Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Finding out I was pregnant was quite a surprise.

The main credit goes to a bowl of my mother’s dumpling filling.

To her, it smelled like a fragrant meat feast; to me, it was a one-way ticket to dry-heaving.

I asked my mom if the filling had gone bad.

She asked me if I was pregnant.

I was completely dazed. “What? Pregnancy can make dumpling filling go bad?”

My mother rolled her eyes at me. “They say ‘pregnancy brain’ lasts for three years. You’ve definitely got it.”

Me: …

Heh, thanks a lot.

True to her decisive nature, my mother immediately dropped the dumpling filling and whisked me off to the hospital for a check-up.

The whole process was so fast that I was still in a daze when I received the diagnostic report.

I really was pregnant.

Bai Yan and I had been married for two years. During the first year, we had intentionally used contraception.

The reason was simple: we just wanted to enjoy our time as a couple a little longer.

Two months ago, at the request of both sets of parents, we finally compromised and started trying for a baby.

I didn’t expect to hit the jackpot so soon after we started. The results were remarkably instantaneous.

Although I hadn’t felt particularly strongly about having children before, now that a child was actually coming, a spontaneous sense of joy flooded my heart. Perhaps this was maternal instinct.

I called Bai Yan immediately, but the prompt told me his phone was powered off.

I slapped my forehead, suddenly remembering that he should be on a flight back right now.

He had gone to France on a business trip three days ago and was returning today. In my excitement, I had completely forgotten.

But I really wanted to share this good news with him. I imagined him being stunned at first, then ecstatic, and finally at a complete loss for words.

I envisioned countless reactions from Bai Yan, but I never expected the reality to be even more dramatic.

I waited at home for two and a half hours. At 4:27 PM, I received a call from Bai Yan.

He said he had landed and asked where I was.

I told him I was at home, unable to suppress the joy in my voice. “Hurry back. I have some good news for you.”

Bai Yan didn’t mirror my excitement. Instead, he fell silent for a few seconds before saying, “I also have something to tell you.”

His tone wasn’t great, which made my heart skip a beat.

I asked him what it was.

He said he would tell me when he got back.

His heavy tone unsettled me. After hanging up, I felt as if a stone were pressing down on my heart-stifling and unbearable.

Bai Yan and I were childhood sweethearts who grew up together. Although we had been apart for a period in between, we knew each other too well after so many years.

As soon as he spoke, I knew this was something that was making things difficult for him.

And over the years, there had been very few things that could truly trouble Bai Yan.

The last time was when we broke up.

So this time, what could it be?

I jokingly thought to myself: *He couldn’t possibly want a divorce, could he?*

It would be far too ironic if he asked for a divorce just as I discovered I was pregnant.

Bai Yan arrived home at 5:30 PM.

Following a “beep” from outside, the fingerprint lock succeeded. It was Bai Yan.

I stood up abruptly and walked to the entryway to wait for him.

The door was pushed open from the outside.

“You’re back-”

My voice cut off abruptly, and even the smile on my face froze.

What was I seeing?

Bai Yan was walking in leading a little girl by the hand?

In an instant, countless conjectures flooded my mind, only to leave it completely blank in the end.

Reflexively, I took two steps back and asked guardedly, “Who is she?”

Bai Yan looked at me with a complex gaze, the meaning of which I couldn’t decipher in the moment.

He said, “Her name is Bai Ranran. She’s seven years old.”

Bai?

I felt as if my brain had been struck by a bolt of lightning.

“Yours?”

I practically squeezed those two words out from between my teeth.

Bai Yan shook his head quickly. “No, she’s not.”

I admit I felt a surge of relief, and my clenched fists slowly relaxed.

Only then did I take a proper look at the girl Bai Yan was holding.

Both of her hands were tightly clutching Bai Yan, and most of her body was hidden behind him. Her eyes were downcast and her whole body was tense, looking extremely insecure.

When I looked at her, she shuddered instinctively and tightened her grip on Bai Yan’s hand again.

Bai Yan said soothingly, “It’s okay, don’t be afraid. This is Daddy’s wife.”

I snapped my head up to look at Bai Yan, doubting my own ears.

“What did you say? Daddy? Didn’t you say she wasn’t your child?”

I admit I was agitated, to the point that my questioning voice was sharp and piercing.

As my words fell, a faint sound of crying drifted over, which quickly turned into suppressed sobs.

It was Bai Ranran. She had been frightened to tears by me. That look of wanting to cry but not daring to was very pitiable, but it only irritated me.

Perhaps it was just a lack of chemistry.

Bai Ranran and I were destined not to get along.

Bai Yan frowned and glanced at me.

He was blaming me.

My heart felt a sting.

Before I could say anything, he had already crouched down to patiently and gently soothe Bai Ranran.

A surge of turbulent emotion rose in my chest.

Without a second thought, I turned to leave.

I have never been one to suffer in silence, let alone now when I was pregnant and my emotions were already unstable.

Seeing that I was about to leave, Bai Yan suddenly grabbed me.

“Youyou, it’s not what you think. Give me a little time, and I’ll explain everything to you.”

I looked deeply at Bai Yan. His expression was serious.

He wasn’t lying.

Enduring the impulse to snap, I broke free from his grip and headed upstairs.

“I’ll wait for you in the bedroom.”