Chapter 98

 Little Rabbit Shoes – Boy or Girl?

That day, the warm orange glow of the setting sun was exceptionally tender. Whenever Lu Lizhi recalled it afterward, he felt his heart overflowing, as if dyed by the twilight.

A gentle breeze brushed his face, and Jiang Yuye's voice—the one that always made his heart flutter—spoke words that left him dazed and at a loss.

"Lizhi, did you hear? We're having a baby!"

Lu Lizhi felt as if an electric current ran through him. He wanted to slide off his back and demand an explanation.

"Don't move. I want to carry you and the baby like this."

The word "baby" was one of Jiang Yuye's terms—sometimes, when he was feeling playful, he'd also call Lu Lizhi "baby" or "sweetheart," affectionate nicknames alongside "wifey."

But now Lu Lizhi was confused. "Who?"

Jiang Yuye knew he was just as dumbfounded as himself. "The one in your belly—the one that's been making you throw up. Must be pretty uncomfortable, right?"

People were bustling all around them, and Lu Lizhi's ears suddenly burned red. "Don't talk nonsense—that's not morning sickness!"

He even felt a bit humiliated—a grown man being told he had morning sickness, with passersby casting curious glances their way, and occasionally some less-than-pleasant remarks.

Jiang Yuye led him down a quieter side street and sighed. "You still haven't realized it by now? I got you pregnant, Lizhi. You're carrying my kid!"

Lu Lizhi's heart trembled at his blunt words, but what filled him more was an instinctive mix of joy and bewilderment. "I—I'm pregnant?"

His hand was already reaching unconsciously toward his belly. "But..."

Jiang Yuye continued carrying him on his back, a smile curling at his lips. "Then let's pretend you're not."

When his belly started growing, he'd believe it.

But Lu Lizhi suddenly threw a punch at him. "Put me down!"

Lu Lizhi was angry—this was no joking matter. Yes, he did love to tease him with lewd jokes in bed, but he couldn't believe he'd lie about something like this too.

"Jiang Yuye, you're utterly ridiculous!"

Jiang Yuye laughed softly, wrapping an arm around his waist, pulling him back into a tight embrace.

"Lizhi, do you really want to carry my baby so badly? Is that why you're so upset—afraid it's just a false hope?"

Lu Lizhi pushed him away, glaring. "You wish."

"But I already do." The man's voice was so gentle it could melt into spring water. "Lizhi, you've already managed to conceive—almost two months along. Probably from my birthday that time when things got so wild. What if it's twins or even triplets?"

Lu Lizhi's face flushed and paled alternately. He couldn't tell which of his words were true and which were lies, and he wanted to walk away.

But as he tried to hurry off, his hand pressed against his lower abdomen—as if burned by something... All the signs seemed to point to one answer.

Lu Lizhi slowly crouched down, leaning against the wall.

Jiang Yuye panicked. He shouldn't have teased him. "What's wrong, Lizhi? Are you feeling unwell? Is the baby acting up again?"

"R-really? I'm really pregnant?" Lu Lizhi's eyes reddened, his expression complicated.

Jiang Yuye nodded emphatically.

Words were unnecessary. Lu Lizhi had never been obsessed with having children, nor had he ever felt the need to leave Jiang Yuye a bloodline.

He wasn't a woman who'd married and submitted to her husband. The fact that he could be with a man openly, unabashedly intimate with him in front of more and more people—that already showed how free-spirited he'd become.

Yet occasionally he'd wonder: after they died, what would they leave behind in this world?

Would the traces of their love be buried by those with ill intent? Would everything they'd built be forgotten, carried away by the wind, with nothing to anchor it?

He also loved children. When he was little, he'd thought that if he ever became a father, he would never let his child suffer the slightest grievance—whether they were mute or had a strange body.

He would give his child twice the love and care that he himself had been denied and had been forced to suppress!

To some extent, Lu Lizhi even regretted that his talents and brilliance couldn't be passed on.

And with Jiang Yuye's genes—his intelligence and boldness—shouldn't they be inherited too?

After thinking it all through, Lu Lizhi suddenly grew worried. "What if we have a stupid child?"

Jiang Yuye: "..."

Lu Lizhi's concerns weren't baseless—after all, he wasn't a woman naturally built for childbirth. Could his body really produce a normal baby?

"Don't overthink it. No matter what, I'll love it—and you shouldn't mind either. It's my kid!"

Lu Lizhi was still in a daze, unable to process all these emotions, until Jiang Yuye tried to carry him again. He stopped him. "Don't squash the baby."

Jiang Yuye panicked. "Did I squish it?"

Lu Lizhi didn't know either. In the end, Jiang Yuye carried him for a long time, all the way to the provincial capital's night market, which spread out before them like a long river.

The bustling, lively street scene was filled with an extra scholarly air, thanks to all the examinees who'd just finished the provincial exams.

Ink, brushes, paper, and inkstones laid out on wooden boards were all quite cheap. Paintings and calligraphy spread across the ground were the livelihood of down-and-out scholars.

There were also lanterns, oil-paper umbrellas, folding fans, and embroidered pouches inscribed with poems and paintings.

Lu Lizhi had long since gotten down from Jiang Yuye's back. He spotted a lantern painted with a snow-white rabbit and couldn't bear to put it down.

Jiang Yuye bought it for him. Then he discovered children's rattles, pinwheels, ceramic whistles with clear, crisp sounds, and little clothes and adorable tiny shoes.

Like two kids at a fair, they were utterly fascinated. In the end, they bought all sorts of things, lugging big and small bags back with them.

Just as they returned, they ran straight into Tu Huanwen, Fang Kaiyuan, and even Chen Jian, Wu Yong, Song Haocheng, and Yi Shuyun.

