Chapter 36

The news of Lin Feng’s injury quickly reached the higher-ups, and by the time Xu Tang and Shen Qingming arrived, it was already two in the afternoon.

Zhao Shuqing ushered the two of them inside. It was Shen Qingming’s first time seeing a mermaid. The moment his eyes landed on Lin Feng, he froze for a long while, staring intently at her face while his hands trembled slightly.

Zhao Shuqing found it odd and was about to speak up when Xu Tang cut her off.

“How’s the situation?” Xu Tang asked her.

Zhao Shuqing pulled her gaze away and set aside Teacher Shen’s strange behavior for the moment. She lowered her voice to Xu Tang. “It’s a bit troublesome.”

Lin Feng had lost too much blood at this stage, and they had no compatible blood to give her. Although genetic tests showed her blood was 99% similar to humans’, that persistent 1% difference meant no one knew what adverse reactions human blood might cause.

After discussion, the doctors decided to let Lin Feng recover on her own, increasing the dosage as needed and avoiding any uncertain factors.

Zhao Shuqing didn’t dare take risks, so she had no choice but to accept conservative treatment for now. Fortunately, mermaids healed quickly, so there shouldn’t be too much cause for worry.

“Senior Sister,” Zhao Shuqing said after a moment’s thought, looking at Xu Tang. “I’m not satisfied with the investigation results from the oceanarium. They claim it was an orca, but I don’t buy it. When I asked them to pull up the surveillance footage, they said the system was down and they couldn’t access it.”

Xu Tang’s eyes flickered slightly as she regarded Zhao Shuqing thoughtfully. “Oh? You don’t believe them?”

Zhao Shuqing nodded. “Definitely not. That’s why I wanted to ask Senior Sister for a favor—could you look into this matter again?”

Xu Tang gave her a deep look and pondered for three seconds before agreeing. “I understand. I’ll investigate it myself.”

Relief washed over Zhao Shuqing now that Xu Tang had agreed. After all, she didn’t trust anyone else here except Xu Tang.

The two of them chatted casually a bit more about Lin Feng’s condition. Xu Tang seemed particularly concerned, asking detailed questions, but Zhao Shuqing didn’t find anything amiss and answered them all one by one.

When they entered the ward, Zhao Shuqing saw that Shen Qingming was still standing by the bedside, his eyes wide as he stared fixedly at the unconscious Lin Feng. His face had gone pale.

“Teacher?” Zhao Shuqing looked at him in surprise. “Are you all right? Do you feel unwell somewhere?”

Shen Qingming snapped out of it then, glancing at Zhao Shuqing before shaking his head repeatedly. “No, I’m fine. I just… This is my first time seeing a mermaid up close. I’m a bit excited, that’s all.”

Her first time?

Zhao Shuqing gazed at him in confusion. “Didn’t Teacher say you’d seen a mermaid twenty years ago?”

Shen Qingming froze. “Ah? Oh, right, twenty years ago. But it was so long ago that I don’t really remember what they looked like anymore.”

He took another deep look at Lin Feng before turning to Xu Tang and Zhao Shuqing. “I’ve just remembered some unfinished business. You two can handle things here.”

With that, Shen Qingming strode out of the ward.

“Hey?” Zhao Shuqing started to chase after him to discuss her paper, but Xu Tang stopped her. “I’ll go check on Teacher. You stay here with Lin Feng.”

Zhao Shuqing hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Okay, Senior Sister, go ahead.”

She could bring up the paper with Shen Qingming another time.

They had come in such a hurry and left just as quickly. Zhao Shuqing couldn’t figure out what they were up to. She shook her head, glanced at Lin Feng once more, and decided not to dwell on it. Instead, she sat back down by the bedside.

“Lin Feng.”

Zhao Shuqing took the hand of the person on the bed and gently brought it to her lips for a kiss. In a soft voice, she murmured, “Wake up soon…”

Perhaps due to the severe blood loss, Lin Feng remained unconscious for a full two days.

During that time, countless experts and scholars came to examine her wounds, but none dared to touch them. Zhao Shuqing could only stand by anxiously.

Fortunately, the mermaid’s self-healing abilities were impressive. This coma seemed to be her body’s way of adjusting itself. When they changed the bandages and applied fresh medicine the second time, the deep and shallow wounds had already healed by seventy or eighty percent. They were still serious, though—doctors estimated it would be about two months before she could get out of bed and three months before she could go back in the water.

When Lin Feng slowly opened her eyes, she saw Zhao Shuqing standing nearby, discussing something with a doctor in a white coat.

Lin Feng’s eyelashes fluttered slightly. She parted her lips to call Zhao Shuqing’s name but suddenly stopped herself.

She still remembered what Xu Tang had said to her that night.

【If Zhao Shuqing knew you were such a monster, would she still treat you this well?】

【Don’t forget your mission on land: to make humans think mermaids are just mermaids.】

【I can’t trust you to complete the task, so I’ll handle it personally.】

Xu Tang’s words had filled Lin Feng with rage and panic. She had wanted to flee, but Xu Tang wouldn’t let her. She had even dragged her into the pool, forcing her tail to emerge, before the two of them tore into each other.

Lin Feng’s memories of that fight were fuzzy now. It had hurt too much—her tail had nearly been shredded by Xu Tang.

She had broken out of the enclosure and tried to escape into the deeper water, but Xu Tang clearly had no intention of letting her go. The two roared at each other in the water, but Lin Feng was no match for her opponent and ended up covered in wounds.

