Chapter 2 Let the storm rage on! ...

As soon as she decided to save the person, Luo Qingyan was already making plans in her mind.

There was a bathtub in the bathroom on the first floor of her grandmother's house. She rushed to the bathroom and turned on the faucet in the bathtub. Then she took a ladle, scooped up some water, and splashed it all the way back to the living room. Then she dragged the man and followed the water trail back to the bathroom.

The man's lower body was a fish tail, which became smooth when in contact with water, making dragging relatively easy.

However, getting the strong man into the bathtub in the bathroom was no easy task. Fortunately, Luo Qingyan regularly worked out and was quite strong. She used a stool for support and, with great effort, finally managed to move the man into the bathtub.

There wasn't enough water in the bathtub; one tap was too slow. Ignoring her exhaustion, she quickly grabbed a basin and went to fetch water from elsewhere to refill the bathtub—the bathroom, the kitchen, anywhere she could find a water source. She ran back and forth several times until the water in the bathtub reached the man's abdomen, only then did she breathe a sigh of relief.

As she poured the last basin of water into the bathtub, Luo Qingyan couldn't help but observe the man more closely. The inexplicable appearance of a mermaid in her home was utterly unbelievable, and she remained skeptical of its reality.

The man is undeniably handsome, without any makeup. In this internet age, it's hard for someone this good-looking to remain unknown, right? Is he a celebrity? Is he filming a prank variety show? Isn't it illegal to trespass on someone's property to film this? Grandma and aunt wouldn't agree to filming this kind of variety show.

The tail was so realistic, beautiful, and full of life. The bathtub was quite large, but the man's fish tail was so long and big that it couldn't be completely contained; the tail protruded from the tub like a blooming flower. Luo Qingyan couldn't help but reach out and gently touch the tail fin; it was smooth, elastic, and warm.

Looking up from the fish's tail, your gaze falls on the junction between the tail and the upper body. That ring looks very natural; the scales don't appear to be glued on.

If it were a human disguised as a mermaid, there would definitely be a flaw at the connection point. Thinking this, Luo Qingyan couldn't help but reach for the other person's abdomen. To ensure her own safety, she needed to verify the truth, even if it meant doing something offensive.

She reached her hand out of the water, touched the scales, touched her skin, and scraped the edges of the scales with her fingernail, trying to peel them off.

Suddenly, the man in the bathtub shuddered, opened his eyes, stared at Luo Qingyan with a look of terror on his face, and hurriedly backed away, but unfortunately, he couldn't go far in the bathtub.

Luo Qingyan quickly withdrew her hand, flustered and embarrassed. Regaining her composure, she realized her actions were tantamount to indecent behavior, far too presumptuous. At a loss for what to do, she heard Chestnut's cry and quickly focused her attention on Chestnut: "Chestnut, stop crying, stop!"

Chestnut actually stopped chirping because the noise in the fish tank stopped, and then obediently leaned against her feet, watching her.

She could feel the man's gaze on her. There was no need to run away; she should face it. She looked up at him.

Upon seeing the man open his eyes, Luo Qingyan noticed that he was very young, with a youthful air reminiscent of a college student, and his alert demeanor resembled that of a wild cat.

"You were wearing a mermaid's tail and suddenly appeared in my house. It's perfectly normal for me to check on you, isn't it?" Luo Qingyan said matter-of-factly, after all, she was the vulnerable party in today's society. "You were on the verge of death just now, and it took me a lot of effort to get you into the bathtub. You were the one who asked for water, weren't you?"

The man remained silent, eyeing Luo Qingyan warily.

"What's going on with you? Why are you in my house? Is your tail... real or fake? Why are you dressed like that?" Luo Qingyan crossed her arms and sized up the other woman. "Can you talk?"

The man remained silent.

Luo Qingyan frowned slightly: "Forget it, let's call the police and let them handle it."

"Don't call the police!" the man said, his voice clear and distinct.

