Discovering her own likeness in documents from twenty years ago left Zhao Shuqing feeling utterly incredulous.
Her childhood memories were hazy at best. She only knew that both her parents had been fishermen. One day, they had set out to sea and encountered a typhoon. The boat capsized with them on it, and their bodies were never found—they must have sunk into the ocean’s depths.
The Zhao family had few relatives back then, and with no one to care for her, young Zhao Shuqing had been sent to the orphanage.
Unlike the old-fashioned orphanages of the past, this one was different because there were so few children. Every child received excellent education and care. There had been people eager to adopt Zhao Shuqing when she was little, but she had refused. The orphanage had respected her wishes as a child and allowed her to stay until she turned eighteen.
Zhao Shuqing had gotten into university and taken out a student loan to cover her tuition. She worked part-time jobs to make ends meet, and her life hadn’t been too bad. After that, she had pursued her master’s and doctorate degrees. Upon graduating, she had started working alongside Shen Qingming and Xu Tang, living a peaceful life right up until now.
But there, in those twenty-year-old documents, she had seen Shen Qingming holding her as a child—and claiming that she had been a gift from the mermaid.
What did that mean?
Zhao Shuqing frowned as she pondered it. Was he saying… that she had once been saved by a mermaid?
She desperately wanted to ask Shen Qingming about it, but an inexplicable sense of resistance welled up inside her. Zhao Shuqing felt that he had changed—or perhaps this Shen Qingming was not the same one she had known before.
Until she could get to the bottom of it, Zhao Shuqing decided to bury her questions deep in her heart and wait for the right moment to bring them up.
She then clicked open a few more files and noticed some odd inconsistencies.
Every one of Shen Qingming’s papers listed only him as the author, and there was scant raw data.
Having only his own name on the papers made sense. Some research didn’t involve help or guidance from others, so listing just one’s own name was perfectly fine—as Zhao Shuqing did with her own publications.
But the lack of raw data was suspicious.
All things left traces of their existence. Marine biology relied on those traces as supporting evidence to confirm the habits and lifestyles of new species. Yet Shen Qingming’s data was too direct.
It was as if the mermaid had taken a camera, snapped photos of her own lair and traces, then handed the camera back to him.
All the subsequent documents were the same—straightforward, as though the mermaid had delivered the data right to his doorstep, enabling him to pen groundbreaking papers from thousands of miles away.
The more Zhao Shuqing read, the more off it seemed.
She even began to wonder: was Lin Feng truly the only mermaid in the world?
Could it be that mermaids had appeared long ago?
When Zhao Shuqing finally looked up again, night had already fallen. She blinked in surprise, suddenly remembering that she had left Lin Feng back at the oceanarium.
She hurriedly pulled out her phone and realized she had silenced it at some point. Wen Xiaoying had called several times, all missed, with the last one an hour ago.
Zhao Shuqing bolted out the door in a panic, jogging all the way to the oceanarium. She arrived panting and out of breath.
Wen Xiaoying, who had seen this before, greeted her casually. “Lin Feng’s waiting for you inside. Go check on her.”
Zhao Shuqing thanked her profusely and rushed in. Pushing open the door, she saw Lin Feng sitting by the pool’s edge, combing her hair and staring thoughtfully at the water’s surface.
Hearing the noise, Lin Feng turned to glance at her, then narrowed her eyes. With a flick of her hand, she hurled the comb straight at Zhao Shuqing, hitting her squarely on the forehead. Zhao Shuqing yelped in pain.
Lin Feng hadn’t expected her not to dodge. She stared in surprise before asking after a moment, “Why didn’t you dodge?”
Rubbing her forehead, Zhao Shuqing walked over with a wry smile and sat by the pool. “If I dodged, you’d be even angrier. It’s not like a comb will kill me.”
Lin Feng felt a pang of heartache. She scooted closer and rubbed Zhao Shuqing’s forehead, glaring at the red spot. “What time is it? Why didn’t you come pick me up?”
“Sorry, I got caught up reading the documents and lost track of time.” Zhao Shuqing held Lin Feng’s hand and explained softly, “I had my phone on silent, so I missed your calls. I promise I’ll do better next time.”
Lin Feng puffed out her cheeks, ignoring her in a huff.
For the past few days, Zhao Shuqing had been inexplicably busy, running off every day. She claimed it was to look after Shen Qingming, but she kept forgetting to pick Lin Feng up.
Lin Feng was starting to suspect that the woman had found another fish on the side, which was why she wasn’t as attentive as before.
In the past, Zhao Shuqing wouldn’t have dreamed of letting her wait, and she’d go to any lengths to coax her if she was upset.
But now? Cold and dismissive. So superficial.
Was this the legendary seven-year itch?
No, they hadn’t even been together for seven months.
The more she thought about it, the angrier Lin Feng got. She really wanted to swat her with her big tail, but seeing Zhao Shuqing hurt made her ache too. Either way, it only fueled her frustration.
Knowing she was in the wrong, Zhao Shuqing pulled her into an embrace and murmured apologies, recounting everything she had done that day in detail to prove she hadn’t been up to no good.
“You have a check-up tomorrow,” Zhao Shuqing said, her arms around Lin Feng’s waist. “How about we treat ourselves to something nice tonight? Hot pot sound good?”
The mention of another check-up soured Lin Feng’s mood.
She hated being poked and prodded, and she especially loathed those colorful machines scanning her body every which way. She had resisted from the start—if Zhao Shuqing didn’t always accompany her, she wouldn’t have continued.
Lin Feng scowled. “I don’t want to go for the check-up.”
Zhao Shuqing chuckled. “I’ll go with you.”
