“Uh, you can’t read these books. They’re too childish for you! They’re all comics, meant for kids like Huo Yan.”
Nearly exposed, Yu Mian desperately pushed Huo Ting onto the couch in the living room and piled a massive stack of very serious literature, history, and philosophy books beside him.
He declared that only by finishing these books could one truly acquire the professional knowledge of an adult.
Huo Ting looked at the guilty little fish and immediately recalled the time they watched the “Eternal Night Rose” movie together.
After a brief silence, he finally picked up one of the books under Yu Mian’s nervous gaze, suppressing a laugh.
At least now he knew exactly where this little fish had learned those things.
And it was definitely related to the collections in those large bookcases.
With the social death crisis averted, Yu Mian finally let out a breath of relief.
No matter what, he absolutely couldn’t let Huo Ting see him as a little yellow fish, okay?
A fish still had its dignity.
That night, the long-missing Fish Soup Noodles made his return with an update, which undoubtedly dropped a bombshell in the Earth fish fandom.
God knew how much resentment and despair they had endured waiting for the update.
This guy, who always stirred up chaos, actually dared to come back!
Yu Mian dug through his computer, pulled out the dust-covered outline, and bulldozed through a major update for his ongoing apocalyptic web novel on Earth. He wrote the long-awaited climax scene where the protagonist awakened a resource-type water ability.
Faced with this overwhelming content, the deeply resentful fans could not resist the strong temptation and chose to read the update quickly.
The result? They were instantly blown away by how exciting it was, grinning so hard their mouths practically touched the sun.
Even their previous frustration, which had them wanting to skin Fish Soup Noodles, subsided a little.
[Who understands this feeling!? This guy actually dared to come back, and his writing still has that unique flavor. I’m crying. (binge-reading with a cold face jpg)]
[Too cunning. Teacher Fish Soup Noodles must have done this on purpose…updating first, knowing we’d be so happy we wouldn’t have the heart to hold him accountable. Damn it, but I admit his strategy worked. TwT]
Some readers even started feeling like… maybe they didn’t really need to hold Teacher Fish Soup Noodles accountable for vanishing for three weeks.
How about another three chapters? Then we could pretend nothing ever happened.
A mutual understanding between author and fans, rebuilding their happy days together, was the best outcome. [Tears streaming down face jpg]
The chain reaction from this major update left even Lin Sen and the rest of the editorial team stunned as they waited anxiously for reader feedback.
“Wait, you guys are just forgiving him like that?”
Although, to be fair, the update was infuriatingly good…
The climax ended on another nasty cliffhanger…after awakening his water ability, the protagonist’s team unexpectedly saved a medical team on the brink of perishing in a zombie siege due to exhaustion of resources.
And that very medical team had been sent by the national base to rescue an elderly man of extremely important status. Because of this, the protagonist officially entered the government’s radar.
It was obvious, the next chapter was bound to be even more thrilling!
If Fish Soup Noodles disappeared for another three weeks, everyone would suffer a collective mental breakdown.
Of course, some readers still clung to their last shred of reason and resisted the urge to forgive too quickly.
[Hey, hey, hey, let’s be rational. Are we really going to let him off the hook just because of one big update? Can we stop spoiling him? At least make him update non-stop for half a month!]
[No, no, since we’re already dreaming, let’s go bigger. I’ll give you a number, 100,000 words a day!]
Not only did the reader community explode over Fish Soup Noodles’ sudden “resurrection”, but even the author circles caught wind that the legendary writer had finally returned.
Yu Mian’s phone buzzed nonstop with messages from friends.
Some were checking in on him.
Some were asking what had happened.
Some were even worried that the platform had secretly blacklisted him.
As he responded while feeling increasingly overwhelmed, he also felt a strange sense of familiarity in their concern.
Under the tide of public opinion, Yu Mian finally posted an official statement on Weibo, explaining that he had temporarily disappeared due to health issues.
[Fish Soup Noodles V: …But in the coming months, I’ll be releasing several fully completed novels I had stockpiled. Hopefully, everyone can binge-read to their heart’s content. =v=]
When Fish Soup Noodles mentioned feeling unwell at the beginning, many fans immediately became worried.
To be honest, they would have preferred if Fish Soup Noodles had secretly run off to have fun. But it turned out that he had really been forced to disappear for so long due to health issues?
However, before everyone could express their concern, the second half of Yu Mian’s Weibo post shocked the entire web novel community.
[What!? Teacher Fish Soup Noodles, you secretly stockpiled this many completed novels behind our backs!?]
Yu Mian had directly posted a screenshot of a book list, each with a simple synopsis attached.
But just from these brief descriptions, countless fans were already drooling, wishing they could sneak into Fish Soup Noodles’ computer overnight and steal all the manuscripts to binge-read in one go.
Where did this fish get so many completed drafts?
How many new books have you secretly been working on behind our backs!?
For a moment, aside from the messages expressing concern for Fish Soup Noodles’ health, the entire web novel community was abuzz with discussion and amazement over this newly revealed stockpile.
