The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 64: Chapter 64: Ye Feng’s Help

Han Xiaoqing shook her head. ”An associate’s degree is already great, really. You don’t have to keep studying.”

Han Xiaorui didn’t think so. She tried to persuade her sister, ”They say there’s no end to learning. Your field of study is more established abroad; it’s practically a blank slate here in China.”

”As long as you’re willing, as long as you want to learn and are able to, I’ll support you. The more you learn, the more people you’ll be able to help in the future.”

Han Xiaoqing threw her arms around her sister and sobbed.

’My sister is the best. She’s always doted on me, ever since we were kids.’

The next day was Saturday, so she didn’t have to go to the hospital for class.

After breakfast, Han Xiaorui was in the living room with the children, doing sensory integration training.

Liang Xiaoyu came over, wearing rain boots and carrying her son Cai Wenjun on her back.

It was still raining and windy outside, so they couldn’t go out to sea.

Since Han Xiaorui was at home with nothing to do, she and Liang Xiaoyu started brainstorming what to eat.

But because of the rain, they hadn’t gone to the market for groceries. Instead, they took some grey pomfret from the freezer to make braised grey pomfret.

The chives in Han Xiaorui’s vegetable garden were flourishing, so she cut a handful to make scrambled eggs with chives.

She also picked some clover greens for a simple stir-fry.

The frozen sea bass wouldn’t have the right texture for steaming, so she decided to make a spicy poached fish, a recipe from her hometown.

She also had half a chicken, which she used to make braised chicken with potatoes.

They also had dried wakame at home, so she made a big bowl of wakame and tofu soup. It was incredibly savory!

”Lunch is ready!” Just as Han Xiaorui said this and was about to serve the rice, she heard someone knocking on the front gate.

”I’ll get it.” Liang Xiaoyu put down her bowl and chopsticks, grabbed an umbrella by the door, and quickly walked to the main gate.

When she opened the gate, Liang Xiaoyu’s eyes lit up. ’Heh, this Mr. Ye has been visiting quite often lately!’

’What could it be about? He even made a special trip on a rainy day like this!’

Liang Xiaoyu asked, ”Oh, Mr. Ye! What brings you here?”

Ye Feng recognized Liang Xiaoyu. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly. ”Just a small matter. Is Comrade Xiao Han home?”

”She is,” Liang Xiaoyu replied with a smile. ”Mr. Ye, come on in and we’ll talk. We just finished making lunch.”

”Alright!” Ye Feng got out of the car, holding an umbrella, and followed Liang Xiaoyu inside.

Han Xiaorui was just bringing a dish of steamed egg custard from the kitchen to the table when she saw Ye Feng. She looked surprised. ”Mr. Ye, have you eaten?”

”I haven’t!” Ye Feng replied. In truth, he’d just had a rice ball and hadn’t eaten a proper meal yet.

Han Xiaorui had only been asking out of courtesy, but since he said he hadn’t eaten, she naturally had to extend an invitation. ”If you haven’t eaten, please join us. We can talk over the meal.”

The sudden appearance of a stranger in the house made Pingping, An’an, and Cai Wenjun a little uneasy.

Han Xiaorui introduced him. ”Pingping, An’an, Wenjun, this is a police officer.”

The three children said nothing, hiding behind their mothers.

Ye Feng smiled and pulled a handful of White Rabbit milk candies from his pocket. ”Here, have some candy.”

Although his tone was as gentle as possible, the children still wouldn’t come out.

Han Xiaorui explained, ”Mr. Ye, the children aren’t ignoring you on purpose; they’re just shy around people they don’t know. Please, go wash up. It’s time to eat.”

”It’s no problem. They’ll grow out of it,” Ye Feng said with a smile as he went to wash his hands.

At the dinner table, the three children ate with their heads bowed, quickly finishing their egg custard mixed with rice.

As soon as they were done, they ran upstairs to play.

Liang Xiaoyu, holding her bowl with some food in it, followed them up to watch the kids.

Han Xiaorui asked, ”Mr. Ye, did you have something you wanted to see me about?”

