When Claudius, who had posted the comment, realized that he was recognized in just a second by a large number of Federation Star netizens, he was indeed a bit stunned.
He even wondered if he had a particular catchphrase.
[And what do you mean by “you Federation Star people”? So, does Teacher Star Crown come from another star system?]
[Yeah, yeah, I’m curious too. Are you an alien reader like Miss Lilith? Have you come to read our Fish Soup Noodles teacher’s book too?]
In fact, ever since Lilith became famous, more and more readers from Federation Star realized that Fish Soup Noodles’ books seemed to be quite famous in other star systems too.
It was said that after the film and television rights for “Contract Marriage” were sold to nearby star systems, its actors also became popular in those star systems. Many fans from other star systems even specifically learned Federation language just to keep up with the updates.
[I have many international students around me who are following Teacher Fish Soup Noodles’ books. Every holiday before they go back to their respective star systems, they help buy a bunch of physical copies to collect, and I heard they can even sell them for double the price!]
[The Rebirth Writing Competition even had submissions from readers in other star systems. It’s not that surprising, right? The only problem is, they seem to think it’s easy for us Federation people to be reborn…]
[Is Teacher Star Crown also an international student from another star system? Long time no see, I kind of miss Teacher Star Crown…]
Although it was unexpected for Claudius, these Federation Star readers were strangely very friendly, and after recognizing him, they actually became quite enthusiastic.
But somehow, he still felt a bit embarrassed about it.
After remaining silent for a long time, Claudius decided to continue lurking and hoped that the author wouldn’t notice his comment…
“Eh…this reader is still keeping up with the updates?”
However, Claudius was destined to be disappointed. That rather unique comment was directly shared by major marketing accounts, and many readers began exclaiming that Teacher Star Crown had resurfaced. Naturally, Yu Mian couldn’t miss it.
Moreover, the ID was quite domineered, with both words being bold and grand.
“Brother Yu Mian, stop staring at your light brain. Let’s have a water fight together!”
Just as Yu Mian was sighing at his light brain, Huo Yan happily dashed to the pool with a swimming ring, eagerly inviting Yu Mian to play.
The moment he jumped in, a huge splash of water burst forth.
“Hiss!”
Yu Mian, who was leaning by the poolside, subconsciously raised his hand to shield his face, but the next second, Huo Ting blocked the splash and grabbed Huo Yan by the collar.
“Cousin! What are you doing?”
Huo Yan clutched his swimming ring and struggled in dissatisfaction.
“Are you feeling so carefree just because it’s a holiday?”
The way Huo Ting stared at Huo Yan made Yu Mian couldn’t help but laugh.
“It’s fine, it’s just a water fight, after all.”
Though he hadn’t expected the old residence to have such a large rooftop swimming pool.
Plus, after Grandpa Huo’s instructions, no one else came in. So it was indeed safe and fun.
“There’s even a training room by the pool, Brother Yu Mian. Next time, let’s spar there!”
Huo Yan clung to Yu Mian’s side, enthusiastically introducing all the facilities in the house.
“What’s going on on the light brain?”
However, Huo Ting noticed Yu Mian’s lack of enthusiasm today.
“Nothing much. When is the doctor coming?”
Recently, besides updating his book, Yu Mian had been troubled by the prior arrangement to check his fishtail.
“She’ll arrive in the afternoon. Nervous?”
“Of course not…”
Yu Mian refuted, then transformed his legs into a fishtail and swam leisurely in the water.
“Hey! Brother Yu Mian, that’s cheating! Your fishtail is splashing water too much!”
The golden fishtail, flowing like a skirt, gently flicked water at Huo Yan when passing by, immediately soaking the kid holding a water gun. Instantly, a playful water-fighting atmosphere was created.
“Weren’t you the one who suggested a water fight?”
Yu Mian glanced at Huo Yan behind him, and the light golden fishtail gracefully drifted in the water.
No matter how many times he saw Yu Mian’s golden fishtail, Huo Yan was always amazed. He stared at it with bright eyes, completely unbothered.
“Wait for me, Brother Yu Mian!”
Huo Ting merely watched in silence as Huo Yan attempted to challenge a mermaid to a water fight. As expected, Huo Ting curled his lips when he saw Huo Yan being “tortured” to the point where he had no power to resist and started shouting “Cousin, save me”.