Before blacking out, Lin Feng had seen Xu Tang open the orca’s enclosure. The bewildered orca had panicked and fled without looking back.

Lin Feng tried to sit up, but even the slightest movement sent pain shooting through her entire body. Her head spun dizzily, sapped of strength. She had barely lifted it when vertigo hit, and she collapsed back down heavily.

“Urgh…”

The movement on the bed immediately drew the attention of the two nearby. Zhao Shuqing whipped her head around and saw that Lin Feng was awake. Her eyes lit up, and she hurried over with concern. “You’re awake? Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”

Lying in bed, Lin Feng gazed up at the face so close to hers. A wave of grievance surged up, and tears slid from her eyes into her pale hair. Choking back sobs, she said to Zhao Shuqing, “It hurts…”

Zhao Shuqing’s heart ached terribly. She reached out to stroke Lin Feng’s face and wipe away her tears. “It’s okay, it’s okay. You were injured, of course it’s going to hurt. I’ll have the doctor prescribe something for the pain.”

With that, she turned back to the doctor, who quickly called over more staff to begin checking on Lin Feng.

Lin Feng didn’t want to be touched, but she was too weak right now. As the doctors and nurses poked and prodded, she could only glare in impotent frustration, helpless to stop them.

Zhao Shuqing sat beside her, watching Lin Feng’s reluctant expression. She wanted to laugh but held it back. Instead, she reached out to cover Lin Feng’s eyes and whispered in her ear, “I’m right here. Don’t be scared.”

Lin Feng’s breath hitched at her words, and she soon stopped squirming.

The doctors and nurses exchanged a glance but said nothing extra. They finished up quickly and slipped away.

One of the nurses said to Zhao Shuqing, “I’ll come back when the nutrient solution is almost done.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded and finally released her hand from over Lin Feng’s eyes.

Lin Feng blinked back into the sunlight—and the sight of Zhao Shuqing bathed in it—looking a little dazed. Zhao Shuqing gazed at her and smiled gently. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

Lin Feng suddenly remembered something and turned her head away, refusing to look.

Zhao Shuqing’s heart skipped a beat. She hurried to reassure her. “I’m sorry. I was wrong. I shouldn’t have confined you or ignored you for so long.”

Lin Feng kept her head turned toward the opposite wall, unmoved.

“I bought a bunch of snacks to apologize to you with,” Zhao Shuqing coaxed softly, holding Lin Feng’s hand. “But before I could even see you, this happened. I promise, from now on, I won’t lose my temper with you so easily.”

Lin Feng perked up her ears and listened for a long while before realizing that Zhao Shuqing was making amends.

She turned her head slightly to look at Zhao Shuqing. Their eyes met, and Lin Feng glanced down at their clasped hands before murmuring, “Zhao Shuqing…”

“Mm, I’m here.” Zhao Shuqing’s voice was gentle. “I’ll always be by your side.”

Lin Feng let out little aggrieved hums, tears pattering down nonstop. Zhao Shuqing sat there, wiping them away with a mix of heartache and amusement. She cooed to her softly for half an hour until the nurse came to remove the IV.

Zhao Shuqing had been planning to get some food for Lin Feng but hadn’t decided between fish or porridge yet when she turned back and saw Lin Feng had already drifted off to sleep again.

Zhao Shuqing touched her cool cheek, hesitated for a few seconds, then leaned down to plant a gentle kiss on Lin Feng’s forehead.

“Good night, my Mermaid Miss.”

Without any blood transfusions, all Lin Feng could do was sleep and sleep and sleep, slowing her bodily functions to let every cell focus on repairing the wounds.

When she woke from this nap, she felt much better—not as weak as during the day. She was even starting to feel hungry.

She noticed lights on in the ward and turned her head to see Zhao Shuqing sitting on the nearby sofa. Her laptop rested on her lap as she focused intently on the screen, her fingers tapping lightly at the keyboard with soft clacking sounds.

So absorbed was she that Zhao Shuqing didn’t notice Lin Feng had woken right away. After writing on her paper for a while, her eyes grew sore, and the hunched posture had left her back and waist aching. Just as she was about to set the laptop aside and stretch, she caught a pair of big blue eyes staring at her.

It was the middle of the night, and the sight gave Zhao Shuqing a real start.

“Why didn’t you say something if you were awake?” Zhao Shuqing set her things aside and came over, reaching out to touch Lin Feng’s cheek. It felt a little warmer. She grabbed the thermometer from the bedside table and said, “Let me check your temperature first.”

Lin Feng stared blankly at the small device in her hand. Then she watched as Zhao Shuqing lifted her arm and tucked the thermometer under it.

“Urgh…” Lin Feng shivered involuntarily, her eyelashes quivering as she told Zhao Shuqing, “Itchy.”

Zhao Shuqing let out a breath of relief. Itchy was better than painful.

“It’s fine,” she reassured her. “Just a little longer.”

A minute later, she checked the thermometer. The temperature was frighteningly low, but it was normal for a fish-like creature. Zhao Shuqing put it away and tucked the blanket around Lin Feng more snugly.

Lin Feng furrowed her delicate brows and looked at her pleadingly. “Hot.”

Zhao Shuqing chuckled and loosened it a bit. “Your vocabulary’s really improving lately. Who knows—maybe one day we’ll be able to have a real conversation.”

Lin Feng simply watched her quietly, her beautiful eyes downcast, saying nothing.

One day… Would they even have a future together?

Noticing Lin Feng’s low spirits, Zhao Shuqing reached out to rub her cheeks gently. In a soft voice, she asked, “Lin Feng, are you hungry?”