub.
His gaze lowered to the partially transformed child in his arms.
After a moment of silence, he calmly asked,
“Would targeted fever medication help?”
Professor Rofi shook her head and looked at him helplessly.
“Medication can only temporarily relieve the Young Master’s discomfort. It can’t solve the underlying problem.”
“If the Young Master’s need for his other parent’s presence isn’t satisfied, I’m afraid the fever will continue recurring and could even become life-threatening. So…”
Professor Rofi paused.
Then, cautiously, she offered her suggestion.
“My advice, Colonel, is that you contact Madam and see if you can get her to come here and stay with the Young Master for one night.”
“That would be the best way to help the Young Master get through this transformation period…”