Chapter 40

The last time Lin Feng had visited Zhao Shuqing’s home was in the dead of night, when she had snuck in and given Zhao Shuqing quite a scare. Today, however, she could enter through the front door openly and without a care.

Before her arrival, Zhao Shuqing had already tidied up the dormitory. Wen Xiaoying wheeled her in and gazed around the single-person dorm with undisguised envy in her eyes.

“Wow, your dorm looks amazing,” Wen Xiaoying sighed. “Ours are all metal bunk beds, with four or five people crammed into one room. If you don’t want to live in the communal dorms, you have to rent a place outside.”

Zhao Shuqing smiled and slid open the partition door. She glanced at the new bathtub before turning back to Lin Feng. “Come take a look. Does this meet with your approval?”

Lin Feng’s eyes lit up the moment she spotted the bathtub. She quickly beckoned Zhao Shuqing to bring her closer.

No sooner had Zhao Shuqing lifted her to the side of the tub than Lin Feng eagerly climbed in. She frowned and looked up when she realized there was no water. “Where’s the water?”

“I haven’t filled it yet.” Zhao Shuqing couldn’t help laughing at the sight of Lin Feng sitting in the empty bathtub. She scooped her back out and said, “No bath today. We’ll do it this afternoon instead.”

Lin Feng gazed at the bathtub longingly, reluctant to be parted from it.

Wen Xiaoying had to get back to work, so she left after dropping her off. Zhao Shuqing politely escorted her downstairs before returning. The moment she stepped back inside, however, Lin Feng was nowhere to be seen. A quick search revealed her already perched in the bathtub, staring eagerly at Zhao Shuqing as if begging her to fill it.

Zhao Shuqing: “…”

Fine, fine. You’re my little ancestor.

She hooked up the hose and started filling the tub. Lin Feng, who hadn’t seen water in days, looked absolutely delighted. Worried that cold water might make her sick, Zhao Shuqing mixed in some hot water until the temperature hovered around ninety degrees Fahrenheit.

Lin Feng lay back comfortably in the bathtub, basking in the warm sunlight.

The doctor had warned that her injuries couldn’t get wet, so Zhao Shuqing only filled it shallowly, just enough to cover Lin Feng’s waist. She wrapped the mermaid’s tail in plastic wrap, making it look like a fish ready for the grill.

Lin Feng stared at her own tail in a daze. After a long moment, her eyes reddened as she hugged it close and murmured, “Ugly.”

Zhao Shuqing blinked in surprise. “What’s ugly?”

“My tail’s ugly,” Lin Feng mumbled.

Zhao Shuqing glanced at the tail. It was covered in heavy scars, with scales missing in patches, resembling a case of animal alopecia. The once-beautiful, iridescent tail—like multicolored glass—was now half-ruined.

It did look pretty ugly.

But Zhao Shuqing didn’t mind.

“It’s not ugly.” She rubbed Lin Feng’s tail gently. “Not ugly at all.”

Lin Feng insisted stubbornly, “It is ugly.”

How was she supposed to court a mate with such an ugly tail?

The other fish would see it all tattered and torn and definitely wouldn’t want her.

At the thought, Lin Feng’s eyes welled up again, her nose turning pink as if she’d suffered the greatest injustice imaginable.

Looking into Lin Feng’s eyes, Zhao Shuqing inexplicably lifted the tail in her hands and pressed a soft kiss to it.

Lin Feng’s eyes widened at the sight.

Was she… kissing her tail?

A mermaid’s tail could only be touched by a mate. Close companions might stroke it occasionally, and Lin Feng didn’t mind Zhao Shuqing—a clueless human—doing so. It wasn’t as if it would cost her any flesh.

But now, Zhao Shuqing was kissing her injured tail—an act reserved strictly for courtship between mates.

Lin Feng’s heart raced in confusion. She yanked her tail back and clutched it tightly to her chest, not daring to meet the eyes of the person before her.

Zhao Shuqing froze for a second, then realized what she’d done. After a pause, she said to Lin Feng, “See? I don’t mind your tail being ugly, so don’t be sad.”

Lin Feng shot her a resentful glance. It wasn’t about ugliness anymore, was it?

“You can’t… kiss the tail,” Lin Feng said, her face flushing red.

“Mm.” Zhao Shuqing averted her gaze and murmured, “I won’t do it again next time.”

Next time?

She wanted a next time???

Lin Feng peeked at her cautiously, then looked away as well. She patted the water’s surface and whispered, “Too little water.”

Zhao Shuqing hummed softly in acknowledgment and silently added more water to the tub.

In addition to the water, Zhao Shuqing had sprinkled in some sea salt. Lin Feng loved the scent of it. She was over the moon sitting in the bathtub, her earlier sullen expression vanishing in an instant. She played happily with the little yellow duck Zhao Shuqing had given her, refusing to leave even for lunch.

But no matter how much she loved it, she couldn’t soak forever—especially since the doctor had forbidden water on her wounds. Even with plastic wrap, it wasn’t ideal. As the sun began to set that afternoon, Zhao Shuqing fished her out, dried her off, and placed her on the bed.

Zhao Shuqing showed Lin Feng how to towel-dry her hair and introduced her to the hairdryer. Lin Feng had never seen one before. When Zhao Shuqing switched it on, she got such a fright that she flung it across the room. Zhao Shuqing laughed until her sides hurt.

That evening, Zhao Shuqing cooked dinner herself.

Her culinary skills weren’t exceptional, but she could manage a simple meal. She planned to make fish fillet porridge and steamed fish—Lin Feng’s favorites—while frying up some sour and spicy potato shreds for herself.

