The Cold Side Character from a Male-Lead Novel is Pregnant - Chapter 22

Chen Kan looked toward the bedside table. The box was open, its components neatly arranged: a wide-neck feeding bottle, silicone massage pads, and shields of various sizes. The items were brand new, gleaming with a clean luster under the dim light.

Chen Kan stared at it, unmoving for a time. He naturally recalled the plot from the novel where that bastard “official lead” loved nothing more than to toy with the protagonist. After the protagonist gave birth to consecutive cubs, the children would be handed over to wet nurses, while the protagonist’s… rightfully became the official lead’s to enjoy.

Whenever the protagonist suffered from unbearable engorgement, that scoundrel would eagerly press close to play with him, often utilizing certain stimulating tools.

Chen Kan had actually preferred this plot point while reading; the author’s prose was excellent and evocative. But the main issue was that whenever Chen Kan read it, he would project Yan Yu’s face onto the protagonist, instantly feeling an uncontrollable urge that left him flustered and burning.

But now, on the bedside table, that breast pump sat in the moonlight, a lonely white object. The fire in Chen Kan’s heart suddenly burned out, leaving only the bitter ashes of reality.

He twitched the corner of his mouth, wanting to smile, but he couldn’t. Although he loved having sex with Yan Yu to the point of obsession, even he tried to look at it from Yan Yu’s perspective. If Yan Yu were to “wake up,” he would surely feel beyond humiliated. If he couldn’t forget it, he might even try to give himself amnesia by force. Chen Kan couldn’t take advantage of Yan Yu’s delusion that he was lactating just to play with him.

What would that make him? A predator taking advantage of a man’s crisis.

Chen Kan walked over and picked up the pump. The plastic casing felt cool to the touch. He squeezed it once just to feel the grip, imagining the image of this device pressed against Yan Yu’s chest. It probably wouldn’t even fit; Yan Yu was completely flat, let alone capable of producing anything.

Besides, Yan Yu was a man. What could he possibly pump out?

Just as he was touching the device, he realized Yan Yu was already standing at the door. Wearing a plain nightgown, his silhouette appeared thin. He didn’t look at Chen Kan, but stared at the floor, his voice very low. “…Is the Prince satisfied?”

“Do you think this is what I want?” Chen Kan asked slowly.

Yan Yu’s fingertips trembled. He kept his head bowed. “The Prince said… please him.”

The air was heavy and suffocating. Yan Yu looked cool and aloof, but the single dim nightlight turned his oversized silk pajamas semi-transparent, outlining his long, lithe silhouette.

However, Yan Yu’s face remained expressionless, a cold indifference born of resignation. After all, he was doing this to ensure the safety of the cubs. He closed the door with a cold face, snatched the pump away with a trace of stifled anger, and raised his hand to undo his sash. Chen Kan suddenly gripped his shoulder from behind, spinning him around forcefully. Before Yan Yu could finish his sentence, Chen Kan kissed him fiercely.

Their teeth clashed with a restless, undeniable force, leaving the faint metallic taste of rust. Yan Yu’s body stiffened; he didn’t push away, but he didn’t respond either. He kept his eyes open, looking at Chen Kan’s tightly furrowed brow inches away. It didn’t feel like a kiss; it felt like a grinding release of frustration that left the tip of his tongue numb with heat. He heard Chen Kan’s ragged breathing and his own heart thumping heavily in his chest.

Chen Kan’s hand slid from his shoulder to grip the wrist holding the pump. He squeezed hard. The plastic casing pressed into their flesh. After a long time, Chen Kan released him, their foreheads resting against each other, both breathing heavily.

“Yan Yu,” his voice was painfully hoarse, “do you think this is what I’m lacking?”

Yan Yu’s lips were red and slightly swollen. He turned his face away, his Adam’s apple bobbing. “Then what should I do?” his voice was calm. “Teach me, Prince.”

Chen Kan stared at him for a few seconds before suddenly letting go. The breast pump fell onto the carpet with a dull thud.

“Forget it.” Chen Kan stepped back. “Go to sleep.”

He turned to leave, but his sleeve was pulled tight. Yan Yu had caught him. His fingers curled with a light but persistent grip. He still didn’t look up, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible. “…Don’t go.”

Chen Kan really did leave. Consequently, the rejected “Xiao Yan,” wearing his “grumpy cat” face, worriedly touched his own chest again. He was a man, yet his body was being toyed with like this. Was he really going to admit defeat? Was he really going to let this man manipulate him?

Yan Yu’s eyes dimmed. He looked at the discarded pump, picked up the manual, and began to study it on his own. He was a man who wouldn’t stop until he achieved his goals. Since fate had pushed him here, he had to at least ensure his children were safe from illegal harm.

He thought for a moment, took out a notebook, and began writing rapidly:

December 29

Body has indeed changed; lactation continues, small but definite amount. Tried using the pump, no luck; size mismatch.

Chen Kan still hasn’t relented regarding the fiefdom and protection. He came tonight, then left.

He looked at the device with a heavy expression and did nothing in the end.

