My Little Pink Crocodile - Chapter 37

Chapter 37: I Like It Very Much 【END】

Qi Yan tried to struggle against her restraints, only to find the ropes around her wrists were tied very tightly.

The argument outside continued. Someone was smashing things in a rage; hearing the commotion, Qi Yan’s brow furrowed, her heart aching with worry for Jiang Yu’s situation. She forced her thoughts down, scanning the room for anything to loosen the ropes.

A flash of cold light caught her eye. Beside her, someone—she didn’t know who—had placed a fruit knife.

Qi Yan didn’t have time to wonder why it was in such an obvious place. She struggled to pick it up, sawed through her own ropes, and then cut Grace free.

“I have to go to her,” she said. Before Grace could react, Qi Yan dropped the knife and ran straight for the door.

Grace stared at the knife that had fallen with a “clatter” beside her, falling into a long silence. Seeing Qi Yan about to pull the door open, Grace rushed over to stop her.

“What can you even do if you go out there?” Grace asked, frowning.

At this, Qi Yan’s gaze darkened. Her hand, already on the door, hovered uncertainly. “I…” She couldn’t find a follow-up, nor could she find the words to refute Grace.

Qi Yan gave a self-mocking laugh. What could she do? Jiang Yu didn’t know it was her right now—and did she really have the courage to let Jiang Yu know? Even if she wanted to take Jiang Yu away now, what right did she have? It was she who had personally told Jiang Yu that she didn’t like her.

Thinking of this, the light in Qi Yan’s eyes grew even dimmer.

Suddenly, an old, majestic voice outside rose in pitch, sounding as if the speaker were trembling with rage. “How can you be so willful! Do you have any idea how much of your destiny’s fortune was depleted because of your escape?!”

“You are vital to the survival and safety of the entire clan! Hurrying this marriage was a matter of absolute necessity. Only by praying to the Mountain God on your wedding day can the clan receive blessings and be purged of calamity and disease!”

Then came a “bang” as something was smashed onto the floor, a sound that made the heart skip a beat. Goudan, the Golden Retriever, was startled and scurried back to Jiang Yu’s side, wagging its tail piteously.

Jiang Yu’s voice rang out, laced with anger. “I told you, he’s too ugly! Can’t you people pick someone good-looking?!”

The old man she was arguing with trembled with fury at her questioning. He pointed a shaking finger at Jiang Yu, his teeth gritted. “I let you pick from every strong young male in the tribe, and you said you didn’t like a single one! But the one I chose for you came back from the human world after studying medicine. He is highly renowned in the clan and would be a great help to your—”

He was interrupted by Jiang Yu’s impatient voice. “Enough. Stop with the high-sounding words. Didn’t you all send Jiang Yao out to find a doctor who could accept us anyway?”

Because they were a different species, they weren’t sure if a human coming here could accept the truth, or if accepting it would lead to their secret being leaked. It wasn’t that the crocodiles were always sick, but when they were, their own technology was so lacking that it was easier to secretly swap a sick crocodile out of a zoo to let a human doctor treat it. This wasn’t a long-term solution, so they had wanted to bring in a doctor for emergencies.

The old man looked embarrassed and rubbed his nose. “Well… didn’t we fail to find one?”

Jiang Yu sat down, casually grabbed a tangerine, and started peeling it. She said with disdain, “If you ask me, you’re all too conservative. How many years has it been, and you’re still reluctant to send a few of us to human schools? All the things you bring back are just a bunch of random junk.”

“You think we don’t want to?! It’s talent! Talent! Those things humans took thousands of years to build—how could we learn them instantly?”

Jiang Yu glanced at him and spoke mercilessly. “It’s just because you’re stupid.”

Though they had human forms, their talent for learning was not high. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have drawn a pink stick figure when searching for the runaway Jiang Yu. In nearly a thousand years, the clan had only produced one Jiang Yao who could do business, and one Jiang Yu, an existence loved by all living things. Jiang Yu was highly gifted but hated studying; she had ditched classes at the academy over a hundred years ago.

The conversation was drifting off-topic. Jiang Yu’s eyes darted around, and then, as if remembering something, she spoke with biting irony. “So, sacrificing me only gets us a doctor?”

Her words were harsh. The old man froze, thought for a long time, and finally managed to squeeze out a response. “There was no other choice.”

Jiang Yu shook her head slightly, lamenting the old man’s poor debating skills. As if sensing her mood, Goudan circled her a few times, wagging its tail. Finally, Jiang Yu—who couldn’t take it anymore—picked the dog up, glared at the old man, and threatened, “If you mention this again, be careful I don’t set the dog on you.”

