Chapter 39 Manta Rose, My Child
"I heard the baby's heartbeat on the day you went on your business trip."
At that moment, she thought how wonderful it would be if Lu Yanzhou were here.
“Lu Yanzhou, you haven’t missed a single one of the baby’s heartbeats these past few days.”
Xia Weiwei took two steps back, creating distance between herself and Lu Yanzhou.
Her cheeks have gotten a little fuller now, and when she smiles, she looks radiant.
Lu Yanzhou's heart was filled with joy, and he unconsciously took two steps forward, pulling her into his arms again.
Xia Weiwei regained her composure and saw Aunt Zhang standing with her back to her, and she also saw the bodyguard looking towards the elevator entrance.
Fortunately, this is a one-elevator-one-household building.
Xia Weiwei nudged Lu Yanzhou's arm: "Everyone's watching."
"What's there to be ashamed of?"
Lu Yanzhou nuzzled her nose against hers and looked at Aunt Zhang.
"It's New Year's Eve, I need to go home early." Aunt Zhang, ever observant, reached for her bag.
As soon as Aunt Zhang left, the two bodyguards at the door also withdrew.
Before long, only the two of them remained in the room.
"Let's eat first, then I'll take you out to celebrate the New Year." Lu Yanzhou said, but his hands showed no sign of stopping.
Xia Weiwei shoved Lu Yanzhou, but he didn't budge.
"How am I supposed to eat if you keep doing this?" Xia Weiwei asked helplessly.
Lu Yanzhou glanced at the two people bound together like conjoined twins and said "Oh".
Xia Weiwei thought Lu Yanzhou understood and would let her go.
The next second, she was lifted into the air, instinctively reaching for Lu Yanzhou's neck.
"I'll feed you, that'll be fine."
He's always like that, hugging her all the time.
"If you keep doing this, I won't be able to walk after I give birth."
Why do we need to walk?
"Ah Yue, wouldn't it be better if I were your crutch?"
Xia Weiwei muttered under her breath, "But you can't do that forever."
"What?" Lu Yanzhou had already walked to the dining table and put her in a chair, not hearing what she said.
Xia Weiwei shook her head, and Lu Yanzhou frowned. His intuition told him that he had missed something again, just like that retracted message.
Xia Weiwei saw that Lu Yanzhou's gaze was fixed on her, and knew that she couldn't get away with it without giving an explanation.
"I said, is it safe for me to be heavily pregnant and squeeze in with everyone else?"
"With me here, why isn't it safe?" Lu Yanzhou's peach blossom eyes revealed a hint of roguishness.
It's obviously unreliable, but it makes people feel at ease.
Xia Weiwei smiled.
During the meal, Lu Yanzhou's phone kept ringing. Xia Weiwei didn't pay attention at first, but when it kept ringing, she looked at Lu Yanzhou's phone.
[Li: Mr. Lu, let's go out for New Year's Eve. I've invited several girls tonight, they're all pretty and hot.]
Upon closer inspection, I saw this message.
If it weren't for her, Lu Yanzhou would probably be having a great time with his friends right now.
Xia Weiwei pressed her lips together. Having experienced what happened in Hong Kong, she knew that Lu Yanzhou never played around with women in private; women were just tools for him to pretend to be a playboy.
However, she was still unhappy inside.
"Eat quickly, or we'll miss the midnight bell," Lu Yanzhou urged.
It's not even nine o'clock yet, how could I miss it?
Xia Weiwei picked up the beef that Lu Yanzhou had placed in her bowl, ate it, and still felt uncomfortable.
She couldn't pretend she hadn't seen it, especially since she caught a glimpse out of the corner of her eye of Lu Yanzhou smiling as he typed something on his phone.
“If you have other plans tonight, you can go,” Xia Weiwei said in one breath, then lightly bit her tongue.
Why would she say that? She doesn't want Lu Yanzhou to go.
Isn't she pushing Lu Yanzhou away by doing this?
In that instant, Xia Weiwei loathed her own hypocritical nature.
Lu Yanzhou didn't respond to her; he was still editing on his phone. Seeing that he was ignoring her, Xia Weiwei lowered her head and ate her food.
Did she talk too much just now?
Xia Weiwei wasn't enjoying her meal and didn't notice the ginger she was about to put in her mouth when Lu Yanzhou's chopsticks came across and blocked hers.
When did you start liking ginger?
"How come I didn't know?"
Lu Yanzhou's confident demeanor suggested he had complete control over her preferences.
Xia Weiwei does not eat ginger; the pungent smell of ginger will make her eyes turn red instantly.
