Chapter 319

One Hundred and Twenty-Eight Pages Postponement Request

Tony Yang hired his sister to work in the shop with an expensive bundle of fabric as payment. Her job was to help customers alter the clothes according to their body types, even though it wasn’t a ready-made clothing store, Tony Yang still accepted such alteration requests.

Following this, Tony Yang brought Miss Grizelda back to the storeroom.

“Little AJ has arrived? I thought you had forgotten about our arrangement.”

He was still wearing his self-designed outfit, a strong personal style, practical navy high-neck coat, with a tuft of beard under his chin, slicked-back hair neatly tied up at the back, exuding a dashing and efficient aura.

“I’ve always been thinking about this matter, Mr. Tyrone.”

“It’s Tony. You must be doing this on purpose, you little rascal.”

Tony Yang was flustered. I then looked behind him at the demure and dignified Miss Grizelda.

The famous female fashion designer who hadn’t been well-groomed last time was now dressed very elegantly today, not only wearing makeup but also having her nails done. Although she was of British-Chinese descent, she wore a fur coat in a cheongsam style.

The grayish-white fur around the collar looked particularly like Yuzu’s fur.

“Miss Grizelda, it’s been a while.”

Like last time, although Little AJ couldn’t pronounce Tony Yang’s name correctly, she could remember Griselda’s syllables better.

“Little AJ, you seem to have an answer?”

Miss Grizelda took the initiative to bring over a chair and held Little AJ’s hand, sitting down face-to-face. Despite being a renowned fashion designer, she didn’t put on airs and behaved like a young homeroom teacher patiently talking to a student.

In contrast, Little AJ seemed very uneasy…

I understood that both Tony Yang and Miss Grizelda had expectations for her, but now she had to temporarily leave the modeling industry due to pregnancy, which inevitably made her feel guilty towards these two enthusiastic mentors.

“I hope you can write me a recommendation letter to go to a specialized modeling school for further studies.”

Little AJ’s response delighted Miss Grizelda.

“Oh! You’ve finally made up your mind?”

But there was a twist to her words.

“But it might take me quite some time to go… maybe about a year from now.”

“The youth of a model is precious. Compared to other professional models, you’re already starting late. Now you tell me you want to delay another year… Little AJ, can you tell me what happened?”

Miss Grizelda was a gentle and amiable lady, but waiting half a month only to hear such news would make anyone angry.

Little AJ expressed her helplessness: “I just wanted to tell you, so I asked Shopkeeper Tuo to find you.”

Miss Grizelda looked at Tony Yang, who stroked his small beard, shook his head, and pulled his neck back.

“Don’t look at me, I just heard about it too… Little AJ, stop beating around the bush, if you have any trouble, just say it. Maybe we can help.”

Miss Grizelda nodded in agreement, but Little AJ stammered for a long time without getting a word out, which made everyone uncomfortable.

Sister Feiyue brought some juice and smiled at Miss Grizelda before standing aside with a tray. Zǐ Jiàng crossed her arms and stood beside her, showing no intention of joining the conversation.

I had to explain for her: “Actually, A Jie is pregnant, but she doesn’t want to give up her modeling career, so she hopes you can reserve a spot for her for a year… That’s what I think she means.”

Little AJ lowered her brows and nodded gently.

But Miss Grizelda’s reaction wasn’t so calm.

“Pregnant? Little AJ, even if you were just an amateur model, you should know what marriage means for a promising model, especially having a child, which is almost the end of your career.”

Being called a promising model by a top designer like Miss Grizelda really pleased her, but this favor made Little AJ feel even more conflicted.

“I don’t want to give up my modeling career, nor do I want to give up my baby. I know after giving birth, my pelvis will widen and my figure will change, so I’ll choose a cesarean section to avoid that. I’ll work hard to recover from stretch marks… I know this sounds greedy, but please don’t give up on me. In a year, I’ll definitely come back in a state that’s no worse than now.”

Standing at a crossroads in her life, Little AJ pleaded almost prostrate on the table.

Miss Grizelda rubbed her temples and pointed to Little AJ’s abdomen with the glass of water on the table.

She asked, “How old is the baby?”

Little AJ glanced at the ground and replied, “…Two days.”

“Phew—”

Juice spurted out of Miss Grizelda’s mouth. She took a tissue from Tony Yang to wipe her mouth and then asked, “Cough, cough, you said two days? Do you mean you just found out two days ago, or did you have relations with your partner two days ago?”

“We went to a hotel when we met the day before yesterday.”

“That’s not right, pregnancy symptoms don’t show up that quickly. Even if you went to the hospital, it would take at least a week to confirm. How did you know you were pregnant?” Miss Grizelda was puzzled, and indeed, it was a difficult point to explain.

“Because we have other detection methods.”

