Chapter 49
Like a blow to the head, Han Shuo's mind went blank for a moment.
"What did you say?"
"I told you you're only one month pregnant."
Han Shuo finally heard it clearly. He was stunned for more than ten seconds before he reacted and snatched the test report.
However, when he saw the contents of the list, it was as if a thunderbolt had exploded in his mind.
At the same time, Meng Yuxiu's ears were also ringing, and he froze on the spot.
Now Han Shuo was like he'd been injected with adrenaline; his voice was strong, and he no longer needed Meng Yuxiu to communicate about his condition.
He jumped up from his chair, shaking the lab report excitedly: "A month?! How is that possible?"
Han Shuo's mind was in a mess and could no longer function.
He said incredulously, yet with an air of certainty, "Impossible! Doctor, I'm sure I'm four months pregnant, because I was nauseous and vomiting in March."
He spoke incoherently, as if seeking confirmation from a second person, asking Meng Yuxiu, "Yes, right? I conceived in early March, didn't I?"
"Yes." Meng Yuxiu nodded repeatedly and asked the doctor, "Doctor, could there be a mistake?"
Doctor: "How could these test results be wrong? It's been a month. Let me ask you, when was the last time you had sex?"
Han Shuo's eyes flickered as he began to recall. However, the deeper he thought, the more his sluggish brain slowly started working again, and then a point in time that nearly drove him to despair popped into his head.
He stared wide-eyed and swallowed hard.
Of course, Meng Yuxiu had thought of that too. The last time they were together was that time in the dormitory, and after that, they were busy preparing for the college entrance examination and had never been close to each other again.
Just as he was about to gasp, he caught a glimpse of someone next to him stumble and bump into a chair with a loud thud. He quickly caught Han Shuo, who was about to faint.
"Han Shuo!"
Han Shuo was on the verge of a heart attack. He had accepted that men could give birth and that he was four months pregnant, but he simply couldn't accept the devastating news that, four months into his pregnancy, the doctor had suddenly informed him that he was only one month pregnant.
At that moment, Han Shuo truly felt like he was about to vomit blood and die.
But he died with his eyes wide open, and straightened his almost limp body. He pointed at Meng Yuxiu and said to the doctor, "It's impossible, doctor. I... I've done it with him, not the doctor, I've done it with him many times. You're saying I'm only one month pregnant?"
Han Shuo's head was buzzing, and he was even speaking incoherently, "Then why didn't we get pregnant before? No... how did it become a month?"
Han Shuo was so shocked by the news that he didn't even stop talking, and in an instant, everyone in the clinic turned to look at him.
Meng Yuxiu stood to the side, his face flushed with embarrassment.
The doctor also remarked on how open-minded young people are these days, but as a doctor, she still earnestly explained to Han Shuo: "It's not that easy to get pregnant. You only have a chance if you ovulate."
"Wh-what? What period?" Han Shuo's face twitched stiffly.
"It's during ovulation."
Han Shuo was about to subconsciously retort that men could have such a thing, but then he thought about it and realized that it made sense. If a man could get pregnant, how could he conceive without eggs?
The doctor smiled and said, "It's normal that you're young and don't understand, but you'll have to know next time. A man's ovulation period is actually quite obvious."
As soon as the doctor finished speaking, a nerve in Han Shuo's brain snapped, and he immediately understood.
For a moment, Han Shuo felt a heart attack and pounded his chest.
As he walked out of the hospital, he wanted to look up to the sky and howl, tears streaming down his face. But in the end, all he could do was grit his teeth and curse bitterly, "Damn it!!"
This blow was so devastating that Han Shuo was unable to recover for a long time.
If he had known that his most horny day was during his damn ovulation period, he would have stuffed himself with cotton instead of climbing into Meng Yuxiu's bed!
What pained him even more was that he had always believed he was pregnant, so he dragged Meng Yuxiu along on a crazy mission. Everything was fine until he, in his cleverness, got himself into trouble and turned a false alarm into reality.
