Due to his facial nerves not being activated for a long time, the smile was faint, yet Shu Tang caught it.
If at most times the mermaid resembled a mysterious and beautiful pale statue, then this slight curvature was like the statue coming to life, suddenly filled with humanity.
This “person” also came alive in an instant.
Moreover, the raspy and indistinct laughter was unexpectedly touching.
Empty-headed, she looked at the beautiful mermaid and for some reason, she suddenly felt a bit embarrassed, a little awkwardly wanting to retract her head. However, the mermaid’s cold fingers gently supported her chin, a light movement that stopped her from pulling back.
Shu Tang held her breath.
The slender fingers gently, tentatively touched her, as the mermaid stared intently at her, with long eyelashes drooping, as if feeling her warm body temperature with his cold palms.
In the quiet fortress, it seemed that only their breathing could be heard.
Finally, the mermaid casually let go of Shu Tang—
And took her instant noodles.
In the end, Shu Tang didn’t get to eat her noodles.
Because she simply forgot about them.
She walked back to the bed inside the cage, sleepwalking, until the mermaid encircled her with his tail.
Before falling asleep, she looked at the mermaid’s beautiful profile and thought: Ah, what a charming smile.
She covered herself with a small blanket, thinking: And such a pleasant voice.
…
Survival in the Wilderness, Day Two.
Getting up in the morning, today two creatures were brushing their teeth.
One on the left and one on the right, one big and one small.
Shu Tang turned her head in surprise to look at the mermaid, and he lowered his head to look at her.
Then they brushed their teeth at the same frequency and in the same posture.
While washing her face, Shu Tang couldn’t reach, so she instinctively said, “Little Rose, pass me a towel!”
Holding the towel on her face for a while, Shu Tang suddenly exclaimed.
Turning her head, she belatedly realized: “He” understood.
…
Realizing that she and the mermaid might not be able to leave anytime soon, Shu Tang began to explore the fortress.
Yesterday, she confirmed that the water supply systems for drinking and domestic use were in order, but the weather in South Island City can change significantly. Before May, the temperature might still drop to around zero degrees Celsius. At that time, the protective gear and a small blanket that Shu Tang brought would clearly be insufficient.
Therefore, Shu Tang decided to look around to see if there were any supplies available.
She had almost finished searching the first floor, so Shu Tang started exploring the second floor.
Apart from the room they were staying in, there were many other rooms, but all were locked.
Shu Tang had the mermaid help her unlock the doors, and surprisingly, they found a storeroom!
The dust was thick, as if no one had opened it for ten years.
After opening the doors and windows to ventilate the room, Shu Tang began searching with the sunlight streaming in.
She found several quilts and a very comfortable large mattress, all in brand new vacuum packaging. She even found a box of beige curtains that had not been unwrapped.
The storeroom seemed like it was set up as someone was moving into a new home and planning to decorate, but it was then forgotten about by the owner for ten years.
After all, ten years ago, Zhu Yan entered the restricted area, and since then, had little time of clarity — and there were no other owners here, so naturally, no one remembered to take out the items and make this empty space feel like a home.
Shu Tang was very surprised because all the items were well-preserved; even though they were old, they were still clean after being unpacked. This way, if the temperature dropped, there would be no worries about living here.
Shu Tang pointed to the items, explaining one by one to the mermaid beside her: this is a mattress, that is a quilt.
From the time she was washing up, Shu Tang vaguely realized that as long as she explained what something was to the mermaid, the next time she asked “him” to fetch something, “he” could accurately get what Shu Tang needed.
Shu Tang noted this in her heart, and to confirm it, she spent an entire morning continuously ordering the mermaid around.
Moving mattresses, airing quilts, she left all these tasks to the mermaid;
Shu Tang, with her hands in her pockets, lazily followed the tall mermaid, taking note of his reactions while ordering him around.
