ACMS 41

Chapter 41: Testing the Waters

Qiao Le had gotten the check-up at the city’s First People’s Hospital—not one of those unlicensed clinics.

But when he got the results, he thought he had walked into the wrong place.

The doctor, seeing his stunned expression, offered some comfort: “The results are a bit unbelievable, but there have been cases like this before. No need to question your entire existence.”

Qiao Le: “…”

As a man, he had just been told he was pregnant—and the doctor was telling him not to question his life?

How could he not?

He was starting to question the doctor instead.

“Could there be a mistake?” Qiao Le couldn’t believe it. “Are you sure it’s not some digestive problem? I’ve had gastritis before, and the symptoms were similar.”

“There’s no mistake.” The doctor answered seriously. “It’s all written in black and white. Your scans are here too—they clearly show that you’re pregnant.”

What if they mixed up the scans?

What if there was a woman with the same name?

Qiao Le voiced his doubts, and the doctor, fully understanding his disbelief, nodded. After all, in his decades of practice, he had only ever seen one male pregnancy in the hospital’s history archives.

So he ordered another HCG test for Qiao Le to confirm it.

When the second test result came back, Qiao Le didn’t just feel dumbfounded anymore—he felt like the sky had collapsed.

He barely heard what the doctor said afterward. When the next patient entered, he got up robotically, mumbled a thank you, and stumbled out.

He had been at the obstetrics department.

Initially, he’d planned to get a gastro check-up—but somewhere along the way, he’d been rerouted to OB-GYN.

The OB-GYN waiting room was packed, mostly with women. The few men there were clearly accompanying their wives or girlfriends. Only he—one lone man—had come to OB-GYN alone for a check-up.

No one would even believe it if he told them: a man, getting seen at OB-GYN.

And then getting diagnosed… as pregnant.

It was absurd beyond belief.

Qiao Le clutched the test results in his hand, his thoughts in complete chaos.

How can I be pregnant? Am I some kind of freak?

Realizing the direction his thoughts were going, Qiao Le quickly shook his head.

No—didn’t the doctor say so? The hospital had seen a similar case, even if it was years ago.

It was rare, but not impossible.

But what now?

When people are panicking and at a loss, they instinctively seek someone they can rely on. Qiao Le pulled out his phone and reflexively started typing a message to Shen Hechuan.

But just as he was about to hit send, he hesitated.

A pregnant man—he could barely believe it himself. How could Shen Hechuan believe it?

Besides, their marriage was only contractual. Suddenly having a child—how were they supposed to deal with that?

Even though their relationship had subtly changed over time, in essence, they were just legally bound “bedmates.”

If he suddenly claimed to be pregnant, it would feel like he was using the child to climb the ladder.

His finger hovered over the “send” button for a long time. Then, slowly, he erased the message, and instead called Fang Jiaxu.

He told him he wasn’t feeling well and asked if he could accompany him for a check-up.

It was still early; they had time.

The moment Fang Jiaxu heard, he got worried and asked where he was and which hospital he wanted to go to.

Qiao Le remembered the Lihua Hospital where Shen Hechuan had gone for his physical last time. It was a private hospital, but extremely reputable in this area.

He arranged to meet Fang Jiaxu there, hung up, and headed out.

Whether the results were real or not, he needed a second check to confirm.

When they met, Fang Jiaxu anxiously asked where he felt unwell and which department to visit.

Qiao Le said, “Obstetrics.”

On the way there, he had calmed down somewhat. He had a strong gut feeling that the results this time would be the same.

He couldn’t explain why—he just felt that testing again was merely a last-ditch struggle.

The word “obstetrics” stunned Fang Jiaxu. He pointed to himself, then to Qiao Le: “Us? OB-GYN? Are you sure you didn’t book the wrong department?”

Qiao Le really wished he had. “I didn’t.”

“Aren’t we supposed to see urology or something?” Fang Jiaxu thought he’d misheard. “Why OB-GYN? Who are we here for?”

“For me.” Qiao Le said with certainty.

Fang Jiaxu: “…”

He wanted to ask more, but Qiao Le’s serious expression made him swallow the questions and follow him in, baffled.

Having just gone through the process once, Qiao Le was already familiar with the pregnancy check-up steps. After registering, he went straight for an ultrasound. The gel on his skin was icy cold, making his lower abdomen twitch.

