Chapter 40 Is this a confession?
Luo Qingyan had that same strange dream again, the one she had once before.
I know I'm dreaming, yet the dream feels incredibly real, as if it actually happened. There are no specific events in the dream, but I experience them constantly. The dream world is different from the real world; the way we perceive it is different, and what we see is different.
Long but peaceful.
Someone was with her, always by her side, intimately connected, and at the same time, completely at ease.
An incredible dream.
When I woke up, I couldn't quite remember what the dream was like, but the feeling in the dream was just as nice as today's weather, with warm sunshine.
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Luo Qingyan stayed at Hefengting last night because she was worried about the little male fish staying there alone.
Even knowing that the little merman had trained at a land-based mermaid institution, she still felt there were many things she needed to tell him, afraid he wouldn't understand. She couldn't rest easy no matter what she said, so in the end she simply decided to live there herself, so that she could handle any unexpected situations more quickly.
This morning, after waking up, Luo Qingyan felt that she could smell the aroma of food.
At first, she thought it was her imagination, maybe she was just too hungry, or maybe the aroma of breakfast from her neighbor's house was wafting over. But when she came out of her bedroom, she found that it was actually the little male merman who had made breakfast.
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"You...you've learned to cook?" Luo Qingyan was shocked as she looked at the sumptuous breakfast on the table. Mushroom and ham congee, vegetable rolls, and pancakes—all looked and smelled delicious.
"Hmm, I've learned some simple things." The little merman placed the last steamed egg custard he had made on the table. "You used to cook for me, now I can cook for you too. Try some!"
"You're too modest. I could smell the fragrance in the bedroom." Luo Qingyan was about to pull out a chair to sit down when the little male merman pulled it out for her first.
"You even learned these etiquette rules?" Luo Qingyan smiled and sat down. "No need for all that trouble. Just relax. I can do these things myself."
"Okay, I'll make what you like, and I won't make what you don't like." The little merman pulled out a chair and sat down. "Try it. If it doesn't suit your taste, I can adjust it."
"Hmm, it looks delicious." Luo Qingyan picked up her chopsticks and took a bite of the pancake. After chewing a few times, her eyes lit up as she looked at the little merman. "I'm not as good at describing things as you are, but it really tastes good."
Is the saltiness just right? Is the frying done enough for the best texture?
“Perfect, every single point is just right. You describe it so professionally, how could it not be delicious?” After finishing the pancake, Luo Qingyan picked up a vegetable roll and took a bite. “This is delicious too, so delicious that I suspect you went to a culinary school instead of a land-based mermaid institution.”
"If you think it tastes good, then that's great." The little merman smiled with satisfaction.
"You should try some too! It's delicious. You'll see I'm not lying to you once you try it."
"I know, of course you wouldn't lie to me." The little merman also picked up his chopsticks and started eating breakfast.
"You trust me that much?" Luo Qingyan put the half-eaten vegetable roll into the bowl. "I certainly won't lie to you about how delicious it is, but as for the rest... well, that's not necessarily true."
"I know it's a white lie, it's harmless." The little merman said nonchalantly.
"Heh, a mermaid is still a mermaid after all, quite open-minded!" Luo Qingyan picked up a spoon and scooped up a spoonful of porridge to drink. "This porridge is so fragrant and rich, even better than the porridge sold in restaurants. I'm starting to look forward to the other dishes you make. Can you make lunch and dinner?"
"Sure, what would you like to eat?" The little merman was also drinking porridge.
"I don't know the answer to this question right now. You said you've learned some simple things, what can you do? Do what you've learned!"
“I’ve learned the basic cooking methods, so I can apply them to other dishes. Whatever you want to eat, I’ll find a recipe and make it accordingly. Or we can go to the supermarket together to buy groceries, and you might know what you want to eat just by looking at the vegetables.”
"Going to the supermarket to buy groceries together? That's so human lifestyle!" Luo Qingyan scooped up a spoonful of porridge, then suddenly thought of something. "Hey, do mermaids dream like humans? I remember fish don't dream?"
"Mermaids, like humans, dream."
“I had a really strange dream last night, unlike any normal human dream. But I don’t know how to describe it, it’s an indescribable feeling.” Luo Qingyan put the spoon back into the bowl and stirred it slowly. “Hmm… I knew it was a dream, but it felt incredibly real, and nothing specific happened, it was all feelings. Oh! Also, I felt like there was someone next to me, I don’t know who it was, but it felt intimate. Now that I think about it, could it be me from a parallel universe? Hey, do you know what a parallel universe is?”
After speaking, Luo Qingyan turned her attention to the little male merman, only to find that his expression was a bit strange. He seemed calm, but his eyes were subtly shifting, a mixture of surprise, joy, and worry, with an inexplicable air of seriousness. He was deep in thought, silently contemplating.
"What's wrong with you? You haven't had a dream like this before, have you?" Luo Qingyan said with a laugh. "Although I can't explain this dream, it's quite comfortable. Could it mean that some good luck is coming? This is the second time I've had a dream like this, and it feels..."
"The second time?" The little merman's eyelashes fluttered, and his eyes widened. "When was the first time?"
Luo Qingyan was startled by the little male merman's unusual reaction, and she had a vague sense of foreboding: "Is this dream... very special?"
The little male merman sensed Luo Qingyan's worry and quickly explained, "No, oh, it's special, but it's not... not the bad thing you're thinking of."
