Room 302 was not a private room. Yuan Xia shared it with another expectant father, whose pregnancy was already nine months along. His partner had been so worried that he insisted the man enter the hospital a month early, terrified something might happen. Male pregnancy was not like female pregnancy: without a natural birth canal, the men would have to give birth by cesarean section. Eric had instructed the nurses to place Yuan Xia with another expectant father so they could exchange experiences. When Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng reached the room, a middle-aged woman was standing beside Yuan Xia’s bed, fussing over him.
The woman was Jiang Xuan’s mother. In the past, she had not approved of Yuan Xia’s relationship with her son and had worried over it. But once she learned he was willing to undergo an IVF procedure for Jiang Xuan, her lingering disapproval turned into delight and gratitude.
In truth, Mother Jiang had never had any complaint about Yuan Xia himself. He was gentle and thoughtful, treating her as though she were his own mother. Her son sometimes neglected her because of work, but Yuan Xia always remembered her. That was why she had never made life difficult for him, despite her unhappiness about her son having a male partner. She simply could not stop worrying that Jiang Xuan would never have children. Then, three days earlier, her son told her Yuan Xia had undergone the IVF procedure for the Jiang family and that it had been successful. That final knot in her heart came undone.
She had already abandoned any hope of grandchildren. Now the two men had given her an enormous surprise. From that moment on, Mother Jiang accepted Yuan Xia wholeheartedly.
Since the day before, she had barely left his bedside. She had asked after him countless times, personally consulted the doctor on precautions during pregnancy, and cooked and delivered all three daily meals, declaring food from outside unclean. She was even more attentive than Jiang Xuan himself.
“Yuan Xia, what would you like for lunch? Mom will make it for you.” Mother Jiang gazed at him fondly.
Yuan Xia did not know whether to laugh or cry. When he saw Wang Cheng, he looked as though his rescuer had arrived. “Mom, my friends are here. You decide on lunch. I’m not picky.”
“All right. But don’t tire yourself out. You’re expecting now, and if you don’t rest properly it could affect the baby. Mom will step out for a moment.” She still gave him a few more reminders before leaving.
Seeing Wang Cheng’s teasing expression, Yuan Xia explained, “Mom’s just worrying too much because she cares. Now that she’s expecting a grandchild, she’s so happy she can’t help herself.”
“Having an elder who cares about you is a blessing. Plenty of people would give anything for it.” Wang Cheng sat beside the bed. Yuan Xia probably did not realize how blissful he looked now. Wang Cheng was happy for him.
Yuan Xia teased, “Then hurry up and get pregnant yourself.”
Wang Cheng coughed hard. “We’ll talk about that some other time. I’m not worried about it right now.” Besides, he still did not see what was so wonderful about children. As a genuine man, he found it strange to have everyone urging him to give birth.
“You might not be worried now, but things could change,” Yuan Xia replied. He doubted a prominent family like Wang Cheng’s would allow him to stay with another man indefinitely. Such families valued reputation and descendants too highly. He had a feeling Wang Cheng would eventually undergo IVF himself.
Wang Cheng rubbed his nose.
Chu Yifeng smiled meaningfully.
Mother Jiang must have told her son the visitors were there. Just as Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng were preparing to leave, Jiang Xuan arrived. He and his mother practically took turns standing guard over Yuan Xia.
The expectant father in the neighboring bed had teased them the previous day for being excessively nervous, although there had been envy in his voice. After all, everyone wanted to be loved and cared for.
“I’ve suddenly realized newborn babies possess a special kind of magic,” Wang Cheng mused as they left the hospital. “They can change relationships between people. They can make parents accept a son-in-law who’s a man and even strengthen the bond between partners.” The scene in the hospital had left a deep impression on him.
Chu Yifeng smiled. “Then, in the interest of strengthening our relationship, have you decided whether you’ll undergo IVF?”
Wang Cheng jabbed him with an elbow and glared threateningly. “Does our relationship need a child to hold it together? Besides, aren’t you afraid the child would cling to me after it was born?”
Chu Yifeng said nothing, but amusement was obvious in his eyes.
“What are you so pleased about?”
Wang Cheng knew perfectly well what Chu Yifeng was laughing at and grew annoyed. “Even if children usually love you, that doesn’t mean our child would necessarily like you.”
“Shall we put it to the test?” Chu Yifeng asked.
Wang Cheng rolled his eyes. “Don’t try to provoke me into it. I’m not falling for that.”
Chu Yifeng held back a laugh. “You were the one who brought it up.”
That only irritated Wang Cheng more. “Anyway, we can talk about the future when it comes.” He strode ahead.
