Fan Li couldn't take any more excitement.
Returning to the party after the police investigation concluded, she searched everywhere for Xing Hai. She just wanted to be with him and relax, but he was nowhere to be found. She placed a call, but the electrical sparks jumped for a long time without anyone answering. Just as she thought he wouldn't show up, she suddenly spotted him in the crowd.
"Xing Hai!" she waved at him, running over happily.
However, Xing Hai didn't wave back from afar or walk toward her as he usually did. He simply turned around and stood there quietly, waiting for her, a very restrained smile playing at the corners of his mouth. His posture had a military-like straightness, yet it was a touch more relaxed than a soldier's, as if standing that way was a long-held habit.
"I almost called you since you hadn't shown up," she said, blinking as she stopped in front of him. "Was there something delaying you on the road?"
"Mm." Xing Hai looked down at her, his eyes appearing much deeper and darker than usual. "Did you miss me?"
His voice was low and flirtatious, making Fan Li freeze for a moment, feeling a bit flustered. "I did!"
"How much?"
"A... a whole lot!"
Xing Hai gave a shallow smile and leaned down slightly, whispering in her ear, "Me too. I think of you every single moment."
Her face turned red in seconds. She involuntarily took two steps back, blinking rapidly as she looked into his eyes—they were the same water-blue eyes that usually made her feel at peace, so why did they make her heart race so wildly today? Even the mole on the tip of his nose seemed to carry a hint of seduction.
But Xing Hai didn't pressure her at all; he just watched her patiently and gently. She cautiously stepped forward again and tugged at his hand. "Have you had too much to drink? You seem a bit different from usual."
"Mm, I had two glasses." Xing Hai caught her hand in his and pulled her into his arms. "Being so proactive? Then I won't hold back either."
Seeing him about to lean in for a kiss, Fan Li anxiously turned her head away, her face flushing deep red. "There are so many people..."
"Then in a little while, we'll go somewhere quiet to continue." He kissed her forehead lightly. "By the way, remember to look into Lu Wei Ya’s family."
Every word he spoke left Fan Li dazed. She shook her head vigorously, taking a long time to snap out of it. She was about to ask him what happened to Miss Bubble when she noticed someone nearby wrapped tightly in a cloak. At the same time, two girls were whispering nearby:
"Teacher Yin Bei'er didn't come today, did she?"
"How could she have the face to show up? She just resigned and then had a falling out with Professor Bu Ke."
"In the end, she’s just another foolish woman like Miss Bubble. Overly confident in her own beauty, she completely forgot who she was."
"Exactly. How could Professor Bu Ke truly love her? He just wanted to play around, and she couldn't wait to marry into the family. Truly... tsk tsk."
...
Fan Li noticed that as they spoke, the person wrapped in the cloak began to tremble slightly until finally, a loud *crash* echoed through the villa as something was smashed.
The person threw off the cloak—it was actually Teacher Yin Bei'er!
She had just knocked over a vase. A sea breeze swept through the window frame, blowing the petals and banana leaves inside like scattered rags. She bent down to pick up a shard of the vase, pressing it against her own neck. With her other hand, she held up a red envelope, screaming hysterically: "Bu Ke, the filthiest clan in all of Light Sea! You persecuted Lu Wei Ya, and now you’re persecuting me, yet you still stand on your high horse, acting as if it’s all our fault!! Bu Ke Ni, Bu Ke Ye Jia, get out here!!"
The party was forced to a halt once again. Everyone turned to look at her.
Bu Ke Ni walked through the crowd, shaking his head at her.
Ye Jia stood on the steps, looking at her with a cold expression. "Who persecuted Lu Wei Ya, and who persecuted you?"
