Chapter 52 Where Did the Child's Father Go?
Zhou's mother was holding Chenmian's hand, laughing and joking with her, and personally peeling an orange and handing it to her.
She first saw Shang Wu, then her smile vanished in disapproval. She stood up and smiled at Zhou Yanci.
"Son, you're here. Sit down and have some fruit, and chat with Mianmian for a while."
A hint of surprise flashed in Zhou Yanci's eyes: "Chenmian, what brings you here?"
Shang Wu glanced at him without showing any emotion, unsure whether he genuinely didn't know Chen Mian was there or was pretending.
"I came to bring some fruit to Auntie, and she just said that you are having a dinner party tonight, so she invited me to join you."
After weakly explaining, Chenmian twisted the hem of her clothes with her fingertips and secretly glanced at Shang Wu.
"Miss Shang won't be angry, will she?"
Before Shang Wu could speak, Zhou's mother rolled her eyes: "What's there for her to be angry about? This isn't her home. She can stay and have dinner with me. I'll be happy to!"
Zhou Yanci frowned deeply and unconsciously stepped aside to block Shang Wu: "Mom, don't say such hurtful things. A-Wu will marry me sooner or later. We're all family."
The smile on Chenmian's face vanished, and her eyes filled with tears.
"Yes, Miss Shang will be Mrs. Zhou from now on, she will be part of your family. I am just an outsider."
She stood up, choking back tears, and said, "I think I'd better not bother you."
Shang Wu narrowed her eyes, having been coldly observing their performance until now, when she finally pushed Zhou Yanci's arm away.
As Shen Mian picked up her bag as if to leave, she snatched it from her and took out a piece of paper that was sticking out from inside.
Zhou Yanci's expression changed when she saw her holding the pregnancy test results.
"Isn't this a pregnancy test report? Who's pregnant?"
Shang Wu feigned curiosity, read on, and was then surprised: "Miss Chen, you're pregnant?!"
She stared wide-eyed at the sleeping belly, exclaiming in surprise, "Aren't you single? Whose child are you carrying?"
Shang Wu pretended to be stupid and brought the matter out into the open.
A gasp of surprise left all three of them bewildered.
Chenmian glanced at Zhou Yanci in a panic, stammering, "This, the child is..."
Zhou Yanci's pupils contracted slightly. She took a few steps over, snatched the pregnancy test results, and shoved them into Chen Mian's hand: "You have a new boyfriend, why didn't you tell me before?"
Chenmian suddenly clenched her fists, her fingertips turning white, her lips moved but she couldn't speak.
She had originally intended to use this to subtly provoke Shang Wu, and her visit to the Zhou family today was also to let Shang Wu see clearly that she had already gained Zhou's mother's approval.
Regardless of whether Shang Wu and Zhou Yanci cry or make a scene, once the truth is out, the Zhou family will definitely abandon Shang Wu and want her and the child instead.
But Chenmian never expected that Shang Wu would suddenly mention her pregnancy in public.
She never expected that Zhou Yanci would still want to keep Shang Wu and maintain their engagement even after all this.
Shenmian was on the verge of tears. "Aci, don't you know whether I have a new boyfriend or not, and whose child I'm carrying?"
"Words!" Zhou's mother also rushed over. "It's come to this point, and you..."
"What about me?" Zhou Yanci interrupted her, his sharp eyes warning them, his whole body radiating a cold, oppressive aura.
Zhou's mother was stunned by his retort.
Zhou Yanci pulled Shang Wu over, gripped her hand tightly, looked directly at Chen Mian, and said in a low, dangerous voice: "Chen Mian, you didn't even tell me about something this big? You're pregnant now, and you can't handle the high-intensity secretarial work around me. Just focus on your pregnancy and don't go to the company anymore."
“I, you…” Chenmian’s face completely collapsed, his shoulders trembled, and he didn’t know what to do.
Even though the company has issued the production certificate and the money is guaranteed to be in his pocket, why is Zhou Yanci still unwilling to confront Shang Wu?
Her eyes were filled with resentment as she stared intently at Shang Wu.
Shang Wu smiled back, reached out and grabbed Chen Mian's cold hand, patting it warmly. "You must feel ashamed and unable to hold your head up because you're pregnant out of wedlock, right?"
The sleeper paused in breathing and stared wide-eyed.
"The child's father is disgusting too. Where is he now? Why doesn't he come out and take responsibility for marrying you?" Shang Wu spoke up for her, noticing that Zhou Yanci's face had darkened.
Before Chenmian could speak, she sighed heavily again: "You're really too casual. How could you get pregnant without any legal basis and not even use protection? Call the child's father now, and I'll help you get an explanation."
Zhou Yanci swallowed hard, standing to the side being mocked, yet she couldn't show the slightest sign of discomfort.
He pulled Shang Wu aside, his Adam's apple bobbing as he squeezed out, "This is a matter for Chen Mian, so don't worry about it. Sit down and eat."
Zhou Yanci glanced coldly at Chen Mian: "Miss Chen, it's getting late, you should go back."
Despite biting her lip stubbornly, she couldn't hold back her tears and turned to run away in a huff.
"Mianmian!" Zhou's mother hurriedly chased after her.
Zhou Yanci's eyes were restrained, and he stood still.
For some reason, the thought of Shang Wu discovering his affair with Shen Mian and having a falling out with him made him disregard Shen Mian and only want to keep it a secret.
Zhou Yanci looked at Shang Wu, her tone slightly stiff: "Awu, look, Shen Mian has started a new relationship. What happened between her and me being my secretary doesn't matter. I only care about you. From now on, let's put an end to what happened between Shen Mian and me, okay?"
