Acting Spoiled

This egg was no bigger than a palm.

The first time it rolled into Si Jinyan's palm, it swayed slightly, its wet, silvery-white shell brushing against Si Jinyan's fingertips—this was the first greeting it gave Si Jinyan face-to-face.

Si Jinyan could feel its heartbeat, even its faint breathing.

A tiny sound came from inside the shell and reached Si Jinyan's ears. It was probably calling him "Father."

At the time, Eggy was resting on the soft padding inside an incubator in the laboratory.

As if confirming something, Si Jinyan lowered his eyes and held his breath again, listening to its heartbeat. In that gentle yet steady rhythm, Si Jinyan's breathing gradually calmed as well.

Lu Jiu replenished the incubator with Si Jinyan's pheromones and said, "It might be even better if Chi Li could provide some pheromones too."

There was very little existing information on Mermaid hatchlings, and even less on Mermaid eggs. They could only rely on general knowledge to provide Eggy with better conditions.

Si Jinyan fell silent, then nodded after a moment. "All right. I'll think of something."

Lu Jiu knew that getting Chi Li to voluntarily provide pheromones might be difficult.

"It moved!" Lu Jiu saw the egg before him sway slightly and suddenly came back to his senses, exclaiming in a lowered voice.

Si Jinyan stared intently at Eggy and naturally noticed the subtle movement as well.

After hearing several indistinct syllables, Si Jinyan said, "Open the incubator and take a look."

Lu Jiu had just opened the incubator, and Si Jinyan's hand had only just reached its edge when Eggy suddenly rolled toward him with a series of little tumbles.

Both men's expressions changed.

Si Jinyan hurriedly caught the wildly rolling Eggy with both hands. His brows knit together, his reproach tinged with indulgence.