Contractual Love: Mistaken for True - Chapter 49 - I Want to Be a Mom

It was once again Mom Xia’s birthday. This time she didn’t host a gathering for friends; she never liked pompous celebrations anyway. Last year, she did it for Xia Chen, but now that everything had been settled, there was no need for her to do so again. She decided that a small dinner at home would suffice.

A few days before her birthday, Xu Xiaoyou dragged Xia Chen to the mall. As her daughter-in-law, she felt the need to buy something that Mom Xia would like as a gift. However, after browsing for a while, she hadn’t found anything suitable. Watching Xu Xiaoyou pick things up and put them down, Xia Chen said, “Actually, the best gift for Mom is for you to give her a grandchild.”

Xu Xiaoyou shot him a glance. “Really? You’ve been wearing me out every night, saying you want to be a dad. You just want to fulfill your own desires and are bringing kids into it. Plus, after exhausting nights, how can we even think about having a child when we can barely stay awake?”

“Kids, kids, why does everyone only think about kids?” Xu Xiaoyou said, a bit unhappy. “I think having a child right now is a bit too early; I want to enjoy life for a few more years before that.”

“Not too early! I’m already twenty-seven. Look at Shen Mobai and Jingjing; she’s been pregnant for a few months. Every time Shen Mobai talks about kids, he looks so happy, as if he’s afraid others don’t know he wants to be a dad.”

Mentioning Shen Mobai made Xu Xiaoyou realize it had already been over a month since she last saw Jingjing. After the last incident, Shen Mobai took Jingjing home and made her quit her job, wanting her to rest and focus on the pregnancy. Shen Mobai had even quarreled with Madam Shen multiple times over Jingjing. Now, he had moved out of the house, saying that as long as Madam Shen didn’t genuinely accept Jingjing, he wouldn’t return home. The two were in a stalemate.

“Jingjing’s baby was an accident. You’re twenty-seven, but I’m only twenty-three! I’m still young; I don’t want a child,” Xu Xiaoyou said as she walked out of the mall, feeling unsatisfied after shopping for a whole afternoon.

Xia Chen understood. Honestly, he didn’t want to have kids so soon either, as it could affect their young lives together. But Mom Xia always said he needed to work hard to get Xu Xiaoyou pregnant. He knew Mom Xia’s concerns; if Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t have children, she would probably face bullying in the Xia Family. If Grandma truly didn’t accept Xu Xiaoyou, she would follow through on her threats. Xia Chen was also aware of Xu Xiaoyou’s temper. If she found out she couldn’t conceive, she would likely think about divorcing him and forcing him to remarry. So, he felt he must do his best to help Xu Xiaoyou have a child, which would finally put his mind at ease.

“Ah Xia, what are you thinking? Why aren’t you moving?” After walking a short distance, Xu Xiaoyou realized Xia Chen hadn’t followed her. She turned around to find him standing still, lost in thought.

“Nothing,” Xia Chen snapped out of it and walked over to grab Xu Xiaoyou’s hand. “Let’s get something to eat; I’m a bit hungry.”

Xu Xiaoyou checked the time. It was already meal time. “Alright, let’s head home.”

In the end, the birthday gift for Mom Xia was chosen by Xia Chen: a tea set. Mom Xia loved drinking tea, and this tea set was designed and handcrafted by a famous master, making it quite valuable for collectors. Xia Chen had seen it while on a business trip and his first thought was to buy it for Mom Xia. He brought it back without telling Xu Xiaoyou and revealed it to her only the day before Mom Xia’s birthday.

Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t take her eyes off the tea set. It was delicate and classic; it would be lovely to have such a set at home.

Xia Chen wrapped his arms around Xu Xiaoyou’s waist from behind and whispered in her ear, “I bought three sets: one for my mom, one for your dad, and we’ll keep one for ourselves.”

Xu Xiaoyou turned around, hugged Xia Chen, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. “Ah Xia, you’re so sweet.”

“You’re only realizing this now?” Xia Chen’s voice dropped, and he slowly leaned in to kiss Xu Xiaoyou.

On the day of Mom Xia’s birthday, Xu Xiaoyou woke up early. Mom Xia had told her that as a daughter-in-law, she should help prepare for her mother-in-law’s birthday, so Xu Xiaoyou got up quite early.