Lin Feng glanced at her, hesitated, then scooted closer. “You haven’t kissed me in days.”
Zhao Shuqing feigned innocence. “Have I not? Didn’t we kiss a couple days ago?”
“No.” Lin Feng sounded displeased. “I have a good memory. No kiss means no kiss.”
Zhao Shuqing laughed and leaned in, planting a quick peck on Lin Feng’s cheek.
Lin Feng stared at her. “That’s it?”
Zhao Shuqing raised an eyebrow. “What else?”
Who kisses like that?
Lin Feng pressed closer, settling onto Zhao Shuqing’s lap, and demanded, “You didn’t used to kiss me like that.”
Looking at the mermaid so near, Zhao Shuqing grinned mischievously. She wrapped an arm around her waist and murmured, “So how did I used to kiss you?”
“Well…” Lin Feng’s cheeks flushed; she was too shy to say it outright.
Back in the room before, even though Lin Feng had always been the one begging for intimacy, it was usually the woman who took the initiative. Lin Feng just sat in Zhao Shuqing’s lap, letting her tangle their tongues and caress her tail.
Saying it herself now felt embarrassing.
Zhao Shuqing’s hand glided over Lin Feng’s smooth back. For a mermaid, Lin Feng’s skin was incredibly silky. Though her tail was covered in scales, it felt like it had a natural gelatinous coating—slippery, as if it might slip from her grasp at any moment.
Feeling Lin Feng’s warmth, seeing her flushed cheeks and full lips, Zhao Shuqing decided not to tease her Mermaid Miss any longer. With a gentle pull at her waist, she drew her close.
Lin Feng startled and instinctively pressed her hands on Zhao Shuqing’s shoulders. Perhaps she used too much strength, because Zhao Shuqing lost her balance and tumbled onto the poolside tiles.
Her black hair fanned out across the floor, exposing her smooth forehead. Lying there, Zhao Shuqing blinked up at Lin Feng on top of her and teased, “Feeling bold today?”
Lin Feng’s face turned scarlet with embarrassment. She tried to get up, but Zhao Shuqing held her waist fast.
“This position works too,” Zhao Shuqing said, her eyes crinkling with laughter as she stroked Lin Feng’s lower back. “Come on, kiss me.”
It couldn’t always be her taking the lead.
Lin Feng’s pale skin took on a pink hue, but her expression grew serious, as if weighing the idea.
Just when Zhao Shuqing thought she might back out, Lin Feng placed one hand on the floor by her ear and leaned down, capturing her lips.
Lin Feng’s kisses were still clumsy, just the tip of her tongue lapping at Zhao Shuqing’s lips like a playful kitten. Zhao Shuqing couldn’t help but laugh.
Feeling mocked, Lin Feng pulled back in a huff, but Zhao Shuqing caught her wrist, guided her head down, and kissed her again.
Light and dark hair mingled together. Zhao Shuqing’s tongue led the way as they kissed passionately. Lin Feng’s long tailfin trailed in the water, shimmering like pearls under the moonlight.
Zhao Shuqing held her waist, feeling the tail rubbing against her. Glancing down, she saw that Lin Feng’s scales had parted.
Blushing furiously, Lin Feng covered Zhao Shuqing’s eyes and whispered hoarsely, “Don’t look…”
Even with her eyes covered, Zhao Shuqing could picture it. After a pause, she asked, “Isn’t this a bit too soon?”
Lin Feng buried her face in Zhao Shuqing’s chest, on the verge of tears.
She didn’t know what was wrong with her these past few days. She felt restless and hot all the time. Just thinking of Zhao Shuqing made her scales open quickly.
Lin Feng wasn’t one for indulgence. In the water, she had never felt desire for any other species—only for Zhao Shuqing.
Only her.
Her reaction puzzled Zhao Shuqing. Sitting up to examine her closely, she was shrugged off. Lin Feng dove into the pool, refusing to surface.
Zhao Shuqing watched her, a vague suspicion forming.
After soaking in the pool for ten minutes, the unruly scales finally closed. Zhao Shuqing dried her off, lifted her into the wheelchair, and—seeing Lin Feng’s evasive gaze—didn’t press the matter. She said goodbye to Wen Xiaoying and headed home.
Hot pot was out of the question now. They grabbed a couple of vegetable pancakes from a street vendor instead, munching one each to fill their stomachs.
Back home, Zhao Shuqing glanced at Gu Yao’s door. She hadn’t seen her in ages and wondered what she was up to.
After settling Lin Feng in her room, Zhao Shuqing went to feed Pumpkin.
She had bought an automatic feeder, so Little Fatty wouldn’t go hungry anymore. She had set it all up to keep her well-fed.
Pumpkin, dozing on the lazy sofa, perked up at the door and stretched lazily. Spotting Zhao Shuqing, she jumped down and meowed around her legs.
Noticing that the clothes drying on Gu Yao’s balcony were still from a couple days ago, and that the litter box hadn’t been cleaned, Zhao Shuqing guessed she hadn’t been home in a while.
She was getting worried.
Zhao Shuqing had never been in a relationship herself and didn’t know if lovers always stayed out like this. But she wasn’t family, so all she could do was tidy the room, take in the laundry, and leave Gu Yao to her romantic freedoms.
Once finished, she patted Pumpkin’s head and headed back to her room.
What had happened by the pool worried her. Entering the room, she saw Lin Feng curled up on the bed, facing away, lost in heavy thought.
Zhao Shuqing closed the door softly and stared at the back of Lin Feng’s head. Could it be… that her Mermaid Miss was entering her heat cycle?
