Although she had been married to Qi Xiao Yan for a year, Yang Wei felt like she had only recently actually gotten to know him. She knew, too, that this wasn"t completely on him, but that she herself shared part of the responsibility.

They had entered into marriage without ever going through love, from strangers to the most intimate of couples. A great many compromises had to be made along the way, and they had not had enough patience for it.

After getting home, she lay on the sofa for a while before remembering that she still had a cla.s.s to teach that night. They would start the graduation project the next week. Yang Wei got up to begin leafing through the homework turned in this week, and managed to start cla.s.s on time.

"Looks like more than 20 of you still managed to hand in their homework this week, even though it"s Labour Day. I"m very happy to see that."

Future Mr. Perfect: That"s because we love you, teacher = 3 =

Cocoa: Since that"s the case, maybe teacher will be kind and gentle when grading? [Shy]

Li Gou Dan: :)

"Students who have not handed in their homework can make it up later, but the graduation project must be handed in on time. Would you guys like to draw fiction or fantasy?"

Future Mr. Perfect: Fantasy.

Cocoa: Fiction!

Nine Nine Eight: Either~

Li Gou Dan: :)

Yang Wei took into account everyone"s opinions, then nodded and said, "Alright then, we"ll do magic."

Rows of neatly s.p.a.ced ellipsis fully expressed the feelings of her students.

"The background setting of the world you"ll be ill.u.s.trating will be a kingdom of magic. You may draw witches or sorceresses or princes or knights, so long as there is an element of magic in there." At this point, Yang Wei pasted everyone"s homework into the software. "Next week, we will focus on composition. Today we will start with homework."

Yang Wei began with cla.s.smate Li Gou Dan"s homework. He was still maintaining his domineering stick figure style, but he had mastered light and shadow quite well. After everything had been coloured in, it was a very high-end stick figure.

"We can see here that Cla.s.smate Li Gou Dan has obviously mastered theoretical knowledge, but their penmanship is still insufficient. I hope that in your graduation project, your art style might grow from kindergarten to the fifth grade."

Li Gou Dan: :)

Future Mr. Perfect: Teacher, even fifth grade students don"t draw like this orz

Cocoa: I think that the stick figures are so cute, hahahaha.

By the time she was halfway through the cla.s.s, Yang Wei felt a wave of fatigue wash over her. She struggled through the rest of the homework, then collapsed onto her bed.

Upon waking up the next morning and taking a few bites of bread, Yang Wei immediately felt another wave of nausea rising from her stomach. She rushed to the toilet to throw up everything she had just eaten.

When she was finally somewhat comfortable again, she rinsed her mouth out with clean water, looking solemn. Yesterday, she had eaten all three meals together with Professor Qi. She could no longer continue deceiving herself that the fault was in the food she had eaten.

She thought for a moment, then changed and made her way to a pharmacy far from home to buy a pregnancy test kit. When she got home again, she took out the instructions from the box, read them through carefully twice, and then went to the bathroom with the test stick.

Upon drinking a cup of warm water, the result of the pregnancy test came out - two bars. She found the corresponding result in the manual, written in lovely pink font - Congratulations! You are probably pregnant. ^ _ ^

Yang Wei: "..."

A headline flashed through her mind - "Divorced wife pregnant with her ex-husband"s child! An unforgettable old love, or moral decay?!"

No, no, no! The results of a pregnancy test weren"t always 100% accurate, right? Couldn"t she just be in the remaining 5 percent? Clutching the manual in her hand, Yang Wei sat on the sofa for a while before deciding to go to the hospital for an examination.

She took a taxi to the Central Hospital. Although it was the Labour Day Golden Week1A national holiday, the hospital was still crowded. She requested an appointment with the obstetrics and gynecology department, then sat in the hall waiting for her number to be called, terrified of accidentally running into acquaintances or even worse - relatives.

Fortunately, she safely entered the doctor"s office. Waiting inside for her was unexpectedly a very young-looking female doctor with a low ponytail, rimless gla.s.ses, and a white coat. She looked cool and elite.

Yang Wei sat down opposite her, somewhat ill at ease. The doctor put her desk in order, then looked up at her and asked, "What seems to be the problem?"

"It"s..." Yang Wei felt it embarra.s.sing to say, "I think I might be pregnant..."

"Have you taken a pregnancy test?" The doctor didn"t even blink.

"I did, two bars... but there are times when it isn"t completely accurate, right?"

Yang Wei gazed at the other as if hoping the other would give her some proof that she was right. Meeting her gaze, the doctor asked, "When was your last menstrual period?" "

"March 21st."

"When did s.e.xual relations occur?"

