Xue Guangli tried to go back to normal.
Her life felt whirlwind. Even though she and Long Huojin did not separate for that long, it took a toll on her health. She was grateful that she had sisters who watched over her.
Now, she felt a lot of anxiety whenever Long Huojin wasn"t in her sight. At work, Xue Guangli had to call him once an hour to hear his voice; around the house, she clung to him, following everywhere he went. She hugged him tightly every chance she got, and though Long Huojin wasn"t annoyed by it, she still felt like a bother to him.
So Xue Guangli would attempt to get her life back in order by reminding herself: w.a.n.g Weimin was sent to jail after his hospital release, and would soon be sentenced. Her father was back in her life, and she was married, happily, at least, she will be happy again.
Some outsiders may a.s.sume their marriage was to protect Long Huojin from trouble, but she felt that soon, they"d be able to show their affection openly and freely.
At home, Xue Guangli returned from completing her Fas.h.i.+on Week submissions. She was trying on some of her dresses while Long Huojin was sitting up on the bed, wearing his gla.s.ses, and attempting to do some work on his laptop.
But Long Huojin couldn"t help but steal glances at his wife. Xue Guangli caught him through the reflection in the mirror and held his gaze; she smiled brightly.
She wore a beige-coloured high neck, long sleeve dress. "This is from the reject pile," Xue Guangli said to him, admiring her own reflection.
It stunned him. "But it"s beautiful," he said.
Xue Guangli smiled at him. "Hmm, but it"s too simple for Fas.h.i.+on Week. I"m not upset since I can keep it," she said.
Long Huojin smiled as he felt like she was returning to her old self again.
Xue Guangli turned to her side, looking at herself in the mirror, rubbing her still-flat belly.
"I wonder," she began.
Long Huojin listened as he did some work on his laptop.
"I wonder, does it look like I"m showing?" she asked Long Huojin.
He glanced up at her again, confused. "Does what show?" he asked curiously.
Xue Guangli outlined her belly by rubbing it. "Don"t I look bloated?" she asked casually. Long Huojin gazed at her. Indeed she did look bloated, but was it a trick question?
"But you haven"t eaten in hours—" he began to say and stopped, figuring out the true underlying meaning. He froze.
Long Huojin stared at her, trying to comprehend the information. But she kept smiling, rubbing it as if it was bigger than it is. He stood up immediately but made no other moves. He approached her from behind slowly, like a lion about to meet—not its prey—its lioness.
Xue Guangli turned to face him; her red hair slipped from her shoulders. "What do you think, Jin? Our child will join us in about seven months. He or she could look like you or me, or a blend of both," she continued.
Long Huojin"s eyes widened; his heart pounded, unbelieving.
Child? Our child?
Ever since they got married, they never used any form of protection. But for it to happen so quickly! Something in him bubbled up, like happiness and joy mixed in together.
Long Huojin reached out and hugged her from behind. He caressed her small bloated belly. "Are you pregnant?" He asked softly.
Xue Guangli leaned against him, rubbing her head on his chest. "Mhmm," She said.
Long Huojin felt like smiling broadly. "I"m happy," he said, "Truly." He couldn"t believe it! She was carrying something they created together...and to think that there was a time he thought none of this was possible.
Long Huojin swept Xue Guangli"s legs from beneath, carrying her towards the bed. He sat her up gently; he knelt to take off her heels, removing them from her feet.
"Reach up your arms," he ordered her gently. Xue Guangli raised her arms, as he unzipped half of her dress, then removed it over her head, leaving her naked. Xue Guangli flushed, but he left to grab something from the closet.
Long Huojin pulled out pine-green soft-cotton pyjamas and began to dress her. He knelt as he helped her put one leg at a time through the pants, and mimicked the same movements with her long-sleeve s.h.i.+rt.
Xue Guangli was stunned. "Is this the sort of treatment I will be receiving from now on?" she asked him teasingly.
Long Huojin nodded. "I will spoil you, so don"t hold back," he said.
Xue Guangli smiled, feeling bliss.
It has been a week since his release, and during the time he was gone, Xue Guangli felt nothing but despair. She was unmotivated to take care of herself; she didn"t care what happened to her. If it weren"t for Xue Teegan, she was sure that she would have reached rock bottom.
Now, she felt better. She was pregnant, and with Long Huojin by her side, she felt nothing but happiness. "I hope he takes after you," she said.
"What makes you sure that it"s a boy?" he asked.
"Intuition, I suppose," she responded confidently.
Long Huojin chuckled. "If he"s anything like me, then I fear for people in the future; I"m only gentle like this with you," he said.
Xue Guangli let out a small laugh. "Straight-faced, reserved, but handsome. I can see him already. But underneath the iron of that boy, he will have an underlying sweetness to him, but only when he lets people in."
Xue Guangli was mainly describing Long Huojin, but she was sure that when their child grows up, they will be like him.
Long Huojin smiled. He stood up to squeeze her nose for describing him as a cold man, but then reached out to hug her, caressing her belly on the bed until sleep claimed them.
The next day, Xue Guangli prepared for the Fas.h.i.+on Show. She went to the venue as early as 6 A.M., to make any last-minute adjustments and to prepare for the day.
She felt nervous to the bone, as she glanced around the people she was competing with. It wasn"t that she thought she wasn"t good enough; it was the fact that it was her first runway debut. She had the experience of making dresses for years, helping her mother sow and pattern-make.
When she was a child, she would watch her mother spend hours on a project, sowing with delicate hands, constantly poking her fingers with needles. Then when Xue Guangli was ten-years-old, she began to imitate her mother"s work of art, trying to copy it. But no one could copy Xue Hien"s vision, but even so, Xue Guangli attempted to project her image.
The theme she created was to incorporate the things she loved doing the most: painting and dressmaking. She created a collection of dresses that looked like art on a canvas, but instead, it was printed on dresses, with added fabrics and accessories to turn the art alive.
Xue Guangli wasn"t sure what to expect for the Runway, but what she was confident in her abilities, as she wasn"t a novice. She was a professional competing to take the spot her mother was placed in years ago before she gained recognition.
Xue Guangli felt as if it was her fault that Summer-Autumn crumbled along with Xue Hien"s legacy, but now it was her chance to revive it.