Stop Thinking Chapter 40: Extra 3: “Little Fry” 2 (The Silly Naïve Fish…)

Chapter 40: Extra 3: “Little Fry” 2 (The Silly Naïve Fish…)

Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations

Editor: Karai

Initially, Gu Xiuhan didn’t catch on to the layer of concern that Ruan Yu harbored. He was just relieved that Ruan Yu hadn’t suffered and hadn’t the slightest inclination to laugh at him. But Ruan Yu was on high alert, wearing a serious expression that seemed to say, If you dare to call me a little fish while we’re alone, I’ll jump into the sea with these eggs.

Gu Xiuhan’s lips twitched slightly. He met Ruan Yu’s round eyes for two seconds, then smoothed his lips back into a neutral expression, allowing his smile to melt into his eyes. He set aside what he was holding and pulled Ruan Yu into his arms, planting a kiss on the disheveled silver strands of hair that lay askew on Ruan Yu’s head. His hand gently touched the three eggs resting on the bed, as he softly reminded the still dazed little fish, “Ruan Ruan… we’re going to be parents.”

Originally, he should have said something like “Congratulations” or the like, but in the current situation, saying such things might have the opposite effect.

Ruan Yu hadn’t quite grasped the reality of becoming a father yet. After all, the fish eggs couldn’t interact with them, so upon hearing Gu Xiuhan’s words, he just nodded dazedly, his attention finally returning to the right place. He curiously poked at the fish eggs with his fingers.

Not only did the shells have color, but they were also as hard as pearls. Otherwise, with Ruan Yu’s habit of tossing and turning in his sleep, he wouldn’t be able to hatch the eggs at all.

Ruan Yu stared at the fish eggs in a daze for a while, and then, as if guided by instinct imprinted in his DNA, his body began to secrete hormones to take care of the newly laid eggs. Ruan Yu didn’t need anyone to teach him. He lifted his hospital gown awkwardly and slid the eggs into his clothes, then lifted his eyes, moist with anticipation, and invited his male fish, “Do you… want to try hatching the eggs with me?”

Hatching mermaid eggs required more than just temperature; otherwise, Ruan Yu could just get a constant temperature incubator and not worry about anything else. For mermaids, mental development was as important as physical development. In order for young mermaids to grow up healthy and strong, mermaid parents needed to establish a mental connection with the frys inside the eggs during the incubation period.

It was like a spiritual umbilical cord, providing energy to the developing spiritual body of the fry inside the egg.

Therefore, mermaid eggs were always hatched by the parents themselves.

Ruan Yu curled up his body, covering the eggs with his clothes, letting his slightly sunken belly warm the eggshells. Gu Xiuhan lay on his side beside him, face to face with Ruan Yu, one hand behind Ruan Yu’s head and the other around his slender back. With an attitude overflowing with tenderness and protectiveness, he held the little mermaid and the three unhatched fish babies. The sharp lines of his jaw gently rested on the top of Ruan Yu’s head.

In order to get closer to his own male fish, Ruan Yu even conjured up a fish tail to wrap around Gu Xiuhan. His fine hair rubbed against Gu Xiuhan’s chin, generating static electricity as he snuggled closer, and the space between their abdomens was just enough to accommodate the three eggs, warmed by their combined body heat.

“As long as you focus your attention and imagine communicating with the fish inside the eggshell, you can do it,” Ruan Yu’s eyes gleamed as he earnestly imparted the method of hatching to Gu Xiuhan. “Although ordinary humans can’t do it, you have a blood relationship with them, so you should be able to establish a mental connection. You should give it a try.”

“Mm.” Gu Xiuhan closed his eyes, concentrating.

At first, his mind was blank, and there was no feedback from the mermaid eggs. After a few minutes, Gu Xiuhan felt a faint sensation of the weak heartbeat and delicate blood vessels in his abdomen, bringing with it a faint, wonderful itchiness. Along with the rhythmic pulsations, the unseen spiritual bodies deep in Gu Xiuhan’s skull were gradually drawn by three strands of energy.

It was as if gently grabbing hold of a father’s large hand were three small, soft claws, as tender as warm water wrapped in plastic wrap. The little frys’ comfortable and serene feelings spread from the spiritual connection, forming a resonance with the two.

Mermaid parents could grasp the development and health status of the frys through this method. If the frys felt unhappy or uncomfortable, it must mean that something wasn’t being taken care of properly. The fine spiritual links were like branching streams, gradually connecting the five spiritual bodies together.

Just like different colors of paint merging in water, the five spiritual bodies also gradually blended and synchronized into the same color— a misty pink-purple with a hint of pale gold, symbolizing happiness and joy. The five spiritual bodies expanded and contracted with the frequency of their heartbeats or breaths.