She wasn't this pampered before; it was Lu Yanzhou who raised her to be this way.
He was replying to his friend's messages, so how could he have the energy to pay attention to her?
Lu Yanzhou took her ginger away and picked out a piece of shrimp for her. Xia Weiwei's phone flashed.
[Xiao Rongyu: Teacher Xia, there will be many media outlets at the New Year's Eve event tonight, be careful not to get photographed.]
Xia Weiwei reached for her phone, but Lu Yanzhou was faster than her.
"Who sent it?" Xia Weiwei asked, not seeing who had sent it.
Don't worry, even if I get photographed, I won't allow it to be published. Which media outlet would dare to publish it?
After replying to himself, Lu Yanzhou still felt unsatisfied.
Please add my husband on WeChat. Contact him first if you need anything.
Lu Yanzhou found his contact information on Xia Weiwei's phone, sent it to Xiao Rongyu, and also saw his own nickname in the contact.
"Gu Xianyue, explain to me, who is L?"
Lu Yanzhou squinted and showed her his phone.
L is him, how can he not recognize himself?
Xia Weiwei reached out to grab her phone, but Lu Yanzhou put it behind his back.
"Gu Xianyue, actually, it was me who delayed your New Year's Eve, wasn't it?"
Xia Weiwei: "?"
"If I hadn't come back, you could have gone to celebrate the New Year with Xiao Rongyu."
"If you hadn't come back, I probably would have found you by now and we would have been celebrating the New Year abroad together."
Xia Weiwei's tone was sharp. He knew she would come looking for him, so why did she still say that?
Xia Weiwei didn't even want her phone anymore. She got up and walked towards the bedroom.
She hadn't walked more than a few steps when someone grabbed her arm. Xia Weiwei tried to shake it off with all her might, but she couldn't.
"Xiao Rongyu heard what you said, so he probably won't bother you anymore."
Lu Yanzhou shoved her phone back into her hand. She saw that the last message in her chat history with Xiao Rongyu was a voice message, the one she had just mentioned about going to find Lu Yanzhou.
Xia Weiwei: "!"
Xia Weiwei: "..."
Does he have to be so cunning?
I'm sorry, Lu Yanzhou and I had a fight, please don't take it to heart.
She paused when she finished editing and was about to send it.
She knew Xiao Rongyu liked her, yet she still explained, wasn't she giving Xiao Rongyu a chance?
Xia Weiwei didn't send it.
Lu Yanzhou watched the girl's series of actions with a look of pleasure in his eyes. However, he suddenly thought of something and his expression changed abruptly.
Why don't I even have a name with you?
Xia Weiwei's long eyelashes fluttered, revealing a hint of innocence and naivety.
"What's your name?"
"Who adds their husband to their WeChat contacts using their name? Why don't you just add my phone number after my WeChat name so people can find me?"
Xia Weiwei thought about it carefully and nodded.
Lu Yanzhou had a bad feeling.
"You're right, I'll add the phone number right now."
Lu Yanzhou: "..."
Lu Yanzhou watched as Xia Weiwei swiped to change her nickname. Just as she was about to enter a number, he grabbed her wrist, stepped behind her, and pressed his broad chest against her back. His hand, as big as two of hers, grabbed her fingers.
Xia Weiwei, as if possessed, allowed Lu Yanzhou to control her hand and type "husband" in the note field.
Xia Weiwei's heart skipped a beat when her husband jumped out.
"Honey, this is the correct nickname."
Lu Yanzhou's breath brushed against the back of her ear. Before she could react, half of her earlobe was sucked into the man's mouth.
She trembled as if she had been electrocuted, but she tried her best to control herself.
"So what did you call me?" Xia Weiwei asked, turning her head.
"A more intimate term than 'wife'."
What term of endearment is more intimate than "wife"? "Baby"?
That's quite possible; he's been calling her "baby" a lot lately.
"No, it can't be the baby. The baby is still in my belly."
She cannot take up a baby's spot.
"You are a baby too."
"You are my big baby, and it is our little baby."
Lu Yanzhou lowered his hand and placed it on her round belly.
She will truly be completely devoured by Lu Yanzhou.
In the last second of her daze, Xia Weiwei quickly turned around and used her round belly to push Lu Yanzhou away.
"Let's go, if we don't leave now, we'll miss New Year's Eve."
Xia Weiwei pretended to be calm as she finished speaking, then turned and walked towards the door, scrolling through her phone to distract herself.
With this glance, she realized what Lu Yanzhou had been fiddling with on his phone at the dinner table.
The latest post on her WeChat Moments was made by Lu Yanzhou.
