Contractual Love: Mistaken for True - Chapter 58 - Final Chapter

Pregnant Xu Xiaoyou was bored at home and began flipping through the dictionary, intending to choose a name for her child that was both beautiful and meaningful. However, after searching back and forth, she couldn’t find a suitable name. People say a good name is a good start, and since this child was not easy to conceive, it was only right to give them a good name.

Xia Chen, hearing Xu Xiaoyou mention that she couldn’t find a good name even after searching the dictionary, chuckled and said, “It’s not that hard to name a baby. Just choose a character you like.”

“That won’t do,” Xu Xiaoyou disagreed with Xia Chen’s opinion. “A good name can lead to a good life. We can’t be careless.”

“A good life?” Xia Chen was puzzled, thinking about how a name was related to life. “Who says a name affects one’s life?”

“On TV,” Xu Xiaoyou pointed to the television, where an advertisement was playing, suggesting the idea of using names to foresee the future.

“That’s not credible. Besides, our baby is destined to be extraordinary from the moment they’re born, so they don’t need a name to change their fate.”

“No, I still want to give the child a beautiful and meaningful name,” Xu Xiaoyou insisted as she continued to flip through the dictionary.

Xia Chen shook his head and followed Xu Xiaoyou’s pace, both of them picking names together.

“This one, this one…” Xia Chen pointed at the character “Yuan” in the dictionary. “This character is nice-Xia Yuan. What a nice name!”

“No, no, I don’t like that one. Let’s try another,” Xu Xiaoyou flipped the page and continued searching.

Xia Chen closed the dictionary with a determined look and said, “Let’s stop searching. Let’s let Mommy do the research. You’re pregnant and need rest, so you shouldn’t be reading too much.”

“No, I want to find a name. It’s so boring staying at home all day; I need something to do,” Xu Xiaoyou insisted, reopening the dictionary.

“Then how about I take you out for a walk?” Xia Chen suggested, knowing that Xu Xiaoyou was hesitant to go anywhere for fear of hurting the baby. However, the doctor had said she needed some exercise to help with the delivery, so Xia Chen decided to accompany Xu Xiaoyou outside to get some fresh air.

“Really?” Xu Xiaoyou looked at Xia Chen, afraid he was just joking with her.

“Really.” Xia Chen kissed Xu Xiaoyou on the forehead. “I know you’re feeling cooped up at home, so I want to take you out for a little while.”

“Then let’s go!” Xu Xiaoyou said, getting up and pulling Xia Chen toward the door.

“Slow down,” Xia Chen wrapped his arm around Xu Xiaoyou’s waist. “You’re carrying a child; you need to be careful, okay?”

Mom Xu visited Xu Xiaoyou when she was six months pregnant. She intended to personally take care of Xu Xiaoyou, but when she arrived, she found that Mom Xia was already taking excellent care of her, leaving Mom Xu completely at ease about Xu Xiaoyou adjusting to this phase of life while pregnant.

At six months, Xu Xiaoyou had not gained any noticeable weight, which made Mom Xu a bit worried. Given that Xu Xiaoyou was so thin, Mom Xu wondered whether she would have enough strength during childbirth. To ensure her daughter’s wellbeing, she prepared a lot of nutritional supplements for Xu Xiaoyou to take. However, the moment Xu Xiaoyou saw those supplements, she thought of the medicines prepared by Mom Xia and adamantly refused to consume them. Although they were said to be beneficial for both her and the baby, she didn’t feel any particular need to supplement her diet. Besides, the doctor had advised against excessive supplementation, as it could backfire.

When Xu Xiaoyou was eight months along, Jingjing came to visit with her son. She had now moved back to the Shen family home, where Madam Shen had accepted both her and the child. A few months earlier, Madam Shen had been diagnosed with stomach cancer, and during her hospitalization, Jingjing took the child to see her daily. This kept Madam Shen from dwelling too much on her illness and finally made her realize how wrong she had been in the past. She sincerely apologized to Jingjing, hoping for her forgiveness. Jingjing had not blamed Madam Shen and even encouraged Shen Mobai to return home to help his father with the family business.

Xu Xiaoyou looked at Jingjing’s son, who was already a year old and incredibly cute. He was eager to be held by anyone and didn’t hesitate to smile at strangers. Xu Xiaoyou hoped her own child would be as lively and adorable as Jingjing’s.

“Have you had an ultrasound? Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?” Jingjing asked.

Xu Xiaoyou chuckled and shook her head. “Ah Xia said he doesn’t want to know just yet. He said he would be happy no matter if it’s a boy or a girl.”

“From the looks of your belly, it seems like a boy,” Jingjing commented as she observed Xu Xiaoyou’s figure.

“Really? I hope it’s a boy too. The Xia family doesn’t have many heirs, and since I finally got pregnant, I really wish for a son. That way, there will be someone to inherit the Xia family’s business,” Xu Xiaoyou replied, gently rubbing her belly.

“I would prefer it to be a girl,” Xia Chen and Shen Mobai walked in from a distance, having overheard Xu Xiaoyou’s wish for a boy.

“Why’s that?” Jingjing asked, confused.

