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A week ago, Jiang Chengyu had already planned to celebrate their fifth anniversary with her at lunch, and the custom-made gifts for her had already been delivered in batches.
It was already past ten-thirty, and with the snowy weather causing traffic jams, if she didn’t get up soon, they wouldn’t make it to the restaurant.
“Tangtang.”
He called her softly.
Shen Tang’s eyelids felt as heavy as if weighed down by a thousand pounds. Even when she used to shoot night scenes and slept only three or four hours a day, she never felt this exhausted.
When she was this uncomfortably sleepy, she didn’t want to deal with anyone.
“Shen Tang, get up,” he gently patted her shoulder. “Let’s go out to eat.”
“Not hungry, you go eat by yourself,” Shen Tang mumbled, subconsciously pulling the blanket over her head, wanting to block out all sounds unrelated to sleep.
Jiang Chengyu moved quickly, blocking her hand as she tugged the blanket.
On this special day, he indulged her: “Go back to sleep.”
“Mm.” Shen Tang’s voice was drifting, as if replying to him, yet also impatient.
Jiang Chengyu sent a message to his secretary, canceling their lunch reservation and rescheduling it for the evening.
He placed the book on the nightstand, carefully got up, and tucked her in.
Outside the window, heavy snow had turned the city white.
Jiang Chengyu went to the walk-in closet and took out his only down jacket, which Shen Tang had bought for him as his fifth-anniversary gift. She had also bought one for herself, to make them matching couple’s outfits.
Shen Tang’s nap lasted until half past twelve, with no signs of waking up.
Downstairs in the courtyard, Jiang Chengyu had built four snowmen, two large and two small. He hadn’t thought much about it while building them, but when he arranged them, he realized it was a family of four.
His phone in his pocket kept vibrating.
It was his niece calling. He thought Shen Tang had woken up and couldn’t find him.
“Happy fifth anniversary to you and Auntie! I really don’t have any new gifts for you, so I’ll make up for it later. I’m waiting to draw a family portrait for your little family.”
“Who knows when that will be,” Jiang Chengyu diverted, asking, “Not working today?”
“No, resting.” She had just woken up not long ago.
Li Zheng, full of sincerity, said, “Then the family portrait can be your sixth-anniversary gift. What do you want this year? I’ll buy it for you with my salary, anything under twenty thousand, you can choose.”
“I’m not interested in gifts. How about we change it?”
It was rare for her uncle to make a request, and Li Zheng was easy to talk to, thinking he probably wanted her to draw more pictures of him and Shen Tang. “Alright, tell me, what do you want instead?”
Jiang Chengyu: “Let Fu Chenglin call me ‘Little Uncle’ and listen. I’d be happier than any gift.”
Li Zheng: “...Little Uncle, what did you say? Someone was knocking on the door just now, I didn’t hear it. Gotta go, I’ll open the door.” The call disconnected.
Ungrateful brat.
Jiang Chengyu put his phone in his pocket.
Returning to the warm living room, Jiang Chengyu took off his down jacket.
The auntie was puzzled. These two said they wouldn’t eat at home for lunch, but it was already this late, and they hadn’t left yet. They hadn’t eaten breakfast or lunch, which could make them sick.
“Should I prepare something for you to eat?” the auntie asked.
Jiang Chengyu pondered for a moment. “Make some light porridge.”
He went upstairs to wake her up; it was truly becoming ridiculous if she didn’t get up now.
Shen Tang was sound asleep, both feet exposed and dangling from the edge of the bed.
Jiang Chengyu propped himself beside her, gently caressing her cheek with his left hand. “Shen Tang, get up.” He called her twice.
His slightly cool ring brushed her face. Shen Tang struggled to open her eyes.
Not only was the ring cool, but he also had a layer of coldness on him.
Her nerves, numbed by sleepiness, hadn’t fully awakened yet. Shen Tang touched his face with the back of her hand; it was icy cold. “You just got back?”
“I didn’t go out today,” Jiang Chengyu said. “I just came up from the courtyard downstairs.”
Shen Tang’s voice was muffled: “What time is it?”
