Chapter 3, Chapter 3: Was it all seen through?! ...
For breakfast, Luo Qingyan made a simple sandwich, fried sausage, and hot milk.
The little male merman ate it and really liked it.
I ate the sandwich first. The first bite made my eyes widen. The surprise of tasting the new food was palpable. Then I ate several more bites.
"What's this called?" The little merman held up the sandwich. "It's soft on the outside, and crisp, sweet, and chewy on the inside. It smells delicious."
“A sandwich,” Luo Qingyan replied. “It’s bread on the outside, and inside there’s lettuce, tomato, luncheon meat, and an egg. You can describe such a simple food as so delicious; you’re really suited to be a gourmet.”
The little merman gripped the sandwich in his hand tightly: "This is the first time I've eaten human food."
"Really? Then you'll have to have a good taste of human cuisine. I'll order you some delicious takeout for lunch today!" Luo Qingyan smiled. "Your language system is quite good! Do you mermaids also communicate using human languages? Do you also have different languages and nationalities?"
The little merman pursed his lips, looking like he didn't want to talk.
"You can't even say that?" Luo Qingyan, sitting on the low chair, leaned back slightly. "Aren't you being a little too cautious?"
The little male merman looked at the sandwich in his hand, took a deep breath, and slightly raised his eyes: "We have our own way of communicating, we can learn human languages, and we are divided into different sea areas."
"So you can also emit Hertz frequencies that humans can't hear, just like dolphins?" Luo Qingyan leaned forward abruptly, his right hand resting on the edge of the bathtub. "Do you go to other seas to play? Hey! Why do you need to learn human knowledge? Is it to explore the universe like humans? You're over three hundred years old, and three hundred years ago it was still the Qing Dynasty. How do you keep up with the times? Do you secretly go ashore? Or do you have something like... a master-servant or cooperative relationship, communicating with specific humans?"
A series of questions made the little merman nervous and at a loss. His eyes flickered, and he gripped the sandwich even tighter, almost squeezing out a piece of luncheon meat.
"Hey! Let's not talk so much during breakfast. You take your time eating, I'm going to eat too." Luo Qingyan said, standing up. Seeing that the little male fish didn't try to stop her, she left.
-
Confirming that the little male merman was not just a dream but a real person, Luo Qingyan was in a good mood and even played music while eating breakfast.
However, not long after breakfast ended, something unexpected happened.
My cousin Tao Xingyou called.
"Sis, Dad and I are at the market now. Let's have lunch together today! What do you want to eat? We'll buy the groceries and cook at Grandma's." Tao Xingyou's voice was sweet. "Mom was really worried when she heard I didn't visit you last night. Let's video chat with them together when we have lunch later!"
Luo Qingyan suddenly remembered it was Saturday. The magical little merman had almost completely captured her attention, but her cousin's phone call pulled her back to reality. The clash between the radiant fairy tale and the mundane reality made her panic: "Oh! I'm used to it... It's okay, don't worry! No need to go to so much trouble, let's eat... let's go out to eat together!"
Tao Xingyou: "My grandma and mom both think that food outside isn't as good as home-cooked food. It's true that many restaurants aren't very clean these days. They feel more at ease eating at home and video chatting with them. My dad is a pretty good cook; he likes to experiment with these things, and it's not a hassle!"
Luo Qingyan was speechless for a moment. She did need to consider how to handle the interactions between relatives. She couldn't avoid it forever; she couldn't keep others from visiting her maternal grandmother's house indefinitely. While she was struggling with this decision, her aunt called. She said to her cousin on the other end of the line, "My aunt called me. I'll answer her call first and then call you back later."
Tao Xingyou: "Okay."
Luo Qingyan hung up on her cousin and then called her aunt.
Aunt: "Qingyan, are you getting used to being home alone?"
Luo Qingyan: "I'm used to it! It's so peaceful and quiet when I'm alone. Before, in S City, there were so many people and it was so noisy. Now, being alone is so relaxing and I love it!"
Aunt: "You'll get used to it. Grandma and I were worried about you! I'll have your husband cook you and Xingyou a nice lunch today, and you and Xingyou can go out and play this afternoon!"
Luo Qingyan: "I'm focusing on health and resting lately, so I won't be going out to play. Let's talk about it again in a while!"
