That fleeting glimpse on the street had kept Zhao Shuqing from sleeping for several days.
Though she kept telling herself deep down that Lin Feng could not possibly have swum back so soon, she still felt certain that the familiar silhouette was her.
The next day, news broke about the mermaid who had been beaten to death right there on the street. The photos were censored, but self-media outlets reposted them far and wide. Some even ran headlines like 【Satisfying Justice】, racking up plenty of views.
None of the photos captured the crowd, leaving Zhao Shuqing with no leads. She shut off her phone.
Rain mixed with biting wind drummed against the car roof like someone knocking at the door. Zhao Shuqing peered through the windshield. The sky was black, the sea was black, and only the snowflakes settling on the engine hood gleamed white.
Freezing rain. Tomorrow would be brutally cold.
She tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She disturbed Pumpkin so much that the cat slipped away from her side to the dashboard. It circled twice, decided that was the only spot left, and grudgingly curled up to rest.
In that hazy half-sleep, Zhao Shuqing dozed off and woke repeatedly. By the third time she stirred, daylight had broken outside.
Pumpkin was sitting there grooming itself. Zhao Shuqing lay watching for a moment before getting up to fix some breakfast.
The moment she opened the door, a gust of cold wind rushed in, making her shiver.
The freezing rain from the night before had coated everything under the car with jagged ice shards, slippery underfoot.
“Meow—”
Pumpkin, disliking the chill, let out a yowl and burrowed into Zhao Shuqing’s bedding. With a helpless sigh, she climbed out to check the vehicle for any freeze damage.
It must have gotten very cold overnight. A thick layer of ice had formed on the engine hood. Zhao Shuqing chipped it away with her tools, then lifted the whole ice sheet free. Her eyes widened in surprise as it crashed to the ground and shattered.
In weather this frigid, she probably could not keep camping outdoors.
Zhao Shuqing frowned. She needed to scout nearby for a hotel or bed-and-breakfast—one that allowed cats.
After circling the car and finding no major issues, she slammed the hood shut. That was when she spotted the pregnant Little Calico again.
“Meow-meow.” Zhao Shuqing crouched down to greet her. “Out in weather like this? Aren’t you freezing?”
Little Calico came trotting over with quick little steps, deposited a tiny fish at Zhao Shuqing’s feet, then looked up and meowed.
Intrigued, Zhao Shuqing picked up the finger-length fish and smiled at her. “This for me?”
“Meow~” Little Calico rubbed her forehead against Zhao Shuqing’s leg, though her swollen belly made the gesture awkward. Zhao Shuqing stroked the cat’s head, wondering when her due date might be. Kitting in the wild during this cold snap would be heartbreaking.
She needed to arrange adoption for her.
Zhao Shuqing snapped a photo and posted it online, hoping someone kindhearted would take Little Calico in.
After breakfast and feeding the cats, the sun rose higher. It was not quite as frigid as at dawn. Zhao Shuqing glanced at the overcast sky and pondered driving around to check for hotels or bed-and-breakfasts.
She was rinsing her bowls with fetched water when she heard a faint rustling behind her.
Zhao Shuqing turned, her gaze settling on a nearby fence.
She had parked beside a residential complex for convenience: easy water access, shelter from the wind, close to the road and public restrooms. The fence marked the edge of the complex, though foot traffic was light.
Now, she felt a scorching gaze fixed on her. Frowning slightly, she set down her things and walked over.
Beyond the railing stood a makeshift shack, tiny and cluttered with junk. She could not see clearly from her angle, but the gaze had definitely come from there.
Zhao Shuqing stared at the obscured spot, about to call out, when a voice sounded from behind her.
“Zhao Shuqing.”
She whipped around to find Yue Jiuchu standing by her car, somehow arrived without notice. The woman tilted her chin. “What are you up to?”
“Nothing.” Zhao Shuqing glanced back at the pile of clutter, then walked over. “How did you find me?”
“You don’t need to worry about that,” Yue Jiuchu said.
Zhao Shuqing shook the water from her clean bowls and packed them away. She was not particularly curious how Yue Jiuchu had tracked her down; after all, she was under surveillance, and her movements these past few days must have been an open book to them.
“Is there something you need?” Zhao Shuqing asked while tidying up. “If you’re here to give me trouble, I haven’t done anything.”
“Do you really see me as some heartless woman?” Yue Jiuchu chuckled. “I was in the area handling business and thought of you nearby, so I stopped by.”
“Handling business?” Zhao Shuqing thought of the murdered mermaid nanny. “Something to do with that villa district incident?”
“You know about it.” Yue Jiuchu nodded. “That’s the one. We just finished questioning the family involved.”
Zhao Shuqing gave her a look, and Yue Jiuchu took the initiative. “Want the details?”
