After Becoming Pregnant With The Empress Cat's Cub - Chapter 19

Crystal clear, every word understood.

After Ju Rin finished speaking, she paused and looked at the human beside her.

Lan Ye’s mouth was slightly agape, her eyes wide, a picture perfect expression of being stunned into silence. This look brought the flicker of amusement back into Ju Rin’s eyes. She pursed her lips, suppressing a smile. She didn’t want to admit to being childish, but this sensation was undeniably pleasant.

Coming back to her senses, Lan Ye looked at the “actress” Rin, who seemed to be stifling a laugh. This woman was wicked, not only did she change the script on the fly, but she made it utterly ridiculous. How bold! And who would believe such words? Between the two of them, anyone could see it was Rin who was infatuated and pursuing her relentlessly. Her own charm was right there for all to see, besides, she wasn’t the type to chase anyone. She was far too cool for that.

Lan Ye intended to say Rin was joking, but before she could speak, two peals of laughter rang out.

A Childhood “Trend”

Hearing Rin’s words, the wrinkles at the corners of Lan Shan’s eyes deepened with her smile: “That actually sounds exactly like our Xiao Ye’s character.”

Yao Li nodded, laughing: “Xiao Ye has been like this since she was a kid.”

Huh? Lan Ye looked at the two women, a giant question mark forming in her mind. What did they mean “fits her character”? They sounded like they actually believed Rin’s nonsense.

Lan Shan seemed to remember something. She stood up, went to the cabinet by the TV, and pulled out a photo album. Flipping through it as she walked back, she sat down and held an open page in front of Rin.

Ju Rin recognized the human child in the photo as Lan Ye almost instantly. About three or four years old, with a mushroom haircut, a round face, and round eyes. Her eyes had been that big since she was small… she had hardly changed. In the photo, she was smiling sweetly, her hand clutching the ear of a small beastman child… looking as if she were dragging the little beastman along.

“This was Xiao Ye’s first day of kindergarten,” Lan Shan explained warmly. “This was the cutest beastman kid in her class. The moment Xiao Ye saw her, she said she liked her, and after school, she insisted on bringing her home.”

Lan Shan laughed harder at the memory. Xiao Ye had been so interesting as a child. She recalled this specifically because of Rin’s claim that Xiao Ye fell in love at first sight. This child had always been like that.

“Xiao Ye has always decided whether she likes someone or not at first glance,” Lan Shan continued, looking at Yao Li. “Like buying clothes at the mall, the first one she spots is the one she buys, no matter how fitting the others are. In kindergarten, the first friend she liked, she had to bring home. She’s always been decisive and action oriented. If she likes something, she doesn’t hesitate, she makes her move immediately.”

The two older women shared a look and a smile. It seemed Xiao Ye hadn’t changed at all, still the ‘love at first sight’ type. And still so fond of bread. Meeting in a bakery felt perfectly logical, since she was little, Xiao Ye had to enter every bakery she passed, even if she didn’t buy anything.

Yao Li, remembering Rin’s story about Lan Ye pursuing her until she agreed, smiled at the photo: “I remember that little girl started out crying and refusing to go with Xiao Ye on the first day. But by the second day, she’d changed completely. Later, she’d wait for Xiao Ye every day after school, wanting Xiao Ye to hold her ear and lead her home.”

She looked at Rin, not at all surprised that Rin had said yes. Xiao Ye just had that ability to make people like her.

“Xiao Ye always loved talking like that. ‘You are the best in the world,'” Lan Shan laughed, pointing to herself. “The ‘best auntie.'”

Yao Li chimed in: “And I was the ‘best Auntie Li.'” They both looked at Lin. “The praise you got is even better than ours, you’re the ‘best person’ in the whole world.” No category needed, she won against everyone.

Ju Rin was speechless once again. She turned to look at Lan Ye, her mind reeling. She hadn’t realized this human’s hyperbolic way of speaking was actually a lifelong catchphrase. And looking at the photo of the little white furry ears… so this human had a habit of touching beastman ears since childhood.

The “Orphan” Misunderstanding

Lan Ye was completely exasperated. She never expected the original owner of this body to have such a personality. She personally had no such habits, her previous praise had been a genuine, heat of the moment exclamation because no one had ever given her a million dollars for no reason.

Seeing that Lan Shan and Yao Li were fully convinced, Lan Ye gave up on trying to fix the script. She’d just take the fall. To shift the topic away from her childhood, she looked at the furry ears in the photo and then at Rin.

“When you were in kindergarten, did you keep your ears out? Did anyone try to lead you home by your ears?” Lan Ye asked. She bet Rin was incredibly cute as a child too.

Ju Rin pursed her lips. She hadn’t gone to kindergarten. Her ears were often exposed, but in the palace, no one dared touch them except the King and Queen, let alone try to take her home.

“I didn’t go to kindergarten,” Ju Rin said simply. “I was homeschooled.”

Lan Shan and Yao Li were surprised, then immediately sympathetic. In the last century, birth rates had plummeted, and many kindergartens had closed. In suburban or rural areas, homeschooling had become the norm out of necessity.

