CH 65

While comforting Jiang Qingyue, Ren Shuhan initially mentioned that there were many things to deal with today. However, on the way back with Jiang Qingyue in his arms, he changed his tone.

“Let’s not talk about today’s events. It’s too late. We can discuss it tomorrow.”

Jiang Qingyue readily agreed, and they found the secret wooden cabin where they usually stayed. After hiding the pearl, they returned.

“But why?” Jiang Qingyue asked.

“Because the Hu tribe will definitely need the whole night to discuss how to handle the aftermath. They won’t come looking for us too soon, or maybe they won’t dare to come at all,” Ren Shuhan pinched his nose, “Tonight, let’s celebrate your official coming-of-age.”

Other merfolk in the Jiang tribe were unaware of what had happened, and Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai had lived in seclusion for many years now, making it impossible for them to know.

In the evening, Zheng Zhilai happily cooked many delicious dishes.

“Tomorrow, let Shuhan teach you how to walk,” Jiang Chen looked at them meaningfully, “Now that you’ve grown up, you need to learn household chores and farming activities to be a good spouse.”

Jiang Qingyue kept leaning on Ren Shuhan and didn’t say much, occasionally smiling.

Zheng Zhilai, seeing his demeanor, knew that there was no need to persuade him. He found it amusing and nostalgic. In the end, he allowed him to have a glass of wine to celebrate his coming of age.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Qingyue couldn’t handle his alcohol and got drunk after just one glass.

Fortunately, he didn’t become unruly. He simply fell asleep after drinking. Ren Shuhan carried him back to their room, covered him with a blanket, kissed his forehead, and then came out to clean up the bowls and chopsticks. He chatted with Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai for a while.

“I have a premonition that my parents will come tomorrow.”

He voluntarily explained his plans to leave for a while. At first, Jiang Chen was strongly against it and a bit angry. However, after hearing him out, thinking about the murder plot that happened against him before, she understood and didn’t say much. She just patted his shoulder.

“Have you told Qingqing?” Zheng Zhilai asked.

“I was just about to tell him,” Ren Shuhan said, “I’ll go talk to him.”

“If you stay away for too long,” Zheng Zhilai reminded, “I might advise him not to wait for you.”

“Understood. I’ll be back soon,” Ren Shuhan smiled and didn’t worry at all. He took out a few terminals and gave them to both of them. “And I have communication devices. Maybe in the future, I can video call with Qingqing.”

Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai: “…”

It seemed like this guy was ready to charm their Qingqing.

Over the years, due to Ren Shuhan and the system, the Jiang family’s life was quite modern despite living in seclusion. They often watched movies and played games together, and with the intelligent design of the terminals, Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai quickly learned how to use them. In the future, they could use the terminals to communicate with Ren Shuhan.

“Oh, one more thing,” before returning to his room, Ren Shuhan said, “Today, when I accompanied Qingqing to play in the deep sea, we encountered some trouble with the Hu tribe merfolk. I ended up beating them all, including their chief and a few elders, and the one called Hu Wang, the next chief.”

Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai: “???”

“Such a big thing, and you’re telling us now?” Jiang Chen was bewildered. “What does it mean that you beat their chief? Wait, are you saying it happened in the deep sea?”

“Did Qingqing cause trouble?” Zheng Zhilai quickly caught on. “Don’t cover for him. Why else would you go to the deep sea?”

Ren Shuhan continued to weave a web of lies to protect his little merman, reassuring Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai that there was nothing to worry about.

In fact, everyone in the Jiang family had noticed Ren Shuhan’s unusual behavior. After the initial shock, they didn’t panic and calmly analyzed the situation, thinking about how to handle it in the future.

“Let’s discuss future matters later,” Ren Shuhan suggested. “My parents will come soon, and we’ll see how they react.”

Jiang Chen found it reasonable and didn’t dwell on it.

“In that case, go and spend time with Qingqing,” Zheng Zhilai said empathetically. “We won’t disturb you.”

Ren Shuhan replied, “Yes, of course… Alright.”

