Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, a swarm of drones illuminated the night sky, forming the glittering words: "We have a baby!"
Immediately following, the letters "C&S" lit up the darkness—the initials of Chu Luyao and Song Yuhuan.
Chu Luyao followed his gaze and looked out. Her eyes shifted away for a fleeting second of panic, but she quickly recovered, snuggling onto Zhou Du's body and whispering soft, sugary words.
"When we have a baby, let's announce it like this too. Let's let everyone know we have a crystallization of our love, okay?"
Hearing this, Zhou Du felt only a cold, biting irony. He raised his hand to pinch Chu Luyao's chin, forcing her to meet his eyes.
"We haven't had a child in so many years. Have you never wondered why?"
Chu Luyao smiled, leaning in to peck his lips. "The time just hasn't come yet. Maybe the baby wants us to enjoy our world of two for a bit longer. Now that everything has stabilized, I'm sure there will be good news soon."
"Is that so?"
Zhou Du glanced at Chu Luyao's still-flat abdomen. "But I went for a checkup recently. The doctor said I cannot have children."
Chu Luyao's pupils contracted sharply. "How is that possible?!"
Watching her agitated reaction, Zhou Du remained perfectly calm.
Chu Luyao's face went stiff. "It won't be like that. Technology is so advanced now; it can definitely be cured. Or maybe the checkup was wrong."
Zhou Du scrutinized her face, his expression hovering between a smile and apathy. "You know that's almost impossible. Unless... you are already pregnant."
Chu Luyao's expression tightened instantly. "Of course not!"
Zhou Du feigned a sigh of relief. "That's good. I watched a movie a couple of days ago where a man was infertile, yet his wife miraculously conceived. He was furious and cursed the doctor for being a quack, only to find out in the end that the child was another man's bastard. Yaoyao, if you..."
"I could never do that! It doesn't matter if we don't have children; as long as you are by my side, that's enough," Chu Luyao hurriedly promised.
Zhou Du looked at her earnest, desperate appearance, and a smile finally appeared on his face.
"That's good. If you want a child of your own, I can let you go. But if there is betrayal, I will absolutely never forgive it!"
Chu Luyao felt an inexplicable wave of panic and hurriedly hugged Zhou Du's waist tightly.
"Ah Du, I could never betray you. Without you, I can't go on living!"
But she had clearly already begun her betrayal.
She was even impatient enough to stage this scene in bed, solely to cover up the fact that she was pregnant with Song Yuhuan's flesh and blood.
Zhou Du calculated the time until his departure. One week remaining.
Perhaps sensing something amiss, Chu Luyao stayed by his side almost every day. At home and at the company, the two were inseparable.
Everyone said they were a loving couple, a pair of "immortal companions" that others envied.
When Zhou Du returned home, he even heard the servants in the villa whispering together.
"Sir and Madam are truly loving. They've been married for so many years, yet they're still as sweet as honey."
"I heard Madam has even prepared a surprise for Sir."
Hearing this, however, not a trace of joy appeared on his face.
Not long after, Chu Luyao mysteriously covered his eyes and led him to the door of a room on the top floor.
"Ah Du, I guarantee you will love what's inside."
Just as Zhou Du was about to pull away the hands covering his eyes, Chu Luyao's phone began to vibrate.
Song Yuhuan had sent a video. In it, he was wearing a simple blue and white striped school uniform T-shirt and trousers. His hair was cut short and fresh, and he held a book in his hand. He sat with his legs crossed on a bench in a school playground, looking at the camera with a beaming smile.
He looked exactly like Song Yuheng—her dead White Moonlight.
Seeing the video, Chu Luyao's eyes reddened almost instantly. The hand holding the phone began to tremble uncontrollably.
At the same time, Zhou Du received a text message from Song Yuhuan.
[ Song Yuhuan: Zhou Du, who do you say is more important: the dead Song Yuheng, or the living you? ]
This question didn't need Zhou Du to answer. Chu Luyao gave the answer very quickly.
She put away her phone without even glancing at Zhou Du's expression and walked hurriedly toward the door.
"Ah Du, the law firm took an emergency case. I have to rush back. Let's look at the surprise together when I get back."
"Okay."
Zhou Du answered calmly.
Chu Luyao felt inexplicably uneasy. She turned back to look at him, but he just stood there, watching her with a faint smile.
Seeing his smile, Chu Luyao breathed a sigh of relief. She walked back and kissed him on the lips.
"Wait for me to come back."
Zhou Du watched her retreating figure as she hurried away, his face settling into a heavy silence.
Chu Luyao, between us, there is no "later."
A few hours later, Zhou Du received another video from Song Yuhuan.
In the video, Chu Luyao was practically naked, sleeping soundly in his arms.
Her smooth, fair skin was covered in hickeys, a testament to the intensity of their battle.
"Zhou Du, you lost. My brother has been dead for so many years, yet just because of this face that looks exactly like his, she delivers herself to me even while pregnant."
"You can't force what isn't meant to be. We're both men; I know that being cuckolded feels terrible. You should let go sooner rather than later."
If it were before, seeing these things would have likely made Zhou Du go mad with anger, just as Song Yuhuan wished.
But now, perhaps because he was about to die, his mood was strangely calm.
He looked calmly at this home where he had lived with Chu Luyao for five years, and began cleaning out everything related to him.
Life, after all, is about coming into this world naked and leaving it naked.