Deep affection knows no origin; remember the polar bear's love for you.

Chapter 105 Abandoning the Little Cub

He was so excited that he stopped eating the fruit and repeatedly rejected Guo Mi's plan:

"No, no, that's impossible, you can't do it."

The first three negative statements made Guo Mi's heart jump, and she hurriedly asked:

"why?"

Bada took a deep breath, sat on the ground, and raised his paws to gesture:

"Do you know how far the forest is from here? If we don't go through human towns, the journey is four times longer than the way you came from the snow-capped mountains!"

"It will take you at least six months to get there."

"Even if you were to travel through a human town, it would be very difficult to reach it in a short time if you walked normally."

Guo Mi was a little dumbfounded. She had only asked Bada about the direction he was heading, but she didn't expect it to take so long!
So, how exactly does Bada manage to make the round trip every year?

As if sensing her confusion, Bada explained first:
“I’ve been away from the forest for a long time. First I passed through the brown bear’s habitat, and then I stayed for a long time near a human town.”

This answer surprised Guo Mi. She was forced to move, but she never expected that Bada had voluntarily wandered away from home for so long.

Bada raised his chin:
"I told you yesterday that it's boring to stay in the same place all the time."

Guo Mi looked at him with admiration, unable to believe that this dark bear was actually a traveler.

So far, she remains optimistic:

"If it's just a long way, I can take the little bear and walk slowly, and along the way I can appreciate different worlds just like you. We will arrive someday."

Bada remained silent about her optimism, but his somber expression did not change in the slightest.
You're oversimplifying things.

Guo Mi was taken aback. Had she oversimplified things?

This means that the journey is not only long but also difficult... Do we have to cross the sea?
Bada noticed the confusion in her eyes, and seeing that she seemed to know nothing, he sighed.
“You’ve traveled a long way, but the climate is still colder than other places, and the temperature is already extremely low, so these two little ones don’t seem to be acting any different.”

"If you continue south, once you pass the human towns, the temperature will rise very quickly."

He glanced at the two bear cubs running and playing happily in the berry grove, and let out another heavy sigh:
"Polar bears live in cold regions year-round, and their bodies are used to maintaining body temperature. They are more afraid of heat than cold. If these two cubs were to go into the forest, they would not survive at all."

After Bada finished speaking, he looked at Guo Mi and said with a mixture of regret and helplessness:

"Just like me, I once thought I could cross the tundra, and even thought that one day I could see the snow-capped mountains that Dian Dian had mentioned with my own eyes. This summer has been unusually warm, and I thought I would have a chance..."

As he said this, he lowered his head, his whole body shrouded in a gloomy sense of loss. Even his round ears no longer stood up, drooping listlessly forward with his lowered head.
"But even with my best efforts, my ultimate limit was only reaching the middle of the tundra; my body could no longer support me going any further."

He could not stay here all day long, nor could he stay for long. He had to leave before summer was completely over, or he would be swallowed up by the endless snow and wind of the North.

Guo Mi was stunned. She knew the journey was long and arduous, and even thought about the food shortage along the way, but she forgot the most crucial point.

She stood there for a long time, then suddenly gave a bitter laugh, realizing how foolish she had been.

During the day, he was still trying to persuade Caesar that he had his own life and his own land to live on, forgetting that the little bear was also a polar bear living in the far north, and they too must live where they belong. Bada, his paws digging at two berries, his eyes unfocused and his mind heavy with worry, said in a low voice:

"What I just said also applies to you. Your choice is right. You are not a bear that lives in the extreme cold. Returning to your habitat is the most correct choice."

Guo Mi's ears twitched twice, and then she heard him say in a complicated tone:
"But you insisted on adopting polar bear cubs. Now that you want to go back to a place where you can live, the best way is to abandon these two cubs."

The moment Guo Mi heard the suggestion, she felt an urge to refuse. Bada, as if he had anticipated this, continued:
"Don't rush to refuse. It's summer now and the temperature is still manageable. Once winter comes, the temperature will drop drastically. Besides, even if you stay, you won't be able to take care of these two little ones in winter. Don't forget, you'll be hibernating in winter."

As he spoke, he suddenly noticed something and looked at Guo Mi suspiciously:

"At a time like this, why are you still thinking about rushing to the forest? You haven't forgotten about this, have you?"

Bada's words left Guo Mi completely stunned.

Hibernation—after spending so long in the Arctic, constantly busy searching for food, how would you remember this?
Bada saw the confusion in her eyes, and was speechless for a moment. A second or two later, he cried out:
"You really forgot?!"

"..."

Guo Mi's lips twitched, and she guiltily looked away, feeling uneasy as if her paws didn't know where to go.

Actually, she had just turned into a bear in the autumn, and after spending some time in the forest, she was captured and taken to the zoo.

It seems that during winter, there was indeed a period when I felt weak all over, listless, had no appetite, and was too lazy to move.

However, she never fell into a deep sleep for a long time, so she naturally forgot about hibernation.

Guo Mi said hesitantly:
"Last year... I think I was just feeling lethargic all over, and I didn't hibernate at all."

Bada was very surprised and immediately asked:
"So you also spent last winter in the Arctic?"

Guo Mi paused, then replied softly:
"No."

Bada was practically going crazy. He wanted nothing more than to pat Guomi's head with his paw to see what she was thinking, but after raising his paw several times, he ultimately didn't have the courage to do it. He could only growl angrily:

"I don't know where you were last year, but I can tell without even thinking that the place you were in is nothing like the Arctic!"

"It's so cold. You don't look like someone who can eat well in winter. Besides, even if you set off now, you won't reach the forest before winter. How can you survive without hibernating?"

Bada's questions were like steel needles, one, two, three, four, each one piercing her heart.

Guo Mi has never hibernated. She doesn't know if she will fall into a deep sleep completely, whether she can still perceive the outside world while asleep, or whether she will still have the ability to protect herself.

But she knew that she considered the bear cubs her own, and she couldn't abandon them to fend for themselves while she embarked on her journey alone.

Guo Mi turned around and watched the two bear cubs frolicking in the berry grove. Finally, they ran towards her at the same time and snuggled up to her, their little beady eyes full of affection.

Her gaze softened:

"What if... I stay here?"

(End of this chapter)