Chu Yifeng caught up in two steps and slipped an arm around his shoulders. He appeared to whisper something reassuring in Wang Cheng’s ear, but Wang Cheng swatted him away. The two continued teasing and scuffling all the way to the parking lot.
As their car disappeared beyond the hospital entrance, a man emerged and stared wide-eyed in the direction they had gone. Before long, a woman approached him.
“Wei Wei, what are you staring at?”
The man was Wei Wei. Wang Cheng rarely went to bars or clubs, so it had been a long time since he had seen him. He certainly had not expected Wei Wei to be at Central Hospital, much less to witness him joking and playing around with Chu Yifeng.
Wei Wei did not answer. He was still thinking about what he had seen, his expression shifting constantly.
“Wei Wei, are you listening to me?” the woman demanded, annoyed at being ignored. She caught his arm and shook it. Wei Wei finally came back to himself, looking impatient. “I heard you. What did the doctor say?”
The woman’s smile returned. “The doctor confirmed it. I really am pregnant. Three weeks along.”
“Get an abortion.”
“What?” Her face froze.
“I said get rid of the pregnancy,” Wei Wei repeated with disgust.
Wei Wei had begun seeing the woman a little over a month earlier. At the beginning of their affair, he had been careless about contraception. Now, after only two encounters, she had become pregnant. She had excitedly told him the news the day before, but he regarded it as nothing but trouble. His sole reason for accompanying her to the hospital was to confirm her condition. If she really was pregnant, he had no intention of becoming a father.
“Why? Don’t you like children?” She released his arm, unable to believe what she was hearing.
“We were only having fun. Haven’t you heard of a casual fling? Enjoy it while it lasts, and part on good terms. I’ll get married one day, but it certainly won’t be to you.” Wei Wei had already lost interest in her. He had not contacted her for a week and would not have bothered seeing her at all had she not appeared with news of the pregnancy.
“You bastard!” Furious, she slapped him across the face and ran away.
Wei Wei seethed. How dare the woman hit him? But they were in public, so he did not dare chase her. Then he recalled what he had witnessed earlier, and his anger faded. At last he had found something he could use against Wang Cheng. This time he would make Wang Cheng pay. He ignored the woman and arranged to meet Zhao Chenlin that evening.
Zhao Chenlin had lost much of his former swagger recently, but people still did not dare underestimate the Zhou family’s grandson. His parents held important positions within Zhou Group, and very few outsiders knew he had been thrown out of the Zhou residence. Now that he no longer had to go home, he had resumed his old habits, frequenting nightlife venues with disreputable friends. Wei Wei was one of them.
When Wei Wei asked him out that evening, Zhao Chenlin assumed he had found some attractive new woman. But when he arrived at the private room, he discovered there were only the two of them. There were not even any hostesses.
“What the hell are you playing at? Why are you here alone?”
Wei Wei ignored his attitude and poured him a glass of red wine. “Don’t get angry yet. I promise that once you hear what I have to say, you’ll be glad you came. Have a drink first to steady yourself.”
Zhao Chenlin kept his temper in check and drained the wine in one swallow. “All right. What is it?”
“Guess whom I ran into at Central Hospital today,” Wei Wei said mysteriously.
“Who?”
“Zhou Cheng.”
Zhao Chenlin grew impatient. “What’s so strange about running into him at a hospital? Don’t tell me he got some woman pregnant just like you did.”
Wei Wei did not get angry. “This is far worse than getting a woman pregnant. He was with another man. At first I assumed they were friends, but they looked awfully intimate.”
Zhao Chenlin froze. “You mean Wang Cheng is gay? Are you certain you saw correctly?”
“Absolutely. I saw everything clearly. The man had his arm around Zhou Cheng’s shoulders, and they were standing extremely close. They’re definitely involved. Maybe they even went to the hospital to get tested for a sexually transmitted disease.” Wei Wei sounded delighted. To him, his guess seemed almost certain.
“Have you investigated?” Zhao Chenlin felt a surge of excitement. If this was true, heaven had just handed him a perfect opportunity to bring Zhou Cheng down.
“No, but I’m almost certain. And I doubt they would use their real names at the hospital anyway, so investigating probably wouldn’t help.”
Central Hospital was no ordinary hospital, and Wei Wei had no real proof the two had gone there for an examination. Zhao Chenlin nevertheless said, “This information is extremely useful.”
He suddenly remembered that Zhou Cheng often did not sleep at the Zhou residence. He had always assumed his cousin could not get used to living there. Now it occurred to him that Zhou Cheng might be living with a man.