Shang Wu looked at him silently.
Sometimes, she truly admired Zhou Yanci's composure and acting skills.
She curled her red lips into a smile and said casually, "Fine, I never suspected you and her of anything."
"Okay, dinner will be ready soon. Please sit down first, I'll go upstairs to make a phone call."
Zhou Yanci breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that Shang Wu was not in any bad mood, and then hurriedly went upstairs.
As soon as the person left, Shang Wu's face turned cold.
She logged into her alternate account and sent a message to the reporter.
[Go expose Zhou Yanci's ex-girlfriend's visits to the Zhou family home and her hospital visits for pregnancy checkups. Go to the hospital to retrieve her pregnancy checkup records.]
The reporter quickly replied: "Sis, this time you don't seem to be giving me a tip; you're trying to use me to do something, aren't you?"
Shang Wu tapped the screen lightly: [Having received so many benefits, it's time to repay the favor.]
Reporter: [Okay, I'll help you out. May I ask your name? I'd like to be friends with you.]
Shang Wu thought for a moment: "I'll tell you after I've finished everything."
She put away her phone, just as Zhou's mother returned, seemingly having been outside comforting someone who had been sleeping for a long time.
As soon as she entered the door, Zhou's mother stared coldly at Shang Wu.
"You really have a knack for this, managing to drive them away with just a few words?"
Shang Wu asked in confusion, "Angry? I didn't say anything nasty. Every word I said was for her sake. How did that make me angry?"
Zhou's mother sneered and nodded: "Fine, I won't argue with you about that. Let's talk about you."
She crossed her arms, walked up to Shang Wu, and looked down at her, saying, "You had a physical exam six months ago. I heard you say you didn't have any major problems, but you had a lot of minor ones, like poor blood circulation and a bad cervical spine, right?"
"yes."
Shang Wu looked up and smiled: "I worked myself to the bone in the jewelry department to generate revenue for Yanci's company. Are you going to compensate me or treat my illness?"
Zhou's mother's lips trembled, and she was forced to swallow back the words she wanted to say.
She felt a pang of frustration: "I'll treat your illness! You two are getting married soon, how can you get pregnant with this kind of body and carry on the family line for Yanci? Here's what I'll do, I'll get you some medicine, you can drink it later to nourish yourself."
Before Shang Wu could speak, Zhou's mother turned and went to the kitchen to instruct them to prepare the medicine.
After the meal was prepared, the medicine was also brought up by the servants.
Shang Wu pinched her nose, unable to stand the smell of the medicine. Seeing the dark, steaming black water in the bowl made her want to vomit even more.
What does it taste like?
Zhou Yanci frowned as she came out of her room upstairs: "Mom, what are you doing? This smell is disgusting."
Zhou's mother pushed the herbal soup directly in front of Shang Wu: "This is to nourish your fiancée so she can get pregnant sooner. Otherwise, after you get married, everyone else will have children, but her belly will be flat and there will be no sign of pregnancy. Isn't that embarrassing?"
Shang Wu's eyes grew cold as she sat on the sofa with her head down, remaining silent.
Looking down, Zhou Yanci could only see her soft black hair and slender shoulders.
He suddenly remembered that Shang Wu had been working hard to earn money for him over the past three years, and had lost more than ten pounds. Even after a nutritionist personally helped her recover, she still couldn't regain the weight.
Zhou Yanci's heart softened, and she moved the bowl of medicine away.
"Forget it, I'll find a way to make sure A-Wu has some nourishment later. Will she be able to eat anything after drinking this medicine? Don't give her any more."
Zhou's mother quickly snatched it back, glaring at him: "I'm doing this for her own good. I drank countless times when I was pregnant with you. How come she's so delicate and can't even have a sip?"
She glanced at Shang Wu: "Shang Wu, this is me, as your future mother-in-law, showing my concern for you. Are you going to drink or not?"
"Mom!" Zhou Yanci said in a deep voice to stop her.
Zhou's mother was even more displeased and retorted, "Don't worry about it! I'll have Shang Wu say it herself."
Zhou Yanci pursed her lips, her fists clenched and unclenched repeatedly, and finally looked at Shang Wu.
"Awu, if you don't want to drink, don't force yourself."
Shang Wu finally raised her eyes, her gaze sweeping over his feigned expression of concern, and stood up.
"Since Madam asked me to drink, I will definitely drink. She meant well, and I don't want to disappoint her."
Zhou's mother was certain that she wouldn't dare disobey her, and snorted, "Did you hear that? Don't treat Shang Wu like a porcelain doll, protecting her even when she's taking medicine."
Shang Wu picked up the medicine, her eyes crinkling as she smiled gently at Zhou Yanci: "It's alright, Yanci. Don't you want to have a child with me too? I'll drink it no matter how bitter it is."
Zhou Yanci's eyes flickered slightly. He reached out and patted Shang Wu's cheek, nodding helplessly.
Zhou's mother crossed her arms and watched coldly.
This herbal decoction contains nothing but a sufficient amount of Coptis chinensis.
She wanted to see if Shang Wu would dare to bully Chen Mian and her unborn grandson again!
Shang Wu lowered her eyes, a cold light gleaming in them, and stirred the steaming medicine. The porcelain spoon clinked against the bottom of the bowl, making a particularly crisp sound in the living room.
She raised the soup bowl to her lips, about to drink, when she suddenly hissed, "It's so hot!"
Shang Wu immediately withdrew her fingertips, her hand slipped, the rim of the bowl tilted, and a bowl of hot medicine was splashed onto Zhou Yanci, accurately pouring onto him.
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