Chapter 447: The Bleeding

Nanny Zhou got a shock. "Mister, this is...?"

"The child isn't mine." Pei Ziheng shut his eyes for a while as he maintained his composure. As a man, having to admit such a fact to a subordinate in the household was an insult to his dignity — and especially so for a man with such pride.

Nanny Zhou did not see it coming, and was stunned for a moment. "Could there be a mistake? Miss Ye doesn't seem like that kind of person." Miss Ye appeared reserved and pure, not the sort with a complicated private life. In fact, Nanny Zhou always found her a good match for Mister.

How could she be pregnant with another man's child, and having Mister take responsibility for it?

Nanny Zhou was shocked and angry at the same time.

How could Miss Ye hurt Mister this way? He treated her so well, how could she bear to do this?!

Pei Ziheng said, "Don't let Miss Ye find out."

Nanny Zhou's expression turned an awful shade. She was just a subordinate in the household and had never done anything like this. What difference was that from murder? But... she knew well enough that Mister's orders were not to be disobeyed.

Mister wanted a child more than anyone else and was genuinely over the moon when he discovered that Miss Ye was expecting. Since he dared say that the child was not his, he must have done sufficient checks to verify it.

Nanny Zhou's hands trembled. She felt as if the packet of powder weighed a ton in her hands and in her heart. Did she really have to cause a miscarriage this way? She could tell that Miss Ye loved her unborn child with all her heart and would not want to imagine her loss.

Nanny Zhou watched Mister walk out of the kitchen towards the stairs before he held his hand out.

Miss Ye walked down the stairs and was helped by Mister.

She had just awoken from an afternoon nap, and the tiredness was still in her eyes. Even so, she held her hand to the stomach intuitively, with a posture so elegant. Any outsider who did not know their story would likely see her as the happiest woman if they were to witness this scene. Mister was in a light grey checkered shirt and looked presentable yet homely, as he gently held Miss Ye's hand and led her to the living room to take a seat.

If not for the packet of powder in her hands, Nanny Zhou would really wonder if the caring and loving man sitting in the living room was the same ruthless man who had given her the orders earlier.

What a pity.

Looking at the couple sitting in the warm, dim light, Nanny Zhou felt sorry for them. Miss Ye only had herself to blame, how could she have another man's child after getting together with Mister?

She looked away and carefully opened the packet.

Xia Ling and Pei Ziheng chatted in the living room. In no time, dinner was ready.

Nanny Zhou prepared a bowl of chicken soup for Xia Ling and brought it to her smilingly. "Miss Ye, this soup is specially prepared for you. Drink it while it's hot; otherwise, it won't taste as good."

Xia Ling thanked her sweetly and received the bowl.

Smelling the aroma, Xia Ling figured that chicken must have been of good quality. Xia Ling's appetite had changed drastically ever since she became pregnant, and chicken was in her list of favorites since. She was just about to have her first mouthful when she decided to push the bowl away. "The smell is making me uncomfortable. I'm not having it."

Pei Ziheng looked up at Nanny Zhou without Xia Ling noticing.

Nanny Zhou nodded her head ever so slightly.

Pei Ziheng understood that she had added the medicine in the soup and gently persuaded Xia Ling. "Isn't your morning sickness a lot better these days? Nanny Zhou took a lot of effort to prepare this, don't let it go to waste."

"It's not morning sickness..." Xia Ling could not express what she felt. She simply did not feel like drinking the soup.

Pei Ziheng did not flinch. "Not morning sickness? Well, you should still have it even if you don't like it. The baby is depending on you to grow, so you can't be too picky."

Xia Ling hesitated for a moment and then nodded her head. Pei Ziheng was right, she could not be picky about her food. What if the baby did not get enough nutrition? She held her breath and took it, sip by sip.

Pei Ziheng and Nanny Zhou watched her until she finished every last drop of it. Pei Ziheng smiled when she was done and began scooping other dishes for her.

Xia Ling felt like she overate this meal.

At night, she tossed and turned in bed, finding it hard to sleep at ease.

When she woke up the next morning, Pei Ziheng had already left the house. Xia Ling got up groggily and went to the washroom, where she noticed some blood stains on her garments.

She was frightened by that sight and hurriedly went to Nanny Zhou. "Nanny Zhou, I'm bleeding, what should I do?!"

Nanny Zhou felt her heart drop and knew that the medicine had taken effect. She took a deep breath and gave herself a few seconds to regain her composure before turning towards Xia Ling. "Bleeding? Miss Ye, don't panic. Tell me more about it."

Xia Ling was disoriented but managed to give a brief description.

Nanny Zhou reached her hand out, held Xia Ling, and feigned a smile, "Miss Ye, it's not a big deal. It's just a little blood, right? Don't worry, this is very common for expectant mothers. It's nothing much."

Xia Ling was still worried. "But, I never had this problem."

"It's probably the weight you've gained recently, and your overexertion while rushing deadlines." Nanny Zhou comforted her. "Come, sit down. I've prepared corn soup and vegetable porridge for you. You need to eat more to gain nutrition."

Xia Ling was led by the hand to the dining table. She ate her porridge distractedly and could not help but bring it up again. "Should I get it checked at the hospital?"

"Well, you can if you want to," Nanny Zhou tried to lighten the severity of it. "But it's not a big issue, you can just inform the doctor during your next checkup."

"So I don't have to make a trip down right away?"

"It's just a few drops of blood." Nanny Zhou smiled casually. "Trust me, Miss Ye. I've seen so many cases with mothers and babies. This is nothing much at all, and only first-time mothers like you would be worried about it. When you're having your second child, you'll realize how silly all of this is."

Xia Ling was half convinced by Nanny Zhou and did not insist further.

She went back to the room to catch up on some sleep after breakfast.

Strangely, she felt even less at ease than she did the night before. She even had a nightmare, in which a baby was wailing as he floated in a boundless sea of blood.

She was shocked awake in cold sweat.

She looked down and found that she had bled once again, and even more than before.