Contractual Love: Mistaken for True - Chapter 57 - About Children

After Xia Chen went to work, Mom Xia directly brought Xu Xiaoyou to their home to stay, saying she needed to keep a close eye on her and couldn’t let her run away. Xu Xiaoyou could only smile wryly and assure them that she wouldn’t run away. She had come to terms with the fact that since Xia Chen and Mom Xia didn’t mind her inability to conceive, she shouldn’t be so stubborn about it.

However, neither Mom Xia nor Xia Chen believed Xu Xiaoyou’s words. They had finally welcomed her back, so how could they allow her to leave again? No matter how Xu Xiaoyou explained, they wouldn’t accept it.

Jingjing gave birth to a son, and when he turned one month old, she called Xu Xiaoyou and invited her over. After much contemplation, Mom Xia decided to accompany Xu Xiaoyou. Partly, she was worried that Xu Xiaoyou might seize the opportunity to escape, and partly, she wanted to see Jingjing’s child. The situation with Madam Shen was still tense; she did not acknowledge Jingjing and the baby, and Shen Mobai remained in a stalemate. As long as Madam Shen rejected Jingjing and the child, Shen Mobai refused to go back and be her son again.

Looking at Jingjing’s child, Xu Xiaoyou felt a pang of envy. The baby was so well-behaved and beautiful; he would surely charm countless girls in the future. She wished she could have a child too, even if it was just a daughter. But… sigh.

After returning from Jingjing’s, Xu Xiaoyou wasn’t very happy. She found herself zoning out while watching TV. When Xia Chen came out after his shower and saw her sitting there motionless, he walked over and hugged her, asking what was wrong.

Xu Xiaoyou shook her head. She didn’t want to mention her issues regarding children; it was a touchy subject for her.

“Is it about the child?” Xia Chen inquired. Ever since Xu Xiaoyou had held Shen Mobai’s son, she had appeared downcast, and he figured it must be because of that. If he had known it would affect her mood, he wouldn’t have let her go.

“Ah Xia, don’t you want a child in the house? It can bring a lot of joy,” Xu Xiaoyou asked Xia Chen.

“If having a child means I lose you, then I’d rather not,” Xia Chen said seriously, looking into Xu Xiaoyou’s eyes.

“Ah Xia… we can’t be selfish like this.”

“Selfish?” Xia Chen exclaimed in disbelief. “Is it selfish to want to be with the woman I love for a lifetime? There are so many people in this world who can’t have children, but they don’t divorce because of that. Why is it considered selfish for us? Xiaoyou, I don’t understand. Even if the family business has no heirs, what does it matter? The Xia Family is so large, and my aunt has a son who could take over. And there’s Tianchen and Chen Zihan, right? So we aren’t being selfish at all.”

After staying at home for a month, Xu Xiaoyou felt incredibly bored and discussed with Mom Xia about finding something to do outside. However, Mom Xia disagreed. She was still worried, and even after Xu Xiaoyou reassured her multiple times that she wouldn’t leave, it was ultimately Xia Chen who suggested that Xu Xiaoyou work as his personal secretary. This way, she could follow him wherever he went, alleviating fears of her departure.

“No, I’m not going to be your secretary,” Xu Xiaoyou protested. She didn’t know anything about that, so what was she supposed to do?

“If you don’t want to be a secretary, then you’ll just stay at home,” Xia Chen decided firmly. There were no other options.

“What do you mean? Why do I have to work under your authority? I’m not used to it,” Xu Xiaoyou said, slightly annoyed. Why didn’t they believe her when she said she wouldn’t leave? If she really wanted to go, there were plenty of opportunities to do so without using this as an excuse.

“Wife. Good wife, could you at least come help share my burden? You know, managing all those affairs alone gives me such a headache, and you wouldn’t want to see me like that, would you?” Xia Chen pleaded softly, knowing that this was something Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t resist.

“A headache?” Xu Xiaoyou shot him a sideways glance. “You get headaches during the day at work, but you’re fine at night.”