“Can I even hear them? Aren’t case details confidential?”
“Nothing that serious—you’re a special case.” Yue Jiuchu leaned against Zhao Shuqing’s car. “That mermaid had been working as a nanny for the family, caring for their bedridden elder. She got along well with them all. They said they’d picked her up homeless three years back, and she’d been their nanny ever since.”
“After the incident, the little nanny was ready to turn herself in, but the family stopped her,” Yue Jiuchu continued. “They thought she was a good girl—kindhearted and pitiful. They figured she had her reasons, so they hid her. During inspections, they’d stash her in the basement, so she never got detected.”
That struck Zhao Shuqing as odd. “So what gave her away in the end?”
Yue Jiuchu explained, “Their daughter came home. Once she learned the truth, she had the mermaid bound and dragged out. You saw the rest online.”
Zhao Shuqing recalled the mermaid nanny with her broken legs and that poignant gaze she had cast. Realization dawned.
After a long silence, she asked Yue Jiuchu, “Was she in love with the family’s daughter?”
Yue Jiuchu said nothing, but her silence confirmed it.
“Perhaps that’s just how it is between humans and mermaids.” Yue Jiuchu fished a cigarette from her pocket, flicked her lighter with a click, and took a deep drag. “Not every mermaid is good.”
A gust of wind made Zhao Shuqing cough. Yue Jiuchu blinked, then pinched out the cigarette. “Sorry. You don’t smoke, right?”
“It’s fine.” Zhao Shuqing waved it off, unperturbed.
She was simply stunned. A mermaid who had eaten humans—falling for one? Weren’t they supposed to be like Xu Tang, willing to do anything for breeding?
Speaking of which… “Any leads on Gu Yao?”
Yue Jiuchu shook her head. “We’ve checked several spots, but they always slipped away ahead of us. Last sighting was at a church, but it was empty by the time we arrived.” She paused. “Surveillance shows Gu Yao doesn’t seem abused, though. She looks healthy. We’ll keep tracking.”
“Good.”
They chatted idly a bit longer until Yue Jiuchu checked the time. “It’s getting colder with the snow. Don’t sleep in the car anymore—carbon monoxide poisoning stories are all over the news. Stay safe.”
Zhao Shuqing nodded. “I was just about to find a local hotel. The car’s too cramped anyway.”
Yue Jiuchu peered inside and spotted Pumpkin perched curiously on the driver’s seat, staring at her with wide, round eyes—wary yet adorable.
“Oh, you’ve got a cat?” Yue Jiuchu tapped the window glass with her fingernail to tease it. “Hey, little fatty, what’s your name?”
Pumpkin wrinkled her nose in disdain and turned away to use the litter box.
Unfazed by the snub, Yue Jiuchu watched with amusement as the cat did her business. “Kittens are just the cutest—even pooping looks good on them.”
Zhao Shuqing thought she was a bit off. Impatiently, she said, “If that’s all, head out. Stop bothering my cat—she’s spayed, no interest in that sort of thing.”
Yue Jiuchu rolled her eyes and straightened. “Fine, I won’t keep you. See you.”
Zhao Shuqing offered no goodbye. Truth be told, she wanted nothing to do with military types right now—especially not now.
Ever since Yue Jiuchu had shown up, that burning gaze had vanished. Zhao Shuqing checked the cluttered spot behind the fence one last time but found nothing. She drove off.
Hotels barred pets, but the bed-and-breakfast allowed it for extra cash. Even after Zhao Shuqing swore Pumpkin was well-behaved and would not scratch the furniture, the owner remained wary and demanded a thousand-yuan deposit.
She punched in the code lock and set down her bags and gear, then let Pumpkin out.
Little Fatty took to the new digs without fear, promptly patrolling her territory. She roamed the two rooms, sniffing here and there, even hopping onto the cabinet to test it out.
She approved.
Satisfied the cat was settled, Zhao Shuqing unpacked her own things. She had rented for a month and needed to get the lay of the land.
The bed-and-breakfast sat within a residential complex. Mermaid incidents nearby had thinned the population, so it stayed quiet most times—save for rush-hour bustle.
The old complex differed from sleek apartments: a long hallway front door, small units lining both sides, elevators at each end, about seven or eight per floor.
Zhao Shuqing liked the one-bedroom layout. Perfect for her and one cat.
If she could find Lin Feng, she would buy a place like this.
Or see what Lin Feng preferred—a spacious flat or villa, whatever. Zhao Shuqing was financially independent now; she just wanted to give the one she loved the best life possible.
As she tidied the room—determined to make it cozy for her month-long stay—she paid no heed to the figure that passed by the still-open door.
The woman wore a black hat, with strands of that familiar pale hair peeking from her temple…
