45: We can choose not to have children.
Pei Yanxiu's plan for Shang Zhi barely lasted for the first morning before it became difficult to continue. It was snowing heavily outside, and Shang Zhi was extremely excited, showing him fun places nearby on her phone.
"Uncle Pei, you should balance work and rest."
"If you let me have enough fun, I'll definitely work hard." She clung to his arm and shook it, and in the end, he couldn't resist her and agreed to go to the park to see the snow-covered trees. It took them two hours to drive there. Usually, it wouldn't be this difficult to drive, but today the weather was cold, and many sections of the road had unmelted ice, so the car moved very slowly.
Shang Zhi was almost asleep on the way when Pei Yanxiu woke her up. She was stunned by the view before her – an endless expanse of pure, pristine white. Ignoring the cold, Shang Zhi opened the car door and rushed out.
"There's a river in there, be careful," he told her as he parked the car.
"It's okay, I saw in the short video that the river is very thick here, it's fine to drive on it." Shang Zhi couldn't hide her excitement. They kept running forward, for a long time. It was probably too cold, there were hardly any people around, except for themselves, and there seemed to be a film crew shooting a scene not far away.
"Stop fooling around. The ice here looks solid, but there are actually cracks underneath in some places. It's dangerous." Pei Yanxiu had caught up with her at some point, grabbed Shang Zhi's coat, and lifted her up like a kitten. Shang Zhi felt he was a bit of a spoilsport, like an old man. When you're out having fun, you should just enjoy yourself. Why think so much?
"Take a picture of me!" She struggled out of his arms and took a few steps away. Pei Yanzheng was about to step forward when she stopped him.
"Don't move!"
"Just stand there and take my picture!"
Pei Yanxiu frowned. He had no choice but to take out his phone to take a picture. But in the few seconds that he was looking for his phone, the ice under Shang Zhi's feet actually cracked.
Before she could react, she fell straight down!
The air temperature that day was at least minus twenty degrees Celsius, and the temperature underwater was even lower. Without thinking, Pei Yanxiu lay down at the entrance of the cave and reached out to grab it.
Fortunately, she was pulled out in time. Shang Zhi wasn't deeply submerged, but she was almost frozen stiff. Her clothes, after getting wet, froze again, binding her numb nerves. Her lips had turned purple. At the same time, the film crew shooting nearby realized something was wrong. Several people gathered around and, seeing a girl had fallen into the water, were very worried.
One of the tall, thin boys spoke up: "My RV is up ahead. There's a bed and heating in it. Go take a hot shower to warm up first. I have some clean clothes in my RV. If you don't mind, you can wear them for now." Pei Yanxiu felt that he looked familiar, as if he had seen him before, but he couldn't remember who he was for a moment.
"Thank you." No matter who it was, she couldn't care less now. Shang Zhi was so cold she couldn't speak. Pei Yanxiu carried her to the RV, helped her take off her clothes which were frozen, dried her off, wrapped her in a blanket, and kept her wrapped up for a long time before she slowly warmed up.
"Hi, are you alright?" Shang Zhi looked up. She was no longer dizzy. The RV was very warm, and she was almost fully recovered. When she saw the face in front of her, she became excited again.
"Lu Ke? You're not seeing things, are you? You're Lu Ke!"
Pei Yanxiu also remembered that the person they met today was named Lu Ke, a male actor who had been popular in the film market for more than ten years. Now he rarely acts in films himself anymore, having established an investment company and spending most of his time behind the scenes.
Shang Zhi liked him a lot for a while; she had always been attracted to his mature and elegant demeanor.
"Are you alright? We were all quite startled by the way you looked just now." Lu Ke sat down in front of Shang Zhi and gently patted her head, his tone so gentle that Pei Yanxiu wanted to hit him.
But he couldn't say anything, after all, he had just helped Xixi a lot.
"I'm fine, Brother Lu Ke, can we take a picture together?"
Brother? She actually called him brother? Is he alright? He's almost forty years old, and she calls her uncle "brother"? Pei Yanxiu felt that Shang Zhi must have frozen her brain to death after falling into the icy river.
"Of course," the shameless old man agreed.
"Xixi, it's late now. Why don't we leave without bothering them? I'd like to take you to the hospital for a check-up later."
"I'm fine, I don't need to go to the hospital." Anyone with eyes could see that Shang Zhi's eyes were fixed on her idol, and Pei Yanxiu's face turned pale when he heard her words.
