Becoming the Keeper of an Alluring Merfolk - Chapter 30

Chapter 30: Whatever My Wife Says, Goes

The day Jian Xu arrived, Song Xiu personally drove her rental SUV to the county train station to pick her up. She had rented the SUV primarily for easy access to the wedding venue; picking up Jian Xu was secondary.

When Jian Xu, carrying her suitcase, saw Song Xiu leaning against the car with a mysterious smile and wearing sunglasses, she almost turned around and walked away.

“Song Xiu, what are the theatrics? I’ve never seen you wear sunglasses normally.” Jian Xu didn’t know what had provoked the woman in front of her; why was she becoming more pretentious?

“Stop wasting time. Are you going to wear these? I have an extra pair.”

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

Song Xiu, of course, was up to no good. She got into the car, waiting with a mischievous smile for Jian Xu to store her luggage and get in.

The road from the county to the town was extraordinarily bumpy, and Song Xiu was driving fast. It felt like a roller coaster. Jian Xu, who was prone to car sickness, soon felt her stomach churning. The best way to deal with motion sickness was to open the window.

The moment she rolled down the passenger window, a gust of wind carrying sand hit her face. Not only did she get a mouthful of sand, but her eyes were irritated. She had no choice but to close the window, holding a plastic bag and fiercely suppressing the urge to vomit.

“I told you to wear sunglasses, but you refused. Put them on now. If I open the sunroof, you’ll feel better.”

“Driving slower is better than anything else, ugh…”

“Better a short pain than a long one. Since you’re already throwing up, I won’t open the sunroof, and you won’t need the sunglasses either.”

“Song Xiu… I hate you! Ugh…”

Instead of slowing down, Song Xiu’s lips curved into a wicked, triumphant smile, and she pressed the accelerator down a little further.

“Song Xiu… slow down! I… I really can’t take it anymore!” Jian Xu’s voice was shaking with pain.

When the car finally screeched to a halt in front of the inn, Jian Xu practically stumbled out, leaning against the wall and dry heaving a few times before she could barely catch her breath.

Song Xiu took Jian Xu’s suitcase out of the car, but Jian Xu weakly snatched it back, insisting on dragging it herself through the inn’s front door.

Jian Xu’s room was not far from theirs, just two doors down. When Shui Se, sitting in the bathtub, heard Song Xiu open the door and return, she immediately asked, “Did Jian Xu ask about Xiao Hen?”

“Strangely, not yet.”

“Then… if she doesn’t ask, we won’t say anything first.”

“Okay.”

Song Xiu had barely closed the door when Jian Xu came knocking with a “thump, thump, thump.”

The moment she opened her mouth, it was: You promised it was my business; now you have to tell me.

Shui Se in the bathroom instantly held her breath. She shrank further into the bathtub, genuinely not wanting to witness Jian Xu’s frenzy again.

Song Xiu was much calmer. She wasn’t afraid of this. Since the truth had to be told sooner or later, she might as well be honest now.

As for whether Jian Xu would attend the wedding, or leave immediately after arriving—that was Jian Xu’s own business.

“Jian Xu, Xiao Hen had all her memories erased, left the institute, and went to the deep sea with her clan.”

The moment Song Xiu spoke, Jian Xu’s mind went blank. This outcome was more terrifying to her than anything else.

Because at this moment, she was genuinely powerless. This was a complete, irreversible dead end.

“Jian Xu, I didn’t mean to deceive you. I just thought this place might help you calm down faster. When people are in a place with an open landscape, their hearts also become more open.”

“Can you send me some pictures of Xiao Hen?”

Song Xiu immediately pulled out her phone and sent her all the previous ones: “How about this, Jian Xu? Come with me to check out the venue beforehand. I still have some things to set up there. The scenery is great. There’s a very large, beautiful lake in the middle of the desert.”

Jian Xu had certainly never seen a lake in the middle of the desert. Although her heart felt like dead water and she was physically exhausted, she couldn’t help but be curious and want to see it with her own eyes.

Song Xiu took her lack of refusal as tacit agreement. She turned to go back inside for her car keys and gear. Shui Se poked her head out of the bathtub, worried, and whispered, “Is she really okay?”

“She looks fine; calmer than I expected. Taking her out for a walk and some fresh air is better than letting her stew alone in the room. Wife, you enjoy your bath. I’ll be back soon.”