“Did you swallow water?” However, Yu Mian, who had been controlling the strength of his attack, noticed that Huo Yan seemed to be struggling, so he immediately swam over and gently lifted him up with his tail.
It turned out that Huo Yan, a rare landlubber, wasn’t very skilled in the water, likely due to the “Yan” character in his name. His swimming grades had always been poor since childhood, and he required a swimming ring for support.
*炎/Yan means flame or hot.
“Ahem, ahem, no, no haha, Brother Yu Mian is taking me swimming… wow!”
Yu Mian carried the little guy in his arms, letting him experience the joy of gliding effortlessly through the water.
But before long, Huo Yan was called away by Qiao Ni.
After all, Qiao Ni was strict about following Madam Inas’ comprehensive training plans for Huo Yan, so even during holidays, he wasn’t very relaxed.
“Kids really have it tough.”
Watching Huo Yan wrapped in a towel, glancing back at the pool with every step, Yu Mian couldn’t help but sigh. Huo Ting, on the other hand, had been staring at Yu Mian’s fishtail the entire time.
“What is it?”
Yu Mian felt a bit self-conscious under his gaze and subconsciously curled his fishtail up.
Or perhaps, with the little guy gone, the open-air pool suddenly became much quieter, and even the rustling of the surrounding leaves grew audible.
“There haven’t been many scales falling off recently.”
Huo Ting made a casual comment.
“It was never a big deal… It was probably because I was out of water for too long before as I always run out of the aquarium to write.”
Yu Mian earnestly tried to convince Huo Ting to drop the idea of getting his fishtail examined by a doctor.
“The doctor has already arrived. Shall we go?”
But in the next second, Huo Ting received a notification on his light brain and urged the stubborn mermaid to see the doctor.
Yu Mian: “…”
Orz
“Wait a moment, I’ll grab my clothes.”
Finally resigned to his fate, Yu Mian swam toward the shore.
The little system that used to help him materialize clothes in emergencies before was now not very willing to help “cheat” after finding out that he could now get clothes for himself.
In the words of the little system, it could disrupt the operation of the world’s rules since Yu Mian could fetch clothes himself.
While Yu Mian was getting dressed, Huo Ting seemed to be deep in thought.
When they arrived at the reception room, Yu Mian was shocked to find that the so-called great doctor was actually… a child?
“Um, it seems General Huo Ting didn’t introduce me? Then please allow me to introduce myself. I’m Maggie. I’m over 280 years old and I only appear this young because I accidentally consumed a faulty experimental drug.”
Maggie adjusted her glasses and extended her hand politely and calmly toward Yu Mian.
“So that’s how it is. Isn’t that like reversing aging?”
Yu Mian shook hands politely, though his writer’s instinct immediately sparked at the intriguing setup.
“Actually, that was my original intention. The problem, however, is that I keep getting younger and can’t stay in my prime. Just maintaining this state took me a lot of effort… Wait, why am I explaining so much to you?”
Maggie had always considered herself a reserved person, not prone to excessive enthusiasm. However, faced with Yu Mian’s casual question, she found herself explaining without hesitation.
Hearing this, Huo Ting also glanced at Yu Mian, surprised that the notoriously eccentric Doctor Maggie was showing such a favorable attitude toward him.
Even more astonishing was Maggie’s reaction when Yu Mian rolled up his pants, revealing the circle of scales on his ankle. The doctor’s eyes widened in disbelief.
“You’re an aquatic race? May I ask which kind?”
Yu Mian exchanged a glance with Huo Ting, who frowned and looked at Maggie.
“Uh, please don’t misunderstand. I mean no harm. This information just helps me make a better judgment… Fine, I admit it. I’m also an aquatic race. I’ve just been hiding it all this time, and no one has ever known.”
Under Huo Ting’s scrutinizing gaze, Maggie reluctantly confessed, prompting Yu Mian to suddenly realize something.
It must be that 100% favorability reward for aquatic races working again, right?
“You’re not… a turtle, are you?”
“…Young man, how did you guess that?”
“Well, when you think of long-lived creatures, a turtle is the first thing that comes to mind.”
