Chapter 283: Chapter 283 : A Safer Place To Be

In light of the somber conversation ahead of them, Zhang Fengxi did not expect the sudden question.

"What?" he asked dumbly -- not because he did not hear the question, but because he was desperate to get as much time as possible to formulate the perfect answer.

The problem was just that there was no perfect answer to such a question, and Xie Jianyu could read him like an open book.

"Are you planning to re-marry and then have children with your second wife?"

"....."

Zhang Fengxi was speechless. How did they go from "Xie Jianyu does not need to give birth to a child" to "Zhang Fengxi is going to re-marry and have children with his second wife"?

Wrath glowered in Xie Jianyu’s eyes like ember glowing in the darkness.

"You are, aren’t you?"

None of them was surprised when Zhang Fengxi was kicked out of the tea house a while later.

"I don’t want to see your face anymore," were Xie Jianyu’s last words to him before the omega turned on his heels and returned inside the tea house. The general was left outside on his own, looking every bit as pathetic as every husband who suffered the same fate at the hands of their wives.

The men of Rainbell Town could not help but throw him sympathetic gazes.

Zhang Fengxi let out a sigh as heavy as the Heavenly Realm itself.

After breakfast, Xie Jianyu and Mingyu went about their daily activities at Lucky Pearl restaurant. Once they were rid of Zhang Fengxi, Mingyu gathered her courage and asked her master, "Master, are we going back to the Heavenly Realm?"

"No," Xie Jianyu said as he tidied up a pile of folded letters to his right side.

"No? But Prince Zhang Fengxi, he..."

"He can stay in Rainbell Town for as long as he wants. It does not concern us," Xie Jianyu decided off-handedly.

His answer left Mingyu stunned. For some inexplicable reason, she felt a deep conviction that the arrangement would never come to fruition.

Her intuition proved to be eerily accurate.

Not long after, Zhang Fengxi stepped through the restaurant’s threshold. As he marveled at the progress of the establishment he had left behind so long ago, he was spotted by Madam Chen.

"Y-Young Master, welcome back!" she cried out, happy to see her second benefactor again.

"Big Sister, you are still here," Zhang Fengxi beamed at her as if he had only seen her today, and not during the many times he lurked around Rainbell Town and watched Xie Jianyu’s every movement.

"I have been wondering when you will re-appear, Young Master! Did you know that the other young master arrived a while ago?"

Oh, yes. He knew that very well.

Madam Chen led Zhang Fengxi through several corridors and doorways until they reached the inner rooms, where Xie Jianyu and Mingyu were meticulously poring over the bookkeeping records.

Xie Jianyu’s previously neutral expression transformed into an icy mask when he caught sight of his husband. The alpha sauntered towards him with a deceptively innocent smile.

"Young Masters, this is such an auspicious reunion! This calls for a celebration!"

Xie Jianyu sneered.

Zhang Fengxi flashed Madam Chen his most charming smile. "Yes, Big Sister. Absolutely. Let’s have a feast tonight."

"Oh, how wonderful! Excuse me, I need to inform the kitchen first."

Mingyu gulped when Zhang Fengxi’s gaze landed on her.

"Please leave, Zhang Fengxi. We are busy." Xie Jianyu flipped open a book and started noting down the previous day’s expenses on the blank page.

"So busy that you do not want to talk to your husband?"

Zhang Fengxi sat at the edge of the desk and leaned closer to Xie Jianyu.

"Don’t you think that you are being too cold?"

"Mingyu, I want some tea," Xie Jianyu decided.

"Yes, Master."

Mingyu understood the unspoken message behind Xie Jianyu’s words -- "Leave us alone". She was immensely grateful for this timely escape. To prepare this special pot of tea, she would have gladly traveled to Fuxi Palace to pick, dry, and brew the tea leaves herself.

"Cold, eh?" Xie Jianyu shot daggers at Zhang Fengxi. "Why don’t you go through a list of omegas that you will marry upon my demise? See which one has childbearing hips!"

Zhang Fengxi sighed heavily. He had heard that pregnant omegas often experienced erratic mood swings, but he had never witnessed it firsthand, let alone with Xie Jianyu.

"Jianbao, I never said that I was going to remarry."

Xie Jianyu held a hand up to stop the alpha from speaking further.

"You are right. What you do after I die does not concern me at all."

"..."

Zhang Fengxi’s head was starting to throb from pain.

"Baby, let’s go home," he said finally, ending the pointless debate.

"No."

Zhang Fengxi arched his eyebrow at his stubborn wife.

"No?"

"No," Xie Jianyu said stubbornly. "Go ahead and go back on your own. I will return when I feel like it."

Zhang Fengxi’s hand drifted to Xie Jianyu’s belly, his touch sending a fluttering sensation through the omega’s heart.

"Jianbao, we saw Liu Wenyuan again yesterday. He plotted an attack against you, and he failed. I am pretty sure that he will try it again."

"..."

Xie Jianyu pressed his lips together into a thin line.

Yesterday, the robber leader’s kick was aimed squarely at his stomach. If Zhang Fengxi hadn’t been there to shield him, then...

Zhang Fengxi pulled Xie Jianyu to his feet and hugged the omega to his chest.

"Jianbao, I am not going to give you any more abortifacient. I am not asking you to forgive me or trust me in this regard, but at least return to Fuxi Palace. You are safer there than here."

"..."

Xie Jianyu hated to admit it, but Zhang Fengxi was right. For now, he had to let go of his resentments and prioritize the child in his belly. The child was very important.

"Alright," the Crown Prince said at last, his fingers tightening around Zhang Fengxi’s arms. "Let’s return to the Heavenly Realm."

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay