Chapter 73 World Three (Extra)
In the coldest days of winter, your breath turns to frost.
A thick layer of ice formed on the ground. Passersby hurried home, eager to light charcoal to dispel the chill. Beneath the city gate tower stood a filthy beggar, clad only in a thin spring coat in the biting wind. His exposed fingers were already red and swollen from the cold. He huddled against the cold wall, his long, slightly curled eyelashes adorned with a few thick snowflakes. He lay motionless—a reminder of the blizzard that had fallen last night.
Occasionally, a passerby would pass by the little beggar and, seeing his situation, would shake his head and sigh silently.
This helpless little beggar froze to death on the roadside and no one collected his body.
After an unknown amount of time, Xiao Yujing, who was curled up on the side of the road, opened his eyes. The snow particles attached to his eyelashes had not been shaken off. As his eyes opened and closed, they melted into water droplets and sank into Xiao Yujing's dark pupils.
In such cold weather, even the people guarding Xiao Yujing have disappeared. They must be hiding in some corner, drinking and warming themselves with the money they begged from beggars.
Because he had been kneeling on the ground for a long time, Xiao Yujing was trembling slightly even when he stood up straight.
Remembering the legend mentioned by the people in the teahouse, he gritted his trembling teeth and ran towards the moat.
——It was the only body of water he knew, with connections to lakes and rivers.
Xiao Yujing stood in front of the moat. There was ice in front of the river for a few days, but now the ice was broken and floating on the river.
Xiao Yujing saw his current face clearly in the reflection of the moat. He was skinny and dirty, a beggar that others would avoid. Ordinary people would despise him, let alone the mermaids who had lived in the deep sea for a long time.
Xiao Yujing squatted down, scooped up river water with his hands, and carefully washed his hands and face.
Looking at his reflection in the river again, he still looked too thin.
Only his overly white skin and large, dark eyes did not match his identity as a beggar.
Xiao Yujing didn't know how to pray to the mermaid, so he could only pick up the memory of praying to Buddha in his mind, and prayed in a formal manner, silently saying in his heart: If I could see the little mermaid and get out of this predicament, I would definitely spend the rest of my life repaying the little mermaid's kindness.
Xiao Yujing waited devoutly for a long time, and after opening his eyes, he was only aware of the silence around him and the biting cold wind that blew on his face like a knife.
No one responded.
Xiao Yujing's heart was unexpectedly calm, and he even had a strange thought: This is how it should be, isn't it? How could he, a useless man abandoned by his biological parents, attract the attention of the little mermaid? Could all his previous experiences have been nothing but wishful thinking?
Looking at the calm moat, Xiao Yujing's heart moved slightly. He took a light step and walked towards the river where he knew nothing.
Suddenly, a strange noise was heard from the originally calm water surface. Xiao Yujing took two steps back and accidentally fell into the water.
He had no time to worry. His already thin clothes were stained with river water. How would he survive this winter? At this moment, Xiao Yujing's entire mind was already drawn to the figure in the river. His dark eyes were full of disbelief.
It’s actually a mermaid!
The upper body looked like a human yet not a human. Xiao Yujing had never seen anyone like the mermaid in front of him. Her skin was white, as if poured down by moonlight, and her black hair was as black as ink, hanging behind her slightly thin shoulders like rolling waves.
The lower body is an extremely graceful fish tail, which is a dreamy silver-blue color, swaying gently in the river, making people wonder how this narrow moat can be worthy of such a noble mermaid.
What surprised Xiao Yujing even more was that this little mermaid was indeed "little" and looked even younger than him. Could it really save him from this predicament?
Bao Shan's eyes were confused, wet and full of bewilderment. She had been spending her days leisurely in her deep sea palace when she suddenly heard someone praying, and then she appeared in this water.
Looking at the thin Xiao Yujing in front of him, Baoshan's mind turned slightly, and he figured out the cause and effect of the matter.
This person must be the one she prayed for. If she wants to return to the deep sea palace, she must make this person willing and feel fulfilled.
Among the mermaids, Baoshan is young, but he is better at understanding people's thoughts than other older mermaids.
She is not like those foolish mermaid predecessors who were ignorant and deceived again and again by greedy wishers, and finally ended up scarred and exploited.
She whispered, "Are you my prayer person?"
The sound of the precious fan was soft and gentle, like the sound of nature, which made people feel ashamed. Xiao Yujing grasped the hem of his clothes tightly and responded in a low voice.
The treasure fan waved its silver-blue tail and swam to Xiao Yujing's side. Its eyes, sparkling like azure gems, looked at Xiao Yujing with curiosity.
Xiao Yujing didn't dare to look at her at all, feeling that his gaze was blaspheming the little mermaid.
Baoshan stretched out its small, soft fingers and gently poked Xiao Yujing's cheek.
