MASG chapter 179: Extra 19

◎ In order to make A’Manqi take this serious problem seriously, Xia Yu deliberately used a stern tone. ◎

When Xia Yu returned from the interrogation room, Mo An immediately sensed that his mood was not very good.

“The interrogation is over?” Mo An checked the time. That was fast.

Xia Yu lowered his eyes and nodded. His frustration and exhaustion were plain to see. “Yes. The person who came to pick up the goods couldn’t withstand Yan Xia’s interrogation and confessed everything.”

Seeing his reaction, Mo An first turned back to look at the sleeping fry. Then he pulled Xia Yu into the bathroom and reassured him first. “I checked his bones. They’re intact, nothing is broken. Don’t worry, don’t worry. The bones in his waist are fine too.”

Xia Yu had been anxious the entire way back. Now half of the burden in his heart was finally lifted. Quietly, he told Mo An about the interrogation materials Yan Xia had organized. The more he spoke, the heavier Mo An’s expression became. By the end, Mo An could not say a single word. He could not even think of a solution.

“That’s how it is. He may not even know what the ocean is.” Xia Yu felt heartache for the little one and for the big one as well. He wrapped his arms around Mo An’s waist and gently patted him.

Mo An clenched his teeth tightly, and faint grinding sounds could be heard.

At this moment, his hatred toward smugglers reached its peak, and he hated even more the people who had researched hybrid mermaid. Simply based on their own aesthetic preferences, they had casually altered the appearance of another living being, treated it as merchandise, and sold it at will. A’Manqi would never have naturally appeared in the ocean, and now there was no way for them to return him to the deep sea.

Not to mention finding the place where he had hatched and locating his parents.

“Don’t be angry. I know you’re hurting.” Xia Yu understood Mo An too well.

“These people… I’m going to kill them.” Mo An forced the words through his anger, veins bulging at his temples. What should they do next? He had completely run out of ideas.

Xia Yu was his pillar of support and quickly sorted through the situation. “Don’t tell A’Manqi for now. At the very least, keep it from him for as long as possible.”

Yes, they had to keep it from him. Otherwise, how was A’Manqi supposed to understand the meaning of his life? His very birth had been as a product. Xia Yu lowered his voice again. “When Meng Qingqing comes back, let’s ask her. She’ll definitely have more solutions than we do. Also, we can’t give up on him. We need to start training his swimming skills and at least get him swimming.”

Mo An nodded. Fortunately, Xia Yu was here.

It was already late. Earlier that morning, Xia Yu had been lamenting how peaceful and uneventful life was at the bay. By evening, he had been handed a mission full of twists and turns. After taking a shower, he returned to the bedroom and switched places with Mo An. A’Manqi had already fallen asleep in Xia Yu’s oversized pajamas.

Beep, beep, beep. Beep, beep, beep.

The alarm clock on the bedside table rang. Jingwei reminded him:

[It’s time to give him an injection.]

Beside the alarm clock was the nutrient injection. Xia Yu skillfully prepared it and quickly inserted the needle into A’Manqi’s shoulder. While he was pushing the liquid in, A’Manqi woke up. His thick eyelashes curled upward, and curiosity lit up his eyes.

“Huh?” He reached out and touched Xia Yu. “Big Fish said you’re a jellyfish.”

Xia Yu pulled out the syringe and tossed it into the drawer for later disposal. “That’s right. I’m not entirely human. But don’t be afraid of me.”

“What does a jellyfish look like?” A’Manqi sat up, his legs still unmoving.

“Well… when we’re in the sea, we give off a blue glow, like beautiful umbrellas.” Xia Yu activated the device and pulled up information about the Blue Jellyfish on the holographic display. A jellyfish appeared floating in front of A’Manqi, lifelike in every detail.

“Wow! It’s so beautiful! Can I touch it? Just gently!” A’Manqi thought all holograms were real and barely dared to move.

Xia Yu took hold of his little hand and helped him touch it. “You can touch it here because it’s only a projection. It’s fake, so it can’t hurt you. But if you return to the ocean one day, you must never touch one. Blue Jellyfish are your natural enemies. Their venom can kill you.”