"You can talk?" Luo Qingyan's expression relaxed a bit. "Then tell me what's going on with you. I'll only not call the police if you can agree not to."

A troubled expression appeared on the man's face. He hesitated for a moment before speaking softly, "I...I'm not human, I'm...a mermaid. I'm injured and need to recuperate. I can't leave on my own for the time being. Please don't tell anyone else about my existence, or they'll take me away."

The mermaid in front of him was quite polite. Luo Qingyan curled the corners of his mouth and said, "Aren't you afraid I'm a bad guy?"

The mermaid's eyes widened slightly, her expression momentarily flustered, before she tried to remain calm: "You helped me, you're not a bad person. I... I'll leave once I'm healed, and I'll repay you."

"How can we repay them?"

"What do you want? I can give you something valuable."

"Shouldn't she offer herself in return under these circumstances?"

The mermaid's face showed undisguised astonishment. His eyes darted around, he shrank back slightly, and his ears gradually turned red.

The mermaid before him was truly innocent, blushing at the slightest joke. Luo Qingyan felt a pang of pity: "I won't force you. Let's talk about something valuable! Are you going to go into the sea to get me something valuable? What if you take the opportunity to run away?"

"We mermaids are very trustworthy!" The mermaid looked at Luo Qingyan with sincere eyes, her shy expression still lingering. "What we promise, we will definitely do."

"You're still very young, aren't you?"

"ah?"

"I feel like you're still a young boy who hasn't even reached adulthood."

"I'm an adult! We mermaids reach adulthood at three hundred years old, and I'm over three hundred... years old."

"Isn't that just reached adulthood? It is indeed still very young." Having confirmed that this was indeed a young male merman, Luo Qingyan smiled slightly.

“I… well, I’m an adult now, so my promise is valid.”

So that's what the little merman was worried about. How adorable! Luo Qingyan's smile deepened. "Alright, I believe you. But... going back to the initial point of doubt, you have to prove to me that you are a real mermaid, right?"

"Proof?" The little male merman looked down at his tail, wiggled it, and then looked at Luo Qingyan.

"Uh... In this day and age, special effects makeup techniques are really advanced. That's why I just..." Speaking of what happened earlier, Luo Qingyan was a little embarrassed. She scratched her neck, "Oh dear! Better safe than sorry."

"I'm very weak right now..." The little male merman looked troubled, but he was also thinking seriously. Suddenly, he thought of something, "Humans can't stay in the water for too long, but I can stay underwater forever."

After speaking, the little male merman slid his upper body down until his face was submerged. He kept his eyes open the whole time, remaining perfectly calm as he entered the water. Even after entering the water, he continued to blink and look at Luo Qingyan, completely natural and without any discomfort. He even slightly opened his mouth, demonstrating to Luo Qingyan that he could open his mouth freely underwater.

So cute! Luo Qingyan covered her mouth and chuckled, completely charmed. Although it seemed unbelievable, she believed the person before her was a mermaid, a beautiful and innocent one.

There are so many incredible things in this world, aren't there?

"Alright, I believe you are a mermaid." Luo Qingyan showed a friendly expression. "What's your name?"

The little merman's eyes darkened, and he pursed his lips: "I'm sorry, mermen's names cannot be told to humans casually."

The little merman was still underwater, but Luo Qingyan could clearly hear his voice, confirming that he wasn't an ordinary person, but a mermaid. She bent down slightly: "Then what should I call you? Little Beauty? Little Fish? Little Mermaid?"

Luo Qingyan's lack of concern about the name made the little male merman feel much more relaxed: "Anything... is fine."

"Then let's call her Xiaomei! That's the protagonist's name!" Luo Qingyan squatted down, pulled over a stool, and sat down. "Get up. By the way, while you're recovering, is there anything I can do for you?"

The little male merman emerged from the water, his gaze following Luo Qingyan's movements, shifting from looking up to looking straight ahead. After a moment's thought, he cautiously said, "I... need food."

