The Shen family's old estate, Ming Garden.
In the living room, a group of servants stood with their heads bowed in fearful silence, while several bodyguards knelt on the ground, trembling. The man lounging on the sofa toyed with the latest silenced pistol.
He wiped the gun down, leisurely loading bullets one by one.
"So, you failed?"
The kneeling bodyguards were survivors who had narrowly escaped death, all bearing injuries, having fought to return and report. But judging by the situation, they might as well have fled after the mission failed!
"Young, young master, we had no idea the eldest young master was so capable. He only had a few bodyguards with him, but dozens were hidden in the shadows protecting him..."
"Spare me your excuses for failure!" Shen Tingfeng's face turned cold and dark. "Do I keep you all as dead weight? If you can't even kill a single person, what use are you to me?!"
"Second young master, spare us! Please give us another chance. We will make up for our mistake and ensure the eldest young master never returns alive!"
Shen Tingfeng's voice was icy: "Do you think Shen Xiaoxing's brain is just for show? If one assassination attempt fails, do you really think there'll be a chance for a second?!"
"..."
Still, this operation wasn't entirely without gain—at least it revealed that Shen Xiaoxing had been secretly building up his forces all these years!
A cruel smile curled at the corner of the man's lips. "Go wait for Shen Xiaoxing in hell!"
He loaded the pistol, aimed at the bodyguards, and pulled the trigger without hesitation. No sound, but several burly men collapsed instantly, blood pooling, startling the servants into wide-eyed horror.
Shen Xingrou had just come in from outside when she saw the butler directing bodyguards to carry out the lifeless bodies. Caught off guard, she covered her mouth in shock.
Ever since Shen Tingfeng's legs were severely injured by Shen Xiaoxing's men, though there was a chance of recovery, his violent temper had only worsened. He wanted nothing less than to devour the man's flesh and drink his blood!
She dared not go inside anymore. Pale-faced, she stood in the courtyard for a while, then snapped out of it and ran out of Ming Garden.
...
An Ruo had been under Shen Xiaoxing's meticulous care for a few days, and her injuries were gradually healing. She didn't want to stay in the hospital because every night they had to squeeze into a tiny single bed.
So she suggested being discharged. The man seemed to have his own plans and took her back to the hotel to recover, with three meals a day all being nutritious pregnancy meals.
They hadn't known about the little one's arrival before, and recalling her usual lack of attention to diet, coupled with the attack, though the doctor had used the mildest medication possible, it still had some effect on the fetus.
Since learning she was pregnant, An Ruo's complexion had improved significantly even while recovering. After meals, she spent her free time poring over parenting books.
Sometimes she suddenly realized—was she preparing too early?
She wasn't someone who particularly liked children, feeling she was too young to take care of one, and she'd never thought about marrying and having kids before.
But now that she had Shen Xiaoxing, she suddenly found herself looking forward to this child's arrival. Thinking back to their most intimate moments, when he'd whispered in her ear that she was his family, how he doted on An Che, she believed he would cherish this child too and be a good father.
Then she thought about still being in school—would this unexpected child cause problems?
An Ruo fell into endless melancholy. She seemed more indecisive than ever, her personality becoming hesitant and overthinking, unlike her old self.
A familiar scent enveloped her.
The man's magnetic voice whispered by her ear as he embraced her from behind, his large hand naturally resting on her lower abdomen: "What are you thinking about, sighing like that?"
"Thinking about..." A happy smile tugged at An Ruo's lips. "Our future."
Shen Xiaoxing turned his head to look at her. The girl was truly God's favorite—her fair, delicate skin like fine silk. Sometimes when his rough fingers pressed too hard, it would leave a pink mark, making her look endearingly vulnerable.
"Tell me, what does our future look like?"
An Ruo leaned against his chest, a blissful smile on her face as she gazed into the distance: "We'll have children and grandchildren, a bunch of kids chasing after us calling us grandpa and grandma, and by then we'll have lost all our teeth."
"A bunch of kids?" The man let out a soft chuckle, his other arm reaching around to caress her youthful face. "Didn't know Mrs. Shen was so ambitious?"
"..."
The girl's face flushed with embarrassment. She had been imagining their old age, and he had to ruin the mood.
But when she really got old, time would steal her youth, her temples would gray, and she'd be toothless and ugly, wouldn't she?
Women in love were always so insecure, especially An Ruo, an ordinary girl who had nothing to compare with others except her looks.
She asked shyly: "If I get old and ugly, will you still want me?"
"What nonsense. You're my wife, the one I'm spending my life with." He kissed her cheek, his voice husky and seductive: "Besides, my Mrs. Shen is so beautiful. Even if your looks fade and youth is gone, you'll still be the prettiest flower for miles around."
"..."
An Ruo was amused, a shy smile curving her lips.
"In my heart, you'll always be the most beautiful."
"Liar." An Ruo pouted slightly. "There are plenty of beautiful women in the world. How can you be so sure I'm the prettiest?"
The man bit her pink earlobe. "Looking for trouble, are you?"
The girl in his arms giggled and jumped off the bed. His smile deepened. "Where are you going?"
She gave a playful grin: "To the bathroom."
Probably spoiled by his pampering, her once cold and aloof personality was slowly shifting toward a more girlish side. Maybe she had always had that side, but she'd learned to handle everything on her own.
A child without someone to care for them always had to hold up their own sky.
Now that he was holding up the sky above her, her carefree nature was gradually emerging.
Compared to her bottling everything up, Shen Xiaoxing preferred her relying on him like a child, carefree, not needing to face things alone.
A smile lingered on his lips: "Take it slow."
These days, he stayed by her side as much as possible, even bringing her along when he had important matters to discuss with Mr. Ende.
He kept her close constantly. Several times, Yun Li, who had come along for cooperation meetings, wanted to exchange a few words with An Ruo, but with the man nearby, he held himself back.
Add to that Mr. Ende's reminders that the couple was deeply in love, urging him to face reality and let go of this unrequited crush that had never even begun!
They had been in New Zealand for nearly a month. Every time An Che video-called to ask why, An Ruo would brush it off with a smile. They were both injured, and going back abruptly would make the boy suspicious.
But her injuries were mostly healed now, and the man hadn't mentioned returning home. An Ruo finally took the initiative to ask: "Are all the cooperation matters settled?"
"Yeah." The man scrolled through his phone, seemingly focused on something.
"Then let's go home?"
He turned to her: "Want to go back?"
"I've wanted to for a while. We've been out for a month now."
Shen Xiaoxing reached out and ruffled her hair, chuckling softly: "I thought you might want to stay a few more days."
So he'd planned to linger a bit longer, letting her injuries fully heal so he could rest easy when they returned.
"I want to go home." An Ruo leaned into his embrace, wrapping her arms around his narrow waist, her small face pressed against his strong chest: "Xiao Che is urging us again."
"Alright, I'll arrange things in the next couple of days. We'll go back to the country."
"Mm!"