Chapter 40: Expectant
Qingyan was hesitant at first, but when the warm touch came, his heart jumped with joy, and his body, tingling with sensation, softened like water.
During the process, he unconsciously grasped the “bracelet” several times. The ecstasy and pain that followed the reason made him oscillate between heaven and earth repeatedly.
After calming down, Qingyan checked Qiu Henian’s wrist and found some red bleeding spots caused by the needles, but much better than the chafing from the rope.
Qiu Henian helped him tidy up, and they lay back on the bed, but couldn’t fall asleep for a while.
Qingyan tentatively said, “I met Mrs. Liu on the road today. She said that Liu Cai’s son is pregnant.”
Upon hearing this, Qiu Henian nodded and said, “We should go to town in the next few days and buy some supplements to send over.”
Qingyan nodded silently for a while before asking, “Do you want children?”
Qiu Henian reached out and gently stroked his head, saying, “I do, but you are still young, no rush.”
Qingyan’s heart sank suddenly.
He turned over, facing away from Qiu Henian, his fair and smooth back tense.
“What’s wrong?”
Qiu Henian noticed his change in mood and asked.
Qingyan’s voice was low but brave as he spoke out, not wanting Qiu Henian to hold onto false hopes, “I can’t bear children.”
Qiu Henian frowned slightly.
He sat up, grasped Qingyan’s slender shoulders, and turned him around to scrutinize him, asking, “Why not?”
Qingyan decided not to hide anymore.
His eyes were red, “Because I’m a man, not a ge’er. I can’t get pregnant.”
For a moment, surprise flashed across Qiu Henian’s face, quickly followed by a complex expression. Qingyan had lost his biological mother at a young age, his father was indifferent, and his stepmother not only neglected him but was also exceptionally harsh. As a ge’er of his age, he should have known such things, yet he remained ignorant.
Qiu Henian lowered his head and kissed Qingyan’s forehead tenderly, full of the affection of an older husband towards a younger spouse, saying, “I want children because we both lack close family ties. With a child, we would have a blood bond in this world. If not, it’s fate, and with you here, I feel no regrets.”
Qingyan embraced his thick neck and gently rubbed his cheek against his, hearing Qiu Henian murmur in his ear, “When a child is just born, it’s easy to distinguish between a boy and a ge’er. There can be no mistaking it.”
Qingyan looked up at him in confusion, “But they look the same. How do you tell them apart?”
Qiu Henian sighed with a smile and explained, “A ge’er has a red pregnancy mark three fingers below the navel. It’s usually invisible, but when the child cries and their body temperature rises, it becomes visible—a red birthmark about the size of an eye, which boys do not have.”
Qiu Henian’s gaze softened as he continued, “Once a ge’er reaches adulthood, this pregnancy red mark won’t appear with body temperature changes, only when emotionally moved.”
He then used his warm, rough thumb to gently massage the area under Qingyan’s soft and tender skin. For some reason, Qingyan felt that area suddenly become extremely sensitive. In just a few strokes, his eyes were moist, lips slightly parted, cheeks flushed.
Qiu Henian leaned in and kissed him on the lips, removing his hand from Qingyan’s abdomen, and lowered his gaze to the spot he had just covered with his palm.
Following his gaze, Qingyan looked down at himself and, upon seeing it clearly, his eyes widened in disbelief.
Three fingers below his navel, there was a vertical eye-shaped red birthmark, like it had been finely ground with cinnabar powder, starkly contrasting against his pale skin.
Qiu Henian’s gaze remained there, his Adam’s apple bobbing.
His voice was hoarse, “You didn’t notice it yourself, but whenever we share a bed, I’ve always been able to see it.”
“The color of this pregnancy red mark is so bright and intense, and its shape so beautiful,” he leaned down and kissed it, feeling the body beneath him tremble slightly.
He looked up at Qingyan, who was staring blankly, “It represents a young and healthy body with strong fertility.”
Qingyan’s eyelids trembled.
Finally, he heard Qiu Henian say firmly, “Qingyan, without a doubt, you are a ge’er.”
…
The first day, Qingyan was in a daze all day long. He could actually conceive and bear children, which had already exceeded his cognitive range.
Qingyan probably understood that after crossing into this world, he had replaced the identity of the original owner, and the rules of this world should have made certain adaptations to him to fit the storyline.
For example, the red wedding dress that wouldn’t have exposed his identity when he entered here, the suddenly lengthened hair, the medicine inherited from his body that shouldn’t have existed in his abdomen, and the other changes inside his body that he couldn’t know about.
Qingyan covered his soft belly. He didn’t remember the last process when he was unconscious the first two times, but he remembered last night and the time on the chair.
When Qiu Henian lost control, he couldn’t control himself at all, and Qingyan felt that even if he was a man and didn’t pay attention, it didn’t matter, so he didn’t think about avoiding this matter at all.
Especially last night…
Perhaps, there was already a child in his belly now. Qingyan turned over and lay on the bed, emitting a low wail. He still found it difficult to accept the idea of pregnancy for a while.
