Opening the door, it was indeed Cheng Zhirang standing outside the ward.

He removed his mask and hat, eyed her for a moment, and then politely asked, "May I come in?"

Mu Qiu reached out to pull him inside and introduced him to Su Jin.

"Sister Su Jin, this is my boyfriend Cheng Zhirang. Brother Cheng, this is Brother Lin’s ex-girlfriend."

Brother Lin’s ex-girlfriend, Su Jin: "...Hello, Mr. Cheng."

Cheng Zhirang nodded in acknowledgment, as if they had greeted each other with a handshake.

"Hello, I am Cheng Zhirang."

After a brief greeting, he asked Mu Qiu:

"Is it just the two of you in the ward?"

Mu Qiu: "Or is there supposed to be a third person here?"

"It’s really late now, just two girls here isn’t very safe," he said with a frown.

"Oh, you mean that," Su Jin glanced at Mu Qiu and answered with a slight smile, "Zhou Jilin was just here, and now he’s gone to handle the discharge procedures."

Having heard Mu Qiu mention Brother Lin earlier, it seemed that Cheng Zhirang knew Zhou Jilin.

Only then did Cheng Zhirang relax his expression and nod.

Under the lights, his face was almost glowing, with sharply defined, smooth features, particularly those eyes, which were stunning.

"I’m really sorry for making Qiuqiu come over so late, causing you to get photographed by the paparazzi. I didn’t think it through."

"Nobody can think of everything. You’re friends, so her coming to help is normal. You don’t need to worry about those paparazzi, I’ll address it on my end."

He spoke with politeness and sincerity, his voice pleasant to the ears, winning people’s favor instantly.

Moreover, he held Mu Qiu’s hand with his left hand, nearly covering her fingers, softly caressing the back of her hand with his thumb as they talked.

These intimate little gestures suggested they were in the throes of a passionate romance.

Su Jin got lost in thought for a moment, reminiscing about herself and Zhou Jilin. In a couple of seconds, she snapped back and said, "That’s good. Since you’re here, take Mu Qiu home, I’m okay here."

"It’s already so late, wait until Brother Lin takes you away first."

This ’getting back together’ story had to make some progress under her watch.

Cheng Zhirang respected her opinion and nodded, saying, "Let’s go together, it might be on the way."

Just as he finished speaking, Zhou Jilin opened the door and entered.

Seeing Cheng Zhirang didn’t surprise him, he nodded as a greeting and walked directly to Su Jin.

He placed the discharge papers and a maternity handbook from who-knows-where into Su Jin’s arms, then picked her up before she could react.

"Let’s go."

Mu Qiu clicked her tongue and leaned against Cheng Zhirang.

Cheng Zhirang held her tightly, lowered his head, and softly asked, "What’s wrong?"

Mu Qiu shook her head, gestured for him to put on his mask and hat, as they walked behind Zhou Jilin, attracting the stare of the on-duty nurse.

Only at this moment did Mu Qiu remember to ask him, "Has it spread wildly online already?"

"It’s not that bad. But it’s human nature, and it’s not a scandal, so it won’t have much impact."

"Did you start driving when you saw the news online?"

"Yes, those reports were obscure, I didn’t know your situation, but coming over first wouldn’t hurt."

Actually, when he saw the photos and videos circulating online, his first thought was about pregnancy.

The main thing was, in those candid photos and videos, the gynecological hospital’s illuminated sign was too conspicuous, and she lowered her head walking in, it’s unclear whether she was unwell.

But then he recalled she was still on her period and couldn’t be pregnant, besides they had always taken precautions.

So it could be an issue with her health, or she was visiting someone else.

Either way, rushing to a hospital at midnight wasn’t good.

He immediately drove over, and after calling her, informed Chen Song not to come, as drawing too much attention would excite the paparazzi.

Luckily, it wasn’t her problem.

He tightened his hold on her hand, softly asking, "Shall we go to Yishan tonight? It’s too late, and it’s nearby."

Mu Qiu considered for a moment, nodded, leaned in closer to feel his warmth before saying:

"Alright."

Descending from the third floor to the lobby, Zhou Jilin called over a secretary to drive, placing Su Jin in the car despite her forming words, supporting the car door, turned back to speak to Mu Qiu.

"Go back early, and thank you again today."

"No worries, Brother Lin, don’t worry, I’ll call my parents tomorrow and tell them you two are back together."

Zhou Jilin: "..." Such cooperation made him a bit uncomfortable.

However—

"You should call your parents more often, communicate more."

Mu Qiu wore an "I know it all" expression, gesturing with an OK sign.

"Hurry up, drive safely. Brother Lin, speak gently, pregnant women are emotionally volatile, and cry easily."

Zhou Jilin: "You’ve experienced little but know a lot. I’m off. Please ensure she gets home safely."

That last part was directed at Cheng Zhirang.

Cheng Zhirang reached to help close the car door, "It’s my responsibility."

Watching him sit in the car, Cheng Zhirang swung his hand to firmly shut the door, observing their car merge into traffic.

"Let’s go," as the car left, Mu Qiu pulled Cheng Zhirang towards their car.

"Wear your hat, I’ve a feeling the paparazzi are all around."

The flashing lights might turn night into day.

Cheng Zhirang drew her back, embraced her, resting his head at her neck, the brim of his black baseball cap touching her cheek.

Mu Qiu blinked her eyes wide, a bit puzzled.

"Brother Cheng? What’s up?"

"Move in with me."

Mu Qiu hesitated for a moment.

A moment later, she cautiously patted his back. "We’ll talk about it when we get home."

Cheng Zhirang held her for a while longer, then adjusted his cap, and led her to the car.

...

At midnight, Zhao Yu was still busy voting for Su Yan. She casually clicked on the trending topics, refreshed the page, and skimmed through the top.

#Mu Qiu Pregnant#

Zhao Yu jolted up: "?!

She immediately sat up, clicking into the trending topic to read a few posts more closely.

The exposed photos of Mu Qiu barely showed a blurry side profile, she was bowing her head making her chin unrecognizable, the "First Gynecological Hospital" sign couldn’t be more striking.

There was also a short video of Mu Qiu getting out of a taxi, hurrying into the hospital, looking urgent, and no one was around her.

Late night, all alone, gynecological hospital, it all fit.

Zhao Yu’s vision darkened, and she sighed deeply.

"I’m practically a prophet!" 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

She immediately dialed Mu Qiu, putting it on speaker while refreshing the news.

After three rings, Mu Qiu answered while still in the car.

Seeing Zhao Yu on the caller ID, she knew, the rumors about her likely pregnancy were now widespread online.

As soon as the call connected, as expected, Zhao Yu’s first question was,

"Mu Qiu, are you pregnant?!"

The voice was so loud even Cheng Zhirang beside her heard it and glanced over.

Mu Qiu coughed once, replying earnestly, "I’m not."

"That’s a relief! If you got pregnant after a month of dating, your dad would kill you! No, what I mean is, if you’re not pregnant, why were you at the gynecological hospital alone late at night? Where is Cheng Zhirang?"