Chapter 43: Hearing the Voice of the Heart

The journey was unsteady, and Qin Dezheng, susceptible to seasickness, took some medicine and soon fell asleep. Even Sun Yangzhong felt a touch of drowsiness and dozed off for a while. Yet Zhong Xiao kept her eyes wide open, gazing out at the endless sea, her expression calm and unreadable; no one could guess what she was thinking.

At last, just before dawn broke the next day, Zhong Xiao managed a short nap, but was soon awakened by a commotion and the long, echoing blast of the ship’s whistle.

The steamer had docked.

Zhong Xiao rubbed her eyes and stood up. The faint outline of Taizhou Island’s coastline was visible now, and the shore was crowded with people—some there to welcome arrivals, others waiting to board and leave the island. From afar, Taizhou Island looked far livelier than Zhong Xiao had imagined. She had thought it would be a deserted little isle, but clearly, it was bustling with life.

She disembarked with the crowd. Sun Yangzhong said, “Mr. Qin, Miss Zhong, after so many days of traveling, you must be exhausted. Let’s get something to eat first. I know a guesthouse run by a local fisherman—the fish there is caught fresh daily, truly delicious.”

Qin Dezheng nodded. “That sounds good. I just wonder if Xiaoxiao will find the food to her liking?”

Zhong Xiao smiled. “I’m not picky at all. Fresh sea fish sounds wonderful.”

After ten years of hunger in the countryside, Zhong Xiao’s greatest virtue was that she never fussed over food. Anything edible would do; fill the belly first, ask questions later.

Sun Yangzhong led them to a modest house on the coast, which, though called a guesthouse, was really just a small two-story earthen building. The first floor served as a dining area, while the second was for resting and sleeping. The elderly couple who owned the place lived upstairs, and had set aside two rooms for guests, occasionally hosting those in need of lodging.

The old couple grew visibly excited upon seeing Sun Yangzhong. “We heard fighting broke out again on the West Sea. The old man was just talking about you yesterday—have you all come back? Did you win?”

Sun Yangzhong smiled bashfully. “I wasn’t on that mission—I had another assignment. Auntie, do you have any fresh fish today? Could we have two?”

The old man responded immediately, “You’re in luck, lad! Just caught some fine sea fish this morning from the West Sea—big and meaty!”

“One of them is even a mother fish, full of roe. I could tell just by touch.”

He then brought out the fish to show them.

Zhong Xiao turned to look—the fish were indeed large and plump, their eyes bright and lively, quite unlike any fish she had seen before.

The old man noticed Zhong Xiao staring, unblinking, at the fish and said, laughing, “Miss, give it a feel. It’s smooth as anything.”

Zhong Xiao made no objections and reached out to touch it. Unexpectedly, the fish suddenly began to thrash wildly, its huge tail lashing back and forth. Caught off guard, Zhong Xiao’s hand was sliced by the sharp tail. Blood immediately welled up and dripped onto the fish’s back.

“Oh!” Zhong Xiao gasped softly, staring at the wound before quickly pressing her finger to her lips.

Qin Dezheng rose. “Let me see—does it hurt? Is it deep?”

Sun Yangzhong hurried to find some tissue.

Zhong Xiao sucked on her finger for a moment, then withdrew it and smiled at Qin Dezheng. “It’s nothing, just a scratch. The fish is certainly lively.”

No sooner had she spoken than a strange, high-pitched voice sounded out, “Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear, am I going to die here after escaping death in the West Sea? I should have let those wounded soldiers on Yuehu Island eat me after all. They were hurt themselves but still good-hearted enough to let me go. Yet it seems my fate is to be eaten no matter what!”

“Ah, poor me, such a miserable fish life.”

Zhong Xiao froze.

She glanced around. No one had spoken. She was also the only woman present; none of the men could have made such a sound.

As she looked around for a child, the voice came again, “If I’d known, I would have let those injured soldiers on Yuehu Island have me. Even though they were hurt, they spared me. But I can’t escape my fate—here I am, about to be eaten anyway.”

“Oh, my unlucky fish life.”

Zhong Xiao’s eyes widened in disbelief, staring at the fish held down by the old man. Its smooth, gleaming scales shimmered in the sunlight, with a bright drop of fresh blood—her blood—upon them.

So the voice was coming from the fish?

The fish could talk?

No, the others seemed entirely unaware, as if only she could hear it…

She could hear the fish’s thoughts?

Wait.

Zhong Xiao seized on the crucial detail: the wounded soldiers on Yuehu Island.

With some uncertainty, Zhong Xiao turned to Sun Yangzhong and asked tentatively, “Is there a place near Taizhou Island called… Yuehu Island?”

Sun Yangzhong nodded. “Yes, it’s off in the West Sea archipelago, pretty far in. The area is on a seismic belt, with a small active volcano, very unstable geology, and frequent disasters—so no one’s ever developed it.”

“The terrain is rugged, full of wild rocks and bottomless pits. It would take a fortune in explosives to develop it. We went there once during training, and never after.”

“Miss Zhong, how did you know about that place? Even most locals on Taizhou Island have never heard of it.”

Zhong Xiao’s heart skipped a beat.

So the place really existed!

Could it be that the soldiers the fish mentioned on Yuehu Island were…?

Her expression changed subtly. Before anyone could react, she snatched the fish from the old man and hurried into the kitchen.

Only when she was out of earshot did she lean close to the fish and whisper, “The wounded soldiers you mentioned—are they ours? Are they from Taizhou Island?”

She didn’t know how else to put it. She had never fought in a war and couldn’t be sure whether the fish meant friend or foe.

The fish seemed startled by Zhong Xiao’s question. “Heavens, this human can hear me?”

“Well, those soldiers were definitely locals. I understood what they said. If they were foreigners, I wouldn’t have understood a word.”

Zhong Xiao’s eyes lit up!

Could it really be Song Tingshen and the others?

By this time, Qin Dezheng and Sun Yangzhong had caught up, both bewildered as to why Zhong Xiao had suddenly grabbed the fish.

The old man followed, protesting, “Miss, calm down. The fish hurt you—I’ll kill it for you in a moment.”

But Zhong Xiao replied, “Grandpa, I’ll buy this fish from you. Name your price, and could you give me a bag with some seawater? I’ll take it with me.”

Then she turned to Sun Yangzhong, “Lieutenant Sun, we need to leave for the military district at once. I know where Song Tingshen and the others are—they’re on Yuehu Island, badly wounded and in urgent need of rescue!”