In order to make A’Manqi take this serious problem seriously, Xia Yu deliberately used a stern tone.

A’Manqi immediately withdrew his hand. “Natural enemy?”

Xia Yu nodded. “That’s right. But you can touch me.”

A’Manqi was indeed frightened. His understanding of natural enemies was still very shallow, and his brain was not yet capable of processing such concepts. But one thing was certain: Xia Yu could be touched. Xia Yu was not a natural enemy. So he became happy again, fell into Xia Yu’s arms, and wrapped his arms around his neck.

“In the sea, there are jellyfish. Here, there’s Xia Yu.” A’Manqi spoke softly.

Hearing him mention “the sea” made Xia Yu’s heart ache.

Before long, Mo An returned, and another serious problem presented itself—where was the little fry supposed to sleep?

“I think we should put him on the sofa. I can move the sofa over and place it next to the bed.” Mo An pointed toward the sofa outside.

Xia Yu said, “Actually, look… our bed is pretty big.”

“But he can’t move and can’t turn over. What if we accidentally squash him?” Mo An frowned. Even though he’s small, he has territorial awareness too. Xia Yu, you can’t just care about the little one and ignore the big one.

“Put him on my side and he won’t get squashed. I sleep pretty still.” Xia Yu patted the space beside him, suggesting they place A’Manqi at the edge of the bed.

While the two adults were discussing it, A’Manqi did not participate. Instead, he lowered his body as much as possible until he was as flat as a pancake, minimizing his presence and trying to sneak out of Mo An’s field of vision.

“Crawl, crawl, crawl.”

A’Manqi had no intention of sleeping on the sofa. Once he had been held and comforted by humans, he could never return to how things used to be. He no longer wanted to be alone. The moment he crawled to Xia Yu’s side, he immediately lay down properly, crossed his hands over his chest, and pretended to sleep.

Pretending to sleep was also a survival skill of young mermaid. Whenever they encountered a big fish in the sea, they would immediately flatten themselves. Most fish would not be able to see them, allowing them to avoid danger.

Unfortunately, this big fish, Mo An, could see him.

“Stop pretending. You can’t sleep over there.”

A’Manqi, who had been picked up by Mo An, bared his teeth again and even tried punching him with his little fists. “Xia Yu said I could sleep there. I’m going to listen to Xia Yu.”

“Only I get to listen to Xia Yu.” Mo An placed the little fry on his own pillow. “Sleep here. I’ll be beside you.”

“Then where’s Xia Yu?” A’Manqi asked unwillingly.

Mo An smiled provocatively. “On my other side. Sleeping right next to me.”

“Aoo… don’t want that.” A’Manqi could only look at Xia Yu without being able to touch him. But he had already thought of another method. Once Big Fish fell asleep, he would climb over mountains and cross rivers—meaning crawl over Big Fish’s body—and make his way to Xia Yu’s side! Just thinking about curling up in Xia Yu’s arms while sleeping filled A’Manqi with motivation. All his sleepiness vanished.

Finally, the lights were turned off!

A’Manqi became excited. He had assumed Big Fish was the same as him and would get sleepy as soon as he lay down. But Mo An did not sleep at all. Instead, he turned toward Xia Yu’s side and started doing something…

There were voices, sticky sounds that couldn’t really be described, and the rustling of fabric.

A’Manqi perked up his ears but still could not understand what humans were doing. In the end, his eyes closed, and he fell into a deep sleep.

The next day, before A’Manqi had even fully woken up, he got another injection in his arm. Opening his eyes and seeing Xia Yu made him feel completely at ease. He twisted around and burrowed back under the blanket.

The following days were not pleasant for A’Manqi. Every day he had to undergo treatment, and his tail became covered with silver needles. The humans said electric currents could stimulate his tail and help it recover. But why exactly did he need to recover? Whenever he asked Xia Yu, Xia Yu would not tell him.

The day Meng Qingqing returned, a fine drizzle was falling over Qingyao City.