The former group had come to see Tu Huanwen—after all, he was well-liked—and the latter had come to find Lu Lizhi. Seeing him holding a rattle in one hand and a stick of candied hawthorns in the other, his eyes bright and his spirits high—where was the exhaustion from the exams?

Everyone: "???"

Are you suffering at all, Lizhi?

Is this even going to work?

Fang Kaiyuan also noticed the little shoes—because his own child was just that age, just starting to walk, though his was a boy.

When Jiang Yuye pulled out a pair of pink rabbit-eared little shoes made of rabbit fur, all the grown men were instantly captivated.

"So cute!"

"There are children's shoes this pretty?"

"I want to buy a pair for my son too." Fang Kaiyuan's eyes lit up.

"You'd put your son in these? Pink? Bunnies? Those are for a girl!"

Jiang Yuye then produced another pair of little shoes. Everyone, before they could even wonder why he was buying these, was utterly charmed.

Lu Lizhi quietly hid the pair of fierce tiger-head shoes he'd bought.

It had to be said, Jiang Yuye had impeccable taste—but everything he'd bought was specifically for:

A girl!

"What did you buy, Lizhi?" Jiang Yuye was curious. They'd been so caught up in the shopping frenzy that they'd even separated for a while.

Of course, that was mainly because they were buying items for different genders.

Jiang Yuye flipped through his purchases, his expression turning complicated. "Lizhi... you're not one of those people who favors boys over girls, are you?"

Lu Lizhi blinked in confusion. "Favor boys over girls?"

Then he realized—unconsciously, he'd been buying only items for boys.

"It's normal for Lizhi to like boys—that way, he can pass on his talents, take the imperial exams, and maybe even be a little prodigy!" Song Haocheng chimed in, understanding Lu Lizhi well.

Lu Lizhi had indeed thought about that—if the Jiangs and the Lus were so impressive, why couldn't he produce a prodigy of his own?

At the time, he hadn't even considered a daughter...

But Jiang Yuye clearly wanted a daughter. He squeezed the little rabbit shoes in his hand without speaking, but a hint of disappointment showed.

"A boy is fine too."

"No, wait..." Yi Shuyun tried to interject, utterly baffled. "Are you two going to marry and have children?"

There was a moment of silence, everyone feeling a bit awkward—as if it wasn't quite right, but passing on the family line was an age-old tradition, and these two certainly had good reason to carry it on.

Just as they were thinking that, Jiang Yuye snapped, "Marry and have children? I'm only marrying Lizhi! We're having the children ourselves!"

Everyone: "?"

Fang Kaiyuan was so startled by his shocking declaration that he stumbled. "How are you going to have children?"

After asking, he blushed and quickly cupped his hands in apology. "I didn't mean it that way. You're probably adopting, right? Then adopt one boy and one girl."

Jiang Yuye's face lit up again, but then something occurred to him, and he deflated.

He didn't know what dangers or complications Lu Lizhi might face during pregnancy and childbirth. One would already be a handful—let alone two. Not to mention what Lu Lizhi would have to endure—Jiang Yuye himself couldn't bear it.

He was afraid it would affect his health and safety.

With that thought, Jiang Yuye tossed aside the little rabbit shoes. "Never mind. Let's not have any."

Lu Lizhi thought he was upset. After a moment's hesitation, he didn't overthink it. "Then let's have two."

"One boy and one girl. If we don't have a daughter, we'll keep trying until we do."

Everyone once again had question marks floating over their heads, utterly astonished. Lu Lizhi, what kind of earth-shattering nonsense are you spouting?

But Jiang Yuye was unusually flushed. "Lizhi, you really are..." Did you want to be a powerful minister before, and now your full-time job is having babies?

Still, he was delighted to be coaxed. "No need. As long as you give birth to them, I'll love them all. And besides—if it threatens your health, we won't have them at all."

The two of them spoke the most intimate words as if no one else was around, leaving everyone else completely baffled. Finally, when they realized the couple was once again unconsciously showing off their love, Fang Kaiyuan was the first to flee.

Tu Huanwen followed close behind.

Both of them were red-faced.

Chen Jian and Wu Yong, however, were completely clueless, only fixated on one thing—

"Those little rabbit shoes look really nice. I want to buy a pair for my niece. My big brother and sister-in-law have worked so hard all these years to support my studies, they haven't even dared to have a child..."

"Then I'll buy a pair for my little sister too—she's such a vain little thing."

By now, Jiang Yuye and Lu Lizhi had reached an understanding: let fate decide. As long as it was their child, how could they possibly dislike it?

They weren't worried about their secret getting out either. From Doctor Pang, they'd learned that Lu Lizhi's constitution was extraordinarily rare—others couldn't even imagine it, let alone make the connection.

Moreover, Doctor Pang had never even seen a case like this himself, so others certainly lacked the imagination for it.

Even if everything were uncovered, as Doctor Pang said, Lu Lizhi was still a grown man—he hadn't concealed his gender, and this physical trait wasn't among the prohibited categories for the imperial exams.

Most importantly, their circle of acquaintances—Tu Huanwen, Song Haocheng, Yi Shuyun, and the rest—were all people of high moral character, unlikely to resort to underhanded schemes.

Lu Lizhi, having bottled up this secret for years, now felt an oddly liberating sense of relief and ease in speaking of it so casually.

Though they didn't understand exactly what was going on, he had made peace with himself—no longer clinging to the past. Because of this unexpected child, he even felt grateful for his own body.

He began to get greedy. "I meant what I said—three or four isn't too few, and five or six isn't too many."

Jiang Yuye: "?"

"Lizhi, are you trying to drain your husband dry?"

"When I was little, I always wanted younger siblings. Our child will probably feel the same—and then the second child might want younger siblings too..."