After returning home, Zhao Shuqing packed her luggage into the car. She had bought the car with space in mind; folding down the rear seats and laying out the car mattress turned it into a one-meter-wide little bed, while the remaining space held daily necessities and a small table.
Pumpkin had just finished patrolling the house when Zhao Shuqing scooped her up. She spread a blanket casually over a chair to serve as a makeshift nest for the cat, placed the litter box on the passenger-side floor mat, and hit the road without any hassle.
Finally, Zhao Shuqing parked the car in a sheltered spot by the shore, setting up camp.
Pumpkin hadn’t expected her living conditions to deteriorate like this—first the dormitory, then a rental apartment, and now sleeping in the car outright. But the little kitten had no complaints; as long as there was food and a litter box, anywhere was home.
Because of the mermaids, most of the coastline had been sealed off, leaving only a handful of access points open. Zhao Shuqing had chosen one of the more remote ones.
It was remote only relatively speaking, though. Nearby were two neighborhoods and a cluster of standalone villas.
In the past, the area would have been hugely popular, facing the sea with warm springs and blooming flowers. But now, hardly anyone lingered on the shore.
She couldn’t stay cooped up in the car forever; she needed to get out and about.
Not wanting to leave Pumpkin alone in the vehicle, Zhao Shuqing dragged out her suitcase and rummaged inside for a small leash—something Wen Xiaoying had slipped her along with the cat food. It was perfect for this.
Once she fastened it around Pumpkin, the chubby cat twisted her head back uncomfortably, her eyes full of confusion: What was this about?
“Let’s go for a walk,” Zhao Shuqing said, holding the leash. “We’ll ask around the locals—see if anyone’s spotted Lin Feng.”
Pumpkin reluctantly hoisted her rear end up and started ambling slowly toward the car, only for Zhao Shuqing to yank the leash and pull her back out with quick reflexes.
So fat—she needed the exercise.
In the end, Zhao Shuqing dragged the cat along like a dead weight, knocking on doors at every shop nearby.
“Have you seen a young woman in her early twenties with light-colored hair? She’s really pretty.”
“She should be wearing a skirt, with light hair and blue eyes. She’s a bit shy.”
“Any strangers around here lately? Oh, not counting me.”
“If you spot her, please give me a call—I’ll leave my number here. Thanks.”
“…”
Zhao Shuqing canvassed every business along the shoreline. By the time she finished, Pumpkin was so exhausted she was squatting at a doorway, tongue lolling out. When Zhao Shuqing tried to tug her along again, the cat refused to budge, looking for all the world like she’d rather die than take another step.
No choice, then. Zhao Shuqing hoisted the ten-plus-pound half-dead lump onto her shoulder and trudged to the next shop.
It took her about a day to cover every establishment along that stretch of shore, but no one had seen Lin Feng come ashore. With the mermaids causing such tight security along the coast, there were no tourists left, and business was ice-cold. Most shops stood eerily empty.
Back at the car, Zhao Shuqing set down the nearly collapsed Pumpkin, fed her water and cat food, and stroked Little Fatty’s fur until she started purring contentedly.
For several days straight, whenever she had a free moment, Zhao Shuqing wandered the shoreline, figuring Lin Feng had to surface soon if she was swimming.
Unless she didn’t want to come looking for her.
Zhao Shuqing mulled it over. She’d treated Lin Feng so poorly at first, even urging her back to the sea multiple times. If Lin Feng simply returned to the Pacific instead of seeking her out, what then?
She owed her an apology, she thought.
The weather was growing colder by the day, with forecasts of freezing rain tomorrow. Zhao Shuqing set up a pot in her windbreak to boil water, then dumped in the fish and vegetables she’d bought from the market that morning, mashing them up with a spatula.
A little black shadow poked out, followed by a yellow one, an orange one, and a black-and-white one.
Four or five kittens crowded around as Zhao Shuqing cooked, heads tilted up, sniffing the aroma of fish and begging for a taste.
She ladled out a bowl of the finished fish porridge for herself. Once the rest had cooled, she set it on the ground. The kittens pounced, gobbling down the mashed veggies and fish in eager bites.
Then a calico cat waddled up, belly swollen large. She sniffed the empty pot, licked the bottom, and looked up at Zhao Shuqing leisurely.
“Meow—”
The calico was hungry. She’d arrived too late for the meal.
“You’re here?” Zhao Shuqing glanced at her, fetched a small bowl of food she’d set aside from the car, and placed it on the ground. “I figured you missed dinner when you didn’t show, so I saved some extra fishy bits for you. Dig in.”
The little calico perked up and hunkered down by Zhao Shuqing’s feet, eating with gusto.
The local strays had all come to recognize Zhao Shuqing now. They knew she fed them twice a day, morning and evening—and that she was always trailed by an adorably rotund neutered orange tabby.