Yin Bei'er viciously tore open the envelope. Because she used too much force, she ripped half the letter as well. In front of everyone, she began to read the contents aloud:
"This is the last time in my life I will write a letter, and the last time I will say to my parents and my husband: I hate you. In April of this year, that ugly old fellow Bu Ke Ni appeared, pursuing me relentlessly. He said he could solve my father's capital chain crisis and said he loved me. In reality, every night back then, a woman from the Silverfish Tribe named Yin Bei'er was sleeping in his bed! Privately, my father and Bu Ke Ni had long since colluded and signed a contract—marry Lu Wei Ya off. One would get money to expand his business and pave the way for his dog of a son's future; the other would complete a political task to continue sponging off the Bu Ke clan, lying around every day squandering wealth that others couldn't save in a lifetime of struggle. On the surface, they pretended not to know each other, and both sides used every angle to mentally control me, attacking my boyfriend and brainwashing me with a money-is-everything worldview to make me feel my boyfriend didn't love me. Yes, I was brainwashed by them! I had no brains, no sense of self, so I fell for it! I have received my corresponding punishment, which is to atone with suicide, taking the child in my womb with me! Finally, I want to say that the person I loved, from beginning to end, was only Si Kong. I am not worthy of him! My father, the filthiest merchant; Bu Ke Ni, a high-ranking official rotten to the core. I am only fit to be entangled with them. This world is so foul; there is nothing left worth staying for! If I could choose my life again, I wouldn't want to be Miss Bubble, I wouldn't want to be Mrs. Bu Ke, I would only want to be myself, to be Lu Wei Ya! But there is no such chance anymore, none! Goodbye, disgusting Light Sea, disgusting people! Lu Wei Ya’s final words."
Si Kong was the name of Seaweed Senior. He was also present. Hearing the contents of this suicide note, he was more shocked than anyone else there, to the point that he took a step forward and knocked a dinner plate to the floor, where it shattered.
Ye Jia's shock was no less than his. Although Ye Jia knew he had such a young great-aunt-in-law and that there were certain political factors involved, Lu Wei Ya had long looked at Bu Ke Ni with starry eyes, leading him to believe several times that they were truly in love. Today was the first time he learned there were so many secrets behind Lu Wei Ya's death.
Clutching the letter, Yin Bei'er pointed at Bu Ke Ni and said, "You thought I wouldn't dare expose your scandals, didn't you?"
"You... you are truly shameless!" Bu Ke Ni was shaking with rage, his face and neck turning a deep red. "Yin Bei'er, everyone else has the right to criticize me, but not you! Because you are filthier than anyone! And falling in love with a dirty fish like you is the biggest mistake I’ve made in my life!"
"I certainly know you love me, but did you see Lu Wei Ya's letter? Hahaha, whether in my heart or hers, you are just an ugly old man. Aside from being an ATM, you have no value that would make someone truly care! Lu Wei Ya loved Si Kong, and I love Ye Jia!"
Perhaps pushed past his limit by her words, Bu Ke Ni suddenly calmed down. He crossed his arms and let out a contemptuous laugh. "And yet, between the two of you, one was pregnant with my child, and the other had four abortions for me. What kind of nobility are you pretending to have, hmm?"
"That was because we had no choice!! We were forced by you!!"
"Did anyone force you? Did I take you by strength or what? True nobility would be like Academician Su Yi—no matter how the higher-ups hinted or suggested, she could turn a blind eye and continue her revolution. Women like you, who crave money, have already taken the cash. Why act innocent now?"
Now it was Yin Bei'er's turn to be completely pushed over the edge. Her hand holding the letter shook uncontrollably, her nails digging into her palm until it bled. "Listen well, just like Lu Wei Ya, I was driven to death by you! The ones who killed us are you!!"
With that, she raised the vase shard and stabbed it straight toward her own throat—
"Don't!!"
Fan Li was closest to her. She lunged forward, tackling her to the ground. But Yin Bei'er's strike was too fierce and heavy; the vase shard plunged directly into the center of Fan Li's back, sinking in more than three centimeters. Fan Li let out a cry of agony, her face contorting like a twisted bun.
"Li Li!" Xing Hai rushed over to support her.
"Don't be impulsive, don't commit suicide..." Fan Li hissed, speaking through the throbbing pain. "Death is most painful for those who love you. Once you're dead, there's no chance to start over... Teacher Yin, please cherish your life."
Yin Bei'er had never personally stabbed someone like this before. Terrified, she jerked her hand back. "Why... why... you should hate me..."
"I am quite speechless regarding you, and I think you're very stupid. But I also think you're very beautiful; committing suicide would be a disservice to this face. Sigh, I won't worry about you for now, I need to go treat this wound first..." Fan Li pulled on Xing Hai to stand up. "Xing Hai, quick, take me back to the hospital in Luoya. I feel like I've been pierced through, it hurts so much... ah, the pain..."
Xing Hai immediately picked her up in a bridal carry and took her straight to the Bu Ke clan's guard unit, calling for an arcane healer to treat her.
Being on Ye Jia's turf made things easy. When the silver-white light sank into her skin, the bleeding stopped quickly. Even when the shard was pulled out, the pain was bearable. After the wound was bandaged, Fan Li moved her arm and felt as if she hadn't been injured at all. She took Xing Hai's hand and said gratefully, "Thank you. You really are my all-powerful, wonderful boyfriend."
