The Undersea Adventures of the Little Jellyfish (JELLYFISH)
In these chaotic times, the stronger one was, the less likely they were to pledge allegiance to any faction easily.
The city lord still clung to a sliver of hope:
What if Shen Jixiao was a free mage who came here voluntarily and just were lured by the generous rewards?
"How much did he offer you?" the city lord whispered. "I can triple it."
Shen Jixiao treated it as a joke.
His rule still wasn’t thorough enough—the southern regions didn’t even know his style had always been straightforward and unyielding. Once he made a decision, he never wavered.
After realizing he might be a top-tier mage, the city lord’s attitude suddenly softened. But in truth, Shen Jixiao wasn’t that strong.
The number of advanced spells he had mastered could be counted on one hand—he mostly relied on his formidable mental prowess to intimidate. Though… he did indeed possess the ability to single-handedly destroy this place.
Well, in the end, it was all about negotiation. He had plenty of time to carve up every last piece of fat here.
The negotiations were tedious and dull. Tang You couldn’t understand most of the specialized human terms and felt it wasn’t the right time to disturb Shen Jixiao.
He was the kind of little jellyfish who, if left alone, would quietly curl up in a corner and count the patterns on the floor.
Shen Jixiao had given him two sticky rice pastries, which he nibbled on bit by bit.
Inside was a thick coconut milk filling, blended with cream and mango that easily smeared onto his fingers. Tang You, unaware of human dining etiquette, licked his fingertips without a care, his pink tongue gliding over his knuckles.
As he licked, Ji Yan came over and poked him before opening a private mental link between the two.
A white handkerchief dropped into Tang You’s palm.
"Little Shen says stop licking. If you’re hungry, we’ll go to the kitchen together later," Ji Yan said.
After a moment’s thought, he took pity on the little one who only cared about eating and added, "Once we’ve finished inventorying the city lord’s private stash, you can have whatever you want. You won’t even need him to take you to the kitchen—I’ll take you, and we’ll just take the chef with us."
The little jellyfish listened hazily and just caught only the words "loot" in between the lines. "Okay," he said.
Perhaps it was some strange human custom.
He wiped his fingers slowly and meticulously, obedient and quiet, nothing like those grand mages who excelled in mental power.
"Shen Jixiao says you taught him a lot about mental power."
"Mhm."
"You stayed with him for three weeks before?" Ji Yan asked.
"Yes." Tang You became a bit reserved when he was around humans. Even though this human was nice and even fed him.
"Do you like pearls?"
"Mhm."
Ji Yan seemed to understand something. He also recalled Shen Jixiao mentioning that he had received a gift.
Humans always had a bit of a gossipy side, especially when it came to their superiors. He knew Shen Jixiao rarely ever developed feelings for anyone—this man might as well have "I have a white moonlight" written all over his face.
He smiled until his eyes curled slightly, finding the situation quite amusing.
Either Shen Jixiao had finally turned into a scumbag and changed his heart, or...
"Do you know that Xiao Shen has someone he cares deeply about?"
"I know." Tang You answered obediently. "He's been searching for that person for a long time, right?"
"So you knew." Ji Yan had always been good at mimicking others' tones. Thinking back to the drama he had watched to kill time a few days ago, he suddenly said, "Then do you know? Our Xiao Shen hasn’t smiled like this in a long time."
"Oh." Tang You fiddled with the handkerchief in his hands. "Xiao Shen really doesn’t like to smile much. I’ve been worried about his mental state."
Ji Yan: "..." He was also worried about his mental state.
"Xiao Shen said the person he’s looking for looks a lot like me. Actually, I know he thinks there’s some connection between me and that person. Sometimes he stares at me blankly—it’s like he’s looking at me but seeing someone else. But I don’t mind. I’m happy to help him."
Ji Yan took a shallow breath.
What a scumbag, resorting to a substitute.
And the substitute himself was such a love-struck fool.
—How terrifying.
...
After the delightful robbery concluded, Tang You was picked up by Shen Jixiao again and carried back to his room.
He vaguely caught sight of the city lord’s ashen face, unsure of what kind of mental torment the man had endured in those two hours. At this moment, he began to believe that mermaids could indeed thrive on land. On land, he felt like...
A fish in water.
That phrase felt a bit odd.
Xiao Shen swam far less smoothly in water than he spoke on land.
Placed on the bed by Shen Jixiao, Tang You sat at the edge and swung his legs slightly as he reminisced about the dinner he’d had earlier.
His stomach was almost round from being so full.
The buttons on his shirt felt a bit tight. Unfamiliar with how clothing worked, he fumbled with them for a while before Shen Jixiao reached over and deftly undid the top button with a flick of his fingers.
"So skilled," Tang You said.
Shen Jixiao ruffled Tang You’s hair. "How do you feel today? Is your body holding up alright?"
The little jellyfish stopped swinging his legs. "I’m fine, nothing hurts. I didn’t walk much, so my legs don’t ache. I’ve mostly figured out human eating habits—frequency and portions—and I really like human food."
"But I don’t like hot water, the sun, or clothes."
"Hm?" The other dislikes weren’t a big deal, but clothes were non-negotiable. "Is the fit uncomfortable? That makes sense—this is off-the-rack, so it’s bound to be a little loose. I can have a custom set made for you."
Tang You shook his head. "No, it’s because I leak water."
"..."