Jiang Chengyu looked at his watch and gave her the exact time: “Twelve forty-one.”
“...”
Shen Tang suddenly sobered up and quickly climbed out of bed. “I’m sorry.”
He had prepared so long to celebrate their fifth anniversary, and she was being such a buzzkill.
“It’s okay, it’s just a meal,” Jiang Chengyu said gently, without any blame. He made her lie back down. “I changed the dinner reservation to tonight.”
Shen Tang explained properly: “Husband, don’t be angry, I didn’t mean to oversleep. I don’t know what’s wrong, but I can’t seem to wake up these past few days. I’m so sleepy it’s killing me. I wasn’t like this before.”
She wasn’t making excuses for herself.
But even she couldn’t convince herself with those words.
She wasn’t unaware that today was their fifth anniversary, or that he had specifically taken a day off to be with her, preparing so many gifts and surprises for her.
Yet she had slept until almost one o’clock.
Jiang Chengyu kissed the corner of her lips, coaxing her, “I knew you were sleepy, so I didn’t call you to get up.” He found an excuse for her, “The sudden drop in temperature and snow is perfect for sleeping in.”
Shen Tang wrapped her arms around his neck, lifting her upper body.
Jiang Chengyu supported her back, saving her some energy.
“I’m sorry.”
Shen Tang apologized again, full of guilt.
This wasn’t a regular date where you could just reschedule if something came up. Their fifth anniversary was gone, and it wouldn’t come back.
“I don’t blame you, it was me who didn’t call you to get up. Celebrating tonight is the same,” Jiang Chengyu gently laid her back down, kissing her again, tenderly and lingeringly.
He wanted to reassure her, to make her stop overthinking.
Shen Tang couldn’t help but yawn again.
“Are you feeling unwell somewhere?” Jiang Chengyu suddenly became worried about her physical condition, and his heart gave a sudden ‘thump’. The thought of wanting her instantly faded.
Shen Tang shook her head. “Besides being sleepy and unable to wake up, I don’t feel uncomfortable anywhere else.”
After saying that, she blinked.
A few years ago, she had acted in a drama where she played a scene of going to the hospital for a pregnancy check-up, and some small details still stuck in her memory.
“My period hasn’t come this month, but I often get delayed by two or three days, sometimes even five or six days.”
Jiang Chengyu’s heart inexplicably thumped ‘thump thump’ erratically in his chest.
It must be it.
On such an important day, if it weren’t for a physiological reason, if she could have held on, she wouldn’t have stayed in bed for so long.
Counting the days, the timing was about right.
The happiness was inexpressible. He covered her lips with his, wanting to kiss her deeply.
Shen Tang pushed him away, turning her face. “I haven’t brushed my teeth yet.”
“I’ll brush them for you.” Jiang Chengyu handed her pajamas. Shen Tang hooked her arms around his neck and sat up.
Shen Tang wasn’t entirely sure if she was pregnant, fearing that if his hopes were too high, his disappointment would be too great. “Stay calm, what if it’s not?”
Jiang Chengyu: “It’s fine if it’s not. We’ll just consider it an early experience of what it feels like to be a dad.”
In front of the bathroom mirror, Shen Tang rinsed her mouth with a cup of water while Jiang Chengyu squeezed toothpaste.
They were silent, but both were thinking about the same happy thing.
Shen Tang’s lips curled into an arc, her eyes filled with smiles.
Since getting married, Jiang Chengyu had helped her brush her teeth five or six times. Now that he had experience, Shen Tang also learned how to cooperate with him.
Soon, her mouth was full of foam.
Perhaps these were the bubbles of happiness.
After brushing her teeth, Shen Tang took out facial cleanser and washed her face.
Jiang Chengyu stood by her side. “We’ll go to the hospital after we eat.”
Shen Tang knew only a tiny bit about pregnancy basics. “It’s too early to go to the hospital for a check-up now; the results might not be accurate. At least five or six days of delay are needed.”
Jiang Chengyu was worried about her health and insisted: “Let’s go for a check-up first. If pregnancy is ruled out, we need to pay attention, as this level of drowsiness isn’t normal.”
