My Marriage Partner is a Crazy Mermaid - Chapter 10

Chapter 10: Marriage Alliance

From a distance, the two looked as if they were kissing, but they never actually touched.

Meng Ke pressed closer, step by step, until reaching a distance that was almost offensive. Xie Yuhan did not retreat a single inch; she didn’t even blink. They locked eyes in an unyielding stare as the scent of fresh sea salt spread through the air, intertwining and tangling with the crisp, woody fragrance emanating from Meng Ke.

The sound of thumping heartbeats transitioned from calm to rapid, making it impossible to tell whose was whose.

The stalemate was finally broken when Xie Yuhan’s hand moved. Meng Ke’s focus was sharp; the instant the other woman raised her arm, Meng Ke took a large step back.

Seeing Meng Ke’s defensive reflex, Xie Yuhan found it somewhat amusing. Her raised hand stiffened for a split second before she continued to lift it slowly, seemingly admiring her own manicure as a smirk played on her lips.

“Miss Meng’s reflexes are certainly much larger than her courage.”

Xie Yuhan lowered her hand, placing it near the base of her thigh—the very spot where the uppermost scales of her mermaid tail usually appeared. The hard edges of fish scales had, for now, transformed into soft human skin, seemingly possessing human warmth.

Xie Yuhan couldn’t quite describe the feeling in her heart; it was a sense of groundedness, as if a stone that had been floating in her soul had finally landed.

From the time she was a mermaid to her time as a human, her sense of security had always been self-provided. If money was short, she earned more; if a person was a problem, she solved them.

Starting a year ago, news about mermaids had increased—from mere rumors to more and more people believing in them. But that wasn’t the biggest issue. Along with the sightings came an increase in research. News reports claimed mermaids were a rare species from ancient times; people wanted to study their scales, the pearls they produced, and their evolutionary history. If she were discovered, there would be no way out.

Having inexplicably transmigrated into this human body, she hadn’t found a way back to the sea in three years. As time passed, her mermaid traits began to manifest, leading to a lack of harmony between her true nature and the body. At night, when the moon rose, scales would gradually emerge. She was slowly losing control.

“It’s not that my courage is small, I’m just afraid of getting hit. At this distance, you’d be hitting my face,” Meng Ke said, stroking her own cheek and raising an eyebrow at Xie Yuhan.

For some reason, regardless of the angle or identity, she should stay away from Xie Yuhan. Yet, the moment they met, the danger alarms in her head were automatically cleared. Not only did she not want to stay away, but she felt a strange urge to get closer—to be even nearer.

Xie Yuhan was quite surprised by this reaction. In her view, humans were supposed to be greedy, selfish, jealous, lazy, prone to bullying the weak while fearing the strong, hypocritical, and arrogant—the polar opposite of the strength revered by her kind. As it turned out, the advantages of being a mermaid allowed her to move through the human world like a fish in water.

“Let’s get married.”

Xie Yuhan suddenly dropped this sentence, causing Meng Ke to petrify on the spot.

Meng Ke’s mind went blank. She had been prepared to let things go to ruin; Ruan Yalan held the lives of her biological parents and another family in her hands, and she had no leverage. There was no breakthrough with the Meng family, but what about the Xie family? Would the “madwoman” Xie Yuhan tolerate a marriage partner who wasn’t biological—a “wild girl” whose identity hadn’t even been verified?

Every time she met Xie Yuhan, her attitude had been authentic, without suppression. At worst, Xie Yuhan would finish her off or cause trouble for the Mengs, and everyone would go down together.

But what was happening now?! This wasn’t how the plot was supposed to go!

“Miss Xie, you must be joking.”

“Surely you wouldn’t sacrifice yourself just to get back at me for what I just did?”

“What if I’m willing?”

Meng Ke stood her ground with her arms crossed, looking at Xie Yuhan as if she were a fool. A cluster of question marks floated over her head as her left and right brain fought for dominance. Should Xie Yuhan see a psychiatrist? Why does she want to marry me out of the blue? Sometimes you really have to believe the rumors.

On the other hand, did Xie Yuhan really want to marry her? Or was she planning revenge? Would she hide her in a basement and carve off a piece of her every day?! After various scenarios from legal news channels flashed through her mind, Meng Ke felt a chill run down her spine.

After the self-defense thoughts settled, that eerie feeling returned: marrying Xie Yuhan didn’t seem so bad. She had money, she had the looks, and she was the heiress of the number one family in Tan City. Wouldn’t she be able to walk tall anywhere in town?

