Children (4)
After his conversation with Zhu Yanghong, Xie Xuanchen had been very silent for the rest of the journey, and his expression didn’t improve even after coming back home.
Mu Mingtang felt Xie Xuanchen’s change at a glance, so she leaned close to him and inquired, “What’s wrong with you? And why do you look unhappy?”
Xie Xuanchen glanced at Mu Mingtang, “Why do you say so? Am I the kind of person who would get upset?”
Mu Mingtang hesitated to answer. After living with Xie Xuanchen for a while, Mu Mingtang had come to understand that, although Xie Xuanchen was a strong individual with outstanding martial arts skills and Mu Mingtang was just a weak woman, Xie Xuanchen was actually the one who gave things a lot of thought.
Mu Mingtang, who knew Xie Xuanchen was prone to overthinking, was wondering what had touched her husband’s fragile glass heart and made him depressed all the way.
Mu Mingtang couldn’t guess what Xie Xuanchen was thinking, so she asked directly: “You have been in a bad mood after coming from the Buddhist temple. Why? What did Zhu Yanghong tell you?”
Xie Xuanchen raised his eyebrows and asked, “Do you really want to know?”
“Of course.”
“Okay. He asked when we were going to have a child, so that he could give you a big gift for your help regarding the young ladies of the Zhu family,” Xie Xuanchen told her, as he nodded like it was a matter of fact and looked at her.
Mu Mingtang was stunned, and completely dumbfounded, unable to produce any response for a good while.
Xie Xuanchen’s eyes lit up with a smile, and he gave her a languid look. After staying quiet for a while, Mu Mingtang noticed that Xie Xuanchen was grinning at her. “Are you messing with me again?”
“What? Who is messing around with whom?” Xie Xuanchen denied without batting an eyelid.
“You’re definitely lying to me. That, for sure, is clear.” Mu Mingtang repeated her previous accusation after taking a breath. “You are not someone who usually lies. So tell me the truth, is it real or fake?”
The anxiousness was evidently visible in Mu Mingtang’s eyes. Looking at her reaction, Xie Xuanchen quietly murmured, “Of course I lied.”
Just as Mu Mingtang started to relax, Xie Xuanchen continued: “He wasn’t planning on giving our future kid a red envelope. I used the word gift myself.”
Mu Mingtang was surprised. Feeling flustered and furious, she swung her fist at Xie Xuanchen while saying, “You’re really impossible!”
Mu Mingtang’s fist was easily caught by Xie Xuanchen as he gently leaned back. “It’s the truth. Ask Zhu Yanghong if you don’t trust me. I’m telling you I didn’t lie to you, and I mean it.”
Mu Mingtang’s heart was beating rapidly as her thoughts were thrown in disarray. She wondered how Xie Xuanchen could remain so calm and collected as he gazed directly into her eyes while discussing such an embarrassing topic.
Mu Mingtang also wanted to pretend to be calm, but her voice betrayed her as the moment her mouth opened, it cracked, “Then w-what did you… say?”
“I can only tell the truth.” Xie Xuanchen held back his smile and looked at Mu Mingtang solemnly. “After all, I can’t give birth to a child by myself. It depends on you, too.”
As Xie Xuanchen had expected, Mu Mingtang’s neck began to flush red once he finished speaking. Seeing Mu Mingtang blushing so hard, Xie Xuanchen stopped teasing and tried to save her from the embarrassment. “I didn’t tell him anything. I was merely making fun of you. I know you are going to scold me, but don’t be angry, and speak slowly.”
Mu Mingtang’s eyes slowly widened, from doubt to disbelief to anger, and finally, faintly, on the verge of explosion. Xie Xuanchen was afraid that she would say something like sleeping in separate rooms again out of anger, so he swiftly held one of her hands, and put his other hand on Mu Mingtang’s shoulder, and immediately changed the subject, “It’s going to be your birthday soon. How do you want to celebrate it?”