Shu Tang quickly got the results of her test—
For items like plates, cups, and blankets, the mermaid could accurately fetch them for her;
But for curtains and dishes that Shu Tang had not mentioned in front of him, the mermaid had a hard time understanding her intentions.
Moreover, if Shu Tang spoke too quickly, using many nouns, the mermaid would stop and stare at her.
As she sat on the beach sunbathing the blanket, Shu Tang looked at the mermaid beside her, who had enclosed her and was sunbathing with his eyes closed. She took out her “Blue Rose Observation Record” and began to write and draw.
In this short time, a significant change had occurred in him.
On the first day she met the mermaid, Shu Tang had struggled mightily just to fetch his medical record. Back then, the mermaid couldn’t understand her words or grasp her meanings.
At that time, the “non-human” aspect of him was very strong. He could express very few emotions, and there was almost no way for him to communicate with Shu Tang, like a monster hiding in the dark.
Shu Tang suddenly realized the source of these changes—
It was communication and interaction.
The mermaid had a very strong ability to learn, able to remember things after seeing or hearing them once; however, he had always been in Zone 01 and had never interacted with other people, so he naturally had no role models to learn from.
But in these short two days of interaction, Shu Tang could clearly feel that his emotions had become richer, and their communication was much smoother.
For example, in the past, it was difficult for the mermaid to clearly express his intentions, only able to grasp her and hiss at her; but now, he could accurately convey the meaning of “hand over the instant noodles” with his eyes and gestures.
He even started to smile.
She turned her head to look at the mermaid sunbathing, and suddenly felt that this fish now seemed a bit “lazy.” This leisurely feeling was definitely not present in the mermaid she first met, who would only hide in the dark.
And all these changes were because Shu Tang had been by his side these two days.
During their time together, the mermaid learned how to be a “person.”
Shu Tang immediately felt a great sense of responsibility.
The mermaid could understand a large part of the verbs; for instance, when Shu Tang said “take,” the mermaid would hand things to her; when she said “lift,” the mermaid would casually pick her up.
But as for nouns, apart from those Shu Tang had taught him, he couldn’t understand most of them.
So, Shu Tang no longer sat playing with sand on the beach but began chatting with the mermaid with great enthusiasm, teaching him some simple nouns.
Shu Tang explained to the mermaid what “work” was.
The mermaid quickly understood: work is hunting.
The mermaid often heard Shu Tang complain numerous times about this term, clearly disliking it.
Shu Tang dislikes work = Shu Tang dislikes hunting = Often hungry = Hungry enough to eat garbage
The mermaid flicked his tail:
“He” is very skilled at hunting and enjoys it.
The mermaid first looked at Shu Tang disapprovingly, then flicked his tail again and hissed at her.
Shu Tang didn’t understand what “he” meant.
Shu Tang continued to explain to the mermaid what an “intern” is.
The mermaid understood:
A being in vast numbers, catching little food, at the very bottom of the food chain.
Mermaid: Plankton.
Shu Tang then excitedly explained to the mermaid what her favorite activity, “slacking off,” was.
—No need for an explanation.
The mermaid tilted his head, placing his tail beside Shu Tang’s hand.
Shu Tang: “…”
Shu Tang reached out and touched it: very silky, somewhat cool, very pleasant to touch.
Shu Tang then began to happily slack off.
In the afternoon, they went around the building’s elevator area, indeed there was no power, Shu Tang sighed repeatedly, and was then whisked away by the mermaid to have dinner.
Also: Shu Tang found that the instant noodles had unfortunately expired today.
Additionally: To keep her from eating garbage, the mermaid caught some very fresh salmon as compensation.
At night, they finally laid out the mattress and covered it with a blanket that smelled of sunshine.
Shu Tang rolled around on the bed, was caught by the mermaid, and happily fell asleep.
Surviving in the wilderness, day three.
Slept till noon.
Played with sand.
Saw a passing crab.
Got pinched.
Called loudly for the mermaid.
Caught to make soup.
Fell asleep again.
