He took the coat in her hand, tossed it aside, and pulled her to sit down before he poured her a glass of water.

"A bowl of chicken soup, half a bowl of rice. Sis Wang makes pretty good braised chicken with mushrooms and candied golden sweet potato," she reported very honestly. She accepted the water and sipped it calmly. "How's Su Chen? Why is it just Zhou Zimo here? Did something happen?"

"Just that little thing. Elder Su gave Su Chen an ultimatum, telling to quickly get married. Otherwise, he'd arrange a wife for him. Su Chen was unhappy about being ordered around, so he planned to go to the border. Obviously, the elder and Uncle Su wouldn't agree to that." Mu Yuchen did not mind telling her about these frustrating things.

As Xi Xiaye listened, she suddenly remembered that time when she went to visit the Su family with Mu Yuchen, and the first time she met Elder Su. "The Su family's elder has quite a powerful presence. The last time I met him, I thought he was quite scary too."

Upon hearing this, Mu Yuchen just smiled. "Grandfather Su has been controlling the military all his life. Resounding strength is in his bones, and his presence is extraordinary, so it's normal for you to feel like that. Su Chen himself is slightly intimidated by Elder Su. Otherwise, he wouldn't have caused such a scene this time."

"But Su Chen is really not that young anymore. He's already 33. Does he think he's still very young?"

Xi Xiaye sighed as she could not help but lament, "Had it been before, I would've thought that it was not too bad being all alone. Unexpectedly, it would be a whole different life after marriage. Eventually, it would be better to have some good prospects. You should go advise your buddy. There are many women around him anyway, so it's not a bad idea to pick someone suitable."

"Are you worried about them too?" He smiled as he took her water and finished it in a few gulps.

"Actually, I find it quite hard to believe. You lot seem to be preoccupied with other things. By the time you try to catch up, other people would already have toddlers," Xi Xiaye muttered with a shrug.

"Before being properly prepared, we wouldn't have gotten into marriage. Su Chen and ZImo are the same. This is a once-in-a-lifetime matter. How can we treat it lightly? We have to settle down for a few years and be enlightened on some things before we have the courage to face it. In fact, just as Su Chen said, these things come by not luck and not searching, just like us," he smiled faintly and explained.

Xi Xiaye pouted a little. "Didn't we also take the traditional route of a blind date? If you don't go out and try, how are you going to meet anyone? Okay, quickly wash up. I'll go get some clothes for you. You reek of alcohol. You stink! Don't get into bed before you wash off that stink!"

When she saw him leaning against her, she pushed him away and slowly got up. She shot him a look of disdain, and then quietly walked to the bedroom.

When Mu Yuchen heard this, he immediately smiled bitterly. "Missus!"

This girl seemed to be feeling more and more disdain for him recently. A few days ago, she even complained that he did not know how to coax her.

Mr. Mu very obediently returned to the bedroom and took the sleeping robe from him before going straight into the bathroom.

After over 20 minutes, when he came out of the shower, Xi Xiaye was already in bed and leaning against the bedhead while flipping through some books.

He dried his hair with a towel as he walked over gently. He sat down beside her as he tried to steal a peek. He asked softly, "What are you reading? You look very focused."

"Some poetry and prose collection for prenatal education... The doctor says that we can start next month already. You are a father, so you'll have to do this more in the future. You must speak more to the child. That way, the baby will find you more familiar," she said as she handed the book to him and took his towel. Then, she got up slightly to help him dry his hair.

Obviously, Mr. Mu enjoyed this very much. He casually flipped through the book, and indeed it had many graceful verses.

Mu Yuchen was not too well-versed with these graceful verses, so he flipped through it for a bit, and then looked at the books on the bedside table. They were everything Xi Xiaye had bought. He really had been negligent as a father-to-be with this aspect. He thought for a bit, then said, "It's not very convenient in your condition. Just look through this, and even if you don't do these, I trust that our child wouldn't be dumber than other children. We're not trying to cultivate a prodigy. As long as the child grows up healthy, that's enough."

"Of course, my child has to be both healthy and smart. Why do I find that you don't quite care about our child?" She looked at him in alarm.

He could not help but laugh aloud. "Nonsense! I'm just worried that you wear yourself out. As you wish then, I'll do my best to cooperate."

"That's more like it... I want to visit Sis Lan in a few more days. Perhaps she could tell us more about what happened. I keep feeling like she must know a lot about Aunty. In fact, she has a very peculiar relationship with Aunty. Today, she unintentionally mentioned Aunty, and I saw that her gaze was solemn like she had a lot weighing on her mind." She looked up with her clear eyes that sought his opinion.

"Don't go. I'll think of a way. It's not very convenient for you right now. You should frequent the hospital less."

Obviously, he did not want to let her look for that woman again to avoid a similar encounter as the last whereby she only spoke half of what she knew. The incomplete answer would only be a barrier.

Since he said that, she certainly was not willing to say more, so she quietly dried his hair for him.

Mu Yuchen flipped through the book, and his gaze flickered from dark to light. After he thought about it, he then suddenly said, "Xiaye, if you meet Mr. Wen again, would you be able to recognize his voice?"