He kissed heavily, but it felt like anger.

Perhaps he thinks this is absurd. Perhaps he loathes this. I cannot read him, but the path to protecting the children seems further away. I must figure out why Chen Kan won’t do it, and why he left.

At this point, Yan Yu fell into brief thought. His pen tapped the paper several times unconsciously. Then, as if remembering something, he ordered four maps from an online platform.

Chen Kan didn’t have nearly as many thoughts. He just felt that if he didn’t leave right then, if he stayed by Yan Yu’s side, he really might have taken advantage of him.

The current Yan Yu was different from before. He felt as if he had been pulled out of cold, still water—wet and trailing a faint, alluring scent. He was both a “highland flower” and sickly-sweet, like a snow lotus resting on one’s hand, using its soft petals to brush against the palm’s most sensitive spots.

Who could resist that? Could “Fu Guanqi” resist it? Chen Kan certainly couldn’t.

Wrestling with a downward-surging heat and a sense of “if not me, who” resentment, Chen Kan went to find Zhang Xingzhi after rejecting Yan Yu’s advances. He was determined to understand Yan Yu’s inner demon and resolve it quickly.

However, Zhang Xingzhi was busy with an out-of-town job and suggested meeting the following week to check the house’s Feng Shui. They had discussed this before, but once Yan Yu’s first inner demon phase ended, the matter was shelved. Now that things were going poorly again, Chen Kan remembered his unlucky friend. He used a mix of threats and bribes to move the date up two days, settling on the afternoon of Yan Yu’s academic seminar.

During the days waiting for Zhang Xingzhi, Chen Kan never stopped observing Yan Yu.

• • He discovered the breast pump had been used. He didn’t know how, but there were suspicious, fresh water marks on the cup’s wall.

• • He found that Yan Yu had bought three national maps—one in the living room, one in the guest room, and one in the master bedroom.

• • He found that Yan Yu’s attitude toward him had become more attentive. The unpracticed attempts to please him were awkward but incredibly endearing.

Finally, Chen Kan couldn’t hold back. One night, at Yan Yu’s request, he agreed to let the “cold-faced kitten” sleep in the master bedroom—just sleep, nothing else. He thought that just lying side-by-side wouldn’t cause the “awake” Yan Yu too much embarrassment later.

However, he miscalculated Yan Yu’s ambition.

The next morning, he woke up to find himself holding Yan Yu’s long hand, sharing a blanket. Yan Yu had woken up at some unknown time and was staring at him with a clear, calm gaze. Chen Kan took a long time to settle his “morning wood” before asking with a grumpy face, “What? Why are you staring at me?”

Yan Yu said, “The Prince allowed me to sleep with him tonight. Should there not be a reward?”

“Oh,” Chen Kan recalled that the character Yan Yu was projecting was a literal “gold-digger” in the book who made demands every time he slept with a man. He was curious to see what “Xiao Yan” would ask for.

Adopting the “official lead” tone, he asked, “And what does my beloved consort want?”

Yan Yu seemed prepared. He pulled a pen and a map from under the covers. Under Chen Kan’s bewildered gaze, he spread the map out, revealing that the “Liangguang” (Guangdong and Guangxi) region had been circled in pencil.

Before Chen Kan could process his confusion, he felt something fluffy brushing against him under the blanket. He lifted the covers—the silver-white “Green Tea Cat” that Yan Yu had birthed had somehow crawled in and was curled up by his leg.

Yan Yu’s cold voice rang out: “The Prince is about to be enthroned. Should you not first choose a fiefdom for your only heir?”

Chen Kan: ?

So, this was it. His “heir.”

While Chen Kan and the “heir” were busy glaring at each other, Yan Yu pulled out a telescopic pointing stick. He pointed at the circle on the map and tapped it three times: Tap, tap, tap.

“This place is hot and humid, rich in resources, but prone to miasma,” the plastic hand tapped the area, then immediately moved to the kitten’s head, tapping it three times. “But it is clever and moisture-resistant. It can find its own food. It is a perfect fit. If you grant this land to it, it would be just right.”

Chen Kan looked at Yan Yu’s cool, aloof face, then at the circle on the map, and finally at the ball of fur by his leg. At last, he understood completely.

He was stuck between laughter and tears.

After a moment of silence, Chen Kan reached out and took hold of the telescopic rod with the plastic finger. He looked intently at Yan Yu’s deadpan face and pressed the plastic finger onto the penciled circle with a crisp “tap.”

“Say no more,” Chen Kan said. “The Liangguang region is yours.”

Yan Yu froze. He had not expected to receive a commitment so quickly.

On second thought, the long-haired cat was Chen Kan’s own offspring. Forget a “Prince of Liangguang,” Chen Kan would likely be willing to grant a territory even closer to the Central Plains. The key issue now was whether Chen Kan would be willing to treat the other kittens as his own.

Yan Yu calmly turned back toward the national map, feeling that he still had a long and difficult road ahead of him.