"Food? What do you eat?" Luo Qingyan asked curiously. "Do you eat fish? Or seaweed? Don't eat pearls or anything like that, I can't afford to raise you like that."

"They don't eat pearls, but they eat fish and seaweed."

Do you eat human food?

"It should be possible."

"Should be okay? You know quite a lot about humans, where did you learn that from?"

"Learning has teachers and books."

"Books? Paper can be soaked in the sea?"

"Specially made."

"So advanced? Wait!" Luo Qingyan suddenly remembered something important. She leaned forward slightly. "Mermaids sound amazing. How did you get injured? You weren't caught up in some war for the power of the sea gods and were being chased, forcing you to come ashore. I'm not in danger, am I?"

“No…” The little merman frowned slightly. “I can’t say why you were injured, but you won’t be in danger.”

"Really?" Luo Qingyan's face showed disbelief. "How did you get into my house? Was it because of that black pearl?"

"Yes...but it's broken now."

Luo Qingyan wanted to ask why it was damaged, but she suddenly remembered that Chestnut had brought the pearl home with it. What if Chestnut had bitten it? That would be difficult to explain later. So she decided not to ask and changed the subject: "How long will it take for your injury to heal?"

"I can't be sure, but it shouldn't be too long." The little male merman's voice grew softer and softer, sounding weak and listless.

"Are you sleepy?" Luo Qingyan noticed that the little merman's eyes weren't as wide open as before, as if he wanted to sleep. "Mermaids need to sleep too, right?"

"Um... I'm very tired and need to rest." The little merman almost closed his eyes as he spoke.

Whether the little merman was genuinely sleepy or feigning it, Luo Qingyan felt they had talked enough. In any case, the little merman had kept the most important matter a secret, so there was no need to pry further. She also needed time to process her thoughts. Therefore, she stood up: "Then you should rest well. I'll put a whistle in the bathroom later; blow it if you need anything urgent. You know how to whistle, right?"

"Yes." The little merman had already closed his eyes.

"Okay, that's settled then. Goodnight."

"good evening."

-

Outside, the wind and rain raged fiercely.

-

The events of tonight were too bizarre; even lying in bed, Luo Qingyan's heart remained unsettled.

"Chestnut." Luo Qingyan rolled over and lay down beside the bed, turning on the nightlight. She saw Chestnut curled up in the doghouse, fast asleep. Chestnut usually slept outside, so it would bark in case of an accident, serving as a warning. But she was worried about Chestnut getting hurt, so she let it sleep in her room. Now it seemed that Chestnut had none of the alertness expected of a puppy today.

Perhaps, that little male merman really is harmless.

Afraid of waking the sleeping Chestnut, Luo Qingyan didn't get up and remained in bed. This time, she cleared her mind, stopped thinking nonsense, and focused her attention on the sound of rain outside the window.

The patter of rain dampened not only the earth but also the air. G City is in the south, and in late summer/early autumn, the weather is still a bit hot. The humid air, cool and refreshing, should have been comfortable, but it carried a strange sense of desolation.

Autumn is the season of harvest, but it is also the season of decay.

Luo Qingyan gradually felt tired, exhausted all over, and then fell asleep.

It was late at night.

-

The next day, the sun shone brightly; it was a beautiful day.

Upon waking up, Luo Qingyan felt she had a peculiar dream last night, and now that she was awake, she felt a deep sense of longing for it.

So, was it a dream, or reality?

A sense of panic flashed through her mind. Ignoring the chestnuts that were jumping on her legs, she turned and hurriedly ran downstairs.

She ran to the bathroom door, then hesitated. Suddenly, she felt a darkness before her eyes, and she was afraid that the other side of the door would be empty.

Take a deep breath.

After taking a few deep breaths, she finally mustered the courage to raise her hand and slowly open the bathroom door.

In the bathtub lay that beautiful little male merman, as beautiful as a rainbow.

Luo Qingyan's tense nerves immediately relaxed: "Good morning."

The little merman blinked, a faint smile playing on his lips: "Good morning."