Chapter 44
Meng Yuxiu gasped.
"Symptoms have appeared?"
Han Shuo nodded heavily, "Uh, I feel nauseous and want to vomit, my head is spinning, and I have no energy."
After saying this, Han Shuo seemed exhausted and closed his eyes.
Looking at Han Shuo, who looked like a sick chicken, Meng Yuxiu felt a mix of emotions.
If Meng Yuxiu felt more fright than nervous when he first guessed that Han Shuo was pregnant, then hearing Han Shuo confirm it with his own ears this time gave rise to some indescribable emotions.
Perhaps it was the noise of the wedding banquet that day, coupled with the shock to his worldview, that left his mind in a state of chaos, unable to think too much. Or perhaps it was the quietness of the moment, the silence so profound that it was just the two of them, that gave him a greater sense of empathy.
At this moment, his mind clearly told him that Han Shuo was indeed pregnant, and that the child in his belly was his.
It was as if he and Han Shuo were originally two independent individuals, but because of this child, they became closely connected.
Once this thought crossed Meng Yuxiu's mind, his breathing became uncontrollably rapid, and he even felt a little flustered.
His fingers trembled slightly as he touched Han Shuo's pale and fragile face, then touched the blanket covering Han Shuo, appearing as if he were helpless while his wife was ill.
He wasn't sure how to take care of a pregnant woman, so he could only ask in a very soft voice, "Han Shuo, are you feeling unwell?"
Han Shuo slowly nodded, then opened his eyes and spoke: "Meng Yuxiu."
"Hmm." Meng Yuxiu listened attentively to him.
"Let's start the mission once I'm better," Han Shuo said, then took another breath.
"Okay." Meng Yuxiu slowly tightened his grip on Han Shuo's slightly cool hand. He gazed at Han Shuo's sickly face for a moment and asked, "Han Shuo, are you hungry?"
What would you like to eat?
Hearing this, Han Shuo saw the nervous look in Meng Yuxiu's eyes and suddenly found it amusing. However, he was too weak to do so, so he could only say, word by word, "Eat my ass, what else do you want to eat... Do you have any money?"
"Even eating a radish is a struggle."
"..." These two sentences made Meng Yuxiu feel utterly ashamed.
Han Shuo saw that he was keeping his eyes down and not saying anything, and knew that he meant well, so he squeezed his fingers. "Okay, don't overthink it. Even if you go and get me something to eat now, I don't have an appetite. I need to rest for a bit. You should go back to class."
Meng Yuxiu didn't want to leave. He shook his head and said, "I want to stay with you."
Han Shuo: "There are still two classes left. Aren't you supposed to tutor people during the ten-minute break? Hurry up and make some money, you know? We don't have much time to waste now, go quickly."
Meng Yuxiu frowned and remained silent.
"Tsk, I need to take a nap. What are you doing here? Can you take my place if I'm sick or pregnant or something?" After saying this long string of words, Han Shuo frowned tightly, his face looking a bit ugly. He pushed Meng Yuxiu's hand away. "Damn it, don't make me angry. I feel like throwing up if I talk again."
"I understand, I'll go back to class now." Meng Yuxiu quickly tucked Han Shuo's hand under the covers and carefully tucked the corner of the blanket around him.
After Han Shuo closed his eyes and his breathing became calm, Meng Yuxiu gently climbed off the bed.
In fact, he is a very responsible person. After collecting the tutoring fees from his classmates, he was very dedicated to each tutoring session.
However, after leaving the dormitory, he was unable to concentrate on his studies when he returned to the classroom, and he was also distracted when tutoring his classmates during the ten-minute break between classes.
Even during the day, the light in the dormitory was not very good if the lights were not turned on. In such an era of poverty, Han Shuo had to go to school and take the college entrance examination. She was pregnant and feeling unwell, so she could only lie alone on her bed in the dormitory.
Thinking about these things, Meng Yuxiu felt very sad.
He suddenly remembered a news story he had once seen online, about a pregnant woman who ate twenty pumpkins. His first thought was that the woman's husband was incompetent.
But now he's projecting himself onto the image of that incompetent husband—or rather, even more incompetent. At least that wife gets twenty pumpkins to eat, but Han Shuo can't even get a single radish.
Overwhelmed by a profound sense of defeat, Meng Yuxiu was instantly crushed.
