Zhang Wei's phone vibrated in the middle of tearing apart the Hangzhou merger proposal.
Zhao Mei's name flashed on the screen.
His hand froze mid-gesture. The twelve board members around the table went silent. Every eye in the room locked on him.
She'd never called. Not once in the two weeks since he'd given her that phone.
Always careful not to bother him.
A call meant something was very wrong.
He answered before the second ring.
"Mei"
The voice on the other end wasn't Mei.
"Mr. Zhang." The voice cut through, sharp and desperate. "You need to come home. Right now. Your wife isn't well."
"And who are you?" His brow tilted, eyes narrowing.
"It's me xiaolan."
His heart skipped a bit. "What happened?"
"Just come. Please." Her voice cracked. "She needs you."
The line went dead.
Zhang Wei stood so fast his chair scraped loud against the floor.
"Sir?" Assistant Qin half-rose from his seat, confusion flashing across his face. "The Hangzhou deal, we're in the middle of price negotiations. If we leave now, they'll…"
"Reschedule it."
"But the investors flew in specifically for this meeting. If we walk out now, we could lose the entire seventy million yuan contract…"
"Then we lose it." Zhang Wei was already moving toward the door. "Reschedule. Everything."
The room erupted.
"Chairman, with all due respect…" Director li started.
Zhang Wei stopped. Turned. His expression made grown men flinch.
"My wife is sick," he said, voice flat and deadly. "I don't give a fuck about seventy million yuan right now. Qin, handle it. I'm leaving."
He walked out. The door slammed behind him.
His personal guard Chen Qiang followed suit without a word.
They'd worked together for years. Chen Qiang knew when to ask questions and when to just move.
The elevator ride down felt like drowning. Zhang Wei's mind raced, spinning through every worst-case scenario.
Xiao Lan's voice kept echoing. Desperate. "She needs you."
He'd noticed Zhao Mei looking worse these past few days. Paler, Thinner, Moving slower like every step cost her. Dark circles under her eyes she tried covering with makeup that didn't work.
He'd asked once. Just once.
She'd smiled that careful, polite smile and said she was fine. Just adjusting to everything.
He'd let it go. Told himself she'd come to him if it was serious. Told himself he didn't want to pressure her, didn't want to be the controlling husband she never asked for.
But he'd known. Deep down, he'd fucking known something was off.
And he'd done nothing.
The car was waiting at the curb. He climbed in. Chen Qiang took the front passenger seat.
"Drive home, fast." Zhang Wei said.
The driver didn't hesitate and drove off.
Beijing traffic blurred past. Too slow. Everything moving too goddamn slow.
Zhang Wei stared at his phone. The black screen stared back.
What if it was serious? What if she'd been suffering alone this whole time while he kept his distance, maintained his boundaries, pretended this was just a temporary arrangement that would end clean in a year?
What if he was too late?
His hands curled into fists.
The penthouse tower came into view. The car barely stopped before he was out, moving fast toward the entrance.
The elevator to the top floor took forty seconds.
It felt like forty years.
His pulse hammered. His mind wouldn't shut up. Every worst-case scenario playing on repeat.
No medical issues when Dr. Shen examined her. No blood disorders. No hereditary conditions. Nothing that explained this.
The elevator doors opened.
He moved. Fast. Down the hall. Past empty guest rooms. Straight to her door.
Didn't knock. Just shoved it open.
The sight froze him.
Zhao Mei sat crumpled on the bathroom floor, knees pulled tight to her chest, one hand pressed against her stomach. Her face was ghost-pale, skin so white it looked translucent. Hair damp with sweat. Eyes red and swollen from crying.
Xiao Lan crouched beside her, hands hovering uselessly, looking more terrified than he'd ever seen her.
Zhang Wei crossed the room in three strides. Dropped to his knees in front of her.
"What's wrong Mei?" His voice came out harder than he meant. "Mei. Look at me. What hurts?" His eyes searched her face.
She lifted her head. Tears streaked her face.
"I'm fine," she whispered, voice breaking. "You didn't need to come. I'm so sorry…"
"Stop apologizing and tell me what the fuck is wrong."
She flinched. Opened her mouth. Nothing came out. Just more tears.
He looked at Xiao Lan. "What the fuck is wrong?"
Xiao Lan stood, wringing her hands.
"This morning, she started feeling nauseous and threw up twice. I've noticed she hasn't been herself the past couple of days. Every time I ask her to open up to you, she just brushes it off. That's why I decided to call you myself, and…" She stopped. Looked at Zhao Mei.
"And what?" His patience snapped.
"I think she's pregnant," Xiao Lan said quietly.
The words hit him like a brick to the skull.
Pregnant.
His brain tried to process. Tried to make the word make sense. Tried to organize it into something logical.
Nothing came.
Just that one word echoing in his head.
"Pregnant, Pregnant, Pregnant."
Zhao Mei sobbed harder. "I'm sorry. I know this wasn't part of the plan. I know the contract said one year and I've ruined everything and if you want me to leave I'll go right now…"
"Stop." The word came out sharp as a slap.
She froze.
He stared at her. Really stared.
She thought he'd throw her out. Thought he'd be angry. Thought this baby, his baby, was a mistake.
She is sitting on a bathroom floor, confused, scared and carrying his child, and she thought he'd tell her to leave.
What the fuck had he done to make her think that?
His chest felt like something was cracking open inside it. Something that had been locked tight for years.
His baby. Growing right inside of her.
The thought should terrify him. Should make him want to run. Should make him shut down and go cold like he always did when things got complicated.
But all he felt was a fierce, burning need to protect them both, that hit so hard it stole his breath.
He pulled out his phone.
"What are you doing?" Xiao Lan asked, voice shaking.
"Calling my doctor."
"Wei…" Zhao Mei stuttered.
"You're getting checked. Right now. No arguments."
He dialed. Dr. Shen picked up on the first ring.
"Young master. What can I…"
"Get to the penthouse, Now, My wife is sick." He paused, the next words sticking in his throat. "She might be pregnant."
********