diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index d44bbf5..f165bd0 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -35,5 +35,7 @@ tokio = { version = "1.0.1", features = ["macros", "rt", "rt-multi-thread"] }
 async-std = { version = "1.9.0", features = ["attributes"]}
 macaddr = "1.0"
 
-#[patch.crates-io]
-#netlink-packet-route = { git = "https://github.com/rust-netlink/netlink-packet-route" }
+[patch.crates-io]
+netlink-packet-core = { git = "https://github.com/cathay4t/netlink-packet-core.git", branch = "main" }
+netlink-packet-route = { git = "https://github.com/cathay4t/netlink-packet-route.git", branch = "panic_free" }
+netlink-proto = { git = "https://github.com/cathay4t/netlink-proto.git", branch = "panic_free" }
diff --git a/tests/panic_free_chain.rs b/tests/panic_free_chain.rs
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..658762c
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/panic_free_chain.rs
@@ -0,0 +1,60 @@
+// SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT
+
+//! End-to-end validation of the panic-free emission chain:
+//!
+//! netlink-packet-core -> netlink-packet-route -> netlink-proto -> rtnetlink
+
+use rtnetlink::{
+    packet_core::{
+        DefaultNla, EncodeErrorKind, NetlinkHeader, NetlinkMessage,
+        NetlinkPayload, NLA_MAX_VALUE_LEN,
+    },
+    packet_route::{
+        route::{RouteAttribute, RouteMessage},
+        RouteNetlinkMessage,
+    },
+    proto::{NetlinkCodec, NetlinkMessageCodec},
+};
+
+#[test]
+fn valid_route_message_round_trips_through_proto() {
+    let message = NetlinkMessage::new(
+        NetlinkHeader::default(),
+        NetlinkPayload::InnerMessage(RouteNetlinkMessage::NewRoute(
+            RouteMessage::default(),
+        )),
+    );
+
+    let mut buffer = Vec::new();
+    NetlinkCodec::encode(message.clone(), &mut buffer).unwrap();
+    assert!(!buffer.is_empty());
+
+    let mut expected_header = message.header;
+    expected_header.length = buffer.len() as u32;
+    expected_header.message_type = message.payload.message_type();
+    let expected =
+        NetlinkMessage::new(expected_header, message.payload.clone());
+
+    let decoded = NetlinkCodec::decode::<RouteNetlinkMessage>(&mut buffer)
+        .unwrap()
+        .unwrap();
+    assert_eq!(decoded, expected);
+}
+
+#[test]
+fn oversized_route_attribute_returns_error_without_panic() {
+    let mut route = RouteMessage::default();
+    route.attributes.push(RouteAttribute::Other(DefaultNla::new(
+        1,
+        vec![0; NLA_MAX_VALUE_LEN + 1],
+    )));
+    let message = NetlinkMessage::new(
+        NetlinkHeader::default(),
+        NetlinkPayload::InnerMessage(RouteNetlinkMessage::NewRoute(route)),
+    );
+
+    let mut buffer = vec![0xaa];
+    let error = NetlinkCodec::encode(message, &mut buffer).unwrap_err();
+    assert_eq!(error.kind(), EncodeErrorKind::TooLarge);
+    assert_eq!(buffer, vec![0xaa]);
+}