Fate Trading System – Chapter 327

Plan A

Running with the Ball 31

A man’s ring, being meant for a man to wear, was naturally a bit too large for Bai Jianglan.

Bai Jianglan and Su Xin took the rings off and looked at their slender fingers, feeling a bit troubled.

“Customers, I think I know what type you’re looking for. Please follow me to this counter.”

The sales associate’s face still wore a smile. Although she was still somewhat baffled, not knowing what the situation was, her professional quality was solid. Besides, their store prided itself on providing absolutely top-notch service. This was a fairly large city, and while such couples were a small demographic, and those who came out to buy rings were even rarer, they weren’t non-existent. Therefore, there were rings designed specifically for them.

They could be a sisters’ style¹, or you could say a couple’s style.

Bai Jianglan and Su Xin exchanged a glance and began to choose.

The moonlight was hazy, and the light filtering through the clouds and mist seemed so tender and full of affection.

The moonlight fell upon the windowsill, then spilled into the room.

The lights in the room were off. Su Xin was playing on her phone under the covers, and Bai Jianglan was watching her.

The rings sat on the bedside table, sparkling with a dazzling, enchanting light.

“It’s too late, you should be sleeping.”

“But it’s only ten-thirty, and I haven’t finished my game yet.”

“You’re usually asleep by ten.”

“I’m just a bit more excited today, that’s all. Just let me play a little longer, please.”

“But this is bad for your sleep schedule. If your body doesn’t get enough rest, you’ll feel unwell.”

“Let me finish this round first.”

“Alright.”

President Bai very patiently waited for the pregnant little pampered wife in her arms as she played her game, her gaze very seriously fixed on the screen, watching her little pampered wife’s technique.

“Alright, very impressive. Now that this round is over, can you give me the phone?”

“I want to play one more.”

“A chaotic sleep schedule is bad for your health.”

Bai Jianglan said, in the manner of a domineering president that brooked no refusal.

“Then can I trade a kiss for one more round?”

“No.”

Bai Jianglan’s stance was firm and unwavering.

“What about two kisses?”

Bai Jianglan seemed to hesitate slightly, her resolve wavering.

“Three kisses. No more than that.”

The sticky-sweet giving of sugar², it simply couldn’t be any more cloying.

“Then I’ll allow you to play one more round, at most.”

“No problem.”

Su Xin went pak ji pak ji³ with three kisses, which could be said to be very swift and perfunctory.

Bai Jianglan gave her an accusatory look. How could it be like this? She had thought it would be three proper kisses.

“Be good.”

Su Xin grinned and continued to play her game. Life, well, is just this full of charm⁴. Teasing a little cutie is indeed the most interesting thing.

Facts proved that even a little cutie will erupt in the end if teased too much, and even an old driver⁵ will flip their car.

After Su Xin finished that round, her phone was snatched away, and she was forcefully given a mwah.

“You’re so bad.”

Su Xin said indistinctly, kissing Bai Jianglan on the cheek.

“I’m only bad like this for you.”

Su Xin’s due date was at the end of the year. Before that, during the Mid-Autumn Festival⁶, Bai Jianglan took Su Xin home to meet her parents.

Father Bai and Mother Bai accepted this fact with great composure.

In fact, they’d had a premonition ever since Bai Jianglan brought this person home for the first time.

Their daughter had a partner and a child on the way. Although the child wasn’t biologically hers and she was becoming a mother the easy way⁷, this was also good. After all, there was no downside. Pregnancy is so painful, and childbirth is such an ordeal; their daughter didn’t need to go through that suffering.

To be honest, they found it hard to believe that a man would ever appear in the life of someone as strong-willed as their daughter. Therefore, they had prepared themselves more than once for the possibility that their daughter would find a partner as gentle as water⁸.

When the end of the year arrived, Su Xin was admitted to the hospital. Bai Jianglan dumped all her work on her retired father and her brother, who managed other company affairs, and stayed by the hospital bed with righteous confidence.

My wife is about to give birth and you all still want me to work???

Not going!

“Xiaoxiao, don’t be nervous at all. Your body has been very well-conditioned; there won’t be any problems.”

“I’m not nervous.”

Su Xin was very calm. She just felt a strange sensation from her belly being stretched to its limit.

Still, it was quite magical to think that a new life was about to emerge from it.

With Lord Fourteen’s guarantee, she felt very much at ease. Fourteen had said that she wouldn’t feel much pain during labor, the child would be born smoothly, and no other problems would arise.

The words of Lord Fourteen were always so reliable.

“I think you’re the one who’s more nervous.”

“I guess I am a little.”

“Don’t be afraid. Nothing will happen. I’ll be out soon.”

President Bai’s expression was a bit dazed. Why is the pregnant woman comforting me instead?

The little dumpling’s⁹ formal name was Jiang An’an¹⁰, her nickname Xiao Bai.

An’an was Xiao Bai, and Bai Jianglan was Lao Bai.

Mother and daughter were safe and sound, the delivery was very smooth.

Bai Jianglan didn’t immediately follow Father Bai and Mother Bai to see the baby; instead, she went into the delivery room.

“I thought you would go see the baby.”

“You are the most important.”

Bai Jianglan placed a kiss on Su Xin’s sweat-damp forehead.

