Contractual Love: Mistaken for True

Xia Chen had always struggled to deal with Xu Xiaoyou, which left Mom Xia quite disappointed. After all, he was an important decision-maker at three companies and yet couldn’t even manage his own wife. Consequently, Mom Xia decided to take matters into her own hands.

When Xu Xiaoyou received a phone call from Mom Xia telling her to come home for dinner this weekend, she had a bad premonition. Could it be about marriage? But she had already discussed it with Xia Chen-getting married during the fifth anniversary of Tianchen! Why was Mom in such a hurry?

Upon returning home, Xu Xiaoyou shared this situation with Xia Chen. He revealed that Mom Xia had also called him, asking him to come back. It seemed like there was no escaping a lecture this time.

Xu Xiaoyou really worried about how Mom Xia would react. Xia Chen reassuringly put his hand on her shoulder and said, “Even if there’s something going on, I’ll take the heat. Don’t worry. Besides, even if Mom gets mad, she’ll just scold me. As long as you don’t hide behind me and laugh secretly, we’ll be fine.”

Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t help but laugh, realizing that no matter what, Xia Chen always ended up getting scolded.

“What do you think Mom will scold you about?” Xu Xiaoyou asked.

That was hard to say. Knowing Mom Xia, she might say that he wasn’t capable enough. He could trick Xu Xiaoyou into getting a marriage certificate, but couldn’t manage to get her into a church.

“Let’s not talk about that. We’ll find out when the time comes,” Xia Chen deflected.

On the weekend, early in the morning, Mom Xia started bustling about. She had visited a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner yesterday and came back with a prescription, claiming a high chance of pregnancy. Although she knew it was difficult for Xu Xiaoyou to conceive, staying home all day was boring, so she needed some activity to keep herself busy.

As soon as Xu Xiaoyou and Xia Chen entered the house, they were greeted by a strong medicinal smell. Xu Xiaoyou immediately felt the urge to run, but before she could, Mom Xia called out to her, approaching with a bowl of medicine in hand. Xia Chen quickly understood and pulled Xu Xiaoyou behind him.

“Mom, what are you doing?” Xia Chen asked, eyeing the medicine in Mom Xia’s hands.

“It’s tonic, for Xiaoyou to drink,” Mom Xia replied cheerfully.

“Mom, can I not drink it?” Xu Xiaoyou said softly, hiding behind Xia Chen.

“How can you not drink it? It’s only beneficial for your health. Just drink it obediently,” Mom Xia coaxed Xu Xiaoyou.

Xu Xiaoyou shook her head again. After a month of medicine last time, she had no idea how long she would have to drink it this time. Seeing her reluctance, Mom Xia gave Xia Chen a knowing glance, but he feigned not noticing and started leading Xu Xiaoyou upstairs.

Mom Xia then yelled, “Xia Chen, stop right there! If Xiaoyou doesn’t drink this medicine today, I will be furious with you!”

“Mom, that’s not exactly a good thing. Maybe it’s best to let Xiaoyou drink less,” Xia Chen said, knowing full well what it was-medicine for pregnancy. But right now, he didn’t want Xu Xiaoyou to get pregnant; they were enjoying their time alone together!

“Fine, you don’t want her to drink it, huh? Just remember: if you come crying to me for a prescription for Xiaoyou later, don’t blame me!” Mom Xia replied, tossing the bowl onto the table and turning to walk away.

Xu Xiaoyou felt a bit scared watching Mom Xia turn away, afraid that she wouldn’t like her anymore. She quickly said, “Mom, I’ll drink it, I’ll drink it!” and hurriedly picked up the bowl, gulping down the medicine. Mom Xia finally looked pleased.

Once in the room, Xia Chen, still somewhat unhappy, asked, “Didn’t you say you hated taking medicine? Why did you just down it all at once?”

“Did you see Mom’s expression? How could I not drink it? Besides, she’s doing this for our own good. If you’re unhappy, I can just go make myself throw up, right?” she said, actually heading toward the bathroom.

