I Became the Mother of His Child

Xu Xiuxiu had slept soundly, but accompanied by the ever-thickening smoke in the room, her sensitive eyes fluttered open while she was still deep in slumber. The time was early, around four or five in the morning; although it wasn't fully bright outside, one could faintly make out objects inside the room which faced from south to north.

Why did she seem to smell smoke? Xu Xiuxiu, half-asleep and furrowing her brow, sniffed delicately with her little nose, only to be startled by the heavy smoke that filled her nostrils, snapping her groggy head awake instantly.

Xu Xiuxiu scrambled to her feet, making to get out of bed, initially thinking a fire had suddenly broken out during the night. Yet, to her surprise, she saw a man sitting by the window against the light from outside, holding a faintly glowing cigarette in his hand, gingerly pinching it between his index finger and middle finger, his gaze deep and focused in her direction. Even as she woke up startled, he maintained his original indifference, now and then bringing the cigarette to his lips for a drag, languidly exhaling plumes of smoke. Beneath him, the floor was a mess with countless cigarette butts strewn around.

"Song Yuanhuan?" Xu Xiuxiu asked, furrowing her brow, her voice unexpectedly husky and alluring due to a night of deep sleep.

Why was he here?

Not sure whether he hadn't heard Xu Xiuxiu calling him, Song Yuanhuan maintained his pose, his gaze locked on Xu Xiuxiu, his hand still feverishly puffing on the cigarette, as if only the strong nicotine in the cigarette could calm him down slightly. His throat moved rapidly up and down, and the next moment, a puff of white smoke was gently exhaled from his mouth.

"Song Yuanhuan, what's wrong? Has something happened?" Seeing that he didn't respond to her calls, Xu Xiuxiu got out of bed in a hurry and approached him, her face full of concern: "Why are you smoking so much?" Xu Xiuxiu spoke with a touch of displeasure and reached out to snatch the still-burning cigarette from his hand.

Song Yuanhuan's hand holding the cigarette deftly turned, easily dodging Xu Xiuxiu's attempt to grab it. His eyes, cold as a wolf's, focused intently on her, filled with a deep and inscrutable anger.

"Song Yuanhuan! What exactly happened? Can't you say something? Why did you come to the city? Where is Cheng Guang? Where is he?" Confronted with the infuriating sight first thing in the morning and Song Yuanhuan's icy demeanor, Xu Xiuxiu couldn't help but start to get annoyed.

Why had this man suddenly, inexplicably gone off the deep end?

"..." In response to Xu Xiuxiu's questions, Song Yuanhuan remained unresponsive. He took another drag from his cigarette, his black eyebrows knitted tightly. He dropped the smoked-down cigarette butt on the floor and his heavy boots ground it out with a twist: "Have you ever thought of me as your man?" When he raised his head to look at Xu Xiuxiu again, his eyes were suddenly ablaze with anger.

The cold tone befitting the bone-chilling query came out of nowhere but felt like a vehement condemnation.

Xu Xiuxiu, bewildered, furrowed her brow: "What?" She didn't understand at all what Song Yuanhuan was talking about.

"I'm asking you, have you ever thought of me, Song Yuanhuan, as your man? Have you?" Song Yuanhuan pressed, reaching for the cigarette pack in his pocket, finding it empty after opening it. He tossed the empty pack to the ground and pulled out a new one along with a gray lighter. His thumb flicked the lighter's wheel, and with a hiss, the flame ignited, lighting the cigarette in his mouth with a red glow.

Xu Xiuxiu looked at Song Yuanhuan blankly, bewildered by his seamless series of actions. Through the red glow of the cigarette's ember and the smoky haze, she gazed upon his chiseled features. There was a trace of blue stubble on his chin—this was the first time Xu Xiuxiu had seen Song Yuanhuan like this, exuding a frosty remoteness that suggested he was miles away. She, who always woke up later than he did, had never seen him this way. Even though he was questioning her with anger at that moment, Xiuxiu, inexplicably accused, had to admit that he looked devastatingly handsome in his decline.

"Speak!" Song Yuanhuan was yelling at Xu Xiuxiu at that moment.

Xu Xiuxiu's whole body shuddered a little, somewhat frightened by Song Yuanhuan's loud and angry voice: "I don't understand what you mean?" After a long while, Xu Xiuxiu softly parted her red lips to speak.

She truly didn't understand why Song Yuanhuan had suddenly appeared here and was questioning her about whether she considered him a man or not? She was confused and utterly baffled.

"Don't understand?" Song Yuanhuan seemed to taunt her with a smirk, his tall figure still sitting in place. Only now did he lean his body slightly back, resting against the wooden pole beside the window. The hand holding the cigarette once again brought it to his lips for a drag before he coldly exhaled clouds of smoke.

The atmosphere between the two was very tense, yet their gazes upon each other were exceedingly indifferent.

"What were you doing the night before last?" After a prolonged tense silence, Song Yuanhuan suddenly spoke, his piercing eyes fixed intently on Xu Xiuxiu's black pupils.

Xu Xiuxiu's breath hitched, as if her chest was struck abruptly.

The night before last? Had she not spent the previous night lurking outside Yu Rongye's home, only to slip in under cover of darkness and steal something? This was the most outrageous and bold thing Xu Xiuxiu had ever done. Already feeling guilty, she now felt as if her life was being choked out by Song Yuanhuan's question, combining guilt with helplessness.

"I was sleeping at home!" Lying instinctively, Xu Xiuxiu was aware that Song Yuanhuan might know whatever mischief she had been up to, but facing his cold eyes, she instinctively wanted to lie.

But to tell the truth? What truth could she tell? Admit that she didn't sleep but instead crept into someone else's home to steal at midnight? This truth, this dishonorable truth, was something Xu Xiuxiu truly found impossible to utter.

Song Yuanhuan suddenly tossed aside the cigarette in his hand, raised his arm to grab Xu Xiuxiu's arms and pull her face close, their faces mere centimeters apart: "Tell me the truth." His dominating presence was an onslaught, as if he'd decided to strip away her façade of innocence whether she confessed or not.

"What I told you is the truth," Xu Xiuxiu insisted stubbornly, then quickly averted her eyes, not daring to meet Song Yuanhuan's gaze. She feared that under his scrutiny, her guilt would betray her and she would confess everything.

Song Yuanhuan slowly released his grip on Xu Xiuxiu, his hands seemingly at a loss as they fumbled for the cigarettes in his pocket again. His slender hands shook slightly as he tried to ignite the cigarette, his right thumb flicking the lighter wheel several times to no avail. In the end, Song Yuanhuan gave up and dropped the cigarette that was still between his lips, looking up at Xu Xiuxiu in front of him.