Chapter 120 Releasing Sharks into the Ocean
Upon hearing the academy envoy's words, everyone looked troubled and remained silent.
Xie Mingyi and Wen Shuwan exchanged a glance. They both remembered what Xie Mianmian had said before, about her encounter with a mermaid.
The child even received a delicate silver-white scale.
None of them had ever seen a mermaid in person, and they assumed Xie Mianmian was just telling a story she made up, not knowing whether it was true or not.
If mermaids really exist, would that scale truly be a heart-protecting scale?
Why would this mysterious merman, who exists only in legends, give his most precious protective scale to a five-year-old child he has only met once?
They shook their heads, their hearts filled with anxiety, wondering how to cure Xie Mianmian's poison.
Father Xie said in a deep voice, "I will go to the East Sea and retrieve the merman's protective scales."
Xie Mingyi looked at her father anxiously: "But Donghai is currently fighting against the Japanese pirates. Swords and spears are indiscriminate on the battlefield, it's too dangerous. Should we send someone to search for them?" Please don't go yourself.
Both her father and younger sister were equally dear to her. Xie Mingyi bit her lip, her fingernails almost piercing through the handkerchief. She didn't want anything to happen to either her father or her younger sister.
Just thinking about this possibility made her heart ache, a feeling of helplessness that she could only watch helplessly as the building collapsed.
Father Xie shook his head. Only he could handle this matter personally. He was probably the only one in the world who had the chance to find the mermaids.
"I will go," he said firmly. He could not allow anything to happen to his youngest daughter, absolutely not.
Xie Mianmian obediently leaned against the bed, listening to their heavy discussion, and asked the Seventh Prince sitting to the side in confusion.
"Seventh Prince, what are merfolk? How can someone have scales? They're so ugly. Mianmian, don't eat their scales!" the child said, frowning.
The Seventh Prince looked at her sternly, "Who told you not to study? Mermaids are beautiful women, you're stupid."
He couldn't resist and, when no one was paying attention, gently pinched Xie Mianmian's chubby cheeks.
"Once the poison is cured, you must not slack off on your studies." The Seventh Prince said that he would personally supervise Xie Mianmian's studies. It didn't matter if she was a little strange, but she couldn't be ignorant or stupid.
"I understand." Xie Mianmian was on the verge of tears. The Seventh Prince had turned bad. She decided that within half an incense stick's time, they would no longer be best friends!
While pouting and thinking, Xie Mianmian took out her brocade pouch and pulled out a scale.
The smooth, hard scales lay quietly in her fair palm, shimmering with a beautiful pearly sheen under everyone's gaze.
Xie Mianmian said softly, "Your Excellency, please look, these are the scales of a mermaid... that is, a merman."
The Xie family looked over in surprise, and a glimmer of hope suddenly sprouted in their hearts, quickly taking root and growing, its vibrant life dispelling the gloom of despair.
Since Xie Mianmian has said so, it means that this matter is true, and these really are—mermaid scales!
The old academy magistrate rushed forward, excitedly tugging at his beard, his eyes shining.
"This... Even though I have been in the palace for so many years and have seen countless treasures and medicinal herbs, I have never seen scales of this material before. How strange."
The abbot bent down to examine it carefully, concealing his shock. "If these are indeed mermaid scales, I think it's worth a try. That ancient book is very old, and many parts are no longer verifiable. Even if it's not a heart-protecting scale, it's still worth a try. The important thing is to cure the princess's poison."
Everyone nodded, agreeing with the abbot's statement.
Looking at the familiar silver-white scale, Xie's father suddenly said, "There's no doubt about it, this is the merman's protective scale."
Xie Mingyi was filled with doubt: "Why is Father so sure?"
But Xie's father lowered his eyes and did not answer. His hands, hidden under his sleeves, were clenched tightly as he was lost in memories from many years ago.
Those memories, though long buried, remain vivid.
His wife disguised herself as a man and boarded the ship to become his personal servant. At that time, he was still a junior envoy and needed to accompany the ship, floating and sinking on the vast ocean with the merchant ships.
One day, a sailor hauled up a large net of fish, but before he could open it, a storm suddenly broke out at sea.
In an instant, the world turned dark, and a terrifying whirlwind blotted out the sun. For the first time, he witnessed the power of nature. Human beings were like mayflies trying to shake a giant tree in the face of it, extremely insignificant.
A huge wave crashed in, and he lost consciousness. When he woke up, he was on a deserted island, where his wife had saved him.
It was only later that they learned that the wife had saved the merman from the fishing net, and the merman, in gratitude, had also saved the wife, while he was just incidentally involved.
Thinking of this, Xie's father shook his head helplessly and smiled nostalgically.
Later, when he went to sea again, although his wife stayed by his side, she became close friends with the merfolk in the sea and was often abducted by them, and he could not find her.
I remember he used to get jealous about it and asked some childish questions.
"If a mermaid and I fell into the sea at the same time, who would you save? Answer me."
He couldn't quite remember his wife's answer, only that her rosy lips kissed him for the first time.
As he recalled this, Xie's father's upturned lips unconsciously fell back down, and he was enveloped in a sorrowful and depressed mood.
No one asked any further questions, assuming it was because Xie's father, as the Grand Canal Transport Commissioner, was knowledgeable and experienced.
The academy director said, "In that case, the most difficult ingredient has been found, and only the Dragon Stop Grass remains."
Wen Shuwan said, "Please tell us more about this medicine, Your Excellency. No matter how difficult it is, we will find it."
"Dragon-stopping grass grows in the southwest, mostly in remote, damp, and secluded insect valleys. It is silvery-white all over and covered with fine hairs, but the most important thing is..."
The abbot frowned in distress. "Dragon-stopping grass is a national treasure of the Western Barbarians. Only members of the Western Barbarian royal family are qualified to use this grass."
Obtaining the Dragon-Stopping Grass is no easy feat, especially since relations between the Great Zhou and the Western Barbarians suddenly soured five years ago, leading to a complete breakdown in communication.
The hopes that had just begun to rise were once again dealt a heavy blow.
The usually quiet Seventh Prince suddenly spoke up: "There seems to be such a plant in my storeroom."
This seemingly casual remark is like a ray of golden sunlight piercing through the dark clouds, akin to the radiance of Buddha.
Whether it's true or not, it gives people hope and aspirations.
The seventh prince led everyone to the storeroom. He went in alone, while the others stood guard outside respectfully.
Only Xie Mianmian didn't consider herself one of the others. Half an incense stick had passed, and she and the Seventh Prince were once again close friends.
And so, Xie Mianmian followed along as a little shadow. Before the Xie family could stop her, the child was released into the sea like a shark, as if she were returning to her own home.
The seventh prince acquiesced. He followed the little tail, turning left and right, past many rare treasures, and came to a sturdy shelf filled with sandalwood boxes of various sizes.
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