“Well, that’s true. But what’s that?”
Although he vaguely noticed what was inside the bag by the smell, Taeein deliberately asked calmly.
“What do you think it is?”
“Is it chicken by any chance?”
“Coffee for gratitude.”
“I sent you a coffee, but you’re paying with a whole chicken?”
“Two chickens.”
“Oh.”
Taeein exclaimed in admiration as she took out a chicken box from the paper bag. However, when she opened the box, Taeein had to block her mouth from the sudden rush of pottery.
“What’s this?”
Perplexed Hyeseong smirked. If it was chicken, she had mentioned that she couldn’t eat it, definitely.
“Why am I like this?”
The once delightful smell of chicken now felt nauseating.
Hyeseong closed the chicken box and took out a cola, handing it to Taeein.
Drinking the cola seemed to revive her.
“Did you drink last night?”
“No.”
“Then, are you pregnant?”
“No!”
“Not pregnant?”
“No, no. It can’t be…?”
Come to think of it, she hadn’t had her period this month. Taeein, whose cycle was regular, remembered that there was a suspicious day. It was when they had spent two nights and three days together in a hotel. If she was pregnant, that would be the defining moment.
“Oh, I’m hungry. Should I cook ramen? Can you eat that?”
“Yeah. Let’s have ramen.”
Hyeseong went into the kitchen, rummaging through the cabinets. Skillfully, she found ramen and a pot.
“I’ll do it. Since I’m your guest.”
“What guest? But what about these little ones?”
Noticing two kids standing with sketchbooks from a distance, Hyeseong asked Taeein.
“My younger brother and my friend.”
Taeein chuckled.
“Your brother and your friend?”
“No. It’s a bit complicated.”
Taeein briefly explained, not wanting to go into details, and Hyeseong, not eager to pry, approached the kids.
“Little ones, do you have something to say to me?”
“Are you the celebrity Oh Hyeseong noona?”
“Unni, I saw you in a drama. Please sign!”
With bright eyes, Jeongdon and Arin extended their sketchbooks.
Hyeseong smiled and signed them with crayons, even drawing a bear for them.
“But why did you draw a mouse, unni?”
“It’s not a mouse; it’s a bear.”
“The bear’s snout isn’t this sharp, though…”
“Not just in appearance but also in what it does, it’s the same as unni.”
Hyeseong pinched Arin’s soft cheek gently.
“Are we friends with unni?”
At the word “friend,” Hyeseong, who had been quietly blinking her eyes, glanced at Taeein, who was diligently boiling ramen behind her.
“Yeah, that’s right. We’re friends.”
If you worry when something bad happens, rejoice when something good happens, and genuinely wish for things to go well and be happy, isn’t that a friend?
That was the answer Hyeseong had been pondering.
“Wow, we’re friends too!”
Arin exclaimed as she discovered a commonality, and nearby Jeongdon pursed his lips.
“Not friends. I’m just playing with you.”
His ears turned red as he spoke.
Look at this.
Hyeseong gently stroked the cute kids’ heads.
“Do you want to eat ramen?”
“Yes, we want to eat ramen!”
“Taeein, add one more ramen.”
“I’m already boiling four.”
Having finished boiling the ramen, Taeein called for Hyeseong and the kids.
She poured ramen into Hyeseong’s bowl first and then into the kids’ bowls.
“Isn’t Jjeongdon going to play with grandma and unni today?”
“Grandma and unni are laying out a blanket and watching a drama.”
“How about lying in the living room and watching a movie with us?”
“Okay! Let’s watch ‘Rudolph’s Adventure 2′!”
Listening quietly to Taeein and Jeongdon’s conversation, Hyeseong realized that she hadn’t misheard earlier. They were friends.
It felt strange for Hyeseong to be on the same level as Jeongdon.
“Hey, Oh Hyeseong. You don’t have a schedule, right? Go sleep.”
“What about your husband?”
“He told me to sleep at my parents’ house.”
“Really.”
Even with a sniffle, Hyeseong didn’t refuse Taeein’s suggestion.
The four of them, having finished the ramen, gathered together and watched a cartoon movie.
Taeein fell asleep in the middle, while Hyeseong and the kids sniffled, watching the journey of baby Rudolph.
And the next morning.
Looking down at the kids sleeping under the covers, Taeein got up. Hyeseong wasn’t in sight.
On the table were a pregnancy test kit and a note.
[Additional shoot came up, so I went first. If there’s good news, let me know first.]She bought this before leaving.
Taeein opened the pregnancy test kit box. There were four test kits inside.
Having familiarized herself with the instructions, Taeein took a paper cup and went straight to the bathroom.
With an anxious heart, she awaited the results. Closing her eyes tightly and taking a deep breath, Taeein opened one eye to check the test kit.
“Two… lines?”
Not very clear, but it was undoubtedly two lines that anyone could recognize.
“No, is it this easy?”
Opening the packaging, she placed another test kit in the cup.
Nervously and hesitantly, more than the first time she tested, Taeein waited for the results.
Again, the result was two lines. It seemed a bit clearer than a while ago, maybe due to her mood.
“I might be pregnant…!”
Her chest swelled even though it wasn’t certain. Tears seemed like they might fall.
At that moment, Nokhyeon, who had returned from her parents’ house, looked for Taeein.
Taeein wiped her hands and approached Nokhyeon, keeping the pregnancy test hidden.
“You woke up early. Did you sleep well without me?”
In response to Nokhyeon’s joke, Taeein made a face like she was about to cry and hugged her.
“What should I do…?”
“Why, Taeein.”
Startled by the strange atmosphere, Nokhyeon held Taeein’s shoulders and stared at her face.
Taeein showed the pregnancy test kit to Nokhyeon.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
