If a child can’t come from her own belly, even if there is a blood relation, if she can’t enjoy the happiness of carrying a pregnancy for ten months, what’s the point? The mother-in-law is overbearing, and now everyone knows that Ning Zijin is infertile. She has lost all her dignity, becoming a complete joke. She really can’t hold on any longer; she’s about to break down. Now, when she walks on the street and sees pregnant women, she feels miserable—bitter, aggrieved, and resentful. She’s become depressed, nearly insane. Today, Lady Ye brought a young, beautiful girl home. This girl was meticulously chosen by Lady Ye as the surrogate candidate. To emerge from Lady Ye’s stringent criteria shows that she’s indeed an outstanding girl. "Go, call the Young Lady down," Lady Ye instructed the servant indifferently, sitting on the living room sofa. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel(ꜰ)ire.net The servant, Aunt Zhang, glanced subtly at the tall, beautiful girl standing beside Lady Ye, "Yes," and turned to walk upstairs. "Weiwei, have a seat, don’t be shy, make yourself at home," Lady Ye said with a faint smile. The girl, Weiwei, smiled slightly, "Thank you, Lady Ye," and sat down obediently. Seeing the girl’s gentle and well-behaved appearance, Lady Ye grew more and more satisfied. This girl’s name was Ye Yuwei. Coincidentally, even their last names were the same—it truly seemed like fate. She was a freshman in the classical dance department at Huadu Dance Academy, where she had achieved outstanding academic results and won scholarships multiple times. She had no bad habits, a pleasing and beautiful face—and Lady Ye even took her for a verification to ensure she wasn’t surgically altered. Because she studied dance, she had a classical air about her that made her very comfortable to be around. She was one seventy meters tall, statuesque and fair-skinned, and an orphan. Lady Ye had especially investigated her background: her parents had died in a car accident when she was five, which left her orphaned. She had an unblemished reputation and was known among teachers and classmates since childhood as smart, obedient, gentle, and pretty. Her parents had both been public-school teachers, which, all things considered, was acceptable. Initially, she was against being a surrogate, but after hearing about a generous compensation, she decided to consider it. Upon investigating, Lady Ye found that the girl was also kind-hearted. The director of the orphanage where she had been raised had fallen critically ill and been hospitalized. With the director having no children of her own, the girl took on the responsibility of caring for her. The massive hospital bills were suffocating her, and out of desperation, she agreed to become a surrogate. This moved Lady Ye positively. Lady Ye disliked women who were vain or mercenary. Even though she only needed to borrow the girl’s womb, her grandson would develop in the girl’s body, so someone with too malicious a mind would not do. This girl greatly pleased her. If not for her humble origins, she would be more than enough to be her daughter-in-law and was many times better than Ning Zijin. As the thought crossed her mind, Lady Ye suddenly had an idea but quickly suppressed it, deciding to wait and see. "Young Lady, the lady has brought a girl home; you better come down quickly to see her," Aunt Zhang pulled back the bedsheet; Ning Zijin was curled up deep in sleep, her clothes wrinkled, her hair a mess. Ning Zijin pulled the blanket over her head and mumbled, "I won’t go." "Young Lady, giving up on yourself isn’t the solution. If you really can’t stand this, then get a divorce. If you can’t bear to leave the young master, then you need to pick yourself up. You must not let yourself get knocked down." In this household, Aunt Zhang was the only one who truly had her best interests at heart. A tear secretly slipped from the corner of Ning Zijin’s eye. She had had a big fight with Ye Feng the night before. She wanted a divorce, but Ye Feng adamantly refused, even saying that if she dared to leave him, he would break her legs. She had married him on a whim, and she still remembered what Ziqi had said back then. "Sister, you are a Phoenix soaring through the heavens, but Ye Feng is a luxurious cage. He keeps you within his bounds, clipping your wings so you can never fly again. Yet, you willingly plummet, but your personalities, your family backgrounds—they’re too different. One day, this will be the spark that ignites the powder keg between you. No matter how deep your feelings, they can’t withstand the erosion of daily life. One day, you are bound to regret it." Ziqi was right in what he had said before; she admitted it. But regarding the last sentence, she refused to agree. Marrying Ye Feng, she had no regrets. Even now, as she reached this point, she harbored no complaints or regrets. It was she who couldn’t have children, she who couldn’t provide an heir for his family. Probably no family could accept such a woman.