What kind of legendary writing machine is this?
“Fuck, no wonder Fish Soup Noodles was so calm. Who could possibly stay mad after this…”
Even Lin Sen was stunned.
After disappearing for three weeks, he came back with a whole batch of completed novels as compensation.
It was so enticing that people were almost hoping Fish Soup Noodles would go into seclusion more often.
Could this be the secret behind Fish Soup Noodles’ ability to keep his audience hooked?
Yu Main was sitting in front of his computer at the moment, and he couldn’t help but laugh as he scrolled through everyone’s reactions online.
“Perfect, just as expected.”
At first, he had been troubled by the thought of how to make up for the “debt”.
But then he realized, since he now had the conch shell that could send him back and forth between interstellar and Earth, wouldn’t that mean both his interstellar and Earth fish fans could enjoy a steady stream of “newly completed” books?
This was simply too genius. OvO
He was indeed a genius fish.
Yu Mian was practically flicking his tail in satisfaction at the conch shell’s interdimensional teleportation ability.
And speaking of tails, Yu Mian had tested it out in his bathtub at home and confirmed that his tail could indeed reappear.
He might really be a mermaid!
However, when he absentmindedly called his parents, not expecting much, the call actually connected.
After all, his parents had long been stationed in deep-sea areas with no signal, sometimes going a year or more without contact.
If it weren’t for the occasional packages arriving via national postal service, Yu Mian would have seriously started questioning where they had vanished to.
But this time, as soon as the call connected and Yu Mian was about to speak, his mother’s voice suddenly burst through as she snatched the phone away:
“Baby, have you been going out lately? Are you still at home? Your dad and I are back on annual leave this year. We brought back a bunch of souvenirs and gifts and sent them to your room. If you’re not home, be sure to check when you get back…huh?”
“Uh, I mean, I’m at home right now…”
Before Yu Mian could finish speaking, he vaguely heard noises outside and wondered if he was imagining things.
At that very moment, his parents, who were carrying large bags, opened the door…only to freeze in shock as they came face-to-face with Huo Ting.
Huo Ting, who had been forcibly made to sit in the living room reading, was also caught off guard.
But if he wasn’t mistaken, these were… Uncle and Auntie?
The woman standing before him was tall, with a bright and elegant temperament. She wore black sunglasses and a fishtail dress. Even without seeing her full face, it was clear she was a stunning beauty.
“Sorry, we might have knocked on the wrong door.”
The usually warm and outgoing Yu Hui was momentarily at a loss for words. She even took off her sunglasses, blinking her beautiful eyes several times.
Meanwhile, in her heart, she was secretly thinking…her son’s neighbor was quite the handsome young man.
At the same time, she reached out and smacked her husband, Yu Dahai, who was behind her.
“What kind of directions did you follow? You even got our son’s apartment number wrong!?”
That’s right, both Yu Hui and Yu Dahai had the surname Yu, but that was just because they both happened to like the name when registering their identities.
Yu Dahai loved the ocean, so he chose “Hai” (sea), while Yu Hui adored the various flowers on land, so she chose “Hui” (flora).
When Yu Hui wasn’t speaking, she had the elegant air of a cold and glamorous rose. But the moment she opened her mouth, she turned into a bright and enthusiastic morning glory.
“Ahem, I’ll go press the elevator button.”
Yu Dahai, though tall and handsome, had always let his wife have the final say. Without hesitation, he picked up their bags and prepared to leave.
Though inwardly, he couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. Had he really been away for so long that he forgot his own son’s address?
That was a bit too unreliable.
“Uh, have you considered the possibility that you two didn’t come to the wrong place?”
Yu Mian, who had rushed over, looked at his parents, who were attempting a casual yet awkward retreat, and felt a familiar mix of exasperation and amusement.
A reunion after years apart was supposed to be emotional.
But having grown up with these two carefree parents, “emotional” moments had never been part of his childhood. Any time he tried to be sentimental, they’d somehow disrupt the mood.
Yu Mian wasn’t sure whether to call this a good or bad thing, but at least their emotions were always stable…cheerful and worry-free.
Hearing the familiar voice, Yu Hui finally looked at her son in disbelief.
The next second, Yu Mian was pulled into a fierce hug.
“As expected of my son, he is getting more and more handsome.”
Yu Hui looked up at her son, who was now taller than herself, and couldn’t help but beam with pride.
To her surprise, Yu Mian, for once, actually returned the hug.
Unlike before, when he had grown up and started refusing her hugs out of embarrassment, or when he didn’t want to be called “baby” anymore.
But Madam Yu Hui truly enjoyed the strange sense of accomplishment that came from being relied on by her son.
Even though normal mermaids were supposed to leave their groups and live independently once they reached adulthood…
Well, she and Yu Dahai were considered mermaid immigrants, so Yu Mian could be an unusual mermaid too!
Yu Mian hadn’t seen his parents in a long, long time. At this moment, the familiar scent made him feel incredibly reassured and at ease.
