Chapter 2: and

Gu Hanchen stood up from his leather chair upon hearing this, scratching his short, messy hair. "Are you joking? You got pregnant before Michen went public?"

"No, that's not right. You aren't even married, so how did you get pregnant?"

Yuan Xi’s voice was indifferent. "I am not married. The child is just an accident."

"President Gu, I want to resign."

The hard work at Michen over the past five years was real, but her salary had not been low.

Now, while she couldn't claim financial freedom, she already owned a 100-square-meter apartment in the prime, high-priced city center of Jiangcheng, as well as a car for commuting.

Although her savings weren't vast, they were enough for her to give birth to the child.

Moreover, the Michen shares she owned would be enough to raise her two children once the company went public.

It was time to find a more relaxed job. Her morning sickness had been quite severe these past few days, and she needed a good rest.

Besides, Gu Hanchen’s fiancée, Yu Xiaoxiao, was a difficult person to deal with, and neither the Yu family nor the Chu family were people she could afford to offend...

It would be better to resign now and focus on a healthy pregnancy.

Gu Hanchen frowned. "Resign? Absolutely not. We are at a critical point in Michen’s plan to go public; how could you have the nerve to suggest resigning?"

Yuan Xi replied, "Although the child was an accident, I still want to raise them well. I haven't taken a single day off since I joined Michen after graduation. Now that I have a child, I want to find a more relaxed job where I can take care of them."

"I won't approve it. Don't even think about resigning!"

Gu Hanchen said coldly, "Yuan Xi, you need to get your head straight. Is it worth sacrificing your career for a child? I don't think the father of your child even knows you're pregnant, right?"

"If the father of your child refuses to take responsibility, can you support the child on your own?"

"You are still young; you can have children later. It would be better to terminate the pregnancy. Nothing is more important than Michen going public."

Yuan Xi looked at Gu Hanchen coldly. How could he even say such a thing?

"President Gu, I have been an orphan since I was eighteen. I crave having a child more than anyone, and I will absolutely never choose to give up this baby."

Yuan Xi gently stroked her flat abdomen, her resolve to resign growing firmer. "President Gu, I will submit my resignation through the OA system. In principle, I can leave once I have finished handing over my work. Please find someone to take over my duties as soon as possible."

Gu Hanchen’s voice was icy. "Yuan Xi, you need to know the consequences of offending the Jiangcheng Gu family. If you dare to resign at this juncture, I will make sure you can't find a job in Jiangcheng ever again. Let's see how you'll support your child then!"

"President Gu, the police are here. They say they want to see Yuan Xi."

Special Assistant Wang opened the office door and hurried inside.

Gu Hanchen looked at Yuan Xi. "How did you get involved with the police?"

Yuan Xi looked out to see several police officers she recognized, and behind them stood Chu Qing, the richest man in Jiangcheng, and his wife, Yang Ying.

Chu Yan, who had blocked her in the garage earlier, was the daughter most doted upon by Chu Qing and Yang Ying.

The police officer walked up to Yuan Xi. "Yuan Xi, congratulations on finding your parents. The DNA comparison results are in; you and Chu Qing are father and daughter."

Hearing the officer's words, Yuan Xi stood frozen in place, even more shocked than when she had been told she was pregnant.

When she was eighteen, her adoptive parents passed away in an accident. Regarding the compensation, her uncle and aunt had claimed she was a child bought by her adoptive parents in order to seize the property left behind, and they had driven Yuan Xi out of the house.

Yuan Xi hadn't believed it at first, but when that test report was placed in front of her, she had no choice but to believe it.

For the past eight years, Yuan Xi had been searching for her parents, but she had never imagined that they would be the richest family in Jiangcheng!

After hearing the police, Gu Hanchen looked at Chu Qing in confusion. "Uncle Chu, what is going on? How could Yuan Xi be your daughter? What about Chu Yan?"

Chu Qing explained, "Twenty-six years ago, when Xin'er was three months old, a nanny kidnapped her and demanded a million-yuan ransom. While we were gathering the money, Xin'er was abducted by someone else at the train station, and her whereabouts became unknown."

"At that time, your Aunt Yang was too heartbroken. After searching for a year without success, we went to an orphanage and adopted a daughter to raise as Xin'er—that is the current Chu Yan."

Yang Ying, with tears in her eyes, walked over and pulled the stunned Yuan Xi into her arms. "Xin'er, I'm sorry. It’s all your father’s and my fault. We never gave up looking for you all these years, but we never expected you were right here in Jiangcheng, and it took us so long to find you."

Yuan Xi remained stunned in Yang Ying’s embrace; it had been a long time since she had felt a mother's hug.

In truth, although her adoptive parents weren't very wealthy, they had been very good to her. Before she was eighteen, she could say she had lived the life of a little princess.

Her adoptive mother was very short, less than 1.5 meters, while Yuan Xi was 1.7 meters tall, but her adoptive mother had always loved to hug her.

The current Yang Ying, wearing high heels, was even taller than her and smelled of high-end, elegant perfume. Whether it was the connection of blood or not, this one hug made Yuan Xi feel as if she had returned to the time when her adoptive mother was still alive.

"Mom..." a sound escaped from the bottom of Yuan Xi's throat. "Mom."

Yang Ying could no longer hold back her tears. "My Xin'er, my Xin'er... Mom has finally found you. Come home with Mom."

"No!"

Just as the mother and daughter were having a touching reunion, Gu Hanchen jumped in. "Aunt Yang, Uncle Chu, it is still working hours. Yuan Xi is still my secretary; she cannot go back with you!"

Chu Qing, having found his daughter, had tears in his eyes. "Taking a day off shouldn't be a big deal."

Gu Hanchen had a headache. "How is it not a big deal? A major shareholder of Michen specifically requested that Yuan Xi deliver the financial report to him. He is the god who holds the power of life and death over our Michen... If Yuan Xi doesn't go, he might really withdraw his investment!"

Chu Qing said, "How big of a deal is that? If the major shareholder withdraws, Uncle Chu will invest in you."

Yuan Xi was slightly dazed upon hearing Gu Hanchen mention the major shareholder. She pulled away from Yang Ying’s embrace and wiped her tears with the back of her hand.

"Dad, Mom, although I have submitted my resignation, I haven't officially left yet. I want to continue working properly; it’s only right to see things through to the end."

Chu Qing smiled. "Resigning is good. After you resign, come take over the Chu Corporation. I’ve always heard your brother say that Gu Hanchen has a capable secretary named Yuan. It’s much better to work for your own family’s group than to be a secretary for someone else."

Gu Hanchen frowned. How did Yuan Xi become the daughter of the Chu family?

How could she be the daughter of the Chu family?

Michen could do without him, Gu Hanchen, but it could not do without Yuan Xi.

He absolutely could not let Yuan Xi resign.

Chu Qing and Yang Ying urged Yuan Xi to return to the Chu residence as soon as she got off work. After Yuan Xi agreed, she returned to her office to print the first-quarter financial report.

It was already May. Logically, Huo Shiyan should have seen the first-quarter report long ago; why did he still need her to report it?

After Yuan Xi organized the financial report, she thought for a moment, took the ultrasound report out of her bag, and tucked it into the financial report.

Looking at the gestational sac on the ultrasound, Yuan Xi gently stroked her flat abdomen. She wondered if he would force her to abort the child once he found out...

(End of chapter)