It seemed that merfolk matured relatively early, as they could move out and start families shortly after receiving a pearl. However, Ren Shuhan wasn’t in a hurry. All he did was give his little merman a kiss, following the human customs of confessing, dating for several years, cohabiting, proposing, and then introducing each other to their families before marriage.

Although he realized his feelings when he was fourteen or fifteen and started sleeping in a separate room with Jiang Qingyue, he wasn’t rushing things.

“Qingqing?”

Today, he entered Jiang Qingyue’s room, closed the door softly, and found Jiang Qingyue already awake, sitting by the window and looking outside. When he heard Ren Shuhan’s voice, he turned with a smile.

Jiang Qingyue’s slender legs were crossed, swaying like a tail as he looked at Ren Shuhan.

The room, always stocked with Jiang Qingyue’s favorite sweets, carried the lingering aroma of chocolate. Today, it was mixed with a faint red wine scent, making Ren Shuhan feel very familiar.

“I don’t like alcohol,” Jiang Qingyue, with a misty look in his eyes, full of intoxication, whispered a secret to Ren Shuhan, “But I liked today’s. Do you know why?”

Ren Shuhan sat down beside him, and Jiang Qingyue immediately snuggled into his arms like a boneless creature.

“Why?” Ren Shuhan lowered his head, kissed Jiang Qingyue’s cheek, wrapped him in a thin blanket, and held him in his lap.

“Because I’m happy,” Jiang Qingyue also smiled, kissing Ren Shuhan’s jaw, “Before you returned to the main star, I’ve successfully chased you, resolving my lifelong matter. I can rest easy from now on.”

Ren Shuhan was startled.

“How did you know I was going back to the main star?”

“Huh?” Drunk Jiang Qingyue was a bit sluggish, asking foolishly, “Aren’t you going back for revenge? There are still bad people on the main star who have harmed you!”

Ren Shuhan silently locked eyes with him for a moment and finally gave in. He pressed Jiang Qingyue onto the mattress, hugged him tightly, and kissed his neck.

His little baby.

“Do you know,” Jiang Qingyue continued, “you smell like wine.”

Ren Shuhan took a light bite on his neck and mumbled, “Hmm, you taste like chocolate.”

“I’m not sweet? I’m serious,” Jiang Qingyue widened his eyes, looking silly, “I get drunk as soon as I smell your scent. It’s a bit addictive.”

Ren Shuhan couldn’t resist nibbling his earlobe.

So sweet.

“Ah…”

Jiang Qingyue instinctively wrapped his legs around Ren Shuhan’s waist, but the soft flesh on the inside of his thighs was sensitive. He only rubbed it briefly before being pushed away by Ren Shuhan.

“Sleep now,” Ren Shuhan rolled him up in the blanket, patted him from behind, and said, “You guessed it right. I might leave tomorrow. Get some rest; it’ll give you energy to see me off in the morning.”

Jiang Qingyue seemed to have not heard clearly, made a vague “mm” sound, and quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, after waking up, Jiang Qingyue, still somewhat groggy, remembered what Ren Shuhan had said. He hurriedly ran out to find him but discovered that there was no one at home.

Since he was still walking unsteadily and was unfamiliar with the idea of wearing the shoes Ren Shuhan had left for him, he transformed back into his merman form, swimming along the water route to the northern coast. There, he found a large group of merfolk from both the Hu and Jiang tribes silently making way for him. A young merman courteously called out, “Madam Chief.”

Jiang Qingyue: ?!

He first covered his face, but quickly lowered his hands, blushing, and nodded earnestly.

The new chief was naturally Ren Shuhan, standing on the beach.

Ren Shuhan couldn’t help but cover his face: This feeling of being a village chief… Qingqing is adapting to it better than I am.

Ren Shuhan never intended to become the chief of these two tribes. Luckily, his parents were about to arrive, so he could leave quickly. However, he had the habit of waking up early every day to jog and exercise, which the merfolk from the Jiang tribe were familiar with. This morning, they were caught by He Ze.

