Then I'll take it seriously.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Even though this absence was indeed too short, emotional fermentation often needs only the slightest change. Like a piece of clothing, a glass of red wine, or a brief separation like this.
Bedside items were scattered, and the bathroom was also a mess. After all, they had both rushed back, so their passion started in the bathroom and moved to the bedroom.
After a thoroughly satisfying round, it was already early morning. Jiang Ruoqi changed into dry clothes and hugged Meng Shang, not wanting to move.
She wasn't sleepy, but the room was warm and dry, and holding Meng Shang, whose body temperature was higher than hers, was much more comfortable than hugging a pillow and warming the bed alone.
Meng Shang wrapped his arms around Jiang Ruoqi, letting her find a comfortable position in his embrace, while he gently stroked her back.
At times like this, she was always more clingy, needing his comfort and kisses, completely different from her usual self-reliant demeanor.
The bedside lamp was still on. In the silence, intermittent thumping sounds came from the closed bedroom door.
"Is there a noise outside?"
Even as she said this, Jiang Ruoqi didn't even open her eyes.
Meng Shang listened carefully, then let out a soft laugh. When he spoke, the vibration in his chest stirred away the remnants of Jiang Ruoqi's sleepiness.
"It's Yuanbao scratching at the door. He wants to come in."
"Tsk, having a kid really has its downsides."
Jiang Ruoqi sighed, lying on Meng Shang's chest and poking him with her finger. "Dr. Meng, one of these days, use some cat treats and a firm hand to teach this little fatty a lesson. Tell him that disturbing Mommy and Daddy's sleep is very bad behavior."
She really was treating Meng Yuanbao like a little cat about to go to college.
Dr. Meng was troubled. They say raising your own child is hard, but with Meng Yuanbao's behavior, he was clearly harder to train than a biological child.
Jiang Ruoqi didn't know that Meng Shang was already secretly planning a parenting strategy. But something about Yuanbao triggered her thoughts, and she propped herself up to ask tentatively, "Meng Shang, setting aside the current time and place... hypothetically, if the conditions were right, would you want to have a child?"
They had actually agreed on this before marriage, but the conflict between Ada and Su Yansheng reminded her that men's promises are often unreliable.
Meng Shang came back to his senses, thought for a moment, and answered seriously, "To be honest, not really."
"Why? Tell me your thoughts." Jiang Ruoqi's expression remained unchanged, pretending to be curious and digging deeper.
"I just think, given our current work situation, it's hard to guarantee the full companionship a child needs to grow up."
"Personally, I believe that when raising a child, both parents are irreplaceable by anyone else. I don't want my child to end up like I did as a kid—left with grandparents, without parental care, and eventually learning to live with disappointment."
"If we can't provide that, then we shouldn't make that choice. First, you are you, and I am me. We came together because..." Meng Shang hesitated, thinking of the reason they got married in the first place, and swallowed his words. "Anyway, we should first be ourselves, then try our best to understand each other. Our future plans don't include fulfilling some reproductive obligation."
Meng Shang thought Jiang Ruoqi was anxious because of her friend's predicament of being pressured to have children. After laying out his thoughts, he watched her reaction closely.
She just frowned and, unusually, pressed further: "Would this view of yours change due to external factors? Like friends? Parents?"
From here on, it was Jiang Ruoqi borrowing trouble from the present. It was a bit demanding, since the future is unknowable, and even she couldn't predict how she would choose.
But Meng Shang wasn't impatient. He gave her a relatively certain answer: "I can't guarantee my thoughts will never change, but on the matter of having children, your wishes will always take top priority."
It was a relatively truthful and fair answer.
But prioritizing her wishes meant she had to decide whether to have children or not?
Such a high degree of freedom made Jiang Ruoqi think of her mother, Jiang Yun.
She didn't like it. She would rather clash with different viewpoints, persuade others or be persuaded.
Jiang Ruoqi leaned back against Meng Shang's chest, inexplicably irritated, lost in thought.
Actually, discussing this at such a moment was a bit of a mood killer. But pregnancy, as a side effect of her favorite stress relief method, required a clear stance from Meng Shang.
Even though she knew people were different, the cautionary tale of Ada and Su Yansheng had affected her, at least a little.
Jiang Ruoqi rubbed her index and middle fingers. She hadn't worked for two days, so there was nothing to make her anxious, and she had left her fingers alone.
The pads and edges of her fingers were still smooth, with no starting point for her to pick. However, she hadn't gotten her nails done in a while, and the cuticle was slightly lifted at the edge—if she pressed hard enough, it would peel off along the nail surface.
She thought about going to get her nails redone tomorrow while Meng Shang was at work.
But Meng Shang seemed to sense her mood shift from the silence. He wrapped his arms around her waist, his palm stroking her lower abdomen through her pajamas. "What about you? What do you think?"
"Actually, I haven't decided yet, but I definitely won't consider it for the next few years."
Jiang Ruoqi had never lived a stable life. Even with Meng Shang lying beside her, she couldn't predict what the future held. And raising a child was truly complicated. She always hated trouble, and with her temperament, she might not make a good mother.
"What about Mom and Grandma? If they ask, what do we say?"
"You don't need to get involved. I'll make it clear to them." Meng Shang thought for a moment. "Anyway, as long as we stand firm, their pressure won't work."
"No, we can't be that tough." Jiang Ruoqi frowned and poked Meng Shang's chest again. "Grandma is sick. You need to be more considerate."
"Just say something like, 'We're already preparing, but it depends on fate. We hope for good news soon.' That kind of thing. We'll do what we actually do; a few nice words to the elders cost nothing."
Jiang Ruoqi finished, but Meng Shang was silent for a long time. The response was off. She looked up in confusion and met his intense gaze. "Why are you staring at me? Think it doesn't fit your persona? Then I'll say it..."
"No, I was just thinking about who else you've fooled with these nice words that cost nothing." Meng Shang's voice was low, with a hint of grievance.
"This..."
Jiang Ruoqi felt guilty but seriously thought about it. "...The Bald Boss."
Those words were utterly inappropriate here.