Chapter 1.

With the lab test results in one hand and my son’s tiny hand in the other, I walked out of the hospital in a complete haze.

Since it was still early, I decided to take my boy to the mall to do some shopping. Naturally, drama has a funny way of finding me when I least expect it.

I caught sight of Li Huaijing shopping for hand bags… alongside his white moonlight, Jiang Nian.

My pregnancy hormones were already making my blood boil, and all I wanted was to charge over and give those two lovebirds a piece of my mind.

Just as I was about to go full combat mode, my best friend, Xiaoxiao, grabbed my arm. “Hand the kid over to me. You go handle the crime scene without worrying.”

I nodded with fierce determination and stepped onto the battlefield.

Truth be told, I was raised as a spoiled princess, headstrong, fiery, and fiercely independent. But ten years ago, I heard a rumor that Li Huaijing preferred gentle, submissive girls, so I forced myself to play the sweet, innocent little rabbit for a whole decade.

Ten damn years.

Well, today this young lady was officially retiring from the act.

I marched straight up to him and, without a single word…

*SLAP!*

A resounding smack landed square on Li Huaijing’s face.

Jiang Nian shrieked in horror, wanting to pull me back but too terrified to get close.

Right at that moment, a sudden cramp hit my lower abdomen.

*Oh crap… the baby!*

I quickly cupped my belly and whispered a soft apology, “Sorry, little one… Mommy went a bit overboard.”

Li Huaijing knit his brows. “What is wrong with you?”

I gritted my teeth. “Li Huaijing, I want a divorce!”

He froze, stunned. It was probably the first time he’d ever seen his “gentle rabbit” transform into a feral one.

Jiang Nian immediately jumped into her savior role. “Niannian, you’ve got it all wrong. Huaijing and I are completely innocent…”

I let out a cold laugh. “Shut up, you peppermint.”

Not refreshing, just bitter and bitey.

She choked on her words, speechless. Li Huaijing was starting to lose his patience, too.

I cut through the noise: “This marriage is over. I’m calling it.”

“And what about our son?” he asked.

My breath hitched for a second before I replied, “My son needs a father, but I don’t need a husband.”

He sneered. “So I’m the only thing you don’t need?”

I crossed my arms. “Save the performance. Once the ink is dry on the divorce papers, you two can go public all you want. Consider this my early wedding gift, wishing you two a long, miserable life together.”

Halfway through my rant, the floodgates opened, and tears streamed down my face.

He stepped closer, reaching out to wipe my cheeks. “What are you crying for? If anyone should be crying, it’s me.”

I slapped his hand away.

Don’t need it.

Too late.

I grabbed my son and took off running.

Li Huaijing chased right after me, with Jiang Nian trailing close behind like a shadow. Realizing I couldn’t outrun them, I shoved my son into his arms.

“Mommy’s going away for a few days. Stay with Daddy, okay?”

“No,” Li Huaijing answered instantly, without a second thought.

My son, however, nodded. The kid inherited his father’s terrifying intelligence and his grandmother’s sharp intuition; he understood the situation better than most adults.

I seized the moment, pulled Xiaoxiao by the wrist, and vanished into thin air.

We hadn’t been on the road long when my phone rang. It was my son calling from his smartwatch.

The moment I picked up, Li Huaijing’s voice came through the speaker: “Come to the Moon Bay Villa.”

In the background, Jiang Nian’s sugary voice floated over: “Huaijing, let me hold him for a bit?”

Ah. Still attached at the hip, I see.

Great. Why don’t you two just get glued together and save society the trouble?

“Drive safely,” his voice turned icy. “He doesn’t like strangers.”

I didn’t hang up. A gut feeling told me more drama was brewing.

“Son, how was Mommy feeling today?”

“Mommy wasn’t feeling well this morning, so she went to the hospital.”

Me: …

My dear son, some details do not need to be reported to command control!

“The doctor said Mommy needs to stay happy and no one is allowed to make her mad. Daddy needs to love Mommy more and spend more time with her.”

I listened in disbelief, wondering which doctor ever said that. News to me!

“Oh, and! The doctor told us to guess whether the baby is a boy or a girl!”

