Pregnant with My Late Husband’s Child - Chapter 13

The night was already deep, and the home-assistant robot reminded Li Yixing and Feng Zhiyu that it was time to rest. Consequently, Li Yixing rose to take his leave, and after exchanging “good nights” with Feng Zhiyu, he went upstairs to his quarters.

Feng Zhiyu watched Li Yixing’s figure disappear around the corner of the staircase, blinking his eyes unnaturally.

A sharp, frigid fragrance seemed to linger in the air where Li Yixing had just been. Feng Zhiyu took a deep breath, trying to calm his chaotic thoughts.

Feng Zhao’s passing was completely unexpected; Feng Zhiyu had not anticipated that his brother would perish on the battlefield like this. Although Feng Zhiyu did not hold deep affection for his elder brother, he still could not help but feel a tinge of sadness. Yet, beneath that sadness, there was a forbidden, treacherous sense of elation.

With Feng Zhao dead, Li Yixing was once again alone. This meant that the opportunity for Feng Zhiyu to be with Li Yixing had resurfaced.

Actually, this marriage should have been between him and his senior, Feng Zhiyu thought.

A few months prior, when Feng Tingsong returned home, he announced that the Davis family had extended an olive branch to the Feng family. They hoped the two families could collaborate to consolidate their influence, and this partnership was to begin with a political marriage. To the Feng family, this was naturally a win-win deal. According to public opinion polls and Kaman Taylor’s own inclinations, Kaman would step down as the Alliance Chief Official after the next term. Among the successors, Stan Davis was the most formidable candidate. More importantly, as a former Alliance General, Stan Davis’s subordinates were spread across command posts in major star systems, granting him significant leverage within the military, a factor that would greatly facilitate the promotion of the two Feng children.

Coincidentally, Stan Davis’s election campaign was not entirely secure, which was why he had extended such a request to the Feng family.

Feng Tingsong agreed and informed his two children that the partner put forward by the Davis family was their adopted son, the current Alliance Security Minister, Li Yixing.

Feng Tingsong was quite satisfied with this. He knew that this young man, Li Yixing, was immensely capable and held a vital position within the Alliance; regardless of which child he married, it would be an excellent asset.

When Feng Zhiyu learned that it was Li Yixing he would be marrying, he was overjoyed.

He had been infatuated with this senior, who was four years his elder, for a long time.

At sixteen, Feng Zhiyu was admitted to Dacles Military Academy, insisting on entering the Special Operations Department despite Fang Shengwan’s objections. On his first day, it was Li Yixing who escorted him into the campus, introducing him to the architecture, the department professors, and the curriculum.

That was also the first time Feng Zhiyu had met Li Yixing, though he had heard the name many times before—specifically from Feng Zhao.

That had been when Feng Zhiyu was twelve. Feng Zhao had returned home from the military academy with his face bruised and swollen, bearing the marks of a brutal beating.

For Feng Zhao to be beaten like that was truly a rarity. After all, as far as Feng Zhiyu knew, Feng Zhao’s combat skills were top-tier; it was always him beating others, never the other way around. Seeing him appear before Feng Zhiyu in such a battered state felt like a fantasy, almost impossible.

So, Feng Zhiyu asked curiously, “Brother, who hit you?”

Anyone else might have been enraged by such a question, but Feng Zhao was not angry. He simply smiled, his eyes curving, and spoke with a tone of begrudging, teeth-gritting frustration: “A classmate in military combat class. His name is Li Yixing.”

For a long time, Feng Zhiyu imagined Li Yixing to be a rough, burly man. It was not until he arrived at Dacles Military Academy and stood before Li Yixing that he realized Li Yixing was an incredibly handsome young man.

With ink-black eyes and hair, pale skin, and clean-cut facial contours, his features were as if carved by a master sculptor from the Venus Art Academy flawless.

