Mu Yu rubbed his eyes, thinking he was hallucinating, otherwise how could he see Ruan Mingchu walking towards him?
It wasn't until his forehead made intimate contact with Ruan Mingchu's knuckles that Mu Yu dared to be sure this wasn't a hallucination.
Ruan Mingchu's tone was not good, "You didn't even leave me a message before you went out?"
Mu Yu rubbed his forehead, feeling a little guilty, "The situation was urgent at the time..."
Ruan Mingchu scoffed, his gaze sweeping over the three people behind Mu Yu. "So eager to play the hero and save the damsel in distress?"
Mu Yu blinked her round eyes, covered her face to hide her upturned lips, and couldn't help but wonder if Ruan Mingchu was jealous.
Mu Yu explained the situation to Ruan Mingchu.
He heard someone wailing and went outside. He saw a car carrying many people and mermaids, and the mermaids were whipping a boy with a barbed whip. He quietly followed them.
After listening to their conversation for a while, Mu Yu discovered that they were human traffickers who specialized in capturing homeless humans and selling them to mermaids.
The boy who was whipped was caught halfway because he incited others to run away, and was killed as a warning.
The upright and kind-hearted Mu Xiaoyu would never stand by and watch someone die, and that's how things turned out the way they are now.
Ruan Mingchu looked back at the three men again; they were in a terrible state, with almost no part of their bodies unscathed.
"What are your plans for them?"
Mu Yu lowered his head again. "I don't know."
Ruan Mingchu reached out and lifted Mu Yu's chin. "Mu Xiaoyu, why do you lower your head whenever you feel guilty? Does lowering your head mean you're not guilty?"
The skin on his chin where Ruan Mingchu's fingers touched felt like it had been burned, producing an unusually hot sensation.
Mu Yu blushed and tried to lower his head, but was held back by the support, so he could only weakly retort, "No."
Ruan Mingchu chuckled.
"Alright, let them stay with us for now. Luckily, the spacecraft has enough space. We'll let them leave when we find a suitable place to go."
Mu Yu breathed a sigh of relief. To be honest, although they were pitiful, the way they cried as soon as he asked them questions and the fact that they couldn't even walk really made him feel bad for them. He was just glad that Ruan Mingchu was willing to take care of them.
Once inside the aircraft, Ruan Mingchu left the three of them in Meng Shuo's care.
Meng Shuo had a sour look on her face, but she still took out some medicine from her backpack and tossed it to them. "You can apply the medicine yourself, right?"
The three thanked him meekly.
After they finished getting ready, Mengshuo made each of them a bowl of instant porridge.
The three of them did the same thing, sipping their food from the paper bowls in small sips.
The hot porridge warmed their stomachs, and they seemed to be in much better spirits.
According to their self-introductions, the taller of the two boys is named Li Yang, the shorter one is named Gao Wan, and the girl is named Liu Meng.
Li Yang and Liu Meng were both sold to human traffickers by their families, while Gao Wan was abducted when she was a child.
He planned the escape, but it failed. If it weren't for Mu Yu, he would have been killed.
The three of them explained the basic situation and then fell silent, huddling together in a corner. Meng Shuo was too lazy to ask them any more questions, and was just waiting for an opportunity to get rid of them.
Meng Shuo didn't recommend traveling at night, so everyone decided to rest in the grove for the night.
There's only enough room to sit inside the aircraft; it's not enough to lie down and sleep. Luckily, there are tents inside, which provide wind protection and warmth when set up.
Li Yang, Gao Wan, and Liu Meng naturally had to sleep in the tent. Even though Liu Meng said she had a fever and it was too cold in the tent, Ruan Mingchu simply gave her an extra layer of clothing.
She slept in the open and was barely clothed at the human traffickers' place without any problems. Does that mean that after rescuing her, we should provide her with a life of luxury?
After being rejected, Liu Meng didn't say anything more, lowered her head, hugged her clothes, and crawled into the tent.
When the moon was high in the sky, the three people in the tent opened their eyes and sat up almost simultaneously.
The tent is dark, so no one can see anyone else clearly.
Whispers could be heard inside the tent.
Liu Meng: "It's obvious that the silver-haired guy is the leader of this group, but he doesn't seem interested in us."
Li Yang: "Impossible, otherwise he wouldn't have kept us here."
Gao Wan: "We can't put all our eggs in one basket. No matter how bad that blonde's personality is, she's still a mermaid."
Liu Meng: "That tall guy who saved us didn't have any marks on him and he was treated so well. If we could hook up with any of them, we wouldn't have to worry about the future."
Gao Wan: "But what if that person persecutes us? After all, he arrived first, so there must be some connection between us."
Li Yang: "Afraid of this and that, do you want to be sold to a brothel?"
After a few words, Li Yang and Liu Meng decided to try their luck with the silver-haired Ruan Mingchu, while Gao Wan would try her luck with the blond-haired Meng Shuo.
But not tonight. First, their injuries haven't healed, and they're too disgusting. Second, we just met today, and it's easy to be suspected of having ulterior motives.
Things will be easier to get things done once everyone gets to know each other better.
The next morning, Liu Meng and the other two got up early, packed up the tent, and took the initiative to cook, being extremely attentive.
Seeing that they were all quite self-aware, which saved him a lot of trouble, Meng Shuo finally began to find these three people who came to freeload off him quite agreeable.
According to the map, Obsidian City of the Blacktail Empire is located slightly west of the northern part of the Mermaid Continent.