Xing Hai took a potion handed over by the healer, his expression grim. "Risking your life for someone who isn't worth it—I see you have too much free time."
"I just didn't want to regret it. If Teacher Yin Bei'er had succeeded in killing herself in front of me and I had just watched, I would have felt terrible later. Sigh, I don't know why she couldn't see reason. She even lied to us, saying Miss Bubble's suicide note had been destroyed, but she kept it perfectly safe. The contents were certainly explosive..."
Fan Li still remembered that on the wedding night, Miss Bubble had looked to be in a terrible state and had said one thing to her: "I envy you so much. Nothing has started for you yet; 'the end' is so far away."
Combined with the contents of the suicide note today, she finally understood. At that time, seeing her with Xing Hai, Miss Bubble must have thought of her own history with Seaweed Senior. But for Miss Bubble, everything had already ended.
So she chose suicide to express the resistance she could not voice.
Fan Li frowned. "Looking at it this way, Lu Wei Ya really did commit suicide, right?"
"I always felt her family was very strange, which is why I told you to look into them."
Fan Li nodded thoughtfully and then sighed. "Sigh, how can there be a father like that in this world... literally driving his daughter to death. My dad is much better."
"What kind of person is your father?"
Fan Li reminisced for a while, telling many stories about her father, then rested her chin on her hand. "In short, he's a very ordinary but very good dad with very sound values."
"I can tell; he raised you well. Unfortunately, my parents passed away long ago. I envy you."
"It's okay, you'll be a good father in the future too!" Fan Li leaned in and kissed his cheek. "After we get married and have babies, you won't be lonely anymore."
Xing Hai touched his face, momentarily dazed. Then, he looked up at the clock on the wall and stood up. "Let's go out for some fresh air."
"Okay, okay!"
Walking onto the balcony, Fan Li finally understood what Feisi meant by the "Fluorescent Sea" and "Blue Tears."
The sound of the waves approached from afar. The ocean was a giant mirror, wrinkled and trembling in the wind, reflecting the brilliant starry sky. It was as if half the stars in the sky had fallen into the sea, the water dyeing the billions of starlight blue. The night sea extended to the horizon, the fluorescence spreading boundlessly to the edge of her vision.
And "Blue Tears" referred to the fluorescent beach. Looking down from above, the beach glowed with a blue light. The land-dwelling members of the sea races walking below left behind strings of flickering blue footprints.
"Wow, it's so beautiful!" Fan Li was struck by the beauty of the scene and grabbed Xing Hai's hand. "Come on, let's go down and see!"
Xing Hai looked down at their joined hands, slightly startled, but allowed her to pull him along.
Only upon closer inspection did she realize the "Blue Tears" phenomenon was caused by tiny creatures washed ashore by the waves—sea fireflies. They would glow when stimulated, and after the stimulation stopped, they would maintain their brightness as if a switch had been flipped. Fan Li had long forgotten she was injured; she held up her skirt and walked carefully on the sand, which indeed stimulated the sea fireflies and left "blue light footprints." she was both afraid and a bit creeped out, yet she found it magical and beautiful, her emotions running high.
Xing Hai stopped. The girl before him had her eyes squeezed shut as if being tickled, her shoulders hunched, her fists shaking slightly as she let out little "ow ow" cries. "Xing Hai, Xing Hai, with every step, it feels like I'm walking on a sea of fire."
Clearly, she was the one offending those little sea fireflies, yet she acted as if she were the one being stimulated. Truly childish.
However, he couldn't take his eyes off every detail and movement of this little brat.
Then, Fan Li looked toward the ocean, pressing down her short hair which was being ruffled by the sea breeze. Because the waves were loud, she raised her volume, her voice crisp and thin, possessing a youthful innocence unique to young girls. "I'll test you—do you know what else in the sea glows right now?"
He knew the answer, but he wanted to hear her talk more, so he watched her quietly and shook his head.
"Eh? You, the expert on marine biology, actually have something you don't know? Right now, the *Galba* snails are also glowing! They have fluorescent glands near the shell opening, and the scattering area is even, making the whole thing turn a glowing green!" At this point, she happened to kick a snail. She picked it up and handed it to Xing Hai, then continued, "And *Noctiluca scintillans*! If we went rowing on the sea right now, they would be stimulated by the oars and turn blue... I'll show you."
"You're still injured, don't move around recklessly."
