In the carriage bathed in the faint morning light, the girl’s clear pupils suddenly widened.
She froze for a few seconds, her eyes flickering with panic, yet her mind involuntarily flashed back to that chaotic night.
Her fair cheeks quickly flushed red, the blush spreading to her ears, her expression tinged with awkward discomfort.
“I…”
Jiang Youwan’s eyelashes fluttered rapidly several times, her gaze shifting away as if to escape.
Why was Huo Linyuan asking such a question?
Being questioned by her boyfriend’s elder about what exactly happened that night when she was drunk—what else could happen when two adults drank too much and slept in the same bed?
Uncle’s question was just too embarrassing…
Her slender, pale fingers twisted together. Jiang Youwan wasn’t good at lying, and even her voice began to waver.
“I drank too much that night, I don’t really remember, Uncle.”
She awkwardly lowered her eyes, her thick lashes casting large shadows beneath them, concealing her flustered and embarrassed expression.
But her lie didn’t fool him. The man’s voice, calm and unhurried, drifted through her loose strands of hair to her ear.
“Wanwan, actually, that night—”
“Uncle!”
The girl’s voice suddenly rang out, cutting him off.
“We’re at the hospital!”
The moment the car stopped, that small figure once again, just as before, grabbed her backpack and prepared to flee in panic.
As the car door opened, the damp scent after the rain washed over her. A black umbrella opened above her head, shielding her from the wind and rain.
With flushed cheeks, Jiang Youwan lifted her small face, meeting that handsome yet sharp countenance.
“Let’s go.”
The large black umbrella created a small, sheltered world, the rain curtain kept at bay outside. Strings of raindrops fell from the umbrella’s edge, rolling onto the ground.
The man’s suit jacket was draped over her shoulders, his deep voice softened, so close it almost felt like coaxing.
“I happen to need to go to the hospital too.”
Jiang Youwan already felt indebted to him, and now with Huo Linyuan speaking like this, she had no room to refuse.
Her backpack was taken by the man. Wearing Huo Linyuan’s suit, she was gently enveloped in the embrace of the man holding the umbrella with one hand as they walked down the long corridor.
The wind and rain were left behind.
Not a single drop touched her.
“Have you had sexual intercourse?”
The female doctor typed on her keyboard, the bold black characters on her name tag signifying her professionalism. She looked up from behind her glasses at the patient.
The girl in the light-colored knitwear was clearly taken aback by the question, instinctively repeating it.
“What did you say?”
“Your period is half a month late, and the symptoms you just described match early pregnancy. So, if you’ve had sexual intercourse, I recommend you get a blood test to check your HCG and progesterone levels…”
Half an hour later.
The assistant nearby had already retrieved the test results. Jiang Youwan held a cup of red date soy milk, her entire body tense with anxiety.
Even though the hospital was bustling with noise, she couldn’t help but hear her own pounding heartbeat.
Each beat grew more intense, almost threatening to leap out of her chest.
When the assistant approached them, she held two thin sheets of paper in her hand.
Jiang Youwan’s heart rose to her throat. Instinctively, she turned to look at Huo Linyuan, her voice trembling with tension.
“Uncle…”
The man’s large hand gently stroked her head, his palm brushing over her soft hair with a soothing touch.
“I’m here.”
“Don’t be afraid.”
“Mr. Huo, Miss Jiang, the report is out.”
Two sheets of paper traced white arcs through the air, their pages drooping slightly due to gravity. Jiang Youwan clearly saw her own name printed on them.
[Patient: Jiang Youwan. Age: 21.]
Her moist eyes widened into perfect circles, like a pitiful little kitten, eagerly awaiting the unknown result.
The man’s large hand took the papers, his narrow phoenix eyes scanning the values before finally pausing on the conclusion.
He tucked the two sheets away, his palm rubbing against the girl’s hair as he softly asked:
“Shall we go to the doctor to confirm the results, Wanwan?”
The man was politely seeking her opinion, yet his fingers gripping the test report couldn’t help but tighten.
But Jiang Youwan panicked. She lifted her pitifully pale little face, her beautiful eyes misty with tension, her lips growing increasingly red from being bitten.
“Uncle, is it true? Am I really pregnant?”
“It appears so.”
The man lowered his eyes to look at her, his dark pupils carrying a complexity and obscurity she couldn’t comprehend, as he gently asked:
“Shall we go ask the doctor, okay?”
The consultation room door opened.
Only this time, Jiang Youwan didn’t refuse Huo Linyuan’s company.
She was utterly flustered, desperately craving companionship, longing for anyone to be by her side.
The doctor took the test report, scanning it through his glasses.
“Early pregnancy, just one month along.”
His calm voice echoed in the room. The doctor soon looked up at the two people before him.
“Will you be keeping the baby?”
“Yes.”
The man’s deep voice sounded, exceptionally resolute.