He reached into his pocket and squeezed the banknotes, which were still warm from his body heat; it totaled two yuan and thirty cents.
Because of the new semester and heavy academic workload, not many students had time to attend tutoring classes. He originally intended to hand over the money to Han Shuo, but Han Shuo, seeing it wasn't much, told him to save more before handing it over, to avoid the daily hassle.
He shouldn't have touched the money, and Han Shuo certainly wouldn't have wanted him to either. After all, they didn't have much time left in this world. Once Han Shuo's health improved, he would definitely frantically do missions. Money was hard to earn this semester, and he hadn't earned much himself. Han Shuo also didn't have time to collect scraps.
Thinking of this, Meng Yuxiu looked out the window at the blue sky and sighed deeply.
But after the school bell rang, he still couldn't resist going to the cafeteria.
He went to get his lunchbox and teacup, and quickly ate his meal while standing in the cafeteria. After finishing his meal, he took Han Shuo's lunchbox and went straight to the cafeteria's food serving window.
Although the cafeteria does serve food, usually only teachers and students from well-off families living in the county town get food from the cafeteria windows.
This was the first time Meng Yuxiu had ever stood in front of the food serving window after studying here for so long.
He looked up and glanced at the vegetable prices on the blackboard hanging next to the window.
The cafeteria had only a few dishes, and the prices weren't cheap, but Meng Yuxiu's eyes were fixed on the one-yuan braised pork.
The cafeteria lady noticed the student had been standing in front of the window for several minutes, so she smiled and asked, "Which one would you like to eat? Braised pork?"
"Let me take a look first," Meng Yuxiu said, his fingers secretly clenching the banknotes in his pocket.
Cafeteria lady: "You're in your final year of high school, right?"
Meng Yuxiu nodded.
"Let's buy some braised pork. Senior year of high school is stressful, so it's good to have some braised pork occasionally to nourish your body."
Meng Yuxiu's dark eyes flickered, as if the cafeteria lady's words had taken to heart, his mind filled with the four words "nourish your body".
"Could you please give me a serving of braised pork?"
"Okay!" The cafeteria lady grabbed a large ladle and scooped a few pieces of glistening braised pork from the pot, asking Meng Yuxiu, "Shall I put it in your lunchbox?"
Meng Yuxiu took out his washed lunchbox and handed it to the cafeteria lady. After she finished packing the meat and returned it to him, he quickly put the lid back on and then carried the two lunchboxes back to his dormitory.
Most of the students in Class 7's dormitory had finished eating and returned. When Meng Yuxiu entered the room with his lunchbox, there were people on both the upper and lower bunks. It was quite lively, but the noise wasn't loud, probably because they were considering that there was a sick person in the dormitory.
Meng Yuxiu was already a regular at Class 7's dormitory, so everyone greeted him warmly when they saw him. Meng Yuxiu was even more familiar with Pidan and Doufu, who were close friends with Han Shuo.
He handed two lunchboxes to Doufu and asked him to help carry them.
Then he took off his shoes and climbed into bed.
As soon as Pidan smelled the lunchbox, he sniffed hard. "It smells so good! Is it braised pork?"
Doufu told him to go away, "This was given to Han Shuo by Meng Yuxiu, what's it to you?"
The preserved egg swallowed hard, "Smell it, aren't you going to give it to me?"
Meng Yuxiu climbed onto the bed, took the lunchbox from Doufu's hand, thanked him, and then turned to look at Han Shuo.
Han Shuo was still asleep, but his complexion looked much better than in the afternoon. Meng Yuxiu freed one hand and gently patted Han Shuo's shoulder, "Han Shuo, Han Shuo."
"Huh?..." Han Shuo was woken up. He opened his eyes groggily and saw Meng Yuxiu's face. He subconsciously complained, "Why are you here again? Aren't you making money?"
Meng Yuxiu said, "School's out."
"Huh, really?" Han Shuo turned his head to look at the other people in the dormitory after lying on his pillow and became more awake. He propped himself up on his arms and tried to sit up. "Oh, then it's time to go to the cafeteria for dinner."
"I brought it for you, sit on the bed and eat it." Meng Yuxiu quickly reached out to lift Han Shuo up, then propped up his pillow. But when he found that Han Shuo was still uncomfortable, he looked around and then took Pidan's pillow.