This was the hatching of mermaid eggs.

From the birth of the eggs to the hatching of the frys, it would take a month. During this period, such focused incubation was indispensable, and like eating three meals a day, it was needed several times a day. As for the specific timing and frequency, Ruan Yu couldn’t say for sure; he just knew that he should be as diligent as possible, and when the incubation time was sufficient, the frys would react, and the spiritual link would transmit fluctuations like a baby burping after being full, full of milkiness and cuteness.

After a round of hatching, the hatcher who had unknowingly outputted a large amount of mental energy would feel a deep exhaustion welling up from the depths of their skull.

Although the process of Ruan Yu laying eggs was strangely easy, the burden on his body during the incubation period was still real. After his belly flattened back out, Ruan Yu immediately shrunk a size, and although he appeared to have gained weight, it was hard to tell where exactly. When he was nestled in Gu Xiuhan’s arms, he still looked slender and fragile.

In order to allow Ruan Yu to rest assured and avoid exhausting himself, Gu Xiuhan, under Ruan Yu’s guidance, took over most of the incubation work after practicing a few times. The customized incubation bag made by Shen Jingya allowed Gu Xiuhan to easily carry these mermaid eggs. Even when he went to the military to handle affairs or occasionally appeared in front of the media, he kept the mermaid eggs close to him, paying no attention to the curiosity and gossip that might arise from others in private.

The senior admiral, who had always been hailed by the media as “the protector of the people, the sword of the empire,” with his sharp, aggressive facial features, eyes like ice blades, could be seen everywhere carrying a sturdy shockproof incubation bag in his palm or under his arm. Sometimes, he would sit down with a serious expression, taking off his military uniform jacket or just unbuttoning two or three buttons, using his body heat to warm the little frys inside the bag. His formal shirt outlined the compact and full contours of his chest muscles, making the incubation bag look even smaller and more childish.

It was completely at odds with the image of “hatching fish eggs.”

However, after people’s initial surprise subsided, Gu Xiuhan’s reputation between the military and the people actually improved. The image of the empire’s protector was not diminished by this, but rather became more real and clear. After all, a father who would take care of his children meticulously was more worthy of the people’s trust than a cold war machine.

A month later, as the hatching process neared its end, the fish eggs began to change. The hard enamel shell became like dried wood, dry and brittle, gradually becoming transparent. When held up to the light, you could even see the vague silhouette of the young fish inside. With limbs as thin as matchsticks, fragile arms wrapped around their tails, they curled up into small fish balls inside the eggshell.

Weak they may be, but as long as there was no danger to their lives, mermaid parents generally wouldn’t intervene in the natural process of the young fish breaking out of the eggshell, as it wasn’t good for them to break free too quickly or too violently. It was best to let the young fish control the pace of this process themselves.

The first signs of hatching appeared in the largest egg.

The young fish inside this egg, whether in terms of size or spiritual presence, seemed to be a robust and aggressive little male fish. As the shell began to crack, his slender but powerful tail thrashed wildly in the eggshell, causing the egg to roll around on the soft cushion.

Before long, the little male fish instinctively realized that the force of his tail flapping wasn’t enough, so he immediately raised his little fist and pounded a few times, creating a nail-sized hole in the thin and fragile eggshell. Then, a small, finned hand, no bigger than a thumb, with a hint of childish fierceness, grabbed the edge of the eggshell, tried to pry it open a few times, and when this method proved effective, the little male fish continued to pry it open without saying a word, just like Gu Xiuhan— few words, but practical.

Ruan Yu resisted the urge to help and simply leaned over to watch his own fish babies.

The little male fish also tacitly stuck his small, round face out of the eggshell and looked around.

Unlike human babies, who are born wrinkled, the frys already looked quite cute. Their black hair inherited from Gu Xiuhan was soaked with the remaining egg fluid, making it damp and messy, sticking up like the feathers of a fledgling bird. His pupils were a pure deep black, with two short eyebrows twisted together, looking towards Ruan Yu.

“I’m daddy,” Ruan Yu’s eyes inexplicably filled with a sourness. He wiped his eyes with his hand and clumsily gestured to communicate with the fish baby, “Say daddy, dad—dy—”

Mermaids have much stronger language abilities than humans, and frys can already imitate some sounds as soon as they hatch. His request wasn’t difficult for the fish at all. But the little male fish stared at Ruan Yu for a moment, then, with a round face, absentmindedly blew a spit bubble, and continued to focus on breaking the eggshell.

Clearly, he’s just like you!!

