567. Happiness is Gone
“Let’s set the date for September, okay? Ning Xin will be on vacation then, and relatives and friends will all be free too.”
“Have you picked out the wedding dress and suit? Did you buy the rings? And don’t forget to go take a fresh set of wedding photos to make a video to show everyone at the wedding.”
“Have you filled out your invitations yet? You can send them out a month before the wedding. No rush.”
Ning Chu sat on the sofa with a tired expression, hugging her legs and half-heartedly responding to her mother.
“I haven’t bought anything yet! I was busy with renovating the house!”
She couldn’t care less about this tedious wedding; ideally, just gathering a bunch of relatives and friends for a meal with some envelope money would suffice.
“By the way, has Wen Yang proposed to you yet?”
“What? We’ve been married for years already!”
“It’s different! Can’t you be a little more thoughtful? Don’t you know what ‘sense of ceremony’ means? You only get married once in a lifetime! This weekend, have Wen Yang take you to buy the dress and ring!”
She rubbed her temples, glancing at her stern mother, and finally agreed, “Fine, I’ll buy the rings… But can’t I just rent the wedding dress? Why do I have to buy it?”
“It has sentimental value!”
“What’s so special about it…”
“Sometimes you can put it on in the evening; Wen Yang might find it exciting!”
Ning Chu’s eyes lit up, her little head nodding rapidly, “That’s true!”
Wedding dress play! Just thinking about it is exhilarating!
Her mother, exasperated, gave her a light smack on the head, “You really are a succubus!”
“Aren’t you one too? To each their own!”
At first, Ning Chu felt embarrassed discussing such topics with her mother, but now she could face it with ease. After all, her mother was more experienced and had far more scandals to tell.
“Did you take the medicine I got you last time? Are you pregnant yet?”
“I took it, I took it,” Ning Chu replied dismissively, patting her flat stomach. “It didn’t work at all; I told you it was a scam.”
“You need to keep taking it every day.”
“Yes, yes, yes…”
God knows what the ingredients in that medicine were. If it were just starch, that would be fine, but what if they added something weird?
She couldn’t convince her mother, and the medicine had long since been thrown away.
Her mother still looked concerned and asked, “Is Wen Yang feeling a bit weak? I’ve got some herbal wine here; take it to him for a boost.”
“Weak? He’s in great shape!”
“How many times a day?”
“Uh…” Ning Chu awkwardly avoided her mother’s gaze. “One or two times, I guess.”
Her mother shot her a glare, “Take it easy—a thirty-year-old man still going at it this much is bound to wear him out!”
“He’s only a year older than me! How am I supposed to feel like I’m old too…?”
“Don’t drain the pond dry; you’ve got plenty of time ahead.” Her mother, clearly experienced, advised her earnestly, “It’s all fun now, but what happens in a few years when Wen Yang can’t keep up?”
“I know… I’ve been making sure he exercises recently!”
Ning Chu nodded enthusiastically. Most of the time, it was Wen Yang being proactive. Why does her mother make it sound like she’s always clinging to Wen Yang, being all shameless?
Besides, her mother wasn’t exactly in a position to judge. Since Black Bean started boarding school, Uncle has lost his beer belly!
“Don’t lecture me…”
Her quiet muttering was overheard by her mother, who raised her hand as if to hit her, prompting Ning Chu to quickly curl up in the corner of the sofa.
Not wanting to endure her mother’s rambling any longer, she rubbed her ear, glanced at the time, and declared, “Mom, I’m going to pick up Wen Yang from work. We agreed to go shopping tonight.”
Just as she stood up, her mother grabbed her hand, pulling her back onto the sofa.
“And pay more attention to your sister! This weekend, she was on the phone for hours with someone.”
“She’s old enough; dating is normal, right?”
Even Ning Chu, having been confessed to by girls in high school, had zero interest back then. Now that she thought about it, she regretted it a little.
“Ning Xin is so naive, she’s helping him count money even after getting scammed!”
“Let’s have her introduce her boyfriend to us, and Wen Yang and I can vet him.”
That’s why Ning Chu wasn’t keen on having a daughter, especially if her daughter might be a succubus…
Too many worries, but when it comes to sons, not a big deal—worst-case scenario, they get scammed for money or emotions, and if there’s trouble, just give them a beating. As long as they don’t get scammed abroad, it’s not a big issue.
“Okay, I’m off~”
“Go, go, if you’re going shopping, don’t forget to buy the rings.”
“Bye-bye~”
Ning Chu now regretted living so close to her mother. She gets called over for every little thing, or her mother just shows up at her house unexpectedly—there’s no escaping it.
Clearly, family ties need a bit of breathing space.
But love? The closer, the better.
Meeting up with Wen Yang downstairs in the office building, Ning Chu cheerfully took his arm.
“Shall we go to the mall?”
“Perfect timing to buy the wedding rings and order the wedding dress and suit.”
She looked up at Wen Yang in surprise, instantly guessing that her mother must have tipped him off. Pouting, she replied, “You can just use the ring you got me before.”
“Before?”
“On my eighteenth birthday! You even confessed to me that day.”
Wen Yang paused, recalling that moment vividly.
“You didn’t forget, did you?”
“Of course not! How could I?” He quickly redirected the topic before it went awry. “That ring wasn’t expensive, just bought from the internet for a few bucks. Bringing it out at the wedding would be embarrassing.”
Ning Chu noticed her husband’s insecurity and rolled her eyes disapprovingly.
Good thing she used to be quite the straightforward guy and understood them well; otherwise, any other woman would have blown her top by now.
“Like anyone could even tell!”
Wen Yang tried to protest but suddenly realized he couldn’t pull Ning Chu along anymore.
Confused, he turned back to see Ning Chu stopped in her tracks, her eyes sparkling with joy.
“What’s wrong?”
Her clear gaze reflected his image as if she had captured the whole world in them.
“Darling~ I’m pregnant!”
Wen Yang froze, the joy on his face surfacing only to quickly turn into panic. He hurriedly stepped closer, wrapping an arm protectively around her, gripping her tightly. “What are you doing wandering around alone? Why didn’t your mom tell me?”
“I deliberately didn’t tell her, or she would think that the weird medicine actually worked,” Ning Chu explained with a smile. “I just took a test… I still need to go to the hospital to see if it’s real.”
But given the accuracy of pregnancy tests, it’s probably a done deal.
“Then let’s go to the hospital now…”
“Big guy~ have you looked at the time?”
Seeing Wen Yang’s reaction, she felt a bit disappointed, “I thought you’d jump for joy.”
“Are you feeling unwell? I heard you could feel nauseous or something… How’s your mental state? Feeling a bit pressured…?”
But Wen Yang didn’t pick up on her teasing, still looking at her with concern.
“That only happens after a month, right? Right now, I feel nothing. If it weren’t for Aunt Flo being late…” Ning Chu murmured, a touch of worry in her voice, “I suddenly feel like I shouldn’t have told you.”
“???”
With Wen Yang’s anxious reaction, it seemed like the joy for the night was about to vanish.