On cue, Goudan bared its teeth at the man, feigning a ferocious look. The old man looked at her undignified behavior and wanted to say more, but Qi Yan didn’t listen any longer. She pushed the door open, causing the two people and the dog to turn and look at her.

“Aren’t you supposed to be tied up?” Jiang Yu’s eyes widened in surprise. She accidentally tugged on the dog’s fur, turning its happy bark into a whimper.

The old man’s reaction was a beat slower. He heard the dog and immediately frowned, warning, “Human, you should not be here.”

Qi Yan’s eyes didn’t show a hint of fear. She cast a glance toward Jiang Yu—full of tenderness—and then faced the stern old man, speaking calmly. “I was the top student in my class, and I am a veterinarian.” Her serious manner was as if she were politely introducing herself.

The old man was momentarily stunned by her gaze. Jiang Yu frowned and glanced at him, making him shiver. He immediately spoke up, “Human, saying this is useless. You don’t know what we are.”

Qi Yan nodded and spoke calmly. “I know. You are crocodiles.”

“Since you know, aren’t you afraid? In your world, we are called monsters,” the old man reminded her.

Qi Yan looked at Jiang Yu holding the dog and said softly, “She is very good. She is not a monster.”

Jiang Yu looked at her, but quickly turned her head away, no longer meeting her eyes. The old man looked at Jiang Yu and felt a massive headache coming on. After thinking for a while, he spoke harshly to Qi Yan again. “You were an unwitting participant. This matter has nothing to do with you.”

“I love her. That makes it my business,” Qi Yan said, her gaze still tenderly fixed on Jiang Yu.

Hearing this, Jiang Yu bit her lip. She then looked at the old man provocatively. “Old man, didn’t you nag me every day saying no one loves me and telling me to find someone new? Well, I’ve found someone now.” She pointed at Qi Yan. “She just said it was love at first sight. I want her.”

In the face of Jiang Yu’s nonsense, Qi Yan’s expression only shifted slightly; she didn’t deny it. “Yes. Love at first sight.”

The old man, whether out of anger or shock, felt his beard tremble. He stared at Qi Yan’s face and shouted, “Absurd! You haven’t even seen her face!”

Jiang Yu jumped down from her chair. The floor was covered in broken porcelain; fearing she would get hurt, Qi Yan immediately reached out and pulled the girl into her arms. Jiang Yu didn’t dodge; she slid into the embrace and used the opportunity to snatch the mask off Qi Yan’s face. Waving it at the old man, she said, “Now I’ve seen it.”

Then, she turned to look at the person holding her. Once she saw that face, her expression suddenly turned cold, and she pushed Qi Yan away. “What are you doing here?”

Qi Yan hadn’t expected such a reaction. She froze for a moment, then opened her mouth and said, “I came to find you.”

Jiang Yu looked her up and down, spotted the corner of the invitation sticking out of Qi Yan’s pocket, and pouted. “To attend my wedding, I suppose.”

Qi Yan spoke hurriedly. “I came to take you away.”

Jiang Yu frowned, her wedding dress seeming like a mockery to Qi Yan. She said disdainfully, “Stealing the bride? You’ve got a lot of nerve. I gave you the invitation so you could attend, not steal me. Besides, in this place, even if you vanished without a trace, your ‘rule of law’ society would never find you.”

Qi Yan’s brow knit. She reached out to grab Jiang Yu’s hand, wanting to say that she was sincere this time. But Jiang Yu didn’t give her the chance. She turned to the old man, her back to Qi Yan so her expression was hidden. Her voice was cold. “Old man, that wedding… I’ll go through with it.”

It took the old man a moment to react. He nodded blankly. “Oh… okay.”

She spoke as if purposefully trying to anger Qi Yan. Without waiting for a response, she walked out the door with the dog. Qi Yan tried to chase after her, but a sudden, sharp pain exploded in her head. Everything went black, and she collapsed, losing consciousness once more.

The crocodile responsible for knocking her out looked at the old man for help, its eyes blinking frantically as if to say it had hit her too hard. The old man had no other choice. “Drag her away.”

Grace, who had been bystander to all this drama, saw Qi Yan being carried out and rushed forward. “What are you doing?! Why did you knock her out again?!” Grace chased them out the door, only to have her wrist grabbed by a hand that pulled her in another direction.

“Hey, hey! Let go! You’re going the wrong way!”

“You shouldn’t have followed us here.” The familiar voice was as cold as ever.

