66 Extra Four
◎Preparing for Pregnancy [Part 1]◎
In late autumn in Shanghai, Li Xiran was forced by Shang Xinuan to participate in the internal physical examination for Li's employees.
Although a long time has passed since Chen Shaoyi's attack, Shang Xinuan still feels a lingering fear every time she looks at the magnolia tattoo on his heart.
She wasn't exactly an optimist, especially with the lingering effects of unrequited love; whenever she was feeling down, her thoughts would drift back to the past with a touch of melancholy.
Even though they have been married for more than three years, Shang Xinuan still dreams of Li Xiran standing in front of her in the middle of the night. When she wakes up, her back is covered in cold sweat and she is coughing incessantly, which makes her feel terrified.
Upon learning of her thoughts, Li Xiran was sitting on the bed with his laptop, looking at reports. "I know my own health. Besides, I'm a bit busy tomorrow, so I'll schedule a check-up with my family doctor after this period."
Shang Xinuan sat on the sofa, flipping through the medical examination report. Many of the items were ones she considered very important. "May I ask, Mr. Li, how old are you this year?"
Li Xiran sighed, "Miss, you can't start disliking my age just because of a few jokes from the media."
For some reason, Shanghai media marketing accounts suddenly dug up the love-hate entanglement between the two from many years ago, and then embellished it into a romantic love story through marketing.
A prestigious family, a perfect match, a handsome man and a beautiful woman. From a young girl's secret crush to a man's awakening and pursuit of his wife, the moment they finally became a couple, they became the envy of countless people.
The ten-year age gap, further enhanced by the dreamlike touch added by the professional editors, makes it even more fantastical.
Only the protagonists at the heart of the fairy tale truly know how difficult it was for them to come together.
"Only you know whether you're healthy or not. But as your wife, I also have the right to find out through a medical checkup," the young lady said, tossing her long, curly hair.
The girl, as beautiful as a blooming flower, developed a charm in her eyes and brows that she herself was unaware of after getting married.
Just a glance from him was enough to make the person in bed feel hot in the chest.
"Alright, alright, whatever you say." Li Xiran closed his laptop, threw off the covers, slipped into his slippers, and walked toward the sofa. "However, I still have a question."
Shang Xinu crossed her arms and leaned back slightly against the sofa. "What?"
"Is it because my recent performance hasn't satisfied my wife, so you've started to feel anxious about my age?" Li Xiran stopped in front of the person, squinted slightly, and leaned down.
His silk pajamas were slightly open at the collar, the flushed red color adding a touch of sensuality to his well-toned chest muscles. His arms brushed against Shang Xi's warm cheeks, pinning her between the sofa and his chest.
Shang Xinuan looked up at him, feeling somewhat bewitched, "I'm talking to you about something very serious, can you please not go off on a tangent?"
"How can it not be a serious matter if our married life starts to become disharmonious?" Li Xiran's palm moved downwards, and he began to caress her slender waist.
Shang Xinuan was amused by his shamelessness. She reached out to push him away, but was pinned down. "I'm serious, you have to get a medical checkup."
Seeing her feigned anger, Li Xiran passionately kissed her earlobe. His tongue, hot and moist, stirred a surging tide within her. "I know, my dear wife."
Shang Xinuan then fully immersed herself in his kiss, her fingers instinctively starting to unbutton his shirt.
However, Li Xiran was not as refined as usual today. He lifted her arms and took off her nightgown directly.
"Don't bite." Shang Xinuan frowned as she felt a sharp pain in her chest, grumbling, "Can you stop acting like a savage caveman!"
“Mrs. Li.” Li Xiran lifted her knees, his shoulder blades shifting with the movement, revealing her beautiful jungle. “Today I’m clearly playing the role of a doctor, giving you a physical examination.”
Shang Xin's cheeks flushed red. Just as she was about to close her legs, the smooth little snake blocked her way at the entrance. "Husband..."
Perhaps the two of them hadn't turned off the bathroom tap after washing up, because the dripping sound was particularly deafening.
Li Xiran, however, seemed completely unconcerned about the bathroom, kneeling on one knee on the carpet in front of the sofa, engrossed in his diligent work as a senior physician.
"Are you feeling unwell?" When Li Xiran looked up again, his lips were still glistening with tears. "Then let me use some professional medical equipment to help me examine Mrs. Li."
Shang Xin's slender, white wrists were tightly bound by the ribbons pulled from her nightgown, causing her beautiful cherry-like mounds to tremble.
Along with the trembling, the tears in the corners of her eyes also trembled.
The buzzing vibration echoed in the quiet night and the bedroom, and Shang Xin's warm red lips were sealed by the man who claimed to be a senior doctor.
