Chapter 41

Chapter 41

Gu Shenhan: “……”

His mind seemed to blank out for a moment. Then the smile on his face gradually faded, stopping just at the polite minimum his subconscious insisted on.

He almost held his breath as he asked, “An An, what did you just say?”

Rong Yuan said, “I’m pregnant. You’re going to be a father, honey. Aren’t you happy?”

Gu Shenhan: “…………” Was he supposed to be happy? His wife was nuts.

He wasn’t happy; in fact, he found it extremely problematic.

After turning twenty-four, he rarely felt stumped by anything, but at this moment he really felt stuck.

Rong Yuan was a man; naturally, he had no way to get him pregnant. So he figured that with time, Rong Yuan would just come to accept it.

But clearly, that wasn’t the case.

Rong Yuan noticed that Gu Shenhan’s enthusiasm was low, and even seemed speechless. The smile on his own face gradually faded.

He let go of Gu Shenhan’s hand and said, disappointed, “Maybe I was mistaken.”

He hadn’t expected Gu Shenhan to react like this. He thought he would be just as happy as him.

Seeing the once cheerful person now dejected by him, Gu Shenhan hardened his heart and didn’t comfort him right away.

He was thinking about how to handle this matter.

If he let this wrong idea keep growing, it would definitely lead to a major problem.

“An An…”

Rong Yuan ignored him. He sat down in front of the computer and opened a document to look at his study notes.

His eyes were on the screen, but his attention wasn’t on it.

He suddenly realized that perhaps he was doing something no one could accept.

He got carried away by his own hopes, instinctively thinking that this was a great thing. Even if everyone else found it unacceptable, Gu Shenhan certainly would not. After all, he was the baby’s biological father—shouldn’t he be happy? But he forgot that people here did not consider this normal.

If his belly grew big later, would Gu Shenhan think he was weird?

Definitely. Gu Shenhan had once said that a man getting pregnant was itself a very strange thing. He’d naively assumed that when it came to him, Gu Shenhan wouldn’t think that way.

Once again, after all this time, Rong Yuan felt a surge of fear and sadness.

Gu Shenhan could feel his wife’s dejection from across the table, and couldn’t help worrying that the blow was too severe, possibly leaving a psychological shadow. So he said, “An An, even if you really could get pregnant, it would take at least a month or two to confirm. We only stopped using protection not long ago, so I’m just... just a bit too surprised. Do you understand what I mean?”

Rong Yuan nodded, saying nothing.

In time, Gu Shenhan would naturally know that he wasn’t lying, so there was no need for him to force an explanation now.

He was just worried about what to do in the future.

He’d naively thought Gu Shenhan would be happy too. He had asked Teacher Dolphin, and Teacher Dolphin said that gay couples here who wanted children might choose adoption. Since they were considering adoption, wouldn’t it be enviable that they could have their own biological child?

It was all because he was too happy and too eager to share the joy that he hadn’t thought Gu Shenhan might not want such an unusual problem.

Gu Shenhan opened his mouth as if to say something, but in the end said nothing.

The young couple sat at their own computers. Rong Yuan looked for a while, then typed his notes word by word.

The new computer did feel different to use, but he could no longer feel that joy.

He spotted several mistakes after just two lines, so he stopped, shut down the computer, and said, “Honey, I’m going to sleep first.”

Gu Shenhan said, “Good night.”

Rong Yuan didn’t reply. He went into the bedroom, grabbed his bathrobe, and headed to the bathroom.

He usually didn’t bother with it. Either Gu Shenhan would get it for him, or he’d just wrap himself in a big towel after his shower. But today he felt neither option was suitable.

He set the bathrobe aside and looked in the mirror again. The color of the cotton rose really had changed. His mother and his male cousins, who were also of the same status, had told him that this was how it was during pregnancy—it showed up early.

But now he didn’t know whether to hope that it was true.

Rong Yuan took a deep breath, touched his still-flat belly, showered, dried his hair completely, then left the bathroom, lay down on the bed, and closed his eyes.

Tonight he put the bathrobe on and wore it to bed, thinking that Gu Shenhan probably had no interest in touching him.