“Baby?” Li Huaijing’s voice shifted instantly, dangerous and sharp.

Busted.

On my end, Xiaoxiao slammed on the brakes and turned to stare at me, eyes wide. “My lady… are you pregnant again?!”

I gave a weak nod.

Her eyes narrowed. “Is it Li Huaijing’s?”

I looked at her with a bitter smile. “Take a wild guess.”

“What’s there to guess?! Whose else would it be if not that bastard’s?!” Xiaoxiao blew a fuse. “Are you seriously pregnant? Didn’t you guys always use protection?”

Her eyes were glued to my stomach.

I cleared my throat awkwardly and started confessing my sins. “A month ago, on his birthday… I had everything prepared, but my period had just ended. I thought it was during my safe window, so I was too lazy to buy emergency contraception, thinking I’d just grab it the next day.”

“Then our boy threw a huge tantrum the next morning, and I got so caught up taking care of him… I completely forgot.”

I let out a long sigh. “Who would’ve thought… just that one time, and it stuck.”

My feelings were a tangled mess, part regret, part… quiet joy. Besides, the Su family was wealthy enough that raising one more kid wouldn’t exactly send us into bankruptcy.

Xiaoxiao looked at me like I was an alien species. “Impressive! One shot, one hit! The man certainly has high efficiency.”

She rested her chin on her hand, thinking it over. “If I remember correctly, you got pregnant with your son less than a month after the wedding, right?”

I nodded sheepishly. “Back then I was young and clueless… and boom, caught.”

Thinking back to those early days made my cheeks burn.

My first time was with him. His first time… was with me, too.

I didn’t believe it at first. That night, he fumbled around for ages without getting it right, and I was so terrified of the pain that I cried a river. He didn’t dare be too rough, flustered and desperate, a complete contrast to his usual cold, calculated CEO persona.

…Looking back, it was almost funny.

After we got married, our “skills” gradually leveled up. By now, you could say our physical chemistry was off the charts.

I gave my head a hard shake. Why am I even thinking about this? Talk about digging my own grave!

Xiaoxiao suddenly fell silent, looking thoughtful. “That’s so weird. You say he doesn’t love you… but you guys aren’t exactly lacking in the bedroom department, are you?”

My face flushed instantly.

Lacking?! It was way too much!

As long as I was breathing, he wanted it almost every single day. Every session dragged on until the middle of the night. The next morning, he’d head off to work looking as fresh as a daisy, while my waist felt like it was about to snap in half.

I used to think maybe his body had simply grown accustomed to mine. But what I wanted… wasn’t just his body.

It was his heart.

After a beat, I muttered bitterly, “He probably just sees me as… a convenient tool to satisfy his needs.”

Xiaoxiao instantly switched into fierce best-friend mode. “A tool?! Please! Our Niannian has a killer body, a tiny waist, fair skin, and a gorgeous face. It’s a complete waste on Li Huaijing for four whole years! Not to mention you bore him a son as handsome as your boy!”

Hearing her praise boosted my spirits a little, but remembering how four years of effort still failed to warm his heart made my mood plunge right back down.

“Niannian… you’re planning to keep this baby, right?”

I nodded.

“Good! Then I’m helping you raise it!” Xiaoxiao slapped her thigh with a loud thud. “A boy and a girl, a perfect happy ending!”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “Then you better hurry up and find a husband so you can have two more to complete the team.”

Xiaoxiao immediately waved her hands in refusal. “Pass! I couldn’t even handle Li Huainian.”

“He already has someone in his heart anyway. Once upon a time, I actually dreamed of becoming your sister-in-law!”

She laughed, though a trace of sorrow flickered in her eyes.

Li Huainian was Li Huaijing’s older brother, two years his senior. Ever since Huaijing and I got married, he had spent most of his time abroad, only coming back for a few days during the New Year.

Both Li brothers belonged to that same infuriating breed: handsome, brilliant, and impossibly distant. He adored our son, bringing back mountains of gifts every time he visited.

And Xiaoxiao had been in love with him for twelve long years.

She had even flown overseas once to track him down, only to be rejected without a shred of mercy.

In the end, she let go.

Maybe when you’ve loved someone that extraordinary, no one else ever measures up again.