Sorry, tonight my time is only for my wife.
The accompanying image shows a man's long neck, above which hangs a silver, medieval snake chain, its tongue flicking out, lurking above the hickey.
Lu Yanzhou actually posted it on his WeChat Moments!
She couldn't even imagine how crazy the comments under Lu Yanzhou's post would be.
Xia Weiwei peeked at Lu Yanzhou changing his shoes. She quickly saved the photo and put it in her private album. Lu Yanzhou walked over, took her down jacket, and put it on her arm by arm.
Throughout the entire process, Lu Yanzhou remained detached from worldly desires, while Xia Weiwei's mind was filled with the sound of his panting as he lay on top of her that day.
"Why is your face red?" Lu Yanzhou bent down to zip up her zipper and looked up to see her face as red as an apple.
"Hot."
Lu Yanzhou pressed his forehead against hers to confirm that her temperature was normal, then looked at her carefully.
"Hurry up, we're really going to miss it." Xia Weiwei grabbed Lu Yanzhou's arm and took a big step forward, forcing Lu Yanzhou to follow behind her.
As I walked out of the residential area and headed towards the shopping mall, it was packed with people.
Xia Weiwei wore a white hat with cat ears and a white mask, only revealing her eyes as she watched everyone.
Taking advantage of his height and size, Lu Yanzhou placed one hand on her stomach and the other on her shoulder, steadily protecting her as she moved forward.
A moment later, Xia Weiwei looked at the manta flask balloon in the hand of the aunt next to her.
She just stared without saying a word.
Until the manta rose balloon was delivered to her, her eyes crinkled into a smile.
"Honey, you're so understanding."
She only had to look at it before Lu Yanzhou bought it for her.
Lu Yanzhou forced a helpless smile.
Everyone was taking pictures of the countdown on the shopping mall.
Xia Weiwei also wanted to take pictures, but there were too many people, and she couldn't get a good shot even when she stood on tiptoe.
Xia Weiwei tried several times but still couldn't get a picture. Frustrated, she put down her phone, and heard a scornful laugh from the side.
Xia Weiwei glared at Lu Yanzhou, "What are you laughing at!"
However, she could ask Lu Yanzhou to take the picture for her. Xia Weiwei smiled and handed the phone to Lu Yanzhou. Lu Yanzhou didn't take it. Instead, he took a big step behind her and stood up, towering over the crowd.
She looked down and saw Lu Yanzhou staring intently at her, then let her sit on his shoulders.
The view from up here is so expansive. Is this how Lu Yanzhou usually sees the world?
Xia Weiwei quickly finished taking the photos, looked at Lu Yanzhou, and gestured for him to put her down.
After landing smoothly, Xia Weiwei nestled in Lu Yanzhou's arms, looking through the photos she had taken.
Lu Yanzhou didn't understand what was so interesting about filming this.
However, if his wife wants to take a picture, she will definitely be able to.
When the two came out, it was almost 11:30. They were squeezing through the crowd. Soon, there was only one minute left before the year was over.
Xia Weiwei recalled how she and Jiang Linlang had set up a countdown on their phones to commemorate the New Year last year. She remembered how to do it and brought up the countdown page in the last fifteen seconds.
She held up her phone, her eyes shining brightly as she looked at Lu Yanzhou.
Lu Yanzhou glanced at the countdown on his phone; there were five seconds left. He then took out his phone.
The last second.
It's midnight.
Amidst a deafening countdown, Lu Yanzhou kissed Xia Weiwei.
Xia Weiwei and Lu Yanzhou kissed amidst the crowd, while the Manta Rose balloon slowly rose, and Lu Yanzhou's phone captured the moment.
This is their third photo together.
Under Lu Yanzhou's protection, she walked out of the crowd without any hindrance.
After arriving home, Xia Weiwei, having been pampered by Lu Yanzhou, wrapped herself in a clean cat-themed pajama and snuggled into bed. She then added the photos Lu Yanzhou had shared with her to her private photo album.
Now, she has four photos in her album!
Lu Yanzhou looked at the girl's small figure sneaking around on the bed, his face showing that there was nothing he could do about it.
"Don't keep your head down, it's bad for your neck."
He's really meddling in other people's business!
Xia Weiwei acknowledged that she knew, and Lu Yanzhou turned around and went to the bathroom to wash up. Suddenly, a girl's clear and loud voice came from inside.
"husband!"
"husband!!"
"husband!!!"
His tone grew increasingly urgent, and Lu Yanzhou immediately ran to the bedroom: "What's wrong?"
"Baby!"
Lu Yanzhou's worried expression relaxed when he saw the girl's ecstatic look.
