President Yan! Male Sardines Can't Have Babies!

[IMPORTANT!! Read with caution. The ending is rushed, and the main text after Chapter 52 is in the author's notes, so things are a little messy. I might rewrite it someday. Please add my upcoming works on my profile to your reading list. There are all kinds of little animal spirits, and the flower story blurb is below~]

Blurb:

Jiang Song was a sardine, literally a sardine.

The sea had a rule: on every full moon, two big, beautiful fish had to be sacrificed in exchange for provisions to last most of the next half-month, courtesy of a mysterious power. As the most perfectly built member of his school, Jiang Song unfortunately became the ideal choice.

As they bound him hand and foot and sent him up to the hook, Jiang Song silently drew circles in his heart: Curse you, fishermen!

·

On his first deep-sea fishing trip, Yan Jingqian caught a shiny sardine. He planned to keep it for a few days, but who could have guessed that a half-merman would mysteriously appear in his bathtub that very night?

The merman lifted his pretty little face, silver-blue eyes full of wariness and hostility.

Then he gathered his strength... and blew a bubble?

After hearing Mr. Yan introduce himself, Jiang Song paused his splashing and asked with a hint of wonder, "A whale? You can't fool a fish like that. How could a whale look so much like a person?"

Yan Jingqian: "."

Pretty, sure, but not a single thought in his head.

Everyone said the eldest son of the Yan family was cold and aloof, with ruthless methods. Though the city of Fancheng was a glittering den of luxury, he never so much as touched a pretty face. Yet this untouchable man at the very top of the pyramid actually deigned to bend down in a crowded banquet hall and tie the shoelaces of the boy in his arms.

Guests: "?"

They must have gotten up too fast. They were seeing things.

Rumors spread through their circle. Some said the boy was a young master from a wealthy family who had been lost and found again. Others boldly declared that he was nothing more than a pet bird Mr. Yan was keeping on a whim.

In front of the villa's enormous second-floor windows, Yan Jingqian raised a glass of red wine and looked toward the nearby swimming pool, where the half-merman was splashing around with a plastic duck.

A young master? A caged bird? He'd clearly taken in a troublesome little seafood creature. Out of the water, he was not only delicate, but bad-tempered, too.

The people in the villa had gotten used to seeing Young Master Yan peel shrimp while he worked. The one he'd brought home had a poor memory and was quick to bristle. Whenever he got upset, he would hide in the bathroom and watch SpongeBob SquarePants all day, claiming it was a form of virtual homesickness.

One day, after Yan Jingqian had coaxed him for ages, the little fish finally muttered, "You stared at the arowana in the aquarium for so long today. Does that mean you think we're ugly and salty because we're sea fish?"

The man named in the accusation froze. Ignoring the little fish's struggles, he lifted him up, tail and all, and carefully laid him on the bed. Then, as reverently as if he were a treasure, he kissed him from his temples all the way down to his waist.

The curled fish tail stained the expensive crimson sheets with ink-dark marks. Yan Jingqian's eyes darkened, too.

"I was wondering what kind of little creature a sardine and I would have."

Jiang Song blushed and tried to argue. "Mr. Yan, get a grip. I'm a male sardine!"

Please add my upcoming works on your reading list~

(A wood sorrel who dreams of spreading pollen and raising the world's prettiest little red-flower babies, paired with a secretly flirtatious, sly old fox of a botany professor who coaxes and cajoles him, dreaming of pollinating the flower every day.)

Wood sorrel, wood sorrel, wood sorrel!

Cha Xiaohe was a wood sorrel. Just like his name suggested, he was a little plant, and one that could bloom, at that.

As an ambitious little plant, Cha Xiaohe's greatest wish was to grow the brightest red flower. But just after he'd managed to squeeze out four tiny leaves, some naughty kid ripped him out, roots and all.

Cha Xiaohe: "Damn."

The kid: "Uncle! I think this plant just swore at me!"

·

Professor He Xunli, the youngest botany professor at A University, was stern, serious, and always had a packed classroom.

The four-leaf clover his nephew gave him was casually left in the yard. A few days later, Professor He remembered to water it and moved the hardy little thing into a flowerpot.

When he came back from a business trip, the plant was gone, but there was a boy in his house.

The boy even had the very four-leaf clover that had vanished from its pot on his head.

Professor He asked in a stern voice who he was.

The boy blinked innocently, seeming to understand and yet not understand. "A plant."

Wood sorrel, wood sorrel, wood sorrel!

Cha Xiaohe discovered that life in Professor He's home was much more comfortable than life in the wild. There was food, drink, and someone to look after him, as well as a sunroom and a big yard where he could bask in the sun.

So the wild wood sorrel decided to become a potted houseplant. With professional guidance, blooming and bearing fruit would be just around the corner!

But Professor He was a little strange. He ignored all the precious flowers in the yard and stared at the most common wood sorrel of all every day.

He ate with him and held him while he slept, but refused to teach him pollination, and wouldn't let him crossbreed with other little red flowers, either.

The good-student plant couldn't hold back and raised his hand. "Teacher! Spring is here. Can I grow a little red flower of my own now?"

The only response was a kiss from Professor He, one with a hint of punishment.

The little wood sorrel shakily covered the flower on his head. "Wah, is this part of the lesson, too?"

[Sardine Can Eating Guide]:

Also known as: After Taking the Bait, This Fish Was Spoiled Rotten

70% of the novel is locked, with a 12-hour delay.

1. A non-typical silly beauty kept lover bottom x a non-typical aloof CEO top, with a touch of a nurturing relationship. Extremely sweet, be warned.

2. The bottom's true form is a sardine, and he can turn into a merman or a human whenever he likes. See the author's notes in Chapter 1 for original settings and content warnings! ovo+

3. 1v1, older top, both each other's first and only. True-love warriors never fall! The age difference is four years by human standards.

4. The idea of sacrificing fish in exchange for bait for fishermen comes from the internet.

If this sounds interesting, please add it to your reading list!!!! Thank you so much!!!

This blurb was written on 2023.8.18. Hope you enjoy the story.

Theme: Protect the ocean.