Appearing on a Marriage Show Before Getting Divorced - Chapter 40

“—And how do you plan to keep me here?”

As Ruan Youran spoke, her hand gripped Chu Nian’s, her eyes fixed on the other woman as a flicker of fire danced within them. The air seemed to slow its flow, thick with a drifting sense of ambiguity.

Chu Nian’s heart rate accelerated. Her face flushed, and she bit her lip, lowering her head in silence. Youran knew her temperament well—reserved and shy, far from the versatile personas she displayed on screen. Just as Youran was about to say something, Chu Nian suddenly took a deep breath. She wrapped both arms around Youran’s neck and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.

Youran’s body stiffened; she stared at her in a daze.

Such initiative was a rare occurrence for Chu Nian. Under Youran’s gaze, her eyes darted away, and her breathing became uneven. “Is this… enough to keep you?”

She felt that this kiss had exhausted every ounce of her courage.

Inwardly, Youran was overjoyed, her lips curving into a mischievous smirk. “I feel like it’s not quite enough.”

Chu Nian took another breath. She rose onto her tiptoes, raining light kisses upon Youran’s forehead, brows, nose, lips, and neck… Though the kisses were light, one would have to be an immortal to remain unmoved when kissed like that by the person they love.

Youran’s grip on Chu Nian’s waist tightened, pulling her into a hard embrace. She tilted her head down and captured those lips.

How long had it been… since they had been this intimate? The bitterness of their parting seemed to melt away in this moment.

She loved her. And she loved her back. That was all.

Just as they were becoming inseparable, the “thud” of something heavy hitting the floor interrupted the warmth. Both Youran and Chu Nian jumped, turning their heads in unison.

Chu Nian’s breath was shaky; she had no strength and had to lean against Youran. Youran’s face was also crimson.

Zhengzhi was staring at them blankly, with her Lego set scattered in pieces on the floor. Her little face looked clearly shocked.

Ruan Youran: “…” Chu Nian: “…”

Damn, we forgot about the kid.

Chu Nian wanted to go comfort Zhengzhi, but Youran caught her wrist and pulled her back into her arms. “Don’t go.”

Chu Nian’s eyes were misty with affection, her cheeks flushed, and her hair slightly disheveled. This look made Youran want to devour her whole. Chu Nian struggled slightly, but Youran said with a grin, “Wasn’t I raised exactly like this?”

Since she was a child, she had witnessed countless passionate scenes between her two mothers. Many were far more extreme than this. Youran could vaguely recall the first time she walked in on them. She was in kindergarten then and had run back home because she forgot her water bottle. Upon entering the room, she saw Ruan Qiu pinning Chu Qing to the table and kissing her. Seeing her mother’s disheveled hair and flushed face, the young Youran was too scared to move.

Chu Qing had been startled then and tried to push Ruan Qiu away, but Ruan Qiu wasn’t flustered at all. Instead, she shamelessly told Youran that this was “education through love,” so that she would be a happy baby bathed in affection. Back then, Youran’s IQ was average, so she believed it, even thinking her mothers had a hard time.

Only when she grew up did she realize her mothers were full of it. Now, Youran was using that same nonsense to fool her own child.

Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, Zhengzhi slowly lowered her head. Her two little hair-buns looked dejected, making her look piteously abandoned. Chu Nian pulled her hand away, gave Youran’s chest a soft thump, and broke free to walk over to Zhengzhi. “What is it, baby?”

Zhengzhi’s face scrunched up, but she remained silent. As Chu Nian stroked her hair, wondering how to comfort her, Youran—now thoroughly satisfied after the kiss—walked over and gave Zhengzhi’s bottom a playful nudge with her toe. “Say something. Don’t bottle it up.”

Chu Nian was speechless. She felt Youran had much less patience with Zhengzhi than she did with her. Thinking of this, her face turned a bit red, and her heart felt warm.

Seeing this, Zhengzhi’s heart felt like it was breaking. “Waaaah… I understand now. Is this why you’re making me go to kindergarten? Waaaah, I’m your real baby…”

Ruan Youran: “…” Chu Nian: “…”

Indeed, high-IQ biological children are very difficult to deal with.

To soothe Zhengzhi, Youran went to the mall to buy beef, chicken, and onions, preparing to have a barbecue for her. While she was out, a visitor arrived. Chu Nian hadn’t expected to see Qin Yanlan at her door; she felt a mix of surprise and delight.

Qin Yanlan was dressed in an off-white suit, an elegant silk scarf around her neck, and her hair up in a high bun—looking like she had come straight from the office. “I came to see you.”

A few days prior, she had received a call from Chu Nian apologizing for the delay in the show’s filming. Qin Yanlan had laughed it off: “No need for apologies. You know why I went on that show. That ‘old block of wood’ [Lan Ke] just won’t wake up.”

