Chapter 38: A Double Life

Julie could never have imagined that when she asked Gao Fei to help her strike back at their shared romantic rival, Li Tian'er, Gao Fei would end up falling for her at first sight. With stars in her eyes, she listened entranced to everything Li Tian'er said, nodding again and again.

In less than three days, Gao Fei had successfully poached Julie’s boyfriend. Julie gathered several of her friends and cornered Gao Fei in the corridor outside the dance hall, raining down a furious barrage of abuse. Before she could even raise a hand to slap her, her former boyfriend suddenly appeared and struck her twice across the face.

On the phone, Gao Fei giggled as she described the scene to Li Tian'er, then said a reluctant goodbye. In the end, she still decided to go back to her hometown, fearing that if she stayed, the boy would keep clinging to her and make it hard to end things cleanly.

“If you like him, there’s nothing wrong with dating him,” Li Tian'er said.

“No way. He gave out your phone number. That says everything about his character. I don’t want to date a guy like that. Besides, I don’t even like his hotheaded, immature type. I only like men like Chen Bo, the kind who are mature, steady, and powerfully commanding, like a real big brother.”

Gao Fei sighed, then suddenly realized she could no longer hear anything on the line. Thinking Li Tian'er was angry with her, she hurriedly explained that she would never again have any improper thoughts about Chen Bo. From now on, she would treat him only as an older brother.

A girl’s heart is changeable, loving today and hating tomorrow, impossible to define. In matters between men and women, what matters most is the man’s own steadiness. If a man has the gentlemanly restraint of a true righteous scholar, how much trouble can a woman possibly stir up?

Take Julie’s ex-boyfriend, for instance: the moment a fresher woman came along, and one who was prettier than his current girlfriend, he could not resist temptation, turned traitor at once, and even laid hands on his ex. His face changed faster than the turning of a page.

Gao Fei also left in secret because she was afraid that if the boy discovered she had played him, he would come after her in revenge.

A man who hits women is unforgivable.

To deal with such a boy, all you needed was to send in a middle-aged woman.

Under Sister Liao’s relentless torment, the young man who worked customer service at the telecom office finally lost his temper. The two of them came to blows in full view of the public, alarming the supervisor on duty. It was said that the very next day, the boy, still in his probationary period, was dismissed by the unit.

When Li Tian'er heard the news, she laughed until she doubled over. Kai-Kai came up to touch her belly, then pressed his ear to it and called out to his little sister.

After changing their number again, the house phone finally fell silent.

The day Chen Bo returned from a business trip, at noon, Li Tian'er had just come out of the maternal and child health hospital. Chen Bo appeared before her without warning, then produced a bouquet of flowers from behind his back like a magician. Before Li Tian'er could take them, he reached out and drew her into his arms, not caring whether anyone was watching, and kissed her with fervor.

“Careful with my belly.”

Li Tian'er had long since gotten used to walking with her stomach rounded and heavy before her, her steps still swift as the wind.

She guessed that if Secretary Ye saw her now, she would be startled. Running a garment factory, getting married, becoming pregnant — all of it had stripped away the delicate arrogance of her former days, and her manner had become even more decisive and efficient than before.

“Walk slower. Or should I carry you upstairs?”

As he spoke, Chen Bo tried to lift her in his arms, but Li Tian'er pushed him away. There were still two months before her due date, and she had already prepared everything needed for labor and delivery. Her mother had come by once and, though she said she would help care for her during confinement, had not even prepared a single diaper for her.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder, but Chen Bo did not dare cross the line. He only held her from behind and whispered to her about the fresh and interesting things he had seen while away.

“Exactly what kind of business are you in now? I don’t even know where your company is.”

Chen Bo had never clearly mentioned his new venture, and Li Tian'er had not asked. She feared hurting his pride, but so much time had passed that she wanted to know what business he was actually doing. At the very least, she wanted to know his office address. If anything happened, she could go find him there.

“Curious now?”

Chen Bo hooked a finger under her chin from behind.

“Of course I’m curious. You’re about to have another child, and I still don’t know what you spend your days doing, or where you spend them.”

“I’m lucky. I have you, and I have Kai-Kai.”

As Chen Bo spoke, the warmth of his breath brushed the nape of Li Tian'er’s neck, making it itch and tingle. She turned her head, but he kissed her neck, preventing her from looking back. His hot lips found her earlobe and bit it gently.

“Move aside, you’re making me itch to death...”

A delicious, ticklish sensation rose from the back of her neck and spread through her whole body. Li Tian'er could not help laughing. Her body curved into a bow, and Chen Bo bent over her, pressed tightly against her so she could not move an inch.

“Seriously, be honest with me. Why don’t I remember at all how I got pregnant with Kai-Kai?”

The knot in her heart had been there for so long; it was time to untie it.

Chen Bo, already poised and ready, let his large hand roam over Li Tian'er’s waist and abdomen, about to move lower. At her words, his heated hand froze, then withdrew. His arched body straightened, and he lay flat, staring at the ceiling.

In the soft glow of the bedside lamp, a shadow of displeasure settled over his face. Li Tian'er turned to look at his profile and saw that he had narrowed his eyes, pretending to sleep. She propped herself up on her hands and leaned over to study his face.

He did not speak, and neither did she. The room was so quiet that only his heavy breathing could be heard.

In the end, it was Li Tian'er who could not hold back any longer.

“We’re husband and wife now. Even if something unpleasant happened before, we can clear it up now. What do you have to worry about? Come on, talk to me.”

When Li Tian'er acted coquettishly, even heaven would laugh along indulgently.

He had seen plenty of women acting cute, but Chen Bo had never encountered anyone whose coquetry seeped so deeply into the bones. Pretending to sleep would not get him through this. The moment he opened his eyes, he gathered Li Tian'er into his arms, then, afraid of pressing on her belly, shifted her to lie on her side.

“If you don’t tell me, I’m not sleeping tonight.”

Li Tian'er pinched Chen Bo’s cheek. Chen Bo immediately begged for mercy.

“Which part do you want to hear?”

“I don’t care. Anything I don’t know, you have to tell me.”

Buried memories were like sealed jars of wine: once opened, they had to be drained in one breath.

Chen Bo was so intent on speaking that he forgot to watch Li Tian'er’s expression. Her face gradually grew grave. Before he had finished, she suddenly sat up, seized his collar, and stared at him with a cold, piercing gaze.

“Can you be any more despicable? Drugging me and knocking me out would have been bad enough, but you also tampered with Fu Xiao. You were committing a crime!”

Only then did Chen Bo realize, with a jolt, that in his carelessness he had let something slip. He wanted to make amends, but words spoken could not be taken back. He tried to pull her into his arms to comfort her, but Li Tian'er shoved him away hard.

“You don’t need to defend Fu Xiao. Even if I hadn’t harmed him, he still couldn’t make a woman pregnant. He was born that way. I merely helped him along and made sure he could never be a man.”

“What kind of thug logic is that?”

Before Li Tian'er married, Chen Bo had slept with her and even ruined the groom’s ability to perform. Was what he felt for Li Tian'er really love, or merely the thrill of possession?

Li Tian'er began to doubt it...