It was fine; let him and the baby have some peace. No matter what, he wouldn’t abandon his baby.

Gu Shenhan was still sitting in the study at this time.

Most of the time, he didn’t handle work matters at home for long, so he didn’t spend much time in the study. He actually took books to read in the bedroom more often.

But tonight, he was neither reading nor working, yet he stayed in the study. He was searching for stuff that even he, just a day ago, would have thought was insane.

How likely is it for a man to become pregnant?

If the body looks male on the outside, is it possible to have a uterus?

My wife seems delusional... what do I do?

Is he crazy, or am I crazy?

Gu Shenhan closed the webpage in irritation.

After a while, he opened it again. The results weren’t what he was looking for, so he just shut the computer and went outside for a smoke.

Rong Yuan couldn’t possibly be pregnant, so what he needed to deal with was Rong Yuan’s mental issue. But assuming there was a one-in-a-billion chance that Rong Yuan really could get pregnant and already was, what was his attitude toward this child?

Looking forward to it?

Not looking forward to it?

Was he worried about Rong Yuan’s illness, or about the fact that Rong Yuan, a man, could get pregnant?

Gu Shenhan found it seemed to be both.

Of course he didn’t want Rong Yuan to be ill, especially with a mental illness. But having a child, he also found it difficult to accept easily.

He’d gotten little love from his parents as a kid, so he just didn’t know how to take care of a kid. He never gave any kid he saw outside a second look, because in his mind, they had nothing to do with him. No matter how cute a child was, it had zero connection to him.

But Rong Yuan said he was carrying his baby.

A man, carrying his seed.

Gu Shenhan peered up at the sky. The moon seemed quite normal, only a small corner missing; the Mid-Autumn Festival was approaching.

So that made him the odd one out.

How dangerous would it be for a guy to give birth? You can't just go to the hospital like a normal pregnant woman, and there's no way to tell using common sense. What about recovery and recuperation later?

No, this was simply impossible!

Gu Shenhan cut off his own thoughts and paced around the yard for a while before heading back inside.

He didn't even use the master bathroom to shower, afraid of waking Rong Yuan. He took a quick shower in the gym bathroom and returned to the bedroom. He found that Rong Yuan was asleep but frowning slightly, tossing and turning.

The nightlight gave off just enough dim light, making Rong Yuan's features look utterly helpless. Lately, Gu Shenhan had gotten him used to slipping under the covers naked, but today he'd kept his robe on.

He was curled up under the blanket in his robe, even though it wasn't cold at all.

Gu Shenhan lay down, switched off the light, and pulled Rong Yuan into his arms.

A few minutes later, still uncomfortable, he stripped Rong Yuan's clothes off.

When he got up early, Rong Yuan was still asleep. He gently pulled up the covers and looked at the spot on Rong Yuan's lower right side. The cotton rose mark there was still darker than when he first saw it, especially around the edges, as if it was spreading inward.

And by now, at least seven or eight hours had passed since Rong Yuan's shower, so it couldn't be due to the shower.

He recalled that evening Rong Yuan had stared at the flower and said he'd never ride a bike again.

Rong Yuan was dead asleep when he suddenly felt a chill on his back. He slowly opened his eyes: "Honey?"

Gu Shenhan sat up: "I just saw a hair, didn't want it to poke you."

Rong Yuan sat up, instinctively clutching the blanket, and moved aside to show the spot: "Did you get it?"

Gu Shenhan said he'd found it and tossed it.

Rong Yuan smiled. He didn't ask when Gu Shenhan had undressed him, but just naturally put his clothes on, then went to freshen up for breakfast.

The awkward way they'd parted the night before seemed like it never happened.

Gu Shenhan didn't press, but he noticed a change in Rong Yuan's eating habits.

Before, Rong Yuan barely touched certain dishes—like broccoli, he wasn't a big fan, just took a bite or two every now and then. He also ate hardly any asparagus. But today he ate both, and sampled a bit of everything.

"What's wrong, babe? Something on my face?"

"No. You heading to Bishui Bay today?"