“I love her, simply because she was born from you.”

That was the only reason.

Xiao Bai was very well-behaved. She would let out a couple of cries when she was hungry, and a couple more when she needed to pee or poop. The rest of the time, she was perfectly quiet, either lying with her eyes open looking at toys, or sleeping.

Su Xin breathed a huge sigh of relief, because she really, really hated it when children cried.

One evening, Xiao Bai was sleeping quietly in the room.

Su Xin was still on the bed, face to face with Bai Jianglan.

Bai Jianglan licked the milk-scented Su Xin, catching a bit that had overflowed into her mouth.

“This feeling is really uncomfortable.”

Su Xin was helpless. Xiao Bai didn’t eat very much, so Lao Bai had to step in¹¹.

Only after everything was more or less settled did Su Xin lie down properly.

“I’m very happy.”

Bai Jianglan was very busy. She had taken back all her company responsibilities, but she still insisted on rushing home on time every evening.

“Are you tired? Get a good night’s sleep tonight. If there’s work you can’t finish, bring it home tomorrow. I’ll help you with it.”

“No, your body hasn’t recovered yet.”

“I’m not that delicate. I don’t want you to fall ill.”

“How could I? I couldn’t bear to.”

“Go to sleep.”

Bai Jianglan’s condition didn’t worsen; on the contrary, it got better and better.

Anyone could see at a glance that she was a very happy person now. Her secretary saw it and felt truly happy.

Bai Jianglan recalled that during her sentimental chuunibyou phase of youth, someone had told her that with her personality, she would be lonely until the end.

Bai Jianglan didn’t think so. She had never thought so.

Even though she had been on her own for so many years—eating one person’s meal, walking one person’s road, paying one person’s bill—she had always believed that somewhere in the world, there was a person who was moving in her direction.

If they didn’t meet, it would only mean their yuanfen¹² wasn’t strong enough this time.

But if they did meet, then that person could forget about ever running away.

Bai Jianglan gave Su Xin a goodnight kiss, then got up and went over to the crib. Looking at the adorable Jiang An’an, she gazed at her gently, feeling that in this moment, she was probably the happiest person in the world.

So happy, she almost felt her nose sour¹³.

This, perhaps, was what her love was meant to look like.

Not a step too early, nor a step too late¹⁴.

While nursing her baby, Su Xin didn’t forget to deal with certain people.

He Qin had found a new “tall, rich, and handsome” man. With her good looks, refined air, acting skills, and social savvy, she had no trouble finding suitors.

But how could Su Xin let her get her way and so easily embrace a new, happy life?

There was no such wonderful thing in the world. Did He Qin think she could ruin someone else’s life, abort a child, and then it would all be over and done with?

Su Xin didn’t do anything too excessive. She simply made two objective accounts of what He Qin had done—one for the man, and one for his parents.

It was unlikely any mother-in-law would want her son to marry a woman who had willingly been someone’s little three for several years.

The first time He Qin was rejected, she understood what was happening.

She called Su Xin and asked what it would take for Su Xin to let her go.

“One must always be honest, mustn’t one? You have to believe in true love. There will always be a man who won’t mind your past and will accept all of you. If he can’t even pass this small test, then he isn’t worthy of your love, is he?”

Su Xin’s words were incredibly sarcastic. A person must always pay the price for their mistakes; they can’t just be brushed aside with a casual apology.

Moreover, and more importantly, He Qin had never apologized to Su Xin. Su Xin didn’t need her apology, but Jiang Xiao deserved one.

From beginning to end, He Qin never felt that what she had done was wrong. With a person like that, there was nothing more to be said.

Later, however, He Qin actually found a man who was indifferent to the information Su Xin sent about her past and married her anyway.

Even Su Xin couldn’t help but marvel, wondering if it was true love or if his heart was just big¹⁵. But since things had come to this, Su Xin wouldn’t pursue the matter any further.

Feng Linhan was not doing well. He was barely getting by, living in a wretched state, and was very despondent.

No one could now recognize him as the high-spirited teacher he once was; he was just a vagrant sitting in the park.

He was an alcoholic, and had even been in the slammer¹⁶. Later, he somehow had a sudden awakening and went to a remote mountainous region to volunteer as a teacher, dedicating the rest of his life to the children of the mountains.

He Qin’s married life didn’t turn out well. Her status in the family wasn’t high, and whenever they argued, her husband would use her past to mock her.

What made her despair even more was that she, who had once been a little three thinking about how to bring down the original wife, had now become the original wife that others were trying to overthrow, and could only exhaust her mind and energy.

But none of that had anything to do with Su Xin anymore. She had her own life to focus on.

When Jiang An’an’s elementary school let out, Su Xin stood at the gate, waiting for the children to come out in their lines.

Jiang An’an stood out from the crowd. Her hair was in a neat braid and her clothes were spotless. Seeing Su Xin at the gate, she ran over excitedly and threw herself into Su Xin’s arms.

“Mama!”

“Were you a good girl today?”

“I was! Where’s Papa?”

“She went to buy you ice cream.”

Bai Jianglan, holding two ice cream cones, turned around and saw Su Xin holding their child’s hand.

The sunlight was just right.

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