Qi Yan was woken by the booming of countless fireworks. Outside the window, the flickering lights were as beautiful as a grand festival.

“Why did you hit her so hard?” a voice grumbled, full of worry and regret. “I forgot she was human,” another voice replied sheepishly.

Qi Yan propped herself up, rubbing her head. A firework exploded, snapping her thoughts back to reality. Without pausing to observe the room, she saw Jiang Yu wasn’t there and ran out in a panic.

The moment the door opened, Jiang Yu, standing outside, looked over. Her eyes held a hint of surprise, but she was called back to herself by a person with a crocodile head.

“Jiang Yu,” Qi Yan called out.

Jiang Yu smiled at her, just like she used to. “What is it?”

Jiang Yu had changed into a wedding dress—the very one she had liked when Qi Yan took her to the bridal shop. It was exquisite and magnificent, and around her neck she wore Qi Yan’s necklace. With the brilliant fireworks behind her, it was as if the world were merely her backdrop. Qi Yan could see no one but her.

Qi Yan ran over and pulled Jiang Yu into her arms. Only then did she realize it wasn’t a dream. The cold Jiang Yu from before had been the nightmare. Her hands trembled as she held the girl tighter.

“Jiang Yu, I regret it. I really love you. I shouldn’t have lied to you then.” She poured out her regrets, her eyes growing wet, the fireworks in the sky blurring.

Jiang Yu patted Qi Yan’s back, leaning her head on her shoulder. “Alright, alright. I’m not angry anymore.”

Qi Yan looked at the wedding dress and pleaded, “Let’s not get married, okay?”

Jiang Yu opened her mouth and frowned. “No. It has to be today.”

Qi Yan met her eyes, searching for a trace of reluctance, but when she saw the joyful smile in them, a wave of pain spread through her body. She forced a smile that looked worse than crying. “I came to attend your wedding, but I don’t want to bless you and someone else.”

Jiang Yu looked at her in confusion, then pulled the invitation out of Qi Yan’s pocket. “The illusion wore off long ago. Didn’t you look at the contents even once?”

Never mind “later”—Qi Yan hadn’t even opened it when she first received it. When Jiang Yu opened the invitation and pointed to a line, Qi Yan finally saw the text. Aside from the standard wedding details, the most prominent names were Jiang Yu and… her own.

Qi Yan suddenly understood Jiang Yao’s mysterious remark when she handed over the invitation, and why Grace had looked at her so strangely after reading it. Seeing Qi Yan’s stunned expression, Jiang Yu pinched her cheek and laughed. “Why do you look so silly? What if I stop liking you?”

Qi Yan knew she was joking. she covered Jiang Yu’s hand with her own, pressing it against her face. The smooth, warm touch was real enough to make her believe in all of this. Her eyes reflected only the girl before her. “You can’t. You can’t regret it either.”

“You lied to me once, and I lied to you once. We’re even now. We can make up.” Jiang Yu kissed her lips and smiled again. “My wedding and the blessing ceremony are on the same day. Let’s go, everyone is waiting for us.”

With that, Jiang Yu took Qi Yan’s hand and ran toward the place where the fireworks were being launched. Qi Yan watched the girl leading her; in that wedding dress, she looked like a princess in flight. The fireworks in the distance were brilliant, but only the person before her could catch her eye.

Jiang Yu hadn’t lied. When they arrived, the entire clan was waiting for them. Grace was being held by the hand by Jiang Yao so she wouldn’t run off; she didn’t struggle because Jiang Yao had tricked her into believing these crocodiles would eat humans without her protection. It was an eight-hundred-year-old trick used on children, and Grace wasn’t actually afraid, but she stayed quiet, lost in her own thoughts.

Grace saw Jiang Yu arrive with Qi Yan and said to her friend, “I told you to take a look at it. If you had, you wouldn’t have been knocked out twice.”

“But the result is good in the end.” Qi Yan looked at Jiang Yu with tenderness and joy.

The blessing ceremony that followed didn’t require their active participation. Jiang Yu and Qi Yan watched from the side. Only during the final succession of the Clan Leader did they walk up, fingers intertwined.

Qi Yan personally placed the exquisitely crafted crown on Jiang Yu’s head, finally making her look like the proud princess she was. Jiang Yu grabbed Qi Yan’s wrist, a spark in her eyes as her smile deepened. “I promised you a reward. The reward for taking me away is me. Do you accept?”

Qi Yan pulled Jiang Yu gently into her arms, treating her like a precious treasure. She said:

“I like it very much.”

The stars and fireworks in the night sky, the noisy crowd—all became mere background to their embrace.

【THE END】