"You should still go to the hospital to get checked out. You're so young, you need to take good care of yourself." Ever since Lu Ke got into the car, his eyes had been fixed on Shang Zhi. Being a fellow male, Pei Yanxiu sensed something was wrong.
"Okay, I'll listen to you then. I'll go back first. Can I add you on WeChat? I'll find a chance to return your clothes later."
“No problem.” Lu Ke laughed heartily.
On the way to the hospital, Shang Zhi was very excited, constantly reciting the dramas she had watched featuring Lu Ke over the years. Even an old Ferrari is still a Ferrari; the sudden appearance of her childhood idol beside her felt like a fairytale world had suddenly stepped into her life. She kept talking about it, oblivious to the increasingly dark expression on the man's face. But he tried his best to control himself, convincing himself that she was just excited to see her favorite celebrity.
He refused to admit that he was jealous.
To be honest, although Lu Ke is a few years older than him, he has the looks that have been tested on the big screen. Even Pei Yanxiu wouldn't dare to say that he could win against him. In terms of wealth, Lu Ke's assets are no less than his own. Shang Zhi's excitement in front of him today gave him an indescribable sense of defeat.
He rarely feels this way.
"It's nothing serious, just go home and rest. Every year, people who come here fall into the river, you're not the first." She was a little embarrassed during the hospital check-up, but the doctor was very calm.
"But your wife is a bit weak. My advice is that you shouldn't have a child yet, let her rest and recover, otherwise her body won't be able to handle it."
"We don't plan to have children." The doctor's words made Shang Zhi blush a little. Why would she want children? She herself was still a child.
Back at the hotel, Pei Yanxiu barely spoke, and even the slow-witted Shang Zhi sensed something was wrong. She kicked off her shoes and coat, sat directly on his lap, and pressed her ear against his chest.
His chest felt warm.
"Uncle Pei, are you unhappy? Is it because the doctor said today that I have difficulty getting pregnant and having children? It's okay, I won't make things difficult for you. When the cooperation ends, we'll end this marriage. You can find other women to have children for you, even ten, I won't care. I'll wish you well then."
She looked at him and smiled, somewhat smugly. The fact that he couldn't have children suited her perfectly. The two parted ways and went their separate ways.
Pei Yanxiu glanced at her, then suddenly leaned forward and kissed her lips. Before Shang Zhi could react, he pulled her clothes and carried her to the bed, positioning her in a kneeling position.
What are you doing!
"Don't move!" Shang Zhi was completely unprepared for his next move and wanted to fight back, but he suddenly pulled out his belt and pressed it against her buttocks.
"What are you doing! You can't get what you want, so you're taking it out on me! So what if I can't have children! Anyway, you're so popular, Mr. Pei, there are plenty of people willing to have children for you!"
A loud "smack" echoed in the room as Shang Zhi felt a slap on her buttocks and let out a soft cry.
The small blue box flashed by, and the next second, the pain from before melted away. She felt him, and she felt herself too. He was very rough today; one time on the bed wasn't enough, so they moved to the desk. She was held tightly in his arms, wave after wave of throbbing behind her. When it ended, Shang Zhi was completely exhausted.
They just wouldn't let him off the hook verbally.
"You're just getting revenge on me. You're such a petty person!"
Pei Yanxiu glanced at her indifferently and said, "We can choose not to have children."
"What?"
"Xixi, it doesn't matter if we don't have children, as long as you're by my side. What upsets me is that you said something like asking another woman to have my child. How can you say something like that so casually? Is that how you see me? You'd divorce your wife just because she can't have children? Do you think that liking you means wanting you to have children?"
"Whether I have children or not is up to me, Xixi."
"I only want you."
A barrage of kisses assaulted her, and Shang Zhi felt her entire body warm from his kisses.
"Besides, raising you is almost the same as raising a daughter. You're the kind of disobedient, ungrateful wretch. I've had enough of being annoyed by just one person. If I had to be annoyed by two people, I don't think I'd be able to breathe my last. Honestly, I want to live a couple more years."
"You're taking advantage of me!" Pei Yanxiu's words made Shang Zhi feel inexplicably ashamed. She reached out to hit him, but he grabbed her hand.
"It's okay, I love it even if you annoy me. I just love it when you annoy me."
He only said half of what he meant. He didn't like her making him angry; he liked her making him angry and then being completely suppressed by him, seeing her completely helpless against him.
"Xixi, stay by my side. As long as you stay by my side, that's enough."
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