The Mermaid and Her Keeper (GL) - Chapter 46

What Shen Qingming said in the hospital room really caught Zhao Shuqing’s attention. She felt like Shen Qingming wanted to say something to her, but in the past few days when she tried to contact him, Aunt Liu kept saying Shen Qingming wasn’t feeling well, and the doctor advised against visits. So Zhao Shuqing had no choice but to put it aside for now and planned to follow her teacher’s advice by double-checking some data in her thesis.

Lin Feng, sitting in a wheelchair, returned to the very first laboratory. She looked toward the nearby ecological pool and saw a new addition—a giant octopus. The octopus was quietly curled up in the water, its tentacles tightly clinging to the artificial rocks, completely still.

Seems like there’s a new colleague.

Lin Feng had an injury on her leg and couldn’t go into the water for now. Besides, the giant octopus hadn’t finished its health check. It was full of resistance—spraying ink on anyone who got too close—so it needed to be quarantined for a while.

After Zhao Shuqing drew bl00d from Lin Feng, she tore open a lollipop and popped it into her mouth, saying, “I have to get busy now. You stay here for a while, okay?”

Lin Feng ate the candy and nodded.

Worried that Lin Feng might get bored, Zhao Shuqing also brought her a tablet. Since Gu Yao had taught her how to play on it, Lin Feng had fallen in love with the “Connect” game. She could sit and play all day. Meanwhile, Zhao Shuqing took the chance to review the experimental results.

“Shuqing.”

Ye Xun, the head of the lab, walked over. Seeing Zhao Shuqing putting the freshly drawn mermaid bl00d into the analyzer, he curiously asked, “Wasn’t the data already confirmed? Why do it again?”

Zhao Shuqing smiled, “I talked with my teacher a couple of days ago. He still hopes I can double-check the data. After thinking about it, I agree—once this paper is published, it can’t be changed and will serve as the basis for many future studies. It’s better to be cautious.”

Ye Xun nodded, “You make a good point.”

Zhao Shuqing glanced at the giant octopus in the ecological pool and casually asked, “What’s with that octopus? It’s much bigger than the ones I’ve seen before. Was it just caught?”

Ye Xun looked over too and said, “Yeah, the research team that went to Antarctica returned a week ago and brought back this giant octopus. It’s got strong adaptability, so we think it can be put in the aquarium. That’s why we’re quarantining it first.”

“There really aren’t many octopuses in the aquarium,” Zhao Shuqing said.

Ye Xun chatted with her a bit more. Then a lab colleague came over and said, “Team leader, Fang Wen is here. Should I call her in directly?”

Ye Xun asked, “Has she rested well?”

The colleague nodded, frowning, “She said she came to resign today and is standing at the door but hasn’t come in yet.”

Ye Xun thought for a moment, then nodded, “Got it. Tell her to wait for me in my office.”

After the colleague left, Zhao Shuqing asked, “Fang Wen wants to quit?”

Fang Wen was a lab recorder who had been assigned to the Antarctic research team about a month ago. Zhao Shuqing remembered her—a woman in her thirties with a pretty ordinary look. She was just a regular recorder and had a daughter with her partner.

Everything seemed fine. Why suddenly resign?

Ye Xun shrugged, “I’m not sure either. After she came back from Antarctica, something seemed off. She often spaced out and said she wanted to quit. I thought her state was abnormal, so I let her rest for a week. But it seems she still wants to resign.”

Zhao Shuqing frowned, “This happened after she returned?”

Ye Xun nodded, “At first, she was dazed, sometimes not even remembering her own name. Sometimes we had to call her several times before she responded. I thought maybe it was her first sea trip and she wasn’t adapting well. So I told her to see a doctor and rest at home. Not sure if she’s improved.”

Zhao Shuqing was thoughtful. “I see…”

Just then, Fang Wen walked in. She wasn’t wearing the lab uniform but her own clothes. Zhao Shuqing frowned when she saw her outfit.

In the scorching summer heat, Fang Wen was wearing a sweater, her pants were wrinkled, and her shoes were dirty. She was even wearing socks of different colors.

She looked like it was her first time entering the lab, following the colleague inside with bright eyes.

“Fang Wen,” Ye Xun waved at her and then said to Zhao Shuqing, “I’ll go to the office to talk with her. You just keep working.”

Zhao Shuqing nodded and looked back at the instrument in front of her, lost in thought.

It was strange.

But she couldn’t say exactly what was strange.

She decided not to think about Fang Wen for now. After all, they weren’t close, and even if Fang Wen quit, it wasn’t really her business.

Ye Xun’s talk with Fang Wen didn’t take long. Fang Wen seemed determined to leave, and Ye Xun couldn’t persuade her, so he agreed to her resignation.

When Fang Wen walked out of the office, she saw Zhao Shuqing recording data with her back turned.

She hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward.

“WIN~”

Lin Feng had just won a round and looked up, catching Fang Wen’s gaze. She froze instantly. Fang Wen noticed Lin Feng’s stare and stopped walking to look back.

They both sensed a kindred spirit.

Fang Wen slightly raised an eyebrow and changed direction toward Lin Feng.

Lin Feng held the tablet close and calmly stared at her without saying a word.