To have such a thought, Meng Ke felt she should also book a psychiatric appointment—right next door to Xie Yuhan’s.

Three seconds later, logic regained the upper hand. Meng Ke said, “But I’m not the true miss of the Meng family. Miss Xie doesn’t mind my status?”

“Do you think I need to mind?”

The statement was arrogant. Was this the classic “Overbearing CEO falls for Ordinary Me”? Was life really this melodramatic?

“Miss Meng, think it over carefully.”

Xie Yuhan didn’t stay any longer. She started her wheelchair, turned around, and headed for the door.

“The rumors say the Xie family doesn’t want to marry their daughter to a cripple. What if I’m unwilling, too?!”

Meng Ke didn’t actually care about her physical impairment; she said this only to test Xie Yuhan’s limits. Dancing on the edge of a minefield was a “perverse” habit she sometimes couldn’t control.

Xie Yuhan wasn’t offended. The wheelchair paused briefly, but she didn’t look back. “Miss Meng can choose to be voluntarily willing, or passively willing.”

“I trust Miss Meng is a smart person.”

“Oh, right. Regarding the contract, I never speak twice. I’ve already made an exception for Miss Meng. I hope you cherish the opportunity.”

Meng Ke shrugged. Threatened by two families within a few days—she really was “lucky.” But why did the threat from Xie Yuhan feel different from the Meng family’s? Why wasn’t she angry? Her brain must have been upgraded to process so many messy messages without crashing.

Just then, her phone rang, echoing in the empty room. Meng Ke admired the ringtone for two seconds before answering.

“What is it? Did you finish your business, My Lady?”

Luo Miao, at the Qingcheng airport, replied: “Finished. Waiting for my flight. Hey, what’s going on on your end? Was the banquet smooth? I heard Xie Yuhan went! Did she make things hard for you? Or the Mengs?”

“No. For the sake of your safe flight, I’ve decided to tell you once you’re back in Tan City.” Meng Ke needed to digest this herself and observe if Xie Yuhan’s words were for real.

By the time Meng Ke went downstairs, Xie Yuhan was gone. The crowd had become lively again, though clearly less enthusiastic than at the start.

“Has the Xie family really changed their tune? They’re willing to marry into the Meng family?”

“If they weren’t willing, what would she come for? To crash the place without bringing anything?”

“But I saw that the person she met was… was…” The words weren’t spoken plainly, but everyone understood the implication. “Maybe she feels that as a disabled person, she doesn’t match the actual heiress?”

“Watch what you say, or someone might hear you.”

Ruan Yalan stood in the corner. Her goal had been achieved, yet she felt a lingering unease. When Xie Yuhan went downstairs, she had intended to say a few words to close the distance, but she was ignored entirely. The bodyguards hadn’t even let her get close, looking at her with such disdain as if she carried a virus.

A moment later, Meng Ke came down. Ruan Yalan didn’t know how the talk went, but at least it couldn’t have been bad—neither of them looked miserable. Ruan Yalan was an expert at observing these details; it was almost a professional habit.

Meng Yingxue saw that Ruan Yalan’s face was grim. She had seen her mother being blocked earlier. As the lady of the Meng house, when had she ever been treated like that? Her face was as dark as coal, and even her “pearl of a daughter” didn’t dare provoke her.

Meng Ke walked over: “Nothing more for me? I’m leaving then. I’m tired.”

Ruan Yalan stopped pretending and didn’t even bother speaking, waving her off. As Meng Ke took a few steps, Ruan Yalan added: “This weekend, we are going to the Xie family to settle the marriage.”

“Got it. So much nonsense.”

Ruan Yalan watched Meng Ke’s back and clenched her fists, hoping this decision was the right one.

The apartment Meng Ke rented was move-in ready. she took her suitcases from the hotel and moved straight in. Her entire life’s possessions amounted to just two suitcases, yet it took her two hours to unpack.

As she lay in bed ready to sleep, messages from Luo Miao and Wu Siyi kept popping up in the group chat. Luo Miao had landed and was asking about the banquet.

“Too tired. Talk tomorrow.”

After sending that, Meng Ke muted her phone and fell into a deep sleep. She slept until she woke up naturally—it had been a long time since she had such high-quality sleep. Satisfied, she rolled over, grabbed her phone from the nightstand, and scrolled through the group messages.

“It’s 7:00. Not awake yet?”

“It’s 8:00. Still not awake?”

“It’s 9:00. You didn’t faint, did you?”

“It’s 10:00. If you don’t reply in half an hour, I’m calling the police or a locksmith to break down your door.”

