RAM Chapter 28

Lu Xie instructed Hai San’er to go around the coconut tree and dive under the reef. When Hai San’er, taking two steps and looking back at him, disappeared from his sight, Lu Xie finally ran upstairs.

As soon as he entered the room, Lu Hui’s gaze landed on the fish tank beside the bed, where the small fish and the little turtle were quietly lying inside. He casually remarked, “When did you start keeping these things?”

Lu Xie took a step forward, blocking the window with his body. His peripheral vision flicked towards the window briefly. From this position, he couldn’t see how Hai San’er had entered the water, so he let out a quiet sigh of relief.

“I… got bored and started keeping them for fun.”

Lu Hui’s gaze lingered on the two pillows on the bed. As adults, they didn’t usually meddle in each other’s personal lives, but thinking that Lu Xie might have already… rolled into bed with that guy… Hai San’er, it still felt a bit odd.

Forget it. This wasn’t the time to think about it. Lu Hui pulled Lu Xie over, glanced out the window mysteriously, and after confirming there was no one around, lowered his voice. “Do you know why I rushed back now?”

Lu Xie met Lu Hui’s excited eyes, and a sense of unease spread inside him.

“Earlier, I told you about the mermaid,” Lu Hui said, almost unable to contain his excitement. “It seems the mermaids are active in our sea area.”

The thump in Lu Xie’s chest felt like his heart dropped. It felt like something heavy was pressing down on his chest, suffocating him. He opened his mouth, but no sound came out, and cold sweat began to bead on his back.

Lu Hui was completely immersed in his fantasies about capturing the mermaid and selling it for a good price, unaware of Lu Xie’s odd reaction. He continued, “The boss caught one earlier. Mermaids have extraordinary regenerative abilities. They caught it for research and planned to sell the findings to the war zones. It would’ve fetched a high price. But for some reason, that mermaid suddenly lost its research value.”

Lu Xie’s throat was dry and rough. Every time he swallowed, it felt like a knife scraping against his throat, causing excruciating pain. He unconsciously clenched his fists. What did he mean by “lost its research value”? Was it because the mermaid had died in the lab that it lost its research value?

“Ah Xie?” Lu Hui, caught up in his own excitement, didn’t notice Lu Xie’s silence.

Lu Xie snapped back to reality, forcing a smile. “Ge… whether mermaids exist in this world is still unknown… Right now, with the war coming, our first priority should be… to survive and leave this place…”

Lu Hui sighed. “You know how it is with bounty hunters. The market’s bad, money is hard to earn. If we don’t have money, even if we manage to escape, it’ll be hard to survive. Without money, we won’t even be able to get papers in another country.”

Lu Xie understood this very well. The world was tough, and things were unstable everywhere. Being a bounty hunter was a dangerous job, a life on the edge. It was fine before, but now with Hai San’er and Zhenzhu around, he wanted to find a peaceful place to settle down if possible.

“But mermaids… they’re just legends… Are we really going to risk our lives for a legend?” Lu Xie tried hard to convince his brother to leave this place. He didn’t want Hai San’er and Zhenzhu to be discovered, and he didn’t want his brother to lose his life here.

But the allure of the immense money that a mermaid could bring was too tempting for Lu Hui. He grabbed Lu Xie’s wrist. “It’s no longer a legend. If it were just a legend, that boss wouldn’t have spent so many years and so much money searching for them. Ah Xie, the risk is high, but so is the reward. This is just how it works—those who are bold thrive, while the timid perish.”

Lu Hui pulled Lu Xie over to the window. He pointed excitedly at the chaotic port in the distance. “So many people have already fled. It’ll be easier for us to find it now. Fewer people will be fighting with us. After we land this big score, we leave and never come back.”

“What if we don’t find it? We can’t just keep waiting here, can we?”

If mermaids weren’t valuable, who would want to take such a huge risk? If they really couldn’t find one, they’d just have to give up and prioritize staying alive.

Lu Hui gritted his teeth. “Let’s stay for one more week, before it all really breaks out. After that, we leave.”

A week. Just one more week.

“If it’s money you want, I’ve got some here.” Lu Xie quickly ran downstairs and brought the bag of gold coins that Zhenzhu had found to Lu Hui.

“Where did this come from?”

