An Ruoyu was truly stunned by these words. Her mind kept replaying the sentence over and over until she finally understood its meaning. She screamed, “What did you say? You can’t possibly like him!”
Jing Yicheng’s tone was unusually smug. “Why not? Not only do I like him, but I’m also with him now.”
An Ruoyu screamed, “Impossible! How could you be together? Does Xu Chenghao know about this? I won’t believe it unless he says it himself! I don’t believe it!”
Jing Yicheng: “I don’t need you to believe it. Do you think our relationship needs your approval? You must think too highly of yourself. I’m only telling you this so you’ll have some dignity and stop bothering Xu Chenghao. If you try it again, I won’t wait for Old Mr. Ruan to deal with you—I will do it myself!”
With that, the call was mercilessly cut off. An Ruoyu stared at her phone screen in disbelief, overwhelmed by shock and confusion—how could the man who once liked and pursued her be with her ex-fiancé? They’re together???
An Ruoyu found it increasingly hard to believe. Even though she had heard Xu Chenghao mention that he liked men, she couldn’t accept that the two rivals had gotten together… Why? Why were they together? How could they be together? They shouldn’t be together!
With intense resistance and determination, An Ruoyu dialed Xu Chenghao’s number, desperately hoping for his denial, hoping he would tell her he wasn’t with Jing Yicheng.
However, the mechanical prompt indicating the call couldn’t be connected kept ringing, and the warm voice that once belonged to her didn’t appear. An Ruoyu grew increasingly panicked, even starting to feel fear. Because she knew that in this situation, if even Xu Chenghao didn’t help her, then truly no one would.
If Xu Chenghao didn’t help her, the child wouldn’t belong to her; it would be separated from her and become a child of the Ruan family… An Ruoyu felt the piercing gaze of Old Mr. Ruan, and her fingers touching the phone screen trembled even more…. No, this is her child, her only emotional support. She wouldn’t give the child to the Ruan family; this is her child!
Intense emotions churned within her, even causing her pregnant belly to ache. At first, An Ruoyu didn’t notice, but when the real pain hit, she couldn’t bear it anymore. She clutched her stomach and wailed, “It hurts… my child… please save my child…”
Old Mr. Ruan, who had been watching coldly, suddenly changed his expression and shouted angrily, “Get a doctor! Get a doctor now!!”
……………
Ten minutes later, Ruan Chenxuan, who had been notified to go to the hospital, arrived urgently. Seeing Old Mr. Ruan sitting outside the operating room, he exclaimed, “Grandpa?Are you alright?”
Old Mr. Ruan: “What, were you hoping something happened to me?”
“No, I just got a call saying you wanted me to come to the hospital…” Ruan Chenxuan said, glancing at the operating room. He frowned and added, “Your health isn’t good to begin with. How about you rest while I wait?”
Old Mr. Ruan gave him a sidelong glance. “Do you know who’s in there?”
Ruan Chenxuan: “Your friend?”
Old Mr. Ruan: “It’s my grandson.”
Ruan Chenxuan thought he was referring to Han Haofeng and An Ruotong, and his heart skipped a beat. He replied nonchalantly, “Then why haven’t I seen Han Haofeng?”
Old Mr. Ruan: “Why would your son need him to come?”
“My son?” Ruan Chenxuan was confused. “I didn’t know I had a son.”
Old Mr. Ruan, neither pleased nor angry, waved his hand. A man standing behind him stepped forward and handed over a file folder. Ruan Chenxuan took it, pulled out a stack of documents, and read them carefully. His expression grew dark as he read, and he didn’t speak for a long time.
The documents detailed his passionate affair with a woman named An Ruoyu. He had opposed the Xu family for her, fallen out with his own family, and endured countless hardships, even using his elders’ connections for her sake. The timeline was clear and flawless, leaving no room for doubt. Even without his memory, Ruan Chenxuan couldn’t deny the authenticity of these documents.
As he stared at the papers, his first thought was—so Xu Chenghao was telling the truth after all.
No wonder he hated him so much and said they would forever be strangers. No wonder every time he tried to express his feelings, the other party would always have a difficult-to-explain look, with a subtly complex expression in his eyes… It turns out that everything he said was true, while all his own guesses were false, even ridiculous.
But… how could his heart deceive him? He clearly had feelings for Xu Chenghao, clearly felt that Xu Chenghao was different from others. If it wasn’t love, then what was it? Just hatred?
Ruan Chenxuan was completely confused. His past and present selves seemed like two different entities. His past self, driven by emotions, was convinced he loved Xu Chenghao; his present self, living through the documents, constantly proved that his past actions showed they were enemies.
…No, that can’t be right!
Ruan Chenxuan suddenly re-read the documents, carefully reviewing the events involving Jing Yicheng and Xu Chenghao. His conclusion was that Xu Chenghao and Jing Yicheng had previously clashed as love rivals, and their relationship wasn’t much better than his own with Xu Chenghao.
So why are they together now?
The rising sense of loss in Ruan Chenxuan was instantly replaced by unwillingness. He couldn’t understand why he had lost to Jing Yicheng, why Xu Chenghao chose Jing Yicheng over him. At the start, they were all on the same level. Why? Why did he end up losing to Jing Yicheng?
