The Mermaid and Her Keeper (GL) - Chapter 35
When Lin Feng saw Xu Tang, she instinctively took a step back.
Her expression was panicked as she stared nervously at the person in front of her.
Compared to Lin Feng, Xu Tang looked much more at ease. She walked over calmly as usual, her eyes scanning Lin Feng’s feet, face, and clothes.
Noticing the familiar outfit, Xu Tang raised an eyebrow slightly. “Are you wearing Shuqing’s clothes?”
Lin Feng clenched her sleeve tightly and stayed silent.
“What? You’ve been with Shuqing so long, but still can’t understand human language?” Xu Tang tilted her head, looking at her with amusement, then suddenly changed her tone and said, “But you must be familiar with mermaid language, right?”
Lin Feng’s eyes widened, staring blankly at her.
Xu Tang spoke to her in the mermaid language Lin Feng knew: “I pulled you out from the depths of the sea, not for you to go and fall in love with Zhao Shuqing. Have you forgotten your mission? Do you want to just expose yourself to humans like this?”
Biting her lip, Lin Feng replied in mermaid language, “I just want to tell Zhao Shuqing one thing.”
Xu Tang said, “If you tell her, it’s like letting the whole world know that mermaids can turn into humans once they’re on land.”
Lin Feng: “But we could already turn into humans before. If it weren’t for my tail being cut off…”
She seemed to remember something, her delicate brows knitting tightly as she twisted her sleeve.
“Looks like you still remember your mission on land.” Xu Tang stepped closer, resting a hand on Lin Feng’s shoulder, looking down at her slightly. “You’re the bait, a trick to deceive humans. You don’t want the secret of the mermaids to be discovered, do you?”
Lin Feng looked up, meeting Xu Tang’s eyes just inches away. “Why does it have to be me?”
Xu Tang smiled softly, leaning close to whisper in Lin Feng’s ear, “Because you once saved her.”
Lin Feng trembled all over and closed her eyes.
“Let it go,” Xu Tang said, looking at her with pity. “Mermaids and humans can never be together.”
Zhao Shuqing was in her dorm room writing her thesis. The desk lamp cast a white light. It was already 1 a.m.
She stretched, leaned back in her chair, and let her mind rest for a moment.
The thesis was almost done. She had just finished filling in the last section and sent it to Professor Shen via email. But it was too late to call, so she sent a message to Shen Qingming, asking him to review it for her in the morning.
The thesis that had tormented her for over a month was finally coming to an end. If all went well, it would be published soon and become a sample in the mermaid research papers reviewed by countless experts and scholars. Everyone would remember the mermaid’s name—Lin Feng.
Holding a cup of coffee, Zhao Shuqing stood and stretched her muscles. When she went to the balcony, she noticed it had started raining quietly outside.
The rain wasn’t heavy, just a light drizzle that brought a mist, washing away the day’s heat and making the air feel much more comfortable.
Leaning on the balcony, Zhao Shuqing looked out at the midnight cityscape. Except for a few scattered lights, the whole city was wrapped in darkness.
Time to sleep, she thought.
After work today, she had gone to the supermarket and bought lots of snacks to bring to Lin Feng at the aquarium the next morning. Lin Feng was like a child—loved snacks and sweets. But they’d been having a disagreement recently, and Zhao Shuqing hadn’t given her any snacks, so others didn’t dare either. Lin Feng hadn’t had any for about a week.
Just thinking about Lin Feng looking at the snacks tomorrow, wanting them but still sulking, made Zhao Shuqing’s mood much better.
She planned to make it up to her properly. After all, as a fish, it wasn’t good to be upset all the time.
If she got angrier, she’d stop calling her “Miss Mermaid” and start calling her “Miss Pufferfish” instead.
The thought made Zhao Shuqing laugh out loud.
Just as she returned to her room, ready to wash up and sleep, her phone on the desk suddenly rang.
Who would call her so late at night?
A feeling of unease rose in her chest. She picked up the phone and saw it was a colleague from the aquarium.
“What’s the matter?” Zhao Shuqing frowned and asked, “Is Lin Feng in trouble again?”
“Yes, yes,” the voice on the other end was panicked and noisy, urgently saying, “The mermaid is injured. Zhao Bo, you have to come quickly!”
Zhao Shuqing’s heart sank. She hung up and left the dorm immediately, running through the rain and mist straight to the aquarium.
The aquarium was brightly lit at this hour, making her feel unsettled. When she rushed into the enclosure area, many people were already gathered outside Lin Feng’s gate, including security guards on night patrol and veterinarians called in suddenly.
Zhao Shuqing pushed through the crowd and went inside. What she saw was seawater dyed bright red and a broken gate.
The vet was pulling Lin Feng out of the water. Once full of energy, Lin Feng now lay on the ground pale as death, breathing faintly. Her blue tail was lifeless, resting on the shore and stained with red bl00d.
“What… what happened?” Zhao Shuqing finally found her voice. She looked at the bl00d-covered Lin Feng, shocked and furious. “What’s going on?”
The security guard on the night shift came in and said, “When I was patrolling earlier, I found the mermaid lying in the pool, covered in bl00d.”
