I woke up to find I have a child - Chapter 101

The view of Yin Jiahe’s back as she left was cruel and decisive. After saying what she wanted to say, she left without taking a single thing with her. As if nothing here was sentimental enough for her to take. 

Yu Tingxue stared at the closed door, her complexion paler than paper, and her hand trembling slightly as she held her teacup. She noticed her trembling and she let her hand drop to her side, as if putting it out of sight would lessen the pain.

When she released the teacup, she didn’t control her strength well, and the cup tumbled to the floor, splashing hot water on Yu Tingxue’s ankles. The socks shielded her from injury, but the brief burning sensation felt as if it was poured directly onto her heart, jolting her awake and leaving her utterly exposed.

Yu Tingxue slowly crouched down to pick up the pieces of the gold-rimmed bone china cup. She didn’t bother using a broom or piece of cloth, instead using her hands directly to place them into her palms. Her hands were tender and soft, the kind that had never done manual labor and defining features of a pampered rich lady. The moment the sharp shards touched her, they cut a wound into her palm and sent a heartbreaking pain to her nerves. Yu Tingxue didn’t cry out and just looked silently at her wound. 

Yin Jiahe had said she thought about jumping off the building or slitting her wrists in the bathroom, that she had wanted her life to drain away until she became a cold corpse. All just to spite her.

Such a thought was too cruel. Just the imagination of it was unbearable for Yu Tingxue. She clenched her fist, and the blood trickled from between her fingers causing the servant that walked in to scream with alarm. 

Meanwhile, Yin Jiahe was completely unaware of what was happening on Yu Tingxue’s side. She returned to her own place and was contemplating her future. 

Without a financial backer, once the entertainment industry found out, she would inevitably go through a period of warm to cold relationships, with many people suddenly ignoring her now that she has lost her protective guardian. In the future, she will not only face a more difficult life but one with many psychological blows as well. 

If nothing else, she knew that 9 out of 10 of her “friends” would probably never talk to her again. 

Imagining such a scene, Yin Jiahe felt she could accept such an outcome. She never cared about such superficial friends, so even if they left, there was nothing to be sad about.

Sitting on the cushion near her bay windows, Yin Jiahe watched the rising moon for a long time. Now that she was free, she should have been out enjoying a night on the town, and not sitting here quietly and gloomily as if mourning something. 

Freedom should look like freedom after all. 

Oh, right. 

It had been a long time since she returned to her hometown. Perfect, she would visit her hometown in the next few days to change her mood. Then she’ll find a new agent when she comes back. 

Yin Jiahe came from a small, no-name town. A really small one where everyone knew each other. If a family fought, it would spread from one end of the town to the other by the next day. In such a town, she had a rather miserable childhood. She felt no affection for her family, but she did miss her hometown quite a bit. 

Back then, her father would hit her, but the moment she ran outside the neighbors would come out to protect her and step in between her and her father’s stick. 

The family she grew up in was a bunch of parasites who valued men over women. Her dream as a child was to be an actress, but her family showed her no support and instead constantly abused or ridiculed her. The filthy words they said to her only made her more determined to leave that house. 

However, leaving wasn’t as easy as one might think. This wasn’t ancient China where once you left, you could never be found again. Yin Jiahe had sneaked out from her home with just over a 100 yuan she had painstakingly saved. After she made it to Beijing, she found herself at the very bottom of the food chain until finally someone noticed her beauty and offered an opportunity to act in a few advertisements. However, it turned out that it was just a trick from some old pervert who wanted to sleep with her. 

She had no background, so she couldn’t become a prominent actor, and her striking good looks made it impossible for her to blend in as an extra. Yin Jiahe found herself in this awkward predicament, in a limbo she could not escape. After spending more than half a year in Beijing, she barely managed to make ends meet. Though life was hard, Yin Jiahe felt happy because she saw it as just the beginning. She believed in herself and she was confident she would succeed.

But just when things were looking up, her father came to find her. The first thing he did when he found her was to hit her. The second thing he did after he found out that the beatings no longer worked was to ask her for her money. Not just a part of her money, but all of her savings and leaving her with nothing. 

