CH 22

TL: Hua

“I choose you.”

“Choose you.”

“You.”

“…”

The soft, waxy, and clear voice, unlike ordinary mermaids, rang in Leiden’s ears, and it echoed in his mind several times. Even the restless spiritual sea seemed shocked by these words and instantly calmed down.

After finally realizing what the mermaid said, Leiden suddenly opened his eyes wide and looked at the mermaid in the pool. There’s no expression of fear. He could tell from the gently wagging fish tail that the mermaid in front of him was relaxed and delighted.

But… Leiden didn’t forget the doubtful aspect of this mermaid. How could he place a seemingly suspicious mermaid in the palace?

He pursed his lips. Just as he was about to say something, he saw the mermaid straighten up slightly and look at him, and then extend a slender hand to grab the hem of his military uniform.

There was a ripping sound.

The uniform, sewn with special material, was torn by his gentle tug.

“…” One man and one fish fell silent at the same time.

Then.

“Good.”

Leiden heard himself answering him like this.

It’s so suspicious that the special military uniform that is non-slip, scratch-resistant, and even resistant to ordinary bullets was torn so easily. He must be brought back under his personal supervision and investigation.

He thought expressionlessly.

Tugging the fabric of his uniform out of the mermaid’s hand, Leiden opened the door to this observation room and met the nervous expression of the person in charge and Rowlett as he spoke succinctly, “This mermaid is called Lance, right? He chose me to be his match.”

After the voice fell, there was silence at the door of the room.

The person in charge looked in disbelief at the mermaid in the pool.

Seeing this expression on his face, Ji Mingjiang guessed that he might be worried that he was being forced, so he waved his hand at him in a good mood.

And then he received a stunned and speechless expression from the person in charge and… a kind smile from an old man with white hair and a white beard?

Patting Leiden’s arm, Rowlett felt that the last time he was so happy was at the wedding of the late emperor and late empress. He stroked his beard and said to the person in charge, “In that case, are there any formalities after that? Please bring us through the process. Thank you for your hard work.”

“No, no, it’s not hard.” Although shocked by this incident, the person in charge didn’t forget that one of the people in front of him was the emperor, and the other was the emperor’s chief steward. He quickly responded, then turned around and prepared to take them through the matching procedures.

Just as Leiden was about to keep up, he suddenly remembered something. After hesitating, he turned and returned to Ji Mingjiang’s side to comfort him, and then followed with big strides.

The matching procedures were done very quickly. After all, even if His Majesty the Emperor, who is known for being brutal and warlike, cannot be trusted, the royal family’s reputation is still very good. Besides, Oddo, the director of the Mermaid Center, can directly make an appointment and come to check on the mermaid’s situation at any time.

However, this procedure was indeed somewhat beyond Oddo’s imagination.

“Your majesty, I didn’t expect that you would actually succeed in matching with Lance.” After handing the precaution guides and the stamped registration form to Rowlett, Oddo sighed in his heart, but he still reminded him, “You should remember why I initially mentioned Lance to you, right?”

Leiden nodded slightly. How could he forget? He had just been reminded by this mermaid himself, “Don’t worry, I will pay attention.”

“That’s good.” Odos nodded and said, “Let’s go, go and pick up Lance. I wish you a happy relationship in the future.”

*

“I’ll go through the formalities. Wait for my return.”

Seeing the three people at the door saying a few words and planning to leave, Ji Mingjiang guessed that they probably had to go through relevant procedures. What he didn’t expect was that the seemingly indifferent emperor would come back specifically to talk to him.

Will you take responsibility even if you don’t like it? It seems that he isn’t that bad of a ruler?

Ji Mingjiang looked at Leiden’s back as he quickly left, raised his eyebrows, and thought with some surprise.

Because he was going to get on the hover car this time, Ji Mingjiang returned to the long-lost large fish tank.

After being pushed all the way from the matching room to the gate, Ji Mingjiang saw that Leiden and Oddo were already waiting for him. Behind the two of them was a hover car that was much larger than the one he was in before. Its surface was coated with a matte black coating. Whether it was for concealment or some other reason, there was no prominent Bauhinia flower pattern printed on the body. Instead, there was a very small gray Bauhinia flower at the front of the car, perfectly integrated with the body and unable to be seen without careful inspection.

Ji Mingjiang withdrew his sizing eyes and almost met those golden eyes in passing.

“Let me do it.”

Leiden looked at the container with the mermaid in front of him, estimated the weight, and then took off his military jacket. He unbuttoned his shirt and rolled his sleeve over his forearm, intending to directly transport the tank and fish to his hover car. After all, they came quite suddenly today, and there was no one else beside him except Rowlett.

“Wait a minute! Lance!”

The container was just one centimeter away from the ground when there was an anxious shout and hurried footsteps in the distance.

“Did Carrie make a special trip back?” Hearing this voice, Oddo was also a little surprised.