But he couldn't hold her back.
Fan Li found it very inconvenient to use legs, but she still stumbled to the edge where the water met the sand. Then, she bent over, one hand clutching her skirt as she stepped into the shallow water, the other hand forcefully slapping the waves—surely enough, the parts she hit began to glow.
"Isn't it magical? Isn't it amazing!" she said excitedly. "I've only read about this in books; I didn't expect to do the experiment myself! Wow! This is so exciting!"
She slapped the water with increasing excitement, screaming, her slender wrists moving nimbly, not even bothering to wipe the water splashing onto her face and hair. Compared to Xing Hai, who stood elegantly to the side, she was like a wild girl, letting out "awoo"s and "ahahaha"s and "waaaa"s and "yahahahaha"s, jumping and running around the shallow beach. She completely failed to notice that Xing Hai could no longer see anything else; he only saw her.
She wanted to play with the sea sparkles while also avoiding the waves so that the water wouldn't hit above her knees and turn her back into her aquatic form. But she couldn't help chasing the waves, constantly testing the edge of disaster. Once, a large wave swept in from the distance. She failed to retreat in time and ran back clumsily, accidentally kicking a large conch shell. She tripped and pitched forward toward the sand...
Xing Hai lunged forward, reaching out to catch her. She fell successfully into his arms, panting for breath several times as she patted her chest. "That... that scared me to death..." Then she broke free, took his hand, and pulled him toward the sea, her eyes crinkling into two long, curved slits again. "Don't just stand there, come and play too."
But her wrist was caught by his hand, and she was pulled back into his embrace.
At this moment, the deep black sea pushed a fluorescent blue "veil" onto the shore, inlaid with a "Milky Way" more beautiful than the clearest starry night sky. The moment she looked up, she opened her eyes wide with curiosity, looking at him. "Xing Hai, what's wrong..."
All the starlight seemed to gather in those bright, deep blue eyes.
The seduction in Xing Hai's eyes had vanished. Now, it seemed only a sea remained in his gaze. But this sea was not the bright surface; it was a bottomless abyss. Usually, Xing Hai was like a stream before her, clear to the bottom. But tonight, she truly couldn't understand him. She tilted her head, pressing down the short hair that obstructed her vision. "What's wrong with you..."
That tilt of the head was just enough for him to lower his own and capture her lips. She took a sharp breath, and he quickly caught the tip of her tongue. After two slight probes, he suddenly went deep, intensifying this kiss that carried the scent of wine. She gasped, her hand trembling as she let go of her hair, which fluttered wildly in the sea breeze just like her frantically beating heart. In stark contrast to his previous calm, his kiss was fierce, continuing until her legs went weak and she nearly knelt on the ground.
Just as she was about to lose her footing, he finally became gentler. At this moment, her five senses were so clear; as a wave receded, the world seemed to consist only of their two heartbeats. Dizzily, she wrapped her arms around his neck, responding to him happily yet weakly... but his next kiss was so proactive that her heart stopped again. She finally couldn't stand; her head buzzed, and her body from her spine to her thighs went numb. She involuntarily slid downward, only to be caught by his arm around her waist, as he forcefully poured out a passion that seemed as if it could never be fully vented...
She didn't know how long they kissed. Fifteen minutes, twenty minutes, half an hour?
In any case, when it ended, she was completely collapsed in his arms, her face flushed with a crimson glow that even the starlight couldn't hide.
It was too sensual.
She and Xing Hai had kissed many times, but their past kisses were pure, sweet, and warm. Even their first kiss had been far more soulful than passionate. What was happening tonight? For the first time, she realized she had so many latent desires, which made her feel both afraid and ashamed.
Could it be because part of her predatory tribe factors had been activated...
"Hmph." She gave him a slightly awkward push.
"Hmm?" His voice was so soft it was almost a whisper.
She had originally wanted to scold him for being too lewd, saying she still preferred his pure side. But she quickly realized he had shark blood. Male sharks were most sensitive to the physical changes and hormonal secretions of females who favored them. He could even feel the electrical currents on her body; how could he not know that she actually loved this kind of kiss?
So, a verbal denial was completely useless.
The lesson learned: one should believe in science and not get lost in literature.
Regardless of his appearance, temperament, or speech, Xing Hai looked very much like a beautiful cello-playing youth from a work of art. But no matter how delicate the skin was, it was just skin. Once it came to matters of instinct, his predatory nature was fully exposed.
"It's nothing," she shook her head. "I'm just a little shy..."
