Chapter 44: Willing to Keep Their Marriage a Secret for Her

Lu Chengfeng grabbed Shu Yan's arm.

"You took the morning-after pill, but he still survived. That's a sign from heaven—he is meant to come into this world."

"Shu Yan, even though we are the child's parents, we have no right to deprive him of the right to live. Whether he gets to live is up to him, not us."

Shu Yan stared at Lu Chengfeng in utter astonishment. What absurd logic!

Where on earth did this guy come up with so much nonsense?

Realizing she couldn't persuade him, Shu Yan tried to scare him off:

"Don't forget, you've just been transferred here. Aren't you afraid this child will become an obstacle for you? Raising a child is no simple matter!"

"I know," Lu Chengfeng's voice softened.

"Shu Yan, I know, I know it all. Pregnancy is hard, and as a mother, you'll have to give up and sacrifice a lot."

"I know you'll have to endure great pain during childbirth, and you'll face many challenges after the baby is born. I also know we'll need to find a way to balance family and career in the future."

"However, these are situations everyone has to face. If others can overcome them, I believe we can too. I'll work hard with you, and we'll figure out a way together, alright?"

Shu Yan looked at Lu Chengfeng without blinking, stunned for a long moment before shaking her head repeatedly.

"We can't do this. If people at work find out we're having a premarital pregnancy, how are we supposed to stay in the bureau?"

Lu Chengfeng: "That's why we need to go get our marriage certificate quickly. Once we're married, it won't be a premarital pregnancy anymore."

Shu Yan's eyes widened in horror. "You've only been transferred here for a month, and you want to register our marriage with me? What would other people think?"

Lu Chengfeng: "If you're afraid, we just won't let them know that the person you married is me."

Shu Yan: "What did you say?"

"A secret marriage," Lu Chengfeng replied. "We can keep it a secret. Well, mostly you—I don't mind either way. But if you want a secret marriage, I'll cooperate with you. That way, you won't have to worry about what people might say, right?"

Shu Yan lowered her head and said nothing more.

Seeing a glimmer of hope, Lu Chengfeng said, "You can think about it first; there's no need to rush into a decision. Alright, right now we need to feed you and the baby in your belly, but it's too late to go buy groceries and cook."

"Go change your clothes, and I'll drive you out to eat. What do you want?"

Shu Yan pouted. "I just want my spicy sour rice noodles."

Lu Chengfeng: "..."

She pushed Lu Chengfeng away and walked toward the coffee table. Just as she was about to sit down on the floor, he grabbed her arm. "The floor is cold."

He grabbed a throw pillow from the sofa and tucked it under her bottom. "Sit."

Shu Yan glanced at Lu Chengfeng, picked up her chopsticks, and lowered her head to eat her rice noodles.

Lu Chengfeng continued, "Tomorrow I'll accompany you to the hospital for a check-up. I'm afraid I might have hurt the baby the other night. If I had known you were pregnant then, I would have exercised some restraint."

Shu Yan's face flushed red. "Shut up! Are you going to let me eat in peace or not?"

She hadn't even decided whether she wanted to keep this child yet—what kind of check-up?

The corners of Lu Chengfeng's mouth curved upward. "Fine, eat slowly. I'll order some more food. Do you like spicy and sour flavors?"

Shu Yan tugged the corner of her mouth upward. "Mmm."

Lu Chengfeng let out a breath, sat down beside her, and took out his phone to carefully order delivery.

After placing the order, he put down his phone and looked at her.

Feeling a burning gaze fixed on her, Shu Yan felt completely ill at ease.

"Can you stop staring at me?"

Lu Chengfeng smiled. "You're too pretty, I can't help it."

Shu Yan rolled her eyes. "Smooth talker."

Lu Chengfeng: "I'm telling the truth. I hope our baby takes after you; they'll definitely be very pretty."

Shu Yan froze. She hadn't thought about that yet.

