Pei Li carried an oil lamp and bravely walked from the front to the back of the beach.
There, he saw a whale about eight or nine meters long lying across the sand, emitting a deep groan.
For some reason, Qi Jiao could sense the whale's sorrow and hopelessness.
She exchanged a look with Pei Xia and took a few steps forward. Strangely enough, a gentle yet weak female voice echoed in her mind, "Save me."
Qi Jiao's hair stood on end, and sweat oozed from her palms.
Apart from her, Pei Xia, and Pei Li, there was no one else around.
Qi Jiao looked at the huge creature in front of her and felt a sense of unreality.
This was like something out of a magic - realism story!
Suddenly, she heard the surging waves on the sea, thundering and spraying like rain.
The childish voice rang out in Qi Jiao's mind again, "Sister, please save my mother quickly."
Pei Xia stared out at the dark - blue sea. After a moment of daze, he said with certainty, "The big fish is coming! It should be the companion of the one on the shore."
Qi Jiao thought to herself, it's not just a companion; they're mother and daughter.
Whale strandings were not uncommon along the coast. Pei Xia had witnessed two or three such cases since he was a child. So, although he was surprised, he quickly accepted the situation.
Pei Xia calmly assigned tasks, "A Li, go door - to - door and call as many people as you can."
"I'll go to the dock and start the boat now."
"Jiao Niang, go to the duck farm and ask Uncle Ye to come and help. Then pour seawater on the big fish."
Qi Jiao agreed, and the three of them went their separate ways.
After they left, Qi Jiao tried to talk to the big whale beside her, "Hold on a little longer. We'll send you back to the sea soon."
Le Bao was overjoyed and cried, "Thank you. My name is Le Bao, and Little Pearl is my child. She sent you the signal, right?"
Qi Jiao said yes and gently stroked Le Bao, "Why did Little Pearl find me? I'm human. How can I understand your language?"
Le Bao was also very confused and said she didn't know.
Although Qi Jiao had a thousand questions, this was not the time to ask.
Qi Jiao turned around and ran to the duck farm. She knocked on the door vigorously and managed to wake Uncle Ye from his dream.
Uncle Ye came out wrapped in his clothes. He was startled when he saw Qi Jiao, "Why are you out so late at night?"
Qi Jiao was extremely anxious. She briefly explained the situation, and then the father - daughter duo quickly fetched buckets of seawater and poured them all over Le Bao to buy her some time.
In the distance, lights were approaching on the sea. Pei Xia was driving the boat over.
Pei Li also led a dozen or so men running over.
Since Pei Li had explained the situation in advance, and all of them had lived by the sea for generations, even if they had never rescued a stranded whale, they had heard about it from their elders.
For a moment, they were busy tying ropes and setting up stakes, working together in preparation.
Uncle Ye clicked his tongue in wonder. While fetching water for Le Bao, he said, "You're really lucky to be alive. If Jiao Niang and the others hadn't found you, everyone would be sleeping at this late hour. Who could send a big thing like you back to the sea?"
Le Bao: "..."
Qi Jiao couldn't help asking Le Bao, "How did you get stranded?"
Le Bao replied, "I swam into the shallow water to bask in the sun. It was so comfortable that I fell asleep. When I woke up, the tide had receded. Without water, I couldn't send out a signal, and my clansmen couldn't come ashore to save me. Fortunately, Little Pearl had gone hunting in the deep sea and wasn't with me. Otherwise, both my daughter and I would have died here."
Little Pearl came back looking for her mother after she was full. When she found she couldn't contact her mother, she sent out a wide - range signal as a last resort.
Unexpectedly, Qi Jiao heard her distress signal.
Le Bao was an orca.
Although orcas had the word "whale" in their name, they actually belonged to the dolphin family and were the largest mammals in the dolphin family.
Orcas were highly social animals. Some family groups formed by them were the most stable in the animal kingdom.
Some of their complex social behaviors, hunting techniques, and vocal communications were considered evidence that orcas had their own culture.
They were carnivores with a fierce temperament and were good at attacking prey. They were the natural enemies of animals such as penguins, dolphins, and seals. Sometimes they even attacked other whales and even great white sharks. They could be called the overlords of the sea.
Qi Jiao recalled what she knew about orcas and looked at the somewhat cute - looking Le Bao in front of her. She was deeply skeptical.
Le Bao had given birth to an orca baby earlier, but unfortunately, it died unexpectedly.
Little Pearl was Le Bao's beloved daughter later, and the mother - daughter relationship was very good.
Seeing everyone making great efforts to save her, Le Bao felt like crying for a moment. She was ashamed of her own stupidity.
Qi Jiao naturally sensed Le Bao's emotions. She comforted Le Bao, "It's okay. You just overslept. Just be more careful next time."
Le Bao sniffed, "Thank you for the comfort. Jiao Niang, you're really our good sister."
Qi Jiao began to doubt herself again, "Could I be a whale too? That can't be right. I'm a landlubber and can't even swim."
Le Bao burst out laughing. The sound came from her abdomen, attracting everyone's attention.
Le Bao managed to hold back her laughter and explained to Qi Jiao, "Maybe one or several generations of your maternal ancestors were mermaids. Their power was passed down to you across generations, so you can communicate with us normally."
Qi Jiao was still confused, "I still can't accept it."
Le Bao asked, "Do you have any special features different from ordinary people?"
Qi Jiao nodded, "Yes. Every time I go out to sea with A Xia, I attract a lot of sea creatures. It's not a coincidence."
Le Bao said, "That's it. Your power comes from the sea."
Qi Jiao fell silent. If so, would Qi Fu also have the same power?
Soon, Pei Xia's boat had docked.
Le Bao seemed to be a gossipy orca.
Torches were lit all around, illuminating the beach brightly. When she saw Pei Xia walking over, she couldn't help exclaiming, "He's a real catch! Jiao Niang, you have good taste."
Qi Jiao: "Do you orcas like humans too?"
Le Bao said, "Rather than saying we like humans, it's more accurate to say that we like the best individuals in every ethnic group, regardless of gender."
Qi Jiao asked, "Do you like me?"
Le Bao had drunk a lot of seawater and regained some energy. She laughed and said, "Of course! You're our good sister. You've got a great figure. Your man is really lucky! Hahaha."
Qi Jiao didn't expect Le Bao to evaluate her so simply, directly, and cutely.
Fortunately, she didn't have any tea in her mouth, or she would have spat it all over Le Bao.
Enough of the small talk. Le Bao was severely dehydrated and needed to return to the sea as soon as possible.
The men were ready. They tied one end of the rope to the boat and the other end to Le Bao. Like trackers, they shouted in unison, "One, two, three!" and pulled Le Bao towards the sea with all their might.
With a dozen men and a boat working back and forth, Le Bao finally reached the sea level.
Seawater was her life.
After the ropes were untied, Le Bao swam into the sea. Instantly, she regained her vitality. She nuzzled Little Pearl, sank into the seabed, and then leaped out of the water again, emitting a long cry and spraying a spectacular water column to thank the humans who had saved her.
Before leaving Baiyun Village, Le Bao and Little Pearl looked back at Qi Jiao.
One childish voice and one mezzo - soprano voice sounded.
"Jiao Niang, we'll come back to see you."
Qi Jiao waved her hand and said goodbye to them with a smile, "See you later."