Chapter 1: Pregnancy
In front of the president's office, Gu Fanxing tightly held a report in her hand, hesitating nervously to knock on the door. It was lunchtime, and all the colleagues in the secretary’s office had gone for their meals. She had taken advantage of this quiet moment to come and talk to the president about something.
She looked down at the report once again. It was an ultrasound report with two clear lines of text at the bottom: "Early pregnancy, intrauterine gestation, embryo alive, 6 weeks +."
She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, involuntarily recalling the absurd night last month with the president. That evening, after accompanying the president at a business dinner, she had taken him back to his hotel. Just as she was turning to leave, she found herself embraced by a warm arm. Both of them were under the influence of alcohol, and naturally, they did what they shouldn't have done.
Neither of them mentioned it afterward. It wasn’t until she missed her period and went for a check-up that she discovered she was pregnant. She thought that as one of the parties involved, the president should have the right to know. She wanted to hear his opinion.
Gathering her courage, she knocked on the door. The person inside responded with a low, "Come in."
Su Muchen looked up upon seeing who it was and asked, "It’s lunch break, is there something you need?"
Gu Fanxing looked at him. The man was handsome with a refined appearance and penetrating gaze, looking back at her. She pursed her lips lightly, placed the report on the desk, and gently pushed it forward, saying softly, "President Su, please take a look at this..."
Su Muchen saw her hesitation and picked up the paper in confusion, glancing over it before frowning slightly.
"Yours?" he asked instinctively.
"Mm-hm," Gu Fanxing replied weakly, "That time last month when we dined with President Yu Peng, I took you back to the hotel..."
The rest of her words remained unspoken. That night left an impression on Su Muchen; he hadn’t been completely drunk and was well aware of what had transpired. It was the alcohol that had made him see her slender silhouette and mistake her for someone else...
Gu Fanxing noticed that he kept staring at the report without speaking, which made her heart flutter nervously.
"President Su, my lifestyle is upright, and you know that the encounter with you was my first time."
When she said "first time," her voice was a bit softer.
She stole a glance at him and continued, "I’m telling you this without any other intention; as one of the parties involved, you should also be informed. Besides, I don’t know what to do."
After hearing her out, Su Muchen nodded slightly. Gu Fanxing couldn’t tell what his nod meant. If he didn’t speak, how could she understand his thoughts?
After a while, Su Muchen put down the report and said to her, "Let’s discuss this matter after work. Find a place to talk properly. For now, go have your meal." With that, he pushed the report back.
Gu Fanxing agreed, thinking it was reasonable since they still had work in the afternoon, and discussing this now could affect her performance later.
Taking the report back, she said, "Alright, let’s talk after work."
Su Muchen didn’t look at her but nodded again.
Gu Fanxing let out a silent sigh and turned towards the door. Perhaps because of the matter on her mind, she was a bit distracted and didn’t notice someone coming in from outside, bumping into them head-on. The report floated out of her hands.
Looking up, she saw it was the chairman’s wife—Su Muchen’s mother—and hurriedly apologized, "Madam Chairman, I’m sorry, I’m sorry."
Mrs. Su, in her fifties, was kind and elegant. She smiled faintly and said, "No problem."
Then, she looked down at the report on her shoes.
Gu Fanxing also saw it and was startled, just about to bend down to pick it up when Mrs. Su beat her to it.
After reading it, Mrs. Su looked at her in surprise and blurted out, "Secretary Gu, is this yours? Oh, it has your name on it."
Gu Fanxing’s face turned red with embarrassment and she could only nod stiffly.
Meanwhile, Su Muchen looked over, his eyes meeting his mother’s gaze.
Mrs. Su pondered for a moment, seemingly understanding, then looked between her son and Gu Fanxing, her voice filled with restrained excitement, "This child... could it be little Chen’s?"
Seeing Mrs. Su’s excited expression, Gu Fanxing felt rather surprised.
Not knowing what to say, she simply closed her mouth and stayed silent.
Su Muchen got up and walked over to them, saying to Gu Fanxing, "Why don't you go out for a moment."
Hearing this, Gu Fanxing felt relieved and was about to leave immediately.
However, Mrs. Su grabbed her wrist and led her inside, smiling and saying, "It looks like I guessed right. You two should explain this to me clearly."
Sitting on the sofa, Mrs. Su looked at her son standing there and exclaimed, "Aren't you going to come over? Do I need to invite you personally? This is such great news; shouldn't we discuss your wedding plans? Time won’t wait for the baby!"
Gu Fanxing felt a wave of dizziness, thinking, 'What is this? Madam Chairman, aren’t you mistaken?'
Su Muchen sat opposite them helplessly and said to his mother, "Mother, this is a matter between Secretary Gu and me. Please stay out of it."
"If there were no child, I would not interfere. But," Mrs. Su smiled warmly, glancing at Gu Fanxing’s abdomen, "now that Secretary Gu is pregnant, it involves the future of our Su family, so I cannot stand aside."
Gu Fanxing, seeing the darkening expression on President Su’s face, gathered her courage and said, "Madam Chairman, actually, neither President Su nor I intend to get married."
"Not getting married?" Mrs. Su’s almond-shaped eyes widened as she turned angrily to her son, "You got her pregnant and don’t want to marry her or take responsibility? Are you even a man?" After saying this, she reached over and slapped his shoulders hard twice.
Watching the president being hit, Gu Fanxing silently lowered her head, unable to bear to look.
Su Muchen endured the beating silently, only giving Gu Fanxing a cold glance.
Mrs. Su pondered for a moment, glanced at the time, and stood up, "Let’s go eat first. When the Civil Affairs Bureau opens this afternoon, you two should go and register."
"A-ah?" Gu Fanxing’s eyes widened in surprise, "Madam Chairman, this, this..."
"Don’t hesitate," Mrs. Su held Gu Fanxing’s hand, gently patted her hand, and earnestly said, "I know your family situation. You don’t need to worry about your mother’s illness. Once you and Chen register, I’ll cover the medical expenses."
This offer was too tempting.
Gu Fanxing’s family wasn’t well-off. Her father had an affair and divorced her mother during her high school years. Since then, she and her mother had relied on each other. Though life was tough, her mother had persisted in supporting her through college. Only two years into her career, her mother fell seriously ill, lying unconscious in the hospital, racking up medical bills.
If marrying Su Muchen could provide the means to treat her mother, why wouldn’t she do it? How could she lose her mother?
Thinking this, without looking at Su Muchen, she nodded firmly to Mrs. Su, agreeing.