Qin Yanlan brought gifts—supplements like bird’s nest and toys for the child. She stood at the door with a bit of hesitation. “Can I just come in like this?” On the phone, when Chu Nian mentioned she had a nearly three-year-old child, Qin Yanlan had been so shocked her hand shook while signing a document.

Chu Nian smiled and called out, “Zhengzhi!”

“Coming!”

Zhengzhi came running out like a little dumpling. She thought her mother had made something delicious, but seeing a tall, beautiful stranger at the door, she jumped in fright. Her heart raced, and she immediately dove behind Chu Nian, hugging her leg to hide.

Qin Yanlan stared at Zhengzhi’s face, unmoving. Chu Nian looked at her with a smile in her eyes. “I don’t need to tell you whose she is, do I?”

Qin Yanlan: “…” OMG!

It took President Qin nearly ten minutes to calm down. She sat on the sofa with a cup of hot tea, watching Zhengzhi build toys. “So these past three years… were this dramatic and heart-wrenching,” she said slowly.

Chu Nian nodded. No one knew how she had survived those years; she used to avoid talking about it because the mere mention brought sharp pain. But now, she could face it all.

Qin Yanlan looked into her eyes. “Is the surgery date set?”

Chu Nian shook her head. “Not yet. No suitable donor heart.” She touched her chest. “But… it has to be within these two months.” Her heart couldn’t hold out much longer.

Qin Yanlan thought for a moment. “Nian Nian, you asked me here and told me all this… you aren’t planning to go public, are you?”

Chu Nian smiled faintly. “Public?” She let out a soft sigh. “If I can survive, I will spend the rest of my years making up everything I owe her.”

Qin Yanlan noticed that Chu Nian seemed different than she had a month ago. Chu Nian’s hand traced the rim of her teacup, her voice soft but firm. “I owed her too much in the past.”

“But you’re at the peak of your popularity,” Qin Yanlan reminded her. “Did you see? Your time-travel drama The Carrier was released after being held up by the censors. It’s trending every day. If you really go public…”

“Ha.” Chu Nian looked at her. “Forget going public. If I can stay by her side and tell the world I am her woman and Zhengzhi is our daughter, so what?”

She was that at peace. Trending searches and fame were just drifting clouds to her now. She used to work so hard just to stand beside Youran as an equal, but now all of that had faded like smoke. She only had one simple wish: to be with Youran and finish their lives together, however long or short that might be.

Qin Yanlan stared at her. “Then why did you ask me here…?”

Chu Nian was a very rational person, and Qin Yanlan appreciated that she was being treated as a true friend. For this “trust,” Qin Yanlan was willing to go through fire and water for her.

Chu Nian paused, her eyes reddening. “Yanlan, although I really want to live… if… if there really is an ‘if’…”

Qin Yanlan understood, and her own eyes grew moist. She set down her cup and gave Chu Nian a gentle hug. “No, Nian Nian. You’ve already created one miracle. Now that Jianjian is back, you have even more reason to live.”

Youran returned home and saw the pile of gifts. “Did someone visit?”

Chu Nian nodded. “President Qin.”

Youran was surprised. “Why didn’t you keep her for lunch? I bought everything.”

“She had other things to do,” Chu Nian smiled. Youran stared into her eyes, trying to read her. This home was their secret nest; they rarely let outsiders in, especially now with Zhengzhi.

Chu Nian looked away, and Youran let out a soft sigh. She called to Zhengzhi, “Come, help Mamma-Youran with the barbecue.”

Zhengzhi loved “working” because Chu Nian never used to let her do anything. The big one and the little one started preparing. Zhengzhi helped by sorting the vegetables by color and length with obsessive-compulsive precision.

Youran whispered to Zhengzhi, “What did Mamma talk about with her friend today? She seems a bit off.”

Zhengzhi didn’t realize she was being fished for information. “They talked about a surgery, and if there’s a problem, she asked the friend to look after Mamma-Youran. She said Mamma-Youran has a dream in the entertainment industry and asked her to help realize it for her.”

Youran’s body froze, and her heart felt as if a giant hand had squeezed it. Her eyes turned red instantly. She opened the window and leaned against the counter, staring at the blue sky while weeping silently. In her happiness of the past few days, she had almost forgotten the upcoming surgery—forgotten the life-and-death struggle that still hung over them.

Zhengzhi ate the barbecue happily, while Youran watched in silence. Chu Nian looked up. “Why aren’t you eating?”

“I want you to feed me,” Youran said, staring into her eyes.

Chu Nian’s heart skipped, and her face heated up. Zhengzhi looked up at Youran with a gaze that seemed to say: If Mamma feeds you, what about me?