Waking up, she deeply felt herself degenerating, wasting time.
The mermaid, flicking his tail and tilting his head: What does ‘degeneration’ mean? What does it mean to waste time?
Soon, the mermaid understood.
Because Shu Tang had started happily piling up sand again.
Shu Tang was a bit worried, but not much. And whenever a worry popped into her mind, it was quickly distracted by a seagull that suddenly flew by or an unexpected wave.
The last time she had been this relaxed was during the summer after her senior year of high school, having been admitted to Hua University. She lay at home watching TV, fantasizing about college life—a summer she often reminisced about, carefree, joyful, and full of anticipation.
Now, she was idle, with no one to save and thus no pressure. She could only lie on the beach and feel the tide of the sea.
Her conversation partner was a fish because it couldn’t talk back, so there was no social pressure.
It was also a good listener—after all, whatever was said would not be contradicted.
Shu Tang thought: Isn’t this the salted fish life she had always dreamed of?
…
But, when one relaxes, it’s easy to lower one’s guard. These days, Shu Tang was dosing the mermaid’s bowl with his daily medication.
During the day, she re-examined the mermaid and found that all the parameters were gradually stabilizing, showing that the effects of the last psychic outburst were slowly fading.
The treatment for psychic outbursts generally involves two methods: medication control and psychic relief.
On one hand, medications alleviate nerve pain, reducing the patient’s suffering, treating the symptoms;
On the other hand, psychic relief addresses the root cause.
The severe nerve pain caused by psychic outbursts feels like sharp needles drilling into the brain, which is why most people lose their consciousness and ability to think during such outbursts.
Shu Tang felt that the mermaid was increasingly understanding her words, probably because the nerve pain was also easing.
Shu Tang felt greatly encouraged.
However, an accident occurred.
Today, as Shu Tang sneaked into the kitchen to secretly medicate the mermaid, she moved too abruptly and accidentally bumped into the mermaid, who had deliberately turned to look out the window to give her a chance to act.
With this bump, the mermaid instinctively lowered his head, directly onto Shu Tang’s sneaky medication scene.
Shu Tang: “……”
Mermaid: “……”
Shu Tang was extremely embarrassed and explained, “This is the medicine I prepared for you; it’s very good for your health.”
The tall mermaid stared at Shu Tang for a while.
Shu Tang felt very guilty and for the first time sensed the immense pressure of the mermaid’s pitch-black eyes—
Especially when it was hard to discern any emotion from those eyes.
Shu Tang grew increasingly uneasy:
Could “he” think that she was drugging “him”?
Indeed, that was the case.
If it weren’t for this misunderstanding, the mermaid wouldn’t have continued to test Shu Tang’s intentions.
However, to tell the truth, the mermaid didn’t care about the drugging itself; “he” was more concerned about what this act implied. If Shu Tang was willing to stay, taking some pills didn’t matter to the mermaid.
Originally, the mermaid would have pretended not to know.
But who could have expected such a mix-up?
The mermaid shifted his gaze, intending to act as if nothing had happened, but Shu Tang kept looking at “him” repeatedly, seeming hesitant to speak.
Finally, the mermaid lowered his head to look at Shu Tang.
Miraculously, Shu Tang actually saw a complex expression on the mermaid’s face, something like a “smile yet not a smile.”
Suddenly, the mermaid moved.
“He” took a gleaming dagger from the kitchen cabinet.
—It had fallen from the experts who came to Yan City that day; Shu Tang and the mermaid had picked it up on their way to see the elevator and used it to cut fish.
The mermaid looked at her and handed the dagger to Shu Tang.
Shu Tang, feeling uneasy, dared not take it.
Seeing Shu Tang wouldn’t take it, the mermaid fell silent for a while.
Then he turned the dagger around—
Thrusting it into his own abdomen.
Shu Tang: !!!
Before she could react with shock, she saw the dagger—it bent.
Bent in the literal sense.