After checking, the vet looked up at Zhao Shuqing and said, “These are bite marks. She must have just been in a fight and got injured.” The vet pointed at Lin Feng’s tail and added, “Most of the wounds are concentrated on the tail. This tail is probably ruined.”
Zhao Shuqing suddenly felt dizzy. She had been planning to make up with Lin Feng tomorrow and had even bought a bunch of snacks to cheer her up. She never expected something like this to happen.
The huge tail had lost its color from bl00d loss, and the tissue near the tail fin was bloody and covered with wounds. A few deep cuts even showed bone.
How painful must that be?
Her mermaid, Lin Feng, must be in so much pain.
Zhao Shuqing was furious and turned to question the staff on duty, “What kind of work are you doing? You can’t even watch over one person properly?”
The security guards tried to explain that it was a fish, not a person, but seeing Zhao Shuqing’s angry, darkening face, no one dared to say anything. The vet, realizing how serious the situation was, quickly called for a stretcher to prepare to take Lin Feng to the infirmary.
Fortunately, the aquarium was well-equipped. The infirmary was official, so Zhao Shuqing and the vet together rushed Lin Feng into the operating room. It was late at night, and there was no time to find an assistant, so Zhao Shuqing, who knew a bit about medical care, went up to the operating table to help.
When she saw Lin Feng’s tail torn and bitten, the fractured tail bones, and large patches of damaged scales, she trembled with anger.
The surgery lasted until the next morning. Two other vets took over midway, and Zhao Shuqing, as an “unofficial” assistant, was asked to leave and wait anxiously by the door.
At 11 a.m., Lin Feng’s surgery was finally over.
Watching Lin Feng being taken into the ward, Zhao Shuqing frowned deeply.
“After investigation, it’s suspected that the orca’s cage wasn’t properly secured last night,” the aquarium manager called Zhao Shuqing outside and explained by the door. “Plus, the orca had previous conflicts with the mermaid, so it attacked her this time.”
“The orca?” Zhao Shuqing frowned. “An orca can hurt her?”
The manager gave a bitter smile but insisted, “All signs point to the orca. The orca’s keeper was punished for poor supervision. We’ve isolated the orca, and it definitely won’t attack again.”
Zhao Shuqing felt something was off. Who was Lin Feng? The first day she went into the water, she had already beaten the orca badly. How could she suddenly be bitten like this?
It didn’t make sense.
“What about the surveillance footage?” Zhao Shuqing asked, “I want to see last night’s footage.”
“The cameras were all broken due to the weather,” came the reply.
“What?”
Zhao Shuqing was furious. “Are you trying to shirk responsibility?”
Although the mermaid was kept at the aquarium, Lin Feng was state property, not just the aquarium’s.
The manager looked troubled and quickly explained, “It’s really not like that. Our investigation shows this is what happened. And yes, all the cameras really are broken.”
Zhao Shuqing’s head was pounding with anger. She told the manager, “I don’t accept this result. If you can’t find the truth, Lin Feng will never go back.”
Even if she had to keep her in her own bathtub, Zhao Shuqing would never let Lin Feng go back there again.
The manager tried to say more, but Zhao Shuqing cut him off and sent him away.
In the ward, a nurse was examining Lin Feng. The aquarium’s beds were specially made, and it took some effort to find a normal bed, then remove the footboard and extend it so Lin Feng’s injured tail could fit.
Zhao Shuqing frowned as she looked at the tail fin wrapped in bandages.
Why the tail again?
Why is it always the tail?
She remembered that when Lin Feng was first rescued, her tail was injured badly. It took a long time for the wound to heal, but now, just as it seemed recovered, the tail was injured again.
This time the wound was deep and severe—the entire tail fin was almost falling off.
Fish often bite each other’s tails in fights, but the size difference between the orca and the mermaid made Zhao Shuqing suspicious about the wound.
And that dumb orca—did it really stand a chance against Lin Feng?
And the idea that it opened its cage door to pick a fight with Lin Feng? Zhao Shuqing didn’t believe a word of it.
The nurse hooked Lin Feng up to an IV. Seeing Zhao Shuqing’s dark, worried face, she felt tense too. This was their first time treating a mermaid, so they were cautious and conservative, afraid of making things worse or ineffective. Noticing Zhao Shuqing’s expression, the nurse quietly set down the tray and slipped out.
After the nurse left, only Zhao Shuqing and Lin Feng remained in the ward.
Lin Feng had been unconscious since her injury. Her once rosy and fair face was now pale and weak, her hair dull and lifeless. Lying in the hospital bed, she looked pitiful and fragile.
Zhao Shuqing came over and sat down, gently holding Lin Feng’s hand.
Her skin was cold, even colder than normal.
Zhao Shuqing felt a sharp pain in her heart. She remembered the scene she saw this morning and felt a wave of panic. She tilted her head to look around the room.
Though called a ward, it was just a slightly bigger room, smelling faintly of fish. Nearby were several sick fish hooked up to oxygen, staring with lifeless eyes.
“Terrible environment,” Zhao Shuqing muttered with a frown.