"Really? I feel like you're just trying to comfort me." Luo Qingyan didn't dare to believe it easily. "If it's about mermaids... well... anyway, you can keep the secret parts from me, but please don't keep it from me completely. If something bad happens, at least let me have some precautions. I don't want to be completely ignorant."
"No! It's really not a bad thing!" The little merman knew that he had hidden too many things in the past, which lowered his trust level, so he was a little anxious. "Yes, it is related to me... but... there is absolutely no danger, really... I promise, please believe me."
"Alright, alright, I understand. It's another secret I can't tell." Luo Qingyan took a deep breath and continued to eat her breakfast. "Let's eat breakfast first, it won't taste good if it gets cold."
The little male merman held a spoon in his hand, but didn't continue eating; he lowered his eyes in thought. After a while, he raised his head and slowly said, "I unexpectedly came ashore because of a trial."
"Trial?" Luo Qingyan suddenly looked up, sensing that the little male merman wanted to tell her something very important.
Seeing that Luo Qingyan was willing to listen to him, the little merman began to slowly explain: "Mermaids have existed for tens of thousands of years, so naturally they have some very important things. That's why we have holy envoys to ensure that these important things are passed down and that the merman race continues to exist."
"Mermaids do possess some abilities that humans find amazing, but nowadays humans are exploring the ocean more and more, so the Holy Envoy can no longer just protect everything in the sea, but also understand humans, guard against humans, and coexist with humans."
"One must pass a trial to become a Holy Envoy. It was during my trial that I encountered a conflict between humans and marine life, and I... was accidentally caught up in it... However, the humans did not discover me, so there was no terrible situation like being hunted down. Anyway, I was later injured and forced to stay in the pearl and come ashore."
"However, after arriving at the Land Mermaid Organization, I learned that my forced coming ashore was also part of the trial, including my interactions with you afterwards. To become a Holy Envoy, one must have the ability to handle various situations. I have passed this part. These are the things I told you that made me happy."
Luo Qingyan certainly remembered that the little male merman had said he couldn't directly express the happy news he had learned, but he just wanted to share that joy with her. Now, she naturally had doubts: "Wasn't it that you couldn't say it? Why can you say it now? And what does all this have to do with my dream?"
"These are secrets, and shouldn't be told to humans casually, but I'm telling you because I trust you and believe you're a good person who won't harm the mermaids." The little male mermaid said seriously, "I can tell you any secret, so that dream is nothing... it won't cause any harm, please don't worry."
“Now that you’ve told me this important secret, I’m naturally relieved. However…” Luo Qingyan rested his chin on his hand, “Your expression was unusual when we talked about that dream earlier, and why did you seem to be avoiding it? That dream wasn’t simple, was it?”
The little merman pursed his lips, knowing that Luo Qingyan wouldn't let him off the hook if he didn't explain: "That dream... can be interpreted as... related to mermaids... it's indeed special... it has some kind of connection..."
"Can I take that as me being influenced by you?" Seeing the other party hesitate, Luo Qingyan took over the conversation and smiled slightly, "Is this what mermaids dream about?"
The little male merman lowered his eyes, appearing to acquiesce.
"Alright, I get the gist of it. Anyway, there's no danger. You trust me, so that's enough for you." Luo Qingyan picked up her chopsticks and grabbed a vegetable roll. "Let's eat. After we finish, we'll head out to the supermarket early."
"Okay." The little merman continued eating, but absentmindedly. He slowly drank a few spoonfuls of porridge, then couldn't help but ask again, "When was the first time you had a dream like that?"
Luo Qingyan originally wanted to inquire further about the dream, but when the words were about to come out, she suddenly didn't want to ask anymore, so she answered the question normally: "It was when I went to the hospital for food poisoning that I had that dream for the first time, and when I woke up I was in the hospital."
After listening to Luo Qingyan's words, the little male merman seemed to be deep in thought. He pondered for a while and then solemnly asked, "Can I... pursue you?"
"Huh?" Seeing the little male merman deep in thought, Luo Qingyan continued eating her breakfast. The question came so suddenly that she almost choked on her food. "You should know what human pursuits mean, right?"
"I know." The little merman said seriously, "The human order is usually: pursuing, falling in love, and getting married."
Luo Qingyan put down his chopsticks and said seriously, "Yes, that's the order for most people, but emotionally... I hope that the premise of pursuing someone is love. You have to like me before you pursue me. Otherwise, if you have other motives... there's no need. Moreover, liking someone might be a momentary impulse that will disappear after a while. For you, I hope it's not just a momentary liking. After all... I don't want to have feelings that appear and then disappear. I can't stand that kind of torment."
"I understand. I like you, and I want to like you more deeply, to let liking turn into love, true love."
"Really?" Luo Qingyan shook her head slightly, then chuckled softly, "Why do you suddenly want to pursue me? Why did you suddenly have this idea?"
The little merman's eyes flickered slightly, his voice calm and sincere: "It didn't happen suddenly... I, I slowly realized it. I... I don't want you to die."
Luo Qingyan was stunned for a moment. She felt her mind go blank for a instant, then something strange entered and filled it. Then, she chuckled softly, "What you're saying... sounds a bit strange, but... um... are you confessing your feelings?"
"Yes." The little merman's tone was very certain.
"Well... straightforward, what a strange confession. How can such words be used to confess one's feelings?" Luo Qingyan's eyes and brows were full of smiles. She paused before saying seriously, "However, it's sincere enough. I like it."
"So, can I pursue you now?"
“Pursuing him… is too slow.” Luo Qingyan stared straight into the little merman’s eyes, her gaze flickering. “Just be my boyfriend.”
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