Whether the baby would be good to Cen Sen remained to be seen, but after that night, Ji Mingshu’s gentleness toward Cen Sen visibly increased a tiny bit.
Time passed neither too quickly nor too slowly, turning over more than two months. By late November, the capital showed signs of entering winter.
Ji Mingshu successfully passed through what palace dramas call the “safe concealment period” of pregnancy, and most relatives and friends had learned the joyous news of her pregnancy.
With this pregnancy, the attention and importance given by the Cen and Ji family elders could truly live up to the joke that “there’s a throne to be inherited in the family.”
Both families had provided complete staffs of Western and Chinese chefs, pastry chefs, and nutritionists. Whatever she wanted to eat could be freshly prepared in an instant. Ji Mingshu wasn’t polite about it either—today requesting crystal clear cabbage soup, tomorrow asking for Wensi tofu.
The Cen family had also brought in prenatal education teachers from who knows where. While other families conducted prenatal education by simply telling stories or playing music, the Cen family was particularly extravagant, even cooperating with the requirements of the prenatal education teachers by inviting professionals to come home and perform live music to cultivate the embryo’s temperament.
Fortunately, Ji Mingshu was born to enjoy such blessings. If it had been someone else facing such a grand production, they might have worried about shortening their lifespan.
In addition, Ji Mingshu received many gifts from elders—jewelry, luxury cars, antiques, and paintings. The other noteworthy items were the card from Old Mr. Cen and the two priceless gardens that Cen Yuanchao had transferred to her name.
Somehow, this news was leaked by someone with a loose tongue, and people in their circle all sighed about Ji Mingshu’s good fortune, saying that the treatment for carrying an heir was indeed different. Most importantly, this was just for being pregnant—what would happen after a safe delivery? They were witnessing a modern version of “a mother’s status rises with her son’s.”
But Ji Mingshu herself remained very indifferent to these things and particularly scoffed at the saying “a mother’s status rises with her son’s.”
A week after confirming her pregnancy, Cen Sen brought her a document to sign.
She casually flipped through it and found that the content was quite extraordinary. The clauses seemed balanced, but upon closer examination, they all appeared to favor Party B—and she, Ji Mingshu, was this Party B.
At the time, she was confused. In a family alliance marriage, there was no such thing as sharing marital property. Which couple didn’t have to sign dozens of folders of prenuptial agreements before marriage?
She and Cen Sen also had a very detailed prenuptial agreement, so what was the significance of this freshly drafted supplementary contract for post-marital property distribution?
Before she could ask, Cen Sen voluntarily explained: “The prenuptial agreement is now void. Post-marital property will be shared between husband and wife.”
When Ji Mingshu heard this, she was completely stunned.
The Cen family wasn’t just some ordinary family with a house and a car. Without exaggeration, Cen Sen’s fortune changed every minute and second, and even he probably couldn’t estimate exactly how much he was worth.
The weight of those eight words, “post-marital property will be shared between husband and wife,” meant that if she, Ji Mingshu, just slightly set her mind to it, she could instantly change the entire landscape of Jingjiang Construction. Was he crazy?
After processing this for about half a minute, Ji Mingshu resolutely put down the pen, turned her back, and refused to sign no matter what.
Cen Sen didn’t force her, only saying indifferently, “Whether you sign or not, the prenuptial agreement is already invalid on my end.”
When Ji Mingshu heard this, she turned around and poked his chest, questioning: “What are you trying to do? Are you already planning compensation for after you cheat on me? Cen Shi Sensen, do you have any conscience? Oh, I know now. It seems all my previous dreams were true. I never thought that after living for more than twenty years, I’d become a prophet!”
Cen Sen: “I just want to give you more security.”
Ji Mingshu maintained an attitude of “I’m not listening, I’m not listening, you’re just a scumbag,” saying, “Do you, a grown man, need to sign a contract to give your wife security? How can you be so unreliable? With such an unreliable father, who knows how difficult life will be for us, a widow and an orphan!”
Her small mouth rattled on, going further and further off-topic, becoming more and more ridiculous. “What use is it for me to have your shares? Would I understand them? Hey, tell me, are you setting some trap and planning to make me a legal representative or something, so that if there’s an economic crime, I’ll go to jail in your place? Do you think I don’t understand the law or haven’t read novels?”