Yang Wei: "..."

Were all doctors of obstetrics and gynecology all so... unrestrained? Her cheeks flushed slightly. "A, a bit more than half a month ago."

"Go take a blood test."

The doctor handed her a form. Yang Wei found the place where blood was tested, and after her blood was taken, settled in for a long wait. Fortunately, the results came out before the doctor got off work, and Yang Wei almost flew to the clinic with the results.

The doctor glanced at the test sheet and told her, "You are pregnant."

Yang Wei: "..."

Apparently aware of Yang Wei"s stiff expression, the doctor"s gaze fell on her from behind the cold lenses of her gla.s.ses. "Would you like to abort it?"

This kind of thing was commonplace in the hospital. This young woman was here alone, making this likely an unexpected, perhaps unwanted pregnancy.

Yang Wei was in a daze. To abort the child of Professor Qi might be killing off a great future scientist.

She bit her lip and said to the doctor, "No, it"s just that I can"t... I can"t get used to it."

The doctor bowed her head and began writing out a prescription. "Children are the greatest gifts heaven can bestow2This is a saying.. Go home and discuss it with your boyfriend. The first three months of pregnancy are often unstable, so you should pay it a little more attention. Avoid having s.e.x. Eat lighter fare when you can, more fruits and vegetables, and keep your mood up."

"Oh..."

"Return to the hospital next month for a checkup."

"Okay."

Yang Wei went to the pharmacy to pick up her medicine. They were folic acid tablets and calcium tablets. The nurse in the obstetrics and gynecology department also handed her a handbook for pregnant women.

She took all these things back home and fell on the sofa, her eyes empty. Pregnancy had come like a tornado, far too fast. Should she tell Qi Xiao Yan?

If she did, he would definitely move back in immediately and force himself to remarry her. They would be together for the sake of the child. She didn"t like the feeling of it.

Yet with a child, one could no longer be as capricious as before, saying that divorce meant divorce. She felt like she had seen a different side of Qi Xiao Yan during this period of time. If she rushed into remarriage, would they go back to the noisy, squabbling days of before? Wouldn"t that also be irresponsible toward the child?

She was not sure whether she would be capable of managing marriage well, of being tolerant and considerate.

Perhaps she could give them a little more time. Hadn"t the the doctor told her to go to the hospital next month for a checkup? She could bring Qi Xiao Yan along. What reaction would he have? Would he blame her for keeping it a secret for a month? Would he not want to have children so early?

"Ahh—" Yang Wei ran her hands through her hair irritably, then took a deep breath and reminded herself, "Keep your mood up. Keep your mood up."

She took out the handbook for pregnant women from her bag and leafed through it it. She had made the decision to have a child, so she now had to take good care of herself. This next month would be the final preparation for her long-term life in marriage with Qi Xiao Yan.

The handbook described what new mothers-to-be should pay attention to in their daily diet and life. It also briefly went over the things that they might expect to happen during pregnancy and ways to ease their symptoms. Yang Wei found that her morning sickness was relatively mild, and though she vomited a little each morning, she seemed to be fine at other times.

During pregnancy, try to spend less time using your phone or computer. It seemed like after finishing up her last two online cla.s.ses, she would have to quit her part-time job. Another problem; the first three months of pregnancy were unstable. Rushing to and from work in the crowded bus might be risky. She could only take a taxi to and from work from now on.

Yang Wei felt a pang thinking about it. With her income reducing and her spending increasing, would she soon be running in the red? Well, then, why not? She went to the bedroom and took out Qi Xiao Yan"s silver bank card. This was for the child that was half his. She would use the money with peace of mind.

There was another drawing cla.s.s that evening. Thank goodness cla.s.s would be over next week, and she would be able to take a breather. Afterward, she took the pills prescribed by the doctor, put on some soothing music, and went to bed early.

Labour Day was over. She had to recharge her batteries before her next job.

The alarm clock woke her up at 6:40am, and Yang Wei struggled out of bed. After eating a little something, then matter-of-factly throwing it back up, Yang Wei felt like she had gotten rather calm about this situation.

Her body shape had not yet changed, and she could still wear whatever she wanted from her wardrobe, but nonetheless she picked out looser styles, matching a royal blue round-necked blouse to a white blazer and dark commuter pants. Taking a photo in the mirror, Yang Wei gave herself a score of 95 points.

She found that her hair had grown a little longer and was now past her shoulders. Examining the dresser for a moment, she chose a flower-shaped hairpin with rhinestones and pulled her hair up into a small updo.

Then she took another photo of herself in the mirror. 100 points, believe it or not! Becoming a mother seemed to have made her more beautiful!