Lu Xie stiffened. “Don’t ask where it came from. Anyway, this money should be enough for us to leave.”

Seeing the gold coins, Lu Hui’s eyes flashed with surprise, but it was quickly replaced by a calm expression. This bag of coins was worth something, but a mermaid would be worth much more. He didn’t want to lose out on the bigger prize.

“You know the value of a mermaid isn’t just this much, Ah Xie. Trust me, listen to ge. I’ll help you make a fortune.” He was afraid Lu Xie would continue to persuade him to leave, so he added, “Alright, I’m too tired. Let me rest, and we’ll talk tomorrow if there’s anything.”

Before Lu Xie could say anything else, Lu Hui had already turned and gone into another room. Seeing the door close behind him, Lu Xie hesitated for a moment before picking up the fish tank and running to the reef. Just as he was wondering how to contact Hai San’er, the waves started to churn, and two familiar figures appeared at the shore.

“Lu Xie.”

Lu Xie quickly poured the small fish and turtle from the tank into the water. They didn’t rush away but swam around little Zhenzhu instead.

“You should take Zhenzhu and go tonight.”

Hai San’er, who had just convinced Lu Xie to let him take Zhenzhu first, couldn’t understand why Lu Xie had suddenly changed his mind. “Why?”

“No reason. Just listen to me.” He couldn’t tell Hai San’er the real reason—that Lu Hui was after him. He had grown up with Lu Hui and received a lot of care from him. Without Lu Hui, he might have already been dead by now. He couldn’t abandon him, and he didn’t want to betray Hai San’er. “I’m just telling you to take Zhenzhu first. Do you remember the route I told you about? We agreed to meet at that port. I’ll definitely go to meet you. If you want to know if I’m safe, not only do you need to get all the fish to safety, but you also have to stay alive to meet me.”

Lu Xie bent down and kissed Hai San’er’s forehead, then gently reminded, “Don’t think that just because the fish are fine, your task is completed. You still need to come see me. Time is running out, go now.”

Hai San’er still wanted to persuade him, but seeing the determination in Lu Xie’s eyes, he could only agree. He lifted Zhenzhu and placed him in front of Lu Xie.

“Say goodbye to Daddy.”

Zhenzhu hugged Lu Xie’s face with both hands and gave him a big kiss. He couldn’t speak yet, so this was the only way he could say goodbye.

“Be good.” Lu Xie gently patted Zhenzhu’s head.

After the farewell, Hai San’er didn’t hesitate anymore. He took Zhenzhu and disappeared into the water. Lu Xie didn’t dare linger by the sea. He stood up and started walking to the small shop. He hadn’t gone far when he heard Hai San’er’s song, still as unpleasant as ever. Then, the sound of crashing waves followed, roaring and churning. Lu Xie suddenly turned around, and the calm sea surface became turbulent, as if a powerful force was about to rise from the depths.

The noise was so loud that even Lu Hui, who had been asleep in the room, was startled awake. He called out for Lu Xie as he ran downstairs. “Lu Xie? What’s going on? Another helicopter?”

Seeing Lu Xie standing next to the coconut tree, Lu Hui hurried over. He didn’t see any helicopter, only the turbulent sea.

“What’s that sound? Who’s singing?”

Lu Xie remained silent, and Lu Hui took a few more steps toward the shore, his face full of disbelief. “From the sea?”

The harsh sound seemed to come from the abyss, distant yet amplified, as if it were coming through a megaphone. It was definitely not something a human could produce.

“You didn’t hear that?” Lu Hui turned back, his eyes gleaming. “Do you think it’s the sound of a mermaid?”

“Brother, you’re exhausted. I don’t believe in mermaids at all.”

Lu Hui scoffed but didn’t push Lu Xie any further. “When you see it for yourself, you won’t say that anymore.”

Lu Xie actually wasn’t sure. He didn’t know why Lu Hui was so

confident. Had he really seen one before? In that boss’s lab? Could it be that he’d seen another mermaid besides Hai San’er? If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, no one would be so sure about such an absurd thing.

“What about the man?” Lu Hui looked around but didn’t see Hai San’er. “Hai San’er?”

Lu Xie lowered his gaze. “He went back.”

“I forgot to ask. If we leave, what about him? What are you going to do?”

Lu Xie replied, “He’ll leave on his own.”