Chapter 120: Perhaps She Is Expecting

The next day, 10 a.m.

In the presidential suite of the KM City International Hotel, on the large bed.

Peng Min woke naturally from a deep sleep. She reached out and realized Huang Yu was nowhere to be found beside her. Then it struck her—today was his first official day at work; he should have gotten up early and left.

What puzzled her deeply was that given Huang Yu’s family influence, why would he need to clock in at a job like a regular employee?

But she was too lazy to ponder such questions.

Peng Min noticed a note Huang Yu had left on the table. She got up, dressed, and walked over to pick it up.

“Min, I’ve gone to work. During lunch break, I will meet with a real estate agent to view some houses. You can go ahead and choose once you’re awake; I’ll come directly at noon. I’ll send you the exact address and the agent’s contact details before noon.”

Just this simple message.

After putting down the note, Peng Min turned to check her phone.

Having lived without a phone for over half a year at the nightclub, she often forgot to carry it around and didn’t have the habit of keeping it on her at all times.

Huang Yu knew this, which was why he left the note in such a visible spot.

Sure enough, there was a message on her phone from Huang Yu, sent half an hour ago, containing the contact information of the real estate agent and the specific address for the house viewing.

Peng Min yawned and went to freshen up.

Half an hour later, after dining at the hotel, she took a taxi directly to the address Huang Yu had sent her.

The destination was a villa district closest to Huang Yu’s workplace.

Upon arrival, she found the real estate agent waiting in the villa sales office lobby.

Huang Yu’s first day at work felt rather dull.

Though he had known from the start that when the institute had no research projects, there wasn’t much to do—mostly studying related history or sorting through literature.

But he hadn’t expected that his arrival coincided exactly with the completion of the last project.

So, no tasks were assigned to him. After completing the onboarding process, his first assignment was to familiarize himself with the workplace, and if bored, he could spend time in the archive room selecting interesting documents to study independently.

He even noticed that many colleagues hadn’t come to work that day.

Those who did show up stayed only briefly before leaving. Some even told him he could leave as well, and that any updates would be sent via the group chat, as only one person needed to be on duty at the institute each day during this period.

Still, Huang Yu persevered until after 11 a.m. When the on-duty colleague left, he changed clothes and drove to the Longhu Villa District.

He first called Peng Min.

The call connected quickly.

“Yu, are you off work?” Peng Min’s voice came joyfully from the other end.

“Yes, I am. Where are you now?” Huang Yu asked.

“At Villa No. 12 in the district. I’m looking at the third house now, and it seems nice,” Peng Min replied.

“Okay, wait there for me. I’ll come have a look. If it’s good, we’ll decide on this villa. Then the sales manager can handle the paperwork. After we finalize it, we’ll go find a place to eat,” Huang Yu said.

Peng Min responded with a couple of affirmative sounds. With no objections, he hung up.

Reflecting on the morning, Huang Yu was fairly satisfied with his work. The idle time between projects allowed him to leisurely read historical literature and occasionally organize documents.

Though his salary was comparable to that of ordinary civil servants, his main motivation wasn’t the pay.

Work, at its core, was about finding something to do.

This wasn’t the forced labor of survival but a necessary endeavor that brought joy and fulfilled one’s life purpose.

Thanks to his family’s wealth, Huang Yu could afford to pursue what he loved rather than work merely for livelihood.

Villa No. 12, Longhu Villa District.

Huang Yu drove his Hummer SUV directly into the villa’s driveway. Peng Min and the sales manager had already heard the vehicle and came out.

The sales manager, Cheng Baiying, had years of experience selling villas and immediately recognized the Hummer’s considerable value. He warmly greeted them, confident this deal was as good as sealed.

Initially, upon seeing Peng Min arrive by taxi, he had been somewhat disappointed, doubting the chance of closing the deal. During the viewings, he had only politely gone through the motions.

After Huang Yu got out of the car, he casually toured the villa’s surroundings. The courtyard design and the villa’s location within the district both met his approval.