When Mu Yuchen said this, Xi Xiaye was instantly stunned. A light flashed in her twinkling eyes as she asked a little excitedly, "Did you already find Mr. Wen?"

Upon hearing this, Mu Yuchen shook his head. "I'm still not certain. That's why I'm asking you."

Xi Xiaye then lowered her gaze to think about it. "I'm not too sure because back then, I think that that wasn't his real voice. I couldn't hear anything."

Mu Yuchen sighed as he nodded and reached out to pat her head. "It's fine. I'll think of other ways."

They went quiet and no one said a thing. There was not a single sound inside the bedroom except for the sound of the flipping pages.

After some time, she touched his messy hair and noticed that it was almost dried. He closed the book and put it back onto the bedside table before grabbing her hand. "Autumn has just arrived and you're this cold already?"

"Doctor said it's normal. Don't worry. The baby is healthy."

She tossed the towel in her hand aside and then put her arm over his shoulders. She closed in to his ears and said, "Su Nan said she wants to arrange a betrothal. What do you think?"

"An arranged betrothal [1]?"

He frowned. When he turned over and saw her glittering eyes looking at him, he gave a straightforward reply, "Our children will make their own decisions. It's up to them who they like in the future. Why should we be involved? No way!"

He disliked the idea of an arranged betrothal. Marriage should just be left to the children to decide themselves. Why should the parents decide for them? What if his little princess preferred Su Chen or Zhou Zimo's son in the future?

Master Mu assumed his child would be a little princess. He already decided that he would dedicate himself to his little princess just like her mother. In a way, it was to compensate for Xi Xiaye's unfortunate childhood.

He was not worried about spoiling his child.

"Ask Dr. Zhong to give you some tonic prescription. You're already weakened before you even give birth. It'll only get worse afterward," he said as he grabbed her slender hands.

"No, the doctor said the baby is healthy right now. I'm practically vomiting from all the tonic soups I've been drinking lately. Also, I'm eating more and more rice. I've gone from half a bowl to two bowls. Didn't you say you'll let me do whatever I want as long as I'm comfortable with it?" She gave him a glance.

"You're becoming really cheeky right now. Who made you like this? You always need me to convince you to eat that second bowl. Sure, it's great that the little thing is healthy, but your health is the most important."

He lay down on the bed while she lazed across him. He was like a human pillow for her now.

"It's you... Then, I'll tell Su Nan you disagree. It's none of my business."

She gave him a cunning look as she reached up to his large hand and spread it open to look at the veins on his palm.

"So, you're using me as a shield because you're scared to tell her, huh? What a way to use me. I'm always the bad guy." He sounded like he was scolding her, but he had a helpless smile on his face.

As she suddenly remembered something, she sat up and called out to him, "Well, you're always a good person to me. Hey, Mu Yuchen..."

"Hmm?"

He seemed to be enjoying their conversation because she rarely called his name. The narcissistic Mr. Mu was thinking that the way she called his name was pleasant to his ears.

"You didn't date any girls before because you don't think they are good enough. And then suddenly I caught your eye?" She squinted at him while giving him a seductive glance.

"You've been taking a lot of tonics lately, but you aren't putting on any weight at all. I see that's because they've all gathered in one place." He sighed and then pinched her little face. "It's all on your face."

"Are you saying that I'm thick-skinned?" She instantly looked at him with a scowl.

He smiled and just glanced at her without replying, but his eyes told her all she needed to know.

She glared at him and got off him, dragging the blanket and covering herself as she faced him with her back. Her shoulders were shaking slightly from her anger as well.

He suddenly laughed. "You're being grumpy."

Before he could finish his sentence, she kicked him several times angrily.

His laughter got louder as it echoed in the room.

He liked her this way. She would get angry at him, and his desire to protect her would just rise to the maximum. Quickly, he rolled over and hugged her tightly. "Alright, alright. It's my fault. Don't be angry. No matter what, you'll always be my beloved Mrs. Mu. I didn't like other women because they can't keep my attention."

"I did meet many women over the years... Beautiful ones, capable ones, but I didn't take the effort to date them. When I was in the army, there were hardly any females. I was only around twenty years old and I didn't want to think about it too early. After I retired from the army, I put all my time into the company and didn't think about marriage or relationships. I'm a person who's afraid of making mistakes. In order not to make mistakes, I disciplined and restricted myself. Everything has to follow an order. Do you understand?"

He rolled her around and made her face him before leaving a kiss on her forehead.

"After I returned, my grandparents wanted me to get married earlier and have a new life. I gave it some thought. After 30 years, it might be good to try a new lifestyle. Grandmother then started finding girls for me, and my first ever blind date was with you. I heard a little about you from my grandparents, then I just decided to go for it."

"Didn't you have a fiancèe before? It even caused a big fuss which everyone knew about."

"Do you think she's comparable to you? Do you know why I'm against arranged betrothals? I'm worried something similar to my experience might happen. Who knows what would happen in the future? You just love to think about this sort of nonsense. Did Su Nan give you some lecture about managing your husband again?"

He saw through her instantly, his sharp eyes catching her right in the act. Guiltily, she averted her gaze away and mumbled, "Of course not..."