That scared him to death.
"The baby is kicking my belly!" Xia Weiwei was both surprised and delighted. Lu Yanzhou was stunned for a moment, and his gaze slowly fell on the girl's fair and tender pregnant belly.
"They kicked it again, listen!"
Lu Yanzhou walked very fast, but his left cheek pressed against the girl's belly very slowly.
"Yes or no!?"
Lu Yanzhou gave a muffled "hmm".
My belly was flat in August, but now it's bulging like a balloon.
Inside was the fruit of their union.
His wife is so amazing! So outstanding!
Suddenly, Xia Weiwei felt water seeping out of her stomach.
"Lu Yanzhou?"
Lu Yanzhou pressed even closer to her stomach.
"Don't disturb my conversation with the baby."
"Baby, you must be good, so that Mommy will suffer less when giving birth to you."
"Mom has been spoiled by Dad into the most pampered princess in the world, and she can't endure any hardship."
Her due date is March 24th, which is more than three months away. Is it too much for him to say this now? But listening to Lu Yanzhou say it warmed her heart, so she let him talk.
After that day, the baby's interactions with them increased significantly, and Lu Yanzhou would chat with the baby for fifteen minutes every night.
Over time, Xia Weiwei realized that her baby was born a chatterbox.
After New Year's Day, a magazine wanted to book her for the first time this year, but Xia Weiwei declined, citing her need to pursue further studies.
During her prenatal checkup in January, Chen He looked at Xia Weiwei's smooth and delicate belly and exclaimed, "This is the most beautiful belly I've ever seen in any pregnant woman. President Lu has taken very good care of you."
Xia Weiwei smiled sweetly.
The baby stubbornly kept its back to them, making it impossible for them to tell whether it was a boy or a girl.
"Looks like we're really going to have to open blind boxes."
"I love both baby boys and baby girls."
Xia Weiwei looked at the pink blanket in Lu Yanzhou's hand and sneered.
If you love them all, why didn't you prepare a blue blanket?
Lu Yanzhou hired industry experts to teach her one-on-one how to manage a company, and occasionally, Lu Yanzhou would also give her extra lessons.
However, when the two were alone together, during the tutoring session, the man's large hand landed on her round belly.
Then, both of them, their faces flushed and panting, dared not look at each other again.
This year's Lunar New Year is on February 2nd, and Lunar New Year's Eve is on February 1st.
Bai Ying asked them half a month in advance whether they were going back to Hong Kong for the New Year or staying in Beijing.
Lu Yanzhou didn't want Xia Weiwei to go through all that trouble, so he said he would stay in the capital.
"Why don't we go back to the port city?" On the evening of January 31st, Xia Weiwei suggested, looking at the festive red lanterns, upside-down "Fu" characters, and Spring Festival couplets in her home.
She had no family in the capital, but Lu Yanzhou did.
Lu Yanzhou doesn't need to stay away from home for her sake.
After Xia Weiwei finished speaking, Lu Yanzhou did not respond to her for a long time. Xia Weiwei hummed in confusion.
Lu Yanzhou tapped her on the forehead: "Xia Weiwei, now that we're married, wherever you are, that's where my home is, understand?"
Home.
These are unfamiliar words.
She now has a complete family.
When she was little, she stayed by Gu Yousheng's side. During the New Year, they would sit together happily, chatting and laughing. She would listen to them chatting and laughing from the attic. One year, she spent the New Year with Li Xue. Li Xue only asked her if Gu Yousheng was coming. If he wasn't coming, then it was fine. In the end, she sat in front of the TV and watched the Spring Festival Gala.
"Have you ever watched the Spring Festival Gala?" Xia Weiwei asked.
Although the Lu family of Lu Yanzhou lives in Hong Kong, they have traditional values and watching the Spring Festival Gala is a must, even though the Gala is now very difficult to watch.
Just as Lu Yanzhou was about to tell the truth, he looked into the girl's eyes and changed his tone: "No."
"Hey, how come you're even more pitiful than me?"
"Then let's watch the Spring Festival Gala together tomorrow night." The girl held his hands in both of hers, her voice bright and cheerful.
"Great, getting married can broaden your horizons too."
At 7 p.m., Xia Weiwei lingered in front of the sofa. Lu Yanzhou had prepared the New Year's Eve dinner and came out to see her like this, knowing that she was craving something sweet again.
"So, what do you want to eat this time?"
In her early pregnancy, her cravings were purely a way of deliberately making things difficult for Lu Yanzhou; now, her cravings are genuine.
During this time, she ate imported blueberries, cherries picked less than two hours ago, and kiwis with just the right amount of sweetness, among other things.