Shen Tang nodded. “Okay.”
Dressed and ready, Jiang Chengyu grabbed her down jacket, and they went downstairs.
The chef was off today, so the auntie made Shen Tang her favorite seafood porridge.
Seeing them come downstairs, she placed the food on the dining table.
Shen Tang sat down at the dining table and glanced out the window, letting out a soft “Wow.”
The forecast had called for snow, but she hadn’t expected it to be this heavy.
The courtyard was covered in silver, and beside the lawn directly facing the dining room’s French windows stood four small snowmen. Two large snowmen were huddled together, their branch arms intertwined.
The other two small snowmen nestled in front of the large ones.
Shen Tang suddenly realized and looked at Jiang Chengyu: “You were so cold just now. Was it because you were building these snowmen for me in the courtyard?”
“Mm.” Jiang Chengyu didn’t want her to feel guilty about oversleeping and missing the restaurant. “I didn’t call you to get up so I could build these.”
Jiang Chengyu wasn’t sure if she was pregnant, so he didn’t drink alcohol, but poured two glasses of warm water to celebrate.
“Happy fifth anniversary.”
“Thank you, darling.”
Shen Tang had a good appetite today, perhaps because she hadn’t eaten two meals. She ate two small bowls of seafood porridge.
Jiang Chengyu picked all the shrimp out of his bowl and gave them to her, leaving none for himself.
Around three in the afternoon, they arrived at the hospital.
They hadn’t told anyone about their hospital visit, fearing it might be a false alarm. Jiang Chengyu drove himself, feeling the same emotions as all expectant parents.
Registering, waiting in line.
The doctor glanced at her more when inquiring about her symptoms. She was wearing a mask, looking a bit different from how she appeared on TV. He wondered if he recognized her.
Perhaps it was just her name that made him look closer.
While waiting for the blood test results, they felt both anxious and excited.
Shen Tang and Jiang Chengyu found two seats near the edge of the waiting area and sat down. Her hand was in Jiang Chengyu’s coat pocket, her palm constantly opening and closing.
From time to time, she turned her head to look at Jiang Chengyu.
Jiang Chengyu was checking emails on his phone, his face indifferent without extra emotion, seemingly very focused.
“Husband, are you nervous?” For the first time in her life, Shen Tang experienced this feeling, trying to calm herself down, but to no avail.
Jiang Chengyu handed her his phone screen to show her. “I’ve been looking at this for so long, and I’m only on the second paragraph.”
It was an email reporting work to him, only a few hundred words in total for both paragraphs, yet he had been looking at it for over ten minutes.
So he was nervous too.
Shen Tang turned her gaze, diverting her attention, and casually chatted with him: “Have you ever been more nervous than you are now?”
Jiang Chengyu simply closed his phone. “Yes.”
“When?” Shen Tang became interested.
Jiang Chengyu: “The first time I proposed to you.”
Shen Tang looked at him, holding his hand.
The time was almost up, and he led her to collect the report.
Her heart, which had been about to leap out of her throat, settled firmly the moment she received the report.
Back in the car, the joy that had been suppressed had nowhere to go. He was a father, and she was the mother of his child.
Jiang Chengyu reached over the armrest between their seats and pulled her into his embrace.
“Thank you.”
His warm kiss fell upon her. Shen Tang placed both hands on his chest; his strong heartbeat vibrated in her palms.
Jiang Chengyu didn’t hold her tightly in his arms as before. Now, his hands rested gently on her waist, fearing he might accidentally touch her stomach.
Shen Tang was still thinking about the blood test report. The doctor had told her to come back for an ultrasound later.
Her HCG level was high, not just high, but unusually so.
It could be twins.
Jiang Chengyu released her, letting her sit upright, and reached over to pull her seatbelt on. “Do we have to wait until after three months to tell people?”
Shen Tang: “Yes, by then, all the check-ups will be mostly done, and the fetus will be basically stable.”
Jiang Chengyu nodded. “Then I’ll announce it in the group on February 14th.”
Shen Tang: “...”
That man, usually so low-key and even reserved, was so overwhelmed with happiness that he was actually going to show off in the group chat.
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