Thunder

On a midsummer afternoon, the cicadas chirped raucously, the heat was stifling. In the Cultural Promotion Center's office, an old fan whirred feebly, blowing out hot air.

Lin Xueyin was copying an urgent propaganda outline with her head down, beads of sweat oozing from her forehead.

Somehow, she felt extra tired today, and an inexplicable feeling of heaviness and distension in her lower abdomen made her a little uneasy. She simply attributed it to the hot weather and the impending menstruation, and didn't pay much attention to it.

However, the discomfort grew stronger and stronger. A sudden wave of nausea suddenly surged up her throat. She quickly covered her mouth and forced herself to hold it back, but her face instantly turned pale.

"Xiao Lin, what's wrong with you? You look so bad." Sister Jiang, who was sitting opposite her, was the first to notice her abnormality and asked with concern.

"No...it's okay, maybe I have a little heatstroke." Lin Xueyin forced a smile and wanted to continue working, but her vision became dark and the handwriting she was copying began to become crooked.

At this moment, the office door was pushed open and Song Zhiyuan appeared at the door.

He seemed to be dropping by today, having something to do with the head of the Propaganda Department. His eyes habitually swept over Lin Xueyin's position first, and when he saw her pale face and weak movements, his originally calm eyes suddenly darkened.

He didn't even have time to greet the section chief who came to meet him, and he took a few big strides to Lin Xueyin's desk.

"What's going on?" His voice was not loud, but it carried a tense urgency, completely different from his usual calmness.

Lin Xueyin was startled by his sudden approach and the anxiety in his tone. She subconsciously tried to avoid his gaze, but the feeling of nausea came over her again. She couldn't help but dry heave, her eyes went black, and her body fell limply to the side.

"Snow Sound!"

Before her consciousness completely faded, she seemed to hear a call she had never heard before, with obvious panic, and a pair of strong arms caught her falling body in time.

…

The smell of disinfectant penetrated my nose.

Lin Xueyin slowly awoke to find herself lying in an unfamiliar place that looked like a hospital ward, an IV drip hooked to her wrist. She blinked blankly, memories slowly returning—work, nausea, fainting… and Song Zhiyuan's incoherent call and his arms around her.

Her heart tightened and she struggled to sit up.

"Don't move." A low voice sounded beside him.

Lin Xueyin turned her head and saw Song Zhiyuan sitting on a chair beside the bed. His posture was still upright, but his brows were furrowed, and there was a trace of lingering fear and a complex emotion in his eyes that she could not understand.

He changed out of his casual clothes and put on a simple white shirt with his sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing his strong forearms.

"What's wrong with me?" Lin Xueyin asked weakly.

Song Zhiyuan didn't answer immediately, but just looked at her with a deep gaze, as if his eyes wanted to penetrate her and see deeper. His silence made Lin Xueyin feel uneasy.

Just then, the door of the ward was pushed open, and a middle-aged doctor in a white coat and with an elegant temperament walked in, followed by two young doctors with respectful expressions.

"Comrade Song," the middle-aged doctor said politely, with a tacit sense of caution, "The test results are out."

Song Zhiyuan stood up and looked at the doctor sharply: "Speak."

The doctor handed him the test results. His voice was low, but still clearly audible in the quiet ward: "Comrade Lin Xueyin, this is... pregnancy symptoms. Based on the HCG value and preliminary diagnosis, it should be almost two months."

boom--!

Like a thunderclap exploding in her mind, Lin Xueyin froze instantly, her blood seeming to freeze at that moment. Her eyes widened in disbelief, looking at the doctor, then at the thin piece of paper in Song Zhiyuan's hand, her mind going blank.

Pregnant?

Almost two months?

That was... that night in the old warehouse of Hongqi Commune...

A sense of overwhelming panic and absurdity washed over her like icy water. She instinctively touched her still-flat belly. There...was a child? A mark forcibly branded upon her that night of greatest fear and humiliation?

Song Zhiyuan gripped the test report, his knuckles turning slightly white from the strain. His face was expressionless, but his deep eyes were swirling with extremely complex emotions—after the initial shock, a rapidly settling, almost piercing scrutiny, then a deeper, more elusive undercurrent.

It’s been almost two months…

He quickly calculated the time in his mind. After that night in the warehouse, he left soon after for flood prevention work. After returning, she went to the county town, and then returned to the city for the New Year... During this period, they had no more intimate contact.

This child could only be the product of that one time.

He raised his head, his gaze once again landing on Lin Xueyin's pale face, filled with panic and bewilderment. She, too, was clearly completely stunned by the news. Her eyes, which always held a hint of timidity or an effort to maintain composure, now held only pure fear and bewilderment.

The ward fell into a deathly silence. The doctor and his attendant tactfully withdrew, quietly closing the door.

Only the two of them were left.

Song Zhiyuan walked step by step to the bedside, looking down at her. His shadow completely enveloped her, carrying an invisible, suffocating pressure.

Lin Xueyin trembled all over when he looked at her. She subconsciously shrank back, tears welling up uncontrollably, and her voice was filled with sobs and despair: "No... Impossible... How could it be..."

Song Zhiyuan reached out his hand, but instead of touching her, he gently picked up her slightly trembling hand that was resting on her lower abdomen, and stuffed the test report back into her palm.

His fingertips were cold, and the contact with her warm skin made her shudder.

"Look carefully." His voice was low and hoarse, with an unquestionable confirmation.

Lin Xueyin looked at the cold numbers and the "positive" conclusion on the test report, and her last glimmer of hope was completely shattered. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she could no longer hold them back. She buried her face in the pillow and sobbed silently.

How could this happen? Why at this moment? Why...his child?

The arrival of this child completely disrupted all her struggles, all her attempts to adapt, and all her faint hopes for the future. It bound her and this man together in the most primitive and unbreakable way.

Song Zhiyuan stood beside the bed, looking at her thin shoulders trembling slightly due to crying, his eyes complicated and indecipherable.

This accident disrupted his steps, but also... pushed the situation into a completely new direction that he had not expected but seemed... not to reject.

His original plan was to slowly chip away at her, getting her used to it and dependent on him. But the appearance of this child was like a heavyweight chess piece thrown onto the board, instantly changing everything.

He was silent for a moment, then slowly sat down beside the bed, reached out his hand, and patted her back gently, somewhat awkwardly.

This soothing gesture was inconsistent with his usual cold and hard style.

Lin Xueyin's crying paused, as if she was startled by his actions.

Song Zhiyuan withdrew his hand and looked out the window at the dazzling summer sun. His voice returned to its usual calmness, but with an unprecedented and unquestionable determination:

"Give birth to it."