"Mother, this is so delicious! I want more, do you have any more?" Bei, unable to find any, simply pouted.
Ming Yue chuckled, patting Bei's head, and said gently, "No more! But your mother went to buy some, and you can have candy again when she returns."
"Oh." Bei was a little disappointed but began to look forward to her mother's early return, even though she knew the first thing her mother would do upon returning was to fight with her for their mother.
Xing Yuan rushed back after nightfall, thanks to her increased strength and her eagerness.
"Asleep?" Xing Yuan leaned against the cave entrance, looking at Bei sleeping soundly, and asked softly.
"Mhm." Ming Yue nodded and beckoned Xing Yuan over.
Ming Yue took Xing Yuan's hand and sat beside the bed, saying gently, "She really wanted to wait for you to come back, but she couldn't stay awake."
Xing Yuan's previously stern face softened. She gently brushed a few stray hairs from Bei's forehead and said softly, "I know."
"Lately, you seem to be intentionally avoiding her. Why?"
"You noticed!" Xing Yuan gave a light laugh, her eyes dimming slightly. "Sister, it's strange. When I face her, my heart becomes incredibly soft, and I feel utterly powerless."
"I've never felt this way, not even when facing you, sister. Although I might soften sometimes, it's usually followed by a competitive spirit, let alone feeling powerless."
"Sister, tell me, am I sick, or do I not like her? Why do I have this strange feeling?"
"Is that so!" Ming Yue nodded, her eyes full of amusement. "This isn't sickness, nor is it dislike. It's because you like her too much, which is why you feel this sense of anxiety."
"But I don't feel this way about you, sister!" Xing Yuan doubted, wondering if she didn't like her sister enough. How could that be possible?
Ming Yue patiently explained, "It's different. Because Bei is a fragile youngling, Yuan always worries about accidentally hurting her, which is why her heart softens. Besides, Bei is very well-behaved. But even if she wasn't a good child, Yuan would still love her."
"Why? Is it because she's our child, yours and mine?" Xing Yuan was still a bit confused. Her perception of emotions could even be described as slow.
But when she truly believed she was starting to love someone, she would love them wholeheartedly and do everything she thought would earn that love. As for anything else, no matter what difficulties she encountered in her pursuit of love, she would only overcome them. This was her understanding of love.
No one had ever truly taught her how to love someone.
Ming Yue understood something from Xing Yuan's words. Though she was already dead, her heart felt a momentary suffocation.
Soon, she returned to normal, pulling Xing Yuan's hand and placing it on her chest.
"Do you hear that? That's the sound of a heartbeat. I don't know how to explain it to you, but a person's eyes, words, and appearance can all deceive, but the heart cannot.
When your heart beats, it will tell you what to do. As long as you believe it's the right thing to do, you can do it. Even if others think it's wrong, as long as you feel it's right, you can act according to your own thoughts."
Although Ming Yue herself didn't fully understand, she spoke with such conviction that she successfully made Xing Yuan believe. Xing Yuan thought hazily that her current actions were indeed right, after all, she was truly and passionately fond of someone.
Xing Yuan gently poked Bei's plump cheek, a sense of contentment suddenly surging within her.
Her current life was already very good. She wondered how many people would envy her. Why should she add to her own sadness?
After a moment of silence, Ming Yue said gently, "Rest here tonight!"
"Okay!" Xing Yuan smiled, revealing her pearly white teeth.
The two spent a warm and happy time in the deep sea, a family of three, like any ordinary family.
Ming Yue would occasionally go ashore to handle some matters; the rest of the time, she stayed in the sea.
She also took the opportunity to renovate their love nest, moving some things from the outside into it.
Some of the fish sisters who had previously gone ashore decided to settle by the coast, while others returned to the deep sea with their partners.
Human physiques had now become incredibly strong under the surge of spiritual energy, with some even capable of withstanding the high pressure of the merfolk's habitat. Everything was progressing in a beautiful direction.
The process of the world's advancement was long, sometimes taking thousands, tens of thousands, or even hundreds of millions of years.
The order they established would be integrated into the bloodline of those who set it, and their descendants would also be bound by this order. Therefore, although there were occasional frictions on the continent, they could not stir up any major storms.
Although Xing Yuan loved her current life, she still remembered why she had come to this world. Her goal from the very beginning had been singular: to bring her sister home!
So, when a hundred years later, Bei had come of age and had also brought back her own partner from ashore, Xing Yuan decided to leave.
Before leaving, she gave Bei a long-overdue hug.
She could not hide her feelings, for she truly loved Bei as a child. Both the instinctive maternal love of this body and her own heart told her that she cared for a child with whom she shared a blood connection.
Bei seemed to sense Xing Yuan's reluctance. She smiled and blinked innocently, "Okay! I know Mother doesn't want to leave me. But it's getting late. If you want to go out and play with Mother, you should leave soon!"
"Mhm! Take care of yourself." Xing Yuan bid a solemn farewell.
"I will." Bei blinked, hiding a hint of tears in her eyes.
But shortly after they left, Bei sadly threw herself into her partner's arms, sobbing, "They're gone!"
"It's okay, they're just going on a trip, they'll be back. Besides, I'm here with you. I won't leave." Her partner gently patted her shoulder, comforting her.
"Yes, I still have you." Bei gently kissed her partner, then put away her fragile emotions, reverting to her demeanor as the mermaid queen.
Bei realized with absolute clarity that her two mothers would not be returning.
"Don't you want to ask me why?" Xing Yuan looked at Ming Yue, who had been silent since a moment ago, and couldn't help but ask.
"There's no need to ask. Because I know you will tell me." Ming Yue trusted Xing Yuan as always.