Gu Ran initially wasn't particularly enthusiastic about having a child, but she wasn't opposed to it either. Every time Ji Shiyu brought it up, she would dodge the topic with a coquettish vagueness. Sometimes she thought having a baby to play with would be quite nice, and other times she felt she herself was still a baby.
That was until she noticed how Ji Heyuan was eyeing the grandson of his old friend next door with envy. This once so formidable figure, the older he got, the more he adored little children. Now, he wouldn't let go of his friend's little grandson once he held him.
Ji Heyuan had never pressured her about it. In fact, he had even defended her in front of Ji Shiyu before, saying it was fine if they chose to be childfree. But Gu Ran knew—Ji Heyuan really, really wanted a little grandson.
During the wedding, Ji Heyuan had practiced walking with a cane for a long time in advance. He had taken her hand and walked her down the aisle step by step, standing in for her father's place.
Since everyone seemed so eager for the little one's arrival, then... let's have one.
However, after deciding to try for a child, Gu Ran didn't make any special preparations. The biggest difference from before was just agreeing with Ji Shiyu to forego protection.
With no specific efforts made, Gu Ran soon forgot all about the plan to have a baby.
Until one night during her gaming livestream. While playing, Gu Ran suddenly retched.
Gu Ran suddenly felt discomfort in her stomach. Ignoring that her character in the game was being chased by a level-two monster, she stopped playing. Just as she sat down hoping to feel better, another wave of nausea surged up.
Gu Ran covered her mouth, starting to wonder if she had eaten something bad today.
She waited until the nausea completely subsided before looking up, intending to say she suddenly wasn't feeling well and would end the livestream there. But when she looked at the screen, the barrage was filled with:
[Ranran suddenly feels nauseous, is she pregnant?]
[Oh my god, she must be pregnant!]
[Ahhh! Are we going to have a little baby?]
[Oh my goodness, I'm so excited!]
............
Facing the barrage flooded with the words "pregnant," Gu Ran suddenly realized something.
She was even less perceptive than her fans.
Gu Ran hastily ended the livestream. Ji Shiyu hurried in from outside.
He was holding a cup of honey water, gently patting Gu Ran's back as he urged her to drink.
"Still feeling unwell?" Ji Shiyu asked cautiously.
After finishing the honey water, Gu Ran shook her head.
Ji Shiyu's eyes involuntarily drifted to Gu Ran's flat abdomen, his expression tense. "Let's go for a check-up tomorrow."
Gu Ran also looked down at her stomach. "Okay."
.................
Soon, the top female streamer Gu Ran posted announcements simultaneously on both the Cat's Paw platform and Weibo.
Although the announcements didn't specify the exact physical reason, everyone who had witnessed Gu Ran's nausea during the livestream knew it was definitely a pregnancy. It was just too early in the first trimester to officially announce it.
The comment sections under both the Weibo and Cat's Paw posts were flooded with "Congratulations to the Century Couple!"
At home, Gu Ran looked at the sea of "congratulations" in her comment section, then reached down and touched her abdomen.
The doctor said it was 6 weeks and 3 days.
Livestreaming was, to some extent, hard work. It was manageable normally, but now that she was pregnant, Ji Shiyu absolutely refused to let her stream with a big belly.
Thinking about it, Gu Ran also felt it would be strange for a pregnant woman to livestream, especially with so many trolls online nowadays. She might get criticized whether she gained or lost a little weight during pregnancy, so she agreed.
She wasn't too worried about fading into obscurity now anyway. Her status in the streaming world was secure, the money she'd earned over the past two years was nearly enough for financial freedom, and recently Ji Shiyu had helped her with some investment operations that doubled the amount.
And so, Gu Ran began her pregnancy life of eating and drinking, occasionally going to Bei Yi to play a couple of games of chess with Ji Heyuan. She lived a very leisurely life, seemingly without desires or demands.
Gu Ran thought this state of contentment would last until after giving birth and finishing her postpartum confinement. But during her third trimester, as her belly grew bigger and bigger, she gradually discovered that her body's needs in certain aspects also seemed to change along with her hormone levels.
Gu Ran hadn't been posting much on Weibo or Cat's Paw lately. Her fans were tearfully asking every day when she would finish having the baby and resume streaming, while she spent her days watching Ji Shiyu, her big belly and all, finding him more and more attractive.
