0155 Argument
After a few days of calm, Jiang Jifan finally mustered up the courage to make an appointment for surgery.
That day, after returning home from the hospital, fearing that Tantai Qing would become suspicious, she deliberately took off and threw away the clothes that smelled of disinfectant.
She had just come out of the bathroom when she heard the door open.
When I stepped out of the bedroom, I found that Tantai Qing had already returned home.
Jiang Jifan glanced at the alarm clock in the living room and asked in surprise, "Why are you back so early today?"
Tantai Qing stood in the entrance hall, staring at her without saying a word.
For some reason, she felt a little uneasy under his gaze.
"What's wrong?" Jiang Jifan walked over with a smile, about to bend down and take his shoes from the shoe cabinet.
Tantai Qing, however, held her shoulder firmly with one hand, stopping her from bending over, his eyes filled with an indescribable emotion.
"Jifan, is there something you want to tell me?"
She paused for a moment, then smiled to cover it up and said, "What could it be?"
Upon hearing this, the last trace of gentleness vanished from his face, and he stared at her expressionlessly, saying in a deep voice, "Are you sure?"
Seeing his reaction, Jiang Jifan's smile vanished instantly, and a bad premonition rose in his heart.
She lowered her eyes to hide her guilt, turned around to pour herself a glass of water, but her hand holding the glass trembled slightly uncontrollably.
A moment later, a voice suddenly came from behind: "Painless abortion surgery at nine o'clock in the morning on the fifteenth."
Jiang Jifan's body was stiff; he held a mouthful of water in his mouth, unsure whether to swallow or spit it out.
She suddenly caught another implication in his words, turned to look at him, her eyebrows furrowed, a hint of annoyance in her eyes, and preemptively asked, "You sent someone to follow me?"
Tantai Qing stood up and walked over to her, explaining, "I'm just a little curious about why you've been acting so strangely lately..."
"So, you're pregnant."
"Jifan, why didn't you tell me?" He held her shoulders, his expression revealing his hurt.
Tantai Qing did not question the child's origin because of this; he firmly believed in her character. However, he couldn't understand why she could make such a big decision without consulting him...
Whether it was anger at being exposed for his lie or simply frustration, Jiang Jifan slammed the cup heavily on the table, turned away, and remained silent with a cold expression.
He grabbed her arm and turned her around, his voice tinged with a hint of pleading: "Jifan, answer me."
She slowly raised her head, suppressing the bitterness in her throat, and said with a firm look in her eyes, "I don't want this child."
Even though she had expected it, Tantai Qing still felt a sudden sting when she heard it with her own ears.
He stared intently at her, forcing out through gritted teeth, "Give me a reason."
"Marriage and having children have never been part of my life plan," Jiang Jifan said truthfully, pursing her lips without flinching.
"And what about me?" Tantai Qing gave a bitter smile.
"I'm not in your life plans either, am I?"
He sat down on the sofa, looking lost and dejected, and suddenly had a strong urge to smoke a cigarette.
Just like those first few years after graduating and taking over the family business, no matter how much pressure or worry I felt, it would all disappear as soon as the cigarette smoke dissipated.
“These are two different things.” Jiang Jifan frowned at him, his eyes seeming to say, “Don’t be unreasonable.”
"So, is there still room for negotiation between us?" Tantai Qing asked again, unwilling to give up.
She remained silent again.
He immediately understood what she meant.
Tantai Qing's eyes stung, and she barely managed to suppress the extreme discomfort in her chest. She clenched her palms and tentatively asked, "What if I insist on keeping this child?"
Jiang Jifan was always perceptive. Realizing the threat, he suddenly looked up, staring sharply at him, and said sarcastically, "No one can force me to make any choice."
Then, changing the subject, he added, "Furthermore, this is my own body, and I have the right to decide whether to keep it or not!"
She has always despised women who are so weak that they have to be controlled by others even when it comes to childbirth. She does not want to be one of them, and she will never allow herself to become such a weak and incompetent person!
Tantai Qing's eyes were deep red as he looked up at her and murmured, "But that's our child..."
Whether he was trying to convince him or himself, Jiang Jifan slammed his hand on the table and shouted at him, "Tantai Qing, please be rational! It's only been two months, just an embryonic tissue that hasn't even taken shape yet!"
It's said that women develop maternal glow after having children, but she now feels that all that maternal glow has been transferred to him!
Jiang Jifan, as if remembering something, retorted sarcastically, "If you want children, there are thousands of women out there who can bear them for you!"
Upon hearing this, he felt a pang of pain in his heart and immediately explained, "I never meant that."
Tantai Qing looked at her, his eyes glistening with tears, and said earnestly, "In my heart, you are different from those people."
Did he simply want a child?
No, he just wanted his and her child...
Jiang Jifan turned his back to him, his voice cold and devoid of any emotion: "Don't have too high expectations of me. I've always been this selfish and self-serving."
She would rather belittle herself than give in.
Looking at her like this, Tantai Qing suddenly wanted to ask—if it were that person's child, would she stay?
He knew perfectly well that if he actually asked the question, it would only intensify her disgust and make him feel even more ashamed.
So in the end, he still didn't dare to ask easily.
"Didn't you say that no matter what I do in the future, you will always support my decisions?" Jiang Jifan smiled sarcastically, as if he had expected this.
Her gaze towards him was devoid of warmth, and she said numbly, "As expected, the promises you men make are nothing more than empty words."
After saying that, she refused to stay in the same room with him any longer and turned around to quickly go back to her room.
With a loud "bang!", she slammed the door shut.
Tantai Qing subconsciously got up, but then, as if remembering something, he slumped back onto the sofa, head bowed and sighing.
He wanted to go into the bedroom to talk to her some more, but he hesitated when he got to the door.