She lifted her eyelids and glanced at Lu Chengfeng. "If it's a boy, it's probably better if he looks like you. If he looks like me, he might end up a shorty, and then finding a wife in the future would be troublesome."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Shu Yan belatedly blushed.

She hurriedly said, "I was just speaking casually, it doesn't mean I've agreed to have the baby. Anyway, whether to keep this child or not, I still need to think about it."

"I know," Lu Chengfeng smiled gently and asked, "Do you like boys or girls?"

Shu Yan pouted. "I should be the one asking you that."

Lu Chengfeng: "I like both."

Shu Yan lowered her head and continued to eat her spicy sour rice noodles in small bites.

After a moment, she asked curiously, "Don't you northerners have a preference for boys over girls? The preference for boys is quite severe in the south. I handled a case last year that left a deep impression on me."

"A woman, in order to give birth to a son, gave birth to four daughters in a row. But her husband cheated on her while she was pregnant with their fifth child and came home demanding a divorce. In a fit of rage, she took her four daughters and jumped into the sea, and they all died."

After handling that case, Shu Yan had fallen into a deep depression for a long time.

Thinking about it still made her chest ache with tightness.

Lu Chengfeng had also heard of similar cases. He couldn't help but reach out to stroke Shu Yan's hair.

"Things are a bit better over our way; sons and daughters are cherished equally. I wouldn't make you keep having children just to have a son. Even if you were willing, I wouldn't agree to it."

Shu Yan shot Lu Chengfeng a sidelong glance.

Lu Chengfeng smiled gently at her. "Cops don't lie."

Shu Yan couldn't help it and burst out laughing.

Lu Chengfeng chatted with her for a while until the delivery arrived.

He hurriedly got up to get the food, returning with several bags, and arranged the dishes on the table one by one.

There was pickled cabbage fish, sweet and sour pork ribs, duck stir-fried with pineapple, tomato and egg soup, and more.

Shu Yan frowned. "How are we supposed to finish all this food? Didn't you know my appetite has been bad lately?"

Lu Chengfeng took away the spicy sour rice noodles in front of her and handed her a fresh bowl. "Don't I have you? Eat as much as you can, and I'll take care of the rest. Don't worry, it won't go to waste."

"How about I wrap some pickled cabbage dumplings for you later? You can have them for breakfast."

Shu Yan picked up her chopsticks, grabbed a piece of pineapple, and popped it into her mouth. It was sweet, sour, and appetizing.

After swallowing the pineapple, she replied to Lu Chengfeng, "No need. That would mean waking up early to cook breakfast; I'd rather sleep in a bit longer."

Lu Chengfeng picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork rib and put it in Shu Yan's bowl.

"Eat more meat. I'm used to waking up early; I'll cook it for you. Just tell me whatever else you want to eat, don't stand on ceremony."

Shu Yan picked up the rib and took a bite. "You really don't have to do this. I don't want to owe you anything."

Lu Chengfeng gazed at her. "You are the mother of my child. It's only right that I take care of you; there's no question of owing anything."

Shu Yan pouted, feeling a bit uncomfortable inside. Was he only being this good to her because she was carrying his child?

Lu Chengfeng seemed to read her mind. "Of course, as far as I'm concerned, you come first, and the baby comes second."

Shu Yan was stunned upon hearing this.

Lu Chengfeng smiled. "You have to have a mother to have a baby. Without a mother, where would a baby come from?"

Shu Yan felt a bit better inside. She ate in small bites, and before she knew it, she had eaten quite a lot.

By the end, she couldn't help letting out a soft burp.

Lu Chengfeng was very satisfied and polished off the remaining food.

After they finished eating, Lu Chengfeng cleaned up and prepared to take the trash downstairs.

Shu Yan followed. "I'll go too. I ate too much, and I want to walk around and digest before coming back to shower."

Lu Chengfeng was more than happy to oblige, not forgetting to remind her, "It's cool at night, go grab a jacket and put it on before we go down, so you don't catch a cold."