Do fish think?
Zhao Xiaoxiu sat on a rock by the pond, a pole beside her feet, a broken pear in her hand, watching the floating fish whose eyes were constantly changing as they drifted on the water, lost in thought.
Perhaps they would? She wasn't sure.
"Will you dare to bite me again next time?" the girl asked, standing with one foot on a rock and hands on her hips.
The floating fish actually shook its head from side to side in the water.
Zhao Xiaoxiu stared in disbelief, thinking she had misread it. She grabbed a handful of broken pears, squatted down at the edge of the pond, and slowly stretched out her hand.
The floating fish glanced at her clearly before slowly swimming closer to her.
"Stop!" Zhao Xiaoxiu suddenly shouted.
The floating fish stopped swimming and tilted its body to the side, looking somewhat confused.
Despite its seemingly blank expression, Zhao Xiaoxiu not only sensed its emotions this time, but also noticed that it was contemplating something.
It was pondering the meaning of her words.
That's strange, it wasn't like this yesterday.
Zhao Xiaoxiu waved again, "Little Flying Man, come here."
The floating fish raised its head above the water's surface; it knew that when she called Peter Pan, she was calling it.
"Has it become a spirit?" Zhao Xiaoxiu murmured. Looking at those fish eyes again, she noticed a clear reaction as soon as she spoke.
A cool breeze blew across the river, and Zhao Xiaoxiu immediately got goosebumps.
Her heart pounded, and she called out "Peter Pan" again.
The floating fish swam forward a little, glanced at her, and then looked at her outstretched hand.
"If you bite me again, I'll kill you and make fish soup!" Zhao Xiaoxiu warned, gripping the pole with her other hand.
It had just been poked by this pole several times, and fear was clearly visible in its fish eyes.
The floating fish slowly approached, and was now right below Zhao Xiaoxiu's fingertips.
Her warning gaze remained fixed on it as she slowly lowered her hand, placing it beneath the water's surface.
The chopped pear floated up, and the suspended fish tentatively ate one. It flicked its tail, clearly happy.
But it didn't rush to eat the next one. Instead, it glanced at Zhao Xiaoxiu first, and seeing that she didn't make any further moves, it swam over and ate a piece of pear.
But Zhao Xiaoxiu could clearly feel that when the triangular fish head swam past her fingers, it always seemed to want to get closer.
Zhao Xiaoxiu took a deep breath and deliberately reached out to touch it.
The floating fish suddenly turned its entire body around, its head rushing towards her, its tail flapping wildly, instantly splashing high into the water.
It flew up, spitting out bubbles from its mouth and placing them on her palm.
Zhao Xiaoxiu stretched out her finger and poked it, instantly bursting a dazzling water mist firework before her eyes.
Yesterday, it blew out a bubble like this to lure her closer, and Zhao Xiaoxiu was on guard against its next unexpected attack.
Unexpectedly, it released several more bubbles, which danced around her, its eyes waiting for her to pop them.
Zhao Xiaoxiu popped them one by one, and water mist bloomed all around her, colorful and dazzling.
Seeing that she had exposed the illusion, the floating fish seemed to think she was very happy. It leaped into the water and swam around several times, looking quite pleased with itself.
A strange sense of intimacy and bond welled up in Zhao Xiaoxiu's heart. She looked into the water and, whether it was due to the reflection of the water or something else, she felt that the fish seemed to be a size bigger than when she saw it yesterday.
Zhao Xiaoxiu put her hand into the water again, stirred the water, and the floating fish immediately swam happily toward her, flicking their tails.
"Peter Pan," she called to it.
It stopped in her palm, its mouth touching her fingers and palm, as if yearning for something.
A sudden thought flashed through Zhao Xiaoxiu's mind: Could it be...?
She suddenly stood up, and her little hand in the water left as well. The floating fish leaped, thinking she was leaving, and tried to chase after her.
Zhao Xiaoxiu turned around and saw this scene. She steeled herself, picked up a sharp-pointed pebble, and pricked her palm.
A sharp stone pierced her palm, and blood gushed out instantly. Zhao Xiaoxiu frowned, returned to the pond, and placed her hand on the water's edge.
The floating fish immediately approached excitedly, but this time it didn't rush to bite her like it did yesterday.
It swam a little too hastily around her palm until she gently called out, "Peter Pan."
It flicked its tail and opened its mouth to the edge of her palm.
Zhao Xiaoxiu tilted her palm, and the blood that had gathered in her palm immediately flowed into the wide-open mouth of the suspended fish.
However, the wound on my palm healed on its own after drinking very little.
Peter Pan happily swam around her palm, looking very affectionate.
Zhao Xiaoxiu touched its fish head; it had no scales, was slippery, and felt quite nice. She unconsciously rubbed it for a while.
When she came to her senses, she found Peter Pan lying motionless on the water, looking like he was about to faint from pleasure.
Zhao Xiaoxiu touched her chest; her previously vague sense of Peter Pan's emotions had become incredibly clear.
It was very happy, liked her touch, and wanted to play with her.
He even wanted to invite her to go swimming with him.
Zhao Xiaoxiu couldn't swim, so she quickly stood up, took a few steps back, and stood in a safe position.
Peter Pan, who was floating on the water like a dead fish, noticed her departure and immediately flipped over and swam towards the shore. He emerged with a triangular fish head and two fish eyes staring at her expectantly.
This is really not right!
As Zhao Xiaoxiu carried the pole home, she examined her palms.
She was now certain that Peter Pan's transformation was due to him eating her flesh and drinking her blood yesterday.
It became more compliant with her, and even seemed to have become a little smarter. A mysterious connection had formed between them.
A fish suddenly gained intelligence, and she gave it to it. So what exactly is she?
"Dad, have I turned into a monster?" Zhao Xiaoxiu asked pitifully as she entered the tool shed and saw Zhao Gang.
Zhao Gang had just finished repairing a children's dining table and was about to call Zhao Xiaoxiu over to test its height when he looked up and saw her with a furrowed brow and a wronged expression that looked like she was about to cry. He couldn't help but sigh softly.
Zhao Xiaoxiu felt that he was becoming more and more like a human being, while she herself was becoming more and more strange.
"Why are you unhappy?" Zhao Gang came up to her, squatted down, and looked at her. "Peter Pan is different from the other floating fish now. He can help you with things. Isn't that a good thing?"
"It's good, but I..." Zhao Xiaoxiu looked up and saw two blood-red tentacles sneaking out from behind Zhao Gang's collar. Her face fell instantly and her mouth pursed. "Waaah, I don't want to grow tentacles!"
The tentacles were displeased, opening their fleshy buds to reveal a dense array of sharp teeth, which they thrust at Zhao Xiaoxiu.
"Aren't tentacles good?" Zhao Gang's tone carried a hint of grievance that he himself didn't even realize.
Zhao Xiaoxiu stopped crying. Oh no, she thought she had upset her father.
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