Apart from weak groans in his throat, all that remained were rough panting sounds.
Then look at Li Xiran, holding a small remote control, pretending to use his fingertips as a stethoscope to listen to people's heartbeats.
"Has Mrs. Li been lacking sleep lately? Her heart rate is all over the place." He pressed a button, and Shang Xinuan trembled a few times. "Sometimes fast, sometimes slow..."
Shang Xinuan's neck was pressed against the back of the sofa, and she looked like someone who was drowning and intoxicated by oxygen.
She thought that the pressure at work hadn't been too great lately, and the only reason for her lack of sleep was Li Xiran.
Unfortunately, Li Xiran did not give her a chance to complain, and continued his "inspection".
“However, it seems Mrs. Li pays more attention to health.” He raised his arm, his fingertips and palms glistening with moisture. “She’s very well hydrated.”
Shang Xinuan's insteps were all stiffened; she wanted to scold him, but her lips were blocked.
She wanted to express her anger in her flushed cheeks and wet eyes, but after a buzzing transformation, it turned into the most tender affection.
With the rapid spasms in her groin, she and Li Xiran felt as if they had taken a fresh bath.
In the lingering afterglow, Shang Xinuan's gaze could not focus.
She began to regret insisting that Li Xiran undergo a physical examination. Given the frequency with which he was putting himself through this, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was a male college freshman.
"Alright, this check is over." Li Xiran's upturned lips seemed to exude danger.
But he finally removed the gag from her mouth, "Mrs. Li, now we're going to remove the equipment so I can examine you myself."
Shang Xin's hands were still not freed, but at this moment, she felt an unusual flutter in her heart.
-
After being tormented by Li Xiran all night, Shang Xinuan couldn't even lift her arms when the morning light pierced through the pure white gauze curtains the next day.
I opened my eyes groggily and saw the marks left on my wrists from being strangled.
Unlike her, Li Xiran was exceptionally energetic.
He had just come down from the gym, his quick-drying clothes clinging to his body, and he was lifting his clothes as he walked toward the bathroom.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her on the bed, then stopped in front of the bathroom door.
"You're awake? Shall we shower together?" He had a roguish, refined yet depraved expression.
Shang Xinuan rolled her eyes, too exhausted to even swear.
When Shang Xinuan slowly got up, took a shower, and put on makeup before going downstairs, Li Xiran was already dressed in a suit and sitting upright at the dining table eating breakfast.
Even as she walked past, the hem of her skirt brushing against his ankle, her expression remained perfectly serious.
The young lady took a bite of her bagel and muttered under her breath, "Hypocritical, pretentious, and sanctimonious..."
Li Xiran only smiled faintly until the aunt who was in charge of their meals left, then raised an eyebrow and replied, "It's clear that Madam also enjoyed herself very much, isn't it?"
She truly enjoyed herself, feeling a jolt of electric shock throughout her body each time.
But the young lady is arrogant and only enjoys the pleasure she gets when she seduces Li Xiran.
"Shut up and eat. The driver has been waiting in the yard for a long time." She hadn't forgotten her schedule of accompanying Li Xiran for his medical check-up today.
“I can go for the physical examination myself; you rarely get a break,” Li Xiran said.
Shang Xinuan shook her head, "I'm off today to accompany you to your medical check-up. Who knows if someone might detour to inspect the construction site halfway through?"
Li Xiran smiled helplessly, "Mrs. Li, you really predicted it perfectly."
After breakfast, the two went out together, and Chen Ti waited in the yard.
The car was driven directly to the hospital, giving Li Xiran no chance to escape.
On the way to the hospital, the young lady leaned against him, watching the latest Chanel fashion show on her iPad. "Why do I feel like you're avoiding the physical exam?"
One of the benefits for Li's employees is a free annual physical examination, but Li Xiran always makes excuses to decline.
“I’ve just been too busy with work, so I’m not trying to escape.” As he spoke, he pointed to one of the handbags, “This one would suit you.”
"So young, yet more timid than her grandfather," Shang Xinuan complained.
Li Xiran put his arm around her shoulder and explained, "It's not that I'm afraid of trouble, it's just that life is wonderful right now, and I'm afraid of any sudden changes that might alter it."
From the time he started dating the young lady until they got married, Li Xiran finally felt like he was truly alive.
However, after a middle-aged employee in the Li family's board office was diagnosed with early-stage stomach cancer last year, a poisonous mushroom seemed to grow wildly in his heart.
He admitted that he wasn't strong enough, that he was just an ordinary person. He longed for the simplest life and love in the world, and he wanted to spend his whole life with Shang Xinuan.
