023 Now My Husband Is Out of Your League (Please Keep Reading)

At the library of Yenching University, Cheng Xuemin had secured a good spot.

Earlier, when he parted ways with Feng Jiayou, they had agreed to meet at the library at noon before heading to lunch together.

Taking advantage of this time, Cheng Xuemin finished writing “The Horseman,” which he hadn’t completed the previous night, and then took the opportunity to polish it further.

In the blink of an eye, the entire morning had passed!

“Xuemin… little junior!”

After class, Feng Jiayou searched for him around the library, and only at the corner of the first floor did she finally spot Cheng Xuemin.

She had intended to just call his name, but then, with her usual impishness, added a playful note.

“Over here!” Cheng Xuemin looked up, saw her, and waved with a smile, calling out softly.

“Xuemin, little junior, let’s go grab lunch! I’ll show you what our dining hall at Yenching is like!” Feng Jiayou leaned in close and whispered by his side.

“Sure! I’ve long heard about how great the food is here, but you haven’t invited me once since I arrived!” Cheng Xuemin carefully tidied up his manuscript, stood up, and teased, “But if I go over there with you, won’t your admirers misunderstand?”

Feng Jiayou was the belle of their commune, and even here at Yenching University, she turned heads and left people in awe.

It was almost the end of the first semester, and Cheng Xuemin simply couldn’t believe she didn’t have a few suitors trailing after her!

“What’s there to misunderstand?! You’re thinking too much! Look at me now—can’t my classmates tell?” Feng Jiayou shot him a glance, jutted out her belly, and laughed, pretending to scold him.

She was already his, that big bad man, and her belly was starting to show—who cared for protectors and admirers now!

“So what do your classmates say? Has anyone been curious enough to ask whose child you’re carrying?”

Feng Jiayou and her classmates were among the first two batches of college students after the reinstatement of the entrance exams. Including next year’s class of ’79, they were collectively known as the “New Three Cohorts.”

These students had all survived the crucible of earlier years; many were even married with children.

So, around Yenching University, there were actually quite a few spouses living nearby. While it was rare to see a pregnant student like Feng Jiayou, she wasn’t the only one.

Precisely because it was uncommon, her classmates were inevitably curious—especially about the father of her child. They must have inquired plenty.

“Of course they asked! How could they not, with my belly so obvious?” Feng Jiayou patted her stomach as they walked.

“So what did you tell them?” Cheng Xuemin asked, full of curiosity.

“What else could I say!?”

“I just told them that when I was a sent-down youth in northern Shaanxi, I couldn’t take the hardship, so I tricked a local young man into helping me plow the fields. Meanwhile, I secretly studied for the entrance exams. Before I could return to the city, that young man found out and forced himself on me!”

Feng Jiayou whispered mischievously to Cheng Xuemin.

“What?! You really dared say that?” Cheng Xuemin was dumbfounded, not quite believing she’d actually say such a thing.

Besides, wasn’t it the other way around—who forced whom? It seemed she got it backwards.

“Why wouldn’t I? That’s exactly what I said—just telling it like it is!”

“Now you’re twisting the truth! Clearly, I was the one who was pinned down. I was the one forced, but I have no proof!” Cheng Xuemin protested.

“Xuemin, are you still teasing me about this?”

“Of course! I’ll never let you live it down!”

“Fine. Just wait till tonight—we’ll see who gets the last laugh!”

…

“Xuemin, your ‘Horseman’ is truly wonderful!” Feng Jiayou wiped away her tears as she spoke between mouthfuls of food.

“Eat more meat—you’re eating for two now, you need the nutrition.” Despite their banter, since it was Xuemin’s first time eating at the Yenching canteen, Feng Jiayou splurged a little.

She bought a plate of shredded pork with garlic sauce for fifteen cents and a serving of braised pork for twenty cents.

While eating, Feng Jiayou grew impatient; upon learning that Xuemin had finished “The Horseman,” she couldn’t wait to read the ending.

So she read as she ate, but soon she was so engrossed that she forgot her food, eyes glued to the manuscript, barely touching her dishes.

By the time she finished, she was moved to tears.

Cheng Xuemin humbly placed more braised pork in her bowl, urging her to eat.

“Mm, Xuemin, you have some too—you’re looking thin!”

Thin? Xuemin pinched his waist out of habit; truth be told, with the way she ate every night, he really had lost a bit of weight.

It seemed that though washing her hair fueled his inspiration, he’d need to show some restraint in the future!

“I’ll strike while the iron’s hot and send it to Yanjing Literature this afternoon. Are you sure there won’t be any trouble with your mother?”

Xuemin wanted to get his work published and collect the manuscript fee as soon as possible—he planned to deliver it to the editorial office by bike that very afternoon. But he still had some reservations about his proud mother-in-law.

“What could possibly happen? Just don’t let her find out!” Feng Jiayou replied rebelliously, then added, “It’s quite a distance to Yanjing Literature—why don’t you just mail it?”

“If it gets accepted, there might be a surprise!”

“A surprise? What kind of surprise?” Xuemin’s curiosity was piqued—how could submitting a manuscript to Yanjing Literature come with a surprise?

“That’s a secret for now—I’ll tell you if your work is accepted!” Feng Jiayou gave a sly smile, refusing to say more.

In truth, the editorial office wasn’t as far as she claimed; Xuemin could reach it in about an hour by bike. Bringing it in person would also save on postage and give him a chance to consult with the editors. But since Feng Jiayou insisted there would be a surprise, he let her keep him in suspense and chose to mail it.

That afternoon, Feng Jiayou had more classes, and being pregnant, she tired easily. After spending some time with Xuemin, she returned to her dormitory for a nap.

Cheng Xuemin mailed his manuscript of “The Horseman” to Yanjing Literature, and then spent the rest of the afternoon revising Feng Jiayou’s manuscript as well.

Actually, he had already reviewed her manuscript several times over the past few days and had a clear idea of how to revise it.

“It’s done already? Xuemin, you’re amazing!” Back home, Xuemin handed the revised manuscript to Feng Jiayou, who gasped in delight—she nearly gave him a big kiss then and there.

“Take a look and see if there’s anything you’d like to discuss,” Xuemin said with a smile.

“Of course!” Feng Jiayou eagerly began reading, her eyes lighting up more and more as she went. At last, she exclaimed in astonishment, “Xuemin, is this really the same manuscript I wrote? The changes are incredible!”

She could hardly believe it was still her own work.

“So does that mean it’s good enough to submit to your mother?”

Xuemin breathed a sigh of relief; he’d been worried that Feng Jiayou would be just as exacting as her mother, who was notorious for her high standards.

He had already prepared himself for the possibility that she’d reject it and ask him to revise it all over again.

“Absolutely! If she still won’t accept it, then she’s being unreasonable!” Feng Jiayou nodded emphatically.

“Alright, hurry up and copy it out before submitting it. Don’t send it as is—your mother will recognize our handwriting,” Xuemin reminded her.

“I know, I know! Do you really think your wife is that careless?” Feng Jiayou rolled her eyes at him, then gazed lovingly at her manuscript. “But I won’t hand it in right away. I’ll hold on to it for a few days and let her stew. When she gets anxious, I’ll submit it!”

The dutiful daughter was now a rebel—she used to be indifferent to her mother’s requests, but now that her husband had improved her work, she found it beyond her mother’s reach!

So she’d keep her mother waiting—let her worry for a while!

…