Chapter 51: You Are Pregnant

"What's in your head..." Chen Siling instinctively retorted, but stopped abruptly when she saw the face under the mask.

"Jiang... Jiang Fan?" She couldn't believe her eyes. Her mind went blank.

"You helped our Chen family because of me!" Jiang Fan said, annoyed, "Otherwise? What's in your head? Did you take me for a lecher?"

Chen Siling was completely bewildered. She then remembered her sloppy appearance, the terrible food she had cooked, and her generally unpleasant demeanor. Suddenly, she felt utterly hopeless. She had revealed her most embarrassing side to the person she liked most. "I don't want to live!" she cried, squatting down and covering her face as she sobbed loudly.

Chen Yuqiu arrived upon hearing the commotion. From a distance, he saw his daughter crying on the ground and assumed she had been bullied. His heart ached, and he blamed himself, saying, "I'm sorry, Siling, your father shouldn't have put this burden on you." He then turned to Jiang Fan and said in a deep voice, "Please come back another day. Even if our Chen family loses everything, we will repay your kindness."

Chen Siling quickly wiped away her tears and explained, "No, it's not that. I wasn't bullied. We misunderstood." Only after she explained Jiang Fan's identity did Chen Yuqiu realize his mistake. He had clearly overthought the situation! Jiang Fan was actually his daughter's best friend's fiancé, and he had truly intervened out of consideration for her. "Look at the fuss I made," Chen Yuqiu said, his face flushing with embarrassment. He clasped his hands repeatedly in apology. "I judged a gentleman by my own petty standards. I apologize to you."

Feeling awkward, Chen Yuqiu picked up a cup of wine from the table, intending to return the toast. He then noticed how unappetizing the dishes on the table were and immediately flew into a rage, shouting, "Which cook made these dishes? Do they not want to work for the Chen family anymore?"

Chen Siling covered her face and said, "Dad, stop. I made them. I... I'll cook another meal." Chen Yuqiu's mouth hung open. Feeling awkward, he said, "Please forgive my daughter's cooking, Young Master Jiang. I'll have Siling prepare another meal right away."

"There's no need," Jiang Fan said, waving his hand. "I'm not hungry. Let's examine Chen Siling's condition first. Can I take your pulse this time?"

Chen Siling felt even more mortified. It turned out Jiang Fan had genuinely been trying to examine her, but she had mistakenly thought he was taking advantage. Overcome with shame, she covered her face with her sleeve and extended her other hand.

Chen Yuqiu was surprised. "Young Master Jiang, is my daughter sick? Is it serious?" He had personally experienced Jiang Fan's medical skills as a man on the verge of death. To say his skills could turn decay into wonder was an understatement. Jiang Fan's sudden seriousness made Chen Yuqiu's heart sink.

"I'll know after examining her," Jiang Fan said, placing his hand on Chen Siling's wrist to take her pulse. A moment later, a strange expression appeared on his face. "Her pulse is smooth and flowing, with alternating fluctuations. This is a slippery pulse!"

Chen Siling's eyes, still reflecting shame, looked at him with confusion. "What is a slippery pulse?" Jiang Fan glanced at Chen Siling's abdomen and hesitated before saying, "Pregnancy."

*Clink!* The wine cup in Chen Yuqiu's hand suddenly dropped, shattering into countless pieces on the ground. His eyes stared at his daughter in shock. Chen Siling also felt as if she had been struck by lightning. "Pre... Pregnant?" Beyond the shock, a wave of intense humiliation washed over her. Especially since the words came from Jiang Fan, she felt even more disgraced, and her eyes quickly reddened. "I'm pure and innocent; no man has ever even touched my hand!"

Chen Yuqiu also reacted. If any other doctor had been standing there, he would have slapped them away long ago. "Young Master Jiang, please diagnose carefully. My daughter is a maiden and has always conducted herself virtuously. How could she be pregnant?"

Jiang Fan shook his head and said with certainty, "It is indeed a slippery pulse; there's no mistake. If it's not pregnancy, then there's only one other possibility." Jiang Fan stared intently at Chen Siling's abdomen. "A congenital fetal body."