“You must be Lin Feng,” Fang Wen said with a smile in the mermaid language. “I’m Fang Wen. Nice to meet you.”

Lin Feng stared at her hard, putting up a defensive stance.

Fang Wen smiled and said, “No need to be so guarded around me. I don’t think we’ll see each other again after this.”

Mermaid language is incomprehensible and inaudible to humans, so Fang Wen could talk freely with Lin Feng without anyone else understanding.

She stood about ten meters away and continued speaking to her, “I like this identity. I have a lovely daughter, L, and a wife who loves me. I never want to go back to that cold deep sea. I guess you don’t want to go back either, right?”

Lin Feng turned her head, frowned, and said, “But you’re not human after all.”

Fang Wen shrugged and said calmly, “No one will discover my identity except my own kind. And since you’re also a mermaid, you wouldn’t turn me in, would you?”

Zhao Shuqing sensed something. She looked back at Fang Wen, who was not far from her, then glanced toward Lin Feng standing nearby.

She thought she had just heard some sound?

“Fang Wen?”

Zhao Shuqing put down her pen and stood up to approach. Fang Wen noticed someone greeting her and turned to smile at Zhao Shuqing.

But Fang Wen’s smile didn’t reach her eyes; it was more like her lips curled slightly, while the rest of her expression remained strange and unsettling.

Zhao Shuqing came up to her and said, “I heard you resigned?”

“Yes.” Fang Wen nodded and switched to human language, “I want to spend more time with my wife and daughter, L. They always complain that I’m too busy at work. I’m also planning to find a new job, so I just came to handle the handover and then leave.”

“Alright.” Zhao Shuqing patted her arm and said, “Spend good time with your family. Keep in touch when you have time.”

Fang Wen smiled and replied, “Okay, Dr. Zhao.”

After Fang Wen left, Zhao Shuqing looked at Lin Feng, who was sitting in a wheelchair. She looked pale and Zhao Shuqing walked over with concern.

“What’s wrong? You look awful.”

Lin Feng shook her head and said to Zhao Shuqing, “When are we going home?”

“Still a little while, L.” Zhao Shuqing crouched by the wheelchair, gently stroking her knee through the blanket. “Bored already? In about an hour or so, the results will be out, then we’ll go home, okay?”

Lin Feng hesitated but then nodded reluctantly.

Seeing her reluctant attitude, Zhao Shuqing asked, “Do you want some milk tea? I can order you some.”

This time Lin Feng nodded quickly. “Yangzhi Ganlu,” she said, adding, “Large size.”

Zhao Shuqing laughed helplessly, “Alright, I’ve got a large Yangzhi Ganlu noted. I’ll ask what everyone else wants. Wait a moment, L.”

With the comfort of the milk tea, Lin Feng’s mood steadied. Zhao Shuqing finished recording the last piece of data and compared it to the first test results — they were almost the same.

Zhao Shuqing sighed in relief, put down the files, and said to Lin Feng, “All done, Lin Feng. Let’s go home.”

Genetic Engineering Lab.

Gu Yao was recording data, comparing recent experimental results. Changing the direction of the experiment clearly brought significant effects.

“Looks like if we keep researching in this direction, the possibility of realizing the ‘Double Female’ project is very high.” A colleague leaned against Gu Yao’s lab table, holding a cup of coffee, and said.

Gu Yao nodded, “Professor really is a professor. This is a direction we never considered before. All those overtime hours really paid off.”

Everyone was excited by today’s results. After working hard for a long time, the captainplanned to give everyone two days off.

“Gu Yao.”

At that moment, a colleague outside called out, “The stuff you ordered has arrived.”

Gu Yao’s eyes lit up, “Great! Please help me bring it in.”

The colleague raised an eyebrow and made room, “Better let Captain Xu bring it in~”

Captain Xu?

Gu Yao blinked, then saw Xu Tang carrying a fish tank walk in. She was so surprised her eyes widened.

The captainwas also surprised, “Captain Xu? What are you doing here in our Genetic Engineering Lab? Don’t tell me you came to deliver a fish tank for Yao Yao?”

Xu Tang smiled and looked at Gu Yao, “I didn’t come specifically to deliver a fish tank. I just happened to meet her in the stairwell. Since the boss was busy delivering to other places, I brought it up for her.”

She walked to Gu Yao, put the fish tank on the table, and curiously asked, “What is this? I never heard you kept fish before.”

Gu Yao didn’t understand why Xu Tang suddenly came to their office. She remembered their previous meal together when Xu Tang mentioned liking someone, which was basically a polite rejection. Gu Yao wasn’t thick-skinned, so she felt awkward and just smiled without saying anything.

Xu Tang didn’t mind and turned to the captainof the genetics group, “I heard your experiment made a breakthrough. Our project is almost done too. According to the plan, our two teams should start collaborating, right?”

The captainhesitated, “I’m not sure about that. The professor hasn’t told us.”

Curious, Gu Yao looked up and asked Xu Tang, “What kind of collaboration?”

They were working on the Double Female project, researching how two eggs can successfully develop new life in humans. What did that have to do with Xu Tang’s marine biology?

Xu Tang glanced at Gu Yao and smiled lightly, “Naturally, it’s the mermaid Double Female project.”