Chapter 20: Chapter Eighteen

Bai Bai Ziling had never been so tired nor so excited; she, Xia Zhen, and Sima Sima Xingchen stayed with Chang Chang Weiwei through her labor, and when Chang Chang Weiwei was in unbearable pain, they told jokes and made her laugh, fearing she might strangle Han Ze to death, because Chang Chang Weiwei had cursed countless times with three-character phrases even refined ladies would not utter.

And after the four of them endured more than ten hours together, the little princess was finally born, a beautiful baby weighing three thousand five hundred grams; not only did Han Ze and Chang Chang Weiwei weep with joy, but she, Xia Zhen, and Sima Sima Xingchen cried as well.

But now, as Bai Bai Ziling watched Jiang Jie pick up the phone and prepare to dial, her heart suddenly sank; had he not slept?! His ferocious look, as if he had just seen the murderer of his father, terrified her greatly.

Should she have called back?

But thinking about it now—seemed too late.

Jiang Jie set down the phone and walked toward her step by step, his pace slow and heavy, as if he were considering how to deal with her.

"Jiang Jie, I..."

"It is dawn." A suffocatingly cold tone rang out.

"I am at the hospital!" she said immediately; she did not want to die unclearly, for Jiang Jie wore an expression as if he were about to slaughter her.

"The hospital?!" He studied her carefully, from head to toe, from top to bottom.

"Chang Weiwei gave birth!"

"It was not you who gave birth."

"I was at the hospital accompanying her through labor!" Bai Bai Ziling dared not talk back; she feared Jiang Jie would tear her apart, so now it was best to speak quickly. "The first birth... usually takes longer; Sima Sima Xingchen, Xia Zhen, and I were all there; we saw the little baby with our own eyes..."

"Bai Bai Ziling, tell me..." Jiang Jie seemed to intend to let her die with peace of mind. "Did Xia Zhen call home to give notice?"

"Yes."

"What about Sima Sima Xingchen?"

"Yes, her husband even came to take her back; I rode in their car..." Bai Bai Ziling wanted to make everything clear.

"Then did you call?" Jiang Jie asked coldly.

"I..."

"Did you ever think I would worry?" He finally exploded, shouting at her. "Many possibilities exist: you might have been kidnapped, killed, or involved in a car accident, suffered heavily, or worse, you might be lying somewhere unknown, waiting for rescue!"

"I thought you did not care." she said softly.

"You—" He froze.

"I thought you would not even notice I was gone."

"I..." He still stared at her.

"If I had known you would worry, then I would have called back." Bai Bai Ziling spoke like a timid wife; now she dared not act rashly.

"I am your husband; I have the responsibility..."

"It is all fake." she said lightly.

Jiang Jie, who had originally wanted to beat her severely, now seemed to have lost both his excuse and his standing; she was accompanying her good friend to give birth; she thought he did not care, so she did not invite trouble; could he blame her? Did he have the right to accuse her?

"I am very tired; may I go take a bath and sleep?" Bai Bai Ziling asked with a pitiful air: "I am very sorry for making you worry."

"Five hundred million... I have already received it." Jiang Jie said suddenly.

"Then..." Her heart trembled. "Do you want to end our marriage early? I do not mind; if you do not wish to pay the final installment of one million five hundred thousand, I do not mind either."

"I will pay!" he said coldly.

"Otherwise, just give me five hundred thousand."

"Bai Bai Ziling, I do not intend to end our marriage early." Jiang Jie said angrily: "Three months is three months; I do not want my uncle to suspect anything!"

"Three months... marriage, pregnancy, miscarriage, divorce." Bai Bai Ziling, though exhausted, remained very clear-minded. "Jiang Jie, anyone with normal intelligence would suspect; do not treat everyone as Bai Chi; you are not the only smart person."

Jiang Jie said nothing.

"My mother's health is not good; I also want to return home to accompany her sooner; so if your money has already arrived, then..."

"You may go back to see your mother, but... our agreement stands." Jiang Jie remained stubborn in expression.