“I…” Xia Chen hadn’t expected her to respond that way. Normally, whenever he asked her for a favor, she would agree. Had he been too aggressive recently, making her suspicious?

“Wife, could you please help me?” Xia Chen implored.

In the end, Xu Xiaoyou couldn’t withstand Xia Chen’s persistent persuasion and agreed to work at Tianchen. Being a secretary wasn’t so bad; she would have food and drink, and she could see which female stars in the company had their eyes on Xia Chen.

After a period of working, Xu Xiaoyou felt that something was off. She used to feel energetic when she worked, but lately, she had been feeling drowsy and wanted to sleep. Perhaps she was coming down with a cold; she decided to check it out after work. It wouldn’t do to infect Xia Chen.

During lunch, everyone went out to eat, and Xu Xiaoyou decided to retreat to the private lounge in Xia Chen’s office to rest. She had no appetite and just wanted to sleep.

When Xia Chen saw Xu Xiaoyou come in, he put down the documents he was holding and asked, “Why didn’t you go to eat?”

“Not hungry, just want to sleep,” Xu Xiaoyou yawned.

“Then I’ll keep you company; I’m a bit tired too,” Xia Chen said, getting up and walking toward her.

“No, it’s fine, really,” Xu Xiaoyou quickly refused. She was worried that if they slept together, something might happen. To be safe, it was better to avoid that.

“Why not?” Xia Chen frowned. “This is my lounge; can’t I take a nap here?”

“That’s not what I meant. If you want to sleep, go ahead; I won’t sleep then,” Xu Xiaoyou replied.

“Xiaoyou, what’s been going on with you recently?” Xia Chen asked as he pulled Xu Xiaoyou to sit next to him on the sofa. “I’ve noticed that you seem to be wanting to sleep all the time. Are you feeling unwell? If you are, you should see a doctor soon. Here’s the plan: after work, I’ll go with you to get checked out.”

“Okay…” Xu Xiaoyou said sleepily before dozing off on Xia Chen’s shoulder.

Seeing Xu Xiaoyou asleep, Xia Chen smiled as he held her and carried her into the bedroom, gently placing her on the bed. He leaned down and kissed her forehead, thinking to himself that perhaps he had been a bit too much lately, causing her to lack sleep. It seemed he would need to tone it down a bit.

Xu Xiaoyou slept until nearly the end of the workday, waking up when Xia Chen called her, saying it was time to leave for the hospital. Rubbing her eyes, she said, “Why didn’t you wake me up? I didn’t even work this afternoon.”

“I saw you were sleeping so soundly that I didn’t want to disturb you,” Xia Chen explained. He had checked on her several times while she slept and couldn’t bring himself to wake her. “Come on, wash up; let’s head to the hospital.”

“Okay.” Xu Xiaoyou got up and went to freshen up.

After listening to Xu Xiaoyou’s symptoms and asking a few more questions, the doctor said, “You should go see a gynecologist.”

The mention of a gynecologist made Xu Xiaoyou and Xia Chen exchange puzzled glances. Xia Chen asked, “Why go to the gynecologist? What does a cold have to do with that?”

Seeing the young couple still processing the information, the doctor explained, “Based on what Miss Xu just described, there’s a strong possibility that she might be pregnant, so it would be best to get it checked out.”

“Pregnant?” Xu Xiaoyou exclaimed in shock. “How could I possibly be pregnant? Doctor, you must be mistaken.”

But Xia Chen was overjoyed and urged Xu Xiaoyou to get up and see the gynecologist. “Whether it’s true or not, we need to check to find out.”

“Ah Xia, do you really think it’s possible that I’m pregnant?” Xu Xiaoyou asked nervously on the way to the gynecologist. She was afraid of getting her hopes up only to be disappointed.

“We’ll know once the doctor has checked. Don’t worry; I’ll be right by your side,” Xia Chen said, holding Xu Xiaoyou’s hand to give her strength.

After a series of tests, the doctor confirmed the result and said, “Congratulations! You’re pregnant.”

“I…I’m really pregnant,” Xu Xiaoyou asked with excitement. “Doctor, you didn’t make a mistake, did you?”

