Zhao Shuqing was surprised to hear that Lin Feng wanted to sing. She narrowed her eyes slightly and looked at her. “You’ve never sung for me before.”
Lin Feng exposed her lie. “Nonsense. I’ve clearly sung for you many times.”
Zhao Shuqing thought for a moment. She sat on the edge of the pool and stubbornly argued, “Only two or three times. That’s not ‘many.'”
Lin Feng blinked. She reached out from the water and rested her hand on Zhao Shuqing’s knee. In a gentle tone, she said, “Then from now on, I’ll sing for you more often.”
Zhao Shuqing burst out laughing.
“I’m not that petty.” Zhao Shuqing ruffled Lin Feng’s hair and said, “Sing if you want to. The stage is free today anyway. I’ll gather all the visitors and let them listen to you.”
“Will it be for a fee?” Lin Feng asked guiltily. “I overslept, so charging might not be great.”
Zhao Shuqing pondered seriously. Then she told Lin Feng, “I’ll discuss it with the Curator and try to make it free.”
When the Oceanarium’s Curator heard that Lin Feng wanted to sing, she slapped her thigh in excitement. This was a perfect publicity opportunity. Their Oceanarium was already famous, constantly trending online, with visitor numbers multiplied many times over. Since Lin Feng wanted to sing, they had to promote it heavily—ideally with a livestream.
They waived the fees, and the in-house announcements repeatedly broadcasted that the mermaid Lin Feng would perform a song. This directed all the visitors to take seats in front of the viewing platform.
The Oceanarium had livestream equipment, and with all staff mobilized, it quickly trended online.
“I heard the mermaid is going to sing? Real or fake? I was there a couple days ago—how come I didn’t catch Lin Feng singing?”
“Ah, is it still possible to buy tickets for the Oceanarium now?”
“There’s a livestream channel. Out-of-towners, don’t worry. We might not hear Lin Feng sing in person, but we can watch the stream.”
Once the livestream news broke, viewership surged past two million. The Curator was thrilled and even arranged professional filming to record Lin Feng’s performance in full. It would serve as the Oceanarium’s featured material for next month.
Lin Feng had no idea what awaited her. She simply felt guilty for sleeping in and making visitors wait hours for her. So she wanted to sing a song to soothe their disappointment.
Singing was simple, but sound didn’t carry well underwater. Even if Lin Feng sang, humans couldn’t hear it. That’s why she had to use the stage area.
The underwater stage featured a fake mountain. As soon as Lin Feng emerged from the sluice gate, she spotted the audience seats packed full of people. She jumped in surprise.
Some were original visitors who happened to catch the news, but others were locals who rushed over upon hearing it—just to hear her sing live.
Zhao Shuqing wore the Oceanarium’s dark blue uniform and black rubber boots. When she saw Lin Feng emerge, she waved her over.
“Zhao Shuqing.”
Lin Feng swam over, swishing her beautiful large tail. She tugged at Zhao Shuqing’s clothes and whispered, “There are so many people.”
Zhao Shuqing crouched halfway down and smiled at her. “They’re all here for you.”
Lin Feng felt a bit nervous.
“Don’t be scared. I’m right here.” Zhao Shuqing said, “The Curator said to sing whatever you want. Afterward, we can head home early this afternoon. How about I take you for hotpot?”
The mention of hotpot eased Lin Feng’s nerves a little. She nodded slightly, then propped herself up on the poolside tiles. She leaned in and planted a kiss on Zhao Shuqing’s cheek.
The audience on the viewing stand let out a collective gasp. Before Zhao Shuqing could react, Lin Feng had swum away and perched on the edge of the fake mountain.
When Lin Feng’s voice rang out, everyone forgot the little moment entirely. They focused intently on her song.
Her ethereal voice was low and mellifluous, carrying to every ear without need for amplification.
It seemed to drift from the air, from the sea itself—no lyrics, no accompaniment—yet it captivated every heart.
Like the song of a siren.
The song wasn’t long. After about ten minutes, Lin Feng finished with a flick of her tail and dove back into the pool, vanishing from sight. The audience clamored for an encore, but Lin Feng wasn’t putting on a concert. She didn’t even know what an encore was—she was long gone.
The video spread online rapidly. Livestream viewers showered gifts, so the Curator had staff film Lin Feng swimming with her school of fish. It fueled the trends even more.
Lin Feng frolicking freely underwater with her fish was utterly mesmerizing. After the song, visitors snapped photos furiously, skipping lunch altogether in hopes she’d reappear.
By three in the afternoon, Lin Feng was off duty.
The Oceanarium trended that day, with tickets booked solid for the next two weeks. The delighted Curator let the pair leave early to rest.
Zhao Shuqing dried Lin Feng’s hair and said, “The Curator hopes you can sing once a week to boost our buzz. What do you think?”
Lin Feng let Zhao Shuqing towel her hair while fiddling with the hem of her clothes. “Will I get paid?”
Little money-grubber.
Zhao Shuqing shot her a glance. “Of course. The Curator knows you love money, so she’ll give you a cut.”