Shui Se nodded and shrank back into the water, only her eyes visible. She listened to Jian Xu’s silent footsteps and Song Xiu’s movements outside the door.

Getting back into the SUV, Jian Xu’s movement to buckle her seatbelt was sluggish, as if she had run out of strength. This time, Song Xiu didn’t play any tricks and drove much more steadily. The view outside the window gradually changed from the bustling life of the town to the vast Gobi Desert, and finally, to rolling sand dunes.

Silence filled the car cabin, broken only by the engine’s roar and wind noise. Jian Xu leaned her head against the window, her gaze empty, lost in thought.

Until the miraculous lake appeared before her eyes.

It lay deep within the golden desert like a sapphire. Sunlight scattered on the lake surface, skipping like broken gold. The breeze blew across, making the water ripple and shimmer.

Song Xiu stopped the car on a sand dune: “We’re here.”

Jian Xu pushed open the car door and walked with slightly unsteady steps toward the lake. The wind ruffled her hair and clothing, her back looking exceptionally frail and lonely against the vast sky and land.

Her steps faltered, and she quickly crouched down, her fingers lightly touching the cool lake water. Ripples spread out in circles.

Song Xiu leaned against the car, not disturbing her.

After a long time, Jian Xu finally stood up, her back to Song Xiu. Her voice was slightly scattered by the wind but clearly audible: “It looks a lot like her eyes.”

Song Xiu paused before realizing that “she” referred to Xiao Hen.

“Mhm,” Song Xiu responded.

Another stretch of silence followed.

Then, Song Xiu heard Jian Xu speak very softly, like a sigh and a farewell: “It’s fine if she forgot me. After all, I was never a good person in her memory, always causing her sadness.”

Song Xiu was about to offer some comfort when Captain Liu sent a message to her watch, urging her to come and help set up the venue.

“Jian Xu, they need me urgently at the venue. Are you sure you’re okay by yourself?”

“I’ll be fine. You go ahead and take care of what you need to.”

“Okay. Don’t wander off, though. I’m getting married tomorrow. Don’t make me miss my wedding because I’m busy looking for you.”

“I’m not a child. Don’t worry.”

After Song Xiu left, Jian Xu sat by the lake, taking out her phone and pensively looking at Xiao Hen’s pictures.

Her mind felt fuzzy. Suddenly, a gust of wind blew, and Jian Xu quickly raised her hand to shield her eyes, afraid of getting sand in them again. Unexpectedly, the phone she had been gripping tightly fell into the lake.

Her mind wasn’t working. She subconsciously took off her jacket and waded into the water to retrieve it.

She was a good swimmer, and the phone hadn’t fallen too deep, lying face-down on the bottom near the shore.

Normally, it wouldn’t take much effort to pick it up, but the phone seemed to be stuck to the silt at the bottom, and she couldn’t pry it loose.

She had to dig the sand away from one side and then discovered the phone was wedged between two rocks. No wonder she couldn’t pick it up.

She suddenly felt that perhaps this was a subtle hint to let go of everything from the past.

Shui Se saw Jian Xu again outside the inn’s door. She had deliberately come out to meet them, worried since it was completely dark.

However, she never expected Jian Xu to look even more disheveled than the last time they met. She was damp and covered in soil, her hair half-wet and terribly messy.

Shui Se wanted to ask but didn’t dare. Jian Xu abruptly walked up and hugged her: “Happy wedding.”

“Thank you, Jian Xu.”

“You’re welcome.” She then turned and walked away, opening the inn door and going inside.

Although Song Xiu was slightly annoyed that Jian Xu hugged her wife, the fact that Jian Xu would make such a gesture proved that she had let go of her prejudices against the Jiao-people.

“Let’s go in, too, wife. We need to rest well,” Song Xiu said.

“Song Xiu…”

“What is it, wife?”

“Let’s have this wedding sooner. A special one, just for the two of us. Tomorrow will be the second one.” Shui Se proactively wrapped her arms around Song Xiu’s neck, pouting slightly, and pleaded, hoping she would agree to this sudden request.

Song Xiu instantly wrapped her arms around Shui Se’s waist, pressing her tightly against her body, her gaze fixed on Shui Se’s beautiful, innocent, star-like eyes: “Whatever my wife says, goes.”