The girl sitting on the stool trembled her eyelashes repeatedly. The next moment, her fingers were grasped, enveloped in intense warmth. Jiang Youwan lifted her round, curved eyes, meeting Huo Linyuan’s gaze head-on.
Those unfathomably deep eyes were extraordinarily serious, as if fearing she might impulsively decide to abort the child.
Jiang Youwan pursed her lips, somewhat inappropriately thinking:
Do the Huo family value offspring so highly?
Even an uncle would care this much about his nephew’s child?
She fluttered her long eyelashes without speaking, but visibly, Huo Linyuan’s grip on her fingers tightened even more.
Jiang Youwan slowly withdrew her hand. Huo Linyuan’s Adam’s apple lowered, his deep black eyes fixed intently on her mouth.
The doctor remained silent too, speculating about their relationship while enjoying the drama—
A 21-year-old child who hasn’t even graduated from university yet, with a boyfriend who’s tall and handsome, dressed in obviously wealthy attire. Logically, a wealthy, experienced man seducing a young girl should hold the dominant position.
How did it seem reversed in their case?
The young girl appeared delicate and fragile, hadn’t spoken a word since entering, yet had the baby’s father completely wrapped around her finger.
His eyes were fixed unwaveringly on her.
As if if the baby were gone, he’d be dumped too.
The serious-minded doctor’s thoughts ran wild. Before he could finish processing the drama, he saw the young girl slowly open her mouth.
“I want to keep it too.”
The doctor acknowledged with a hum, her fingers tapping on the keyboard, producing a rapid clattering sound.
She carefully explained the precautions for the early stages of pregnancy, from the folic acid to take to the morning sickness symptoms. When she looked up, she saw that the father-to-be was listening more attentively than the young woman.
The doctor smiled and added, “The first three months are unstable for the fetus, so intercourse should be avoided. The two of you should exercise restraint in your marital life.”
Jiang Youwan, who had been feeling lost, blushed instantly.
In contrast, Huo Linyuan, standing beside her, remained exceptionally composed. He thanked the doctor generously and guided Youwan out by her shoulder.
The rain outside had lightened.
Jiang Youwan held the test results and secretly touched her abdomen.
She was going to have a baby.
A person connected to her by blood, the closest relationship she could have, a baby that would be entirely her own.
It was a strange feeling.
Just moments ago, she had been anxious and afraid. But now that everything was settled, the small cloud of gloom in her heart blossomed into something soft and gentle.
She had no mother, but she was going to become a mother.
It didn’t matter if she wasn’t liked, or if she was overlooked.
From now on, she wouldn’t be alone anymore.
She would have someone to lean on during New Year’s Eve. She wouldn’t have to envy her half-brother rushing into his stepmother’s arms. There would be someone with tiny arms to hold her, to like her, to depend on her, to need her.
She would learn to be a good mother.
The assistant brought back the medicine prescribed by the doctor, and Huo Linyuan took her out for a meal.
Jiang Youwan didn’t have much of an appetite, but perhaps because Huo Linyuan had made arrangements in advance, the food served was light and accompanied by lime-flavored soda, which wouldn’t trigger nausea.
Her slender fingers held the chopsticks as she took small, delicate bites.
The handsome, aloof man sat across from her, occasionally using serving chopsticks to add food to her plate.
Jiang Youwan chewed slowly and cautiously asked as she set down her chopsticks, “Uncle, does this baby belong to me?”
In the entire city of S, the Huo family held immense power, and no one could rival them, let alone someone as ordinary as her.
But she carried the Huo family’s blood in her womb. She and Huo Jinchen had only been in a relationship for less than two months, and even if they continued dating, marriage was far from certain.
Would the Huo family forcefully take the baby away after it was born? Would they let her keep the child?
Her face was tense with caution, her beautiful features tinged with worry.
The man sitting across from her lifted his eyelids at her words. The pale yellow fluorescent light fell on the side of his face, casting a sharp contrast between light and shadow, accentuating his striking and sharp features.
But his narrow eyes were too dark, and his crimson lips were too thin.
Combined with the rumors and impressions from the past, the way he looked at her now felt overwhelmingly aggressive. For a moment, Jiang Youwan felt as though she and Huo Linyuan had switched roles.
She feared that after the baby was born, he would be dressed in a perfectly tailored suit, push a bank card toward her with a cold expression, and tell her to take the money and leave.
Jiang Youwan held her breath as she watched Huo Linyuan set down the serving chopsticks.
The watch on his wrist reflected the light, its presence as strong as its owner’s aura.
Jiang Youwan felt like a prisoner awaiting execution, bracing for the moment the blade would fall.
“It’s yours.”
The other seemed to curve the corners of their lips, a faint, almost imperceptible smile lingering there. A low, pleasant voice drifted over with the music, carrying a bewitching undertone,
“As long as you’re willing, even I could be yours.”