Startled by her sudden action, Xiao Yujing almost fell into the water again. He looked at the treasure fan with a flushed face, his pale lips opening and closing, but he couldn't say a word for a long time.
Bao Shan retracted his fingers and thought to himself: Look, it’s too thin, it’s not easy to poke at all.
She smiled a bewitching smile, and gently played with Xiao Yujing's trouser legs with the bottom of her fishtail: "My name is Baoshan."
Xiao Yujing gave his name quietly.
Bao Shan's voice was soft and apologetic: "I am the youngest among the mermaids, so I am afraid I can't help you much.
It would be nice if the mermaid you prayed for was an older and more capable one."
Xiao Yujing hurriedly shook his head and said, "It's okay, it's not a problem."
For someone like him, I'm afraid only a naive little mermaid like Baoshan would feel sympathy.
Bao Shan's eyes curved as she reached out to hold Xiao Yujing's hand. It was as if the two of them were extremely close playmates, yet the touch was met with a wave of coldness.
Xiao Yujing's body stiffened, and he let Baoshan hold his hand.
Baoshan called out softly and moved closer to Xiao Yujing: "Ah Jing, is the river water too cold? Let's go ashore quickly."
Xiao Yujing was like a puppet. When the treasured fan pointed east, he went east. When the treasured fan pointed west, he went west.
It was not until Xiao Yujing returned to the shore that he vaguely realized that the lower part of the treasure fan was a fish tail and he could not get ashore.
Bao Shan frowned, looking extremely pitiful: "Mermaids don't have feet and can't walk on the shore."
It was clearly the coldest time of the year, but beads of sweat appeared on Xiao Yujing's forehead. He clenched his fists, not knowing what to do.
"I heard from the tribesmen that if someone is willing to donate their blood and essence, they can exchange it for a pair of feet that can temporarily allow them to walk."
The ethereal voice of the treasured fan, like a spirit, lured the young Xiao Yujing, who fell into its trap step by step. The fact that blood essence could be exchanged for feet was certainly true. However, what the treasured fan never disclosed was that this blood essence required pure human blood, and that, after being consumed by mermaids, it could also nourish their spiritual cultivation.
Bao Shan wasn't particularly enthusiastic about bipedal locomotion, but the idea of exchanging his essence and blood for cultivation without any physical exertion was something he couldn't resist.
Xiao Yujing didn't think about it, stretched out his palm and handed it to the treasure fan: "Can I have mine?"
The treasured fan passed over Xiao Yujing's palm without a trace, and his eyes trembled slightly: "Ah Jing, you are so kind, but if you want to take blood, your palm must be clean.
Otherwise, the dirt will get into your blood and may have an impact on your body."
Xiao Yujing blushed and silently washed his hands several times.
Only when Baoshan nodded slightly did he bite his fingertip and feed the food to Baoshan's mouth.
Baoshan gently opened her mouth and held the bright red blood bead. Warmth instantly filled her body. She couldn't help but want to swing her tail happily, only to find that her fish tail had turned into legs at some point, and the clothes that were originally woven with water plants had also turned into an ordinary dress.
Seeing Xiao Yujing's face turn pale, Baoshan reluctantly let go of him and whispered, "Does it hurt?"
Xiao Yujing managed to steady his steps and shook his head, "No."
He took Bao Shan's hand and walked out of the moat. Xiao Yujing's stomach suddenly growled, which made him look extremely embarrassed.
Bao Shan seemed unaware of this. She shook Xiao Yujing's arm, pointed to the old table with broken bowls not far away, and asked, "Is that our place?"
A feeling of shame immediately spread throughout Xiao Yujing's body, especially when he saw the exquisitely carved jade fan that looked like a fairy's. After hearing his own response "yes", he ran to sit on the simple straw mat and looked at the broken bowl with a chip out of curiosity. Xiao Yujing felt like running away. Was he going to stay here begging for the rest of his life?
From a young child to an old man with white hair, it’s not enough that he’s in such a miserable state, but now the precious fan is involved?
Xiao Yujing's thoughts became more and more firm: No, he couldn't, he had to leave.
Xiao Yujing walked towards Baoshan and sat next to her, the two leaning against each other. Xiao Yujing's voice was hoarse: "Are you hungry?"
Bao Shan lowered his head to look at Xiao Yujing's fingertips, then shook his head and said, "I'm not hungry. I just ate enough."
You must know when to stop so that your essence and blood can flow continuously. This is what the elders of the mermaid tribe taught Bao Shan.
Unexpectedly, the treasure fan feeds on blood. Xiao Yujing's eyes were slightly stunned, and then he felt relieved: with his current status, he could only get simple meals, and letting the treasure fan eat it would only be unfair to her.
A stall distributing porridge and rice was set up outside the city gate. Looking at the people queuing up, Xiao Yujing silently withdrew his gaze.
