Chapter 71

When Gu Yao arrived home, the takeout delivery arrived right at the same time.

She picked up the takeout bag and knocked on Zhao Shuqing’s door, calling out cheerfully to the people inside. “Shuqing, Lin Feng, I brought dinner for you two! Are you home?”

Soon, sounds stirred from within the room. Zhao Shuqing opened the door and looked at Gu Yao standing outside with some surprise. “What brings you here today? Not continuing your date?”

Grinning mischievously, Gu Yao squeezed her way inside. When she spotted Lin Feng sprawled on the bed, hugging her large tail, she said, “I heard you both had surgery, so I got worried about you two invalids with no one to look after you.”

“It’s not a big deal. No external wounds or anything,” Zhao Shuqing replied as she took the takeout from Gu Yao’s hands. “Ordering takeout every day isn’t that healthy, is it?”

“Just pick healthier restaurants, and it’s fine,” Gu Yao shot back righteously.

Zhao Shuqing raised an eyebrow, stumped by the retort.

Lin Feng’s reaction was much more pronounced than Zhao Shuqing’s. She felt utterly limp and weak all over, lying on the bed without even greeting anyone. Her bright blue eyes were half-open, as if her mind had wandered off somewhere.

Gu Yao looked at her with concern. “Oh dear, is she okay?”

The anesthesia had been dosed based on body weight, with a bit extra to account for Lin Feng’s unique physiology. It hadn’t fully worn off yet, leaving her groggy and her mouth tasting bitter—thoroughly uncomfortable.

Zhao Shuqing glanced over, patted Lin Feng’s head, and said to Gu Yao, “She’s fine. Probably just feeling off. I’ll keep an eye on her. You should head home and rest.”

Gu Yao smiled. “I’m not tired at all. Let’s eat first. How can you take care of her if you’re hungry?”

Zhao Shuqing had to admit Gu Yao had a point. She let Lin Feng rest and headed next door with Gu Yao to eat.

The moment Gu Yao stepped through her own front door, Pumpkin leaped down from a chair and trotted over with little pattering steps, meowing around her legs as if scolding her for not coming home these past few days. Gu Yao’s heart melted for her little fatty. She scooped the cat up and showered her with affectionate kisses.

Zhao Shuqing watched them enviously. “Anyone would think that’s your cat.”

“What can you do~” Gu Yao said smugly with a laugh. “Your Lin Feng’s scared of cats. As long as you two don’t separate, Pumpkin’s mine for the day. Right, kitty~?”

Zhao Shuqing shook her head helplessly at the smug woman’s antics. She set the takeout on the table, opened it up, and asked, “Where are your bowls and chopsticks?”

“In the kitchen. Help yourself,” Gu Yao replied.

Zhao Shuqing rummaged through the kitchen, washed the long-unused bowls and chopsticks, wiped them clean, and finally sat down at the table.

Both women were starving. They devoured the takeout ravenously. While eating, Gu Yao said to Zhao Shuqing, “This place’s sweet and sour fish is amazing. Your Senior Sister loves it. I didn’t eat my fill at her office earlier, so I ordered another portion on the way back.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded, spat out a fishbone, and said, “It really is good. Send me the link later. I’ll order some for Lin Feng too.”

Gu Yao chuckled, her chatterbox mode activated. She launched into a rambling vent about her romantic woes. “Your Senior Sister doesn’t want anyone to know about us. Does that mean she doesn’t like me?”

“She’s always so good to me, indulging me in every way. She was the one who always suggested going out on dates or shopping before. Logically, she shouldn’t dislike me.”

“But then why hide that we’re dating?”

Gu Yao propped her chin on her hand. Seeing Zhao Shuqing focused on her food, she tapped her bowl with her chopsticks and whined, “Zhao Shuqing, don’t just eat. Help me analyze this.”

Zhao Shuqing kept eating without pause and said helplessly, “I’ve never been in a relationship myself. How should I know what your Senior Sister’s thinking?”

Gu Yao narrowed her eyes at her. “You’ve really never dated?”

Zhao Shuqing looked up. “Why would I lie to you?”

Gu Yao drawled, “Then what’s going on with you and Lin Feng? Aren’t you two together?”

Zhao Shuqing froze at that. She paused for a moment, set down her chopsticks, and looked at Gu Yao. “How did you know?”

“Come on,” Gu Yao said with a grin, her eyes crinkling. “Anyone with eyes can see it. The way you dote on Lin Feng—it’s obvious you like her. If you didn’t, why insist on using your own eggs from the gene bank instead of just letting her use someone else’s?”

Gu Yao studied Zhao Shuqing and added, “But seriously, have you thought this through? Lin Feng’s a mermaid. You really want to be with her?”

Zhao Shuqing pondered for a bit before replying, “Feelings like that don’t follow logic.”

Zhao Shuqing still vividly remembered her first glimpse of Lin Feng. The mermaid had poked half her damp head out of the water tank on the ship, her eyes as deep and brilliant as the ocean itself. She had gazed calmly at Zhao Shuqing and swum over on her own.

Zhao Shuqing had given her the name Lin Feng, and it was also the first word she had learned to say.

There was no way Zhao Shuqing couldn’t love her.

Gu Yao gazed at Zhao Shuqing’s thoughtful expression and sighed softly. “If only Xu Tang liked me the way you like Lin Feng.”

