Chapter 73: Going Home

Yun Jiao could see clearly. The dim environment didn’t have much of an effect on her eyes.

It was a few half-grown boys mixed in with the crowd.

Her brothers were among them.

After pelting the man, they ran off.

Yun Jiao had her father put her down and ran after them.

"Hahaha... I hit him! I got him!"

"I hit him, too!"

"See? You’re not sad anymore, are you? We got revenge for you."

Shen Xiuyuan said to a skinny little boy next to him.

The little boy sniffled. "When was I ever sad? I don’t even like my aunt."

He pouted. "But as much as I dislike my aunt, I hate that drunkard uncle of mine even more!"

"Jiaojiao, what are you doing here?" Yun Xiaowu asked.

"I followed you," Yun Jiao replied.

In the dim light of evening, the doll-like Yun Jiao looked exceptionally beautiful. Many of the young boys there stared, mesmerized.

’What a pretty little sister. I like her.’

Of course, they were still young, so their "liking" was simply an appreciation for something beautiful.

The skinny little boy suddenly jumped up. "My dad and grandpa are here! I’m gonna go see."

With that, he ran back into the crowd, and the other children followed.

Yun Xiaowu took his sister by the hand while her other brothers cleared a path for her. They squeezed between the adults’ legs and secured the best front-row seats for the show.

"Shen Jiantong, you son of a bitch! Cheating on my sister and then hitting her? Do you really think our family has no one to stand up for her?!"

As soon as Shen Cuimei’s family arrived and saw her condition, they started laying into Shen Jiantong with a torrent of curses.

Their first instinct was to get physical, but the stench coming off Shen Jiantong was so bad they couldn’t bring themselves to touch him.

In the end, they found a wooden stick and started fighting him with that instead.

But when Shen Jiantong’s parents arrived and saw their son getting beaten, they immediately started cursing and hitting Shen Cuimei’s family in return.

Everyone protects their own.

The scene descended into chaos.

To avoid getting any of the filth from Shen Jiantong on them, Yun Xiaowu and the others pulled Yun Jiao back a little.

In the end, it took the village chief and a few of the village elders to come and stop the whole farce.

By then, Yun Jiao had already gone home with her father and mother.

Ultimately, it was another family’s business. People would chat about it when they gathered, condemn Shen Jiantong for not being a real man, and then move on.

Early the next morning, while Yun Jiao was still half asleep, she was woken up and dressed.

They were getting ready to go home.

The Shen family was extremely reluctant to see them go.

Shen Xiuwen held Yun Jiao’s hand. "Auntie, when you go back, can Jiaojiao stay here at our house?"

"I’m afraid not," Shen Yunlian replied. "Jiaojiao has to come home with us. She can’t stay here forever."

"But this is Jiaojiao’s home, too!" Shen Xiuwen argued.

"Even if you’re my cousin, you can’t try to steal my sister!" Yun Xiaowu cut in. "She has to come home with us."

Yun Jiao comforted him in her sweet, soft voice, "Cousin, I’ll come back with Mom and Dad next time. You can also come visit my home with Grandpa and our uncles."

Outside, Grandma Shen and Grandpa Shen were busy packing their back-baskets full of things.

"That’s enough, that’s enough," Yun Linhai said. "Father, Mother, that’s plenty. It’s too much."

"What do you mean, too much?" Grandma Shen waved it off. "It’s all just some things that aren’t worth much."

As she spoke, Grandma Shen stuffed in a long piece of cured meat that the family had been saving and hadn’t been willing to eat themselves.

"We can’t take this. We really can’t."

"Just take it. You brought us so much seafood, after all."

Grandpa Shen came out carrying a new cooling mat he had just finished weaving.

"Lin Hai, come here. Take this, too. Jiaojiao doesn’t like the heat. She can sleep on this to stay cool."

Yun Jiao happened to walk out just then and touched the mat with her small hand.

"Did Grandpa weave this for Jiaojiao?"

Grandpa Shen nodded. "So Jiaojiao can sleep comfortably."