Aunt: "Health preservation? Qingyan, are you not feeling well?"
Luo Qingyan smiled and paused, "Young people these days are all into health preservation. Start taking care of your health early to avoid taking detours. Okay, Auntie, you and Grandma have fun. We'll video chat later, okay?"
Aunt: "Okay, fine. The tour guide is coming to urge us, so I'll stop here for now."
Luo Qingyan: "Yeah, have fun, bye."
Aunt: "Bye-bye."
After hanging up her aunt's call, Luo Qingyan already had a plan in mind, and she hurriedly ran to the bathroom.
-
“My cousin and uncle are coming over.” Luo Qingyan said to the little merman as soon as she entered the bathroom. “You probably don’t want them to see you. Here are two options. First, block the bathroom door from the inside and say it’s broken. I’ve already arranged for a repairman to come tomorrow. There’s another bathroom upstairs, so they probably won’t care. There’s a small chance my uncle will try to fix the door, which will make some noise, but don’t worry, as long as the door is blocked tightly enough, he can’t do anything about it. Second, there’s a pond in the yard. It’s not big, but it’s deep. There are fish and aquatic plants in it. You can hide in there and use the aquatic plants to cover yourself. You won’t be discovered. Which one do you choose?”
Although everything happened suddenly and Luo Qingyan said a lot, the little male fish listened very carefully. He understood and thought about it: "I... can't move too far on my own right now."
“Moving around in the yard is much more troublesome than moving around in the house, and there really aren’t any suitable tools to move you right now. So let’s go with the first option.” Luo Qingyan nodded slightly. “You must keep quiet. If your uncle tries to fix the door, you must remain quiet even if you hear any noise. Don’t be afraid, I’m here. I will minimize the chances of them touching the bathroom door.”
"Yes, I believe you." The little merman nodded, his eyes shining.
Luo Qingyan felt a warmth in her heart. She smiled and then turned to leave, saying, "I'm going to find the thing blocking the door."
-
The blocking of the door went very smoothly afterward.
Actually, the blocking was just a supplementary measure. Luo Qingyan found a flathead screwdriver and locked the door from the outside, then hid all similar tools. Inside the door, two chairs and a stool were used to wed the door between it and the sink. Although the little male merman couldn't move very far, his tail could move, and under Luo Qingyan's direction, he skillfully wedged the chairs in place.
After cleaning up the bathroom, Luo Qingyan checked the house again to make sure there was no trace of anything that might have revealed the little merman's identity before she felt at ease.
Then, my cousin and uncle arrived.
-
"Sis, I bought bread! The croissants and bagels from this store are amazing, you have to try them!" Cousin Tao Xingyou hurriedly put down the bag in her hand. "I'm going to the restroom first."
"Go to the second floor, the toilet on the first floor is broken." Luo Qingyan reacted quickly, while maintaining a calm expression. While checking the house, she thought about it again and felt that the broken toilet was a better excuse. As for locking the door, she could say it was because the bathroom smelled bad, and she had accidentally opened it before. Often, her hands are faster than her brain, and fearing another accident, she simply locked the door from the inside.
"Okay." Tao Xingyou nodded, then ran upstairs.
"Is the toilet clogged?" Uncle was about to take the groceries to the kitchen when he heard Luo Qingyan's words and stopped. "I have a repairman's phone number. We can get someone to fix it right now."
"It's broken. I've already scheduled a repair, but since we're having dinner together today, I don't want to go home..." Luo Qingyan had already prepared her excuse, "The toilet smells like sewer, but it'll be fine once the door is closed. It'll be the same if we fix it tomorrow, it's okay."
"Okay." Seeing that Luo Qingyan had already made the arrangements, the uncle didn't say anything more and continued to take the vegetables to the kitchen.
Luo Qingyan breathed a sigh of relief; things had gone relatively smoothly.
-
After Tao Xingyou came down from the second floor, Luo Qingyan pulled Tao Xingyou to help in the kitchen, but her uncle said he could handle it by himself and told the two of them to go play by themselves.
Having something to do will keep you from paying attention to the bathroom, so Luo Qingyan pulled Tao Xingyou to watch TV together. The sound of the TV in the house can also cover up other noises.