He recognized that it was the Luo family's shed, and except for two types of people, anyone could go there to get porridge and rice.
The first was a woman from the theater, whom the Luo family considered to have bad behavior, and the second was a beggar with hands and feet, whom the Luo family considered to be a rice bug who got something for nothing. Xiao Yujing could not afford to eat such porridge and rice.
Standing in front of the porridge stall, there was a young lady in gorgeous clothes, holding a wrinkled steamed bun in her hands, running towards Xiao Yujing.
Miss Luo stopped and looked at the precious fan beside Xiao Yujing, feeling inexplicably uncomfortable.
Her slender arm brushed across Baoshan's cheek and held the steamed bun in front of Xiao Yujing.
Baoshan's delicate face was touched by the arm that suddenly appeared, and immediately red marks appeared.
Seeing this, Xiao Yujing hurriedly pulled the treasure fan to his side and examined it carefully, completely ignoring the steaming buns that were still steaming.
Miss Luo's mouth drooped, and she almost cried out. The old nanny who was in charge of taking care of her ran over in a panic and hugged her in her arms. Miss Luo pointed at the two people on the ground and complained: "He won't eat..."
The nanny coaxed Miss Luo and rolled her eyes at Xiao Yujing. Seeing Bao Shan, who was neatly dressed and looked good, her heart moved slightly and she said mockingly, "A little beggar bringing a child bride is unheard of.
My lady, this little beggar is so ignorant that he wouldn't even give the steamed buns to a stray dog.
Miss Luo was coaxed into submission, and following the nanny's instructions, she threw the steamed bun to the wild dog. The wild dog picked up the bun and ran away quickly.
Miss Luo was pleased with herself, thinking she could see the beggar's regretful expression. However, she discovered that Xiao Yujing's entire attention was focused on the precious fan, as if she were protecting some fragile piece of glass, gently wiping the red marks on her face.
The nanny carried Miss Luo away. Looking at the figure walking away, Miss Luo felt inexplicably panicked, as if something extremely important was about to leave her.
Xiao Yujing had nothing in the past, but now he has the treasured fan to accompany him.
When Bao Shan asked him what his wish was, Xiao Yujing silently swallowed the words "I want the little mermaid to be with me forever" and whispered, "Leave here."
Looking at Baoshan's dazzling face, Xiao Yujing no longer hesitated. He took Baoshan's hand and fled from this place.
Along the way, he didn't dare to stop, for fear that if he hesitated for a moment, he would be caught up and taken back by those people.
He had already fallen into being a beggar, and being caught again was nothing but a beating.
But Baoshan is different. Her looks are valued by those people, and who knows what dirty things she will be used to do.
Xiao Yujing's feet were covered with blisters, but he did not stop. He had already seen that although the little mermaid was a mermaid, she did not have any of the legendary magical powers. She must not fall into the hands of others.
Xiao Yujing clenched the soft thing in his hand and said without turning his head: "If they catch up with us, I will stop them. You return to where the mermaids should go as soon as possible."
Bao Shan looked at his thin face, his eye sockets sunken from long-term hunger, but his black eyes were filled with determination and resolve, and she felt an inexplicable feeling in her heart.
Xiao Yujing picked some wild fruits, bit the sour fruits with one hand and fed the precious fan with the other.
Until they completely left the place that Xiao Yujing felt was like a nightmare, the two of them lived in a cave.
Bao Shan knew that Xiao Yujing had already moved on from the past, and she listened to Xiao Yujing's fantasies.
At this moment, he is no longer like the sad-looking child in the past. He is full of anticipation for the future.
I want to buy a large house, plant not flowers but trees that can produce sweet fruits, and a huge pond for Baoshan to play in...
Baoshan listened carefully, and suddenly rubbed Xiao Yujing's face with her soft face.
Xiao Yujing's body stiffened. Although Baoshan had been so close to him several times before, he still wasn't used to it.
Xiao Yujing stood there in a daze, wanting to say something, but the touch of the fine fur had already left, leaving Xiao Yujing alone, feeling lost.
When Xiao Yujing woke up, he saw a dark cave and no one around. Only a few dazzling pearls were beside his palm.
The deep-sea mermaid weeps and produces pearls.
Xiao Yujing clenched a few pearls that could make all his fantasies come true immediately. The anger in his chest almost made him want to crush the pearls.
But in the end, he just let go of his hand dejectedly, his eyes dim.
Liars, all of them are liars.
More than a dozen carriages were moving slowly on the road. The most gorgeous one among them was the one in the middle. It was tightly wrapped in silk without any gaps, making it impossible for people to peek into it.
Seeing this, the usually dignified and steady Lady Wang couldn't help but feel curious. The maid beside her hurriedly said, "I heard that a fisherman went out to sea and caught a treasure, and specially presented it to that young master Xiao."