Youran expressionlessly moved the entire pot of grilled meat onto Zhengzhi’s plate and gave a cold command: “Take your plate and eat over there. This is all you get, or you’ll get indigestion.”

Zhengzhi: “…” Once again, she felt the coldness of her mother. She took her plate and moved aside.

Then… she couldn’t help but peek. She thought Youran was joking, but Youran pulled Chu Nian directly into her lap. She kissed Chu Nian’s lips and asked, “Does it taste like meat?”

Chu Nian narrowed her eyes and smiled, leaning back into her embrace. “Sort of.”

“Only sort of?” Youran raised an eyebrow. “I know, it must not be flavorful enough.”

Before Chu Nian understood, Youran captured her lips again. The taste of chicken, lamb, or beef couldn’t compare to her taste. Sure enough, Chu Nian was lost in it.

Zhengzhi watched while she ate. She had never seen her mother like this. Mamma was always so strong during surgeries or doctor visits, but now she was frowning and humming as if in pain—was Mamma-Youran kissing her too hard?

Soon, the two mothers went back to grilling seriously. With the window open and a breeze blowing, their long hair tangled together. Chu Nian fed Youran bite by bite like a child, and occasionally, Youran would kiss her with greasy lips. By the end of the meal, both looked as though they had been drinking, their faces flushed with a slight “intoxication.”

The meal lasted until the afternoon. Youran tried to shoo Chu Nian to bed while she cleaned up, but Chu Nian shook her head. “I’ll help. Sleeping right after eating makes you fat.”

“What’s wrong with being fat? You need to put on weight.”

“I can’t exercise right now,” Chu Nian said, her eyes shimmering. “It’s not good for the body.”

Youran stared into those soul-snatching eyes, a smirk playing on her lips. She reached out and gave Chu Nian’s face a roguish stroke. “It’s fine. I’ll help you exercise tonight.”

As expected, Youran watched with satisfaction as Chu Nian fled into the bedroom in a panic.

Zhengzhi woke up early from her nap and went to find Youran, who was in the yard planting seeds. Zhengzhi watched with curiosity as Youran put a seed into a hole.

“What’s that, Mamma-Youran?”

“A loquat tree seed,” Youran murmured.

Zhengzhi, who had been memorizing poetry lately, chimed in instinctively: “In the courtyard stands a loquat tree, planted by my hand the year my wife died. Today, its canopy spreads like a vast umbrella.” Is it that loquat?

Youran’s face turned pale. Zhengzhi didn’t understand the meaning of the poem; she just remembered it. But it struck the most painful chord in Youran’s heart.

“Mamma-Youran…” Zhengzhi was scared, seeing her reaction. Youran took a deep breath, pulled the child into a hug, and kissed her hair. “No, Zhengzhi. Mamma will be with us for a long, long time, and our family will be happy forever.”

The breeze continued to blow, but Youran’s heart was no longer at peace.

“Mamma-Youran,” Zhengzhi whispered after a while. “Do you like Mamma more than you like Zhengzhi?”

The question made Youran’s heart soften. She laughed helplessly. “You little fox…” To have such a possessive streak at this age; whoever the girl fell in love with later would be in trouble.

In a daze, Youran seemed to see her and Chu Nian with grey hair, watching Zhengzhi walk toward them with a lover and a small baby. She used to fear aging, but now, she wanted to grow old with Chu Nian in an instant.

“Zhengzhi,” Youran said softly. “In this world, many people love you—me, Mamma, your grandmas… and later you’ll have your own lover and friends. But your Mamma has nothing. She only has me.”

Zhengzhi looked at her. Youran’s eyes were red. “So, for the rest of my life, I will love her with everything I have. Understand?”

Zhengzhi nodded thoughtfully and hugged Youran tightly. “I will love Mamma too.”

That night, a war broke out between mother and daughter. Youran looked at Zhengzhi, who was already snuggled into Chu Nian’s covers. “Zhengzhi, you sleep in your own room today.”

“Why?” Zhengzhi looked at Youran, then at Chu Nian, whose face had suddenly turned as red as an apple.

“You’re a big girl now. You have to learn to be independent.”

“I’m not even three! You called me your baby this morning!”

“No. You have to sleep there tonight.”

Zhengzhi’s eyes filled with tears as she looked at Chu Nian, but Chu Nian avoided her gaze. Seeing the “steamed bun” face about to dissolve into sobs, Youran relented and picked her up. “Fine, Mamma-Youran will go coax you to sleep.”

Chu Nian breathed a sigh of relief, yet felt a trace of disappointment. She didn’t know if she was expectant or afraid.

Youran hoisted Zhengzhi over her shoulder like a sack of grain. Before leaving, she turned and pinched Chu Nian’s face. “Wait a bit. I’ll get her to sleep first, then I’ll come back to sleep with you.”