Ji Mingjiang turned his head to look in the direction of the sound, and what he saw was Carrie running fast in a casual outfit.

Ji Mingjiang thought she wouldn’t be able to come back today, so he specially asked Qin Shasha to take some photos of him yesterday so that Carrie can remember to come back and, ah no, reminisce about the past.

Unexpectedly, Carrie did come back in a hurry. Thinking of this, Ji Mingjiang reached out and patted Leiden’s arm, causing a few drops of water from his tail to fall on his originally dry and clean shirt.

“Put me down.” The two looked at each other expressionlessly, and he motioned silently with his eyes.

“…” He already knew that creatures like mermaids were very troublesome. Leiden glanced at the panting keeper and silently unloaded.

It was only after Carrie got close that she recognized who the tall figure with his back to her was.

Damn, why did Lance follow His Majesty? !

It was rare for her to utter a dirty word in her heart, and she looked in shock at the well-behaved little mermaid she had raised for almost a month.

Her cub won’t be abducted, right? ! !

“Carrie.” Ji Mingjiang couldn’t help reminding the keeper that was giving him a strange look. At least the one standing in front of her is also an emperor. Although he doesn’t know much about the social etiquette here, one should at least greet the ruler, right?

Seeing the worry and reminder in Lance and Oddo’s eyes, Carrie suddenly came back to her senses. She hurriedly said hello and only walked in front of the mermaid after seeing His Majesty wave his hand indifferently.

Then she couldn’t help but sigh. She was so worried about him.

But what can be done? He chose the person himself.

Carrie still has some understanding of the importance of matching day and the mermaid’s own choice. Qin Shasha has told her some stories that happened a few years ago. There were little mermaids who felt resistance toward His Majesty to the point of crying on the spot. Afterward, he was directly taken to the monitor room. Now that she has seen Lance’s relaxed state up close, she no longer suspects that he used his power to force others.

“In the future, don’t make trouble at your match’s house. After all, you chose the person yourself. Remember to eat on time, and you may have more small fish to eat in the future. Not every small fish’s bone is easy to pick, like the small whitebait. You have to clean it up well before putting it in your mouth. You still need to exercise in moderation, but if it’s fine as long as you know your own limit…” Looking into Lance’s clear eyes, Carrie rambled on about dos and don’ts in his daily life.

Finally, she took a deep breath and asked Leiden with a nervous and cautious face, “Can I make a video call with Lance to see how he is doing? It won’t be very frequent—once a week or once every half a month. Please forgive my offense.”

A trace of surprise flashed across Leiden’s heart. He really didn’t know that the relationship between the mermaid and the keeper would be so good. He even had the illusion that Carrie was marrying off her child, and he wasn’t a good match…

What a mess.

Suppressing the thoughts that popped up in his mind, he nodded and said, “Don’t worry about the time. You can call whenever you want. If you still don’t feel at ease, you can ask Oddo to make an appointment to meet with me and then take a look at the mermaid’s living conditions and environment.”

He didn’t think Carrie’s request was offensive. After all, it was just a normal request that every keeper would have, and as far as he knew, other keepers had daily communication with the mermaid in the early stages. Carrie probably lowered her demands a lot because of his identity.

Upon hearing his answer, Carrie breathed a sigh of relief.

Ji Mingjiang still hasn’t forgotten why Carrie asked for leave at the time, and after hesitating, he still asked, “Is your mother okay?”

Carrie was stunned for a moment, then stroked his hair, and regardless of whether the translator could translate it, she explained: “She had an operation and is out of danger now, but she’s still in the hospital. I hired a nurse to take care of her this morning. She’s fine.”

Well, mom is fine, but she might have problems.

She glanced at the time displayed by the light brain on her wrist. If she didn’t leave, she would miss the starship back to her hometown.

Carrie sucked in a breath of cold air and hurriedly backed up to the side to give up her spot to Leiden, who had been waiting for them to finish speaking, and finally waved at Lance.

With His Majesty’s promise just now, her worry has indeed dissipated a lot. At the palace, Lance’s life might be a hundred times more comfortable than now, and His Majesty’s attitude seems to be good, it would dampen the mood if she put on a bitter face at this time.

“Remember to pick up mommy’s video—”

Oops.

Just now, she kept talking about her mother and accidentally revealed her self-proclaimed title. Carrie covered her mouth and looked at the smiling Lance with wide eyes. The moment the car door closed, she picked up her bag and left.

So embarrassing, so embarrassing! ! Director Oddo is still here!

Inside the hover car, Rowlett went to the front driver’s seat to set the destination, leaving a wider space behind for the human and mermaid, who needed to adapt to each other.

Leiden didn’t take the initiative to speak but leaned on the seat beside him and closed his eyes, frowning slightly.

Why did he always feel as if he had forgotten something?

Hua: I change the update schedule(again) (ˉ▽ˉ；)…