Thinking of this, Han Shuo could no longer control his anger. He stood under the tree in the hospital flower bed, leaning against the tree trunk, wanting to cry but having no tears.
Meng Yuxiu was startled by Han Shuo's appearance, but his mind was also in a mess. He could only reach out and pat Han Shuo's back to comfort him with trepidation.
"Han Shuo..."
"Ah—" Han Shuo was exhausted, on the verge of collapse, and incredibly hot. He let out a dry howl and cursed, "I shouldn't have let my ass get the better of me during my ovulation period! Damn it!"
"Don't do this, Han Shuo." Meng Yuxiu was also anxious. "It's not your fault, it's my fault for not controlling myself... myself."
Seeing that Han Shuo's self-blame did not alleviate his feelings, Meng Yuxiu pondered for a moment and continued to comfort him: "Han Shuo, we actually thought she was pregnant all along, and now we know she is..."
It would have been better if he hadn't said anything; Han Shuo was even more devastated after he did.
"Then why don't you say that I didn't have to get pregnant in the first place?!"
"..." Meng Yuxiu was so anxious that he forgot his logic. He said to Han Shuo, "Then we'll avoid your ovulation period next time."
Han Shuo raised his foot to kick him, "Damn it! Next time?! You still want to go next time?! I'm already pregnant, do you need to avoid me?!"
Meng Yuxiu quickly reached out and pressed down on Han Shuo's raised leg. Ignoring the curious glances from the people coming and going in the hospital, he whispered, "No, be careful..."
Han Shuo stopped kicking. He gritted his teeth and stared at Meng Yuxiu's face, becoming more and more agitated. Especially after he remembered that Meng Yuxiu was the one who started the pregnancy, he became even more uncontrollable and started cursing at Meng Yuxiu in the ear.
"If you hadn't said something, she might already be pregnant..."
"How could I possibly give myself such a terrible idea?..."
"Damn... you keep asking me every other day, 'Have you thrown up? Have you felt nauseous?'"
"I really... I'm fucking impressed by you, you old bastard!"
Meng Yuxiu dared not utter a sound, but nodded repeatedly after Han Shuo finished speaking.
Han Shuo cursed for a while, then stopped, because he felt nauseous again, which undoubtedly made his already miserable day even worse.
He had originally planned to look for work in the county town that afternoon, but now he was in no mood for it. He needed at least two days to recover from this bad news.
In addition, I was feeling really unwell.
Thinking of this, and then of what he had said to Meng Yuxiu in the dormitory that night, he felt like crying.
That night, he happily told Meng Yuxiu that he was pregnant with a quiet, simple-minded child.
Haha, no wonder the idiot didn't move, turns out he's pregnant with a fart.
Now look what's happened, this idiot is protesting. He's been vomiting like crazy.
Since Han Shuo wasn't in the mood to look for a job today, Meng Yuxiu took him to the train station. Considering that Han Shuo hadn't eaten lunch, Meng Yuxiu bought some biscuits at the station for him to eat on the way.
While waiting for the train at the station, Meng Yuxiu carefully observed Han Shuo's unpleasant expression, while Han Shuo seemed to have lost all will to live.
The two waited at the station for about ten minutes before boarding the train. However, they hadn't been sitting in their seats for long when many more people began to pour into the carriage.
They were all people returning to their hometowns from the county seat. They carried large and small bags, eating and chatting on the bus, and some even brought chickens and ducks on board.
Han Shuo felt a wave of nausea wash over him upon seeing the scene. The stuffy carriage, filled with various odors, made it impossible to escape even with the windows open.
But at this moment, Meng Yuxiu was worried that he hadn't eaten lunch, so he opened the biscuits in the oil paper packaging, handed them over and asked him if he wanted some.
Han Shuo was both upset and annoyed, so he waved his hand, frowned, and said, "You eat by yourself."
