A Heated Dinner

The doctor said that the bleeding was a sign of miscarriage. The woman had been working late almost every night, which took a toll on her body. When Beichen heard the result, his heart began to palpitate.

He was genuinely worried about the baby because that was his child, but the woman was a piece of a puzzle he could not put together.

When his hands were covered in her blood, his mind blanked for a second. As someone who never let anything easily affect him, he found it bothersome that he always had incomprehensible feelings for this woman. She had messed up his plans more than enough times.

Was what he felt for her merely a physiological attraction? He perceived that the emotional aspect was nonexistent. Perhaps that was all there was to the compression in his chest.

He was better after affirming that he felt nothing special towards this woman.

Grandma Lu had found out about Yanyue's visit to the hospital and rushed over in the morning. Beichen received a heavy lecture from her. Of course, he remained quiet and let her drain her energy by venting. The woman on the bed and the baby were alright now, so despite what his grandma said, he did not feel as guilty anymore—a thought he would regret.

He was going to leave after his grandma, but she forced him to stay, saying that he could not leave until her precious daughter-in-law was discharged. He was reluctant because the company had a lot of work to finish, but he could not refuse her obstinate request.

Maybe his body was too tired after a restless night, so his eyes became hard as the woman's breath steadied and slowed.

However,

"Jun..."

He thought he had misheard, but the woman muttered again.

It was a man's name. She also said it so softly while in her sleep.

He undoubtedly became gloomy and irritated, losing the mood to fall asleep, so he resumed the work that Assistant Wen brought him.

As he typed on his laptop, he noticed that the blankets covering the woman had fallen to the floor. He looked up and saw her resting on the bed, already standing with half-open eyes.

She started to walk toward the bathroom. He thought she was getting up to use the bathroom, but she was nowhere near the door. It was as if she were still sleeping; if she advanced straight ahead, she would come face-to-face with the wall.

Before he told himself to get up, his body had already sprung over to pull her back before she facepalmed the wall.

"Have the medication gotten into your brain?!" he barked as he looked down at the woman in his arms.

The woman stared at him with longing eyes. Then, a faint smile emerged, and she stretched out her delicate hand to caress his cheeks, "It's you, Jun."

After that, her eyes shut again as if she was still sleeping all along.

The man's face turned black. This woman not only called out another man's name in her sleep, but she took him as that person as well. She must think that he was a joke! He wanted to drop her on the floor in a fit of anger.

"Woman, only call my name in your sleep," he declared bitterly, leaning to kiss her tender lips greedily.

*

Yanyue's stomach grumbled, stirring her up. Her lips were slightly parched and sore, and she wondered how long she had slept for them to become so numb.

She glanced around the room and saw Beichen typing away on his laptop by the window. His beauty pounded her heart. She always thought his serious, working mode was one of his attractive qualities.

"Seen enough?"

His deep voice startled Yanyue. She lowered her beet-red face in embarrassment. How could he have known that she was peeking at him?

She replied quietly, "I wasn't-"

The door opened, and a young female nurse came in.

"I'm here to check your vitals, Miss Shen."

Beichen left as the nurse began checking Yanyue.

"Your husband loves you," the nurse said, explaining that he stayed up all night to watch over her.

Yanyue looked at the nurse. She asked skeptically, "He watched over me the whole night?"

The young nurse nodded. "Right. Not only is your husband kind, but he's also handsome. You're lucky to marry such a man, so don't let other women rob him!"

Rob? How would the nurse react if she knew that she was the one who stole him from her sister? This wasn't something that she was proud of, but she was too deep in this drama, so she had no choice but to linger around and play her role. It was also for the best of his future as the Lu Group's President and the Prince.

"Alright, the fetus is doing good now, so you can be discharged today," the nurse said as she wrapped up her equipment.

Yanyue smiled, "Thank you."

The nurse left and entered was Assistant Wen.

"I'm here to pick you up, Miss... Princess Consort," Assistant Wen said.

"I've already filled out the discharge forms."

After witnessing his boss staying up all night to watch Miss Shen, he learned that the woman was slowly creeping into his boss's heart. Elites like his boss could have as many women as they would like, so he wasn't surprised if his boss's feelings for Miss Wanyue had shifted to Miss Shen. So, it was best to recognize the princess consort early. This title was much more suitable for her as she was his boss's legal wife.

Yanyue saw no one behind Assistant Wen. Her face died down in disappointment.

"Where is his highness?" she asked.

Assistant Wen replied awkwardly, "Uh... His Highness has a meeting to attend at the company, so he left first."

"Oh," Yanyue said quietly, "alright, let's go."

*

Since the old lady had forbidden Yanyue from going to the company, she was extremely bored and had nothing to do.

Her current daily routine included waking up, eating a nutritious breakfast, having tea in the conservatory while chatting with her baby, eating a big and meaty lunch, taking an afternoon nap, eating dinner, and then getting ready for bed to repeat the same thing the next day.

She gained a few pounds because she only ate and rested. Her stomach had been getting bigger for three months, increasing her weight.

Alongside this, there was another thing that she had learned: cooking.

She heard from the maids that Beichen fired two chefs because he was unsatisfied with the food. He had been feeling nauseous and throwing up when he smelled and consumed the food. He attributed that to lousy cooking skills, as he had never been sick before, so he fired the chefs.