Tao Xingyou is an easygoing person. When her cousin invited her to watch TV, she naturally went and chatted happily while watching.
Once everything calmed down, Luo Qingyan also calmed down. But the peace didn't last long, and a sudden change occurred.
Chestnut loves company. At first, it ran back and forth between the living room and the kitchen. When it got tired, it would stay in the living room and watch TV with Luo Qingyan and Tao Xingyou. However, after a while, perhaps because it was too bored, it suddenly ran to the bathroom door, scratching at the door with its front paws while whimpering.
Chestnut's strange behavior quickly caught the attention of the two people in the living room.
"It's not a cockroach!" Luo Qingyan grabbed Tao Xingyou, trying to appear calm as she walked towards the bathroom first. "It's Chestnut's toy. Sigh! Puppies just love what they can't have; it clearly has so many toys."
Luo Qingyan jogged to the bathroom door, picked up Chestnut, and immediately turned around to block Tao Xingyou behind her: "It must be because we didn't play with Chestnut, and it feels neglected. Let's go to the yard and play with it for a while!"
"Chestnut is our family's darling, we can't neglect it!" Tao Xingyou patted Chestnut's head. "I'll go get its toys."
"I'll go get the toy, you take it out first," Luo Qingyan said, handing the chestnut to Tao Xingyou.
"Okay." Tao Xingyou picked up Chestnut, stroking it as she walked out.
Luo Qingyan stood there for a few seconds, making sure Tao Xingyou went to the yard and that there was no sound from the bathroom before she felt relieved enough to go get the toys.
The two people and their dog then played in the yard until lunchtime.
The restaurant was filled with the aroma of food during lunchtime, so Chestnut stayed there without any worries. The three of them even video-chatted with their grandmother and aunt, who were also having lunch, enjoying a peaceful and harmonious time together.
-
After lunch, my uncle had other plans and prepared to leave.
Luo Qingyan felt constantly uneasy staying at home with Tao Xingyou, and instinctively wanted to drag her cousin out. She suggested going to a coffee shop that Tao Xingyou had mentioned. Tao Xingyou, who loved going out, readily agreed.
Fortunately, my uncle was driving and could give them a ride, so the three of them set off quickly.
Things went smoothly, developing as Luo Qingyan had hoped.
However, when Tao Xingyou went to the shopping district in the afternoon, she was in high spirits. She not only wanted to drink coffee but also go shopping. She walked around for a long time without feeling tired at all. After dinner, she also wanted to watch a movie.
Distracted, Luo Qingyan was quite worried about the situation at home. Since it was she who suggested going out for coffee, Tao Xingyou had agreed, and since Tao wanted to go shopping, she naturally felt obligated to accompany her. However, she could only stay until after dinner, and only afterward did she gradually realize that leaving the little merman alone at home for too long wasn't appropriate. She directly stated that she wanted to go home early today and play together again next time, since there was still a chestnut at home.
Although Tao Xingyou enjoyed having fun, she was also reasonable. She noticed Luo Qingyan's fatigue. It was indeed a spur-of-the-moment decision to go out, and there was no need to stay out too late. Besides, Li Zi was waiting at home, so she agreed.
-
After parting ways with Tao Xingyou, Luo Qingyan quickly took a taxi home.
It was the weekend, and she had to wait a while for a bus. During that time, she was extremely anxious and truly understood what it meant to be eager to get home.
She then returned home, running straight to the bathroom to grab a flathead screwdriver, ignoring Chestnut who was there to greet her.
"It's me! I'm back." Luo Qingyan spoke to the little merman through the door as she unlocked it. "There's no one else at home, don't worry."
As soon as he finished speaking, there was movement inside the door. The little male merman was using his tail to move the chair blocking the door.
Pushing open the door, Luo Qingyan saw the little male merman in the bathtub and breathed a long sigh of relief. Without even bothering to move a chair, she squeezed through the gap to approach the little merman: "Are you alright?"
The little merman shook his head: "It's nothing."
Luo Qingyan suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion. She pulled up a chair and sat down, her body sinking as she sighed.
The little merman rested his arm on the edge of the bathtub, looked up at Luo Qingyan, his blue-purple eyes were very clear: "Are you sick?"
Luo Qingyan's expression tightened, his breathing became erratic, and then he looked heartbroken.
A note from the author:
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