"Okay." Since Han Shuo wouldn't eat, Meng Yuxiu put the biscuit in his mouth.
Han Shuo originally told Meng Yuxiu to eat by himself, but he is currently in the first trimester of pregnancy, and the doctor said that nausea, vomiting, chest tightness, and frequent irritability are all normal phenomena for pregnant women.
So when Han Shuo heard Meng Yuxiu munching on cookies like a hamster, he immediately got a little angry.
Meng Yuzheng was eating when he suddenly heard a "tsk!" from the side.
Meng Yuxiu paused, stopping his chewing.
He glanced at Han Shuo discreetly, while Han Shuo frowned, closed his eyes, and rested with his arms crossed.
Meng Yuxiu thought he had misheard, but he waited a moment until he was sure that the sound might not have come from Han Shuo's mouth.
He then continued chewing.
However, the moment he opened his mouth...
"Tsk!"
This time he was certain that the voice came from Han Shuo.
Meng Yuxiu silently melted the biscuit in his mouth, hesitated for a moment, then leaned over and asked Han Shuo, "Do you want some?"
"You eat it yourself."
"..." Meng Yuxiu didn't dare to continue eating and put the cookies away.
After driving for half an hour on the winding mountain road, Han Shuo couldn't take it anymore. He never gets carsick, but he was in the early stages of pregnancy.
"How much longer until we arrive?" Han Shuo felt nauseous. His face was ashen with discomfort. After asking the question, he quickly shut his mouth, otherwise he felt he might vomit at any moment.
Seeing that his eyebrows were furrowed and even his toes peeking out of his sandals were curled up, Meng Yuxiu was extremely anxious. He could only keep reassuring him, "It'll be there soon, just hang in there a little longer."
Han Shuo nodded with difficulty, closed his eyes, and continued to suppress the discomfort in his stomach.
However, after the car had been driving for another ten minutes or so, he was on the verge of a breakdown, and even sticking his head out of the window did nothing to help.
He grabbed Meng Yuxiu's thigh and gritted his teeth, saying, "I want to get off!"
The car would have to drive at least another half hour to get to Han Shuo's village. If they got out now, even if Han Shuo recovered, they would still have to wait for the next trip.
Meng Yuxiu thought for a moment and said to Han Shuo, "Wait ten more minutes, get off at my village first, and then I'll ride my bicycle out and take you home, okay?"
Han Shuo had reached the point where he would spew words as soon as he opened his mouth, and he nodded hurriedly.
When the car arrived at the intersection of Xiqiao Village, before it had even come to a complete stop, Han Shuo rushed out of the car, with Meng Yuxiu following closely behind him.
After getting out of the car, Han Shuo vomited violently.
After he finished vomiting, Meng Yuxiu helped him sit under a big tree by the roadside and let him rest against the trunk.
After vomiting, Han Shuo felt better and asked Meng Yuxiu to go back and bring out his bicycle.
"Could you get me some more water? I'm so thirsty."
"Okay, okay." Meng Yuxiu nodded in agreement, but he was still worried about Han Shuo, so he asked, "Are you sure you'll be alright here by yourself?"
"Okay." Han Shuo waved his hand weakly. "You should go back now. If you don't bring me some water, I'll die of thirst."
"Okay, I'll go right away!" Meng Yuxiu immediately stood up. After glancing once more at Han Shuo, who was slumped against the tree trunk, he took off running towards Xiqiao Village.
Meng Yuxiu ran very fast, even faster than when he participated in sprints in school.
He didn't feel the heat, and even as sweat streamed down his angular face, he didn't bother to wipe it away.
He was preoccupied with Han Shuo under the tree, so he strained all his muscles to the limit, and the ten-minute journey from the intersection to his home took him less than five minutes.
Today was the day their son received his report card. After lunch, Meng's parents waited at the door. They estimated that after Meng Yuxiu picked up his report card, had lunch in the county town, and then took a bus home, it would be around 2 p.m.