Xia Chen checked the time; it was only seven-thirty. There was no need to get up this early. Even if they went over now, there wasn’t much for them to do since they had a maid at home. Mom Xia preferred to handle everything herself, and if they went over now, she would likely complain about them getting in the way.

Xu Xiaoyou wouldn’t listen to Xia Chen’s words. Seeing that he wasn’t up yet, she reached for his hand. To her surprise, Xia Chen pulled her down onto the bed with a quick tug. He turned around, holding Xu Xiaoyou tight in his arms. “Let’s sleep a little more.”

“Ah Xia, it’s time to get up,” Xu Xiaoyou said, pushing at Xia Chen, but he ignored her.

Seeing that Xia Chen wasn’t responding, Xu Xiaoyou tried to get up, but he held her tightly, making it impossible for her to move.

“Ah Xia,” she pushed him again, but he still didn’t acknowledge her.

“Ah Xia…” Xu Xiaoyou called him once more.

Xia Chen opened his eyes, looked at Xu Xiaoyou, and asked, “Don’t you want to sleep? If you don’t want to sleep, we can do something else, hmm?”

As he said this, he leaned in to kiss her, but Xu Xiaoyou quickly dodged, placing her hand over his lips. “You should go back to sleep; I won’t disturb you.” She was exhausted from his antics every night, and now he was at it again during the day. She just didn’t understand how he had so much energy.

Xia Chen finally closed his eyes contentedly, while Xu Xiaoyou stayed awake, watching him. After being kept awake until dawn last night, she had been woken up by the alarm this morning. Now, lying in bed, sleepiness began to creep back in. Since she couldn’t get up, she thought she might as well catch a few more minutes of sleep.

However, she ended up oversleeping, and it was Xia Chen who woke her up. “If you don’t get out of bed soon, Mom is going to call and ask where you are,” he said, glancing at the time.

Xu Xiaoyou grabbed her phone and saw that it was already ten o’clock. She hurried to get up, annoyed at Xia Chen. If it weren’t for him, she wouldn’t have fallen asleep again. Looking down at her wrinkled clothes, she realized she couldn’t wear those anymore and quickly started searching through her wardrobe for something to wear.

Out of nowhere, Xia Chen found a dress and handed it to Xu Xiaoyou, urging her to change. Xu Xiaoyou hesitated; she was reluctant to wear something that wasn’t hers. “If you don’t put it on soon, we’ll really be late,” Xia Chen said, his tone a little harsh.

Reluctantly, Xu Xiaoyou put it on. It wasn’t that she disliked wearing someone else’s clothing; it was just that this was a dress. Ever since she was a child, she had never liked wearing dresses, and now that Xia Chen wanted her to wear one, it felt awkward.

“Yeah, it looks good on you,” Xia Chen said as she walked out. He gave her a thorough look and nodded in approval. The dress fit her nicely.

“But I still feel awkward,” Xu Xiaoyou said, tugging at the hem of the dress.

“Where does it feel awkward? It’s quite nice,” Xia Chen replied, wrapping his arm around her waist as they headed out the door.

“Ah Xia, did you buy this dress?” Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t help but ask while in the car. She knew it was likely from Xia Chen, but she wanted to hear him say it.

Xia Chen rolled his eyes at her. “Do you think I found it lying around? Of course I bought it. What kind of question is that?”

“Then when did you buy it? I didn’t know anything about it!”

“You didn’t tell me when you bought that trench coat, so why should I tell you?” Xia Chen was clearly not going to make it easy for her.

“Just tell me, come on,” Xu Xiaoyou whined playfully.

With a smile, Xia Chen responded, “I got it yesterday afternoon while passing by a flagship store. I thought it would suit you, so I bought it. I just don’t understand how you, as a girl, don’t like wearing dresses. You always wear T-shirts and jeans.”

“Well, I’ve been dressing like this for years; it’s hard to change,” she replied somewhat sulkily. “Don’t you like how I dress?”

“I think no man wants his wife to look anything less than beautiful,” Xia Chen said.

Hearing him say that made Xu Xiaoyou secretly resolve to learn how to put on makeup and change her style. Otherwise, if Xia Chen ended up noticing Murong Qing, she feared she would be left in the dust.

When they arrived at the Xia Family’s house, it was already eleven o’clock, but fortunately, lunch was set to start at twelve. Xu Xiaoyou handed Mom Xia her gift and wished her a happy birthday. Mom Xia happily accepted the present and said, “This child knows to bring me a gift. A tea set! I love it.”