The Dacles uniform sat perfectly on him, outlining a physique with exceptionally beautiful lines: broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and a ramrod-straight posture. The visible portion of his forearm hinted at the power hidden within.

When Feng Zhiyu locked eyes with him, his heart skipped an inexplicable beat, and he even felt a sudden dryness in his throat.

Li Yixing, however, did not notice Feng Zhiyu’s abnormality. He took the luggage from Feng Zhiyu’s hands, maintained a safe social distance, and patiently introduced him to the entire campus. When they reached the dormitory, Feng Zhiyu was so distracted by that face that he stuttered for the first time in his life: “Th-thank you, Senior. Could you… could you leave me your contact information?”

He had assumed that because of his connection to Feng Zhao, Li Yixing would decline, but to his surprise, Li Yixing gave it to him, adding that he could be reached online if there were any questions.

That year, Feng Zhiyu frequently chatted with Li Yixing about various topics, from daily life to course studies, even books and music. Li Yixing would respond, though briefly, it was clear these were merely polite replies.

Yet, Feng Zhiyu was satisfied. After all, the Special Operations Department widely regarded Li Yixing as a “high-altitude flower on a cliff,” and the people chasing him could circle the Dacles track fifteen times. Regrettably, no one could secure special treatment except for Feng Zhao from the Command Department. Occasionally, in military combat or mecha simulation classes, Li Yixing and Feng Zhao would square off. Whenever they met, they would abandon all restraint, treating the other as if they were an agent of the Oga Empire, with a kind of beautiful, unrelenting fury that suggested neither would stop until the other was floored.

Feng Zhiyu had originally planned to confess his feelings on the day Li Yixing graduated, but Li Yixing did not even attend the ceremony; he left half a month early for a covert mission to infiltrate the Oga Empire.

Later, when Li Yixing returned to the Alliance, their meetings were infrequent Feng Zhiyu himself was frequently deployed on missions, and Li Yixing truly had no intentions of that nature. Thus, the confession plan was delayed repeatedly until Feng Tingsong announced the upcoming marriage alliance with the Davis family.

The moment Feng Zhiyu heard the news, he threw his hat into the ring.

“Father,” Feng Zhiyu said, “I am willing to take on this marriage!”

Political marriages were difficult to dissolve; once married, the person would be his. Wouldn’t fostering affection be easy? Once married, he had ten thousand ways to keep Li Yixing by his side.

Unexpectedly, his move met with fierce opposition from Fang Shengwan.

“I do not agree to you marrying Li Yixing! I absolutely do not!” Fang Shengwan roared at Feng Zhiyu and Feng Tingsong. “You are only twenty-six, so young! Why the rush? Are you dissatisfied with your father? Do you think I manage your life too much, that I am annoying? Is that why you want to marry early, establish your own household, and move out?”

“Did you not say you would always love Dad when you were small? Did you not say you would always listen to Dad? Are you going to make Dad sad just for his sake?”

The rapid-fire, machine-gun-like accusations caught Feng Zhiyu off guard.

He said, “But Father, I like him. Is this marriage not a perfect arrangement for both of us?”

“I absolutely forbid it. You have no idea what a marriage alliance entails! I am doing this for your own good! You like him, but does he like you back? He does not know you, he does not love you, and he will not take care of every detail of your life like I do. You will not be happy with him!” He screamed at Feng Zhiyu, then grabbed Feng Tingsong’s collar to threaten him: “If you dare let Zhiyu marry into that family, I will shoot myself right in front of you and let the whole Alliance know what kind of dirty deeds you have done!”

Feng Tingsong had no real way to handle Fang Shengwan, and he also harbored guilt. When Fang Shengwan was pregnant with Feng Zhao via a biological womb, Feng Tingsong, overcome by loneliness, eventually cheated with another man. Fang Shengwan discovered the affair, and Tingsong’s excuse was that the pregnant Fang Shengwan was no longer the person he used to love; he lacked the charm and beauty he possessed when he was a film star, and thus could not hold his heart.

