Chapter 19

Zhao Shuqing took in their full surroundings. This tree appeared to be the largest in the vicinity, its branches dense and sprawling wide while its trunk was extraordinarily thick—at least a dozen people would need to link hands to encircle it.

Over the past century, human activity had steadily declined, causing dramatic transformations in many species. Plants in particular were growing taller and more vigorous everywhere, and the massive tree beneath Zhao Shuqing’s feet stood as the perfect example.

“This branch looks pretty sturdy,” she murmured. The spot where she sat was over a meter wide, so as long as she didn’t thrash around, she wouldn’t go tumbling off. Even so, her heart still pounded with fear, and she scooted closer to the trunk just in case.

Lin Feng stared at Zhao Shuqing with a troubled frown, as if something weighed heavily on her mind.

Zhao Shuqing leaned over and gently stroked her head, letting out a helpless sigh. “It’s okay. We’re just in a bit of a bind. We’ll definitely get back in touch with Senior Sister soon.”

As she spoke, a sudden thought struck Zhao Shuqing. By rights, Xu Tang should have headed to Zhouling Township to find her by now. What if she had already run into those foreign operatives? They were armed—Xu Tang mustn’t get hurt.

“Oh no, where’s my phone?”

Zhao Shuqing hurriedly pulled out her waterproof pouch. She unzipped it and saw that everything inside was bone-dry, untouched by water. She exhaled a long breath of relief. If the pouch had gotten soaked too, she really would be cut off from all help.

She fished out her phone. The battery was at about forty percent, and Xu Tang had called more than twenty times—the most recent one three hours ago.

Zhao Shuqing dialed back immediately. The call connected almost at once.

“Senior Sister, are you okay?” Zhao Shuqing blurted out the day’s events in a rapid-fire burst, like a machine gun rattling away, then asked anxiously, “You haven’t run into those people, have you?”

There was a long silence on the other end before Xu Tang finally spoke, her voice slow and heavy. “We have. We lost three colleagues.”

Zhao Shuqing’s heart clenched. “How could that… ” She furrowed her brow deeply. “I’m sorry. This is all my fault…”

“What does this have to do with you?” Xu Tang replied softly. “I’m just glad you’re safe.”

“Senior Sister, what about you all…?”

“We weren’t armed at the time. When we ran into them, we had no choice but to run. We shook them off in the end, but going back to Zhouling Township now means we’d need to loop in the local armed forces.” Xu Tang continued, “Shuqing, don’t do anything rash. Stay safe where you are. We’ll come get you in the next couple of days.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded. “Got it. I’m hiding out in the dense woods here—someplace called Spinning Top Ridge. It’s huge, and the forest is thick. They won’t find us anytime soon.”

“Do you have enough water and food?”

“Yeah, we stocked up in Zhouling Township earlier. We’ve still got some left.”

Xu Tang let out a relieved breath. “Good. Stay safe, no matter what.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded again. “My phone’s about to die, Senior Sister. I’ll hang up now.”

“Wait.”

Xu Tang stopped her. She hesitated for over a minute before saying, “If you’re in danger, don’t worry about that mermaid. Hand her over to them if you have to.”

“What?” Zhao Shuqing froze. “Senior Sister, why would you…”

“Nothing is more important than you.” Xu Tang’s tone turned deadly serious. “She’s just a mermaid. If you can’t bring her back, kill her or let her go—whatever it takes, as long as you make it home safe. Understand, Shuqing?”

Zhao Shuqing opened her mouth, but no words came at first. Of course she understood Xu Tang’s point.

Mermaids could be recaptured. Worst case, they’d head back to the Pacific Ocean. If they had caught one, they could catch another—or a dozen more.

But there was only one Zhao Shuqing. She was a key asset at the Research Institute, groomed with vast resources and funding.

A mermaid’s life couldn’t compare to hers.

Even before they had set out to sea, her mentor had drilled it into Zhao Shuqing: human life came before everything else.

“…I understand,” she said finally, closing her eyes. “I’ll bring Lin Feng back safe and sound.”

Xu Tang fell quiet for a moment, then sighed softly. “Alright, hang up. Save some battery for when we come find you.”

After the call ended, Zhao Shuqing stared at the screen, unable to calm down.

She knew the logic all too well. But abandoning Lin Feng like that? She couldn’t do it.

Lin Feng had saved her multiple times already—and this time, she had thrown herself right in harm’s way. There was no way Zhao Shuqing could just hand her over.

A thought jolted her.

Wait—had Lin Feng gotten hurt?

Zhao Shuqing pocketed her phone and turned to Lin Feng, who sat obediently nearby, watching her. The mermaid was perched on her own tail, her pajamas rumpled and hanging off her in disarray, making her look rather bedraggled.

“You…”

Zhao Shuqing scooted closer, concern etching her face. “Are you hurt? Where? Let me see.”

Lin Feng understood and rolled up her short sleeve to show her. There, on her beautiful pale arm, ran a clear white scar—deep enough to look serious.

