When they returned to the villa at night, Father Gu dropped his earlier geniality and summoned Mingting to the study.
"What exactly is going on between you and Shi Yunyun? On such an important day, she actually calls you and says something so easily misconstrued. Is she deliberately trying to cause misunderstandings?!"
"No matter what drama she and Xiao Yu have, that's their business. Even if you are their friends, you should pay attention to the boundaries and don't overstep in how you conduct yourself."
Faced with Father Gu's reprimand, Mingting obediently admitted his mistake and promised to distance himself from Shi Yunyun and Xiao Yu in the future.
Seeing his son's repentant attitude, Father Gu's prepared lecture became entirely unnecessary.
After a pause, he patted Mingting's shoulder and said, "Tinglan is a good girl. Don't do anything you'll regret!"
Father Gu also said this to the original owner in the original timeline, but blinded by obsession, the original owner insisted on marrying Shi Yunyun, and ended up losing Mingyue Group, the Gu Family's three-generation legacy, and also implicated his parents and eldest brother.
Mingting wasn't the original owner who was blinded by obsession. Knowing that Father Gu was saying this for his own good, he promptly assured him, "I'll listen to you. I misjudged people before, but it won't happen again."
After confirming that Mingting's eyes were clear and he was not deceiving him, Father Gu breathed a sigh of relief.
After discussing serious matters, Mingting rubbed his thumb and forefinger together in front of his father, "Dad, I'm a man with a wife to support now, so how about some financial backing?"
Although Father Gu valued his eldest son and had decided to let Gu Mingxuan inherit the Gu Family's business, he still doted on his younger son.
Since the company was given to the eldest, it would be unfair to neglect the youngest materially. Parents shouldn't favor one child over the other.
Without hesitation, Father Gu handed Mingting the card he had prepared long ago.
"Thank you, Dad! Long live Dad!"
After buttering up his father, Mingting went to find Gu Mingxuan.
"Big brother, I'm planning something big recently and I'm a bit short on funds. Can you lend me some? I'll pay you back later…"
"How much?"
Gu Mingxuan had always been close to his little brother and naturally wouldn't refuse such request.
But when Mingting said a number, Gu Mingxuan's brows furrowed slightly. Hundreds of millions wasn't a small sum, so he asked cautiously, "What big thing are you going to do?"
It wasn't that Gu Mingxuan was stingy. But based on his understanding of his younger brother, Mingting wasn't particularly skilled in financial matters.
If he suddenly needed such a large sum, Gu Mingxuan was worried that he might be getting scammed.
"Big brother, don't worry, I'm not doing anything shady. I'll explain once it's done. I promise you won't lose money."
Since Mingting put it that way, Gu Mingxuan didn't press further and agreed on the spot.
After thanking his brother, Mingting brought up his sister-in-law, Lu Xiaoqing.
"I noticed that Sister-in-law hasn't been looking too good lately, and at dinner today, she barely had an appetite. She just nibbled on some plum-glazed ribs. Is she feeling unwell?"
"They say pregnant women crave sour stuff… Could Sister-in-law be pregnant?"
Before Mingting could finish, Gu Mingxuan was already rushing upstairs.
The whole family was soon in an uproar.
Gu Mingxuan immediately called their private doctor, while Mother Gu held Lu Xiaoqing's hand, fussing over her and asking if she felt any discomfort.
Even Father Gu kept checking the time from the sofa and urged Gu Mingxuan to go fetch Dr. Zhao.
"Mom, Dad, I'm fine. There's no need to trouble Dr. Zhao."
Lu Xiaoqing's face flushed with embarrassment.
"I've just been under a lot of work stress lately and lost my appetite. I'll be fine after a couple days of rest."
Lu Xiaoqing came from an academic family, and her parents were university professors. She herself had stayed on the university as a lecturer after earning her Ph.D.
She and Gu Mingxuan had been high school sweethearts. They started dating in college, and married five years ago. They had a strong relationship but had yet to have children.
During their premarital checkup, Lu Xiaoqing was told she might have difficulty conceiving.
Father and Mother Gu, and Gu Mingxuan never made a fuss about this. They just said that children were a matter of fate and that she shouldn't stress over it.
In the original timeline, Lu Xiaoqing was pregnant at this time.
She hadn't realized it herself, and with Gu Mingting abandoning his fiancée at the engagement and then clamoring to marry Shi Yunyun, Father and Mother Gu, and Gu Mingxuan had been too busy compensating the Shen Family and cleaning up the mess caused by Gu Mingting to notice Lu Xiaoqing's condition.
As a result, Lu Xiaoqing took a bad fall while away on a study trip and nearly miscarried.
She later spent three months on bed rest to stabilize the pregnancy and gave birth to a boy prematurely. The son was born frail and required expensive medical care every year.
After the Gu Family went bankrupt, Gu Mingxuan worked himself to the bone to pay for his son's treatments, and his hair turned gray before he even hit forty.
But now, with Mingting here, his little nephew would be born safe and healthy.
"Sister-in-law, if you're not feeling well, you should've told my brother."
"It's my fault too. I'm so useless normally, and even my engagement needed Big brother to handle everything. No wonder he's been too busy to notice. Let me apologize first!"
"But I'm sure you're pregnant."
Mingting sat beside Mother Gu.
"Last night, I had a dream. I dreamed that a little golden bird flew into our garden. I played with it for a while before it flew into Big brother and Sister-in-law's room."
"Mom, do you think my dream is what the older generation often talks about, a pregnancy dream?"
After Mingting said this, Mother Gu became even more convinced her daughter-in-law was pregnant.
Even people like Gu Mingxuan, who is a staunch believer in science, secretly hoped his brother's dream would come true.
Though Lu Xiaoqing had never shown it over the years, as her husband, Gu Mingxuan knew how much pressure she felt.
Even if Father and Mother Gu had never pressured her, Lu Xiaoqing is still the eldest daughter-in-law of the Gu Family.
Years without a child had inevitably led to gossip from busybodies, and some of the nastier comments had reached her ears.
'If Xiaoting's dream turns out to be true… that would be amazing!'
Gu Mingxuan held Lu Xiaoqing's hand. This man, who never faltered in the face of crises, was experiencing nervousness for the first time.
By the time Dr. Zhao arrived, it was almost nine. After examining Lu Xiaoqing, he confirmed she was two months pregnant.
"Good, good, good."
Mother Gu was overjoyed and immediately asked for advice on prenatal care.
Gu Mingxuan, who is overwhelmed with emotion, kissed Lu Xiaoqing's face fiercely.
After sending Dr. Zhao away, even Father Gu, who had always been as steady as a mountain, urged Lu Xiaoqing to rest well and told Gu Mingxuan to take better care of his wife.
In the end, Father Gu also praised Mingting, saying that it was thanks to his attentiveness and even complimenting his 'accurate' dream.
Mother Gu also said that today was a double happiness, since their eldest daughter-in-law was pregnant, and the youngest son had settled his lifelong event.
She added that Shen Tinglan must be a lucky star, bringing such joy to the family right after their engagement.
Lu Xiaoqing touched her belly, overwhelmed with emotion.
This was the child she had longed for!
If not for her brother-in-law's reminder, she wouldn't have noticed the signs. If anything had gone wrong, the regret would have been unbearable.
Lu Xiaoqing was deeply grateful to Mingting, and Gu Mingxuan felt the same. He even decided to double the funds he'd promised his brother.
…
Meanwhile, in stark contrast to the Gu Family's joy, Shi Yunyun's pregnancy brought no such happiness.