Chapter 18.1

At the second prenatal checkup, they drew blood for the Down syndrome screening. During the ultrasound, Director Zhang reminded them that there were signs of uterine contractions. He told them to avoid sexual activity for the time being, or it could affect the fetus and lead to miscarriage.

Sexual activity… They had not even held hands. What sexual activity was there to speak of? Wen Yi’s face turned red as she explained, “Director Zhang, we have not…”

Director Zhang withdrew the probe, peeled off his gloves, and said, “I mean from now on. At least for the next month, do not. There are many reasons for uterine contractions. Pregnant women should keep a relaxed mindset and avoid big emotional swings.”

Beside the examination bed, Qin Nanshan and Wen Yi exchanged a glance. Wen Yi’s heart sank. It was her fault.

After leaving the hospital, Wen Yi sat in the passenger seat and carefully promised him, “From now on I will make sure to stay in a good mood.”

“Mm.” Qin Nanshan did not seem particularly concerned. “Shall we go back to Changle Alley for dinner tonight?”

“All right.”

The car entered the busy streets. Wen Yi watched the people and vehicles passing outside and gave herself a pep talk. She would no longer dwell on things she could not change. If she could not change the environment, she would change herself.

If anything else happened to the baby, it would truly be a case of picking up sesame seeds while losing the watermelon. It was not worth it.

Tian Jia called and asked about the transfer order that had just come out that morning. She sounded both curious and surprised. “Yan Fu actually did not get the position? Auntie’s connections still were not strong enough, I see.”

Wen Yi gave a light laugh. “The leaders have clear heads.”

“Mm. I heard someone reported him. Looking at it, there are still plenty of people who do not want him to rise.” Tian Jia joked, “It was not you who reported him, was it?”

“How could that be.”

Wen Yi felt an inexplicable sense of guilt.

There were only two sales supervisors in the eastern district. After she was promoted to regional manager, only Yan Fu remained, and the other was the newly promoted Song Qingqing, who was still in her probation period. If Wen Yi left and Yan Fu was promoted, the people who had followed her would very likely be replaced. In that case the chance of her returning would be almost zero, and she would also let Song Qingqing and the others down.

She had not reported him. She had only chatted for a few hours with a director who did not get along with Yan Fu. She had always looked down on behind-the-scenes schemes, but they had never intended to let her off easily. She did not need to keep up some useless sense of righteousness.

Yan Fu’s hands had always been dirty, but Wen Yi did not use the incident in which he had framed her last time. She had more than enough evidence that could drag him down: open bribery of doctors, falsified purchase volumes, fabricated follow-up data, and so on.

After six years of operating in the company she naturally had ways to protect herself. Yet this time she had not only become a sacrificial piece in other people’s power struggles; she had even thoughtfully handed them the title, making it hard to preserve anything.

“If only I had reported him too. I should have punched him right back into the womb,” Tian Jia said on the other end. “But the fact that Qi Sheng could come over must have something to do with you, right?”

Qi Sheng was the first newcomer Wen Yi had mentored. She was very capable, but she was not from Shen City. Last year she had requested a transfer back to her hometown to open up new business, and her results had been outstanding.

Wen Yi never asked for anything in return when she trained people. This was the first time she had made a request. Bringing Qi Sheng over this time meant she owed her a favor.

Wen Yi said, “Li Wei is not Wei Yuan. For a regional manager post, Director Li certainly has to think carefully. Yan Fu is a lost cause, and there is no suitable candidate on the Shen City side. I suggested Qi Sheng try for it. I did not expect her to actually pick up the vacancy.”

“Truly satisfying. When the company email went out today, Yan Fu was right next to me. His face turned green.” Speaking of the email, Tian Jia comforted her, “It is fine. The HR manager and the regional manager are at the same level. The power is much greater than ours. Take good care of yourself and wait until you come back!”

Wen Yi’s new post was HR manager, doing HRBP work. She had already known. She pressed her lips together and smiled. “All right. Help me look after Qi Sheng.”

“Of course. You do not even need to say it.”

After the transfer order came down there were two days of work handover. Qi Sheng had worked under her before, so Wen Yi did not need to put in much effort. Once the prenatal checkup was finished she no longer needed to go to the company.