Lin Feng was bursting with curiosity and wanted to get out of bed to peer into the tiny kitchenette, wondering what Zhao Shuqing was doing in there that produced a sudden sizzle one moment and a steady bubbling the next.

But with her injured tail, she couldn’t get down for the time being.

Once everything was ready, Zhao Shuqing brought out the folding table and set it up beside the bed. She carried the dishes over one by one.

Lin Feng stared at the food. “Wow.”

Delighted by her reaction, Zhao Shuqing pulled up a chair and sat down. “You drink the porridge, and I’ll eat my meal.”

Lin Feng nodded and reached for the bowl, only to yelp in pain as the heat seared her. She hissed sharply.

“Too hot?” Zhao Shuqing quickly took Lin Feng’s hand and inspected it. There were no blisters—likely just the scalding bowl combined with Lin Feng’s low body temperature. Relieved, she said, “My fault, I forgot. Fresh porridge is still piping hot. Here, let me get you a towel.”

She fetched a clean towel from the kitchen, along with a porcelain spoon.

Sitting beside her, Zhao Shuqing stirred the still-warm porridge, blew on it, and tasted a bit herself. The flavor was fine, and the temperature perfect—or so she hoped Lin Feng would think.

“Here, try a bite.” Zhao Shuqing blew on a spoonful until it cooled and gently touched it to Lin Feng’s lips.

Lin Feng looked at Zhao Shuqing, then down at the spoon.

It was a cute milky-yellow bear spoon Zhao Shuqing had bought online on a whim. Lin Feng studied it for a long moment before opening her mouth to take the porridge.

“Too hot?” Zhao Shuqing asked.

Lin Feng shook her head.

Zhao Shuqing smiled and handed her the bowl and spoon. She moved back to her seat across the table, picked up her chopsticks, and said, “Alright then, let’s eat.”

Lin Feng had used spoons for meals before—chopsticks were still tricky for her—so whenever she wanted something, she pointed with her spoon. Zhao Shuqing would then place it into the spoon for her to eat.

They took their time with the meal, both with healthy appetites that day. Lin Feng polished off a whole fish, while Zhao Shuqing finished her plate of potato shreds.

As she was clearing the dishes, Zhao Shuqing heard the door to the neighboring room. She guessed Gu Yao must be back.

Sure enough, seconds later came a knock, followed by Gu Yao’s loud call from outside. “I see the lights on! Shuqing, are you back?”

Lin Feng heard it too. Her ears perked up as she shouted toward Zhao Shuqing in the kitchenette, “Someone’s here!”

Zhao Shuqing hummed in response, wiped her hands, and opened the door to find Gu Yao’s face peering in.

“Oh my god, you really are back!” Gu Yao exclaimed in surprise. “What about Lin Feng? Is she okay alone at the hospital?”

Zhao Shuqing stepped aside so Gu Yao could see Lin Feng sitting on the bed.

Gu Yao: “Whoa, you actually brought Lin Feng home!”

With that, she breezily pushed past Zhao Shuqing and strode in. Zhao Shuqing watched as Gu Yao plopped down on the chair by the bed, her eyes lighting up at the sight of Lin Feng.

“Hello,” Lin Feng greeted her proactively.

“Hi there~” Gu Yao beamed, her eyes sparkling. “Your speech is getting so much smoother! I remember when you first started, you could barely talk. Do you understand me now?”

Lin Feng nodded, her eyes crinkling into happy crescents as she said, “Gu Yao.”

Gu Yao: “…”

Mom, the beautiful mermaid just called my name!

Her heart pounding with excitement and her hands trembling, Gu Yao whipped out her phone and started recording. “Could you say my name again? I want to send it to my family group—they have to see this real-life mermaid!”

Lin Feng tilted her head. “Gu Yao?”

Gu Yao trembled with glee. Zhao Shuqing couldn’t stand it anymore and shoved her playfully. “You’ve got your video—don’t post it everywhere, or I’ll sue you for invading the mermaid’s right of publicity.”

Gu Yao glanced at her. “Lin Feng isn’t yours alone. What right do you have to sue?”

Zhao Shuqing huffed coldly. “She is mine alone.”

Gu Yao eyed her with disdain.

“Perfect timing—you’re here. Come help me tidy the balcony.” Zhao Shuqing wasn’t about to let Gu Yao leave empty-handed; she was free labor now.

Though reluctant, Gu Yao followed Zhao Shuqing to the balcony. She blinked at the large white bathtub there. “What’s this? Where’d you get such a huge tub?”

Zhao Shuqing rolled up her sleeves. “Lin Feng’s staying with me for a while, so I bought it specially for her. Your balcony’s empty—help me move it to your place.”

Gu Yao pouted but pitched in, grumbling all the while.

As the two bustled away on the balcony, Lin Feng poked her head over the edge of the bed, craning her neck anxiously. She didn’t want them damaging her precious bathtub, or she wouldn’t be able to soak anymore.

While peering curiously in that direction, Lin Feng caught a glimpse of something yellow out of the corner of her eye, ambling toward the door.

She turned just in time to lock eyes with the plump cat at the threshold.

Pumpkin narrowed her eyes slightly, sniffing the air as she regarded Lin Feng on the bed. Then her perpetually half-closed eyes widened, gleaming with interest as she stared.

The moment Lin Feng laid eyes on her, her whole body went rigid. The sensation was even more terrifying than encountering Xu Tang.

She watched in horror as the fat cat padded silently inside, flicked her tail, and leaped onto the bed with a thud.

Lin Feng grabbed the blanket and screamed at the top of her lungs. “Aaaah!”