Shen Jixiao’s expression froze.
The little jellyfish didn’t seem to realize the implications of his words.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked up at Shen Jixiao, his pale, delicate lashes casting faint shadows over his eyes. He looked exquisitely cute, like an unripe strawberry dusted with frost.
"I leak a lot of water. My back gets completely soaked."
Shen Jixiao exhaled heavily. "That’s called sweating."
"No, no, no, it's leaking water," the little jellyfish insisted. "I leak water when I'm in the sun, and eventually, I turn into a dehydrated jellyfish."
Shen Jixiao couldn't argue with the little jellyfish. "Alright, alright. Should we put a waterproof mat on the bed?"
"I sleep in a jar."
...
The next day.
When the little jellyfish turned back into a human, he was dragged off to wash his hair again.
His soul nearly left his body. After the ordeal, he looked utterly aggrieved and the corners of his eyes tinged red. Ji Yan, who had just woken up and witnessed the scene, saw a "-20 SAN" pop up above his head. He immediately retreated to his room, biting into his toast, and locked the door behind him.
The little jellyfish was baffled.
Truth be told, no matter how much he washed, he always carried a faint scent of the sea—not fishy, but vast and distant.
"Nothing much to do today," Shen Jixiao said upon returning with bread and milk. "Want me to take you around the human city?"
Instantly forgetting his grudge over the hair-washing, the little jellyfish happily agreed.
The human city was bustling, especially in areas crowded with merchants, where exotic goods from all over were displayed for sale. Sometimes, you could even find decent items at the cheaper stalls.
The little jellyfish had no concept of what was precious or ordinary—everything fascinated him, and he couldn’t stop asking questions. The morning street food, in particular, had him finishing one portion and immediately wanting another.
"Pick out whatever you like," Shen Jixiao said. "Consider it a gift from me."
So the little jellyfish crouched in front of a glittering stall, examining the small gemstones cut into various shapes and the cleverly designed accessories laid out on the black velvet cloth. Rings, necklaces, bracelets, brooches… He found every single one beautiful.
The little jellyfish casually picked up one item.
"I’ll arrange for a carriage," Shen Jixiao suddenly said.
"Huh?"
"It can take you to the coast quickly."
The little jellyfish stood up, swaying unsteadily before stumbling backward and bumping into Shen Jixiao. In his hand, he still clutched a cheap trinket from the stall—a small silver ring.
Shen Jixiao naturally caught him, letting the little jellyfish lean against him for support. "You like this ring?"
Tang You didn’t even register what he was holding at first. His back pressed against Shen Jixiao’s body, the human’s warmth searing against him. When Shen Jixiao leaned down, his breath was hot too, brushing past Tang You’s earlobe.
"It’s alright," Tang You murmured while staring at the ring on his fingertip. It was set with a small moonstone—mediocre in quality, but the polished stone held a fleeting blue hue, like a bubble. "Not as pretty as your scales."
"Oh?"
Shen Jixiao rarely paid attention to jewelry or gemstones. He glanced at the stall and picked up a pair of earrings—a translucent pink gemstone, rare for its bicolor nature, half white and half pink. Unfortunately, unlike the little jellyfish, it didn’t encase the pink inside.
"You two have excellent taste," the gem merchant seized the opportunity to pitch. "This is moonstone, and this is a bicolor tourmaline..."
Tang You listened half-heartedly to the merchant’s explanations.
His mind was still stuck on the earlier topic. "You’re not coming into the sea with me?"
"I need to stay here and resolve the barrier issue. At the very least, I want to ensure fishermen, merchants, and sea creatures can pass freely through the strait."
"Once the barrier is fixed… will you return to the sea?"
Shen Jixiao fell silent.
The sun hovered on the horizon, neither rising nor setting, casting a fiery orange hue over the gem in his hand. He clenched the jewel in his palm, snuffing out its dazzling brilliance. "I've lived well on land."
"Are you happy?"
"..."
The little jellyfish wriggled free from his embrace, crouched down again, and whispered something to the merchant before handing over something of his own.
Tang You stood up once more but this time, facing Shen Jixiao directly.
He reached out, grasped Shen Jixiao's wrist, and unfolded the merman's palm, his fingertips brushing over the rough calluses and old scars. Until a small, inexpensive ring embedded with a smooth moonstone lay in the merman's palm.
Though he had already understood the little jellyfish's intention, for a moment, Shen Jixiao's mind seemed to rust over, his words stumbling out in a jumbled mess: "What is this?"
He noticed a tiny spell embedded within the moonstone.
"A curse," Tang You's fingertips lingered on the back of his hand. "Learned from Sangluo—a curse to make someone happy."
But Shen Jixiao wasn't entirely ignorant of magic. With a slight sensing, he knew it was merely a calming spell.
Whether this could truly be called a curse was debatable. Yet in that moment, Shen Jixiao felt an overwhelming surge of energy rise from his chest, like rootless vines suddenly entwining his heart, pulling it down with a dull weight.
To resist this feeling, his heart began to pound violently and his blood surging, giving rise to countless negative emotions—suddenly, he desperately wanted to follow the little jellyfish's words, but the thought of parting grew heavy and painful, aching at the slightest touch.
This was perhaps... the most powerful curse of all.
Tang You solemnly closed Shen Jixiao's fingers, urging him to hold the ring tight.
"Be happy."
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