After the two of them finished eating, Ye Jing glanced at Fu Zhiyé, remembering that her son-in-law hadn’t slept a wink since being at the hospital.
“Xiao Fu, you should get some sleep tonight. I’ll stay here with Cecilia.”
Fu Zhiyé wiped Cecilia’s mouth with a napkin. “It’s fine, Mom. You should go home, I’ll stay.”
“Zhiyé, have you not slept at all? Go get some rest.”
Cecilia reached out and touched the stubble that had grown on his face. “Mom can accompany me, really, it’s fine.”
On this matter, President Foster was immovable.
“San has already brought my clothes over. I’ll take a shower in a bit—it’s all set. I need to stay here: you and the baby are here, what would I go home for?”
Unable to persuade him, Cecilia could only agree with a grin, “Alright, then, Mom can go back. I’ll make sure Zhiyé gets some sleep.”
Watching the young couple being so sweet, Ye Jing really had no choice.
“Is the room next door available? I’ll stay there and take the baby with me. Babies wake up so many times at night—they’ll disturb your rest.”
The little glutinous rice ball (nian’gao) was already asleep in Ye Jing’s arms, blowing bubbles. Anyway, Song Ying had said they could go home after three or four days in the hospital, and with Ye Jing and Xu Yan around, things were a lot less hectic.
After rocking the baby for a while, Ye Jing and Xu Yan took the child to the empty room next door.
San lingered at the door for a peek at the boss’s baby. Whoa—CEO and Madam’s kid really was adorable. Wrinkly, maybe, but still cute.
After a shower, Fu Zhiyé finally looked presentable again, returning to his usual cold and strikingly handsome demeanor.
Cecilia looked on enviously—she wanted a shower, too.
“Zhiyé, can I take a shower?”
Yesterday had been exhausting; she’d sweat buckets. Even though she’d been carefully wiped down and changed into clean clothes, Cecilia couldn’t feel comfortable until she’d had a proper wash.
Fu Zhiyé, towel in hand and droplets still in his hair, stood by the bed unmoved. “Not yet, sweetheart. If you shower now, you could catch a chill.”
“But everyone says you can shower after giving birth.”
“Really? Who says so?”
“The internet!” If she had to go a whole month without bathing, she’d feel absolutely filthy.
Fu Zhiyé sat down, pulling one knee up loosely by the bedside. “Let me wipe you down instead. What if a shower isn’t good for your health right now?”
He looked so earnest that Cecilia had to give in. “Alright, but you’re not allowed to complain if I smell.”
Fu Zhiyé leaned in and sniffed her, his lips brushing her snowy-white neck. He had wiped her down himself last night—she still smelled sweet, with a faint milky scent, fresh and pleasant.
“Not smelly at all. You smell wonderful—sweet.”
Such a simple sentence, but coming from him, it was enough to make her blush.
“I’m going to dry my hair. After that, I’ll help you get up for a walk; Song Ying says it helps your recovery.”
Cecilia nodded obediently, then watched, unblinking, as Fu Zhiyé dried his hair.
He was wearing deep blue striped pajamas, his black hair making his skin look even paler. When he bent to dry the back of his head, his back curved in a graceful arc.
Noticing Cecilia’s gaze, he glanced over and gave a faint smile.
Mmm, her husband really was handsome…
After being bedridden for two days, she finally got up. Leaning on his arm, she stood; her legs still felt weak, but the strong arms at her waist held her steady.
“Take it slow, no rush.”
“Okay.” Cecilia nodded. She still felt a little uncomfortable as she walked, but with Fu Zhiyé’s attentive help, it wasn’t so hard to bear.
After a few minutes, she was tired. Her stamina still hadn’t returned after yesterday.
“That’s enough for now. Have a rest. Tomorrow, we’ll try again.”
With a tender heart, Fu Zhiyé helped her back to bed, warmed a towel with hot water, and carefully wiped her down.
The VIP ward’s bed was large, with a smaller bed beside it. Cecilia thought back: when Fu Zhiyé had been hurt, she’d been the one on the small bed. Now, the roles were reversed.
Finally exhausted, Fu Zhiyé prepared to rest. Two days without sleep would wear out even the toughest of men.
After tucking Cecilia in, he was about to head to the small bed, but she caught his sleeve.
“Honey, will you hold me while I sleep?”
Eyes wide and pleading, Cecilia just wanted to be held. That little bed looked so uncomfortable—it made her heart ache for him.
The word ‘honey’ went straight to Fu Zhiyé’s heart. A smile bloomed immediately.
“Of course, my pampered little darling.”
The bed was big enough, and Fu Zhiyé couldn’t refuse the chance to hold his wife. He climbed in right away.
For so long, her baby bump had been in the way, and he hadn’t been able to hold Cecilia properly. Now, he finally got his wish, pulling her gently into his arms.
Once he had her close, he flicked out a long arm and turned off the light. Only a bit of glow slipped in from the window. Finally, all the stress of the past two days eased away.
“Rest now, sweetheart.”
His voice grew drowsy, but Cecilia, who had slept all day, wasn’t sleepy at all.
Nestled in his arms, she gently stroked his ear, then his chin, and couldn’t help but ask again—
“Do I smell?”
“Nope.”
He caught her little hand, kissed her fingers.
“Just sleep, honey. You’re done in. I won’t bother you anymore.”
Cecilia withdrew her hand and behaved herself.
…
“Oh? I can show you very soon how ‘done in’ I am.”
Even half-asleep, Fu Zhiyé couldn’t let her tease go unchallenged.
…
Cecilia zipped her lips, skipped the comeback, and soon drifted off to sleep.
They stayed in the hospital for two days; with Mom and Xu Yan caring for the baby, all Cecilia had to do was feed the child and do her postpartum recovery. It wasn’t nearly as hard as she’d imagined.
Grandma Rivers even brought delicious food every day, and Cecilia felt she might’ve even gained a little weight.
——
The weather was lovely—a warm, golden sun outside the hospital’s bus stop. An Ke hopped off the bus.
“Yaya, hurry up!” She waved to Zhou Ya behind her. “Pretty sure this is the 12th floor.”
Zhou Ya got off, too. They’d come straight from campus, not even asking their family’s driver for a ride.
“But… is it okay that we didn’t tell Teacher Xiao Ye first?” Zhou Ya was less boisterous than An Ke and a little hesitant.
They had seen President Foster’s post on Weibo and realized Teacher Xiao Ye had given birth, so they planned a visit. And with winter break approaching, who knew when the art studio would open again? They really wanted to study painting with her.
An Ke would sometimes message Cecilia and had managed to coax out which hospital she was in.
Each of them carried a big bag. “Will Teacher Xiao Ye really like these?”
Inside the bags: baby clothes—tiny vampire cloaks, fluffy rabbit jackets… very cutesy.
“Come on, hurry! I want to see just how gorgeous the baby is!”
Zhou Ya patted her own bag—luckily, she’d gotten a cute painting from her brother yesterday. At least that made one normal present.