A warmth spread through Yun Jiao’s heart. ’Merfolk are solitary ocean hunters. After the age of ten, their parents go their separate ways and couldn’t care less if their children live or die. They might never see each other again for the rest of their lives. A little mermaid’s survival depends entirely on luck and their own abilities.’

’That’s why there are so few Merfolk in the deep sea.’

’This human concept of family... it’s a strange feeling, but it makes my heart ache with a tender warmth.’

"Thank you, Grandpa. I’ll come visit you all often."

Hearing this, the entire Shen family smiled, their eyes crinkling with joy.

In the end, the two back-baskets that were full when they arrived were just as full on their way back.

The baskets were filled with several watermelons, eggs, and some grain.

A few chicks, ducklings, and goslings were put into a bamboo basket to be carried by hand.

Yun Jiao was also holding a small bamboo basket, which contained two little rabbits—one black and one white.

After they had left, Grandma Shen discovered money tucked under a tea mug.

She didn’t even have to guess who had left it.

"That silly girl," she muttered. "Taking some grain but leaving money behind. She must have been afraid we wouldn’t accept it, so she hid it under the mug."

Grandpa Shen frowned. "Just leave it. We’ll accept it. Next time we visit our in-laws, we’ll just be sure to bring more things for them."

It was too late to catch up to them now.

The journey home was downhill, which was much easier than the climb up, but it still took a long time.

Plus, they didn’t have a tractor. They were unlucky and didn’t manage to catch a ride on the village tractor, so they had to walk the entire way.

Yun Jiao’s little feet were aching from all the walking.

But she didn’t want to ask her father to carry her; they were already carrying more than enough on their backs and in their arms.

"We’re back!"

Yun Xiaowu started cheering before they even reached their front door.

Smelling the sea breeze in the distance, Yun Jiao’s mood lightened, and her steps became much brisker.

At this time of day, Granny Yun was at home cooking, while Yun Xiaoqi and Yun Xiao Ba were sprawled by the doorway, playing with marbles.

They were just wondering aloud when Jiaojiao and their Fifth Brother would be back when they suddenly heard Yun Xiaowu’s voice.

The two boys were instantly overjoyed.

"Fifth Brother! Sixth Brother! Ninth Brother!"

"Jiaojiao, little sister! Your brothers missed you so much!"

The two of them ran over, arms outstretched. They bypassed Yun Xiaowu, who also had his arms open, and swooped Yun Jiao up in a hug together.

Yun Xiaowu: "..."

’Is there no brotherly love left in this world!?’

"What are you holding, Jiaojiao? Rabbits!"

"So many chicks! And ducklings and goslings!"

"Whoa... Watermelons! Big watermelons!"

For a moment, the air was filled with the excited clamor of Yun Xiaoqi and Yun Xiao Ba.

As soon as she got home, Yun Jiao immediately found a small stool and sat down. She was exhausted.

She could swim in the sea all day without feeling tired, but hiking and walking really took a toll on her feet.

When she took off her shoes, her pair of plump, white feet, soft as little steamed buns, were revealed.

Her toes were a little red, and on the soles of her feet... there were blisters.

"Dad, our sister has blisters on her feet!"

Yun Xiaowu was the first to notice, and he immediately cried out in distress.

"What should we do? It must hurt so much!" He pouted and blew on Yun Jiao’s feet to soothe them.

Shen Yunlian gently took Yun Jiao’s foot to examine it, her eyes also filled with heartache.

"Why didn’t you say your feet hurt? You could have just let your father and me carry you."

Yun Jiao pursed her lips and wiggled her little feet.

"It won’t hurt if I go soak them in the sea."

"Nonsense. How can you go in the sea? You’re not allowed to go until your feet are better."

Yun Jiao: ’My world is ending!’

’I think they’d heal faster in the sea.’

A little spark of defiance flared up in Yun Jiao. If they wouldn’t let her go, she would just have to go to the sea anyway.

But not right now.

Shen Yunlian lanced the blisters on her feet and washed them with salt water.

"This might hurt a little, so try to bear with it, okay?"

Influenced by her mother’s anxious expression, Yun Jiao grew nervous herself and cautiously lowered her little feet into the salt water.

And yet... it didn’t hurt?

She blinked.

"It doesn’t hurt at all."