"Be confident, Mr. Li. I've only set my sights on you." Shang Xinuan had roughly guessed the reason when she chatted with Xiao Su at the front desk.
Both she and Li Xiran were proud individuals, yet because they had never considered themselves extraordinary, they knew their insignificance in the natural world.
"Okay, with my wife by my side today, I'm not afraid at all."
"Alright, Li San Sui."
-
Shang Xinuan stayed with Li Xiran at the hospital all day until all of his tests were finally completed.
The reports and doctor's feedback both indicate that Li Xiran's health has been very good in recent years, including the complete recovery of his previous heart injury.
The man, nearing forty, childishly waved the report in front of Shang Xinuan's eyes, saying, "Now you can rest assured, your husband is in good health."
Not only did Li Xiran feel relieved, but even Shang Xinuan felt a weight lift from her shoulders. "Okay, I understand."
"I just didn't expect to have a pre-pregnancy checkup." He pointed to a line. "This means my sperm quality is good, right?"
Shang Xinu rolled her eyes at him and asked, "Does Chairman Li mean we should consider trying to conceive?"
After all, if it had been two years later, he would have truly been considered to have a child late in life.
Li Xiran put away the test results and put his arm around her waist. "I love children and have enough energy and time to raise one. But pregnancy and childbirth are something you, as a mother, have to bear alone, so the decision is entirely yours."
He appears gentle and kind on the surface, but deep down he is polite yet distant when dealing with people.
It was only when he was with children that the smile in his eyes was truly undisguised.
Moreover, after Li Xiran turned thirty-eight, it became increasingly clear that he enjoyed lively atmospheres.
On the Li family's internal network, you can often see photos of him taken by employees, standing outside the playground for employees' children set up by Li family.
The man often held a cup of coffee, watching the children playing wildly in the inflatable castle with a smile in his eyes.
The children's laughter added a touch of warmth and life to Li Xiran.
“I’m not joking with you, and I don’t care what others or what I say. Outsiders and men can’t truly understand what it’s like to be pregnant for ten months. You can play for a few more years if you want, or focus on your career first. I will always be your support.”
Seeing her silence, Li Xiran immediately added.
As if afraid she would suffer any psychological or public opinion, they urgently gave her a boost of confidence.
So much so that Shang Xinuan stopped and stared at him for a long time, and then burst out laughing.
Li Xiran: "What's wrong?"
The young lady blinked at him, then suddenly stood on tiptoe and hugged Li Xiran, "Li Xiran, I'm serious, let's have a baby."
She also wanted her lover to have one more family member in this world.
Li Xiran's body trembled, as if he had heard something unbelievable.
The words churned and swelled in his throat before he finally asked, "Is what you're saying true?"
In the moment of falling in love, one can feel the sentiment of "why didn't we meet sooner?"
He was also grateful for this relationship, feeling that he was the only one who had met her too late. After all, he was the one who appeared in the young lady's youth.
“Li Xiran, I know you will be a good father, and make up for our childhoods.”
Some say that a happy childhood can heal a lifetime.
But how many lucky people are there? They are destined to spend their lives healing from their childhood trauma.
Every time they return to the Shang Mansion, Shang Dan and Qiao Xi's son greets everyone in his childish voice.
Even after Shang Xinuan got married, she gave Shang Zun another kind of companionship.
The joyful atmosphere of four generations living together brought a touch of happiness to each of them.
What little Shang Siwen likes most is sitting on Li Xiran's shoulders and flying the airplane.
He was tall, giving him a strong sense of being off the ground. However, the whole family doted on the young master, and despite his young age, his weight already far exceeded that of his peers.
Shang Dan disliked spoiling his son too much and did not allow Shang Zun and Shang Chenxi to carry the young master, for fear of hurting their backs.
So every time Li Xiran and Shang Xinuan returned to the Shang family, the young master would pester Li Xiran, the only one willing to play with him, and fly around in circles in the yard.
Li Xiran was even voted by Shang Siwen as the recipient of the "Most Beloved Family Member of the Year" award.
But only Shang Xinuan truly understood that Li Xiran was making up for the regrets of his childhood.
He longed for intimacy between father and son, so he was willing to try his best to make it happen, no matter how tired he was.
As Li Xiran said, he was already prepared to become a father.
Shang Xin thought to herself that she had matured and made up for the old wounds from her childhood.
She can become a mother with a sound personality and stable emotions.
"Well..." Li Xiran's voice trailed off. After looking around, he suddenly scooped Shang Xinuan up in his arms. "Let's start with the first step: childbirth..."
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2023-06-28 22:47:32 and 2023-07-04 12:22:26!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Juejuejue (6 bottles); Jinsheng and 53296690 (5 bottles); and my spilled soy milk (1 bottle).
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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