Two days later, when the shop wasn’t so busy, Qiu Henian pushed the cart and took Qingyan to town.
They went to the butcher shop to buy a piece of pork ribs, and then to the fruit shop to pick a large bunch of bananas. These were gifts for the Liu family’s elder son, and after wrapping them up, the two wandered the streets.
It had been a long time since they had been out together. Qingyan’s mood finally improved, looking around at the food stalls, a smile finally appearing on his face.
As the days grew hotter, the two went to a clothing store and Qingyan picked out two thin robes for himself, choosing two for Qiu Henian as well.
They had lunch at the famous Wangfa Restaurant in town at noon. The food was good, but it was definitely more expensive than cooking at home.
As they were leaving, Qingyan quietly said to Qiu Henian, “I’ve figured out how to make that Double Pepper Fish Head.”
Qiu Henian lowered his voice, “Do you like that dish?”
Qingyan nodded and shook his head, saying, “It’s because you like it. I noticed you took more of it than the other dishes. I’ll buy a fat fish head later and try to cook it for you when we get home.”
Qiu Henian glanced at him with a smile in his eyes and nodded, “Hmm.”
The two almost finished buying what they needed and were ready to go back when a well-dressed servant of a wealthy household approached them respectfully and made a bow, saying, “Please wait here. My master would like to invite you.”
After a cup of tea’s time, Qiu Henian and Qingyan came to the reception room of a wealthy household.
Qiu Henian looked sharply at a person in the reception room and said, “It’s you.”
Qingyan also looked at the person, and after a while, he suddenly realized, “You’re the hawker who was selling goods next door during the Fifteenth Lantern Festival.”
Qiu Henian said, “He was also there when Liu Cai got married, a relative of the bride’s family.”
The hawker, about thirty years old, bowed slightly and introduced himself, “My surname is Feng, doing business locally, and everyone calls me Third Brother Feng.”
Beside him, a robust and imposing man in his fifties said, “Brother Feng used to travel with my trading caravan to the south. In recent years, his mother’s health has deteriorated, so he has been doing business locally.”
This person speaking was the leader of the trading caravan whom Qingyan had previously asked to find Qin Liangchuan.
Qingyan had explained this matter to Qiu Henian on the way here, and although Qiu Henian could see some illogical aspects, he didn’t pursue it further, only saying that he would look into it after meeting with the leader.
The leader of the caravan looked serious and said, “The caravan is basically ready to depart. Before I set off with the team, Brother Feng came to see me for tea and chat. He mentioned that he felt familiar with Li Xizhen from Liusi Village, but couldn’t remember where he had seen her. Brother Feng’s painting skills are excellent. He immediately drew a rough portrait of Li Xizhen on the spot. I also found it familiar.”
Qingyan and Qiu Henian looked at each other in surprise.
Li Xizhen left the county at a young age and married to Liuxi Village. In theory, there should have been no intersection with these two.
Speaking of which, the team leader took out the painting and showed it to them. Although it was only a few strokes, it was vivid and indeed looked very much like her.
Mr. Feng stepped forward and said, “I have a good memory due to my livelihood, especially for remembering people. After seeing someone once, even if I don’t see them for two or three years, I can recognize them when I see them again. However, I can’t recall where I’ve seen this Li Xizhen before, which is quite unusual.”
“It wasn’t until Brother Zheng asked me to draw her that I remembered along with him. No wonder I couldn’t recall, it turns out that originally, he and I saw such a portrait, which was somewhat different from the real person, so I didn’t remember.”
The team leader said, “Three years ago, we went to Nanhuixian. At that time, the local businessman invited me to a banquet. At that time, due to improper diet, I fell ill, so I let Feng Xian go for me.”
Third Brother Feng continued his words, “At the banquet, I saw a county scribe named Qin Liangchuan. When he heard that I came from the north, he excitedly took out a portrait and asked me if I had seen the person in the portrait, saying that he was looking for her.”
Third Brother Feng pointed to Li Xizhen’s portrait and said, “The one he showed me at the time was seven or eight points similar to this portrait. The person painted on the portrait was probably Li Xizhen.”
The team leader also said, “Feng Xian brought back the portrait and asked me if I had seen this person. I didn’t know, and later, over time, I put this matter down.”
Third Brother Feng said with shame, “Later, I drank too much wine and lost both the bag and the portrait. I never thought about it again.”
“Today, I was originally sent to Liuxi Village to find you. He saw this young man Qingyan last time, and just met you in the market, so he invited you directly.”
The original reason for the matter has been clarified, and Qiu Henian took a step forward, clasped his fists with both hands, and said, “Can Mr. Feng please draw the face of Qin Liangchuan you saw on paper.”
Third Brother Feng smiled, took out a portrait from behind the table, unfolded it and showed it to them, saying, “I have already drawn it. This person is Qin Liangchuan!”
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
After several such incidents, it’s unclear exactly when, but Qingyan decided he didn’t want to risk getting pregnant either.
