“Of course.” There was no embarrassment in Zu An’s expression.
Shang Hongyu was speechless. She did her best to control her shoulders from shaking as she asked, “When did you wake up?”
“Just now, I woke up when you spoke.”
“Hah.”
“Uh, actually a bit before that.”
“Hah.”
“A bit before that.”
“How much longer before exactly?” Shang Hongyu felt as if she was about to go completely berserk.
“Uh... When you first started to move my hand.” Zu An’s voice grew softer, as if he even felt that he was in the wrong himself.
“You were awake from the very start?!” Shang Hongyu felt as if she was about to faint from anger. “Then why didn’t you say anything? Were you just watching me make a fool of myself?”
When she recalled how sneaky she'd been trying to be, she was so embarrassed her toes almost dug through the bottom of the bed.
Zu An chuckled in embarrassment and said, “I saw how careful you were being, so I was worried that you would be embarrassed if I said something. That was why I just continued to pretend to be asleep.”
“Then am I not supposed to feel embarrassed now?” Shang Hongyu was starting to go mad.
Zu An mumbled, “Actually, we wouldn’t need to be so awkward if you hadn’t said anything.”
Shang Hongyu laughed out of anger. “You kept prodding against me, and you’re telling me I should have pretended that I didn’t feel anything?”
Both of them were a bit embarrassed now.
Shang Hongyu suddenly thought of something. She looked at him dangerously, saying, “I was clearly about to succeed earlier, but you stretched and put your other hand... Was that on purpose?”
“That was just a coincidence.” Zu An’s expression stiffened.
“It really was a coincidence?” Shang Hongyu moved her head closer until their faces were almost touching.
“It really was a coincidence.” Zu An had to admit that she had a stunning face. He couldn't even see any pores or flaws from so close.
“Did it feel good?” Shang Hongyu quickly asked.
“It di...” Zu An reacted midway through his sentence and quickly said, “I just woke up and was a bit absentminded. I really didn’t notice any feeling.”
When she saw how he was acting, Shang Hongyu finally couldn't take it anymore and laughed. “Alright, alright, let’s forget about this matter. We’re now husband and wife anyway, so it’s hard to avoid hugging and touching.”
Zu An sighed in relief. He couldn't help but respect her open-mindedness.
“However...” As she changed the topic, Shang Hongyu had an ambiguous smile on her face, her eyes seemingly covered in a misty veil as she asked, “How long do you intend to keep prodding me?”
Zu An’s face was completely red. Now, he really was embarrassed. He quickly let her go and moved over to the wall, saying, “I was too nervous from your questioning, so I didn’t react yet. Please don’t blame me.”
Shang Hongyu harrumphed. “So even you know how to become nervous, huh? There are still things left in this world that can make you nervous?”
Zu An was speechless.
Fortunately, Shang Hongyu wasn’t truly upset. She got up and sorted out her clothes. She looked at the sea outside, and a longing expression appeared on her face. “My entire body feels all sticky and uncomfortable because of you. You have to compensate me.”
“How?” Zu An asked, stunned. He reflexively gave her stomach area a look.
“Keep me company in the sea below for a bath of course. Help me set up a barrier and block off my aura.” As soon as Shang Hongyu said that, she noticed the look in his eyes. After a moment of absentmindedness, she finally reacted. Her beautiful face turned entirely red. “It’s sweat! Moving those pig trotters of yours away exhausted a lot of energy! What are you thinking about?!”
“But I didn’t even say anything!” Zu An felt really wronged.
“The look in your eyes is indecent!”
“...”
In the end, Zu An agreed to keep her company in the sea, which finally quelled her anger.
The two of them secretly arrived at a corner of the deck where no one was watching. Zu An’s divine sense surrounded everything, and he was sure that no one was paying attention to the area they were in. Then, he took Shang Hongyu with him and jumped down. He had the Blue Mallard water-controlling ability, so they didn’t even make a sound or splash when they entered the water.
Shang Hongyu was a bit surprised. But when she thought about his cultivation, she felt that it made sense.
Soon after, Zu An put up a barrier around them in the ocean, saying, “Alright, you can play around however you want. I’ll bring you with me to catch up to that ship again later.”
“Who wants you to take me? We of the Mermaid race are famous swimmers. It won't even be hard to catch up to that ship,” Shang Hongyu said as her clothes withdrew and she turned into a beautiful red mermaid. Her soft waist gently moved, leaving behind rings of enchanting ripples in the water.
Shang Hongyu’s mood was clearly not bad. She swam around while humming along, and a lovely melody echoed through the waters from her throat.
Zu An couldn't help but ask, “I heard a legend about the sea, that when large ships passed through deep waters, there would sometimes be a beautiful song that drew them over. Then, the ships would be destroyed and the people would perish. Those legends aren't talking about you guys, are they?”
“Those are sirens!” Shang Hongyu came out from the water and stared at him impatiently before saying, “Of course, there are times when we mermaids sing on reefs, which might also draw over some ships and seamen, but we always jump into the sea as soon as we sense that. We wouldn’t actually meet those people face to face, let alone harm them.”
Zu An nodded and said, “No wonder.”
“Are you not coming down for a bath?” Shang Hongyu waved her hand toward him. Her beautiful, snow-white arm had water droplets hanging from it. In the sunlight’s radiance, rainbow brilliance emanated from the droplets, making her look as if she was in a dreamland.
Zu An refused with a smile, saying, “I won't, so please enjoy the swim.”
They had already been playing with fire in the morning. In the future, they still had to pay attention to the distance between them.
“Tsk, you haven’t bathed in so many days. What a dirty and stinky human,” Shang Hongyu said angrily.
Zu An chuckled and said, “Once you reach my cultivation rank, you’ll understand. Your entire body will be completely clean. Forget about a few days, it’s not a big deal even if you don’t bathe for a year or two.”
“If you really don’t bathe for a year or two, even if you’re completely clean, you can forget about touching me or sharing a bed with me.” Shang Hongyu had a disgusted expression. She jumped into the sea again.
Zu An was speechless.
This woman really just can’t go without teasing me.
...
Shang Hongyu swam in the ocean for a long time, and her mood improved a lot. She quickly moved what had happened this morning to the back of her mind and started to talk with Zu An about how they were going to deal with that fake Dragon King.
When he heard what she had to say, Zu An was a bit surprised, saying, “Your plan is quite ingenious.”
“But of course. I am a genuine talent and not just a big-breasted bimbo.” Shang Hongyu was quite proud of herself. She was the Ocean races's queen after all, so her knowledge and wits were both exceptional.
Zu An couldn't help but give her chest a look.
The feeling from this morning was indeed... big.
As if she noticed the look in his eyes, Shang Hongyu immersed herself under the water and stared at him with her large eyes.
Zu An chuckled and said, “Even so, if he brings other powerful cultivators with him, it might become tricky.”