The doctor smiled and replied, “I’ve been a gynecologist for many years; how could I possibly make a mistake? The pregnancy is already over two months along, and we can even hear the fetal heartbeat. There’s no way to be wrong about this.”

“It’s already been over two months?” Xia Chen could hardly believe it. They had missed the signs all this time. “So, Doctor, how is the baby doing now?”

“The baby is doing well so far,” the doctor reassured them.

“Doctor, I had previously been told that I could never get pregnant, or that if I did, I would likely lose the baby. Is there any danger for this child?” Xu Xiaoyou asked anxiously. It had taken so long to finally conceive, and if anything were to happen, she felt like she would be devastated.

“Currently, it looks like the baby is developing well. You’ll need to come in for regular check-ups so we can monitor the growth. Also, you should take care of yourself-don’t run around too much, don’t overexert yourself, and get plenty of rest. That’s crucial for the baby, do you understand?” the doctor offered valuable advice to Xu Xiaoyou.

On the way home, Xu Xiaoyou suddenly felt like the car wasn’t moving at all. It was barely crawling-people riding bikes could pass them easily. Clearly, Xia Chen was too nervous about the whole situation.

“Ah Xia, at this speed, we might not make it home until tomorrow,” Xu Xiaoyou joked.

“Is it really that slow? I think it’s fine. I just worry that if I drive too fast, it could be too much for our baby,” Xia Chen replied, still tense.

“The doctor said our baby is healthy and won’t just ‘drop’ like that,” Xu Xiaoyou said, trying to reassure him.

“Don’t say ‘drop.’ Our baby is not going anywhere,” Xia Chen insisted, looking firmly at Xu Xiaoyou.

“Alright, alright, I get it. Just focus on driving. I’m hungry and want to eat what you make. Let’s hurry home,” she prompted.

When Mom Xia found out that Xu Xiaoyou was pregnant, she was so overjoyed that she didn’t know what to say. It seemed that destiny had favored the young couple by blessing them with a child, ensuring the continuation of the Xia Family. After the initial excitement, Mom Xia reminded Xu Xiaoyou of all the precautions she needed to take. Then she turned to Xia Chen and insisted that he and Xu Xiaoyou should sleep in separate rooms, worried that he would accidentally roll over and hurt her during the night.

Xia Chen was adamant. “Why do we always have to sleep apart? Our relationship is strong; we shouldn’t separate. Besides, if Xu Xiaoyou needs anything at night, she should have someone right there beside her. I won’t agree to sleeping in separate rooms.”

Papa Xu and Mom Xu were equally thrilled when they learned about Xu Xiaoyou’s pregnancy. They could hardly express how happy they were. After all, Xu Xiaoyou had left home not long ago over concerns about having a child. Now that she was finally pregnant, she wouldn’t feel that guilt any longer.

“Ah Xia, I’m so happy! We’re going to have a baby! Do you like kids?” Xu Xiaoyou asked as she lay in bed.

“I love them, of course,” Xia Chen said, looking at her. “Wife, thank you.”

“For what?” Xu Xiaoyou asked, puzzled.

“Thank you for being pregnant and not leaving me, which has allowed us to have this child,” Xia Chen replied, hugging her close.

“But Xia Chen, I’m scared,” Xu Xiaoyou confessed, looking at him with concern. “I worry that I won’t be able to take care of this baby properly.”

“It’s okay; I’ll be with you. Starting tomorrow, I’ll stick by your side, giving you confidence and strength, alright?” Xia Chen promised.

“Okay,” Xu Xiaoyou agreed.

After Xu Xiaoyou fell asleep, Xia Chen lay awake staring at the ceiling. He had heard that giving birth could be incredibly painful. Jingjing had been in labor for four to five hours before her child was finally born, and afterward, she looked completely exhausted. Xu Xiaoyou was so slender; he worried about whether she would be okay during childbirth. Besides, there were significant risks involved. If bringing a child into the world meant losing Xu Xiaoyou, then he would rather not have a baby at all.