"I'll see how it goes today. I definitely can't go during the day. If I have enough time after work, I'll drop by. Xiao Yu and Xiao Tang just moved out; not sure if they're settling in okay. Also, I was going to keep studying at Lianshan until I knew all the business processes inside out. After that, I probably won't go anymore."

"Why?"

"I'll start showing in four or five months at most. By then there's no way I can go around easily, so no point in trying to work there."

Even though Grandpa and Grandma said once I'm familiar enough, I could start from the ground up and gradually get to know Lianshan's operations better. But now I'm pregnant, and in four or five months I'll inevitably start to show, so I'd have to take leave anyway.

Most importantly, if Gu Shenhan really didn't want this child, then I couldn't stay either. No matter what, I would not give up this child. Even if Gu Shenhan didn't want it, I wouldn't give it up.

Hearing "four or five months," Gu Shenhan knew exactly what Rong Yuan was thinking, but this time he didn't dwell on it. Instead, he said, "So if not Lianshan, are you planning to make Hanfu your main gig?"

"Mm. But if someday you don't want me living at Bishui Bay, you need to tell me in advance. Now that I'm having a baby, I can't afford to be homeless. I'll need to find a place in advance."

"Even if the sky falls, that house is still yours. There's no such thing as me not wanting you to live there."

"But if you don't like me being pregnant, sooner or later you'll stop liking me too." All that talk about having three or five kids before was fake.

"I'm not… I'm not against you having a child. But can you actually have one? If you do, how would you give birth? There's no obstetrician here who delivers men's babies."

Even for a C-section, you'd need prep and a surgical plan, right? But does anyone understand Rong Yuan's body? Would they even accept something so bizarre?

If even one thing goes wrong, I can't bear to think about it.

He could adopt kids any time, adopt a hundred and still afford it. But he only had one Rong Yuan. What if something went wrong?!

Gu Shenhan even thought it'd be fine if Rong Yuan had occasional delusions, as long as it didn't affect his health—he could live with that.

But if something actually happened because of the baby, he couldn't handle the outcome.

"I don't need anyone to deliver," Rong Yuan said stubbornly. "I'll figure it out on my own."

"Are you crazy? Nobody gives birth by themselves these days."

"I'm not from this era."

"You!" Gu Shenhan's head ached with anger. "Since when did Little Antique get so stubborn?"

"The moment you stopped believing me!" Rong Yuan said with his mouth full. "Anyway, this is my baby, and I'm having him. If you don't want him, I'll get him a new dad!"

"That's enough, Rong Yuan!"

Gu Shenhan raised his spoon as if to hit Rong Yuan. Of course he wouldn't really; he was just mad.

Rong Yuan didn't even flinch, like he knew Gu Shenhan wouldn't actually do it. He ate even more energetically, scooping up another bowl of rice and finishing every last grain.

Gu Shenhan then said, "Babe, how about we make a bet?"

Rong Yuan asked in confusion, "What bet?"

"If you're really pregnant, it should show in four or five months, right? Your belly will get bigger. If by then your belly hasn't grown and you're not pregnant, you can't bring this up again."

"And if I am?"

"Then you're the boss at home. Point east and I won't go west. I'll just handle outside stuff."

"Basically you just don't believe me. Fine. To be fair, from today until we know for sure, I'm not sharing a bed with you."

"No way!"

"Why not? You're too rough in bed. What if you hurt the baby? Then you'll say I was never pregnant. Who do I complain to?"

"No, that's not okay. Pick something else."

"Too late! No take-backs. That's what you get for not believing me!" Rong Yuan finished eating, wiped his mouth, and tapped the smart panel to call Aunt Lu. "Aunt Lu, is Lao Xiao here? I need to head to the office early today."

"He's here, sir," Aunt Lu said. "Why so early today?"

"Somebody at home is driving me crazy." Rong Yuan shot a glare at Gu Shenhan. Without even saying goodbye, he went to the bedroom, changed into his street clothes, and asked Aunt Lu to get his coat. "I won't be home for dinner tonight, Aunt Lu."

"Oh? Then where are you going?"

"I'll eat at Xiao Yu's. I'm not coming back tonight." He said as he walked past Gu Shenhan.

Gu Shenhan: "..."