624 Anchor

'It'd be amazing if you really got pregnant today,' Jin Liwei thought inside his head. Or at least, he thought that it was inside his head. He didn't realize that he said it out loud.

Iris asked, "Do you really want to be a father that much?"

"Not particularly," he replied while stroking her hair. "Before I met you, I always thought that babies and kids are messy, annoying, and a hassle to take care of. I had no interest in having them at all. But I'm the head of the Jins, so I'm expected to produce an heir someday. I always view it as a duty that I would have to force myself to fulfill. I kept putting it off even though relatives kept on trying to matchmake me to potential marriage partners. I was too focused on running the company and the clan that before I knew it, I was already in my thirties. I figured that before I become too old, I would just pick a random woman to wed and become my wife, and then force myself to impregnate her so that I could have my required heir."

Iris scowled. This was the first time that she heard him talk about this. She knew that it was quite common among men of his status and wealth, but she still felt uncomfortable hearing about it. An urge to strangle the random, faceless woman he was talking about bubbled inside her. Although she knew that such a woman didn't exist because of her, she still couldn't stop herself from feeling jealous.

Jin Liwei was hers!

He detected her jealousy and was pleased, causing a wide grin to spread on his handsome face. Nevertheless, he still pulled her closer until there was almost no space between their bodies and comforted her with a kiss on her temple.

Then he continued, "That was how I lived my life, only revolving around the company and the Jin family. Then I met you and everything changed."

Her jealousy towards the nonexistent woman disappeared as she paid attention to his every word.

"For the first time, I felt desire for another human being, for a woman, the most beautiful and extraordinary that I have ever met in my life. Granted, I had my own prejudice against you before meeting you but once I met you in person and got to know you better, I was immediately hooked. I couldn't get you out of my mind. I felt crazy…I still feel crazy about you. I wanted to make you mine, to become my woman, my lover, my wife, and the mother of my children. All of these desires awakened inside me because of you."

Iris smiled and rested her head on his shoulder. She loved listening to him talk about his feelings for her like this.

"So to answer your question, what I want is to be your husband and the father of your children. If you're the mother, I realized that I'm ready to father up to a hundred kids."

A giggle escaped from her lips. "A hundred? Are you planning to kill me? Do you want me to spend the rest of our lives getting pregnant and giving birth to all of your children?"

The mood lightened. He was relieved to hear her laughing again after her emotional breakdown earlier. "Kill you? Never. Whether or not you give birth to our kids isn't the most important to me. The most important for me is to make you truly mine. I want to marry you and spend the rest of our lives together. I'll always love you and stay with you until we grow old. Even if you grow sick and tired of me when I turn into a cranky, old man, I'll still stick by your side and never leave you."

"What if I'm the one who turns into a cranky, old woman? What if you're the one who grows sick and tired of me? Will you still stick by my side and never leave me?"

He chuckled and continued playing with her hair. "Even if you turn into a cranky, old woman, I'll still love you. Besides, I'm far older than you. I'll turn into an old man first before you turn into an old woman. I hope that you'll still love me even when I become old and unattractive while you're still young and beautiful."

She grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Liwei—"

He interrupted her and continued speaking, wanting to release all the words that he wanted to tell her out of his chest. "I'll never grow sick and tired of you, my love. If something unimaginable like that ever happens, I'm sure it's not because I've fallen out of love with you but because I became brain-damaged or something. You're so beautiful, talented, amazing, extraordinary—a genius. I feel like I don't deserve to be loved by you at all. My only consolation is that nobody else deserves you either. That's why I have to be shameless and do everything in my power to make you fall in love with me, to persuade you that I'm the man deserving of your love, and that we can live in happiness together."

"Oh Liwei."

"I'll always stick by your side and never leave you. You're the love of my life, Long Xiulan...or whoever you are. Now that I found you, how could I allow myself to let you go? If you're not beside me, how else would I be able to live from now on?"

A lump formed in her throat after hearing his proclamation of love. This man truly loved her. She could feel his love not just from his words and actions but also from their connection—physical, emotional, mental, and even spiritual.

Right at that moment, a sense of calm washed over her highly-strung emotions. He was like a strong and stable anchor, keeping her safe and secure no matter how many storms ravaged through her life.

"I'm still afraid that I'd fail as a mother to our future children," she told him. "But because you're with me, I feel like I can face anything."

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[This novel is a contracted work with W e b n o v e l . c o m (remove spaces). If you're not reading this chapter on W e b n o v e l, it has been stolen. It's very discouraging to see thieves profitting from my hard work. Please read this novel on W e b n o v e l. Thank you! -Arria]