“Hey, you’re silent, you’re not talking. Is it because I’ve guessed right? You scumbag, my child isn’t even born yet, and you’ve already got everything arranged!”
Cen Sen: “…”
He could naturally see that Ji Mingshu was deliberately making trouble, but faced with her troublemaking, he found himself powerless to counter. He had envisioned many possibilities, but uniquely failed to imagine that Ji Mingshu would be unwilling to share his property.
The two sat silently on the bed for a while. Ji Mingshu’s initial burst of energy was nearly spent, and as she calmed down, although she still dared not accept it, the thought that Cen Sen was willing to go to such lengths for her made sweet bubbles unstoppably rise in her heart.
She peeked at Cen Sen and found that he seemed to have withdrawn into himself because of her. She couldn’t help but poke him, explaining in a small voice: “I understand what you mean, but security isn’t given this way.”
She had never thought about voiding the prenuptial agreement. Previously, she had been very self-aware, feeling that since they had arranged a marriage where she spent his money on food, drink, and entertainment without earning a penny herself, it would be too shameless to then demand half his property.
Now she felt there was no necessity for this. She loved Cen Sen and believed in him, believed they could perfectly complete a lifetime together, so she no longer needed additional property shares as extra assurance.
Besides, if a man truly changes his heart, no collateral can hold him, and even if it forcibly holds him, it’s just an empty shell, merely one side forcing the matter, making everyone miserable.
If such a day truly came, then it would be her, Ji Mingshu, who had been blind, willing to accept the loss, and admit defeat.
Ji Mingshu told Cen Sen her thoughts, and Cen Sen naturally had his arguments. The two went back and forth, neither able to completely convince the other. They finally ended with a compromise—finding lawyers to draft a new contract, with all of Ji Mingshu’s shares fully entrusted to Cen Sen’s management.
Of course, in reality, the prenuptial agreement was already void, and Ji Mingshu would still legally share all of Cen Sen’s property.
Since she was already legally sharing all of Cen Sen’s property, those gifts from the elders, including the gardens transferred to her name, naturally didn’t count as much.
As for “a mother’s status rises with her son’s”—that was completely nonsense. Whether it was a stinky boy or a stinky girl, if they made her unhappy in the future, every one of them would regret having been invested in her precious little belly.
In the blink of an eye, it was the end of the year, another deep winter.
At this time, Ji Mingshu’s bare belly was just starting to show, and in her daily loose sweaters, it wasn’t noticeable at all.
She carefully concealed and dressed herself, accompanying Cen Sen to attend the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the opening of Junyi Collection.
She considered this just an ordinary event, but unexpectedly, in real life, there were actually “CEO couple” fans who had come specifically for her and Cen Sen.
After the event, fans released a set of high-definition “dog food” photos of them, including both still and moving versions, which were truly pleasing to the eye and accidentally triggered another round of heated discussion among gossip-followers who were “eating sugar.”
The fan who took their photos was particularly excited and personally started a thread on the forum to explain.
[Ahhhhh, I saw the real-life CEO and CEO’s wife today! Our company is a Junyi partner and received an invitation. Then our boss couldn’t go because of something, and let me go instead, which was simply blissful to the point of spiral explosion! The CEO is so handsome, and his wife is so beautiful, with truly divine looks! The first 4 photos are direct and unedited, sisters, feel the beauty attack!]
Someone commented below: [That GIF, are those dozen or so black-suited bodyguards real? What is it like filming a TV drama?]
The original poster enthusiastically answered: [There were that many bodyguards! After the ribbon-cutting, there was a reception. The two of them just made an appearance and then left. I followed from a distance, and whoosh, a big group of bodyguards surrounded them! Super impressive! Because there were too many bodyguards, I couldn’t even take photos! But my eyes can testify that our CEO was tightly holding his wife’s hand! Look at the blurry photo P6! You can barely see two little hands! Ahhh, this sugar is truly sweet!!!]
There was also a sharp-eyed detective: [The CEO’s wife seems to be wearing flat shoes? Pregnant? And her sweater is also a loose style.]