"Don't think you can fool me. Only a man with low self-awareness needs to be trained. Are you doubting your charm, or are you doubting me?"

"I..." She did not know what to reply and just looked into his eyes.

He grabbed her hands as he crawled on top of her.

He suddenly thought of something as he closed his eyes. His tone sounded heavy as he said, "Well, I don't have that big a heart to contain too many things. I only need one relationship and one marriage. I prefer my life to be simpler."

She felt her heart ache when she heard him, so she put her hands on his face and delivered a kiss on his lips.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... You're too sweet to me. I worry that some day... So, I want to keep you forever. I don't want you to know how good any other woman could be. I just want us to stay together forever."

"What a worrywart!"

He stared at her, but at the same time, he was genuinely happy as her fond sweetness wrapped around his heart. As his heart soared, he accepted the passionate kiss from her and elevated it to another level.

Her concern for him grew as time went by. Before she realized it, she found herself caring a lot for him. She wanted more love and affection from him, and she wanted him to see only her.

It was all his fault...

Xi Xiaye had no idea that the man on top of her right now felt the same way.

Master Mu was an expert at mind games. He was confident in making her fall in love and give her happiness. That was not just all talk!

Han Yifeng, Qi Lei... They could try all they wanted, but Xi Xiaye would only belong to Mu Yuchen.

He could not hold it in anymore. Although Xi Xiaye did say they could still have sex when she was around three months pregnant, for her safety's sake, he still called Dr. Zhong who was about to sleep and asked him about it. Upon hearing his question, Xi Xiaye blushed angrily.

Her face was totally crimson as she punched his chest. "How could you ask something like that at a time like this!? Aren't you embarrassed!?"

Dr. Zhong must have known what they were doing right now, and he was going to come over tomorrow. She felt so embarrassed!

"What's wrong? Everyone knows that couples have sex. People just tend to look at it weirdly. You need to be frank about it and make it elegant instead of lewd. Learn from me, my dear."

"Elegant instead of lewd? No, you're being vulgar."

"Otherwise, how else would the little thing inside you have come about?" he replied her with a straight face.

"You bastard..."

"Alright, focus right now. Dr. Zhong said it's fine. I'll be careful..."

Xi Xiaye's sleeping robe was flung away instantly, thanks to his impatience. She pushed him and ranted, "Mu Yuchen, give me back the clean, pure, and quiet Mr. Mu!"

...

In contrast to Mu Yuchen's sweet situation, Su Chen was having his worst day ever!

Initially, he planned to go back to his office, but the woman had vomited all over him and even beat him up. Extremely angered, Master Su picked her up and put her into his car. He intended to wait for her to wake up before teaching her a lesson!

He went into the shower for an hour after he returned to his apartment in order to get rid of the disgusting odor. To his annoyance, his clothes had to be thrown away. Because he would never buy more than what he needed, he only had a limited number of suits. That woman would have to pay for it!

He went to sleep fuming and just ignored the woman he left in the living room.

The next morning, Su Chen woke up in pain...

"That woman is a monster! Not only is she ugly, but she's so awful at drinking! Ugh..."

Su Chen remembered what happened last night. He endured his pain and walked into the bathroom. When he looked into the mirror, he almost smashed it into pieces!

His handsome face had now become bruised and swollen. Apart from a bruise on his eye and a huge lump on the left side of his face, there was also an obvious slap mark!

How hard did she hit him?

No wonder his ears could only hear a fuzzy buzzing. With his fair skin, the injuries were especially obvious. He had turned into a pig-like creature!

Su Chen looked at himself in the mirror as he snapped his toothbrush into half.

This ugly man was definitely not him!

He spent every ounce of his willpower to control himself not to beat up the woman in his living room. While Su Chen was usually not the kind of person to pick fights with ladies, he was boiling mad and definitely wanted to teach her a lesson!

He took a deep breath and calmed himself down. Then, he proceeded to wash himself up. He had been trained in the army before after all, so he could control his emotions well.

...

Ouch!

As if thousands of horses had just thundered past in her mind, Ji Zitong felt like her head was about to explode, and the bitter cold was making her shiver!

How terribly cold!

Her body was in agony. She curled up into a fetal position before trying to open her eyes.

The first thing she saw was a beautiful crystal lamp. She also heard the sound of water dripping. When she turned over and looked at the source of the sound, she saw a large fish aquarium with several goldfish inside. The dripping came from the tiny fountain in the aquarium.

The curtain was dark gray in color with several green plants beside it. There was a red rocking chair in the living room with a Chinese chess set made of bluestone laid out on the coffee table. Near the curtain was a collection of gun models and knives. Overall, the room was pretty clean. It was obviously a man's living space.

This was not a place she was familiar with!

Ji Zitong maintained her alertness when she noticed that. She ignored the pounding in her head and started to look at her surroundings, trying to think back to what happened yesterday.

After she sent Xi Xiaye back to Maple Residence, she drove back home, but then she received a call and found out a friend was celebrating her birthday at the Imperial Sky Club, so she went there and drank a lot. She barely able made it out of the room.