Zǐ Jiàng stepped forward to mediate. She stood next to Little AJ and introduced herself, “Miss Grizelda, hello, I’m AJ’s friend, Lù Zǐ, and I’m a researcher at a pharmaceutical company. Although it’s still in the confidentiality phase, our company has a prototype of a pregnancy test product that can detect pregnancy before the fertilized egg forms a blastocyst and enters the uterus. Its efficiency and accuracy are much higher than similar products on the market.”

“…Isn’t the pregnancy test product you mentioned me?”

“Looking at you as a researcher, Miss Lù Zǐ, you look very young.”

Zǐ Jiàng laughed, “Haha, I’m still a student, isn’t youth natural?”

“So you’re a graduate student?”

Based on her common sense, Miss Grizelda seemed to have a reasonable misunderstanding.

However, Zǐ Jiàng didn’t intend to clarify and simply said, “Anyway, the pregnancy is real, and I can guarantee it one hundred percent.”

“I never said I didn’t believe you… But how did you get pregnant without protection? You youngsters are always careless. If you’re not ready to have children, such matters can’t be taken lightly!”

Although Miss Grizelda looked young, she now spoke with the tone of an elderly person, shaking her head in regret.

The truth was, Little AJ had to admit her mistake. She drooped her head and acted pitifully, saying, “Indeed, we didn’t consider things carefully enough. After all, the atmosphere at the love hotel was so romantic, my head was full of pink thoughts, and I didn’t think much…”

Miss Grizelda said, “If your boyfriend were here, I’d have to talk to him properly. When it comes to such matters, the woman shouldn’t neglect it, and the man should pay attention too!”

Unfortunately, the ‘male’ friend has forever disappeared.

Afraid that Miss Grizelda would ask more questions and expose something, Little AJ cut in, “She’ll take responsibility. Since we have a child, I won’t terminate it either. It’s a product of love, after all!”

“Even if it’s just a mass of… cells?”

When asked this, Little AJ’s originally clouded eyes suddenly became clear.

“Yes, that’s my child, I can’t and don’t have the right to deprive its life.”

Miss Grizelda lowered her head and sighed, supporting her forehead.

“Sigh, being so stubborn, I really can’t win against you.”

Little AJ, with a thick skin yet cautiously, asked, “Can you keep the opportunity for me?”

“You want to postpone giving birth for a year, right? I can give you a chance, but ultimately it depends on your own performance. After all, I have very high standards for models. If your postpartum recovery isn’t quick enough, I’ll have to let you go.”

Though her response wasn’t decisive and she tried to appear firm, the underlying meaning was still an agreement to Little AJ’s request for postponement.

“Thank you! Even though we haven’t met often, you still made such an unreasonable request… Sorry!”

“Alright, alright, I didn’t fully agree, so there’s no need to be so polite.”

Miss Grizelda waved her hand, signaling Little AJ, who had stood up in excitement, to sit down again.

“If I’m not mistaken, you’re only twenty years old this year. Is it okay to have a child so early? Not to mention physical health, can you handle the economic burden? Raising a child is no small expense, unlike taking care of a kitten or puppy… What does Little AJ’s boyfriend do for work?”

Little AJ was asked about Sister Tao again, but this time she didn’t dodge the question.

“He’s still studying and hasn’t started working yet.”

“A student? And you don’t have a proper job… Have you met each other’s parents?”

Miss Grizelda threw out a series of questions, her words filled with obvious concern.

Little AJ scratched the back of her head and answered each of Miss Grizelda’s questions one by one.

“We’ve met each other’s mother, and she agrees for us to be together. For now, we don’t need to worry about income. Her mother-in-law is somewhat of an internet celebrity and can earn money before she falls out of favor.”

“Internet celebrity? Is that in the entertainment industry? I’m not very familiar with that field, but as a girl, you must maintain a certain level of financial independence. Relying entirely on a man is not acceptable.”

At this point, Miss Grizelda looked at Tony Yang behind her.

“Tony, don’t just stand there. Think of some ways to help Little AJ.”

Tony Yang was surprised to be mentioned.

“Huh? As for work, I’ve been introducing her, but it’s not suitable after her belly gets bigger… Oh! I know a factory that specializes in maternity wear. I’ll check if they need models later. The pay might not be much, but it’s better than nothing.”

“ThankQ! Before coming today, I was worried that Miss Grizelda was colder than she appears.”

Miss Grizelda didn’t make things difficult for Little AJ. She looked more relaxed and her face turned playful.

“Don’t thank me too soon. I didn’t promise to give you a chance. This favor is just a favor for Tony, not for you.”

“Oh? This favor is on me?”

Tony Yang raised his eyebrows and smiled, “Sure, at least you didn’t refuse outright.”

“Not bad, this is how Little AJ should be. We came here today to bolster her courage.”

Zǐ Jiàng walked up to me with her hands behind her back, a soft smile on her face, and I felt momentarily dazed.

I am Xiao Kai, yet I am not Xiao Kai;

So she is both my lover and not my lover.

If I continue to maintain this state of fusion, would you see me as Xiao Kai?

Before the question could be asked, a wave of intense dizziness washed over me.

…Has the time come?