Talos was still drinking beneath the lighthouse with Jennifer. Mother and son were enjoying wine together. Jennifer did not particularly like cloudy days, but today she was exceptionally happy. She stared at Talos’s face repeatedly.

“What happened to your face? Did you go and provoke some young lady?”

Talos, whose face was swollen red on one side, replied, “A mermaid slapped me.”

“Hahahahaha…” Jennifer burst into laughter. She absolutely adored the siren branch.

At that moment, Meng Qingqing had not yet come ashore. She and her sisters were clinging beneath the reef pathway, every bit as wary as when they had first met Mo An.

“What did you say?” she asked.

Mo An remained out of the water and crouched down as he spoke. “Mm. An artificially created hybrid. The people in the laboratory suspect he has… a genetic disease.”

Several meters behind him stood Xia Yu. As time passed, A’Manqi had become completely dependent on him.

“Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid.”

“I am afraid. I’m scared. Hold me tighter.” This time A’Manqi did not even show his face. Like an octopus, he clung firmly to Xia Yu. He could sense the presence of his own kind. So many of them, hidden within that unfathomable black ocean. Only at this moment did Xia Yu truly understand the difference between A’Manqi and Mo An.

A’Manqi did not long for the sea at all.

When Mo An had first hatched, he had immediately shown affection and curiosity toward the ocean. But the emotions A’Manqi felt were mostly fear.

To him, the ocean was merely a very, very large aquarium filled with all kinds of natural enemies and monsters.

“I’m scared. I don’t want to go into the water.” A’Manqi was on the verge of tears. But remembering that Mo An had said he was not allowed to cry, he forcibly held them back. No. He would not cry. He would become the strangest of strange species, the manliest of male fish!

“Alright. If you’re scared, then don’t go into the water. We won’t go in.” Xia Yu’s heart softened. Fine. If he didn’t want to go, then he wouldn’t.

Meng Qingqing’s expression became increasingly serious, and from time to time she glanced past Mo An’s shoulder. Her sisters also surfaced curiously, but every face was unusually grave. When they saw Mo An as a child, they had felt a powerful connection. But they felt nothing when they looked at A’Manqi.

“Can you accept him? I mean, train him together with you, or let him live with you?” Mo An asked quietly. “Of course not now, but if he can learn to swim.”

Unexpectedly, Meng Qingqing and all of her sisters shook their heads.

Mo An had never experienced such coldness before. Meng Qingqing had always treated him well despite being strict.

“Why?”

“Because in his condition… he cannot live in the ocean. Do you understand?” Meng Qingqing said firmly. “If he really has a disease, then according to natural law, he should never have hatched at all. He would have disappeared into the seawater together with the fish egg. Even if he somehow hatched, he would never grow up successfully, much less attract a female fish. Our species became strong through this kind of evolution.”

“But…” Mo An still wanted to try.

“Even if he grows up, then what? Someday he’ll have a mate. Then their children will inherit the genes for this disease. They won’t be able to ensure the health of their eggs. If this disease becomes a recessive trait, do you realize how dangerous that would be?” Meng Qingqing even seemed a little frightened. “Mermaid would become weaker. Countless mermaid in the ocean would carry hidden illnesses. The reason we’re stronger than humans is that bad genes are eliminated early.”

Mo An scratched his hair. “Sigh…”

“My words may sound heartless, but they’re true. His existence itself is a threat to the species. Of course, if he recovers successfully and can swim in the bay, we can take him along and protect him. After all, seawater belongs to all aquatic creatures. This isn’t our territory. He has the right to enjoy it.” Meng Qingqing felt she had been a little too harsh and softened her tone. “Now bring him down. Let me see just how bad he really is.”

Meng Qingqing had already made a concession. The rest depended on A’Manqi’s performance.

Excited, Mo An turned around and waved at them.

“Come on, come down and give it a try.”

The result was that A’Manqi immediately burst into tears, one blue diamond after another falling into Xia Yu’s clothes.

With tear-filled eyes, A’Manqi said, “I don’t want to go into the sea. I’m really scared.”

 

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Author’s Note:

Mo An: You cried. Now you can’t be the strangest of strange species anymore.

Xia Yu: You’re so childish.