This observation instantly caused an uproar!
—Thus, Ji Mingshu, without knowing anything, opened her Weibo private messages as usual, intending to reply, and inexplicably received a wave of pregnancy inquiries and congratulations.
It couldn’t be hidden, and there was nothing to hide. After thinking about it, she still posted a Weibo, collectively thanking everyone for their concern and confirming that she was indeed pregnant, while taking the opportunity to blatantly advertise for Junyi Collection.
This conspicuous advertisement directly resulted in the B612 Planet-themed suite she designed for Junyi Collection being booked in advance for the next three months. This was only because the Junyi Collection official website currently only allowed bookings three months in advance; otherwise, who knows how long the full bookings would have continued.
Although initially it was somewhat due to fan support, as more and more photos of the B612 Planet suite circulated, people discovered that the design was truly special, innovative, and very photogenic.
For a time, wealthy young women and internet celebrities were constantly watching the official website for bookings, just to go to the B612 Planet for photos and check-ins, thus launching Junyi Collection’s path as an internet-famous hotel.
At the same time, the documentary program “Old Street Impressions” also successfully concluded at the year’s end.
The program was at its peak of word-of-mouth, and Ji Mingshu’s Weibo followers increased daily. Because of this, she received many rare development opportunities in interior design, such as being recommended for high-profile design competitions and being invited to academic exchanges in European and American countries.
Cen Sen was very supportive of her developing her strengths based on her interests, but the premise was that she couldn’t be too tired. If she sat in front of the computer for more than an hour, someone at home would eerily cut off her internet. As for the nearly week-long international exchange, Cen Sen also specially made time to accompany her throughout.
Before they knew it, it was New Year’s Eve again.
This New Year’s Eve, Cen Sen and Ji Mingshu only had lunch and dinner separately at the Cen and Ji families, and then returned to Mingshui Mansion to stay up for the New Year.
The Mingshui Mansion late at night was as bright as a beautiful crystal house, with snow still falling outside.
Ji Mingshu nestled in Cen Sen’s arms as they watched the festive Spring Festival Gala while chatting and laughing intermittently.
Cen Sen often gave people the impression of being cold, distant, quiet, and reserved when outside, but at home alone with Ji Mingshu, he always had a lot to talk about. The two would cuddle together and discuss seemingly uninteresting topics that somehow became particularly interesting.
Which dish at dinner wasn’t tasty enough, which dish had too much salt, where the two of them would go traveling after the baby was born while leaving the baby behind, and how certain distant relatives were annoying—didn’t they know that Grandpa Xiao Ming lived to 100 years precisely because he didn’t meddle in others’ affairs? And so on.
Small fragments of warmth.
Ji Mingshu became particularly sleepy during pregnancy. At around eleven o’clock, she could barely keep her eyes open, her eyelids drooping, but she was still mumbling.
“Cen Shi Sensen, do you remember that on this day last year, you confessed to me?”
“I was so happy then.”
Cen Sen responded with a “Mm.”
“I’ve been so happy this whole year.”
“I hope it will be like this for my entire life.”
“Will you always like me?”
“No, you must always like me.”
Her voice grew smaller and smaller, and in the end, she even managed to maintain a commanding tone. Hearing Cen Sen respond with another “Mm,” she turned over like a lazy little kitten and fell asleep contentedly holding him.
Cen Sen kept his eyes lowered, his gaze inexplicably gentle as he looked at her.
He wasn’t a person who particularly showed his emotions, and many words he would only quietly respond to in his heart.
This year, I’ve been very happy too.
I also hope it will be like this for my entire life.
I will always like you, only like you.
At midnight, the New Year’s fireworks illuminated the entire sky, making it as bright as day.
Ji Mingshu was awakened by the noise, her brows tightly furrowed. In her drowsy state, she was still conscious that it was midnight, crossing into the New Year. She instinctively reached up to embrace Cen Sen’s neck, moved closer, and whispered in his ear: “Happy New Year, hmm… I love you.”
Cen Sen placed a kiss by her ear, his voice deep and hoarse, “Happy New Year, I love you too.”
—How fortunate I am that in this lifetime, I can be your unwavering subject.