In the afternoon when she got home Wen Yi took a nap. She woke at four. The tightly closed curtains made it impossible to tell day from night. She sat dazedly on the bed in a bedroom that still did not feel familiar. For a moment she did not know who she was or where she was. A huge wave of panic and loss washed over her.

Only when a man walked in through the doorway and broke the silence did Wen Yi finally shake off the aftereffects of the afternoon nap.

Oh. She was pregnant. She was married. And she had been transferred.

“Rest a little longer. We will leave for Changle Alley later.”

“All right.”

Wen Yi did not want to rest. She wanted to find something to do to keep herself moving.

Yet from the kitchen to the living room and then from the living room to the balcony, she found nothing that needed doing. This home had been kept in perfect order by Qin Nanshan.

She spotted the plants on the balcony and finally found a task. She went to knock on the door of the second bedroom. “Do you have any tools for watering the plants?”

Qin Nanshan: “Yes. In the cabinet next to the washing machine. You want to water them?”

“Mm.”

Wen Yi found them without trouble. She connected the hose to the balcony faucet. Water poured from the sprinkler, and the aloe and cactus drank it in eagerly.

Then she remembered that succulents should not be watered that way. She went to the kitchen, found a large basin, filled it with water, and soaked five or six small succulents in it.

The succulents bubbled as they absorbed the water. Breath-like bubbles kept rising to the surface. Wen Yi squatted beside them and watched. Her mood gradually relaxed.

Wen Hongyu always said she could not keep herself alive. In fact that was true. The apartment she had rented in Yuting Residence before had no pets and no plants. The only living thing was herself.

She had never done time-wasting things like watering plants or walking dogs.

Wen Yi reached into the water and touched the plump leaves of the succulents. She thought that sometimes she felt she was just like one of these succulents. As long as someone gave her a little sunlight and water, she could survive for a long time.

So she was easy to care for. Mrs. Wen was talking complete nonsense.

At some point Xia Tian had run over and sat beside her, eyes narrowed, tail wagging as he enjoyed the sunset on the balcony.

When Qin Nanshan came out he saw this scene. The orange-yellow sunlight poured freely over the harmonious figure of one person and one dog. The picture was peaceful.

He watched for half a minute, then found a small stool from the living room and gave it to her. “Do not squat. Squatting for too long is tiring.”

Wen Yi turned her head. Her clear eyes shone with a gentle smile. “Thank you.”

After soaking for about ten minutes the half-dried succulents had gradually filled out. Wen Yi felt an inexplicable sense of satisfaction, as if she herself had also absorbed enough water.

Before the age of twenty-eight her dream had been to buy a large house, get promotions and raises, and fill every day with fighting spirit. She had never expected that after twenty-eight she could feel happy simply looking at a basin of soaking succulents in a small two-bedroom apartment from the eighties or nineties.

Wen Yi laughed at herself, then went to find other things to do. Since she was already on the balcony, she reached out and felt the clothes she had washed the night before. They were dry.

A couple of the man’s sets were also hanging there. He had probably forgotten to take them in.

For the past half month and more they had each washed their own clothes. Even the shower gel and toothpaste in the bathroom came in two separate sets. If they did not sleep in the same bed at night, they would have been exactly like roommates.

Wen Yi paused for two seconds, then took his clothes down as well and put them all into the wardrobe.

…

She had told Wen Hongyu in advance that afternoon that they would come back for dinner, but her mother had not replied. It was normal for Mrs. Wen not to reply to messages, so Wen Yi did not think much of it.

Yet she never expected that the moment the two of them reached the front door, Wen Hongyu and a strange middle-aged man would come out hand in hand. The people inside froze. The people outside were stunned.

Eight eyes and four mouths. Not a single person spoke. Even the green plants growing by the neighboring window seemed to sense the awkward atmosphere flowing among them and quietly drooped their leaves.

In the end Qin Nanshan was the first to react and greet her. “Mom.”

Wen Hongyu hurriedly withdrew her hand, flustered. “Why did you come?”

Wen Yi said, “I sent you a message. Did you not see it?”

“I did not look at my phone.”

Wen Yi looked at the disordered blush on her mother’s face and felt a complicated mix of emotions she could not name. Her gaze shifted to the man beside her. The man looked younger than Mrs. Wen, was decent-looking, and had a better figure than the average middle-aged man of that age. At least he had no beer belly and was not balding.