Though Gu Yao often fooled herself, she wasn’t blind. Xu Tang didn’t like her all that much.

When someone truly liked you, their eyes shone only for you, unwilling to let you suffer even a little—like Zhao Shuqing with Lin Feng. Not like Xu Tang, who seemed desperate to keep their relationship a secret from everyone.

“I like her…” Gu Yao mumbled, dropping her gaze. “I really like her…”

Seeing her dejected friend—so miserable despite being together—Zhao Shuqing reached out and patted Gu Yao’s head gently. “If it’s causing you pain, maybe consider breaking up.”

But Gu Yao shook her head.

“No breaking up.” She looked up at Zhao Shuqing. “Even if Xu Tang doesn’t like me as much, we’re together right now. If we split, I’d have nothing left.”

So no breaking up.

Even if Xu Tang didn’t like her, that was fine. Gu Yao believed she’d see it someday.

Zhao Shuqing felt both amused and helpless. She had been about to offer more comfort, but seeing Gu Yao perk up on her own, she couldn’t help laughing. “Your emotions are rock-solid. If Lin Feng didn’t like me, I’d probably fall apart.”

Gu Yao grinned. “Impossible. If you don’t like Lin Feng, she couldn’t possibly like you either. I can tell—she really likes you.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded.

She knew.

She had always known.

After dinner, the two chatted for a while. It had been ages since they’d caught up, so their conversation meandered from topic to topic. Zhao Shuqing placed an order for sweet and sour fish from the same place for Lin Feng, certain the little mermaid would love it.

Just as the delivery rider accepted the order, Zhao Shuqing’s phone buzzed. She glanced down—it was from Shi Xia.

Shi Xia had sent an email and a WeChat note: “Test results are in. Check your email and WeChat.”

Zhao Shuqing tapped out a quick reply: “Thanks.”

She opened the lab report casually. The breakdown of substances was all too familiar to her. Then, in the conclusion section, it read: 【Test results: Carp scales】.

Carp… scales?

Zhao Shuqing stared at the result for a long time before saying to Gu Yao, “I need to go back and look up some data.”

Before Gu Yao could react, Zhao Shuqing bolted like the wind.

Back home, Lin Feng was still asleep. Zhao Shuqing quietly booted up her computer and pulled up Lin Feng’s old test records, including the composition of her fish scales. Comparing them side by side, she spotted differences.

These really seemed to be ordinary carp scales, not from a mermaid.

Zhao Shuqing wasn’t sure whether to relax or tense up. She could sense Shen Qingming’s changes; she had noticed his shifts.

She had hoped this scale would serve as evidence, but the report showed it was just some random carp scale that had popped up out of nowhere.

Carp…

Zhao Shuqing frowned deeply, lost in thought over the lab report.

Finally, the delivery call snapped her out of it. She fetched Lin Feng’s dinner from the door and went to wake her.

Though Lin Feng got up, she seemed like her soul was still asleep. She ate a couple bites, zoned out for a bit, managed half a bowl of rice, and then crawled back into bed. Zhao Shuqing worried something might be wrong. After all, Lin Feng was the only mermaid they’d found so far—no precedents to treat any complications if they arose.

Once Lin Feng finished eating and drifted off again, her beautiful tail draped over the bed’s edge, her breathing steady and her sleeping face peaceful, Zhao Shuqing finally relaxed.

The next day, Lin Feng still had to “go to work.” Worried she might not be feeling well, Zhao Shuqing didn’t wake her early. Instead, she called Wen Xiaoying to say they’d be late.

Lin Feng slept until she woke naturally. She sat up on the bed, rubbing her eyes, and let out a huge yawn.

“Awake?”

Zhao Shuqing came over with a glass of warm water. “Drink some water first. How’s your body feeling?”

Lin Feng hugged the glass and gulped it down, then shook her head. “Not uncomfortable.” She glanced at the sky outside, tilting her head at Zhao Shuqing. “What time is it?”

“Almost ten,” Zhao Shuqing said.

Lin Feng’s eyes widened in shock. The oceanarium opened at nine, and they needed to clean and release the marine animals beforehand, so she’d been arriving around eight-thirty lately.

But now it was nearly ten, and Zhao Shuqing was casually here feeding her water?

Spotting Lin Feng’s confusion, Zhao Shuqing rubbed her soft cheek. “You’re not feeling well, so I won’t force you to go in. I’ve already called the oceanarium. They’ve put up a sign at the ticket counter too. If you don’t want to work today, we can take the day off.”

Lin Feng shook her head vigorously. “No, I have to go to work.”

All the TV shows said you had to clock in, or they’d deduct your pay.

Lin Feng didn’t want her pay docked.

Seeing her about to get out of bed, Zhao Shuqing steadied her waist, pressed lightly on her tail, and asked softly, “You sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine.” Lin Feng looked up at her. “A good sleep fixed everything.”

“Alright then.” Zhao Shuqing patted the small of Lin Feng’s back gently and smiled. “Get up and freshen up. Let’s head to work.”

By the time Lin Feng reached the oceanarium, it was past ten. Though they’d announced she was off for half the day, some visitors had come from afar anyway, unwilling to leave without seeing her. They lingered in the hall.

Seeing those tourists waiting eagerly for her, Lin Feng felt a pang of guilt.

She thought maybe she could sing them a song to soothe their impatience.