Ruan Chenxuan suddenly turned to look at the operating room, his eyes slightly cold—was it because of this woman?
Old Mr. Ruan thought he was worried about the child after reading the documents, and comforted, “No need to worry, if it’s premature, we’ll do a paternity test immediately.”
Ruan Chenxuan clenched his fist. “I won’t marry her!”
Old Mr. Ruan said, “I won’t allow such a woman to marry into the Ruan family either, but we must still take custody of the child.”
Ruan Chenxuan didn’t respond. Ever since his illegitimate brother, whom he barely remembered, got engaged to An Ruotong, there had been occasional rumors of pregnancy and such, saying that the child would be the legitimate eldest son and bring honor to the parents. If Ruan Chenxuan didn’t have a child, he would naturally find a way to withstand this pressure, but if there was a child, it would save trouble and be acceptable.
Moreover… if there were offspring, Grandpa might be more accepting of a same-sex relationship.
For once, Ruan Chenxuan looked forward to the child, quietly sitting on the bench waiting for the operating room door to open.
After what felt like an eternity, the door to the operating room finally opened. The doctor walked out first, removing his mask, and said, “The mother and child are safe, but because of the premature birth, both the mother and child have sustained various degrees of injury. They need to be hospitalized for observation and treatment. You can complete the paperwork and transfer them to the ward.”
Old Mr. Ruan asked, “Can I see the child?”
Doctor: “The child needs to be kept in an incubator for careful monitoring and care. It can’t be seen at the moment.”
Old Master Ruan was a bit disappointed. “When will we be able to see the child?”
Doctor: “It depends on the child’s condition.”
After the doctor left, An Ruoyu was wheeled out. Ruan Chenxuan glanced at her from a distance, his gaze sweeping over her pale face. Suddenly, he felt a tightening in his chest, a bit of worry creeping in…
This emotion came so unexpectedly that Ruan Chenxuan was surprised to find himself concerned for a woman he had no memory of. Was it an old habit or some lingering feeling from his past? Did he really care for this woman once?
Ruan Chenxuan stood there, staring blankly at the spot where An Ruoyu had been taken, hesitating about whether to go and check on her. Meanwhile, Old Mr. Ruan had already followed the nurse carrying the baby, hoping to conduct a blood test immediately.
The nurse stated, “The standard processing time for a paternity test is 7-10 working days. If expedited, it will take at least 1-3 days.”
Old Mr. Ruan said, “Expedite it. I want the results as soon as possible.”
The nurse: “Then, the person who needs to have their blood drawn, please follow me.”
Old Mr. Ruan turned his head to the side only to realize that Ruan Chenxuan hadn’t followed them. He frowned and asked, “Where’s Chenxuan?”
Someone nearby whispered, “It seems he went to the ward with Miss An.”
Old Mr. Ruan’s frown deepened. “Go bring him back!”
“Yes.” The person replied and immediately left. After finding Ruan Chenxuan, who was in a daze, they led him to have his blood drawn.
Ruan Chenxuan, who was still immersed in shock muddle-headedly completed the blood draw. Only then did he remember he now had a son. When he wanted to see the child, he was told the baby was in an incubator and couldn’t be viewed yet. Disappointed, he left and slumped onto a bench in the hospital corridor.
He felt that the day had been too chaotic, like living in a dream filled with an unrealistic sense of bubbles. He didn’t know how to face Xu Chenghao, didn’t know how to face this woman, and didn’t know how to become a father… For the first time, he wished he could regain his memory quickly and set everything right. But in reality, his head hurt from worry and his mind remained blank.
To make matters worse, Jing Yicheng sent a message deliberately provoking him—
Jing Yicheng: “Congratulations to Mr. Ruan on becoming a father. I also hope that now that Mr. Ruan has a child, he will have the self-awareness not to bother Mr. Xu anymore. At least don’t embarrass your child.”
Ruan Chenxuan, after seeing the message, threw his phone in anger, too furious to say a word. He really hated Jing Yicheng’s smug face!
However, throwing the phone didn’t help. The TV in the hospital lobby, which had been playing promotional videos, suddenly changed. A news report interrupted: “Breaking news: An anonymous Mr. Jing, to celebrate Mr. Ruan Chenxuan becoming a father, has specially arranged for the song ‘Little Yellow Duck’ to be played, wishing him to enjoy family happiness.”
Following that, the promotional video on the big screen turned into the music video for “Little Yellow Duck.” With a catchy tune, one little yellow duck after another waddled into the water: “Quack~ Quack~ Quack quack quack~~ I’m a cute little yellow duck~~ My yellow body sways~~ Waddling left and right~~”
Ruan Chenxuan: “…” *&%￥#@#
The author has something to say:
A certain anonymous Mr. Jing, who doesn’t want to reveal his name: Very satisfied!
T/N: Since there were no protests under the comments Monday, Friday it is~
The little yellow duck song is the MVP of this chapter. Congratulations to Daddy Ruan~lol
