【The time has come. You may begin the broadcast.】

At seven o'clock sharp, the central screen suddenly began playing the video.

The moment the first image appeared, it drew passersby in the square to a halt.

Luna watched from afar, stretching out her hand as flakes of snow landed on her palm—crystal clear and white.

At the same time, that cold, mechanical voice echoed through the empty street.

"Space-time channel opened. Countdown: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1."

Once the countdown ended, a violent gale swept through, kicking up countless snowflakes and swallowing the entire street.

Three minutes later, the wind and the blizzard stopped.

And the spot where Luna had originally been standing... was empty.

Chapter 9

The wind came and went, and the snow fell on.

When Luna opened her eyes again, she realized she had left the street.

She stood before an unfamiliar villa, with the number 12138 posted on the doorplate.

Looking at this string of familiar handwriting, Luna froze slightly.

The next second, a voice that was both familiar and strange came from behind her.

"Who are you..."

Luna turned at the sound and saw a face she had dreamed of countless times in her sleep.

Her mother, whom she hadn't seen in twenty years, was standing right before her now. That smiling face hadn't been changed by the passage of time in the slightest.

At the sight of her, Elara [1] was also stunned, her bright eyes slowly clouding with mist.

"Luna."

Hearing her mother call her name, Luna could no longer hold back; she ran and threw herself into her mother's arms.

Elara opened her arms and held her tightly.

Tears rolled down their faces, dripping onto her daughter's brow, mingling with another trail of hot tears, both falling together onto the snow-covered ground.

Time passed second by second.

The swirling snowflakes grew larger, and only then did Elara finally regain her senses.

She wiped the tears from her daughter's face and took Luna’s hand, returning to the home that had once belonged only to her, but now belonged to mother and daughter alike.

The heat in the room slowly chased away the chill from their bodies.

Elara set down the cake she was holding, wrapped her daughter in a blanket, and went into the kitchen.

Luna followed her inside, watching her mother pick up a rolling pin to start making longevity noodles. The sour ache she had just suppressed surged up again.

"Mom, I want two fried eggs!"

Hearing this request again, Elara’s eyes reddened, and she felt a bit dazed.

She still couldn't believe her daughter had truly returned to her side, or if this was merely a dream.

But turning back to see the young girl washing vegetables beside her, she finally felt a sense of reality.

Her movements sped up slightly.

Ten minutes later, two steaming bowls of noodle soup were placed on the dining table.

Luna unwrapped the cake, lit the candles, and then, amidst her mother’s rendition of the "Happy Birthday" song, she made a wish.

"I hope Mom stays healthy and lives to be a hundred, and that we never, ever separate again!"

She repeated this wish in her heart three times.

Opening her eyes to see those eyes filled with love and guilt, she hurriedly cut a piece of cake and offered it to her, smiling sweetly.

"Mom, I’m twenty-six now, and we’ve finally met again. It’s so good."

"It is so good."

Elara repeated it in a murmur, handing the chopsticks to her daughter, her voice still laced with a hint of a sob.

"Hurry and eat your noodles; see if Mom’s skills have slipped."

Luna acted just like she did as a child, finishing one egg first before picking up the noodles.

The soft, chewy noodles touched her lips, carrying the fragrance of the beef broth, instantly awakening taste buds that had been dormant for years.

She ate one bite, then another.

Soon, the large bowl of longevity noodles, broth and all, was eaten clean.

After finishing the last remaining egg, Luna took the tissue her mother handed her, her eyes filled with the starlight of happiness.

"It’s the same taste as when I was a child. Mom, I’ve missed this flavor for so long!"

Watching her daughter act coy, Elara wiped her tears and finally smiled.

"If you like it, Mom will make it for you every day from now on."

"Okay, I'll eat it again tomorrow. Let's eat the cake first today! Is this cream sweet?"

"Sweet, but not cloying. It’s your favorite chocolate flavor. Try it."

Outside the window, the wind and snow gradually receded, and the lights in the villa slowly dimmed.

Luna curled up in her mother's embrace. Neither of them could sleep, chatting aimlessly about this and that.

"Mom, tell me, what have you been doing all these years? How many times a day did you think of me? You bought me a cake—did you prepare gifts for me, too..."

Chapter 10

In the early morning, the snow that had been falling for two days and two nights finally stopped.

Caleb finally broke free from the nightmare that had left his heart palpitating.

He opened his eyes, wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, and looked at the dim, murky sky outside the window, gasping for breath.

The second hand on the wall ticked away.

By the time he calmed his emotions and opened his phone, he realized it was already five o'clock.

Sienna, lying beside him, was startled awake by the light; she blinked drowsily and snuggled up to him.

The moment their naked bodies touched, Caleb’s body immediately reacted.

Sienna noticed as well, her soft little hands flirting with him, her voice honey-sweet.

"Waking up so early, Caleb. You wouldn't be..."

Caleb did not give her what she wanted. Instead, he pushed her hands away, rolled out of bed, and walked into the bathroom.

Listening to the pattering sound of the water, Sienna was fully awake now. She irritably turned on the light.

The room was in shambles. Clothes were scattered everywhere, and the room still held the lingering scent of ambiguous aromatherapy.

The sight reminded her of the passionate moments from last night, and a look of triumph crossed her brows.

She picked up Caleb’s phone, which had been tossed onto the bed, and easily unlocked it using Luna’s birthday.

The screen jumped to the WeChat interface. Looking at the message he had sent at eleven last night, which had received no reply, a smirk of triumph played on Sienna's lips.

She knew yesterday was Luna’s birthday, which was why she had used this method to lure Caleb over.

It was supposed to be two hours, but because of her careful preparations, it had dragged on until eleven.

After eleven, no matter what, Caleb wouldn't stay, so she bet him that Luna must have already gone to sleep and it was too late to return for the celebration anyway.

He had sent a message, and by midnight, there was still no reply, which is why he had stayed the night here.

In reality, Luna hadn't slept at all. She was likely just like them—having not slept a wink all night.

After all, she had sent over a "live combat report" every half hour, inviting her to watch along.

On the first day of her twenty-sixth year, watching her own husband have intercourse with another woman—no normal person would be able to sleep.

Thinking of how she must be crying at home with swollen eyes, yet forced to play the part of someone who knew nothing, Sienna felt joyful both in body and mind.

Hearing the sound in the bathroom fade, she quickly got up, grabbed a camisole from the closet, put it on, and waited by the door.

The moment Caleb emerged, she immediately dove into his arms, cooing with a coquettish voice.

"Caleb, let’s sleep a bit more. Accompany me for breakfast in a little while, okay?"

Caleb pushed her away with a cold face, took a clean set of clothes from the closet, changed, and left.

Watching him walk away without saying a word, Sienna frowned.

Everything was fine a moment ago; why was he angry again?

After the night of heavy snow, the road was iced over, and the driver didn't dare drive too fast.

Caleb sat in the back seat, constantly pressing his temples, trying to drive those dark images out of his mind.

But the more he tried to forget, the more vividly he remembered.

He had no choice but to pick up his phone to distract himself.

He hadn't looked at it for a few hours, and WeChat had suddenly received nearly a hundred new messages.

They were all teasing jokes from friends and brothers, praising him for being romantic and preparing such a big surprise for his wife.

Surprise? What surprise?

Caleb wasn't sure. Seeing the same link they had sent, he clicked on it suspiciously.

It was a trending topic.