“What’s a cut?” the little money-grubber asked.
“A cut means you get two yuan commission per visitor. If ten thousand come, that’s an extra twenty thousand for you,” Zhao Shuqing explained.
Lin Feng’s eyes widened in shock. “That much?”
How many fish could she buy?
She couldn’t even finish them before they spoiled.
Seeing the little money-grubber’s eyes sparkle, Zhao Shuqing felt both amused and helpless. “I think it’s too little, honestly. Tickets are over a hundred yuan each, and you only get two per head. Not worth it.”
Fearing Zhao Shuqing might talk her out of the deal, the little money-grubber clutched her clothes tightly. “No, it’s plenty!”
Fish should be content with what they get.
Twenty thousand was enough.
Zhao Shuqing laughed happily. Since Lin Feng had no objections, neither did she. After drying off her little fish, she scooped her up and said, “Let’s go for fish head hotpot.”
Little Fish was thrilled.
In the following days, the Oceanarium produced a promo video spotlighting the beautiful mermaid. They even planned a dedicated Mermaid Pavilion for her, complete with a stage—sing when she wanted, swim when she wanted.
But rarity breeds value, so they settled on scheduling her to sing once a week. That way, visitors wouldn’t make empty trips.
Zhao Shuqing had no issue with the marketing plan. Two songs from Lin Feng were effortless. So the Oceanarium announced: Every Saturday at 11 a.m., mermaid Lin Feng would perform live.
While Lin Feng’s side buzzed with ticket sales prep, Zhao Shuqing encountered something else.
Xu Tang called just as Zhao Shuqing stepped out of the shower.
Lin Feng was in the bathtub on the balcony, humming while cuddling Nemo. Zhao Shuqing took the call in the hallway.
“Senior Sister?”
“Mm.” Xu Tang held experiment data as she told Zhao Shuqing, “The mermaid ova test results are in. The Genome Group has been pulling all-nighters on the Double Cisgender Plan. Results are promising so far. Figured you’d want to know, so I called the moment the data came out.”
Zhao Shuqing perked up curiously. “Did it succeed?”
“Not yet.” Xu Tang replied, “But the data looks good. We’ve tested eleven ova so far; the rest are preserved for next round.”
“Send me the data then.” Zhao Shuqing said, “Even if I might not understand it all.”
“No problem. It’s already in your email.” Xu Tang paused, then added, “Teacher Shen is due for discharge tomorrow. Want to come see him?”
“Teacher’s discharging?” Zhao Shuqing blinked in surprise. “Is he better?”
Xu Tang nodded. “Much better. He’s as sturdy as ever. Doctors say he doesn’t need to stay; he can go home.”
Shen Qingming had been hospitalized nearly two months. Zhao Shuqing recalled his critical start—relying on a ventilator to survive.
When had he started improving?
Around the Aunt Liu incident, it seemed.
From when she found that carp fish scale.
Zhao Shuqing thought it over before asking, “When’s Teacher discharging?”
“Tomorrow morning,” Xu Tang said.
“Okay.” Zhao Shuqing replied, “I’ll head to the hospital tomorrow morning to visit and celebrate.”
“I’ll bring a gift too. We can all catch up over lunch, the three of us.”
“Mm.”
Zhao Shuqing asked further, “How’s Aunt Liu?”
Xu Tang fell silent for a moment before answering. “Teacher Shen forgave her. She’s only detained fifteen days.”
Zhao Shuqing frowned. “Why forgive her?”
“Maybe… for all those years she cared for him. No merits, but plenty of toil. No need to ruin her completely,” Xu Tang said softly.
Zhao Shuqing couldn’t comprehend it. If it were her, she’d never forgive Aunt Liu. Why had Shen Qingming chosen mercy?
Her brows knitted tighter. She asked, “And after? Will Teacher need a new nanny?”
Xu Tang said, “Definitely. I’ll handle arrangements—you don’t worry. Just be at the hospital by nine tomorrow to see Teacher.”
Zhao Shuqing hesitated before murmuring agreement and hanging up.
Staring at her darkened phone screen, Zhao Shuqing stood silent for a long while. Her intuition screamed that Shen Qingming had changed, yet she had no proof.
Since she’d promised Xu Tang to celebrate Teacher Shen’s discharge, she couldn’t back out. She’d drop Lin Feng at the Oceanarium tomorrow, then head to the hospital.
Decision made, Zhao Shuqing returned inside. She noticed Lin Feng’s humming had stopped. Glancing curiously at the balcony, she saw Lin Feng hugging her large tail, looking troubled.
“What’s wrong?”
Zhao Shuqing set down her phone and approached. Sitting by the bathtub, she eyed Lin Feng’s beautiful tail. “Is something off with it? You’ve been staring forever.”
Lin Feng gazed at her resentfully, then fell silent, stroking her tail.
It had fully healed.
She could transform into human legs anytime.
But Lin Feng knew she couldn’t. For the fate of her mermaid kin, she could only hug her tail and fret.
“If…”
Lin Feng clutched her tail and whispered, “If I could become human… would that make you happy?”