It was on her second night sleeping in the car that Zhao Shuqing discovered the cats nearby. She’d been making breakfast when she noticed her sausages had been swiped. At first she suspected Pumpkin, but that didn’t add up; the cat was fat and greedy, sure, but she never stole food.
Later, Zhao Shuqing found the thief in the bushes: this very calico, pregnant and scrawny.
The calico seemed like a second-generation stray, still looking kittenish despite her bulging belly. Who the father was, no one knew, but the tiny thing looked frail with her drum-tight tummy.
Winter wasn’t the season for pregnancy or birth. No creature in nature chose to kit then.
Kittens born in winter were weak, prone to dying young.
Typically, cats got pregnant in spring and delivered in summer, so by winter the kittens were grown enough to weather the cold.
Zhao Shuqing watched the calico eat, gently stroking her back and listening to the contented purrs. Her gaze drifted to the swollen belly.
So big—probably more than one in there.
She really ought to find someone to adopt her, or the winter litter might not survive.
Sated, the calico hopped onto the car roof to groom herself. Zhao Shuqing washed and stowed the dishes, left a finger-width gap in the door for the still-snoozing Pumpkin, grabbed her phone and bag, and headed out to check the inlets again.
This time, though, Zhao Shuqing stumbled upon something shocking.
As she neared the area, she spotted a crowd gathered in the distance. It was by the seaside villas, which had emptied out due to the mermaid issue. Yet today, the entrance buzzed with activity.
Curious, Zhao Shuqing approached and saw a person sprawled in the middle of the road.
The woman’s legs looked badly mangled, bones twisted outward unnaturally. Several men with arm-thick wooden clubs stood nearby, as if they’d deliberately broken them.
Zhao Shuqing frowned and asked those around her, “What’s going on here?”
A brawl?
Why hadn’t anyone called the police?
An older lady nearby eyed her and launched into the story without pause.
“Oh, this one’s a mermaid! Apparently hid out in one of those villas. The owner came back, caught her, and dragged her out to smash her legs.” The lady jabbered excitedly to Zhao Shuqing. “I’ve seen her before—she was the little nanny who bought veggies from my stall all the time. Looked nice enough, good personality too. How could she be a mermaid?”
Someone nearby chimed in, “That little nanny shopped at my place too. She even fed the strays sometimes. Once, she helped find my missing grandson. Such a good person—how’s she a mermaid? Sigh…”
Zhao Shuqing shifted her gaze to the woman. She had lifted her head, tear-streaked eyes fixed on the crowd ahead as she reached out, trying to crawl forward. A man behind her clubbed her savagely across the back of the skull.
“Ah!”
Screams erupted from the onlookers. They watched, helpless, as her head cracked against the ground. Then she went still.
Zhao Shuqing’s heart clenched. That force, aimed at the fragile nape—if she wasn’t dead already…
The man, fearing the mermaid wasn’t quite finished, struck her twice more. Bystanders couldn’t stomach it anymore.
“She’s done for—can’t you just stop?”
“The girl’s kind, never hurt a soul even if she is a mermaid. No need to go for the kill, right?”
“You’re no better than murderers!”
The man flung aside his club and snarled, “She’s a monster! You really think she has a heart?”
The crowd fell silent, eyes on the unmoving form on the ground. They sighed. Mermaid or not, she was a familiar face, and watching her beaten like this tugged at their hearts.
Just as Zhao Shuqing moved to step forward, she caught sight of a figure in the opposite crowd.
The person stood amid the throng, topped by a black hat. The exposed chin and lips looked achingly familiar, and though the hair was tucked under the hat, a stray lock at the temple was light-colored.
Zhao Shuqing’s eyes flew wide. It was Lin Feng.
Lin Feng.
She’d really come back.
Her hands shook uncontrollably. She shoved through the crowd and dashed to the other side, elbowing desperately toward the center.
“Excuse me, coming through!” Zhao Shuqing shouted frantically. “Lin Feng! Lin Feng!”
But when she reached the front, there was no trace of Lin Feng. No one in a hat, nothing.
The crowd stared at her in bewilderment. What was with this woman who had barged in so urgently, only to freeze?
“Auntie, the person in the hat behind you just now—where’d she go?” Zhao Shuqing grabbed a short middle-aged woman’s arm. “She was right there—did you see which way?”
The woman startled and pulled away. “I don’t have eyes in the back of my head! How should I know?”
Someone nearby, seeing her distress, suggested, “Looking for someone, miss? Just call her.”
Zhao Shuqing furrowed her brow. “She… she doesn’t have a phone.”
“Who doesn’t these days?” the person said oddly. “You sure you saw her?”
Zhao Shuqing opened her mouth, but no words came.
She’d only glimpsed the hat, that familiar chin and temple lock. She hadn’t truly seen the face.
Now, she couldn’t even be sure if it had been Lin Feng at all.