However, Chen Kan let out a yawn. His knee instinctively pressed between the other man’s legs. He reached out to press down on the map Yan Yu was studying and buried his sleepy head against Yan Yu’s chest.

He had no other intentions; he was simply exhausted. His body was so familiar with Yan Yu’s that he instinctively pulled him into an embrace.

Through that contact, Chen Kan felt the steady but slightly rapid heartbeat beneath Yan Yu’s thin chest, thumping against the bridge of his nose and brow bone. Yan Yu was a man; his chest was not soft. It had the lean, bony feel of a young man, accompanied by the warmth of skin and a very faint, cool fragrance unique to him.

The thought of the cold, rational Yan Yu using a pencil to circle areas on a map while plotting “fiefdoms and power” for the kittens was…

How could he be so… cute?

It makes me dislike you even more.

“What?”

“I said, can you study this later? It is only five o’clock. Sleep a bit longer.”

“Oh.”

As Chen Kan spoke, his breath brushed against Yan Yu’s cool skin. Yan Yu instinctively tried to retreat, but his back was already pressed tightly against the headboard.

Chen Kan’s arm circled Yan Yu’s waist, his head buried in his chest. He held him in an almost possessive stance. Just as Yan Yu was about to ask “Can you let go?”, he felt Chen Kan’s heavy, fit body suddenly stiffen.

“What is it now?”

Yan Yu lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on the top of Chen Kan’s head. His voice carried a trace of nearly imperceptible tension. They were intimately close, yet the atmosphere was as taut as a drawn bow.

Chen Kan suddenly lifted his head, his face flushing deep red. “Your chest… it seems…”

“Mm?”

Chen Kan’s dark gaze focused on the front of Yan Yu’s plain nightgown. There, just below the heart, two small but clear dark water stains had spread.

It was clearly a very thin male chest, but the plain silk nightgown was soaked through by those two dark spots, faintly outlining a subtle contour.

Chen Kan’s fingers reached toward the collar of the nightgown, intending to unbutton it and check, but Yan Yu dodged him.

Left with no choice, Chen Kan asked directly: “What is going on here, Yan Yu?”

New Story Teaser: The System’s Top Idol Became the Entertainment Industry’s Public Instructor

Gu Xuxi was the recognized “Beauty with an Eight-fold Scope” of the entire North China Detachment. However, the year he earned a first-class merit, his photo was hung on the memorial wall.

But Gu Xuxi didn’t die. He traveled into a “male-frequency” web novel and became a brainless, pretty-faced idol. In the book, he was arrogant and extravagant, playing the big shot by clinging to powerful figures. Yet, even when he did nothing, the world’s resources and luck were shoved into his hands. By the end of the story, he was exposed as a negative example and lost everything to the “grassroots” protagonist.

In this life, when the “karma” of the plot arrived, his rivals and anti-fans dug into his past, only to be stunned. Why was this Gu Xuxi only interested in “uniting the masses,” “working seriously,” and “clocking in on time”?

Gu Xuxi was also frustrated. His new colleagues didn’t seem normal.

An award-winning actor insisted on “special training” during a celebrity sports show, wrapping his arms around Gu Xuxi’s waist and asking to be taught how to throw a discus. His voice trembled: “I… my balance is bad…” Gu Xuxi (expressionlessly correcting the form): “Tighten your core and use your arms. If you can’t do this, I suggest two more hours of practice.”

A veteran idol tried to “help a junior,” but rubbed against his leg off-camera with watery eyes: “Mommy, can you look at me just once?” Gu Xuxi (pulling out his notebook): “Inappropriate speech and behavior. One record. If it happens again, we will have a formal disciplinary talk.”

A top singer playing in an idol drama finished ten failed takes and approached with red ears: “Teacher Gu, I can’t find the feeling for this hug scene…” Gu Xuxi (stepping back, businesslike): “I suggest re-reading chapter three of ‘An Actor Prepares.’ If you need tutoring, please make an appointment according to the procedure.”

An e-sports god gave up a multi-million dollar endorsement to join the same slow-paced variety show. He looked at Gu Xuxi from afar and told the camera: “It was worth coming.” Gu Xuxi (frowning, to his assistant): “Check if he is suspected of an illegal job hop or a contract dispute.”

It turned out that if Gu Xuxi kept a pair of handcuffs on his belt, these people only got more excited. Gu Xuxi wondered: why do these artists earn so much money without working hard? Do they even have their hearts in the job?

Fortunately, he was under 35, had a degree, no tattoos, and was a party member. Just as his reputation reached its peak, he left the industry. The internet was shocked to find out he was… taking the civil service exam?

While the web was in an uproar, Gu Xuxi was pressed against a cold table edge, facing the gaze of Qi Shu. His professional instinct made him wary: “Thanks for deleting the trending searches, but since I landed a job at the Tax Bureau, I’m still going to audit you first.”

Qi Shu gave a low laugh: “Welcome. I’ll be waiting at any time.” He paused, his voice dropping deeper. “It would be best if you audited me for a lifetime.”

Gu Xuxi narrowed his eyes: ? Is he provoking me?

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