However, the couple waited until nearly four o'clock, and even when the elderly men and women in the village came to rest under the tree, they still couldn't see their son.
The elderly folks knew that the high school seniors had received their results, and they also knew that the Meng family's son had always been an excellent student, so they reassured Meng's parents, "What do you two have to worry about? With your son's good grades, he can easily get into university. Don't worry."
Despite saying that, Mencius' mother still looked a little nervous. She smiled and said, "Oh dear, how can parents not worry? My child has worked hard for three years, all for this day."
Meng's father remained calm, but his brow was always furrowed on his serious face.
Meng's parents had only been chatting with the elderly folks for a short while when they saw Meng Yuxiu rushing over from the village entrance.
"Xiao Xiu!"
"Mom and Dad," Meng Yuxiu greeted them, panting. He was about to run into the yard before he could even stand properly when his father called out to him.
Only then did he remember that he had just received his report card that day. He had two file folders in his hand, one of which was Han Shuo's. He glanced at it, handed his own to Meng's father, and then, unlike other college entrance exam takers who accompanied their parents to see their results and share the good news, he ran straight into the house.
Han Shuo was thirsty, but in this era, there was no bottled water or refrigerator at home; the only water was in a thermos.
The water in the thermos was very hot, and even if he brought it over, Han Shuo wouldn't be able to drink it in a short time.
So he took two large bowls from the cupboard, poured water from the thermos into one of the bowls, and used the two bowls to switch back and forth to cool the water down.
Sweat dripped from his forehead, and since he couldn't free his hands, he simply shrugged and wiped it away.
He had only been cooling the boiling water for a short while when he heard a commotion outside, with congratulations pouring in. Soon, Meng's parents entered the kitchen.
Meng's mother couldn't contain her joy as she walked along, holding the report card and calling out, "Xiao Xiu! Oh, Xiao Xiu, you worked so hard on the college entrance exam! You did so well! Mom is so happy for you."
Although Meng's father's expression didn't change much, the joy and satisfaction in his eyes were obvious. He said to Meng's mother, "Go buy a fish today, and also some braised beef that he likes."
"Alright, alright!" With her son scoring so high on the test, Meng's mother still couldn't bear to go grocery shopping.
But when she saw her son pouring water into the bowl with such focus and haste, she clapped her hands and exclaimed, “Oh dear, your dad and I were so worried today that we forgot to let the boiled water cool down. Are you thirsty? Come on, let Mom get you some. You left early this morning and only came back at this hour. You must be exhausted. Go sit down and rest.”
"No need, Mom." At this moment, Meng Yuxiu was afraid that Han Shuo's water would be delayed by others. He felt that he would only feel at ease if it was handled by himself. Without looking up, he said, "My classmate... is carsick and is at the intersection. I have to bring him some water."
"Oh, okay, then Mom will go buy you groceries."
"good."
Meng's mother left, and Meng's father was nowhere to be found. Meng Yuxiu didn't care. When he estimated that the water temperature was about right, he took a sip himself, then found the kettle in the house and poured the warm water from the bowl into it.
However, as he was unscrewing the cap, a book suddenly appeared in front of him.
Meng Yuxiu was taken aback, and he turned to look at his father.
Mencius' father: "Here, take it."
"Dad?" Meng Yuxiu asked, somewhat puzzled.
Meng's father said, "Your mother and I were worried that reading these random things would interfere with your studies, but now that you've finished your exams, you can take them home and read them."
As he spoke, he coughed awkwardly again: "Although you are an adult now, your father and mother both think that you should read less of some books, as they are not good for your physical and mental health. What kind of nonsense is this? It's unbearable to read."
Upon hearing this, Meng Yuxiu glanced at the somewhat familiar book in his father's hand, and in an instant, he suddenly realized what it meant.
After handing the book to his son, Meng's father went outside to chat with the villagers.
