RIRW – Chapter 189

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Although Zuo Dan did think it was likely that Zhu Min was pregnant, she really didn’t care to get involved.

To her, so-called moral issues were ultimately personal issues. You could disapprove, but there was no need to interfere with others.

Besides, she had her own worries at the moment. The school didn’t support students getting pregnant while studying. She had been lucky during her first pregnancy—it happened right before the college entrance exams. She had heard that some girls got rejected by more selective universities just because they were pregnant during the exam period. Some schools even required students to promise not to get pregnant during their college years in order to be admitted.

Although she had acted first and would explain later this time, the truth would come out eventually.

She needed to come up with a foolproof plan.

On the way home from school, she discussed it with Shen Yiming. Shen Yiming, driving the car, said, “Attending school while pregnant is definitely tough. While confinement after birth might not interfere much, late pregnancy is hard. Especially since you’re also working as a teaching assistant now. I’m worried. How about taking a leave of absence?”

Zuo Dan shook her head. “I worked so hard to get into this first batch of university students. If I take a leave now, wouldn’t that be a waste? School isn’t that hard. It’s not like we’re doing heavy labor. As for pregnancy symptoms, I don’t feel anything yet. I’m just worried about how I’ll look with a big belly later on.”

“You’ll look great,” Shen Yiming said bluntly. In his eyes, Zuo Dan was always beautiful. She’d be even more uniquely beautiful while pregnant.

Zuo Dan glanced at him sideways, thinking his aesthetic standards must be off. Even she, as confident as she was, knew how bad she looked while pregnant.

“I’ll check with Professor Qin when I get the chance.”

At dinner, Chen Zhisen was also home. He was usually busy, but he never missed family meals. Especially now that Zuo Dan was pregnant, he insisted on being home to see her eat her supplements with his own eyes.

Chen Pingping, however, wasn’t eating at home anymore. She stayed at school, saying she had to teach Zuo Cong some physics.

After dinner, Zuo Dan rested in the courtyard, preparing to head to school later with Shen Yiming.

Shen Youyou no longer played with toy cars; he’d moved on to airplanes. With a pull of the wind-up string, the toy plane would fly in a circle through the air.

This counted as high-tech in the current domestic market. Zuo Dan was thoroughly envious.

“Mommy fly, fly! Mommy fly!” Shen Youyou giggled.

Zuo Dan smiled with her lips pressed together and stood up, catching the low-flying plane in her hand.

“No matter how far you fly, you can’t escape your mom’s Five Finger Mountain!”

“……” Shen Youyou stared at her with his big round eyes, then didn’t pout, but instead ran over and hugged her leg, grinning. “Mommy’s awesome, Mommy’s great, I love Mommy. Mommy fly, fly!”

Zuo Dan had expected him to cry but got this instead. She couldn’t resist—too cute. Her heart melted. She quickly handed the plane back to him. “Here, take it, fly as much as you want.”

Shen Youyou pushed it back toward her. “For Mommy to fly.”

“Oh no, you fly, Mommy doesn’t want it.” Zuo Dan felt like her son was way too filial. She even felt guilty for bullying such a little kid.

Shen Youyou looked at her, then at the plane, slowly reached out his little hand, and took his plane back. Just as Zuo Dan was about to pat his little head, the little rascal turned and ran away—wobbly but fast—quickly escaping the danger zone.

“Grandpa! Mommy took my plane!”

Zuo Dan: “……”

Grandma sitting nearby burst into laughter. “Smarter than our Yiming when he was a kid.”

Shen Yiming, reading a book, replied, “I was intelligent. He’s cunning. Takes after his grandpa.”

Zuo Dan thought to herself: the next baby definitely can’t be raised by her dad.

She actually got outwitted by a child!

Chen Zhisen came out holding Shen Youyou’s hand. Shen Youyou, worried that Mommy was mad, smiled sweetly.

Zuo Dan ran over, kissed his little cheeks, and said, “You little rascal!”

Shen Youyou, kissed by Mommy, beamed and revealed his dimples. “Mommy’s the best. I love Mommy.”

Zuo Dan patted his little head and said to Chen Zhisen, “Dad, how are you raising him? He’s so small and already…”

Chen Zhisen let Shen Youyou go off and play on his own, and the boy happily resumed playing with his toy plane.

“Kids are smart. They observe and think more than adults. Let them observe more—growing up in this kind of environment, they’ll naturally develop awareness. It’s okay for boys to be a little shrewd.”

Zuo Dan thought, maybe her dad was pretty good at raising kids…

After resting a while, the couple headed off to school. In the car, Zuo Dan said, “Comrade Yiming, let’s have my dad raise our second child too. I think it’s a great idea.”

Shen Yiming rubbed his temples. “I’ve been thinking about something.”

“Hm?”

“In the future, we might have to outsmart our own children.”