Having appreciated her beauty, she began applying makeup. She had checked carefully yesterday and found out from the Internet that some cosmetics might affect the baby, so she kept her makeup and lipstick light.

She slung a bag over her shoulder and made her way downstairs to find Qi Xiao Yan at the foot of the apartment building. Yang Wei felt a moment of panic before calming herself back down.

She got into the car, but he did not start it. Turning to look at him, she asked hesitantly, "What"s wrong?" Surely he wouldn"t find her out so soon? She hadn"t even done anything!

"Nothing. I just think you"re really beautiful today." Yang Wei rarely wore white, and it surprised him a little, "I would love to kiss you just like this."

Having said that, he unbuckled his seat belt and leaned over to do just that. The kiss was neither light nor quick. Holding her lower lip in his mouth, Qi Xiao Yan sucked on it carefully. His tongue lingered on her lips for moment before prying open her teeth and breaking into her mouth.

Yang Wei was dizzy with it all. Even after a long time, she felt like he wasn"t going to stop, so she eventually frowned and pushed him off. "I"m going to be late for work."

Qi Xiao Yan looked up at her, so close she could count his eyelashes. He whispered an endearment and brushed her lips one last time before returning to his seat and putting his seat belt back on.

In her heart, Yang Wei decided that Professor Qi must be insatiable, to be in heat so early in the morning.

The car had been driving for a while, but Qi Xiao Yan"s face was straight and not a word had been said. Thinking a little, Yang Wei called out to him, her head c.o.c.ked, "Curly-bae, will you pick me up every morning?"

"Mmm." Qi Xiao Yan agreed, without even considering. Yang Wei smiled at him. It would be great to save on taxi fare. How clever she was.

Qi Xiao Yan parked near the school gate, and Yang Wei unbuckled herself. As she was about to get off, Qi Xiao Yan stopped her. "Darling."

"Hm?" Yang Wei turned back, but Qi Xiao Yan merely kept his eyes on her, saying nothing. Yang Wei thought for a moment, then leaned over and gave him a quick peck before getting off.

Qi Xiao Yan watched her walk into the school before lowering his head and smiling to himself.

"Good morning," Yang Wei greeted her students the whole way in. The fat security guard at the gate watched her fade into the distance, his heart flying out after her. How on earth did Teacher Yang suddenly become so much more beautiful after just one Labour Day?!

That first morning back after the holiday was a busy one. Though Yang Wei had no morning cla.s.ses, she felt exhausted enough to lie limply on her chair. She hoped Teacher w.a.n.g would return from maternity leave soon. She wanted to be on maternity leave too.

That entire week Qi Xiao Yan came on time every morning to pick her up, and every once in a while he picked her up from work, too. Yang Wei felt happy and relaxed. He seemed to have memorized the times of her part-time cla.s.ses, and knowing that she had nothing going on on Friday nights, he had shamelessly dragged his feet, not leaving even after dinner.

Her medicine and the handbook for pregnant women were in her handbag, so she wasn"t worried about him finding them, but was it really alright if they just sat there watching TV the whole time? Hold on a minute. He wasn"t thinking of sleeping over tonight, was he?

Her thoughts having come to this point, she couldn"t help but sneak a peek at the man beside her. His expression was relaxed, as if the financial news was really that enjoyable.

Sitting cross-legged on the sofa, she cuddled her pillow and called out, "Curly-bae."

"Hmm?" Qi Xiao Yan tilted his head toward her. The fourty-five degree angle of his profile was enough to launch a thousand ships.

Yang Wei licked her lips. "I"ve been wanting to draw recently but haven"t had any inspiration. Why don"t you come be my model?"

She had asked him to be her model before. He had never agreed before, but this time--

"Alright."

Yang Wei blinked in surprise. So was it true after all that men only listen when they"re still chasing you?! Once you married them and brought them home, they"d become lazy old uncles?

Regardless, this was a rare opportunity. Yang Wei dug out pen and paper began to consider what pose she would want him in. Unexpectedly, Professor Qi started to undress.

"Wait, what are you taking off your clothes for?"

"Don"t models have to be nude?"

Yang Wei: "..."

Did you maybe have some misunderstanding about models?

Yang Wei touched the tip of her nose. Well, since the model was open to the idea, she didn"t mind. Glancing Qi Xiao Yan"s trousers, she rose to dig out a pair of dark low-rise jeans from the closet. He had left them here when he moved out.

Well, Professor Qi himself would never have bought these sorts of jeans. Yang Wei had bought them for him, but after having worn them twice, he had never worn them again.

"Put these on." Yang Wei handed him the jeans. Qi Xiao Yan looked down and unzipped his pants.