Ruan Minhchu decided to avoid entering the city as much as possible, and instead walk along deserted roads on the outskirts of the city so that he could enter the city at any time if needed.
The need includes both physical and psychological aspects.
It's not appropriate to stay on an aircraft all the time; humans, being social beings, need to be surrounded by human presence to thrive.
They spent their days on the aircraft and rested at night. This went on for three days in a row. Seeing that Tu Aotian was getting listless, Ruan Mingchu studied the map and decided to stop and go into the city for a stroll and some fun.
Meng Shuo maintained his stance, suggesting that Ruan Mingchu mark Mu Yu.
But Ruan Mingchu still felt it was inappropriate and tried to wrap Mu Yu in pheromones.
"How is it? Can you still feel it?"
Meng Shuo shook his head, "That way you'd have to stay by his side constantly sending out pheromones."
Ruan Mingchu hummed in agreement, since he and Mu Yu wouldn't be separated anyway.
Although there were no markings, her whole body was enveloped in Ruan Mingchu's pheromones, and the cool scent of the first snow surrounded her, yet she did not feel cold at all.
This feels great.
Mu Yu wanted to maintain this state forever.
Seeing that Ruan Mingchu and Meng Shuo had no intention of taking the three of them along, Liu Meng bit her lip, stepped forward, and expressed their desire to go as well.
Meng Shuo chuckled. "Please, have some self-awareness, okay? Why should we take you there?"
Mu Yu saved them entirely out of kindness, but he had no obligation to support them indefinitely. His silence for three days regarding his plans clearly indicated he intended to rely on them.
Although he was quite diligent, for some reason, Meng Shuo just couldn't bring himself to like Liu Meng and the other two. If he were alone, he would absolutely not take them with him.
Liu Meng never expected to receive such a comment after three days of hard work. She thought she had already left a mark on Ruan Mingchu and Meng Shuo's hearts.
Her face was pale, and she retreated without saying another word, huddling in a corner with Gao Wan and Li Yang, looking as if she had suffered some injustice.
Meng Shuo thought for a moment and then walked over. His shadow fell on Liu Meng, who looked up and showed a blank expression. Unexpectedly, Meng Shuo said, "Get down. I'm going to lock up the aircraft."
Who knows if these people are dishonest? What if they steal the aircraft? Wouldn't we have to walk the rest of the way on our own?
A crack appeared on Liu Meng's expression. She took a deep breath and strode off the aircraft.
To my utter surprise, this blond mermaid has no heart!
She's so beautiful and charming, she doesn't look like someone who would steal a flying machine at all!
Gao Wan and Li Yang didn't dare to make a sound and jogged off the aircraft after Liu Meng.
Meng Shuo was quite thoughtful; he left them enough food for a day and even brought out their tent.
Anyway, the tent was bought for the three of them to live in, and Mengshuo wouldn't stay there by himself; he'd feel uncomfortable about it.
Three days was enough time for the aircraft to leave the Black Tail Empire, and they arrived at the White Tail Empire.
These two countries are quite interesting; despite being neighbors, they refuse all overt exchanges, and any communication is conducted in private.
The city is called Huabai City. Several hundred meters from the city gate, the roadside is full of blooming flowers.
The various scents mixed together not only didn't smell good, but were also a bit pungent.
Ruan Mingchu and Mu Yu sneezed three times in a row, and tears welled up in their eyes.
Tu Aotian clicked his tongue twice, "You guys aren't very healthy."
He changed completely within a second of speaking, trying to sneeze but unable to, and getting really frustrated.
"Hahaha." This was a hearty laugh.
There is still a mermaid sculpture in front of the city gate of Huabai City, but it is pure white and does not have a matching fountain pool, although its body is covered with garlands.
As soon as Ruan Mingchu and his two companions entered the city, his full head of silver hair attracted many envious and jealous glances, while Mu Yu's black hair drew a lot of criticism.
Ruan Mingchu & Mu Yu: Is it really necessary?
Even more ruthless was the mermaid who came directly to persuade Ruan Mingchu to abandon Mu Yu, the black-haired human, and that something better was waiting for him.
The mermaid was glared at by Mu Yu and drove away.
Mu Yu said to Ruan Mingchu, "There is no better!"
Ruan Mingchu nodded, suppressing a laugh: "Mu Xiaoyu is the best."
Meng Shuo rolled her eyes. They flirted and cuddled every day, but she wouldn't give him a mark. Thinking about it, Ruan Mingchu seemed like such a jerk.
Mu Yu was very satisfied with Ruan Mingchu's answer and felt much happier. However, the stares from those around them were too annoying, so Mu Yu saw a barbershop and pulled Ruan Mingchu inside.
He spoke to Tony the hairstylist, pointing to Ruan Mingchu's hair, "Please dye it this color for me."
Tony saw the amazement in Ruan Mingchu's eyes, but he regretfully told Mu Yu, "None of the hair dyes in the shop can achieve this look. You can take a look at these colors."
Mu Yu pursed her lips, looked carefully, and chose a silver-gray color, a light gray with a silver sheen. The other colors looked too pale and she didn't like them.
Hearing Mu Yu speak, Tony the hairdresser looked regretful for a moment, but finally took his eyes off Ruan Mingchu and said, "Please come with me, let's wash your hair first."
Meng Shuo leaned close to Ruan Mingchu's ear, gritting her teeth, "It costs 1,200 copper fish coins to dye it!"
So you don't care because it's not his money you're spending, huh? Why dye your hair like that, especially such an ugly gray color?
Ruan Mingchu smiled: "Shall we calculate how much you ate at Mu Yu's house?"