Zhao Shuqing frowned and pulled Lin Feng onto her lap for a closer look at the gash on her upper arm.

“No foreign objects inside,” she concluded after gently pressing around it. “It’s just a scrape. You’ll be fine.”

She looked up at Lin Feng and softened her voice. “Next time something like this happens, you absolutely can’t step in front of me again. This isn’t some TV drama. If anything happened to you, how could I go on?”

Lin Feng tilted her head, gazing at her. Seeming to sense Zhao Shuqing’s worry, she flicked her long, lovely tail and leaned against her shoulder like a aggrieved kitten, murmuring, “Hurts.”

Zhao Shuqing laughed. “So you know what ‘hurts’ means, huh?”

Lin Feng stared at her earnestly and repeated, soft and plaintive, “Hurts.”

“Alright, alright. I’ll blow on it.” Zhao Shuqing puffed cool air on the arm, then rubbed it gently. “That’s what we humans do for injuries. One good puff, and it gets better.”

Lin Feng’s eyes widened a little, watching her in confusion.

Zhao Shuqing went on. “We’ve known each other so long now. You’ve saved me so many times, and I even named you. We’re not just anyone to each other, right?”

Lin Feng tilted her head. “Zhao Shuqing.”

Zhao Shuqing mimicked her. “Hm?”

Lin Feng wiggled her arm and whispered again, “Hurts.”

Hurts, my foot. You just want me to blow on it some more.

Zhao Shuqing smiled, helpless yet utterly indulgent. She huffed on the pale scar a couple more times. Lin Feng seemed to discover the fun in it, chirping “Hurts” over a dozen times until Zhao Shuqing had blown that many.

By the end, her lips were numb. “Enough,” she said sternly. “Any more, and I’ll end up bucktoothed.”

Lin Feng pouted in grievance, rubbing her now warm scar contentedly before nestling against Zhao Shuqing’s shoulder.

With Lin Feng confirmed unharmed, Zhao Shuqing felt much better. She grabbed her backpack, pulled out some food from their Zhouling Township haul, and handed Lin Feng a rice ball, showing her how to eat it.

In the pitch black, they ate by moonlight, padding their stomachs with the rice balls.

Zhao Shuqing glanced at her phone—it was past eleven at night. Lin Feng was getting sleepy, yawning halfway through her rice ball. To keep her from falling, Zhao Shuqing pulled her close, draped an outer jacket over them both.

What a shame about that blanket and the wheelchair, she thought idly, cradling Lin Feng.

Lin Feng slept soundly in her arms. Zhao Shuqing patted her shoulder, cooing like a mother with a child. Before long, sleep claimed her too. The two thus embraced against the trunk and drifted off.

She had barely nodded off when someone shook her awake.

“Hm?”

Zhao Shuqing rubbed her eyes. The moonlight now hung directly overhead; it had to be the early hours of morning. She whispered to Lin Feng, “What’s wrong?”

Lin Feng was fully alert. She stood tall on the branch, her tail propping her body high as she peered vigilantly into the dense forest ahead. She pointed that way and said, “Go.”

“Go?”

Zhao Shuqing didn’t catch on at first, but it clicked soon enough. Lin Feng had said the same word when they spotted the black sedan earlier. Now pointing at the distant woods and repeating “Go,” it had to mean those people were closing in again.

The realization snapped her awake. She frowned. “Is it that group from before?”

Lin Feng nodded slightly, tugging at Zhao Shuqing’s clothes. “Go.”

Zhao Shuqing stuffed the jacket into her backpack, slung it on, and said, “Okay, let’s go.”

She was puzzling over how to descend from fifteen meters up when Lin Feng tugged her clothes again, turned, squatted down, and glanced back expectantly.

“You…” Zhao Shuqing stared in surprise. “You want to carry me?”

Lin Feng nodded, urging her to hurry.

Zhao Shuqing eyed Lin Feng’s slender frame, wondering if she could manage the weight. But remembering how this mermaid could fly through the air, dive into the earth, rip apart a wild boar barehanded, and shield her from bullets, she chided herself for doubting an ocean overlord. Without hesitation, she shouldered her pack and clambered onto Lin Feng’s back.

No sooner had she settled than Lin Feng whipped her tail and descended the tree in under five seconds—faster than an elevator.

Without pause on landing, Lin Feng “swam” swiftly into the forest ahead, her long tail sweeping away every trace of their passage. Zhao Shuqing glanced back; not a sign of their trail remained.

She even thinks to cover our tracks. A true ocean overlord.

Lin Feng carried Zhao Shuqing at speed, soon leaving the rest area far behind. Only when they reached an unknown clearing did she slow to a stop.

Zhao Shuqing figured Lin Feng must be tired and patted her shoulder to signal she could get down. Lin Feng lowered her gently.

“We’ve come so far; they won’t catch up now.” Zhao Shuqing eyed the low shrubs in the clearing, set down her pack, and patted the spot beside her. “Come rest a bit.”