When Xiao Yujing was mentioned, Lady Wang was slightly startled. That day, he was riding a fine horse. Everyone had only seen him briefly, and they thought that this Mr. Xiao had a gloomy temperament and was intimidating.
Lady Wang inexplicably wanted to get closer. Thinking about this, Lady Wang smiled inwardly: I'm already engaged, why am I still so distracted? She withdrew her gaze and returned to the mansion with her maid.
The officials have put a lot of effort into trying to please Xiao Yujing.
Gold, silver, jewelry, beautiful women, all were returned without any mercy.
The officials were filled with fear at the thought of Xiao Yujing's ruthless methods. Seeing their leader, Lord Sun, approaching, they hurriedly asked, "Is it done?"
Lord Sun was confident: "Even if it is a ten-thousand-year-old iron tree, it will bloom when it sees such a treasure."
Under Xiao Yujing's cold gaze, Lord Sun felt a flash of panic in his heart.
But when he thought of the treasure he was about to offer, the panic disappeared without a trace.
On Xiao Yujing's wrist, there was a bracelet made of round pearls hanging loosely. Each pearl was round and shimmering like moonlight.
He raised his eyes calmly and looked at what strange thing Lord Sun had done.
The silk curtain was pulled open, revealing a square transparent cage made of colored glass and filled with water.
A graceful beauty huddled uneasily in the corner of a cage, her long, black hair straggling to her waist. Her sapphire-like eyes trembled uneasily, and her silver-blue tail gently swayed in the waves. Furthermore, they hadn't prepared a dress for her like an ordinary woman. Instead, they had strung shells and pearls together, barely covering her vitals. Beneath the white shells, a flowing ribbon swayed with the waves.
The pearl necklace in Xiao Yujing's hand fell to the ground. After many years, we finally met again, my little mermaid.
Lord Sun was still smug. If it weren't for the need to please Xiao Yujing, he would have enjoyed this beauty himself.
In order to prevent the mermaid from being contaminated by others, he replaced her with a woman to take care of her food and clothing.
Seeing Xiao Yujing's expression at this moment, Lord Sun couldn't help but feel proud.
The next moment, Xiao Yujing said in a cold voice.
"I like the gift from Lord Sun very much. But I want to enjoy it alone. As for Lord Sun, who has seen the gift, I will gouge out his eyes."
When Bao Shan regained consciousness, she found herself in a vast pool of water, surrounded by surging water, seaweed, and shells... a stark resemblance to the deep sea where she lived. In her hazy state, Bao Shan vaguely saw someone approaching her. The person leaned forward, lifted Bao Shan's chin, and spoke in a cold voice, "Have you been caught?"
"What a stupid little mermaid."
Looking at the strange yet familiar face, Bao Shan hesitated: "A Jing..."
The fingers on her chin exerted a little pressure, and the treasure fan made a soft sound. If it were Xiao Yujing when he was young, he would have blown on her with caressing to comfort her, but now Xiao Yujing just looked at her with a dark look in his eyes.
Xiao Yujing's palm moved lightly, gently stroking the slippery fish tail, groping for the softest part, and applying a little force, the treasure fan lay softly in Xiao Yujing's arms.
"Did you know that there are other ways to extract blood besides sucking your fingers?"
Bao Shan said timidly: "...what..."
The waves rolled, and Xiao Yujing fell into the pool. He put his arms around her slender and soft waist.
Soon, Baoshan understood what other methods were to obtain essence and blood.
With the essence and blood, the treasure fan transformed into a pair of graceful and slender legs. However, it still could not escape Xiao Yujing's control and was controlled by him on the bed.
Be it the legs or the fish tail, it seems that they can never escape the same fate, which is to be controlled by Xiao Yujing and carefully appreciated.
Bao Shan would timidly beg Xiao Yujing to let her go, but Xiao Yujing would suddenly tighten his grip and say in an inexplicable tone, "Let me go? You're so stupid, are you going to let someone else catch you again?"
Bao Shan said in a weak voice: "...A Jing, you were not like this before. You used to obey me..."
But Xiao Yujing still looked so cold and ruthless.
“It’s just the past.”
"Also—from now on, don't call me A Jing. I don't like this name."
Bao Shan's azure eyes were filled with panic: "Then what should I do..."
"Call me master."
"I am the master of the mermaid."
Baoshan said aggrievedly: "Master..."
A teardrop slid down, Xiao Yujing gently kissed the corner of Baoshan's eye, forcibly suppressing the reluctance in his heart.
So good.
The little mermaid is also my master.
The precious fan nestled in Xiao Yujing's arms gradually relaxed its brows.
The human race is too cunning, so it is safest to stay with Xiao Yujing.
Besides, this man is loyal to her and is determined to stay with her, so he is a good choice for her.
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