Wanwan's mind was hazy, and she felt as if she was sometimes in the clouds and sometimes in the deep sea, with water pressure that could tear an ordinary person to pieces, but she could swim freely in it.

In the deep sea, she seemed to see a pair of mermaids in the ripples, and heard a strange, ethereal voice.

"Bai Li Wanwan, the third-generation young master of the Mermaid Clan, you have been in the world for more than ten years. Your training period is over, and you need to return to the Mermaid Clan as soon as possible."

"Mother?" Wanwan looked at the stunningly beautiful face that was faintly visible in the water and recognized her in a sudden surge of vague memories.

"Wanwan." The mermaid in the water called her name softly and slowly walked out. Wanwan knew she had called the right person. Her brows furrowed and her eyes widened. Just as she was about to see her full appearance, she suddenly felt a pain in her head and woke up with a start.

"Ah!" Wanwan jumped up from the head of the bed, her back covered in sweat, her heart pounding like a drum. That feeling of loss welled up again, as if a heavy stone was pressing on her chest, and her breathing became labored.

"Wanwan, are you alright?" Zhang Xiu, who brought in hot water, looked worried and quickly wrung out a towel to wipe the cold sweat from Wanwan's forehead and cheeks, who was still shaken.

The warm towel touched my cheek, and my tense nerves finally relaxed. My shoulders slumped slightly, and I rested my head on my aunt's shoulder.

She still felt a strange sense of unease. She couldn't remember what the voice in her dream had said, but the inexplicable panic in her heart gave her a bad feeling.

"Wanwan, what did you dream about? Are you feeling unwell anywhere?" Zhang Xiu put her arm around Wanwan's shoulder, her voice full of worry. "Someone just saw you faint on the way. Are you hurt somewhere? Should I go and call a doctor?"

"No need, Wanwan is fine." Wanwan's brow still ached a little, and her head was still foggy. The ominous feeling in her heart wouldn't dissipate, like a dark cloud hanging over her head. She vaguely felt that she was about to leave this place forever.

"Is Wanwan alright?" Wan Suizhou and Wan Yuechi walked in one after the other, Wan Yuechi carrying a bowl of hot soup.

"Why are your lips so pale?" Wan Yuechi sat on the low stool in front of Wanwan's bed with heartache.

Looking at her worried relatives in the room, Wanwan felt a pang in her heart. Clutching the blanket, she reluctantly voiced her premonition, "Grandpa, brother, aunt, Wanwan may have to leave you for a while."

Zhang Xiu's expression tightened, and he subconsciously reached out to grab Wanwan tightly. "What nonsense are you talking about, Wanwan? Where are you going? You can have your second brother accompany you!"

Wanwan shook her head, unable to offer any explanation.

Wan Suizhou's eyes flickered, but his expression didn't change much. He simply put his hands behind his back and asked calmly, "Will Wanwan be gone for a long time?"

He already knew that Wanwan was not like ordinary people, and he also knew that this clever and well-behaved little girl would not stay here for long. It was already their good fortune that she could grow up in the Wan family until she was sixteen.

Although Zhang Xiu was puzzled, seeing the calm and composed appearance of the two people beside her, she felt more at ease. Just as she was about to ask again, Wan Yuechi chimed in, "In any case, we should first take care of Wanwan's sixteenth birthday celebration."

“That’s right, Wanwan will be sixteen in three days.” Wan Suizhou stroked his beard, his face beaming with a smile again.

Seeing that no one brought it up again, Zhang Xiu had no choice but to suppress his doubts and turn back to his room to take care of Wanwan's birthday.

Watching her aunt's hurried figure, Wanwan felt a shadow fall over her heart. A small sense of guilt and worry welled up inside her. Her aunt was already so busy. After she left, who would help her with these things?

Wanwan sighed silently in her heart. After her grandfather and second brother left, she lay back on the bed, exhausted.

Three days passed in the blink of an eye. During these three days, Wanwan kept seeing her parents in her dreams. In reality, she didn't know if the mermaids were her parents, but once she entered the dream, she subconsciously thought so.

She developed dark circles under her eyes from the nightmare and had no energy to greet guests on her birthday.

Looking at the young stewards from the capital city in front of her, a thought suddenly flashed through Wanwan's mind: Would the newly appointed Vice Minister of Revenue named Shen Yuheng come?

Once the thought popped into her head, Wanwan couldn't control herself anymore. She would often stand on tiptoe, searching for his figure in the crowd.

"Miss Wan." A maid in green called out to her. She bent down and saw a girl of about seven or eight years old carrying a box. "I am a maid from the residence of the Vice Minister of Revenue. Lord Shen is busy with official duties and it is inconvenient for him to come. He specially sent me to deliver the congratulatory gift."

After saying that, she opened the box for Wanwan. Inside the box lay an exquisitely crafted short flute, carved from the finest jade. The jade was of excellent quality, clear and lustrous. Wanwan was captivated at first glance.

"Didn't Lord Shen say anything?" Wanwan's throat was a little sore.

The maid tilted her head and thought for a moment before saying, "My lord wishes you a happy birthday and all the best. Does Miss like this gift?"

A layer of frost descended upon her crescent-shaped eyes. She picked up the flute with her slender hand, and in a daze, she seemed to be certain that Shen Yuheng was Xiao Qi. She didn't know why this feeling was so strong at this moment, so strong that she wanted to go directly to the Shen residence to see for herself.

"I like it." Wanwan finally managed to compose herself and reply, only to see that the little girl had already run away with the box.

Tomorrow, I must go to the Shen Mansion to find out what's going on.

Wanwan made a decision in her heart.

On the night of her sixteenth birthday, Wanwan quickly entered a dream. This time, she could easily see the appearance of the pair of mermaids in her dream. The male mermaid was tall and slender with a handsome face, as elegant as a jade tree in the wind, and his fish tail was dazzling gold.

The female mermaid exudes warmth and beauty, yet there's a hint of mischievousness in her eyes, and her fishtail is a brilliant red.

Those were Wanwan's parents, Baili Jin and Xunying, who were also the leaders of the mermaid clan.

The two approached Wanwan hand in hand, and Wanwan was surprised to find herself in the deep sea, her legs transformed into a fish tail.

"Wanwan, your time for training has come. It's time to return to our mermaid clan." Baili Jin's fingertip lit up with gold, and he touched Wanwan's brow.

In an instant, all memories related to mermaids were unlocked.

Those three hundred years, her identity, and even the memory of which areas she passed through and what kind of seaweed grew—all returned to Wanwan's mind without missing a single detail.

"But Wanwan still has things to do, so I can't come back right now!"

Wanwan's appeal had no effect; she didn't even finish speaking before she woke up from her dream.

Those memories were still in her mind, and Wanwan broke out in a sweat again, but her heart was resolute.

She couldn't just leave like this; she... she had to find out if Shen Yuheng was Xiao Qi.

The thought had barely formed in her mind when her parents' voices echoed in her ears, urging her to return home. Along with this call came a strange pain.

It seems that the matter of returning to the merfolk cannot be delayed any longer...