This proactive Xing Hai was charming, but her poor heart could hardly take it.
"Do you hate me like this?" Throughout the night, Xing Hai's voice was several octaves lower than usual.
"I don't hate it." Fan Li shook her head again, a smile on her lips. "I like it."
Xing Hai didn't speak. She didn't see that he was dazed for several seconds, even forgetting to blink. Finally, he closed his eyes and shook his head, seemingly trying to keep himself conscious. But when he looked down, he happened to see her from a forty-five-degree downward angle, smiling sweetly to herself.
At this moment, before him, she was so relaxed, natural, and happy, without a single shred of defense.
He was dazed once more.
"I like you no matter how you are." Her voice was soft. The most beautiful light music in the world could not compare to this whisper in the wind.
Xing Hai's eyes widened slightly. Hearing his own rapid and intense heartbeat, he didn't feel good. He frowned, trying once more to stay conscious and suppress the terrifying thought growing in his heart. However, before he could successfully pull himself out of this falling emotion, she burrowed even deeper into his embrace. She hugged his waist, leaning against his chest, listening to his heartbeat, her gaze gentle enough to melt ice and snow. "I like everything about you so much..."
He had never avoided his own desires. On the contrary, he was confident in his strong urges and had always faced them calmly.
However, the desire at this moment made him feel—he didn't want to use this word—afraid.
The words "I like you so much," which he used to be able to say so easily, could not be uttered now.
He didn't even have the courage to hug her back.
No matter how he avoided it, the terrifying thought had grown after all, and it rapidly eroded all his thinking—he wanted to keep her imprisoned in his arms forever.
He wanted to make her his alone.
No. That wasn't it. It was just because the stars were too bright tonight and the fluorescent sea was too beautiful. In such a romantic atmosphere, with a passionate and cute girl in his arms, his willpower was bound to be weak. He would sleep, and tomorrow everything would return to normal.
Tonight, a little indulgence wouldn't hurt.
When he saw Fan Li laughing and playing with the waves, he wanted to cherish and protect her in his arms; when Fan Li stood on her tiptoes to proactively kiss him, his brain buzzed and his whole body felt a numbing electric shock, fearing only that his excessive passion would burn her when he held her.
"Li Li..." he called out softly, sounding a bit languid.
"Hmm?" Her voice was happy and full of vitality.
"I've had too much to drink."
After the kiss by the fluorescent sea, Fan Li's feelings for Xing Hai changed significantly.
If she had loved Xing Hai before and been moved by his kindness, then after last night, her liking for him was so intense it directly overflowed from her chest. This was the first time she knew that falling in love with someone made it feel as if life itself had started over. Actually, they hadn't said much yesterday; they just hugged, kissed, hugged, and kissed. But after a night passed, she didn't feel tired of it at all; in fact, she felt far from satisfied. When they kissed, even if his hand just lightly rested on her lower back, the sensation was vastly different from before, as if it would leave an imprint on her through her clothes...
This was the first time the two of them had been so intimate—so intimate that when she opened her eyes to the sunlight the next day, Fan Li felt excited and shy, rolling back and forth on her bed.
Later, when Xing Hai came to her house to pick her up, she was so nervous her heart pounded, and she hardly dared to look into his eyes. But Xing Hai had returned to his former self, as if the events of the previous night had never happened. Fan Li originally thought she was just too thin-skinned, but after talking carefully, she learned that Xing Hai had drunk too much the night before and had blacked out for the entire night.
So, he didn't remember how romantic it had been between them at all? What a shame...
But she still felt great. Because that feeling from last night wasn't the first time it had happened. She had once felt that way about Su Shiye—a fatal and desperate attraction, impossible to resist, like a fated lover or an addiction that couldn't be quit. Even though her sixth sense repeatedly rang alarm bells saying "he will hurt you," she couldn't help but be drawn to him.
After completely cutting ties with Su Shiye, she once thought she would never feel that way about anyone again.
But facts proved that the essence of love is always the same. For Xing Hai, she could be just as moved.
Su Shiye wasn't that special.
Because of this, Fan Li breathed a sigh of relief. She had truly graduated from Su Shiye. She no longer had to have her life turned into a mess by a roller-coaster-like infatuation. It was wonderful.
***4.3 Mini-Theater***
Ye Jia: "I'm curious, why is it that every time a certain someone kisses, it's so adult-oriented? Can't you kiss a bit more purely?"
Xi Tian: "Seeking methods for an adult-oriented kiss, urgent, waiting online."