“Mm.” Gu Xiuhan’s lips quirked up slightly. The spiritual development of the three fish babies was completely normal, and this little male fish seemed to have a naturally aggressive personality. If Gu Xiuhan didn’t have any spiritual defects, he probably would have had a similarly aloof personality.

Meanwhile, the smallest egg on the other side also started to stir. According to Ruan Yu’s speculation, this egg should contain a little female fish. As the daughter was about to hatch, Ruan Yu’s heart softened, and even his breathing became much gentler as he closely observed the progress of the hatching.

As expected, just as Ruan Yu leaned in to watch, he heard a few dull thuds from inside the egg. The force with which the little female fish pounded the egg with her fist was even more fierce than her brother’s, and in just a few strikes, she made a large hole in the shell. Then, a delicate little face emerged from the opening, unmistakably that of a beautiful little female fish.

“She… she’s amazing…” Ruan Yu was dumbfounded. The little female fish seemed to have inherited the strong and resilient personality of the Gu Family’s past two generations. Ruan Yu was overwhelmed with emotion and hurriedly reached out to receive the fish. The little female fish was slightly smaller than her brother but still had considerable strength. With her chubby tail twisting, she struggled to wriggle into Ruan Yu’s palm. Perhaps she was hungry, as she sniffed and sniffed around Ruan Yu’s fingers, then eagerly started searching for food.

“Oh my, is our little baby hungry?” Shen Jingya’s eyes were filled with affection. She waved to the side, and the nursing team, who had been trained in advance to care for the three little fish babies , immediately brought over custom-made bottles and milk.

The young fish babies were too small, and their facial muscles lacked strength, so mermaids fed their babies in a manner similar to marine mammals on ancient Earth. Mermaid milk had special ingredients, was slightly thicker than that of terrestrial animals, and didn’t diffuse easily in water. It could be released into the water for the young fish to feed on through physical squeezing. When on land, it could be fed to the young fish using other tools.

Even though Ruan Yu and the others were male mermaids, their abdomens remained flat as usual after giving birth, just that the touch of the thin layer of muscle was slightly softer than before. It wouldn’t be noticeable if you only looked with your eyes and didn’t touch.

But Gu Xiuhan noticed. His skin was more delicate than usual, and he couldn’t stand the friction of ordinary clothing. He had to wear materials that were extremely soft and smooth. Otherwise, his originally fair and smooth skin would become flushed and messy, and he would emit a special sweet fragrance. It smelled like candy.

During this time, Ruan Yu had been teased a lot because of this. From time to time, Gu Xiuhan would pick him up, have him sit sideways on his lap, and then wrap him in his arms with one arm. The sturdy alloy arm became an iron cage. As for Gu Xiuhan’s other hand…

“Gu Xiuhan, you…” Ruan Yu’s nose and the corners of his eyes were red, and he was sweating, clearly in a sorry state, yet he was still giving orders in a spoiled manner. “Go hatch the eggs quickly, don’t… don’t tease me anymore!” After a while, the facade of bravado was completely shattered, and Ruan Yu’s lips drooped downwards, embarrassed and on the verge of tears. “That’s for the little frys, you…”

He really is so perverse, don’t try to argue anymore! Ruan Yu found it really difficult to understand the perverse tastes of humans.

A pure black military uniform splattered with dirt emitted a sweet smell like candy.

…

The two fish babies that had already hatched were lying in a nest filled with soft padding, greedily drinking milk from small bottles, trying to drink as much as possible with their chubby tails bending upwards in effort.

By the time both bottles were empty and the two fish babies were lazily burping with their bellies full, the last egg finally showed some activity.

Ruan Yu thought that this fish baby would also inherit Gu Xiuhan’s strength and punch the eggshell open. However, after a few minutes, the egg only rocked weakly under the clumsy struggles of the little fish inside. They seemed unable to break free and could only pat the eggshell with their soft palm, lacking any real force.

“Huh?” Ruan Yu hesitated, unsure whether to stick to the principle of non-intervention. He tentatively tapped the eggshell with his knuckles.

The egg, which had been rocking slightly a moment ago, suddenly stopped moving. After a few seconds of silence, a faint, plaintive cry came from inside the egg, “Papa… papa…”

The cry was tender and pitiful, full of grievances. They probably just heard Ruan Yu teasing the other two little frys through the eggshell and learned to imitate the word “papa.” As a result, while the other two little frys looked on with confusion, only the last one to hatch learned to call out “papa” first.

Even through the eggshell, it was clear that this must be a silly little fish who was very sweet, loved to act cute, and cried easily.

Gu Xiuhan tilted his head.

Ruan Yu also turned his head, warily squinting his round eyes.

Gu Xiuhan slowly broke into a smile, “Just like you.”

 

 

 

 

 

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