Meng Yuxiu opened the book in the kitchen. The book, about the size of his palm, was very thin. He turned the pages one by one, and when he turned to the last page, his eyes suddenly widened, and his dark pupils trembled.
When he took the bag containing the water bottle and books and rode out on his bicycle, he was still in a state of shock and confusion. He pedaled the bicycle frantically, speeding along the dirt road interspersed with green rice fields.
His heart was pounding, especially after he saw the person under the big tree at the intersection.
"Why did it take you so long to get back?" Han Shuo lazily shifted his position as he saw Meng Yuxiu riding his bike up like a shot.
Meng Yuxiu didn't say anything, but quickly stopped his bicycle, then took the bag off his shoulder, took out a water bottle, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to Han Shuo.
Han Shuo's mouth was parched, so he gulped down the contents of the teapot. Only after he finished did he realize that Meng Yuxiu was staring at him.
And his eyes seemed to want to say something but hesitantly.
Han Shuo asked, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Meng Yuxiu hesitated for a moment before slowly saying, "Han Shuo, I have two pieces of news to tell you."
"..." To be honest, Han Shuo was a bit overwhelmed by any news, especially after seeing Meng Yuxiu's strange expression, he subconsciously felt that something was wrong.
He twitched his lips slightly and hesitated, saying, "Tell me first, is it good news or bad news? Let me see if I can accept it."
Meng Yuxiu pursed his lips and said, "I'm not sure whether this is good news or bad news for you..."
Han Shuo gently twitched his cheek again. "And what about you?"
Meng Yuxiu's eyes flickered for a moment, and he said vaguely, "It should... be considered good news."
“That’s it…” Han Shuo said immediately, “Generally speaking, your good news is my bad news.”
"But I think I still have to tell you."
Meng Yuxiu's words only made things worse, and they piqued Han Shuo's curiosity.
So Han Shuo gritted his teeth and looked at him, "Tell me the good news first, and I'll see if the good news can make up for the bad news that's coming next."
“Okay.” Meng Yuxiu nodded and said, “Han Shuo, from today onwards, we don’t have to keep doing missions.”
Holy crap! This is really good news!
Given Han Shuo's current physical condition, making him do the remaining dozens of missions would be tantamount to putting him on a hot plate.
The news was so good that Han Shuo could hardly think of any bad news that could be more impactful than this good news.
He suddenly felt confident in facing bad news, and he said to Meng Yuxiu with a triumphant air, "Come on! Start with your bad news!"
Meng Yuxiu looked at him hesitantly and said, "You probably need to make some preparations."
"Heh." Han Shuo chuckled. "Have I been receiving less bad news lately? Don't worry, after living for twenty-two years, I still have the resilience to handle this much pressure."
"Okay." Han Shuo wasn't overly nervous, but Meng Yuxiu took a deep breath, took out the small book from the bag, and handed it to Han Shuo.
Like Meng Yuxiu, Han Shuo was stunned for a few seconds before realizing that this was the novel.
Yes, his book was gnawed to pieces by rats, while this one belonged to Meng Yuxiu.
"Wow, you found yours?"
“My dad confiscated it earlier, but he gave it back to me today when the results came out,” Meng Yuxiu added. “You can take a look first…”
Han Shuo stared at the book in his hand, then glanced up at Meng Yuxiu's expression.
Meng Yuxiu was unusually nervous; Han Shuo felt he was even holding his breath. This made Han Shuo somewhat hesitant as well.
But he still opened the book and sat under the tree to read it carefully.
The first few pages of this novel are almost identical to what Han Shuo pieced together, but it's written in more detail. For example, it even explains how to kiss. After flipping through a few more pages, it talks about skipping the first task, the second task, and how to have sex, and it's as detailed as an erotic novel.
On the last page, Han Shuo saw the ultimate mission. That one glance shattered his mental fortitude! He felt as if he'd been struck on the head, the book trembling violently with his shaking hands.
"Damn..." Today's blows came one after another, not even giving him a chance to catch his breath.