Xia Chen quickly grabbed Xu Xiaoyou’s arm. “It’s going to be really unpleasant if you try to throw up after you’ve already swallowed it! You don’t want to feel that way. And if Mom finds out, she’ll probably brew up another batch for you to drink. Why go through that trouble?”

Who would have guessed that just before they were about to head home in the evening, Mom Xia brought out another bowl of medicine for the second dose? Now, Xu Xiaoyou was really unwilling to drink it. The medicinal smell from the daytime hadn’t dissipated yet, and now another dose would just be unbearable.

Seeing Xu Xiaoyou refuse to drink, Mom Xia said, “You’ve already had one dose. If you don’t take this one, it’ll just go to waste. If you drink it obediently, I promise there won’t be a third dose. But if you don’t, I’ll just keep bugging you every day.”

Xu Xiaoyou glanced at Xia Chen, noting his lack of reaction. After pondering for a moment, she took the bowl and, with gritted teeth, drank it down. Xia Chen was struggling inside; he wanted to stop her, but after Mom Xia had warned him that afternoon not to intervene, he understood it was for Xu Xiaoyou’s benefit. Moreover, Mom Xia had mentioned that once Xiaoyou got pregnant, certain matters could finally be brought up. Given this line of thinking, he didn’t stop her.

When Mom Xia saw that Xu Xiaoyou had drunk the medicine, she waved her hand and said, “You two can leave now.”

Xia Chen obediently took Xu Xiaoyou’s hand as they walked out.

Not long after driving away, Xu Xiaoyou began to feel something was off; she felt unusually warm. Normally, the weather wouldn’t be hot with the windows closed. So why was she feeling this way?

Xia Chen also noticed something was wrong with Xu Xiaoyou. Her face was especially red, and when he touched her forehead, it felt hot. “Could she be running a fever?” he wondered, quickly steering the car towards the hospital.

Upon arriving at the hospital and after registering, the doctor inquired about her condition and concluded that it was indeed due to the medicine. It was meant to be a tonic, but Mom Xia had given too strong a dosage, which Xu Xiaoyou’s body simply couldn’t handle, leading to her increased body temperature.

Xia Chen finally let out a sigh of relief as he left the hospital with Xu Xiaoyou, holding the medication prescribed by the doctor.

Once home, Xia Chen poured a glass of warm water for Xu Xiaoyou to take the medicine, but Xu Xiaoyou pleaded with him. At this point, she didn’t dare take any medication after what had happened earlier. If she suffered side effects again, it would be a disaster. After considering it, Xia Chen agreed. Moreover, Xu Xiaoyou wasn’t feeling feverish anymore, so it was indeed better to avoid taking the medicine.

Since the people at the newspaper found out that Xu Xiaoyou was Madam Xia, their attitude toward her had become respectful. Who didn’t understand Tianchen’s influence? They certainly didn’t want to offend her and risk their jobs.

Wang Jie asked Xu Xiaoyou when he saw her if it was true that she had married Xia Chen. At first, he didn’t believe it, as he knew Xu Xiaoyou hadn’t planned to get married so early. After she confirmed it, all he could do was offer his congratulations.

There was still no news about Jingjing. Xia Chen mentioned that Shen Mobai hadn’t returned to the country, so they still couldn’t find him. Life without Jingjing felt very odd. One day, while brushing her teeth, Xu Xiaoyou suddenly felt a wave of nausea. She didn’t think much of it at the time, but it happened again at the newspaper. Her colleague, Xiaoyu, who had experience in these matters, noticed and asked if Xu Xiaoyou might be pregnant. This made Xu Xiaoyou think about how she hadn’t had her period in a while. However, it was impossible for her to be pregnant since they had always taken precautions. The only time they hadn’t was on Christmas, but surely that wouldn’t result in a pregnancy on the first try. Confused by her thoughts, she decided to take half a day off to get checked at the hospital.