Chen Yuqiu and Chen Siling breathed a slight sigh of relief, then showed confusion. They clearly had never heard of a "congenital fetal body." Jiang Fan explained, "A congenital fetal body is a physical constitution that exists in theory. When two fetuses are in the same womb, there's a minuscule chance that one fetus is absorbed by the other. The two fetuses then share one body. This is a congenital fetal body."

After hearing this, Chen Yuqiu looked thoughtful. He recalled, "Indeed, when my wife first became pregnant, a physician did feel two fetuses, but later only one was born. We always thought that physician was unskilled and had misdiagnosed."

"What?" Chen Siling touched her abdomen, shivering. "Are you saying there's another person inside my body?"

Jiang Fan waved his hand and smiled reassuringly. "Don't be afraid. The fact that it's called a 'congenital fetal body' and not a 'freak' shows that this constitution is highly coveted by many female martial artists. Most absorbed fetuses are gradually assimilated as the main body grows. For it to still exist at your age, it's definitely not ordinary. If it can awaken, it will certainly exhibit extraordinary qualities. It might possess special abilities, enhance the main body in some way, or even contain a powerful spiritual root."

Upon hearing this, Chen Yuqiu's face lit up with surprise. "This is actually a good thing? Young Master Jiang, do you have a way to activate it?"

Jiang Fan nodded. He immediately wrote down a prescription, listing only expensive medicinal ingredients. Chen Yuqiu winced when he saw it, but thinking of his daughter's potential transformation, he gritted his teeth and instructed his steward to begin collecting the materials.

Chen Siling bit her lip slightly. She was no longer afraid; instead, she felt a sense of anticipation, hoping for a significant change that would narrow the gap between herself and Jiang Fan. "Jiang Fan, thank you so much for helping me this much." She didn't know how she could ever repay him, her eyes sparkling with gratitude.

As a father, Chen Yuqiu seemed to notice something and regretfully said, "It's a pity Young Master Jiang is already betrothed. Otherwise, what harm would there be in marrying my daughter to you?" A divine physician, the foremost prodigy and powerful individual in Lone Boat City—he would have been more than willing to unite such a remarkable man with his daughter.

Chen Siling's heart pounded. So, her father was also very fond of Jiang Fan. After a brief thought, she whispered, "Dad, Young Master Jiang actually has another highly confidential identity. Please don't tell anyone outside. He is also a Three-Star Soul Master. Our family's High-Grade Qi Condensation Fluid and Foundation Establishment Pills all come from him."

"What?" Chen Yuqiu's pupils contracted sharply. He instinctively moved to bow in reverence but was stopped by Chen Siling. "Dad, he doesn't know I've figured out his identity as a Three-Star Soul Master yet." Only then did he stop his action. But a colossal wave surged in his heart. What did a Three-Star Soul Master signify? That was someone even the Azure Cloud Sect Master would bow down to. For such a figure, even if he were already betrothed, what harm would there be in his daughter marrying him as a concubine? He slapped his thigh heavily and sighed, "Oh! If only your mother hadn't taken matters into her own hands!"

Chen Siling asked in surprise, "What about Mom?" Chen Yuqiu replied helplessly, "Your mother was worried that the Chen family would lose its support after I'm gone, so she took it upon herself to arrange a match between you and the Zhong family of Green Willow City. They will come to propose marriage soon."

"What?" Chen Siling's face turned pale, and she stumbled backward repeatedly. She was betrothed too? Then what about her and Jiang Fan...? At this thought, her face was filled with bitterness.

Chen Yuqiu sighed silently and cupped his hands toward Jiang Fan. "Young Master Jiang, you are a man of the world. On the day of the marriage proposal, please also come as a witness. And, if you could, help vet the prospective groom for my daughter, to see what kind of person he is and if he's worthy of her."

"Vet him?" Jiang Fan declined, "How can I, an outsider, interfere in the affairs of two prominent families like yours?"

Chen Yuqiu truly valued his identity as a Three-Star Soul Master. Someone of his caliber would undoubtedly have impeccable judgment. "Please, Young Master Jiang, help us, lest my daughter marries the wrong person and regrets it her whole life."