Chapter 6 Mermaid 6
The bathroom is very large, with separate wet and dry areas, and a bathtub nearly two meters long is placed at the innermost position.
Her mother had the house renovated, and she had told her mother that the bathtub took up too much space in the bathroom, and she rarely used it. But her mother, Zhao Qian, bathed every day, saying it tightened her skin and slowed aging. She complained that Zhang Jingshu's life was too rough and insisted on having a bathtub.
Now it seems that installing a bathtub was a wise move, otherwise she really didn't know where to put such a big "fish".
Zhang Jingshu turned on the water valve of the bathtub. While she was adjusting the water temperature, Cheng Shuinan sat quietly beside her. He was probably curious about his surroundings. His dark eyes looked here and there. He was still a little nervous about being in an unfamiliar place. His fish tail was tightly attached to his side, and his tail fin, which was as wide as soft satin, fell casually on her feet.
Zhang Jingshu returned home and changed into slippers. Her socks were soaked, making her uncomfortable, but she didn't move. The fish's tail felt like it was covered in a film of water, not much different from the touch of a normal fish, but a little smoother. The sticky, wet liquid on the tail fin soaked her socks, and then a cool touch landed on her ankle.
Zhang Jingshu moved her feet.
The fish's tail suddenly retracted as if it had been greatly frightened.
Zhang Jingshu turned her head to look over. Cheng Shuinan was leaning weakly against the white porcelain wall. His fish tail bent beside him, touching her tail fin and hiding behind the shelf she placed next to him. He lowered his eyes in panic, not daring to look at her.
Zhang Jingshu thought he was just nervous and reached out to feel the water temperature. "Can you try the temperature? Is it cooler or hotter?"
When they were in the warehouse, perhaps due to the influence of the environment, Zhang Jingshu only felt that Cheng Shuinan was pitiful. She even ignored the fact that he was as dirty as if he had been fished out of a garbage pit. Now he was sitting in a clean bathroom, with white ceramic tiles on the walls and frosted sliding doors decorated with girlish pink flowers. His disheveled image was nowhere to hide.
Cheng Shuinan lay down in the bathtub obediently.
Clear water washed over him. The bathtub was just the right length for him. Following Zhang Jingshu's request, Cheng Shuinan lay flat inside, his tail fin slightly outside. He lay on his back, staring at the bright incandescent light on the ceiling for a long moment. A white halo formed before his eyes, and Zhang Jingshu's helpless voice echoed.
"Close your eyes and don't stare at the light."
"Okay, I understand." Cheng Shuinan closed his eyes and slowly opened them again: "You, you go and rest, I can heal myself."
Zhang Jingshu took down the shower head and held it in her hand: "I know you can heal yourself, but your body is too dirty, wash it first. I'm going to rest, can you wash it yourself?"
Cheng Shuinan tried to raise his hand, refusing to obey his orders. He was like a fish on the chopping board, waiting to be slaughtered. Only his eyes were wide open, filled with nervousness that was about to overflow. Perhaps it was because he had just stared at the incandescent light for too long, and there seemed to be a bright halo in the bottom of his eyes.
"I, I...can't."
Zhang Jingshu understood his feelings.
He was taken home by someone who had helped him, so he naturally wanted to perform well and make a good impression. He didn't want to trouble her and let her think he was a burden, so he was eager to prove himself.
Zhang Jingshu didn't want to waste time on this. She turned on the shower and the warm water splashed on Cheng Shuinan's head, instantly wetting his curly black hair. She rinsed his hair with water and said:
"I understand how you feel. You don't have to worry too much. The most urgent thing is to heal your injuries. Look at your body. Not a single part is intact. How can you possibly heal in just one day? Don't worry, stay here... If there's anything I need your help with, I'll let you know. There's no rush."
Cheng Shuinan listened carefully.
Zhang Jingshu noticed that his ear fins would expand slightly when she spoke, and when water flowed over them, they would retract as if stimulated. Her wandering thoughts were quickly drawn back by his focused gaze. His eyes were dark and bright, and when his gaze fell on her, she would inexplicably feel a strange sensation, as if being sucked into a deep, vast whirlpool.
Zhang Jingshu couldn't help but praise: "You have beautiful eyes."
The flushing of water revealed Cheng Shuinan's true appearance. The dirt and blood stains on his face slid off, and his skin was fair, and seemed to glow under the light. The most eye-catching thing was his eyes. There seemed to be stars hidden in his dark pupils, which would suddenly flash when Zhang Jingshu stared at them.
His eyelashes were long and curled, his nose was high, and his lips were thin and red, like petals covered in dew in the morning. Perhaps it was the water in the shower that had heated up, but he suddenly tilted his head, and his pale face flushed red.
Zhang Jingshu quickly turned down the temperature. Just as she was about to drain the dirty water from the bathtub and replace it with fresh water, she suddenly heard Cheng Shuinan's low voice: "Zhang Jingshu's eyes are even more beautiful."
Zhang Jingshu squatted there in a daze.
Cheng Shuinan pursed his lips nervously, looked at her bravely, and then shrank back into the water like a fish.
He could not forget that three days ago, outside the dark and dirty warehouse, a meteor suddenly streaked across the pitch-black sky. When Zhang Jingshu secretly glanced at him, his numb heart naively and humbly gave rise to the thought of wanting to be redeemed.