“Yu, let me take you inside,” Peng Min said warmly, naturally linking her arm with his.

Huang Yu nodded and signaled Manager Cheng, then followed Peng Min into the two-story villa with a rooftop structure.

The living room, bedrooms, and appliances were all fully furnished—obviously designed by professional decorators—allowing them to move in without the hassle of choosing furniture or appliances.

“Hmm, it’s really quite nice. If you like it, let’s settle on this one. I’m not going to look at any others,” Huang Yu said as he emerged from the basement.

Manager Cheng was delighted to hear this.

“Manager Cheng, we’ll need your help with the purchase procedures,” Huang Yu said with a smile.

“Of course, that’s my job,” Cheng replied eagerly.

After securing the villa, Huang Yu took Peng Min out for lunch. Having spent a dull morning at the institute, he was genuinely hungry.

During lunch, he briefly shared his plan to quit their drug addiction.

Peng Min was unsurprised. Huang Yu had been researching addiction-related materials extensively these past few days, so his resolve was expected.

Moreover, ever since Huang Yu took her to meet her parents, Peng Min had stopped taking birth control pills the night before. She was hoping to become a mother, to carry Huang Yu’s child.

Thus, she took their plan to quit drugs very seriously.

Days passed swiftly.

Three weeks flew by after Huang Yu and Peng Min moved into the villa.

During this time, Huang Yu followed the plan meticulously. Each time his cravings struck, he gradually reduced the concentration of the injected drugs and took other medications daily to assist withdrawal, adjusting doses based on their conditions.

His progress was the most obvious, with cravings growing weaker each time.

Peng Min’s progress was slower but steadily improving.

Of course, they had additional support.

Huang Yu had spent a fortune hiring an internationally renowned expert on drug addiction who came specifically to help them quit.

Huang Yu chose a foreign expert to avoid unnecessary complications that might arise domestically.

The expert, named Thomas, conducted regular check-ups every two days and adjusted their medication accordingly.

Sometimes, money could indeed solve many problems.

Without Thomas’s expertise, merely relying on their own efforts would have made the withdrawal process much longer and more difficult.

During these two weeks, Huang Yu took Peng Min back to visit her parents in YL County every week, sometimes even staying overnight.

Her parents had basically come to regard Huang Yu as their son-in-law and even asked when they planned to get married.

After all, Lv Min’s wedding was scheduled for next month, and they were quite concerned about their daughter’s future.

Huang Yu didn’t give a definite answer but said he would bring Peng Min to meet his own parents once his work stabilized, and they would decide on the wedding then.

Though not entirely pleased, Peng Min’s parents found this answer acceptable.

“Yu, will you really marry me?” Peng Min asked as they drove back, sitting in the passenger seat.

“You’ve been trying to conceive recently, haven’t you? So I think it’s time my parents knew about us,” Huang Yu replied.

“When did you find out I was trying to get pregnant?” Peng Min asked wide-eyed.

“Silly girl, I saw you several times over the past two weeks looking up such things on your phone when I passed by,” Huang Yu said with a smile, driving with one hand and patting her head with the other.

“My period should have come by now, but there’s no sign of it. Do you think I might already be pregnant?” Peng Min smiled, sensing Huang Yu was seriously considering their future.

“Not so soon, right? You’ve been taking birth control pills all along,” Huang Yu asked, surprised.

“I stopped taking them two weeks ago. And these past two weeks, you’ve been working hard every night. If I’m pregnant, it wouldn’t be surprising,” Peng Min said with a smile.

Huang Yu felt his cheeks flush slightly, a bit embarrassed.

Come to think of it, except for that night at Peng Min’s parents’ house, they seemed to have been intimate every night, sometimes more than once—so calling it “working hard” wasn’t inaccurate.

But having restrained himself for over twenty years and now being in his prime, it was natural he felt unsatisfied.

Still, the thought of soon becoming a father left Huang Yu somewhat dazed and uncertain.