Despite Jin Liwei's increased overprotectiveness, Iris didn't resent him. Their babies growing inside her were their top priority right now. If she had to slow down on work to keep the twins safe, then she would gladly do so.
In addition to having more time on her music, she was also working on Bacon. She was almost finished optimizing him but still needed to conduct more tests to figure out his overall potential and capabilities. Once all his configurations were completed, then she could start assigning tasks for him just like Ketchup.
Finally, Iris was done getting dressed. It was a deceptively simple draped-style, asymmetrical, silver-white dress. Her left shoulder was bare while her right arm was covered in a long, flowing sleeve which fluttered every time she moved. The dress hugged her hourglass body, showcasing her almost perfect proportions while also appearing elegant and modest. Other than her left arm and neck, no unnecessary extra skin was exposed. The material was light and she looked effortless in the dress.
"Uwah! You look like a goddess, Boss!" Dom exclaimed and immediately started taking photos—first to send to Jin Liwei, and second to post on Iris' social media accounts later.
The makeup artist, hair stylist and nail technician all echoed him.
"Beautiful! Gorgeous!"
"Boss Iris, you look like a bride in a wedding dress!"
"Oh my God, you're right! Although this dress looks so simple at first glance, it becomes extraordinary when Boss Iris wears it. She looks like the most beautiful bride ever!"
All three of them had long since been converted into die-hard Black Stars. They left Bright Summit's employ to become Iris' private glam team instead and were paid handsomely for their work. In addition to working for their beloved Boss Iris, they also received other awesome perks because she was a generous boss as long as they did their jobs well and didn't betray her. Their favourite was receiving Orchidia Beauty samples. Another one was that if they made her particularly beautiful and Jin Liwei liked it, he would give them huge bonuses even if he technically wasn't their employer. All in all, they couldn't ask for a better client/boss/goddess than Iris Long.
Iris smiled and studied herself in the mirror before nodding in satisfaction. This wasn't actually her first choice of dress. The one she chose before was an extravagant, haute couture dress from a world-famous French fashion house. However, Jin Liwei commented during her final fitting that she looked better in this simpler dress from a lesser-known Chinese-American designer.
At first, she didn't agree with him but after waking up the next day, she changed her mind and decided that yes, she indeed looked better in the simpler dress. He was right. The simplicity would make her shine brighter on the red carpet among the other celebrities who decided to wear extravagant dresses.
Her phone rang. Dom answered it for her. It was Jin Liwei requesting a video call after receiving Iris' photos that Dom sent him just now.
"As I thought, the dress is perfect on you," Jin Liwei said. "You look stunning, love."
Iris did a twirl for him. "Thank you."
"I wish I could escort you to the event."
She took the phone from Dom. "I'll be fine, darling. I'll head home as soon as the awards ceremony ends. Elder Sister Yiyi already arranged an excuse for me to explain why I won't attend the after-party."
"Good. I also already called Chonglin and told him to keep an eye on you at all times."
She made a face. "You didn't have to do that. I'm not a child."
He opened his mouth to say something but stopped. She knew what he was about to say and why he didn't say it in the end. It was likely that he was about to tell her like always, "You're pregnant," but stopped upon remembering that her glam team was present and listening to their conversation. Other than Dom, the others in the room didn't know about her pregnancy yet.
She changed the topic. "How about you, darling? Even if it's only half-day, I'm still worried about you returning to work at your company."
He assured her that he was fine. They chatted for a few minutes before hanging up.
A few seconds later, she received a notification from the bank informing her that someone sent her US$10 million. She frowned and immediately headed to the powder room for some privacy. Then she called the person who sent her the money.
"What was that?" she demanded.
Jin Liwei chuckled. "Have you forgotten, love? According to our prenuptial agreement, I'll give you 10 million US dollars for every child you give me. We had Bacon a few days ago, our fourth one."
"Oh, right," she said but her frown didn't disappear. She sighed. "Darling, you really don't have to do this. I didn't want that clause in our prenup anyway but you wouldn't budge."
"Evelina."
Her heart skipped a beat. She couldn't stop herself from smiling when he said her real name. "Yes?"
"We're both business people and the heads of our companies. Contracts are essential to us. We already signed our prenup so both of us need to honour it."
She sighed again. "Fine."
"I can't wait until the twins are born."
She smiled before teasing him, "Aren't you worried that I'll drain all your money by bringing home new babies all the time?"
He laughed louder this time. "Don't worry about draining your husband's money, wife. Besides, didn't I tell you before that I don't mind raising a hundred kids with you? We only have 4 so far and another 2 on the way. There are still room for 94 more kids."
"Maybe I'll do just that. I'll be an instant global billionaire just by giving you a hundred children."
"You're already a wonderful mother," he said all of a sudden.
She stopped laughing.
"I'm serious."
"Thank you," she whispered. "I love you, Liwei."
"I love you too, Evelina. So much."
She smiled and touched her flat stomach, silently telling her babies that their father was the best.