Chen Zihan arrived with Shu Yuqing. After a few months of rehabilitation, Chen Zihan no longer needed a wheelchair, although he still couldn’t stand for long periods without his feet hurting.

Chen Zihan took Shu Yuqing’s hand and walked over to Mom Xia. After wishing her a happy birthday, he handed over the gift he had prepared. Mom Xia smiled and said, “It’s enough that you all came; you didn’t need to bring gifts.”

Chen Zihan chuckled and introduced Shu Yuqing to Mom Xia. “Mom Xia, this is Yuqing; you’ve met her before, right? I’m not sure if you still remember.”

Mom Xia examined Shu Yuqing closely. “It’s been five years; this girl has grown much more beautiful!”

Shu Yuqing smiled and replied, “Mom Xia, you still remember me? I thought you might’ve forgotten.”

“How could I forget? You’re Zihan’s girlfriend; how could I not remember you?”

Shu Yuqing also handed over her prepared gift, and Mom Xia patted her hand, saying, “Come by more often.”

Papa Xu and Mom Xu came downstairs, and Mom Xia took Chen Zihan over to introduce him to them. Chen Zihan greeted them with “Uncle, Aunt,” and they nodded in acknowledgment.

Once Xia Chen pulled Chen Zihan and Shu Yuqing away, Papa Xu finally spoke up and asked Mom Xia, “I heard from Xiaoyou that Zihan injured his foot. It looks like he’s almost fully recovered now?”

Mom Xia watched Chen Zihan’s retreating figure and replied, “Not completely recovered yet. What we’re seeing now is quite good for the time being.”

Papa Xu nodded, then asked, “Does he have a twin brother?”

Mom Xia was surprised. This was something very few people knew. Since the incident with Ziyi’s passing last year, it had become known, but it wasn’t something that had been extensively reported in the papers. Papa Xu had never been to City S; how did he find out?

“He has a twin brother, how did you know?”

Papa Xu didn’t answer but continued to focus on Chen Zihan’s back.

It was surprising that, after everything, Xu Xiaoyou ended up knowing his brother, who had been Xia Chen’s childhood companion. Was this fate?

Shen Mobai also arrived with Jingjing, who was five months pregnant. Her baby bump was starting to show. Seeing Jingjing come in, Xu Xiaoyou hurried over to ask how she had been. Jingjing glanced at Shen Mobai and said, “Every day is just eat and sleep; I feel like I’m turning into a pig! Look at all this weight I’ve gained in just over a month.”

Shen Mobai was not pleased by Jingjing’s comments. “Who describes themselves like that? Besides, when you’re pregnant, you should eat a little more. After all, it’s two people’s worth of nutrition, and that’s good for both the mom and the baby.”

“Wifey, being able to eat means you’re healthy,” Shen Mobai coaxed Jingjing. The elders said that pregnant women needed to be kept happy to ensure the health of the baby and for a smooth delivery. He was willing to do anything for their safety.

Jingjing shot Shen Mobai a sidelong glance and pulled Xu Xiaoyou over to the sofa to sit down, as her feet were starting to feel sore from standing for too long.

Xu Xiaoyou was curious. The idea that a tiny embryo could develop into a child amazed her. Seeing Jingjing’s joyful expression suddenly made her want to become a mother as well. With Jingjing’s child around to play with, it wouldn’t feel lonely at all.

That evening, when Xu Xiaoyou got home, she mentioned this to Xia Chen. He was delighted but pretended to be indifferent as he asked, “Didn’t you say you didn’t want to become a mom so early?”

“But I think having a child at home would be quite fun, don’t you? Plus, having a baby means I can also spend time with Mom. Isn’t she always hoping we would have kids soon? It would fulfill her wish,” Xu Xiaoyou said as she clung to Xia Chen’s arm.

“However, I don’t want kids right now. I want to enjoy our time together as a couple,” Xia Chen said, wrapping his arm around Xu Xiaoyou’s waist.

“Come on,” Xu Xiaoyou pushed him slightly. “You think I don’t see through your little tricks? Who was it that said they wanted to be a dad early on? And now you’re saying you want it to just be the two of us.”

“Yes, yes, I do want to be a dad,” Xia Chen said, leaning his forehead against hers. “So from now on, let’s work on it together.” With that, he kissed Xu Xiaoyou on the lips.