Han Shuo was about to faint; he kept muttering "Ouch... Ouch..."
It was like an old ox that had plowed ten acres of land, barely hanging on by a thread.
Seeing Han Shuo's intense reaction, Meng Yuxiu was immediately startled and quickly hugged him, crying out, "Han Shuo! Han Shuo!"
Han Shuo was desperate. When Meng Yuxiu said there was bad news, a jumble of possibilities flashed through his mind, he even thought of "mouth".
"lie"
"Yan"
"Urine".
It's okay, it's okay, these are just a small matter.
But he never expected it to be this!!!
The last page of the novel contains only three sentences.
If you find the first two tasks troublesome and a waste of time.
[Simply complete the ultimate mission and have a child to return to the 21st century, and you can take the child with you.]
[The story is complete.]
"Damn it!!" Han Shuo roared, throwing the book in his hand several meters away.
Meng Yuxiu quickly ran to pick it up and then put his arm around Han Shuo again.
"Are they fucking messing with me?! Huh? One after another, even Pinduoduo isn't this outrageous and infuriating!" Han Shuo's chest heaved with anger, his adrenaline surging again. He clenched his fist and pounded his aching chest, gritting his teeth and cursing, "Whoever wants to do this stupid task can do it, I'm not fucking playing anymore!!"
"Who the hell knows if after giving birth to one, I'll have to have four, five, six, seven, or eight more! Do they think I'm some kind of sow?! Damn it!"
Han Shuo was so angry he had a heart attack. Why didn't this novel just wait until his chrysanthemum was ruined before he appeared?!
Meng Yuxiu bit his lip and said, "But it's already marked as 'The End'..."
Han Shuo glared at him and blurted out, "Who knows if it's just a joke!"
Meng Yuxiu lowered his eyes, staring at Han Shuo's lower abdomen, and whispered, "So what do we do now?"
"What are we going to do?!" Han Shuo gritted his teeth. "Have a baby, bro! It says you can take the baby back with you if you have one, damn it! Do you even know what taking it back means? It's not like it's some random cat or dog, are you going to raise it?"
Meng Yuxiu nodded hurriedly, "I can raise it!"
Han Shuo glanced at him sideways and said coldly, "You'll raise it? You'll probably still be a high school student when you get back. Are you going to feed it milk then? Or are you going to bring it to class?"
Meng Yuxiu nodded hurriedly, looking at Han Shuo and saying eagerly, "I really can take care of it. I have savings. I can give it all to you, and I can take care of you and...it."
"Alright, alright, this is so annoying." Han Shuo didn't want to hear any of this right now; he was both headache-inducing and annoyed.
His original plans were disrupted time and time again. Although he grumbled that he wouldn't participate in the tasks for this damn novel, he was actually helpless.
Because it's a fact that he's pregnant now; if he hadn't been pregnant, he might have been able to just walk away without a care in the world.
"Aaaaaah!!" Han Shuo angrily pulled his hair into a mess.
Meng Yuxiu didn't know what to say, so he could only sit quietly to the side and stare intently at Han Shuo's face.
It took Han Shuo more than half an hour to calm down.
He frowned and turned to look at the person beside him. "What are your plans?"
Meng Yuxiu pursed his lips and said, "I'll listen to you, Han Shuo."
"..." Han Shuo clicked his tongue in annoyance. After struggling for a moment, he raised his chin at Meng Yuxiu and said, "Then let's take another gamble. What else can we do? Damn it!"
Meng Yuxiu instantly raised his lowered eyes and swallowed hard.
After Han Shuo finished speaking, he kicked Meng Yuxiu's foot in annoyance.
However, after calmly considering everything, he realized that knowing the ultimate mission made no difference. After all, he's a grown man who can get pregnant, so why the hell am I afraid of having one?!
Okay, anything is fine as long as I can get back!