“Your mothers must have loved you very much,” Lan Shan said sincerely, knowing the hardship of homeschooling. Yao Li nodded, her heart aching for the young woman. To grow up like this, she must have suffered a lot.

Lan Ye realized that while homeschooling might be “normal” here, the aunts viewed it as a sign of a struggling background. The poor little rural cat, she thought. She reached out and patted Rin’s hand gently. She wouldn’t look down on her for being “uneducated.”

Ju Rin pulled her hand back, but in doing so, Lan Ye’s hand landed directly on her thigh. Feeling the heat through her clothes, Ju Rin almost wanted to put her hand back where it was.

“Rin, when your mothers are free, please invite them over. We’re family now, we should see each other often,” Lan Shan invited.

Lan Ye realized she’d forgotten a crucial detail. She quickly covered Rin’s ears from behind and turned her head away, mouthing to Lan Shan: “Orphan.”

“What?” Lan Shan didn’t catch it.

Ju Rin forced her head back: “What are you doing?”

Lan Ye sighed and let go. “Rin’s parents are no longer with us.”

Ju Rin’s eyelashes flickered. So that’s why she covered her ears… she had forgotten to clear up that misunderstanding.

“Oh,” Lan Shan and Yao Li gasped, feeling terrible for bringing it up. “I’m so sorry, child. Don’t be sad. From now on, we are your family. we will treat you as our own.”

Lan Ye joined in, taking Rin’s hand and placing it on her own stomach: “And there’s the baby.”

Ju Rin’s hand went stiff. Looking at Lan Ye’s serious face, a spot in her heart felt suddenly warm. She opened her mouth to speak, but for a moment, she forgot what she wanted to say.

The Legend of the River

To lighten the mood, Lan Shan flipped to a photo of a fifteen-year-old Lan Ye holding a trophy, beaming at the camera.

“Our Xiao Ye is quite amazing. She won a championship the first time she entered a swimming competition,” Lan Shan bragged.

Yao Li added: “Even more impressive, that same year she successfully swam across the Dongdong River! It wasn’t an official race, so it’s not in the records, but it should have been on the news!”

Ju Rin was beyond surprised, she was incredulous. The Dongdong River was the widest stretch of water in the Central District. Crossing it required elite technique, peak physical condition, and immense willpower. Fewer than a hundred people had ever succeeded.

She looked at the human in front of her, someone who didn’t look like they met any of those requirements. Ju Rin’s view of her began to shift. This human had strengths. She was even better than Ju Rin in one aspect, swimming. For some reason, as beastmen evolved, they lost the natural ability to swim, and their mental powers became uncontrollable in water.

Lan Ye saw the sparkle of respect in Rin’s eyes and felt great, but she knew she wasn’t that ‘Lan Ye.’ She couldn’t swim at all. “Look at me any longer and I’ll kiss you,” she teased to break the spell.

A Promise and a Warning

After lunch, they headed out for their “physiological class.”

“I haven’t repaid you yet,” Lan Ye said as they drove. She remembered Rin using her mental power to protect her at the bus stop and at home. “Give me your hand.”

Ju Rin didn’t move. “Hurry!” Lan Ye grabbed Rin’s hand and hooked their pinkies together. “I’m giving you one ‘wish’ opportunity. Whatever you want in the future, just use this wish, and I will satisfy it.”

Ju Rin looked at their linked fingers. “Anything I want, you can provide?”

“How is that possible?” Lan Ye scoffed. “Why would you ask for something I don’t have? Are you trying to make things difficult for me?”

Ju Rin: “…”

As they drove, Lan Ye began lecturing her on finances. “You need to change your habit of spending money so freely. From now on, you need my permission to spend. And you need to hand over the household money to me. Do you know how much it costs to raise a kitten?”

“How much?” Ju Rin asked instinctively.

“A lot. Food, bathroom stuff, school fees later on…” Lan Ye continued. “And have you bought insurance? Your job is dangerous. You should buy some and make me the beneficiary.”

Ju Rin looked at her, bewildered.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Lan Ye said, patting her stomach. “If something happens to us, I want to make sure the kitten is provided for.”

Ju Rin looked at the human, whose aura seemed to soften with genuine concern for the future. “Okay,” she replied.

The Classroom Shock

At the Marriage Registry, they sat in a classroom for their free course. Ju Rin felt awkward under the gaze of the curious staff outside. She looked at Lan Ye, who was hunched over a notebook, scribbling furiously.

Ju Rin glanced at the electronic screen: [Division of Property After Divorce].

The teacher saw Rin’s gaze and smiled awkwardly. “It’s part of the law, I have to teach it.”

Ju Rin looked at Lan Ye’s notes, which were filled with details on how to split assets. That “warm feeling” from the car vanished instantly. This human didn’t care about “security” for the kitten, she just loved money.

Finally, the legal section ended. “Now,” the staff member said, “we will discuss knowledge related to wife and wife life.”

Essentially, a sexual physiology class. The curtains were drawn, the door was closed, and the video began.

Lan Ye, notebook ready for a fresh page, suddenly dropped her pen. Her jaw dropped right along with it.

Wait… is it really this graphic?!