With Si Ruohan gone, Pei Xi felt a void in her heart. That night, as she turned to sleep, she instinctively reached out to hug him, but her hand fell on empty air. She realized he wasn’t there!
It seemed that after spending so much time together, Pei Xi had unknowingly grown accustomed to Si Ruohan’s presence.
Sigh! Another day of missing him.
Since Si Ruohan went on his business trip, Pei Xi had been counting down the days, waiting for his return.
Si Ruohan, on the other hand, remembered to call Pei Xi every day. It wasn’t just Pei Xi who missed him; he missed her too!
If Pei Xi weren’t pregnant, Si Ruohan would have taken her on the business trip with him.
Now, he could only ease his longing by calling her every day. He wanted to know if she was doing well at home, if she was eating on time without him by her side, and if she was sleeping in late because no one was waking her up.
Hearing his question, Pei Xi replied sweetly,
“Yes, of course I’ve been eating well. Aunt Liu cooks delicious meals for me every day. What about you? Have you been eating on time? You need to eat on time too, don’t forget to eat when you’re busy, it’s bad for your health. People say nine out of ten domineering CEOs have stomach problems, I’m warning you! You can’t get sick! Otherwise, I won’t talk to you anymore.”
This was the first time Si Ruohan had encountered such fierce concern.
“Okay, I know, I will definitely eat on time and I will never let myself get sick. The weather is getting cooler recently, remember to wear clothes when you go out for a walk, don’t catch a cold.”
Pei Xi curled her long hair.
“I know, I will take good care of myself. How long until you come back? I miss you.”
Hearing the woman opposite him say that she missed him, Si Ruohan felt warm inside.
“If all goes well, I can go back next week and bring you a gift.”
Pei Xi: “No need for a gift, I don’t need anything now, I just need you to come back.”
Si Ruohan couldn’t make it to Pei Xi’s prenatal checkup. As the child’s grandmother, Mrs. Si was very excited. When she saw the little figure on the computer screen, she was so excited that she spun around.
Luckily, she was wearing a mask, so no one recognized her; otherwise, her aloof persona would have been ruined.
As soon as Mrs. Si left the hospital, she took a picture of the ultrasound report and posted it in the group chat so everyone could see how big her grandson or granddaughter had grown.
“Xi Xi! Come on, let’s go shopping. The baby is three months old now, and as the grandmother, I need to prepare some things for the child.”
Hearing Mrs. Si’s words, Pei Xi realized that she and Si Ruohan had forgotten to prepare anything for the baby!
Clothes, a stroller, formula, and so on—they really needed to get those ready!
Seeing Pei Xi’s blank expression, Si’s mother couldn’t help but ask,
“What’s wrong? Haven’t you prepared anything for the baby?”
Pei Xi shook her head:
“No! The baby is still so small. Even if we prepare now, we won’t need it immediately. So, Ahan and I plan to prepare when the baby is a little older.”
Si’s mother disagreed:
“How can that be! Prepare early now, and if anything is missing, you can just make up for it. Not only do you need to prepare things for the baby, but you also need to prepare your hospital bag.”
Pei Xi exclaimed, “I need to prepare that too?”
Pei Xi really didn’t know.
“What do I need to prepare? What is a hospital bag?”
Although she had read some books, Pei Xi had long forgotten about it.
Si’s mother knew that Pei Xi had no family and no one to teach her, so she volunteered to explain.
“It’s alright, Mom’s here! With me here, you don’t need to worry about anything. I’ll definitely prepare everything perfectly for you. Just focus on your pregnancy, and leave the rest to me.”
Although the staff could prepare these things for her, Mrs. Si wasn’t comfortable with that. Luckily, there was experienced Aunt Liu around, so she decided to just go and buy them herself.
Mrs. Si took Pei Xi to a baby store. As soon as they entered, Pei Xi’s heart melted at the sight of all the adorable little items.
Soft lighting illuminated rows of neatly hung baby clothes. Pink onesies were embroidered with bunny and bear patterns, tiny socks resembled budding flowers, and mini coats were fluffy and soft to the touch, making one imagine how cute a baby would look wearing them.
On the shelves next to them were strollers of various colors, some lightweight and compact, others spacious and comfortable, with cute cartoon stickers on the wheels.
Formula and diapers were neatly stacked in the corner, a dazzling array. The air was filled with a faint scent of milk and laundry detergent, creating a warm and comforting atmosphere.
Pei Xi thought all the little clothes looked good, no matter the color. Her indecisiveness kicked in again, and she asked her mother,
“Well, you pick one out, which color should we choose? We don’t even know the baby’s gender yet, so we don’t know what to buy.”
Her mother waved her hand dismissively:
“What’s so hard about choosing? We’ll buy both boys and girls. Your father and I don’t mean to favor boys over girls. We love both boys and girls, so you don’t need to feel pressured. Since we don’t know the gender, let’s just pick one set for a boy and one set for a girl.”
What color clothes a child wears? It’s the adults who decide!
Pei Xi was still somewhat restrained, but her mother was anything but soft when it came to shopping!
This color looks nice, get a set; that pattern looks nice, get a set; if Pei Xi hadn’t been urging her, her mother would have even bought clothes for her three- or four-year-old child.
Pei Xi had to coax her mother to stop, saying,
“Mom, there’s no need to buy so many. We can buy clothes for the baby after it’s born and we know whether it’s a boy or a girl. Buying too many now will just be a waste, as the baby won’t be able to wear them all.”
Mrs. Si agreed, thinking it would be fine to buy the necessary items once they knew the baby’s gender.
After looking at clothes, Mrs. Si looked at strollers. After buying the stroller, it was time to prepare Pei Xi’s maternity bag.
There were so many things a pregnant woman needed after childbirth, and she was worried about forgetting anything, hence the maternity bag. The
large bag contained sanitary napkins, nursing pads, disposable nursing pads, a baby blanket, maternity pajamas, underwear, a breast pump, and so on.
Pei Xi looked at it with surprise:
“Mom, do we need all of these?”
Mrs. Si was busy taking things out.
“It’s okay if we don’t use them, as long as nothing is forgotten. We can have extra, but we can’t have less.” She knew
she’d use a lot of sanitary napkins during her postpartum period, so she needed to prepare plenty.
Mrs. Liu also knew this and had already selected and put them in her shopping basket.
Mrs. Liu and Mrs. Si looked at Pei Xi’s maternity bag, while Pei Xi, feeling tired, sat down on the sofa to rest.
She even filmed a video and sent it to Si Ruohan.
Si Ruohan had just finished work and was taking a short break when he saw Pei Xi’s picture.
Seeing the little clothes, Si Ruohan knew where Pei Xi had gone.
He didn’t say anything, just asked Pei Xi how much it cost, saying he could ask her for reimbursement when he got back.
Pei Xi replied, “The child’s grandmother paid today. If you want to pay, you’ll have to wait until later.”