After Han Shuo leaned back, Meng Yuxiu opened the lid of the lunchbox and handed it to him, then put the spoon in his hand, and finally he opened another lunchbox containing braised pork.
Han Shuo is feeling much better now. He had just smelled the aroma of meat and his stomach immediately started growling with hunger.
But when he saw the half-full lunchbox of braised pork in Meng Yuxiu's hand, he stared in surprise.
"Holy crap, where did this come from?"
Meng Yuxiu stammered, only saying, "Eat, eat."
Han Shuo asked, "Did you get it from the cafeteria?"
Meng Yuxiu had no choice but to nod.
"Did you touch that money?"
Meng Yuxiu vaguely changed the subject: "You eat first, it won't taste good if it gets cold."
"Damn it!" Han Shuo was extremely disappointed. He had just recovered some of his energy when he almost had a heart attack and passed out.
He gripped the spoon and cursed under his breath, "I only watched you for a moment, and you've already squandered my money!"
Meng Yuxiu was holding a lunchbox. Seeing Han Shuo panting heavily, he had to use one hand to pat his back to help him catch his breath. "It's already been done, there's no going back. You eat."
“You’re not feeling well right now…” Meng Yuxiu lowered his eyes and whispered, “I want you to eat better…”
Hearing his slightly aggrieved voice, Han Shuo couldn't bring himself to scold him. In the end, he could only grab a spoon and scoop out a lump of braised pork from Meng Yuxiu's lunchbox. There was nothing he could do; he had already bought it, and it would be a shame not to eat it.
However, the auntie in the school cafeteria was really good at cooking. When he was feeling weak, a piece of soft and fragrant braised pork made Han Shuo's hungry stomach whet instantly.
They were so tempted by the preserved eggs and tofu that they couldn't stand staying on the upper bunk anymore, so they quickly climbed down.
With them gone, the seats on either side of Han Shuo became empty, and Meng Yuxiu could finally sit comfortably cross-legged and watch Han Shuo eat.
Watching Han Shuo devour chunks of braised pork, Meng Yuxiu felt both satisfied and gratified.
This feeling is like a husband who has been working away from home all year finally earning some money and returning to his impoverished home. He rarely cooks a meal of meat, and seeing his wife and children eating happily brings him heartfelt joy.
"Is it tasty?"
"Delicious, really good." Han Shuo nodded repeatedly. However, after taking a couple of bites of rice, he noticed that Meng Yuxiu's bright eyes were fixed on him. He also thought about how Meng Yuxiu had risked being scolded so that he could have a good meal while he was sick.
Han Shuo's heart softened. He glanced at the other people on the upper bunk and, seeing that no one was paying attention to the two of them, quietly scooped a piece of braised pork with a spoon and brought it to Meng Yuxiu's mouth. Then he lowered his voice and said, "Here, have a piece too."
"I've already eaten."
"Tsk, eat it if I tell you to, or I'll get angry."
Meng Yuxiu smiled and then leaned closer.
Han Shuo was only happy after feeding the meat to Meng Yuxiu.
After lying in his dormitory all afternoon and night that day, Han Shuo dragged his sick body to class, not daring to miss any lessons.
A week later, his health gradually improved.
He didn't know what it felt like for women to be pregnant, but he didn't feel anything.
Especially when the weather warms up and everyone changes from their thick cotton-padded coats to light spring clothes, it's as if they've been freed from heavy constraints and have been reborn. He might even forget that he has a child in his belly.
Meng Yuxiu, on the other hand, became a bird startled by the twang of a bow.
Since no major cleaning had been done since the start of the school year, the school has now notified all students to do a major cleaning as the weather has warmed up.
Immediately, everyone moved the tables and chairs against the wall and began sweeping and mopping. Han Shuo, too lazy to fetch water, volunteered to wipe the windows.
The teaching building has three floors. In those days, safety awareness was not so good. There were four rows of windows in each classroom, and a student was standing on the windowsill of each row. Han Shuo grabbed a wet rag and climbed up as well.
He leisurely hummed a song while cleaning the glass in the sunlight, and even chatted with other students from other classes who were cleaning windows downstairs.
Just then, Meng Yuxiu came out carrying a dustpan and broom. He first heard a familiar voice, then looked up and saw Han Shuo wiping the windowpane with great enthusiasm. He was immediately terrified and broke out in a cold sweat.