He dared not provoke her any further, fearing she might do something even more uncontrollable.
In the end, he withdrew his hand.
Fine, let them each calm down.
This was the first time the two had truly lived in separate rooms since they started living together, and neither of them slept a wink all night.
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Tantai Qing got up to wash and prepare breakfast for Jiang Jifan.
Actually, he regretted it as soon as they had argued last night. He was used to having her sleeping next to him and couldn't fall asleep at all last night. He had the urge to knock on her door and beg for reconciliation many times in the middle of the night, but he restrained himself in the end because he was afraid of disturbing her sleep.
He spent the whole night rehearsing his apology, even coming up with various ways to phrase it.
After placing breakfast on the table, Tantai Qing looked up at the clock and felt a little strange.
At this time usually, she would have already gotten up to wash and put on makeup, but today there was no sign of her.
He washed his hands and, with a nervous heart, knocked on the door.
"Jifan, are you up?"
I knocked several times, but there was no response from inside.
Tantai Qing frowned, stopped what she was doing, and pressed her ear against the door to listen for a moment.
He then decisively pushed open the door and found the huge room empty. Most of the cosmetics on the dressing table were gone, and the whole room looked deserted.
His right eyelid twitched, and a bad feeling inexplicably rose in his heart.
On the dressing table were a black square jewelry box and two bank cards, the very same two bank cards that I had given her as spare change before.
Tantai Qing had already vaguely realized something, but he was unwilling to think about it deeply.
He took a deep breath, picked up the black jewelry box, opened it, and inside was an exquisite silver tie clip, exuding a calm and noble air.
He subconsciously felt that this was something she had given him.
Her gaze inadvertently fell on the torn cards in the trash can. Tantai Qing squatted down, picked up the fragments, and pieced them back together one by one on the table.
"Taiqing, happy birthday."
The fragments were pieced together with difficulty, and only one line of flamboyant writing was clearly visible. The last line of writing was obviously deliberately blacked out with a pen, but it was still vaguely recognizable as the three words "I love you".
Tantai Qing's heart clenched, and his nose stung with tears. As if to confirm something, he clutched the few pitifully tattered cards tightly and ran to the dressing room as fast as he could. After looking around, he found that all the clothes and jewelry he had bought for her were still in their original places.
He stood there, stunned, looking incredulous. The moment he realized that Jiang Jifan had truly abandoned him, the emotional wall in his heart instantly collapsed.
The fear of losing her lover swept over her like a tidal wave. Tantai Qing's mind was buzzing, filled with panic and confusion, and she had only one thought in her mind.
That is to find her.
He turned around anxiously, grabbed his car keys, and rushed out the door.
Intuitively, he knew she hadn't gone to work. Tantai Qing kept calling her while driving, but there was no response. It was obvious that she had blocked his number.
Sending her messages on WeChat results in a string of red exclamation marks.
Tantai Qing understood her personality; she was clearly utterly disappointed in herself, otherwise she wouldn't have acted so decisively.
He slammed his fist on the steering wheel in frustration, annoyed at himself for being so reckless and slow-witted last night. He should have realized it when she said those last words, instead of waiting until now to wake up.
On the other end, Xing Yeye was woken up by her phone ringing.
She had just returned from drinking in the early hours of the morning and almost forgot that Jiang Jifan was coming to her house. After being bombarded with calls, she struggled to get up, opened the door for him, and left with the words "You decide what to do" before collapsing into bed.
"Hello..." She reached for her phone and answered it instinctively.
Is Ji Fan with you?
Xing Yeye lay on the bed, her mind foggy, and mumbled, "Who are you?"
"Tantai Qing".
"Oh," she replied with her eyes closed, "Yes..."
However, she realized something was wrong as soon as she said it, and the next second she suddenly woke up, opened her eyes and yelled at her phone: "Not here! Don't bother me!"
Then he immediately hung up the phone, feeling guilty.
Since I can't sleep anyway, I might as well get up and check the situation.
"Why did you suddenly break up?" Xing Yeye got up immediately, brushing her teeth with an electric toothbrush while mumbling the question to the woman sitting in the living room eating breakfast.
Jiang Jifan glanced at her, threw away the bun he had only taken a bite of, wiped his mouth with a tissue, and said in a low voice, "I'm pregnant, and I don't want it."
"Pfft!" Xing Yeye immediately spat out a mouthful of foam upon hearing this, staring at her in disbelief.
She put down her toothbrush, gave her a thumbs-up, and looked at her with an expression that said, "You're really something."
"Jiang Jifan, you two... you're having quite a bit of fun."
Jiang Jifan knew what she was thinking. He gave her a cold look and mercilessly shattered her fantasy: "Do you think that's possible?"
"That's true," Xing Yeye thought, nodding in understanding, then quickly rinsed the foam from her mouth and sat down next to her.
"Then what's this called?" She nudged her with her shoulder, then suddenly stopped, as if remembering something. "Unplanned pregnancy?"
Jiang Jifan remained silent with a cold expression, his irritation visibly palpable.
"Hey, speaking of which, how did you two break up?"
Xing Yeye's intuition told her that it was definitely her who initiated the breakup.
"Let me guess, is it that you don't want this fertilized egg, but that guy surnamed Dan does?"
Hearing her words, Jiang Jifan frowned, but ultimately said nothing.
"almost."
"No wonder, you were calling me in such a hurry just now..."
Seeing her looking at her, Xing Yeye immediately waved her hand and said, "I didn't say anything."
She winked and said, "Do you believe he'll be here soon?"
Finding out her home address was not difficult for Tantai Qing, and Jiang Jifan had obviously anticipated this as well, having convinced himself beforehand that he must not be soft-hearted.
Speak of the devil, and he appears; the doorbell rang shortly afterward.
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