Yu Mian explained softly.
Since they were both aquatic races, perhaps Maggie could truly identify the cause of his issue?
“Actually, I’m a mermaid, but I’m not sure what’s wrong with my tail…”
As Yu Mian carefully explained, Maggie furrowed her brows, causing him to feel a bit nervous.
Was this some sort of terminal illness?
“By the cosmos! How could a mermaid live such a rough life? Staying up late is one thing, but neglecting to stay submerged in water…”
“Do you even realize? That beautiful tail of yours is utterly wasted on you!”
Maggie lamented, her tone filled with anguish as she began scribbling notes furiously on a piece of paper.
“Huh?”
The next moment, Yu Mian was handed a sheet filled with instructions for scale care. Some of the listed ingredients seemed difficult to procure.
“My prescriptions are far more effective than any skincare products. Those are mostly marketing gimmicks anyway.”
“However, as for why your racial traits are unstable, I can’t say for certain. To be honest, I’ve never studied mermaids in detail. I’ll need to go back and consult some materials before I can answer.”
Before leaving, Maggie unexpectedly agreed to add Yu Mian on her light brain.
“After all, as a rare and precious descendant of an aquatic race, even if you don’t care about yourself, you should at least think about the biodiversity of our kind.”
“…”
Yu Mian suddenly felt like he was a very unqualified mermaid.
But this level of effort… wasn’t it a bit unnecessary?
“General Huo Ting, I personally think you should supervise your friend more closely.”
As Huo Ting took the list from Yu Mian and scanned it, Maggie threw out this sharp observation, leaving Yu Mian feeling even more scrutinized.
Yu Mian, who had been planning to slack off, was speechless.
Huo Ting raised an eyebrow.
“By the way, I still have a few things I need to discuss with the patient privately.”
After Huo Ting left the room, Maggie frowned and looked Yu Mian directly in the eye.
“Just to confirm, you and General Huo Ting are friends, right? That’s how he introduced you to me.”
“Uh, yes…”
Yu Mian wasn’t sure why the sea turtle doctor was suddenly bringing this up.
“That’s good. While I don’t know how you came to know him, at least you’re safe here. General Huo Ting is one of the rare, trustworthy humans.”
“You know Huo Ting?”
“In a way. I’ve never owed anyone a favor, except for General Huo Ting who helped me with something important a long time ago. That’s why I agreed to come this time. Honestly, you’re also the first aquatic race I’ve seen who is so close to humans.”
“Is it bad to be friends with humans?”
Yu Mian noticed the turtle doctor seemed to harbor a subtle wariness toward humans.
“It’s not inherently bad, but there are certain risks… Still, since you two have a good relationship, I won’t worry.”
“Why?”
“Because the medicine I prescribe is top-grade. It’s expensive and hard to come by, but with the Huo family’s resources, it shouldn’t be a problem.”
“…!”
‘Wasn’t this just taking advantage of Huo Ting?’
“Oh, come on! If a human is willing to pay, wouldn’t it be a waste not to take advantage of it? Your tail is so beautiful, so of course it deserves the best medicine. As for why there are still scales showing after transformation, I’ll check some references and let you know later, little mermaid!”
Before Yu Mian could stop her, Maggie hurried off to her car, as if eager to return to her research.
Yu Mian wanted to cover his face in exasperation.
Did Huo Ting know the doctor he’d hired was the type to prescribe expensive medicine indiscriminately?
“So there’s really no need for so much medication. I think I’ll be fine if I just soak in water more often.”
Yu Mian tried to persuade Huo Ting and tell him the truth about this doctor, but the latter only gave him a skeptical look, fully aware of the mermaid’s tendency to avoid medical attention.
‘Fine, serve you right for getting taken advantage of!’
After talking for a long time but having his protests falling on deaf ears, Yu Mian suddenly didn’t want to say anything anymore. He quietly floated on the water holding the little duck swimming ring Huo Yan had left behind.
The summer evening breeze over the open-air pool was soothing. Yu Mian snuggled against the float, feeling completely at ease, unaware that his skirt-like golden tail had brushed past Huo Ting’s hand.
“…”
Huo Ting lowered his gaze to the tail gliding past his palm and subconsciously curled his fingers slightly.