But when it came to giving birth… Han Shuo suddenly shuddered. Damn! If it were three or four months pregnant, he might be able to fool Han Hong by wearing loose clothing, but to be pregnant all the way to birth…
Han Shuo thought of this.
It's mid-June now, and she's one month pregnant. Now that her results are in, Han Hong will definitely want her to go to university. It's okay if he can't see her big belly while she's at university, but she'll be home for the Lunar New Year holiday, right?
This year, the Lunar New Year falls in mid-January.
Han Shuo squinted, counting on his fingers as he muttered, "Six to seven, seven to eight... December to January..."
Damn! By then, there will be seven months left until the Lunar New Year, and his belly will be as big as a washbasin.
He glanced at Meng Yuxiu, who stood beside him with a tense and anxious expression.
Meng Yuxiu had a gut feeling about what Han Shuo was going to say, and at the same time, he had a gut feeling that something bad was about to happen.
He swallowed hard and asked, "Han Shuo, what's wrong?"
Han Shuo frowned and said, "Tsk, it seems I have to be honest with my brother."
Meng Yuxiu opened his eyes wide again, swallowed hard, and slowly nodded, saying, "Okay, I'll go back with you. I'll go see your brother."
Seeing his tense expression, Han Shuo couldn't help but laugh and said, "What? Aren't you afraid my brother will break your legs?"
Meng Yuxiu was afraid, of course he was afraid, but he had to take responsibility; he couldn't let Han Shuo go back and face it alone.
He said with a firm look in his eyes, "I'm not afraid."
Han Shuo snorted, "Don't fucking run faster than a dog like last time."
“No,” Meng Yuxiu said. “Even if your brother breaks my legs this time, I won’t leave.”
In truth, Han Shuo was also filled with anxiety, because he was afraid that his brother would break his legs as well. But he couldn't very well elope with Meng Yuxiu, after all, he couldn't bear to leave his brother and nephew.
He looked at the trembling yet incredibly determined eighteen-year-old boy and felt a pang of worry for him. To be honest, if his brother really wanted to hit Meng Yuxiu, he definitely wouldn't be able to bring himself to do it.
So he kicked Meng Yuxiu's foot and said, "If he really hits you, I'll stop him. Also, don't just stand there like an idiot and let him hit you. What if you break your leg? How will you go to work in the future? Crawl to work?"
"..."
With five o'clock fast approaching, and knowing they had to face it sooner or later, the two mustered their courage and rode their bikes back to Xiaoshi Village.
On the way, as Meng Yuxiu rode his bicycle with Han Shuo on the back, he made up his mind and faced death without fear, as if no matter how great the storms ahead, they could not stop his heart from wanting to protect Han Shuo.
However, as the bicycle drew closer to its destination, it felt like a nightmare was repeating itself. The moment he stopped the bicycle, his legs still felt slightly weak.
Han Shuo got out of the car and saw that Meng Yuxiu's eyes were fixed on the house in front of him, his fair face expressionless. He looked down and saw that Meng Yuxiu's hands were clenched into fists.
"..." Han Shuo couldn't help but say, "Seriously? Are you that scared? Maybe... you should come another day."
Meng Yuxiu shook his head, took a deep breath, and stubbornly said, "Today."
“Alright…” Han Shuo led the stiff Meng Yuxiu a few steps forward, then stopped after thinking it over.
"I think it's better this way: I'll go in first, and you can stand outside."
White smoke curled from the black chimney on the roof. Han Shuo said to Meng Yuxiu, "My brother is making dinner at this hour. You just stand outside and hide for a bit. Wait for me to show him my report card. You know, I got into Heyuan University. My brother will be ecstatic!"
Meng Yuxiu nodded with a serious expression and continued to listen to Han Shuo's instructions.
"I need to give my brother some good news first, and then... you know, that way the blow won't be too much for him."
"good."
"Oh, by the way, remember to call me 'brother' then, okay? Be a little sweeter, smile a little more, don't always have that cold face. You're not a male model, what are you trying to look cool for? That way, you might get beaten up less."