The doctor performed a series of tests, but the results wouldn’t come back until the next day, so Xu Xiaoyou was asked to go home. After leaving the hospital, she looked at the time and realized it was still early. Since their food at home was running low, she decided to stop by the supermarket to buy some groceries.

Xia Chen had finished work early that day. Thinking Xu Xiaoyou was still at the office, he drove to Acer to pick her up. When he called to check, he learned she had already left the newspaper, so he headed to the supermarket where she was shopping. Just as he parked the car, he saw Xu Xiaoyou coming out, arms full of shopping bags. He quickly jumped out of the car and took the bags from her, placing them in the back seat.

“How come you got off work so early today?” Xia Chen asked.

“I took half a day off to go to the hospital,” she replied.

“Is something wrong? Are you feeling unwell?” he asked, concern evident in his voice. The last time she had taken that tonic, she had felt unwell for several days. He hoped there wouldn’t be any adverse effects again.

“I might be pregnant,” Xu Xiaoyou said, her palms sweating as she spoke. She was afraid Xia Chen wouldn’t believe her.

“Wait…what?” The car screeched to a halt, and Xia Chen looked at her in disbelief. Did she just say she was pregnant? While he was pretty sure any child she bore would be his, hadn’t the doctor said her chances of getting pregnant were quite low?

Xu Xiaoyou felt a little uneasy under Xia Chen’s intense gaze, sensing that he didn’t believe her. Tears of grievance welled up in her eyes, realizing that he doubted her so much.

Seeing Xu Xiaoyou cry, Xia Chen panicked. They say that pregnant women shouldn’t cry as it’s not good for the baby, so he quickly wrapped his arms around her and gently patted her back, asking, “What’s wrong? Why are you crying all of a sudden?”

“Ah Xia… the baby… the baby really is yours…” Xu Xiaoyou sobbed.

“I never said the baby isn’t mine!” Xia Chen replied, feeling a mix of laughter and exasperation.

“Then why did you look at me like that?” Xu Xiaoyou questioned, still not convinced.

“I…” Xia Chen was momentarily at a loss for words. He had just been so overwhelmed with excitement. “I’m just really happy. I can’t believe I’m going to be a dad!”

“Did you really never doubt this baby?” Xu Xiaoyou lifted her head to look at him.

“Why would I doubt my own child? Or are you hiding something from me?” he asked.

“Of course not!” Xu Xiaoyou quickly replied. “I was just afraid you wouldn’t believe me. We’ve always been careful, so… so…”

“If I remember correctly, I don’t think we were careful on Christmas,” Xia Chen said uncertainly. That day had been wild, and it seemed they hadn’t taken any precautions.

Xu Xiaoyou looked at him, surprised that he was aware they hadn’t used protection that day. She had thought he wouldn’t believe her.

“Just because you know I’m handsome doesn’t mean you need to stare at me like that,” Xia Chen joked as he noticed Xu Xiaoyou was still fixated on him.

Xu Xiaoyou blushed and turned away, not saying a word.

Xia Chen took her hand and kissed it, saying, “Wifey, I’m so happy! I’m going to be a dad!”

“But what if the results come back and it’s not a pregnancy?” Xu Xiaoyou asked with concern. Though many signs suggested she was pregnant, she still couldn’t bring herself to be certain without the final result.

“So what if it isn’t? If the results say you’re not pregnant, we’ll just have to try a little harder to make it happen sooner!” Xia Chen replied with a smile. He thought about how nice it would actually be to have a child. At least Xu Xiaoyou could stay home waiting for him to come back from work, and that would be a pleasant thing.

“No way!” Despite her words, Xu Xiaoyou secretly felt quite excited. She had heard from others that pregnancy was a marvelous experience, from a tiny embryo growing into a baby and witnessing its development. It was something indescribably wonderful. While childbirth was said to be very painful, the joy of becoming a mother was something incredible.