Shu Tang: “…”
The mermaid looked up at her.
Then he reached out and slowly grasped the bent dagger in his hand.
All one could hear was a spine-chilling sound as, in his long, pale hands, the dagger was crumpled like a piece of paper into a lump of iron.
Then, the mermaid casually released the lump of iron and shifted his gaze toward Shu Tang.
Shu Tang instinctively stepped back.
The mermaid steadily approached her, drawing nearer.
Shu Tang felt her legs weaken.
As she racked her brains trying to think of an explanation, the mermaid had already cornered her against the desk.
The mermaid’s dark eyes fixed on her, one hand resting beside her.
Just his approach was enough to cast a shadow over Shu Tang.
She nervously glanced at him.
The mermaid lowered his eyes and reached out, picking up a pill from the table where Shu Tang had placed it.
Shu Tang was puzzled.
Yet she saw the mermaid quietly, right in front of her—
Swallow the pill voluntarily.
And as the mermaid chewed the pill, he kept his eyes lowered, staring intently at her.
Shu Tang: “…”
She swallowed, feeling like her hair was about to stand on end.
However, after finishing, the mermaid casually stood up.
He averted his gaze, turned around, and started unrolling the lumped-up knife.
He began slicing salmon.
—As if he never took the incident seriously.
Shu Tang stood still, it took her a while to snap back to reality.
This behavior is quite like that of a minor character in a horror film, who, holding a talisman as a lifeline, confidently thinks she can seal away a fierce ghost. But, not only does the ghost take the talisman from her, it promptly folds it into a paper airplane.
The minor character: “…”
The minor character, Shu Tang, should have been scared out of her wits, but when she came to her senses—
Wait, after mistakenly thinking she was going to poison and harm “him,” why is “his” attitude like this?
Shu Tang: Does he look down on me?
It’s known that felines are fast and have sharp claws; a sudden attack can be fierce. Moreover, she is a healer, able to concoct medicines that could easily befuddle ten of his kind!
The minor character wasn’t scared out of her senses; she even went up to argue with the ghost.
However, the mermaid, who was slicing salmon, glanced at her and with one hand lifted the bothersome cat aside.
Shu Tang: “…”
Originally, this misunderstanding was severe, and a small mistake could have led to a bloodbath.
But fortunately, the conflict did not escalate, and even under the premise of “mistakenly thinking she wanted to harm him,” this ferocious mermaid did not change his attitude towards Shu Tang.
For dinner, Shu Tang even got to eat the salmon sliced by the mermaid.
What a virtuous fish indeed.
But Shu Tang grew more dispirited the more she thought about it.
Things should have just passed, but inexplicably, it turned into—
Shu Tang started discussing some horror medical incidents that circulated in the emergency department with the mermaid at the dinner table at night.
The medical incident she described was like a 21st-century horror story: the Cat-faced Old Lady.
It’s said that the patient underwent a pollutant-like mutation after taking the wrong medicine.
She picked up her own ears, mimicking the mutant’s eerie pointed ears; she also bared her canine teeth, showcasing the sharpness of the other’s teeth; her description was vivid.
The mermaid did not understand the string of unfamiliar terms, but he understood that Shu Tang was threatening “him.”
The mermaid quietly watched her, the light dim, so she did not see the slight curve of the lips on his usually expressionless face.
When Shu Tang finally stopped to drink some water, the mermaid considerately handed her the water.
Shu Tang, after a laborious performance: “…”
The minor character’s attempt to threaten and intimidate failed.
After dinner, she ran out, becoming increasingly angry, and refused to return as she picked up shells on the beach.
She decided not to pay any attention to that fish anymore tonight.
In the night breeze, the seawater still retains some warmth.
Mermaids are traditionally silent, and he leisurely follows behind Shu Tang.
Shu Tang suppressed the urge to speak.
The two walked quietly.
The atmosphere was tense.
Until—
They passed by a crab.
It pinched.
“Little Rose! Help!”