One night, Ji Shiyu was working overtime in his study.
With only a month left until Gu Ran's due date, Ji Shiyu had moved his office home to be with her every day.
Ji Shiyu had just finished a video conference when Gu Ran peeked her head in from the doorway and called out softly, "Honey."
Seeing that his meeting seemed to be over, she pushed the door open and came in, holding a cup of coffee.
"Honey, I made you some coffee."
Ji Shiyu smiled and reached out for Gu Ran. "Thank you."
He pulled her onto his lap and gently stroked her belly, which was as big as a hill.
Gu Ran wrapped her arms around Ji Shiyu's neck. "He was moving around a bit earlier, but he's probably asleep now."
She was talking about the baby.
Ji Shiyu's gaze was tender. "Good. It's getting late, you should go to bed first. I'll join you in a bit."
Hearing this, Gu Ran's face fell slightly.
She continued holding onto Ji Shiyu's neck. "Then a kiss."
Ji Shiyu leaned down and kissed her.
He intended it to be just a light peck, but Gu Ran hooked her arms around his neck and actively deepened the kiss.
During the kiss, Gu Ran pressed her body insistently against Ji Shiyu until he grabbed her hands, which were wandering provocatively over him, and frowned. "Stop fooling around."
Ji Shiyu held Gu Ran's small hands, knowing exactly what she wanted. Feeling his tone might have been too harsh, he sighed softly and said gently, "We can't."
Lately, he dreaded when Gu Ran got clingy like this. With less than a month to the due date, Gu Ran had become increasingly restless about certain things recently. He had to both protect her belly and guard against her teasing advances.
He knew Gu Ran's heightened desires were due to hormones, but with her belly so big, how could he dare?
Ji Shiyu: "Can you hold on a little longer, please?"
He was telling her to hold on again. Back before she was pregnant, even when she cried, he hadn't held back.
Being rejected again and again, Gu Ran felt her world turn bleak. "You just don't want to touch me anymore, do you? You're disgusted by me!"
The more she thought about it, the sadder she became. Her delicate nostrils flared, and her eyes welled up with tears, threatening to spill over.
Ji Shiyu wished he could raise both hands to swear his innocence. "What are you talking about?"
Gu Ran rubbed against him again. "Then do it now. I want to."
Ji Shiyu: "..."
Faced with Gu Ran like this, he was truly at a loss. He could only help her with his hands. While Gu Ran was somewhat satisfied, she still felt unfulfilled. But this time, no matter how much she cried and pleaded, Ji Shiyu firmly went to take a cold shower.
The next day was the scheduled prenatal check-up.
Gu Ran completed the necessary examinations, and then the two of them sat together in front of the doctor to listen to the instructions.
Ji Shiyu used his phone to note down the physical changes Gu Ran might experience during this period and the precautions to take. Finally, he glanced at Gu Ran beside him, who had been giving him the cold shoulder since morning because of last night's events.
Ji Shiyu pondered for a couple of seconds before speaking up: "Um, doctor, I wanted to ask, during her current stage... can we have sex?"
Upon hearing the question, the doctor immediately looked up in shock, first glancing at Gu Ran's large belly, then at Ji Shiyu. "She's already 36 weeks, almost 37 weeks, about to give birth. You..."
The experienced doctor held back the second half of his thought—"how can you even be thinking about this, have you no conscience?"—and instead adopted a stern, lecturing tone. "Of course not. Having intercourse in the late stages of pregnancy can very likely lead to premature birth."
Ji Shiyu's expression turned somewhat awkward, and he nodded. "Alright, thank you."
He took Gu Ran's hand and helped her up, leaving the doctor's office.
Once in the hallway, Ji Shiyu looked at Gu Ran, who had been wearing a disgruntled little frown the whole time, and let out a soft sigh. "See, the doctor said no too."
So it wasn't that he was withholding from her, and certainly not that he found her unattractive. It really just wasn't allowed.
Gu Ran's lips were practically pursed to the sky. Remembering the doctor's stern reprimand in the consultation room and now facing Ji Shiyu's visibly relieved expression, she felt like she had lost all her dignity in front of him during this pregnancy.
It was all the hormones' fault. She had never been this... needy before.
The more Gu Ran looked at Ji Shiyu's relieved face, the angrier she got. She gave him two solid thumps with her fists, her large belly leading the way.