Even though he knew it was futile, he couldn’t help but hope—hope that the doctor would tell him the opposite of last time.

But reality always cruelly crushed hope.

“…Pregnant?”

The doctor’s voice was full of disbelief. He glanced at Qiao Le, then looked again at the scan.

The image clearly showed a gestational sac inside Qiao Le’s body.

“Ah.” The doctor confirmed he hadn’t misread. “You’re pregnant.”

Qiao Le: “…” No point struggling anymore.

“Pregnant?!!”

Fang Jiaxu’s eyes widened in shock, staring at the report in disbelief, echoing Qiao Le’s reaction from the first time: “Did they mix up the reports?! How can you be pregnant?!”

Qiao Le also wished it was a mistake. But two different hospitals? That was impossible.

In that moment, it felt like his entire soul had been sucked out of him.

Seeing how pale he was, Fang Jiaxu clapped a hand on his shoulder and said, “Don’t panic yet. What if both hospitals made a mistake? Let’s go to a third one.”

“No need.”

Qiao Le handed him the first report. “I came straight from the city hospital.”

Fang Jiaxu took the paper and saw the same two words—“early pregnancy”—and it shattered something inside him.

“…Are you okay?” Qiao Le saw him frozen and patted his shoulder. “Be strong. I called you here for support. Don’t collapse on me.”

At that, Fang Jiaxu straightened up with effort, swallowing hard. “I’m okay… I’m more worried about you.”

“To be honest, I’m not really okay.” Qiao Le said frankly.

And neither was Fang Jiaxu. This was the first time he’d ever learned that men could get pregnant—and it was his best friend.

He held the report tightly. “It’s Shen Hechuan’s, right?”

“…Who else could it be?” Qiao Le’s face darkened.

“Sorry, sorry—I’m just in shock.” Fang Jiaxu knew it couldn’t be anyone else. He scratched his head. “So… does he know yet?”

Qiao Le paused. “Not yet.”

He didn’t know how to say it.

Fang Jiaxu immediately said, “Then you’d better tell him! He’s the one who got you pregnant—he has to take responsibility!”

Responsibility?

Qiao Le thought—we’re not even really married. What responsibility is there to take?

Even if Shen Hechuan was willing to take responsibility, was he supposed to keep the baby?

Keep the baby?

Qiao Le’s first reaction was: absolutely not.

Never mind how absurd it was for a man to give birth—he had only just managed to return to school. How could he drop everything and go have a baby?

Qiao Le knew all too well how hard it was to raise a child. After all, he had practically raised Qiao Man himself.

Even though he didn’t need to worry about money anymore, a child—from pregnancy to birth to raising and educating—would demand immense energy and devotion. Just thinking about it gave him a headache.

More than that… it scared him.

“Lele?”

Fang Jiaxu noticed the change in his expression and called out to him. “What’s wrong? Don’t worry, things can always be worked out. You just need to calm down first.”

Qiao Le licked his dry lips. “I’m fine, I just…”

Just didn’t know what to do, all of a sudden.

Judging from the timing, it must’ve happened the night of the engagement banquet. That night, Shen Hechuan hadn’t used protection—but neither of them had expected that a man could get pregnant.

Back then, Shen Hechuan had told him he hadn’t gotten a vasectomy. Now, Qiao Le was living that reality.

If he’d known he could get pregnant, even if he was drunk out of his mind that night, he would’ve forced himself up to make Shen Hechuan use protection.

But there were no do-overs. He could only accept it now.

“What are you thinking?” Fang Jiaxu asked carefully. “Are you planning to keep it? If you are, what about school?”

“I don’t want to,” Qiao Le shook his head and said quietly, “I…”

He paused, not finishing his sentence, but Fang Jiaxu understood how he felt.

He’d seen all the hardships Qiao Le had endured over the past year.

To other people, a child might seem like a gift. But to Qiao Le, right now, it wasn’t.

“It’s okay,” Fang Jiaxu comforted him. “Whatever you decide, I’ll support you. But the most important thing is your safety.”

A man’s physiology was different from a woman’s—without the proper birth canal, giving birth would be far more dangerous.

And abortion carried its own risks, too.

