Chapter 11: Giving Birth to a Son

The young girl rarely showed such strong emotions, and Mrs. Li guessed she might have been pressing too hard. But how could the girl say such things? How could she think her mother was rushing to marry her off? She only wanted to find a reliable son-in-law to take care of her daughter. She knew her views were somewhat traditional, but as a mother, she was only looking out for her daughter’s best interests.

“Yunchu, how can you speak to your mother like that? There’s no way I would rush to marry you off. You make it sound as if I’m selling you! Do you realize how much it hurts me to hear that?” Mrs. Li said, her voice heavy with pain.

Yunchu felt a headache coming on. So if it wasn’t her mother’s fault, was it hers? Was she being ungrateful? Was she disobedient? But this was her life—why did it have to follow her mother’s plan?

She had already compromised a lot, even taking the job her mother arranged for her at an old established company as a clerk. Her mother said it was a stable job and not too demanding. Yunchu, unable to argue, started working there after graduating from university. It was indeed stable, though after three or four years, her monthly salary was still only three thousand yuan.

So she hesitated even to buy a hair removal device and doubted that someone like Pei Siyie, who was so accomplished, would really go on a blind date with her.

Sighing, Yunchu softened her tone. She couldn’t afford to clash head-on with her mother, whose strong personality meant she would only end up being scolded.

“I didn’t mean it like that. I just feel we’re not familiar enough yet. Mom, you keep asking about progress, and I don’t know how to answer. Besides, Dr. Pei wouldn’t agree to marry so quickly...” she said gently.

“All right, all right. I’m going out to buy groceries. You rest well,” Mrs. Li said, then left.

Yunchu felt completely drained but relieved to have gotten through it. She returned to her room and opened a shopping app. On a whim, she bought a discounted hair removal device. Spending a thousand yuan herself was better than owing someone a favor.

*

Having wasted most of the day at work, Yunchu received a message from the matchmaker ten minutes before leaving.

“Miss Li, don’t forget the meeting. I’ll send you the address.”

The matchmaker was always diligent about these things.

Yunchu arrived slowly at the restaurant and found the blind date looked relatively normal. He was about her age, with a neat appearance like a recent college graduate.

She walked over and said, “Hello.”

The man stood up first and spoke.

“Hello. Let me introduce myself. I’m Zhao Bonan.”

He repeated the personal information Yunchu had already seen in his profile. She pressed her lips together before briefly introducing herself. She had said these things dozens of times before and felt like a product on display.

“You’re very beautiful, Miss Li,” he said shyly. Despite his youth, Yunchu could tell from his expression that he was quite pleased with himself. He just looked immature.

“You’re only 24. Why are you here for a blind date?” she asked.

“My family is pressuring me to get married. My parents run a business and don’t need me to focus on a career. They just want me to settle down quickly, so here I am,” Zhao said, smiling at her. “If you marry me, you won’t need to work. My parents want grandchildren, but you won’t have to take care of them—they’ll hire a nanny.”

Yunchu understood his meaning and could sympathize: a wealthy family eager for grandchildren.

“So... what kind of business do your parents have?” she asked out of curiosity. He seemed to come from a well-off family.

“My family runs a chain of restaurants,” he replied, casually brushing his hair back. “We have quite a few outlets now, and opening new ones doesn’t require much capital.”

“Restaurants? So you must be making a good profit,” Yunchu said, thinking of her own father’s company, which once earned millions annually but went bankrupt, leaving debts behind before he passed away. She felt her family now only had one house left and little savings, though most money was in her mother’s hands, so she wasn’t exactly sure.

“Not bad. We have five stores in the city. Don’t worry, after marriage and kids, you’ll definitely be able to afford a nanny,” Zhao assured her.

Hearing him mention children repeatedly, Yunchu guessed that once married, they’d start trying to conceive immediately... and they’d want a boy. If it wasn’t a boy, they’d likely keep trying.

Her eyes dropped. Trying to conceive meant... doing those things. With him, she felt an inexplicable resistance.

She gave an awkward smile, offering no reply.

“Miss Li, you’re 26, right? My parents want at least two children. If you marry me, you can quit your job and do nothing at home—just enjoy life. I think you’re a nice person. If we can confirm this, we could have the wedding by the end of the year,” Zhao said.

Before Yunchu could respond, a loud commotion came from the restaurant entrance.

“The shop’s swamped, you’re not answering calls, why are you here? Come home and help me with the spicy hotpot!” A middle-aged woman wearing a headscarf stormed up to their table and grabbed Zhao’s arm. “Come on, you’ve got an appointment! No one’s delivering orders on WeChat. Hurry up and go deliver food!”

She dragged Zhao toward the door.

Yunchu’s eyes widened in shock. She was so intimidated by the woman’s manner that she didn’t dare speak and moved back to a corner, afraid she might get caught in the crossfire.

Didn’t Zhao’s parents know he was on a blind date? And so their family business was actually a chain of spicy hotpot shops—five or six of them. She had imagined something more upscale.

And they wanted her to have several children...

“Hey, are you the girl my son is dating? You’re pretty, so I guess you’re good enough for him,” the woman said, pulling out her phone to show Yunchu pictures. “Look at our shop. It doesn’t look like much, but it makes two to three hundred thousand a year. Here, add Auntie on WeChat...”

Yunchu pursed her lips. Meanwhile, Zhao struggled as he called out, “I’m not your son! Let go of me!”

The girl felt scared. “Auntie, I don’t think I’m good enough for your son. You should get back to work.”

The woman didn’t insist and hurried away.

Yunchu took a deep breath and sat back down. She was terrified.

She thought about the photos she’d just seen—the family’s restaurant was just a makeshift hotpot stall under a canopy, not even a proper storefront.

She could already imagine that if she really married into this family, she wouldn’t have to work because she’d probably be helping run the hotpot business...