"I want to eat Uncle Shan Ke's strawberry cake."
Lu Yanzhou went to the door and told her to wait at home.
Xia Weiwei stepped forward and said, "I want to go too."
Xia Weiwei was afraid that Lu Yanzhou would refuse her, so she pointed to her belly and deliberately stuck it out: "It's the baby who wants to go. The baby said she's been cooped up at home for five days!"
Five days ago, a heavy snow fell, and Lu Yanzhou, fearing she might slip and fall, didn't let her go out.
She wants to go herself but tries to blame the baby.
"They didn't say you couldn't go."
Lu Yanzhou figured that the snow had mostly melted the day before yesterday, and it had melted again yesterday, so there should be no problem.
In front of Uncle Shan Ke's cake shop, Xia Weiwei and Lu Yanzhou were waiting when a middle-aged woman saw them and her eyes gleamed with malice.
Why is it that her husband and daughter are in jail while she lives such a glamorous life?
The middle-aged woman took intimate photos of the two, especially Xia Weiwei's belly.
Now, her belly is so big that even a loose down jacket can't hide it.
"I was originally fortunate to have my wife's help. If my wife hadn't been so obsessed with Uncle Shan Ke's cakes, I wouldn't have been able to open Uncle Shan Ke's cake shop."
Lu Yanzhou was a regular customer of cakes, and as an investor in Uncle Shan Ke's Cakes, he had long been familiar with the female shop manager and knew why Lu Yanzhou had invested in her.
Xia Weiwei looked at Lu Yanzhou with affection and smiled, "Your cooking is still the best. Otherwise, I wouldn't have remembered it for so many years."
The female store manager, watching the eye contact between her and Lu Yanzhou, secretly smiled and said, "Madam, Mr. Lu really, really spoils you."
It's pampering, not liking, much less love.
Xia Weiwei nodded knowingly, not taking it to heart.
"Then I will definitely send a custom-made cake to Madam on the day she gives birth."
"Wishing your wife and baby a safe and healthy pregnancy in advance."
When the female shop manager finished making the cake and handed it to her, Xia Weiwei noticed that her stomach was also bulging.
I also wish you and your baby a safe and healthy journey.
In the evening, after the two finished their New Year's Eve dinner and video chatted with Grandpa Lu and Bai Ying, they sat on the sofa and snuggled together to watch the Spring Festival Gala.
The more high-tech the Spring Festival Gala is, the less interesting the content becomes.
Xia Weiwei tried her best to hold on until midnight.
"If you're sleepy, just go to sleep."
No, it's only one night a year, we should stay up all night.
Xia Weiwei was stubborn, and Lu Yanzhou had no choice but to stay with her.
The clock struck midnight on television, and fireworks lit up the sky outside. Xia Weiwei gazed at the fireworks and remembered the fireworks she and Lu Yanzhou had watched over Victoria Harbour.
Happy New Year, my husband!
Xia Weiwei's gaze was intense. Lu Yanzhou kissed her forehead, then knelt on one knee and kissed her stomach.
Happy New Year, my wife.
At the same time, she slipped two red envelopes into her hand.
"New Year's money".
Both of them went to bed very late that night, but fell asleep before 2 a.m.
At three in the morning, a night owl was actively browsing the internet when he exclaimed, "Holy crap!" Xia Weiwei is pregnant!
#XiaWeiweiSuspectedOfBeingPregnantOutOfWed# became a trending topic in just two seconds.
Lu Yanzhou was woken up by Zhang Quan's phone while the night was hanging high in the sky.
The first thing he did upon waking was to look at Xia Weiwei. Seeing that the girl was fast asleep, he coldly uttered a single word.
"explain."
"Mr. Lu, something terrible has happened! Your wife was revealed to be pregnant at 3 a.m.
It's 7 a.m. now.
After hanging there for four hours, it was too late to evacuate.
Although Weibo was down for two hours in the middle.
Lu Yanzhou responded and hung up the phone.
Something's not right. Why is President Lu so calm? He should be going crazy right now!
He scrolled through Weibo again, and suddenly, a trending topic appeared.
[Lu Yanzhou V: My child, my @Xia Weiwei V]
The accompanying picture shows the two people's marriage certificates.
Instantly, not only Weibo, but also major entertainment apps became inaccessible.
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Author's Note: Lu Yanzhou's WeChat Moments exploded. He already has a wife, and it's Xia Weiwei too? They ended up having a child after all that fighting? [eye roll]
Mr. Lu: I'm going to be famous! [Go for it!][Sprinkling flowers]
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