Chapter 102: The Disappeared Person – The Mermaid

The rain poured heavily for days, only clearing up on the seventh day. Xiao Liu’s father couldn’t wait any longer. As soon as the rain stopped, he went out to sea. But strangely, when he returned, he brought back something very odd—a mermaid.

When recalling the mermaid, you could see the fear in the old woman’s eyes. Sang Chu gently asked, “What kind of mermaid was it?”

“A golden mermaid, about the size of a seven- or eight-year-old child. She looked like a beauty, with small eyes and willow-leaf eyebrows. Just one glance, and you’d think she was a fairy. But she was a mermaid!”

The old woman shivered, as if recalling something terrifying. Sang Chu could only try to comfort her, “It’s all right, Grandma. She’s not here now, so don’t be afraid. What happened next?”

The old woman took a deep breath and continued, “At first, Xiao Liu’s father was still clear-headed and wanted to return the mermaid to the sea. But everyone in the village seemed bewitched. Anyone who tried to get close to the mermaid was beaten or scolded. Xiao Liu’s father had no choice but to secretly plan with me to steal the mermaid away at night when everyone was asleep and return her to the sea. But who knew…”

Sang Chu murmured, “It’s easy to invite a god, but hard to send one away?”

The old woman glanced at Sang Chu and nodded. “When Old Liu was preparing to act, the mermaid spoke. Old Liu’s wife told me that the mermaid’s voice was so enchanting it made your bones go soft. Even as a woman, she couldn’t resist it.”

Sang Chu asked, “What did she say?”

The old woman shook her head. “Old Liu’s wife didn’t say. But from then on, the couple no longer wanted to send the mermaid away. Even Old Liu joined the group of men who guarded her. Every night, there was never a quiet moment in the mermaid’s room.”

Never a quiet moment in the room?

Sang Chu and Tu You exchanged glances, shocked. This was just a mermaid, for heaven’s sake!

Sang Chu hesitated, then gossiped, “Grandma, but… she was a mermaid, right?”

“Yes, a beautiful mermaid. I don’t know when it started, but her tail was very pretty, her hands delicate and boneless, her skin pale and tender, just like a freshly peeled egg. Every day, there was a line of men waiting to carry her to the big rock by the sea. At that time, the men of the village seemed to lose their souls, just staring at her. Even my old man, who hadn’t remarried for years, was bewitched. Every day, he only cared about the mermaid, leaving just me and my old companion at home.”

Sang Chu asked, “And the child?”

She hadn’t wanted to ask, since it was clearly a sensitive topic, but she needed to clarify the whole story.

The old woman lowered her head, her voice heavy. “It was my son. When his father realized what was happening, he dragged him home, even begging the mermaid. My old man pleaded, ‘Great mermaid, please let my son go. He’s married, and at home there’s only his crippled father and his nearly blind old mother. He’s finally married, please have mercy and let him come home.’”

Sang Chu asked, “Did the mermaid agree?”

The old woman nodded. “My old man brought him home. I asked him about it. He said the mermaid only said one thing: why wasn’t he like the other men? My old man said, years ago, he injured his leg at sea and had been lame ever since. Since then, he never had any interest in such things. If it weren’t for our son, he wouldn’t have gone there at all.”

Sang Chu said, “The mermaid probably wanted someone who couldn’t be tempted.”

“Yes, that’s right. My old man told me the mermaid’s voice was very pleasant, and she was very charming. But with one foot in the grave, temptation didn’t mean much to him. He just wanted to save our son, but our son was never quite right after that.”

Sang Chu asked, “How so?”

The old woman looked at Sang Chu meaningfully and slowly said, “After our son came home, he started to like eating raw fish. He never liked raw fish before—he thought it was fishy and couldn’t be cleaned well enough. But after being with the mermaid, he started craving it. It was strange, but there was nothing I could do. Then, something happened to Aunt Mei’s family.”

Sang Chu asked, “Aunt Mei?”

“Yes, Aunt Mei had a son. He was a good kid, did well in school, and even got into a university in the city. Aunt Mei knew about the strange things in the village, but she couldn’t stop them. She was afraid her son would also be tempted by the mermaid.

But who knew, the news came too late. Her son had already returned to the village with his classmates. Aunt Mei was terrified, afraid something would happen, so she rushed home at night to stop him. But fate had other plans—he had already returned home, and had even gotten involved with the mermaid.”

Sang Chu blinked, feeling that what the old woman called “something happened” was probably much worse than she let on.

“And then?” Sang Chu asked.

The old woman continued, “Those university students insisted that the villagers were imprisoning and abusing the mermaid and wanted to rescue her. But the men in the village had already become a united front. Outsiders couldn’t interfere. A fight broke out, and in the end, some died, some were injured. When Aunt Mei returned, she found her son’s body hanging from the beam.”

“She was so distraught that she grabbed a kitchen knife and tried to kill the mermaid, thinking she was the root of all evil. But her husband stopped her—she was nearly killed by him. It was the mermaid who saved her.”

Sang Chu was surprised. “The mermaid saved her?”

The old woman nodded. “The mermaid said she didn’t like people who didn’t want her. Since Aunt Mei didn’t want her, she threw her out, along with all the dead. The men had already treated her like a goddess, so there was no stopping them. The mermaid just threw the half-dead Aunt Mei and her son’s body outside and didn’t care anymore.”

The more Sang Chu listened, the more she felt something was off. This mermaid was nothing like the merfolk monsters she’d heard of before.

She asked, “So what happened to Aunt Mei after that? And what about those talismans?”

The old woman replied, “After Aunt Mei left, all the women and children in the village were driven out. But one day, Aunt Mei returned with a lama. The lama said, ‘What you’ve encountered is a mermaid spirit. She wants to use human essence to transform. Once she takes on the flesh of a mermaid spirit, she’ll become a terrifying monster. When that happens, everyone will die at her hands.’”