Chapter 429 - 414: Just Say It’s Mixed Blood

The vegetable basin in Shen Yunlian’s hands CLANGED to the floor.

"This... Jiaojiao, what’s happened to you?!"

Yun Jiao said guiltily, "I just went into the sea, and... this happened."

"Hurry and get inside."

"Jiaojiao, tell me the truth. What exactly happened?"

Yun Jiao’s little shoulders slumped. "After I went in the sea... I thought the pearl looked really tasty, and then..."

Her voice trailed off, but everyone understood what she meant.

The girl had actually eaten the pearl.

"You... you’re always putting things in your mouth! You’ll eat anything!"

Shen Yunlian was at a loss for words. Ever since she was little, Yun Jiao had a habit of eating things she shouldn’t. Although she still ate a lot as she got older, she had stopped putting random things in her mouth over the past couple of years.

’I can’t believe it. One moment of carelessness and she swallowed a pearl!’

"What are we going to do now? How can you go out in public like this?"

"Besides this, did anything else change after you ate the pearl? Do you feel sick at all?"

"And you went into the sea? On a cold day like this, you just jumped right in."

Yun Jiao quickly shook her head. "I’m fine. Nothing feels wrong, it’s just my eyes and hair that changed."

"It’s just that I hadn’t been in the sea for a long time."

Yun Xiao Ba said, "Mom, what are you all worried about? Jiaojiao looks great like this."

"Her eyes and hair are so beautiful, they’re the color of the ocean. Jiaojiao belongs to the ocean; she came from the ocean. This color is perfect for her."

Yun Xiaowu and the other younger kids nodded. "Our sister looks so cool! I want to dye my hair different colors, too. All the colors of the rainbow! That would be so unique."

Yun Xiaowu got a smack as soon as he finished speaking.

"If you dare dye your hair some crazy color, you can stay out of this house."

Yun Xiaowu clutched his head, complaining in his heart but not daring to say it aloud.

Shen Yunlian fretted, "It looks pretty, sure, but how are we supposed to explain this?"

"What’s there to explain? Everyone knows how Jiaojiao came to us. Why don’t we just say Jiaojiao has some, uh, foreign blood?"

"But she didn’t look like this before. If she suddenly changes, is anyone going to believe that?"

"Who cares if they believe it or not? What can they do if they don’t? I’d like to see anyone dare to say anything."

Mr. Yun cut in. "You think our family can’t protect Jiaojiao?"

"Besides, our Jiaojiao holds a position with the military. The most they can do is gossip a little. As long as they don’t say it to our faces, who cares? And if we do overhear them, our whole family will go and set things right. I’d like to see who’d still dare to talk then."

Yun Xiaowu and the other kids chimed in, "Yeah! If anyone dares say anything bad about Jiaojiao, we’ll go beat them up!"

"Let’s not worry about what other people might say for now. The priority is to get Jiaojiao to a hospital. We need to see if that pearl can be removed."

Mr. Yun said, "No. We can’t tell anyone she changed because she swallowed a pearl. This is a secret no one can reveal."

"Then what do we do?"

"Will a doctor even be able to find anything? If you ask me, maybe we should find a spirit medium?"

"What spirit medium? There aren’t any good ones around here. We’d be better off asking Daoist Qingfeng. At least he’s a legitimate Daoist."

"Oh, right! Let’s go find Daoist Qingfeng!"

Yun Jiao listened as everyone worried about her health, each one trying hard to think of a solution. Even though her eye and hair color had changed, their concern for her hadn’t lessened at all.

A warm feeling spread through her heart.

’How could her family be so wonderful?’

In the end, Shen Yunlian had her put on a hooded, cotton-padded jacket to hide her hair, and they went up the mountain to find Daoist Qingfeng.

Yun Sui was sweeping the floor. When he saw Yun Jiao and the others arrive, he happily raised his arms and waved, a big, goofy grin on his face.

"Jiaojiao, Jiaojiao..."

Yun Jiao said, "Yun Sui."

Shen Yunlian nudged Yun Linhai beside her. "Listen to our daughter’s voice. Doesn’t it sound even prettier than before?"

Yun Linhai scratched his head. "I guess so?"

’But hasn’t Jiaojiao’s voice always been lovely?’

"Jiaojiao, your eyes."

Yun Sui had noticed the change in Yun Jiao’s eyes and was looking at her quizzically.

Yun Jiao asked, "Pretty, right?"

Yun Sui nodded emphatically. "Pretty!"

"Well now, what wind blew you all here?"

Daoist Qingfeng sauntered out, making a flippant remark before his eyes landed on Yun Jiao.

"Daoist Qingfeng, please, come take a look at our Jiaojiao. Is there something wrong with her?"

Qingfeng stroked his chin and tutted, which immediately made the entire Yun family tense up.

"She’s fine."

Yun Jiao rolled her eyes. ’Talk about a dramatic pause.’

"Heh heh. It’s a good thing, actually."

"Your Jiaojiao was never ordinary to begin with. Now that she’s acquired a treasure, she’ll thrive even more, like a fish in water."