Qiao Le was only nineteen. He had never experienced anything this surreal. And although Fang Jiaxu was a few years older, he was just as lost when it came to this.

The two of them looked at each other, both completely at a loss.

“Let’s go home first,” Qiao Le said. The results were already confirmed—there was no point in staying at the hospital.

Fang Jiaxu replied, “Alright. My car’s right outside. I’ll take you back.”

They walked out together, too caught up in the results to notice Judy talking with someone in a nearby corridor.

Lihua Hospital had a partnership with the medical equipment company under Hualang Group. Judy was there for work. By the time she noticed Qiao Le, he and Fang Jiaxu had already turned a corner and exited the building.

Once they were in the car, Fang Jiaxu asked if Qiao Le wanted to eat something.

Qiao Le was checking his WeChat. The custom cufflinks he’d ordered for Shen Hechuan had arrived, and SA was asking if he wanted them delivered.

He sent back a reply, then put his phone away and said to Fang Jiaxu, “Okay.”

Fang Jiaxu looked up pregnancy dietary restrictions online and found a porridge shop nearby with light, healthy food.

Neither of them had much of an appetite. They just ordered a pot of porridge and a few mild side dishes.

Back at the Linjiang Complex, before Qiao Le got out of the car, Fang Jiaxu reminded him to take care of his health and to tell him immediately if anything came up.

Qiao Le agreed. Then Fang Jiaxu added, “I really think you should tell Shen Hechuan. Whether you’re keeping it or not, he has the right to know. He’s at least fifty percent responsible.”

“Mm.” Qiao Le nodded, said he understood, then got out of the car.

Once home, he shoved the test reports into the very back of a drawer. When Qiao Man heard he was back, he ran out of his room. “Brother, you’re home!”

Qiao Le’s heart skipped a beat as he quickly closed the drawer.

“Did you finish your homework?” he asked.

Qiao Man nodded. “Yeah! We did crafts today, and Auntie Yang helped me cut the paper.”

“Did you thank her?”

“I did!”

Qiao Man asked if he could play flight chess together. Qiao Le said “sure” and went with him to the living room.

But during the game, Qiao Le kept drifting off, his mind stuck on the exam results.

Thankfully, Qiao Man didn’t notice. After playing for a while, he packed up the pieces, said goodnight, and went off to bed.

Qiao Le showered and came out, sitting on the sofa. He lifted his shirt and stared at his flat stomach for a long time.

It looked so flat—how could there be a baby inside?

He couldn’t wrap his head around it.

He reached out and touched his belly. It felt like nothing.

If he told Shen Hechuan he was pregnant with his child, how would Shen Hechuan react?

Would he think he’d lost his mind?

It was giving him a headache just thinking about it.

“What are you thinking about?”

A voice sounded behind him, and Qiao Le snapped to attention. He turned around to see Shen Hechuan standing there.

His first instinct was to drop his shirt to cover his stomach. “When did you get back?”

“Just now,” Shen Hechuan replied, taking off his coat and setting it aside. “You looked lost in thought—what were you thinking about?”

About you and our child.

That’s what Qiao Le thought—but didn’t say aloud.

“Nothing, just bored and zoning out.” He came up with an excuse. “I’m heading to bed.”

He got up from the sofa, ready to go back to his room, but Shen Hechuan stopped him. “Wait.”

“Hm?”

Shen Hechuan asked, “Did you go to the hospital today?”

Qiao Le stiffened.

Then Shen Hechuan continued, “Judy said she saw you and Fang Jiaxu at Lihua Hospital. Why the sudden hospital visit? Are you feeling unwell?”

Qiao Le quietly let out a sigh of relief. “No, I was just keeping Jiaxu company. His stomach’s been bothering him, so he went for a gastroscopy.”

Shen Hechuan didn’t think much of it. He walked over and gave Qiao Le a kiss on the cheek, just like always. “As long as everything’s fine. I’m going to shower.”

Then he headed toward the master bedroom. Qiao Le felt a faint warmth where he’d been kissed, and suddenly, his mind overheated. He impulsively called out: “Shen Hechuan.”

Shen Hechuan stopped and looked back at him. “What is it?”

Qiao Le’s heart pounded violently, and there was a ringing in his ears.

He forced himself to stay calm and asked, “Do you like kids?”