But he did not want to end the marriage. He still loved Fang Shengwan—it was just a small mistake, and he would definitely change. Furthermore, he demanded Fang Shengwan forgive him and maintain their marriage to ensure his public image as a man who loved his spouse and children.

Fang Shengwan was just a minor actor, while Feng Tingsong was already the Chief Official of the First Galaxy. He was powerless against an old fox like Tingsong and the forces behind the Feng family. Ultimately, he could not escape the misery, eventually defaulting to Tingsong’s narrative after day-after-day of gaslighting. However, this caused Fang Shengwan’s mental state to collapse, eventually shifting his resentment onto the child he had carried for ten months: Feng Zhao. He blamed Feng Zhao for bringing all of this upon him.

It was not until Feng Zhiyu was born that Fang Shengwan’s emotions stabilized.

He relied on Feng Zhiyu to an abnormal degree, and Feng Tingsong, for the sake of family harmony and reputation, turned a blind eye. He used Feng Zhiyu as a stabilizer to maintain the family’s harmony.

Thus, the person to be married off was swapped from Feng Zhiyu to Feng Zhao.

Feng Zhiyu had originally thought that, given the relationship between Feng Zhao and Li Yixing, the latter would certainly oppose the marriage plan.

But he had not expected that Feng Zhao, far away in the Fifth Galaxy, would not oppose it upon receiving the news.

Fang Shengwan wept, crying that Feng Zhiyu would suffer in a loveless marriage; Feng Tingsong used his persuasive skills, preparing a litany of arguments to deal with Feng Zhao.

Feng Zhao’s reaction, however, surprised everyone.

“Whatever,” Feng Zhiyu heard Feng Zhao’s voice over the comms. “Arrange it however you want. If he dares to marry, I dare to marry. Once married, I am returning to the Great Wall Fortress.”

Feng Zhiyu later called Feng Zhao, furious at his reaction, and could not help but demand, “Why did you not object? If you had objected, I would have had a chance…”

“Would it have mattered if I objected? When have you ever asked for my opinion when making decisions?” Feng Zhao retorted. “Furthermore, even if I had objected, would you have dared to marry him against the wishes of Father and Dad? If you had dared, I would have opposed the marriage immediately.”

Feng Zhiyu fell silent.

“Speak,” Feng Zhao said. “Why are you quiet?”

He truly did not dare; he dared not defy Feng Tingsong or Fang Shengwan. Fang Shengwan relied on him and wanted him to accompany him more, and he had long since grown accustomed to obeying Fang Shengwan, rarely defying him. Since childhood, Fang Shengwan had taught him that “Dad is the most important,” and “everything Dad does is for your own good,” and that he could not break Dad’s rules and make him sad. The only time he had defied him was entering Dacles Military Academy, and that had resulted in Fang Shengwan attempting suicide. This was why, after graduating, Feng Zhiyu weighed the pros and cons and decided not to join the Special Operations Force, instead becoming a staff officer in the Alliance military.

Fang Shengwan’s love had already drowned Feng Zhiyu; no matter how he struggled, he could not crawl out.

As for Feng Tingsong, he was the master of the house. He wanted to stabilize Fang Shengwan’s emotions so he could comfortably remain the Alliance Chief Official, so he would only support Fang Shengwan’s decisions and then blame Feng Zhiyu for being “unreasonable.”

“Ha, I knew it, do not go pinning your failures on me like Dad does,” Feng Zhao’s voice sounded. “That is it, I am hanging up.”

And so, Feng Zhiyu had missed his chance with Li Yixing. Li Yixing became his brother-in-law, and he shifted from a junior student to a brother-in-law.

Feng Zhao’s death, however, made him see an opportunity again.

The political marriage was not yet over. As long as he controlled the situation properly, Feng Zhiyu’s eyes gleamed, he would certainly be able to inherit this marriage!

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