Without a second thought, he dropped the broom, ran up to the third floor, and rushed into Class 7's classroom.
"Han Shuo!"
Han Shuo turned his head, surprised. He smiled and asked, "Why did you come up here? Don't you need to clean?"
Meng Yuxiu swallowed hard. He walked over to Han Shuo and said slowly, "Come down first."
"What? I'm cleaning the windows."
"Come down first, I need to talk to you."
"Alright."
Meng Yuxiu breathed a sigh of relief only after watching Han Shuo land safely.
"What do you want?" Han Shuo asked him.
Meng Yuxiu pulled him to the corner of the wall, "Stop cleaning the glass, what if you fall?"
It turns out he was worried about him falling. Han Shuo found his nervous expression both amusing and heartwarming, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I'm holding on tight."
“What if we fall down…” Meng Yuxiu started to say instinctively, but then paused abruptly.
He likes Han Shuo now, and Han Shuo is very important to him, so he doesn't want to use any unlucky words in his speech.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "What if I fall and miscarry?"
Upon hearing this, Han Shuo chuckled, "Damn, is there such a good thing? I couldn't be happier! Right now, you can't make money, and neither can I. My brother and nephew haven't even had a chance to earn their savings yet. Isn't this the perfect solution to our current problems?"
"..." Meng Yuxiu really wanted to slap himself, especially after seeing Han Shuo's beaming smile and nonchalant attitude, he was even more afraid that Han Shuo would have such a thought.
However, he knew Han Shuo wasn't that stupid to deliberately make him fall from the third floor. He was just afraid that after Han Shuo came up with the idea of an abortion, he would act recklessly and become even more unscrupulous.
"I mean..." Taking precautions, Meng Yuxiu quickly came up with a solution, "I mean, no matter what method of abortion is acceptable. Have you seen what they show on TV? When you have an abortion, you bleed a lot, and it will flow down your legs. If your teachers and classmates notice that you are bleeding a lot from your legs, they will definitely notify your brother. When you go to the hospital for a checkup, your brother will definitely find out."
"..." Upon hearing this, Han Shuo couldn't help but twitch his eye violently. "What the hell are you talking about? What nonsense are you spouting? Can't you wish me well for once? Damn it!"
Meng Yuxiu pursed his lips and said sullenly, "I'm just afraid you'll fall off the windowsill."
"Alright, alright," Han Shuo waved his hand in annoyance. "Fine, I won't go up then, okay? I'm really fed up with you."
"Okay." Meng Yuxiu nodded with a smile. He took the rag from Han Shuo's hand and said, "Find a place to sit and rest. I'll clean the windows for you tonight."
If Meng Yuxiu hadn't brought it up, Han Shuo wouldn't have felt anything. But after Meng Yuxiu brought it up with his jinx, Han Shuo felt uneasy looking at the windowsill.
When Meng Yuxiu offered to help him clean the windows, he quickly reached out to stop him, saying, "Don't go up there either, it would be terrible if you fell too."
Han Shuo used to say a lot of sweet words to coax people, but not many words of concern. Yet, Meng Yuxiu could sense that Han Shuo cared about him.
He couldn't suppress the surge of emotion welling up inside him, but before his lips could even curl into a smile for two seconds, he heard Han Shuo say, "If you fall, no one will do missions with me anymore, and no one will be able to make money for my brother and nephew, tsk."
"..."
"Hey, you there." Han Shuo looked around the classroom, randomly picked someone, and called out, "Pidan, you come and clean this window!"
Pidan was erasing the blackboard when he heard Han Shuo shout. He turned to look out the window and yelled, "No way! I'm afraid of heights! What if I fall?"
"That's none of my business." Since Han Shuo wasn't going to clean the windows anymore, he grabbed a rag and took Meng Yuxiu to the corridor to wipe the railings, while also discussing something with Meng Yuxiu outside.
"Did you bring your mom's face cream with you?"
Meng Yuxiu paused in wiping the railing, his eyes widening slightly as he looked at Han Shuo's face and asked, "When?"
"Let's do it tonight. Come out early after evening self-study, don't dawdle."
Meng Yuxiu swallowed nervously. "I'm a little... nervous."
What's there to be nervous about?
Meng Yuxiu glanced down at Han Shuo's lower abdomen, "I...I haven't been with a pregnant woman..."
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