“Because if it’s a girl, she’ll be as beautiful as Xu Xiaoyou, and I’ll want her to charm your son and then dump him! That would drive his grandmother crazy,” Xia Chen said, looking at Jingjing’s son playfully.

“Xia Chen, what do you mean by that?” Jingjing protested. Did her daughter have to trick her son? What kind of father was he?

“I’m telling you, the one who hurt Xu Xiaoyou was my mother. You can’t take it out on my son,” Shen Mobai said. Although he had returned to the Shen family, the relationship between mother and son remained strained.

“Whatever your reasoning is, I still enjoy messing with you, Shen Mobai. You should have considered this day coming when you plotted against me back then,” Xia Chen shot back, locking eyes with Shen Mobai; both of them emitted an aura of hostility.

“Enough, enough,” Xu Xiaoyou interjected, trying to mediate the tension. “Don’t listen to Xia Chen’s nonsense; I would never want my child to do something they don’t want to do. Plus, I wouldn’t want him to turn into that kind of person.”

Pregnancy had caused Xu Xiaoyou’s legs to swell, and every night, Xia Chen would massage her to promote blood circulation, as the doctor had advised that it was beneficial for both her and the baby. However, as he massaged, Xu Xiaoyou began to sense something wasn’t quite right; Xia Chen’s hands were moving closer to intimate areas.

“Hand… where are you touching?” Xu Xiaoyou managed to say.

Xia Chen climbed closer to Xu Xiaoyou and embraced her. “Wife, my dear wife…”

Xu Xiaoyou chose to ignore him, but Xia Chen continued, “Ever since you got pregnant, we haven’t been together in that way for a long time. You know, I miss you so much it hurts.”

“But…” Xu Xiaoyou hesitated. “It might affect the baby.”

“It won’t! I asked the doctor, and he said that as long as it’s done appropriately, it won’t harm the baby,” Xia Chen replied seriously.

Xu Xiaoyou was at a loss for words. How could he even ask something like that?

“Come on,” Xia Chen insisted, “I’ll be very gentle, I promise I won’t hurt the baby.”

Xu Xiaoyou looked at Xia Chen and realized he had been holding back for a long time. Sometimes, she could feel him tossing and turning at night, unable to sleep. She recalled that books said men need to release their pent-up feelings; they can be damaging to their health. After a moment of thought, Xu Xiaoyou finally said, “Just be gentle, okay? And take it slow.”

“Okay,” Xia Chen responded, and before the words left his mouth, his lips were on Xu Xiaoyou’s, softly and tenderly. Xu Xiaoyou’s hands instinctively wrapped around Xia Chen’s neck, responding to him.

“Wife, you’re so sweet…” Xia Chen mumbled as his body slowly moved down to kiss her.

“Ah Xia…” Xu Xiaoyou called out, feeling hazy.

“I’m here…” Xia Chen whispered, gently kissing Xu Xiaoyou’s lips before moving himself closer.

“Mm…” Xu Xiaoyou let out a soft sound.

“Wife, I love you.”

“I love you too…” Xu Xiaoyou responded, and this excited Xia Chen, prompting him to move a bit faster.

“Ah…” Xu Xiaoyou gasped. “Ah Xia… slow down… mm… slow down…”

Xia Chen had already decided that, regardless of whether Xu Xiaoyou gave birth to a boy or a girl, he would name the child Xia Mu. The character “Mu” carries meanings of admiration, affection, longing, and attachment, signifying that in Xia Chen’s heart, there was only Xu Xiaoyou, and he loved only her.

However, no one expected that Xu Xiaoyou would give birth to a pair of twins-a boy and a girl. Since they hadn’t done an ultrasound at the beginning, they had no idea of the genders. Every time they listened to the fetal heartbeat, they only heard one heartbeat. It turned out that the girl, Xia Yun, had been hiding behind her brother the whole time. This made the doctors unaware of her presence and led them to believe that Xu Xiaoyou was expecting a larger baby, or that there might be too much amniotic fluid. After giving birth to Xia Yun, Xu Xiaoyou sensed something was off. Upon examination, the doctor discovered that there was still another baby inside her, prompting them to prepare for a continued delivery.

Xia Chen looked at his son and daughter, filled with joy. After Xu Xiaoyou was wheeled out of the delivery room, Xia Chen gently kissed her on the forehead and said, “Thank you, my wife. You’ve worked so hard.”

Xu Xiaoyou smiled weakly at Xia Chen, shaking her head. Though she was too exhausted to speak, her face radiated happiness.

Xia Chen named the baby boy Xia Chen, where “Chen” means gathering or containing, reflecting the baby’s ability to hide away while inside Xu Xiaoyou’s womb.

Sitting beside Xu Xiaoyou, Xia Chen held her hand, reminiscing about the journey they had taken together. They had faced storms and challenges, but now they held hands and had children by their side. He felt utterly satisfied; nothing else mattered. Regarding the Xia family’s business and Tianchen Group, if the children showed interest, he would nurture that. If they did not, he planned to donate all of the family assets to society a hundred years later.

Gently sweeping aside the hair on Xu Xiaoyou’s forehead, he kissed her again. “Wife, I love you.”

(End of text)