Chapter One: You Are the One Who Cannot Face the Light

"I'm sorry, Miss Wen Ying. You've missed the optimal window for surgery..."

Wen Ying stood frozen for a long time, clutching the laboratory report confirming uterine cancer, before finally calling Zhao Ke, Lu Jinchuan's secretary.

The phone rang for ages before someone picked up. The tone was as indifferent as ever, "Madam, is there something you need?"

Wen Ying curled her stiff fingers. "Where is Lu Jinchuan? I need to speak with him."

"Mr. Lu is unavailable at the moment," Zhao Ke replied.

"Could you let him answer just for a moment—"

Before Zhao Ke could respond, Wen Ying heard a gentle voice through the receiver, "Jinchuan, what’s the surprise? You’re being so mysterious."

"Look up," came that deep, familiar voice—so gentle, but never for her.

The next second, Zhao Ke hung up without hesitation.

At that moment—

Bang—

A burst of fireworks exploded across the harbor. Pale-faced, Wen Ying looked up.

Glittering fireworks soared into the ink-blue night, weaving a tapestry of brilliant colors, as beautiful as the legends described.

Outside the hospital, the crowd was abuzz.

"Did you hear? President Lu of Lansheng put on that fireworks show for his girlfriend's birthday. The whole night cost over twenty million!"

"And she’s Su Nian! PhD from Caltech, top companies are fighting to recruit her—brilliant, beautiful, from a prestigious family, and her boyfriend is both handsome and powerful!"

"No wonder President Lu adores her. With a girlfriend like that, who wouldn’t be proud?"

Wen Ying gazed at the dazzling, ostentatious fireworks for a long time. Slowly, her hand relaxed its grip on the medical report, and the thin sheet drifted to the ground.

She turned and walked away.

In the early hours before dawn, Lu Jinchuan returned home and found Wen Ying sitting in the darkened living room.

He reached over to switch on the light, frowning. "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

Wen Ying looked up at him. His jacket was draped over his arm, his deep, dark eyes fixed on her—just as cold and distant as always.

She used to think he was simply indifferent by nature. Only today did she realize: the man she shared a bed with was ice to her, yet a blazing fire to someone else.

"I couldn't sleep," she said softly. "I went to the hospital today."

Lu Jinchuan tossed his jacket onto the sofa, seemingly unconcerned. "What did the doctor say?"

Wen Ying had been complaining of discomfort in her lower abdomen for some time. He’d promised to accompany her to the hospital for a checkup, but kept postponing—if it wasn’t a multi-million contract at work, it was some thorny project issue.

Yesterday, he had indeed agreed to go with her to the hospital. But Su Nian had secretly planned her birthday—how could he not go? He barely made it in time for the fireworks.

Wen Ying, of course, was forgotten.

"It’s nothing, I just need to wait a bit longer," Wen Ying lowered her gaze. "Why did you come home tonight?"

Lu Jinchuan paused for a few seconds, then moved closer.

He pulled Wen Ying into his arms, his breath warm against her neck, heavy and unsteady. His voice was husky.

"It’s your ovulation period."

"To give the Lu family an heir, you insisted we agree to these nights every month. Have you forgotten?"

The scent of women's perfume on him was overwhelming—a bullet shattering the last of Wen Ying’s fragile pride.

He was right. In the three years since their marriage, Lu Jinchuan had always been distant. Only when pressured by his grandmother to "continue the family line" would he reluctantly return and entangle with her.

A child? That seemed impossible now.

Wen Ying was gentle by nature, accustomed to compliance. But tonight, she found she could no longer endure.

"Lu Jinchuan, aren’t you afraid your girlfriend will get jealous if you sleep with me?"

Her eyes gleamed in the darkness, like a small animal finally baring its fangs.

Lu Jinchuan looked at her, noticing the seriousness in her expression, his gaze growing colder.

After a long moment, he gave a brief, mirthless laugh.

"What’s there to be afraid of? Our marriage is a secret. You’re the one hidden from the world."

"If you choose to play the supporting role, why demand so much?"