"Hurry up, Old Gu, we're just waiting for you."
Before taking his seat, Gu Junxing scanned the room but couldn't figure out what was going on.
"Here, I specially had them make black bean and pig tail soup for you. There are also oysters and scrambled eggs with chives. I asked the chef specifically, you should eat more of these," Liu Jian introduced the dishes while raising his eyebrows at Gu Junxing.
"Old Liu, you're being so sleazy right now," Chen Shu couldn't help but interject.
"Hey! Watch your words. I'm doing this all for Old Gu's sake. Just look at those dark circles under his eyes."
Gu Junxing was at a loss. He finally understood the meaning behind everyone's expressions when he arrived earlier, but he was in a situation where he couldn't explain himself.
Nian Suian didn't understand Liu Jian's implications at first, but after hearing their conversation, she belatedly caught on.
Initially, she wanted to tease Gu Junxing, but upon further thought, she realized that her own reputation had also been affected by this matter.
"That's enough, we're eating here," Gu Junxing didn't mind being teased a bit, but continuing this conversation was no different from making crude jokes in public.
Liu Jian's loose tongue was an old problem. Back in college, he was the most talkative in the dorm. After Gu Junxing's reminder, he noticed Nian Suian and Xu Jiasong at the table, as well as the young Gu Zhijing, and realized it was inappropriate.
"What's the deal with you two? Why did you only come today?" Liu Jian asked the couple, Qin Wei and Xu Jiasong.
At the mention of this, Qin Wei couldn't hold back his smile. His grin grew wider and wider until it turned into a silly grin, but he didn't say a word.
"Come on, don't just keep smiling. What's going on?"
Xu Jiasong also looked helplessly at her silly husband. He had been like this ever since they left the hospital yesterday. Last night, he even went to the bathroom and laughed stupidly for half an hour, scaring her when she got up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. She thought her husband had gone mad.
She smiled at everyone and said, "I'm pregnant. We just found out at the hospital yesterday. It's been over two months."
This was indeed great news, no wonder Qin Wei had turned into such a fool. Everyone congratulated the couple.
"Wow! You two are quite good at keeping secrets, only telling us now!" Liu Jian exclaimed.
Xu Jiasong explained to everyone, "He wanted to tell you guys as soon as we got the results yesterday, but I told him to wait so we could tell you in person today."
"Jiasong, is there anything you'd like to eat? I'll go to the kitchen right now and ask the chef to prepare some dishes suitable for pregnant women." After saying this, Liu Jian immediately stood up and hurried towards the kitchen.
Seeing him like this, Qin Wei couldn't help but twitch his mouth, "It's my wife who's pregnant, why is he being so attentive?"
"Isn't he always like this? Is this your first day knowing him?"
Gu Junxing was already used to it. This was just Liu Jian's personality. Although he had his flaws, he was definitely enthusiastic and loyal to his friends.
After a while, Liu Jian hurriedly returned.
After sitting down, he first sighed, then put his arm around Chen Shu's shoulder, "Shu, look at this. Old Qin is having a child now, not to mention Old Gu. Zhijing is already so big, maybe in a few years he'll even be holding grandchildren. It's just the two of us left as bachelors. What a situation we're in."
"Uncle Liu, my dad won't be holding grandchildren that soon, you can rest assured about that," Gu Zhijing said to Liu Jian after swallowing a piece of meat. He was still just a child himself.
"Don't lump me in with you. I'm not in a hurry to get married and have children," Chen Shu gave Liu Jian a cool look.
"Alright, alright, I guess I'm the only one in a rush. Geez."
Liu Jian's reaction made everyone at the table laugh.
After finishing the meal and clearing the dishes, the group didn't rush to leave. Instead, they sat there chatting. The restaurant was on the top floor with a nice view, and unlike outside, it wasn't chilly in the room.
"Sister Jiasong, how does it feel to be pregnant?" Nian Suian, sitting next to Xu Jiasong, curiously asked while looking at her still-flat abdomen.
"I don't feel anything different, but maybe it's because it's still early. This child has been quite well-behaved so far," Xu Jiasong said, gently stroking her belly and smiling. She even took Nian Suian's hand to let her feel it too.
The doctor had said that many women might experience morning sickness after about a month of pregnancy, but she hadn't had any symptoms at all.
Nian Suian barely dared to apply any pressure, touching very gently.
The others also noticed their interaction. Liu Jian nudged Gu Junxing with his elbow, about to say something.
Seeing this, Gu Junxing stopped him with a look, signaling him not to speak.
He didn't need to guess what Liu Jian wanted to say. It was better to keep quiet.
Liu Jian had the words on the tip of his tongue, but after seeing Gu Junxing's look, he swallowed them back.
"Old Liu, we have to leave early tomorrow morning. Jiasong's mother is coming, and we need to pick her up. We'll come back when you officially open for business," Qin Wei said.
After getting the test results yesterday, he called his mother, and his wife called hers. Both elderly women said they wanted to come and take care of Jiasong. However, Qin Wei had heard from the doctor that pregnant women might experience mood swings, and at this stage of pregnancy, they might want to see their own mothers more. So the couple decided to have Jiasong's mother come. They had a housekeeper at home, so her coming was really more about keeping her daughter company than actual caretaking.
"That's no problem at all. The pregnant lady comes first now. You can come here anytime," Liu Jian said.
Pregnant women tend to be sleepy, and after sitting for a while, Xu Jiasong started to feel drowsy. Qin Wei quickly got up to take his wife back to rest.
"Guys, see you in the pool later," Liu Jian called out to them. The four of them hadn't had a chance to chat together in a long time, and today was a good opportunity.
Nian Suian always felt sleepy after eating, so she also planned to go back for a nap. Therefore, they all decided to disperse for now and change clothes before meeting up again.
"How are you planning to sleep tonight?" Nian Suian asked Gu Junxing on their way back to the rooms.
"Isn't Dad sleeping with me? By the way, I didn't see you when I woke up today, Dad. Where did you go?" Gu Zhijing, still unaware of his "heroic deed" last night, asked innocently.
"You have the nerve to ask?" Gu Junxing glanced at his son, his anger from a sleepless night rising again. "I think you shouldn't get married in the future. Otherwise, your wife might divorce you the next day."
What girl could endure his bizarre sleeping habits?
"What did I do?" Gu Zhijing still didn't understand why his father was suddenly so aggressive.
"What did you do? You almost kicked me to death last night..."
"...I'm sorry, I can't control myself when I'm asleep."
Regarding the question of how to sleep tonight, Gu Junxing answered Nian Suian, "It's fine. I'll ask Liu Jian to open another room for Zhijing. Let him stay there."
Although he didn't know what Liu Jian would imagine, it was better than not being able to sleep at all.
Even though this situation would have given Gu Junxing a perfect excuse to suggest that he sleep with Nian Suian, he didn't want to do that.