“You’re too strong!” He Ze only heard about it late last night and stayed up all night before bringing a group of people to the woods to wait for him. “The Hu tribe has decided to align with our tribe. They recognize you as the chief!”

Ren Shuhan could only reluctantly agree.

The merfolk had a simple way of thinking. They elected whoever was the best fighter, and if someone stronger came along, the chief willingly stepped down. The Jiang merfolk were somewhat suspicious of the human and his mermaid, but they didn’t dare to oppose the Hu merfolk. So, they followed without any resistance.

Even those who made sarcastic remarks about Jiang Chen among the Jiang merfolk stayed quiet, trailing behind the Hu tribe’s merfolk, following Ren Shuhan to the seaside, holding a meeting. The elders from both tribes extended a warm invitation, insisting that Ren Shuhan should be the new chief.

Ren Shuhan kept it brief.

Firstly, he mentioned that for collective hunting and urgent matters, they should still find the former chief. Ren Shuhan had no intention of managing such affairs, and everyone understood. After all, he had been expelled from the tribe, living in seclusion in the woods, self-sufficient all these years.

Secondly…

“I will be leaving soon. If anyone dares to trouble Jiang Chen’s family during my absence,” Ren Shuhan clenched his fist, making a cracking sound, “I will make sure to clean up the mess when I return. I won’t be merciful.”

Considering that the merfolk who had their tails broken today were present at the meeting, there was no doubt about the sincerity of his words.

Jiang Qingyue arrived when the meeting was about to conclude.

“Let’s go.”

Ren Shuhan lifted him up, and under the envious and jealous gazes of the merfolk, they returned home.

“You haven’t had breakfast, right? You drank too much yesterday, and you came out today with a possible headache, didn’t you? Go back, I’ll make something delicious for you.”

Jiang Qingyue shook his head and said, “No headache, but I want to drink.”

“I have left plenty for you, stored in the cellar,” Ren Shuhan instructed, “but you can’t drink too much. I’ll have Dad supervise you.”

“He can’t keep an eye on me unless you’re here,” Jiang Qingyue blinked and asked, “You’re leaving so soon. Are you really willing to leave me?”

Ren Shuhan gently bumped his forehead against Jiang Qingyue’s: “I’ll be back soon. Can’t you bear with these few days?”

Jiang Qingyue shook his head.

When he was sober, he became most spoiled, yet he showed an unusual understanding when drunk. Ren Shuhan couldn’t comprehend it, lowered his head, and kissed his lips.

“Be good. I promise to come back soon.”

His voice was deep and pleasant, and Jiang Qingyue, looking into his eyes, was seduced. He nodded reluctantly, saying, “Okay.”

Knowing that the new couple was going to be separated, Jiang Chen and Zheng Zhilai didn’t disturb them the entire day. In the evening, they sat together on the beach, putting a giant umbrella1I guess it’s a parasol? No idea why they call it giant umbrella lol above their heads, with drinks and snacks by their side, chatting idly.

Usually, they enjoyed sitting back to back in the woods reading books. Today, they didn’t bother, as Ren Shuhan soon heard the long-missed sound of a steam whistle.

The sound of an advanced civilization, representing the arrival of his parents.

In the Hu tribe, Hu Yang lay on the beach, motionless, nursing his injuries. Frowning, he said to his injured cousin beside him, “That human won’t enjoy his time for long. I heard from a friend a few days ago that a massive mobile tribe is heading this way. It’s estimated that both our tribes will be swallowed up soon. Why is he still acting as the chief?”

Hu Wang, resentful, hadn’t spoken to Hu Yang all day. Now, he replied with a cold smile, “A mobile tribe?”

“Yes, very powerful. It’s a huge moving island that even a harpoon can’t budge,” Hu Yang affirmed. “Their island is full of equipment. The huge sound just now came from there. At this speed, they’ll arrive soon, and then Ren Shuhan will know what it means for there to be something beyond the sky.”

“Hmm, interesting,” Hu Wang sneered. “I’ll tell the family later; I want to go and see the excitement.”

Lol, I guess Hu Wang and Hu Yang are going to regret their words real soon x)