With every message Luo Miao sent, Wu Siyi added a small emoji to show she was lurking. Meng Ke laughed so hard she made a goose-like honking sound. She propped herself up with a pillow and replied to Luo Miao.

“You’re really anxious. Don’t you know my door code?”

Luo Miao replied instantly with an embarrassed emoji.

“That’s not important. Hurry up and tell us what Xie Yuhan did yesterday! Did she cause a scene? Did she wreck the Mengs’ party?”

“No.”

“She said she wants to marry me.”

“Actually, mental illness isn’t something to be ashamed of. We can go get a check-up. Keke, you know my brother knows people at the hospital?”

Seeing this, Wu Siyi chimed in: “Is she serious? Could she be joking?”

“I don’t know,”

No one could see through Xie Yuhan’s way of doing things. This had become complicated.

Meng Ke sorted through the plot today. In the original story, the fake heiress was taken back, forced into the marriage, and then vanished into the Xie family. The Mengs never saw her again, not knowing if she was dead or alive, and they didn’t dare ask about Xie family business.

But now, many things had changed. For instance, the original body hadn’t even lasted until returning to the Meng family, and she had met Xie Yuhan many times. This person was strange, but not to that exaggerated extent. Maybe she could change the plot?

If all else failed, the worst that could happen was she’d “die” and maybe return to her original world. Meng Ke never feared trouble; she solved problems as they came. If she couldn’t solve the problem, she’d “solve” herself. Her life motto: If it doesn’t work, just die.

Two hours later, the three-person squad finally gathered. Luo Miao raised a wine glass, insisting on a toast to celebrate their reunion.

“Especially Sisi. Seeing you is harder than climbing to heaven—we have to wait for you to have time and dodge the paparazzi.”

“Don’t blame me, it’s for work.”

“Don’t use that as an excuse. Everyone knows you entered the industry for that Best Actress title.”

“Hey, stop right there. How did we get into gossip?”

“If you ask me, those paparazzi aren’t as good as I am. They still don’t know…”

“If the day comes that it’s discovered, I’ll silence you first.”

“Don’t talk about me, talk about Keke. She’s the protagonist today.”

“So, Keke, what are your thoughts?” Luo Miao hadn’t asked at first because she feared Meng Ke was unwilling. She purposely talked about other things to lighten the atmosphere.

But she had overthought it. Meng Ke wasn’t actually that resistant to the marriage.

“I’m wondering if this counts as me saving the world.”

Meng Ke thought: the Mengs wanted the marriage, and to make her willing, they even found her biological parents. Then Xie Yuhan personally came to say she wanted to marry her. For the Mengs, for her biological parents’ family, and for the Xie family, the outcome seemed good. If that wasn’t saving the world, what was it?

Luo Miao looked at Wu Siyi, then back at Meng Ke. She pointed a finger at her temple: “Is this place… broken?”

Wu Siyi shook her head helplessly. “You aren’t really going through with it, are you? I feel like a ‘wife-murder-dismemberment’ case is playing out in my head.”

“It’s a world ruled by law, thank you.”

“There’s no one else here, Keke. Tell us the truth—what are you thinking? Sisi and I might not have much power, but if we fight for it, we might find a way to keep you from that marriage.”

Meng Ke looked at the two of them, replaying everything that had happened in her mind. She said uncertainly, “I feel like Xie Yuhan isn’t like what they say.”

“…”

Xie Yuhan was like a mist to her, attracting her to unravel it piece by piece.

“I admit, she’s very beautiful, but… every rose has its thorns! Watch out for your hands.”

“Whether it pricks or not, I’ll only know once I try.”

“How come I didn’t notice before that you were a closeted ‘love-brain’?”

Meng Ke: “…Just think of me as one then.”

“Fine, as long as you’ve thought it through.”

Luo Miao remembered something and suddenly whispered mysteriously, “Do you know what I found out during my trip to Qingcheng?”

“What?”

“They actually found traces of mermaids living there.”

Wu Siyi didn’t believe it: “That’s a rumor that’s been around forever. Definitely fake.”

“No, I really saw it,” Luo Miao said. “Don’t I have a five-star hotel in Qingcheng? Someone’s drain was clogged, and the plumber found fish scales inside.”

“Since I’m the boss, the police let me see the photos when I cooperated with the investigation. The scale was blue, just like a Morpho butterfly’s wing. I’ve never seen a scale that big. It even glowed—you could tell just from the photo that it shimmered.”

Wu Siyi still didn’t believe it, but Meng Ke remained skeptical. Too many unexplainable things had happened to her already. Mermaids weren’t an impossible existence.