As for Yu Dahai, standing beside them, he was looking at Huo Ting silently and suspiciously.
Yu Dahai: [examining.jpg]
“Good evening, Uncle.”
In the midst of the silence, Huo Ting was the first to speak.
Yu Dahai, who hadn’t yet processed what was happening: ?
Wait a second, how did he suddenly become an uncle after just taking a vacation?
“So, who is this?”
Madam Yu Hui, who had been holding onto her rarely affectionate son, finally looked back at the strange atmosphere in the room.
“A friend of Xiao Mian?”
Wait… did her socially anxious, introverted son finally open up?
And even brought such a handsome boyfriend home?
Madam Yu Hui found it a bit hard to believe.
To be honest, her son’s personality had always baffled her. She and her husband, Dahai, were both so outgoing, yet somehow their son turned out completely different.
Even as she pondered this, Yu Hui felt like Huo Ting looked somewhat familiar.
But then again, good-looking people always had similar features, didn’t they?
Faced with this situation, Yu Mian couldn’t help but facepalm.
“This is Huo Ting. Mom, didn’t you give a conch shell to his grandfather? And you even said some strange things back then… But the most important part is, you never told me about it from start to finish.”
Yu Hui and Yu Dahai: EMMM…
Now that she thought about it.
That did seem to have happened.
“Huo Ting? Could it be… Huo Yuejiang’s grandson? That little boy from the old photos has grown this much already? No wonder he’s about the same age as Xiao Mian.”
Recalling the past, Madam Yu Hui looked at Huo Ting with an increasingly warm smile.
But after the initial surprise, Yu Hui finally realized something.
While she and Yu Dahai had been away, it seemed that a lot had happened.
“Is that really the main point here? Shouldn’t you two answer this question first, are you mermaids?”
Yu Mian interrupted her.
“Of course we are, including you, baby.”
“Though you never had the ability to sing since you were young, and your personality is nothing like a mermaid’s…What a peculiar fish.”
Yu Hui answered so naturally that Yu Mian, who had just been struck right in the heart, couldn’t help but feel aggrieved.
“But you never told me… not even once.”
Hearing this, Yu Hui and Yu Dahai looked at each other, finally realizing their oversight.
Back when Yu Mian was born, both Yu Hui and Yu Dahai had fallen in love with Earth, their new home. For the first time, they decided to raise their not-so-mermaid-like child in a normal human school.
Out of concern that Yu Mian might feel like an outcast upon learning he was different, Yu Hui had planned to tell him when he was a little older.
But as he grew up healthy and strong, and as they got busy with their work, handling unnatural maritime incidents under their cover identities as government officials, one day after another simply slipped by.
As a result, they never got around to telling him.
“We love you very much, but this was truly my mistake, baby. I’m so sorry.”
Madam Yu Hui looked at her son earnestly as she apologized.
Yu Mian sighed. “But you really can’t do this again in the future.”
When her son hugged her tightly, Yu Hui smiled.
“Of course. Now, do you want to see all the fun things your dad and I brought back? Oh, and Xiao Huo’s gift! I need to think carefully about what to make up for that.”
“By the way, how is Old Huo’s health these days? Is he doing well?”
Hearing her question, Huo Ting naturally responded seriously.
“Grandpa is in excellent health, though he always regretted that he never managed to find you.”
“Oh, it was just a small favor. Back then, that sea area had a time-space turbulence, and he got caught in it. Since we were there, it was our responsibility to save him.”
“But, Xiao Mian, how exactly did you get there?”
It was clear that Yu Hui was very concerned about this.
“Well… that’s a long story.”
At his mother’s inquiry, Yu Mian took his time explaining everything that had happened.
The couple listened in amazement, sometimes worried, sometimes chuckling, sometimes feeling nostalgic and contemplative.
“Since that’s the case, why don’t we go back together?” After thinking about it ,Madam Yu Hui made a bold decision.
“How about both families have a meal together? We really need to properly thank you, Huo Ting.”
“And that little Huo Yan sounds absolutely cute.”
After listening to the full story, Yu Hui was delighted and full of ideas.
“Also, your father and I would love to meet your ‘fish fans’ too. We should thank them for looking after our son all this time.”
Just the thought of it made Madam Yu Hui look forward to it with a bright smile.
She never expected that her son’s novels had become bestsellers across the universe.
Even though he couldn’t sing since childhood, something that had once made her and Dahai worry he was some kind of mutation, becoming a famous writer in the entire universe was just as worthy of pride, right?
But Yu Mian suddenly felt like this was a terrible idea.
His extremely outgoing parents going to the interstellar, getting interviewed, or even making public appearances, he didn’t even dare to imagine what might happen.
Nor did he dare to imagine how everyone in the universe would react.
Author’s Note:
Madam Yu Hui facing the entire universe: Yes, my son is super adorable! [Unable to resist showing off baby pictures.jpg]
Interstellar Fish Fans: !?? The god who holds the most material on Teacher Fish Soup Noodles!