She found herself sitting on a bench in a park by the lake in her hometown. She thought of that day when Yu Tingxue suddenly showed up at the small, shabby apartment she was renting in. The moment she appeared, she slapped her father in the face and then frowned in disgust as she said her hands got dirty. Then she turned around and ordered her men to beat up her father. 

She was afraid that Yin Jiahe couldn’t stand such a sight and so she dragged her out without another word. The woman was obviously shorter than her, so short that Yin Jiahe felt she could put her in her pocket and walk away, but she was more vicious than an underworld boss and just as merciless. 

At the time, she looked at Yu Tingxue’s icy expression and wondered, what was she thinking? 

And how could someone so angry look so cute?

If that man hadn’t appeared, if she had a few more years to advance her career, and they had met after those few years ….how great would that have been?

After driving her father out of her apartment, that exact same night Yue TIngxue proposed a five-year contract with her. It was very humiliating to her. No matter how sincere or what good intentions Yue Tingxue had, it was still very humiliating. 

But she had agreed because she really did need someone to help and protect her. She was afraid that if she refused, there would be no second person like Yu Tingxue, someone with superior resources, coming to help her. 

Her hometown was in the south, where the weather had already warmed up. The willows were just beginning to sprout, and the peach trees planted in the park had small buds hanging from the branches and were likely to bloom in a few days. Right beside Yin Jiahe was a peach tree and a strange looking Japanese pagoda tree. She turned her head and plucked a small leaf from it. The newly grown leaf was a vibrant green, and the veins she ran her finger along felt as smooth and tender as a child’s cheek.

For others, love is all about romance, but for them, it was filled with blood and profit. 

Yin Jiahe never used the word “love” in front of others. She always stressed that she was Yu Tingxue’s lover, not her girlfriend. But deep down, she admitted, they were in love, just that the start of their love wasn’t very romantic. 

She was confident that five years would pass in the blink of an eye, and by then, their statuses would be somewhat equal. Even if not equal, she wouldn’t be associated with poverty or low status anymore. By then, even though their start wasn’t very good, their development would be incredibly beautiful.

However, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. The five years indeed flew by, and the image of their relationship at the start wasn’t very good, but the ending was even uglier. 

Yin Jiahe felt somewhat defeated. She returned to her hometown to clear her mind, but this entire day she had been thinking only of Yu Tingxue. 

Habit is a scary thing, but it doesn’t matter. She will change.

Yin Jiahe wandered around her hometown, stopping from time to time. 

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yu Tingxue hadn’t left her house in days.

She sent all the servants away, telling her secretary she was taking a week off and to settle any business decisions without her.

Ye Mingxin and Han Feixu had just gotten off the plane when they received a call from Jiang Lingyan. Hearing what was said on the other end, Ye Mingxin frowned, “But what’s the use of calling me?”

The person on the other end said something,  and Han Feixu, standing quietly by her side, saw Ye Mingxin suddenly look her way. She blinked back at her. 

Naturally, Jiang Lingyan was telling Ye Mingxin all about what happened with Yu Tingxue and Yin Jiahe. She knew telling Ye Mingxin was pointless, but she thought telling Han Feixu might help, considering she was the only one among them who could somewhat get along with Yin Jiahe at this point. 

Ye Mingxin paused and only after getting into the car did she relay Jiang Lingyan’s intentions to Han Feixu.

As expected, Han Feixu chuckled lightly, “Tell Jiang Lingyan, she’s getting cuter by the day.”

Ye Mingxin: “…”

Ye Mingxin really didn’t want to get involved, but considering Yu Tingxue’s personality and the fact that she was still her friend, she felt she should make an effort, “Give it a try, she’s my friend, and I owe her a favor.”

Han Feixu remained indifferent.

“Little Xu, you don’t want to see them part ways for good either, right?”

Han Feixu yawned.

“…If you help her, I can promise you anything.” 

Han Feixu turned her head, a glint in her eye, “Anything?”

Author’s notes: 

Ye Mingxin: I feel like I’ve been tricked

Han Feixu: No, it’s not just a feeling

Ye Mingxin: …