Meng Yuxiu said solemnly, "I know, I understand. Actually, I'm always polite when I meet elders and teachers."
"Alright."
After giving his instructions, Han Shuo stood still, took a deep breath, and then continued walking forward.
And at this tense moment, as if the thing inside his belly could sense it, his pregnancy symptoms mysteriously disappeared again.
Meng Yuxiu kept a distance of more than ten meters and watched Han Shuo walk into the house first. He stood furtively by the wall outside the door, listening to the sounds inside.
Today, Han Shuo went to pick up his report card, and Han Hong had been preparing dinner since the afternoon. He was getting impatient and told Han Ting not to go out to play in the afternoon, but to wait at home as well.
So when they saw Han Shuo walk in, Han Ting immediately jumped up on the bench, shouting, "Uncle, oh my god!!!"
Han Hong immediately dropped the fire tongs and came out from behind the stove, "Xiao Shuo!"
Han Hong's face was filled with anxiety, tension, and excitement. But he didn't dare to ask Han Shuo directly, fearing that Han Shuo hadn't done well on the exam. So the father and son held their breath and waited for Han Shuo.
Han Shuo handed the file folder to Han Hong, then said happily, "Brother, I can go to university!"
"Really?!" Han Hong's hands trembled, and he could no longer suppress his smile. He opened the file folder, saw the score, and was so excited that he wiped away tears.
Han Ting cried and lunged at Han Shuo. Han Shuo instinctively reached out to pick him up, but just as he lifted the child by the armpit, he suddenly remembered something and quickly put Han Ting down.
Damn! He'd better be careful; the ultimate goal is to give birth! If he can't keep the pregnancy, then he'll have to get pregnant again, right?
Thinking of this, he was instantly drenched in a cold sweat.
Today is a big day for the Han family. Han Hong looked at Han Shuo's report card again and again, so much so that he didn't want to put it down. He didn't even notice that the rice in the pot was starting to smell burnt.
"Brother, the rice is burnt," Han Shuo reminded him.
"Hey, hey." Han Hong carefully put away the report card as if it were a treasure, then went to tend to the stove. As he picked out the glowing firewood, he said to Han Shuo, "You're the first college student in our family! I'm so proud of you! Shuo, tomorrow we're going to visit Mom and Dad's graves and burn incense! We'll tell them our ancestral graves are emitting auspicious smoke!"
"Okay..."
Han Shuo sat in the chair, secretly peeking outside the door, and then stealing a glance at Han Hong, who was too excited to calm down.
Han Shuo was conflicted and worried.
The original plan was to tell Han Hong the good news first, and then tell him this devastating bad news.
But seeing Han Hong like this now, Han Shuo was afraid that his brother hadn't recovered from such earth-shattering good news yet, and that another one would come, causing his emotions to fluctuate wildly and he would collapse.
So he waited a while longer, until Han Hong was almost there, before slowly speaking in the most relaxed tone he had ever used: "Brother."
"Hey." Han Hong turned to look at his younger brother.
Han Shuo swallowed hard. "I have another piece of news to tell you..."
"Hey, go ahead and say it." Han Hong was in such a good mood that he didn't notice Han Shuo's stiff expression at all.
Han Shuo scratched his nose with his finger, his eyes drifting guiltily towards the door.
Han Hong heard his younger brother call out towards the door.
"Come in."
Han Hong was taken aback. "Who is it? Who's here?"
But he soon saw a figure slowly walk out of the door, and then that person almost shuffled his long legs over the threshold.
Han Ting tilted her head and stared.
Han Shuo stared at it nervously.
Han Hong stared, completely bewildered.
The boy who walked in was about the same age as Han Shuo. He was fair-skinned, handsome, and tall.
Han Hong squinted. Why did this boy look so familiar?
The boy looked at him, and then slowly, very stiffly, he forced a very sincere smile.
"elder brother……"
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