Names mentioned in this chapter :

-蘇芮 (sù ruì) – Su Rui, our female protagonist

-芮芮 (ruì ruì)- Rui Rui, a nickname of the female protagonist

-顧煜城 (gù yù chéng)- Gu Yu Cheng, the male lead

-蘇爸爸(sù bà ba)- Father Su

-劉玥(liú yuè)- Liu Yue, the female protagonist’s mother, which is also known as Mrs Su

-蘇媽媽(sù mā mā)- Mother Su, Liu Yue

-顧媽媽(gùmā mā)- Mother Gu, Yu Jing.

-顧爸爸(gù bà ba)- Father Gu, Gu Guo Hua.

Would it be a cute daughter or a mischievous son? This was probably a question every new parent would think about when they were expecting their first child.

Su Rui looked at Gu Yu Cheng and couldn’t help but ask with some curiosity, “Then, Daddy, do you want our baby to be a boy or a girl?”

Actually, if it was Su Rui, she would prefer a soft, fair and tender little princess.

But, in the eyes of the elders of both families, they would probably prefer Su Rui’s first child to be a boy, right?

Although men and women are now equal, realistically, many things and responsibilities were still placed more on a boy’s shoulder.

This includes such responsibilities as inheriting the family business and passing on the family name.

This is the reality and Su Rui is unable to change it.

All she could do was to remain calm and wait for the arrival of her baby.

Regardless of whether it was a boy or a girl, she would love them all the same.The corner of Gu Yu Cheng—who was beside Su Rui—’s mouth slightly curled at her question.

Gu Yu Cheng said with a smile, “Both are good.”

Even though he said this, being suddenly asked this question, Gu Yu Cheng’s mind unconsciously started imagining what kind of little angel he and Su Rui would be welcoming in a month or so.

At first, Gu Yu Cheng had not really considered this issue. In his eyes, the gender of the child didn’t really matter that much. He would love it as long as it was their child.Moreover, Gu Yu Cheng was thinking that they could have another child if conditions allowed them to after Su Rui graduated, when the child was a little older and Su Rui’s work and career was stabilized.

In some ways, a boy can indeed bear more responsibilities.

As for a girl…

Actually, Gu Yu Cheng is secretly hoping it is a daughter; a girl who looks like Su Rui.

The only thing is that Gu Yu Cheng did not inform Su Rui about this expectation.

Having read many maternity books, Gu Yu Cheng knew that many mothers would feel stressed regarding the gender of their child.

He didn’t want Su Rui to have that pressure too.

He walked towards the bedside, turned off the light and covered Su Rui with a blanket.

Gu Yu Cheng pulled her into his arms and kissed Su Rui’s forehead. He said gently, “If it’s a boy, I’ll be a strict and qualified father.”

“I will teach him what I know and teach him how to be a man, so that he knows what responsibility is and for him to become an exceptional boy.”

Su Rui lay in Gu Yu Cheng’s arms and raised her head slightly to kiss the stubble on Gu Yu Cheng’s chin. She couldn’t help but asked curiously, “And what if it’s a girl?”

“If it is a girl…” As Gu Yu Cheng said this, a trace of joy surfaced under Gu Yu Cheng’s eyes. In a serious manner, he continued, “If it’s a girl, I’ll spoil her to death.”

Hearing Gu Yu Cheng’s words, Su Rui couldn’t help but laugh, “Pfft…”

“Then it is better if it is a boy,” Su Rui said.

Su Rui quietly muttered in her heart.

Looking at Su Rui’s pair of scintillating eyes, which contained a trace of banter and thoughtfulness, Gu Yu Cheng could not help but chuckle.

“Either is fine.” As he said that, he adjusted the sleeping position of the woman in his arms. He gently said, “Now, it’s time for you to sleep.”

……

……

Su Rui’s due date was the 10th of October, but due dates are not usually very accurate.

Hence, ten days before her due date, Su Rui was admitted to the pre-booked ward under the nervous gazes of her four elders: Mother Su, Father Su, Mother Gu and, to a lesser degree, Father Gu[1].

In a rare instance, Su Rui and Gu Yu Cheng had some disagreements on a particular issue.

The doctor looked at Su Rui, and then looked at Gu Yu Cheng, who appeared solemn, attentive and a little tense, and said with a smile, “During a natural childbirth, your husband can accompany you in the delivery room.”

“Okay.”

“No.”

Su Rui and Gu Yu Cheng both said almost simultaneously.

Upon hearing these words, Su Rui turned her head to look at the affirmative glint in Gu Yu Cheng’s eyes and slightly froze.

Su Rui vaguely guessed in her heart that the two of them would have different answers to this question.

In fact, she was quite moved by Gu Yu Cheng’s request to accompany her during childbirth, and almost wanted to nod and agree with this man.

However, Su Rui also had other considerations in mind.“Doctor, let’s discuss this issue next time.” Su Rui said to the doctor with a smile as she held Gu Yu Cheng’s hands.

“No problem.” The doctor nodded her head.

Allowing the husband to accompany during childbirth was a more humane option recently introduced by some maternity hospitals.

It was just that it was entirely up to the wishes of the mother and her family members whether or not to accompany her during the delivery.

There were quite a few disagreements when it came to this issue.

Most of the cases she has seen, however, are those where the wife agrees for their husband to accompany them during labour, while the husband is a little hesitant.

There were not many like these two.

“Once you two have decided and the husband would like to accompany the mother during childbirth, you can tell us in advance so that we can make arrangements.” After a pause, the doctor added, “There are also some precautions to take when entering the delivery room, which the father should be aware of.”

“I’m aware of them.”

Once Gu Yu Cheng said this, Su Rui and the doctor both froze for a moment.

Then, they heard Gu Yu Cheng’s concise explanation of what he knew about what a husband needed to do once he entered the delivery room to accompany his wife during labour, his state of mind, and the precautions to take.

His decision to accompany Su Rui during her childbirth was not decided on the spur of moment after hearing the doctor’s words today.

Since a long time ago, Gu Yu Cheng had already made up his mind to accompany Su Rui during her childbirth after learning that he could do so.

And he recently learned all of these on the internet.

“Is there anything wrong or any places I need to improve on from what I have just said?” Gu Yu Cheng asked.

The doctor came back to her senses and said, “No.” Then, she couldn’t help but lament, “Mr Gu has done his research very well.”

……

[1] Compared to Mother Su, Father Su and Mother Gu, Father Gu isn’t that nervous about Su Rui’s childbirth.