Chapter 397

But it was obvious that Pei JianGuo, who already had a son named PingAn, did not think the same way she did.

Pei JianGuo slapped his own forehead twice, trying his best to calm himself down. Then he went to reason with Liu Chunhua, "Chunhua, I know you want a child, but the policy is right there. If we have this child, I will lose my job. I'm already over 30 years old, almost 40. Neither of us has much savings. If I really lose my job, it will be a problem just to put food on the table. Can you try to understand me?"

"I understand you, but I really want a child, woo woo..." Liu Chunhua cried inconsolably with tears brimming her eyes. She looked up at him pleadingly, "JianGuo, could it be that you got it wrong? Although you already have PingAn, I haven't given birth yet. No matter how strict the family planning policy is, it can't be entirely unreasonable, right? Otherwise... ask again?"

She took Pei JianGuo's hand and put it on her belly, guiding him, "JianGuo, feel it, he can move now..."

This time it was Pei JianGuo who jerked his hand away, "I already told you we cannot have the child. Liu Chunhua, are you unable to understand me? When we got our marriage certificate, I told you I didn't want children and you agreed. Since you promised, you can't just easily go back on your word. Don't you know that?"

Liu Chunhua stared blankly at him, falling silent for the moment.

Pei JianGuo went to coax her again, "Chunhua, be good. I won't shortchange you. Tomorrow I'll take time off to bring you to the hospital, listen to me."

Liu Chunhua had always known that what he liked about her was her obedient and sensible nature. She was also good at utilizing this point. So after they married, the two had never had any disputes.

This was the first time that a rift emerged between them over the issue of children. It was also a line Liu Chunhua desperately did not want to back down from.

But at the same time, she also knew that she could not resist him.

Or rather, she did not have any capital to resist Pei JianGuo at all.

This marriage was something she had schemed her way into, using the child that had stayed in her body for several months to make Pei JianGuo feel guilty about her.

But because of this, she felt an abnormal sense of unease in her heart.

Pei JianGuo had always told her that as a civil servant, he could not have a second child, otherwise he would lose his job. She had always believed it to be so. She also knew how strict the family planning policy enforcement was. So she had never dared to ask questions, only recently hearing from others at the hospital that while it was true civil servants could not have a second child, there were also some special circumstances.

For example, in cases where both parties were remarrying and the woman had not given birth before, they could have one more child.

From the moment she learned this fact, her whole body turned ice-cold.

She also felt very guilty for scheming against Pei JianGuo in the past. So she did her utmost to be good to him, but never expected that while she was scheming against him, she had also fallen into his trap.

What was even more frightening was that in this relationship, she was the weaker party. So she did not even have the courage to expose him. She could only act weak and plead with him.

She believed that after living together for so long, Pei JianGuo should also have some feelings for her. Since the child already existed, he should not be so heartless as to want her to abort it.

But the fact proved that she had been far too naive about everything.

This man seemed indecisive on the surface but was actually quite heartless. This point could be seen from the number of wives he had married and divorced.

Liu Chunhua allowed herself to be helped inside by Pei JianGuo. That night Pei JianGuo was extremely gentle with her. He took the initiative to do laundry and cook. He even whispered into her ears sweet nothings he had never said before.

Despite knowing that all this was done with an agenda, Liu Chunhua's heart still shamefully stirred with emotion.

She had always led a miserable life. It was only during her time with Pei JianGuo that she finally understood what happiness felt like.

Although he was not especially good either, being schemed for and obtained through her own efforts probably made things different. Also because he was so handsome. Even if she occasionally felt vexed, just looking at his face and thinking about having such an outstanding man that those village girls could not get access to their entire lives made her feel it was all worthwhile.

Pregnant women tended to fatigue easily with intense mood swings. After eating something, Liu Chunhua soon fell asleep.

Pei JianGuo however quietly got up and went to hide alone in the living room, vacantly gazing up at the ceiling with a dazed look.

One cigarette after another, soon the entire living room became filled with smoke, mirroring the turmoil and hesitation in his heart.

After Gao Qingcheng, he had not yet recovered from the bewilderment back then when Liu Chunhua entered his life.

At the time, he thought he would just go with it. After all, what did it matter who he married or even whether he remarried at this point in his wretched life?

This woman was beautiful and not very clever, without any other reliance and easy to control. She did not have Guo Momo’s independence and fortitude, nor Lu Keqin’s influential family background, much less Gao Qingcheng’s ambition.

At the same time, she would care for him and wait on him.

Even without feelings between them, the days they spent living together were still comfortable and happy. He felt content.

Just living out the rest of his days like this did not seem too bad either.

Regarding having children, he really did not want any more.

He barely participated in raising PingAn up. He knew he was not and could never be a good father.

He felt his life was already such a pathetic mess. He did not want to bring another child into this world to also live his kind of life in the future.

So he kept telling Liu Chunhua, and he kept telling himself—it was not that he was unwilling to give her a child; the policy simply did not allow it.

She had clearly accepted it too. So how did such an accident suddenly happen?

Despite seeming so firm in persuading Liu Chunhua, Pei JianGuo’s own heart was actually in turmoil. He did not know what he should do.

His father already said he would not meddle anymore. His mother was unreliable. His younger sister had also always been flaky these past few years. Now in her thirties, she still had not settled down. He heard she recently hooked up with a divorced painter.

This was also why Wang Yue had not had the time to participate in Pei JianGuo’s life recently, giving Liu Chunhua a period of peace and comfort.

Sometimes Pei JianGuo felt as if he was cursed. Including his parents and younger sister, they were all stuck in a dead end, unable to break free.

Sometimes he would think back to the Taoist master they met back when he was with Gao Qingcheng. That master said he was fated to have a fulfilling life with a harmonious family and successful career—to become wealthy and enjoy prestige and power in his middle age years. It was because someone had seized his life’s fortune and destiny that his fated superior life became miserable and chaotic instead.

But whenever Pei JianGuo thought the one who was supposed to be his destined wife was An ZhiXia, cold chills ran through his entire body.

He would have believed it if the name was anyone else’s. But the thought of being together with An ZhiXia made him shudder involuntarily.

And regarding his uncle, although there were conflicts between them, he still firmly believed that as long as he did not act recklessly, his uncle would not harm him.

He had held fast to this belief since he was little, though he did not know where this belief came from.

Pei JianGuo lost count of how many cigarettes he had gone through. All he knew was he could no longer find another one in the house. He also did not know when he had passed out on the living room sofa. When he woke up, it was already bright outside.