Ye Feng nodded. ”I found a second-hand radio communication device to install on your boat. If you find a reconnaissance device, just send a signal. The relevant department will receive it and immediately dispatch a boat to rendezvous with you.”

”Before you start salvaging, check for other boats in the area. If there are none, retrieve the device and head back to port immediately. That’s the fastest way to hand it over and the safest for you.”

Han Xiaorui froze for a moment, then blinked. ”Mr. Ye... How much... how much did it cost?”

Ye Feng replied, ”It’s free. It’s a used model, for one. And besides, you’ve already recovered three reconnaissance devices for us and might find more. It’s only right that we provide you with the necessary support.”

”How could I possibly accept that? Please, let me pay for it,” Han Xiaorui said. She was thrilled, but she had to make a show of being polite.

”Really, you don’t have to,” Ye Feng said with a smile. ”If you feel you owe me something, just consider this lunch my payment.”

”Let’s finish eating. Afterward, I’ll install it on your boat, test it out, and show you how to use it.”

”Okay!” Han Xiaorui agreed happily. ”Thank you, Mr. Ye.”

After they finished eating, Han Xiaorui let her sister and Liang Xiaoyu know she was leaving, and then she and Ye Feng went to her boat under an umbrella.

Ye Feng installed the radio and carefully showed Han Xiaorui how to operate it.

”Now that you’ve got the hang of it, I’ll be heading back,” Ye Feng said with a light laugh and a nod. ”If you run into any trouble, just let me know. And one more thing—if you notice any suspicious people around you lately, please tell me right away.”

Han Xiaorui agreed, a hint of a smile in her eyes as she looked at him. ”Thank you for all your trouble.”

”It was no trouble at all. It’s part of my job,” Ye Feng nodded. ”I have a feeling you’re going to bring me more surprises in the future.”

Han Xiaorui raised an eyebrow. ”Heh, I’ll do my best.”

As she watched Ye Feng’s car drive away, Han Xiaorui, still holding her umbrella, turned to leave. Just then, she saw a sea snake poke its head out from under her boat.

Han Xiaorui froze. She took two steps forward and got a clear look. There was a red mark on the sea snake’s head—it was the same one she had seen several times before.

’It’s been lurking under my boat this whole time.’

With Liang Xiaoyu around before, Han Xiaorui couldn’t use her Water Ability to investigate.

But now that she was alone, she was determined to find out what was going on.

One probe was all it took for her to understand.

It turned out this sea snake had been absorbing some of the power from her Water Ability, the part she used to drive away schools of fish. Over time, it had slowly started to evolve.

What’s more, the sea snake could instinctively feel that this power was making it stronger, and it felt good.

’It seems it could help me manage the fish populations—driving them away or finding them. That could actually be a good thing.’

’Most importantly, it could protect my boat.’

At that moment, Han Xiaorui also began to put the pieces together. Song the Second was likely bitten by this very sea snake. With no one to get him to a hospital in the middle of the night, he must have died from the venom.

For that reason alone, Han Xiaorui started to grow fond of the sea snake!

The weather forecast for tomorrow was good, which meant she could go back out to sea.

’I’ll try coordinating with this sea snake then. Let’s see if we get better results!’

When she got home, Liang Xiaoyu opened the door for her. She glanced outside but didn’t see Ye Feng. ”Where’s Mr. Ye? Why didn’t you invite him in to sit for a while?”

Han Xiaorui rolled her eyes. ”He installed a radio on our boat, for free. From now on, don’t you dare talk about Mr. Ye behind his back.”

Liang Xiaoyu nodded emphatically. ”Mr. Ye is a good man. He’s helping us out. I won’t say a word. I’ll never say anything again.”

’If they’re really meant to be, things will happen between Han Xiaorui and Ye Feng even if I don’t say a thing.’

’If they’re not, trying to force them together might just end up offending people.’

She woke up the next morning to clear skies and a gentle breeze—a perfect day for going out to sea.

Han Xiaorui had a feeling the ocean would bring her a big surprise today.