Inside the brocade box were three small gold pendants tied with red strings. Compared with Zhao Shiyu's three gold necklaces with longevity-lock pendants, they seemed rather shabby.
"Thank you!" Su Ningwei said with a smile as she accepted them. She didn't mind; they were a heartfelt gift from her friends.
Seeing that the mood was good, Ye Chen knocked on the hospital room door and went inside.
Li Jiaojiao, dressed head to toe in designer labels, turned to look at Ye Chen, her eyes filled with admiration.
She hadn't expected Ye Chen to be even more handsome than in the photos. He could easily outshine any popular young heartthrob in the entertainment industry.
With a figure and a face like his, who wouldn't be smitten?
With such good genes, no wonder Su Ningwei had fallen for him.
But Li Jiaojiao wasn't about to fall for him.
To Li Jiaojiao, money mattered most.
What good was being handsome if you had no money?
Could you eat it?
Ye Chen pretended not to have heard their conversation and greeted them with a smile.
"Wow, how romantic! It's Weiwei's favorite, Red Sleeve Rose." Zhao Shiyu looked at the roses in Ye Chen's hand with envy.
Ye Chen set down the fruit he was carrying and handed the flowers to Su Ningwei.
Su Ningwei took them, her smile especially sweet. Her heart filled with joy, she said, "Thank you. I love them."
"There's a little card, too. How thoughtful! What does it say? Let me have a look." Xu Manman's sharp eyes spotted the card tucked into the bouquet.
Su Ningwei took it out. When she saw the sweet words written on it, her face flushed and her heart warmed.
After Xu Manman read it, she couldn't help giving herself a light slap. What a fool—she'd practically invited herself to get showered with lovey-dovey affection.
Zhao Shiyu smiled until her eyes narrowed. Seeing Su Ningwei and Ye Chen so loving toward each other, she could finally relax.
Li Jiaojiao, meanwhile, was thoroughly displeased. So what if it was a lousy bouquet of roses and some free sweet talk? What was there to show off?
Poor people were poor people. All he could give her was cheap stuff like this. Why not give her a big diamond ring, a luxury car, and a mansion?
Su Ningwei carefully put away the card Ye Chen had written.
It was the first love letter Ye Chen had ever written her. She had to keep it safe.
She would have the flowers preserved, too, so they could last forever.
With Ye Chen back, the three babies were getting drowsy.
Just then, a nurse came by to check on them again.
Afraid of disturbing Su Ningwei and the babies, Zhao Shiyu and the others headed home.
Ye Chen also received the paternity test results from the hospital.
As expected, all three babies were his.
After the doctors and nurses had left the room,
Li Mei went to the kitchen to cook.
Su Ningwei slipped a bank card into Ye Chen's hand and said, "Here, take this card."
"Is this your bank card?" Ye Chen asked, puzzled, holding the card, which was still a little warm.
Su Ningwei nodded, tugged at Ye Chen's sleeve, and whispered in his ear, "Mm. I'm terrible at managing money, so you can handle all our money from now on. The PIN is 666888. I rented a two-bedroom apartment before, but it's a little too small. Help me find a bigger place. If you can't find anything suitable, we can rent one for now. As long as it's clean and tidy, that's fine. We can buy a place later when we find the right one."
Su Ningwei knew Ye Chen had had a hard time these past few years.
He had an elderly father to look after, and his younger sister had just started college. He must be short on money.
Now that they had a baby, everything would cost money, and he wouldn't have time to go out and work.
Su Ningwei was afraid of hurting Ye Chen's pride or putting him in a difficult position.
That was why she'd deliberately said she was bad at managing money and handed over the money in her account for him to take care of.
Every tender word whispered in his ear warmed Ye Chen's heart.
His whole heart felt warm.
Su Ningwei's feelings were so obvious. She was incredibly gentle and considerate.
Ye Chen was so moved that the corners of his eyes stung.
"No need. Don't worry, I've already taken care of the house and car. I have money. It's not as much as you have, but it's enough for us for now. I'll keep working hard and earn even more than you in the future." Ye Chen stroked the crown of Su Ningwei's head and spoke with a tender smile.
With such a wonderful wife by his side, he naturally had to work twice as hard.
"You've already taken care of everything?" Su Ningwei's eyes widened in surprise.
Where had Ye Chen gotten so much money?
She remembered that night when someone had drugged him.
Could Ye Chen have...
"Yeah, I got lucky and made a little money investing in stocks," Ye Chen replied with a smile.
The night before, Ye Chen had already figured out how to explain where his money came from to the people around him.
Ye Chen leaned down and kissed Su Ningwei's forehead, then placed the bank card back in her palm.
"Keep your money as your own private savings. Most of my money is tied up in the stock market right now, but you don't need to worry about our living expenses. Just rest and recover after giving birth. If there's anything you want, tell me. As long as I can afford it, I'll buy it for you," Ye Chen said gently.
Su Ningwei looked up and studied Ye Chen. He didn't seem like he was just putting on a brave face.
It seemed she'd been overthinking things.
Ye Chen wasn't that kind of person. Otherwise, with his circumstances, he would have made something of himself long ago.
Su Ningwei nodded. "Mm, I understand. But what's mine is yours, so we don't have to draw such a clear line. The stock market can bring high returns, but it can also swing wildly. Now that we have children, we should find a stable investment and plan for the long term."
"Okay, we'll do that," Ye Chen replied with a smile.
Stocks might go up and down wildly for other people, but with the system backing him, Ye Chen was practically raking in money on the market.
Still, making his wife happy was the most important thing right now.
Su Ningwei stayed in the hospital for seven full days.
During that time, Ye Chen fixed up their new home and bought plenty of things.
All that remained was for Su Ningwei and the three babies to move in.
After examining Su Ningwei's incision, the doctor said, "It's healing very well, but the incision in your uterus will take longer to recover. During this period, you need to take care of yourself. You can be discharged today. Once you're home, make sure you continue to look after yourself and follow the proper care instructions. Don't do any strenuous exercise, or it may cause pain. Come back for a checkup after 42 days."
"Okay, thank you, Doctor," Su Ningwei and Ye Chen replied together.
Ye Chen went downstairs to take care of the discharge procedures.
The surgery and hospital stay had cost a little over eighty thousand, but less than ninety thousand.
That might have been difficult for Ye Chen in the past, but for him now, it was nothing.
During those seven days, the stock he'd bought had risen for three consecutive days.
Ye Chen sold it at its peak, then bought another stock, which also rose for three days straight.
It felt unbelievably good.
Now, with ninety thousand in surgery and hospital bills,
Ye Chen didn't even bat an eye.
He paid by card and settled the entire bill.
Ye Chen returned to the hospital room.
Li Mei had already packed up all their things, big and small.