Who would want to die if they could live freely and without any constraints?
Fortunately, she came.
…
Cheng Shuinan fell asleep.
Zhang Jingshu smiled helplessly. He was a simple person and would not lie to please others, so what he said about her beautiful eyes was the truth. Which girl would not like to be praised for her beauty?
Especially the compliment from the beautiful mermaid.
Because of Cheng Shuinan's sincere praise, Zhang Jingshu was not at all annoyed about having to work in the middle of the night. She patiently changed the water several times until it was no longer turbid. However, his wound was still bleeding, and soon the clean and clear water was stained red.
She squatted beside him, not knowing what to do. There was no medicine to stop the bleeding at home. Fortunately, her worries did not last. After about ten minutes, she found that the bleeding from Cheng Shuinan's wound was gradually decreasing, and the bloody wound that almost spread across the entire fish tail was growing fresh pink flesh at a speed visible to the naked eye.
It was already three o'clock in the morning when Zhang Jingshu lay in bed. The soft big bed relieved her fatigue. She fell asleep almost as soon as she touched the pillow. In a half-awake state, she suddenly realized that mermaids live in the sea and the sea water is salty. Should she add some salt to it?
She was so tired... She soon forgot about the incident and fell into a deep sleep.
The alarm clock that Zhang Jingshu set at 7 o'clock in the morning did not last long. It was "pressed to death" by the drowsy Zhang Jingshu, who continued to sleep.
When she woke up again, it was bright daylight.
It was already ten o'clock, and she hurried to the bathroom in her slippers to check on Cheng Shuinan.
Before bringing him home, Zhang Jingshu thought he was strong, and was still tenaciously alive despite being abused to a pulp. But after bringing him home, it seemed as if a wonderful connection had been established between the two of them. In Zhang Jingshu's heart, he inexplicably became fragile, as if he would die if she did something slightly wrong.
The bathroom door was not closed. Zhang Jingshu did not see the mermaid at first glance. Her heart immediately tightened, as if her chest was strangled and she could not breathe. Then she saw ripples on the water, the fish tail covered with black scales was looming, and the red water waves were filled with the smell of blood.
Cheng Shuinan smelled a familiar scent, the faint, almost imperceptible fragrance of irises breaking through the thick smell of blood. He slowly revealed his head, his huge fish tail circling underwater. He sat up, red water droplets streaking across his thin, white chest, his long curly hair covering his back. When he saw Zhang Jingshu coming, his round eyes were like rising bubbles, constantly showing excitement.
He reached his hands out of the water and placed them on the edge of the tub.
"Zhang Jingshu, you're awake."
Zhang Jingshu looked at him who was intact, breathed a sigh of relief, nodded softly, and squatted down to check his physical condition.
Cheng Shuinan sat quietly in the bathtub, and called her name skillfully in a low voice: "...Zhang Jingshu."
Zhang Jingshu opened the valve at the bottom of the bathtub and replaced the water: "Well, what's wrong?"
"No, no...what."
He seemed to like calling her name very much. Even though he couldn't speak clearly, he pronounced her name clearly.
After just one night, his voice changed dramatically. It was no longer a strange, hoarse, and rusty note, but a gurgling, clear stream.
Very beautiful and gentle.
His wounds had mostly healed.
Zhang Jingshu handed the food to Cheng Shuinan: "You look so thin, how long has it been since you last ate?"
Cheng Shuinan took the canned meat and bread. Zhang Jingshu neatly placed the canned meat on a plate. Knowing that he could use a spoon, she prepared one for him. He pinched the spoon, his stomach rumbling with hunger. He didn't eat it immediately, but answered Zhang Jingshu's question: "...When they are happy, they prepare food. When they are unhappy, there is nothing. I could still eat fresh meat before, but later it became fish and shrimp piled up in the warehouse, and they became smelly. I was hungry and tried to eat, but I vomited it out soon... I forgot how long it has been..."
Zhang Jingshu marveled at the mermaid's self-healing ability. He could speak so many words so fluently. At the same time, she felt distressed. She had seen those fish and shrimps that were so rotten that they were inedible, but they used them as his food.
Zhang Jingshu frowned, looking unhappy.
Cheng Shuinan brought the dinner plate closer to her. The fish tail under the water swayed a few times, creating continuous ripples. The clear and clean water waves caressed his body, and unprecedented comfort and pleasure filled his heart.
He smiled slowly, his eyes gleaming with light as he looked at Zhang Jingshu.
"It's different now. I have fresh food, and..."
Cheng Shuinan pursed his lips nervously, and under Zhang Jingshu's gentle and distressed gaze, he slowly swallowed her name, and said in a sincere and dependent tone: "...Thank you."
Zhang Jingshu had already asked Zhang Ning for annual leave, so she didn't need to go to work now. After breakfast, she went out. The car couldn't be driven for the time being, so she had to find a chance to clean it. She took a taxi to the supermarket and bought the food she needed in the near future, and then went to the pharmacy to buy medicine and bandages.
Finally, she went to the flower and bird market and bought a bag of coarse salt for fish.
The moment I opened the door, the originally quiet environment was suddenly broken by the sound of splashing water. In addition to Zhang Jingshu, there was also a mermaid in the empty and lonely house.
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