“……” Zuo Dan frowned. “They’d better not! If they dare play mind games with me once they’re old enough to understand things, I’ll beat them up. In the face of armed force, all reactionaries are paper tigers!”

Shen Yiming laughed. “Is this the education philosophy of your department?”

“No, this is my own independently developed educational achievement,” Zuo Dan replied proudly.

Zuo Dan kept pondering how to inform the school about her pregnancy. She really didn’t want to take a leave of absence.

And truthfully, she didn’t even feel pregnant. This time around felt way easier than when she was pregnant with Shen Youyou. No nausea, no dizziness—just deeper sleep at night. Everything else felt perfectly normal. She didn’t think it affected her at all.

When she got the chance, she told Professor Qin. After all, she was currently working as Professor Qin’s assistant—it wasn’t right to hide this from her.

When Professor Qin heard that Zuo Dan was pregnant, she was a little surprised but then said, “Are you planning to take a leave?”

“No, no, no. I just wanted to let you know. I didn’t want to keep it from you. But I am pregnant, Professor Qin. I know the school has its rules, but I really do look forward to having this child.”

Professor Qin smiled. “That’s good. You’re a mother—I’m a mother too. How could I blame you? Pregnancy is natural. I won’t scold you for it. It’s a happy thing. I’ll speak with the school.”

Zuo Dan hadn’t expected Professor Qin to be so understanding—not only not blaming her, but even offering to help talk to the school. She was deeply touched. “Professor, you’re so kind to me.”

Professor Qin patted the back of her hand and smiled. “You’re my student. Of course I’ll protect my own. But let’s keep this quiet for now—let me handle the communication.”

Blushing, Zuo Dan said, “I’m embarrassed about it, too. I only dared to tell you.”

With Professor Qin’s support, Zuo Dan felt much more at ease.

On the other side, Shen Yiming was also trying to persuade Professor Gao. He felt conflicted—he and Dandan were a legally married couple, yet to have a baby, they still needed others’ approval.

“We weren’t planning on rushing it. But once we graduate, we’ll be committed to the great task of building the country, and we won’t have time. So we figured we’d complete this ‘mission’ while still in school—it’s efficient.”

Professor Gao sipped his tea. “Go on.”

“Also, we believe in our ability. Dandan and I are confident we can manage this without affecting our studies.”

“Mhm. What else?”

“…Professor, I really want a daughter. I think about it constantly. Having her will give me the peace of mind to fully focus on my studies.”

Professor Gao chuckled and put down his teacup. “I already knew. Old Li called me—he’s such a muddle-headed bookworm, asking me to look after his granddaughter. Only after hanging up did he remember the school’s rules and started regretting it. But rules are rules. Here’s what I’ll do: I’ll pretend I don’t know anything for now. But if it becomes public knowledge… Zuo Dan’s assistant role will have to be revoked. The school has its rules—no rules, no order.”

Shen Yiming understood that he was being lenient. He smiled, “Professor, could you cancel my assistant role instead? It’s not fair to Dandan.”

Getting her assistant role revoked for getting pregnant would reflect badly in her records.

Professor Gao smiled. “Go discuss it with her. She might not be able to handle the workload later on.”

Shen Yiming replied, “I know. But I want to respect her wishes. If she wants to continue, I hope you’ll support us. These are things a man should take responsibility for.”

Professor Gao looked at him, helpless but amused. “You really push your luck. Fine, go discuss it properly.”

Shen Yiming stood and bowed, “Thank you, Professor.”

On the way back, Zuo Dan happily told Shen Yiming that she’d already spoken with Professor Qin, who had agreed to help.

Shen Yiming asked, “When you’re further along, do you still want to be a teaching assistant?”

Zuo Dan sighed, “If the school lets me, I will. If not, I won’t. It’s not really up to me. But lots of women work through pregnancy.”

Shen Yiming nodded.

The next day, he informed Professor Gao they wanted Dandan to continue her assistant role.

“I’ll free up more time to take care of her. I’m sorry, Professor, for letting you down.”

Professor Gao patted his shoulder. “You haven’t let me down. You’re just taking responsibility—this is good. Yiming, I hope that after you start working, you’ll continue to be like this—responsible to those around you. Don’t forget your original intention.”

Zuo Dan didn’t know about this yet. Professor Qin hadn’t told the school either—probably planning to wait until her belly showed.

Still, she felt at ease and wasn’t too worried. Worst-case scenario? A leave of absence.

As June arrived, the weather gradually turned hot.

Zuo Dan’s clothes became thinner, but since she wasn’t showing yet, no one noticed anything. People just thought she’d gained a little weight from all the supplements.

In contrast, Zhu Min grew thinner and thinner—but her belly was clearly showing.

The whole class had noticed. The class monitor, Zhao Qianjin, directly reported it to the counselor.