Yanyue also did not understand why Beichen was feeling that way, but she had heard that some fathers can experience symptoms of pregnancy. Perhaps that was what Beichen was undergoing.

This made her feel guilty, so she wanted to cook for him. Fortunately, he ate the food she cooked (of course, without his knowledge), so she felt motivated to learn and cook more. This was also a good use of her time since she was not working.

As she was dabbling in a new steamed fish recipe, someone tapped her shoulder, giving her a jump.

"Yueyue, what are you doing?"

Yanyue turned around, feigning an upset pout, "Jason, you scared me!"

The young man chuckled gently, exposing his white teeth. He inquired, "Why are you suddenly cooking now? I've never seen you cook before."

Yanyue proceeded to debone the fish that she was working on. She replied honestly, "It's for your brother. He has not been eating well lately."

Jason's smile drooped, and he asked himself what he was expecting.

"Should I try this for my brother?" he grinned with a tease as he peered beside her. "Who knew what would happen when people discovered you poisoned the second prince?!"

Yanyue rolled her eyes and pushed him away, fearing he might be too close to the knife she was using. She answered, "Just sit at the table and wait for me. I'll serve extra since you are here."

A female's voice echoed, "Sister, you're already married, so please be aware of your status and don't embarrass Ah Chen."

Yanyue and Jason noticed the two figures by the door. Yanyue's smile disappeared, and she removed the hands on Jason's back when she pushed him.

"Your Highness..." she greeted.

Beichen ignored her address and marched straight to the dining room with Wanyue in his arms.

Jason glared at the pretentious couple. How dare they slander Yueyue when they were the ones with no self-awareness?

His relationship with Yanyue was clean and innocent.

But theirs? Sister-in-law coquettishly in the arms of her brother-in-law?

They were much more blasphemous!

He ached to say something, but Yanyue tugged on his shirt to stop him. So, he could only snort in anger.

"Alright, let's go sit first. The servant had already set up the table," said Yanyue as she pulled Jason to the table.

When they entered the dining room, Wanyue was sulking because she was hungry, and the baby in her growing stomach demanded that she eat.

Beichen could only try to coax her by having the servant fix more food on her plate.

The servant placed a spoonful of fish into Wanyue's plate, "This is a nutritious fish soup that the Princess Consort co-"

Yanyue quickly interrupted the servant, "Grandma Lu hired a new chef from the Southern border because she heard that the chef was especially good with pregnant women's diets. Please try the fish soup, sister. It is good for your baby."

Wanyue turned to Beichen. In a baby-like tone, she said, "Ah, Chen, feed me the soup."

The man smiled affectionately, "Of course, I'll do anything for you and our son."

Then, he picked up her spoon and scooped some fish soup to her red-tinted lips.

Yanyue tried to ignore these two people from the get-go, but it was impossible as they practically showed off their love in front of everyone.

Jason noticed the hurt appearance on Yanyue's face. He knew how deeply this woman loved his brother, so she would let him hurt and use her. However, he was not his brother who was blind to the person who cherished him most.

He scooped a spoonful of the fish soup and tasted it. "It's delicious!" he exclaimed.

Then, he selected a piece of fish from the fish soup and put it on Yanyue's plate.

"Here, try a little bit. You're pregnant, so eating too much fish is not good."

Yanyue smiled, "Thank you."

She glanced towards the dishes on the table and then picked a piece of braised pork and put it on Jason's plate.

"You're still growing, so eat a lot too."

Jason's face beamed, "Yueyue, do you remember I like braised pork?"

"You always eat it, so of course I'd remember," she replied like a responsible older sister.

Wanyue noticed that the man feeding her had slowed down. She frowned at his unpleasant expression as he glanced at her sister and his brother.

But she wanted his full attention!

"Sister has a good memory. Is it because you guys often eat together? It's been years, and I've never seen you guys apart. It's like you both are meant to be together," Wanyue prompted.

Jason sneered, "Watch your words, Wanyue!"

The woman smiled arrogantly, "But isn't it true? If I didn't know any better, I would have guessed that you two were married."

He countered, "Wouldn't that have been better? At least then, I wouldn't see adulterers acting shamelessly in front of me!"

Wanyue's arrogant expression turned sour. "Jason, who did you call adulterers?!" she asked defensively.

He raised his eyes as if things were obvious. "Yanyue and I are not adulterers, so it's not us, but you and brother..." he trailed off.

"You!" she stated angrily, "Your brother and I love each other!"

Jason disregarded her as if she was a crazy woman.

After a long day of work, Beichen wanted a peaceful dinner. But who knew he would see the woman across from him acting boldly? She even flirted with his brother. So, he was already annoyed, but then the argument between Wanyue and Jason irritated him. Ultimately, he left his seat and the dining room in a sour mood.

Wanyue thought Beichen would scold her sister if she said suspicious things about Yanyue and Jason, but who knew Jason would call her an adulterer instead?! She and Beichen met first and fell in love, so how did she become an adulterer?

Not only did she humiliate herself, but Beichen was even angrier now. When he became mad, he would not tolerate her going near him, and all she wanted was to be close to him so her sister would be jealous!

"Ah Chen, wait for me!" she got up from her seat and called after Beichen.

The room eased down, and only Yanyue and Jason left.