"Is this really necessary?" she doubted.

"I am happy!" he said coldly.

"Building your happiness on others' suffering..." Bai Bai Ziling smiled faintly. "Will you truly be happy?"

Carrying a bottle of fine wine, Jiang Jie appeared at Di Di Zhiwei's door without prior notice; facing his cousin who opened the door, Jiang Jie waved the bottle in his hand, his expression somewhat apologetic.

"Are there beauties inside? Did I disturb you?" Jiang Jie said while standing at the doorway.

"Inside there is only a lonely man." Di Di Zhiwei replied humorously: "He is standing right in front of you now."

"Lonely? You?" Jiang Jie scoffed.

"Cousin, anyone can be lonely."

"But you are not an ordinary man; you are a playboy, a master of life." Jiang Jie walked in, his mood not good.

Di Di Zhiwei could obviously see that his cousin had lost his usual calm; Jiang Jie was now not only agitated and at a loss, but also prone to unprovoked anger.

"Di Zhiwei, drink two cups with me!" Jiang Jie said domineeringly.

"Drinking harms the liver."

"Not drinking harms the heart."

"Cousin, do you feel heartache now?"

Jiang Jie certainly would not admit it; he walked over to the glass cabinet where Di Di Zhiwei kept his wine glasses, took two glasses, placed the wine bottle on the table, twisted off the cap, poured two glasses nearly full, handed one to his cousin, and held the other himself.

"Bottoms up!" Jiang Jie said generously, then downed the wine in one gulp, displaying a spirit that refused to stop until finished.

Di Di Zhiwei did not do the same; he set his glass down; he, who never drank "gloomy wine," now had no intention of making an exception.

"Di Zhiwei, if you do not drink, you are a puppy." Jiang Jie deliberately provoked his cousin.

"Cousin, has the situation become so bad?" Di Di Zhiwei smiled triumphantly. "Did I really give you such a great threat?"

"Di Di Zhiwei, I am not worried about you." Jiang Jie suddenly smiled.

"Then..."

"I am worried about myself!"

"Yourself?!"

"I have already received the five hundred million yuan my uncle transferred." Jiang Jie considered this the main point. By all rights, he could get rid of Bai Bai Ziling now. Even if it was not yet three months, he had obtained what he wanted, so keeping her held no meaning. But... yet he found himself wavering, unable to make up his mind.

"Then Bai Bai Ziling can be free?" Di Di Zhiwei said with a smile.

"Di Zhiwei, are you serious, or just messing with me?" Jiang Jie was extremely displeased. "You really have your eyes on Bai Bai Ziling? I admit she is beautiful and has character, but..."

"Not just beautiful and with character." Di Di Zhiwei grinned.

"How much chance do you think you have of success?" Jiang Jie poured himself another glass of wine but did not drink it immediately. Holding the glass, he paced back and forth in the living room, as if unable to settle his mind. "Di Zhiwei, Bai Bai Ziling is not that easy to handle."

"Cousin, is this your 'word of experience'?" Di Di Zhiwei mocked.

"She is still my wife!" Jiang Jie emphasized.

"Not for long. You don't need her anymore, do you?" Di Di Zhiwei sat very leisurely, propping his feet up on a chair. "Cousin, when it is time to set her free, you must set her free."

Jiang Jie downed another glass of wine in one gulp, then glared at him. "What if I simply refuse to set her free?"

"You have an agreement with her—"

"Agreements can change. As long as I do not sign the divorce papers, she is my wife." Jiang Jie said somewhat tyrannically.

"Cousin... have you fallen in love with Bai Bai Ziling?" Di Di Zhiwei asked tentatively.

"I do not believe in love at all." Jiang Jie snorted.

"Then what is this?!"

"It pleases me."

"After all, you are not a god, not the Almighty, Cousin. You must also consider others' feelings." Di Di Zhiwei's gaze grew somewhat stern as well. "If you have not fallen in love with her, then return her freedom. Let those who wish to love her love her. After all, she owes you nothing."