Chapter 3

As my due date approached, time seemed to hurry.

The moment He Yanchuan heard I was in labor, he dropped everything and booked the earliest flight.

I gave birth safely to twins, a boy and a girl.

They were still so red and new that no one could tell whom they resembled.

I took out the divorce agreement I had prepared and gave it to him.

Deep down, I didn’t want a divorce.

The paper was only a test.

It stated that I voluntarily relinquished any claim to the He family’s assets.

“You said we would divorce after I gave birth,” I signed. “I’ve prepared the agreement. If there’s nothing wrong with it, sign.”

After reading it, his eyes reddened.

“You’ve only just given birth and already you want a divorce? What, the children’s father can’t wait?”

I shook my head.

“It has nothing to do with him. I only want you to be free. You deserve someone better.”

To my astonishment, he tore up the agreement.

“We’re not divorcing.”

I stared.

“You think I’ll let you be with that man? Never.”

“I’ve thought about it. If I really can’t have children, I’d have to adopt eventually. Better your children than a stranger’s.”

I was speechless.

When he first learned I was pregnant, he had said he wasn’t generous enough to raise another man’s child.

Now he was saying the opposite.

He watched me, then gave a bitter smile.

“What? Is he waiting for me to step aside?”

“I haven’t seen him visit you once. What a bastard.”

“You’d give up everything for a man like that?”

He drew a deep breath.

“I can let the past go. I’ll accept these children and treat them as my own.”

“But from now on, you have to build a good life with me. No other men.”

I stayed silent while he kept talking.

When I still didn’t answer, his voice dropped.

“I’m still having treatment. I take tonics every day. If that doesn’t work, I’ll…”

I almost laughed.

What on earth was going through his head?

Was he so determined to avoid divorce because of his grandfather?

Or had something in him changed?

“All right,” I signed. “No divorce. But my treatment is very slow. I still won’t be able to speak anytime soon. You mustn’t look down on me.”

His answer was earnest.

“I never have. I have a physical problem, too. Don’t look down on me either. All right?”

He didn’t know he had already recovered.

Two healthy babies, a boy and a girl. To me, that proved he was more than capable of having children.

I nodded.

“I won’t. Neither of us will.”

Whatever he was thinking made his ears turn red.

“Xia Yu. Actually, I…”

I tilted my head and waited.

“I think…”

He swallowed the rest.

“Never mind. Rest. We’ll talk after your postpartum month.”

***

After I finished my month of recovery abroad, he brought the children and me home himself.

He told his grandfather we had adopted the twins.

To my surprise, the old man didn’t ask many questions.

“Well. The He family must have descendants. Adopted children are still children.”

Then he consoled himself.

“I’m still healthy, and now I’m a great-grandfather. Wonderful. Wonderful!”

Apparently, He Yanchuan had inherited his generosity from his grandfather.

The old man named the children.

Our son was He Chenan, nicknamed Gangan.

Our daughter was He Wanning, nicknamed Ningning.

He happily shared the news with my grandfather.

“Old Xia! You’re a great-grandfather! Xiao Yu and Yanchuan have adopted twins!”

Grandpa laughed heartily.

“She told me. News like this calls for a drink!”

The two old men opened a bottle of medicinal liquor and toasted the occasion.

Old Mr. He adored the babies. He took them to the ancestral home and hired four nannies to care for them.

I began working at my grandfather’s herbal dispensary.

I filled prescriptions. It suited me well, since I didn’t need to speak.

Every day at five, He Yanchuan drove over to collect me. Then we visited Gangan and Ningning at the old house.

On weekends, he brought them home to stay with us.

I often brought back tonics and nourishing ingredients from the clinic and cooked for him.

He cooperated.

Whenever I offered a bowl, he finished it.

***

One evening, I went downstairs for water and found him in the kitchen.

After drinking, I turned off the light and was about to go upstairs.

He suddenly drew me into his arms.

“Darling,” he murmured meaningfully, “a husband and wife who sleep apart too long will grow distant.”

Separate rooms had been my suggestion.

Did he want to share a bed to help our relationship?

Before I could respond, he made no further demand, but didn’t let go.

He bent to kiss me gently, as though cherishing something fragile and precious.

The kiss deepened. Tenderness wound between us like vines, blooming quietly in the dark.

I don’t know how long it lasted.

Then his nose began to bleed.

I turned on the light and fetched tissues.

Apparently, I needed to halve the tonics. Too much of a good thing.

Embarrassed, he retreated to his room for a cold shower.

The next morning, I came down for breakfast and found him putting his bedsheets into the washing machine.

That was normally the housekeeper’s job.

When I looked at him, his ears immediately reddened. He avoided my eyes.

On the drive to work, he said quietly, “You don’t need to make those tonics anymore.”

I blinked.

Had he recovered completely?

Part of me badly wanted to find out firsthand.

But… desire could be dangerous.

I stopped that guilty thought immediately.

***

Soon, it was Old Mr. He’s birthday.

The celebration was held at a hotel belonging to the He Group.

The Yu family was invited because the two families had business ties.

And I saw Yu Tang again.

Four years earlier, the families had planned a marriage alliance.

After breaking off her engagement to He Yanchuan, Yu Tang had hurriedly married his close university friend.

I heard they had divorced a year ago.

When I went to the restroom, she followed.

Touching up her lipstick in the mirror, she gave me a contemptuous glance.

“You’ve got nerve, Xia Yu. Cheating is one thing. But bringing another man’s children home for the He family to raise?”

I said nothing.

She laughed coldly.

“Oh, I forgot. You’re mute. You can’t talk.”

“If I hadn’t broken off the engagement, do you think you’d ever have married into the He family?”

“Now I’m divorced. If I pursue him again, will he leave you and come back to me?”

“You know what they call it. An unforgettable first love. Those are hard to get over.”

I still didn’t respond.

I went into a cubicle.

When I came out to wash my hands, she was still there.

“I’ve had a husband, too, Xia Yu. At least I’m normal.”

“You can’t even speak.”

“Living with a mute must be miserable for him.”

“He hates being shut out. Back then, if I was angry and didn’t speak to him for more than three hours, he’d lose his composure and beg until I forgave him.”

“Now he gets that silent treatment from you every day. Sooner or later, he’ll go mad.”

So his plea not to shut him out hadn’t come from nowhere.

Yu Tang had treated him that way before.

I opened the notes app on my phone, typed a line, and held it up.

[Finished? Watching you shake with anger is rather funny.]

She glared and ground her teeth.

“You dare laugh at me?”

“Fine. Wait until you see how I embarrass you in front of his grandfather!”

Chin raised, she left.