Extraterrestrial demons invaded; I laid the groundwork eight years in advance.

On the night of the press conference.

Li Zhou was busy all day.

Instead of spending the night in the office, he had his driver take him home.

The city lights flowed past the car window.

Inside the car, Li Zhou leaned back in his seat, dozens of unread messages lying on his phone screen. Most were congratulatory messages from business partners, interspersed with some malicious probing. He didn't reply to a single one.

The car drove into the villa's garage, and he sat inside without getting out immediately.

At this moment, before opening the car door, he needs to remove the mask of "Chairman of Dawn Group" and put on the identity of "husband" and "father".

This is a habit he has developed over the years.

He took a deep breath, opened the car door, and stepped inside.

The entryway light was on, casting a warm yellow glow on the floor. A pair of little slippers lay askew by the door, each bearing an orange cartoon fox print—my daughter's favorite pair.

On the shoe cabinet next to it was a crumpled crayon drawing of three people holding hands, with the words "Me and my mom and dad" written crookedly.

"Daddy's home!"

A little girl with two braids ran from the living room, her bare feet pattering on the floor with a crisp, pleasant sound.

She was wearing a pale yellow nightgown, and there were still traces of tears on her face, but her eyes lit up the moment she saw Li Zhou.

Li Zhou knelt down and picked up his daughter. His daughter's name was Li Nianru, and her nickname was Niannian.

  

He noticed the tear stains on his daughter's face, gently stroked her nose with his finger, and teased her softly, "Who bullied our Niannian? She's all covered in tears."

She hugged her father's neck, buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, and said in a muffled voice, "Dad, I missed you so much. You haven't been back for so long. Mom said you were on TV; I just saw you on my phone."

"Dad's been working a lot lately, but he just finished and came back to be with you." Li Zhou patted her back and carried her into the living room.

His wife, Song Yaru, stood up from the sofa, wearing a casual knitted sweater and her hair loosely tied back. The screen of her phone was still lit up—showing footage from the morning's press conference.

She glanced at Li Zhou, her eyes filled with a hint of heartache.

"Have you got a meal yet?"

"I've already eaten," Li Zhou replied softly.

Song Yaru went over to take her daughter: "Niannian, let Daddy change his shoes and wash his hands. It's time for bed."

"No, I want Daddy to put me to sleep!" Niannian hugged Li Zhou's neck and refused to let go.

Song Yaru glanced at Li Zhou, who smiled and shook his head at his wife.

He carried his daughter into the bedroom, placed her on the bed, and gently covered her with the blanket. Niannian blinked at him, her little hand reaching out from under the blanket to grasp his fingers.

"Dad, you said you would tell me stories."

Li Zhou sat on the edge of the bed, holding his daughter's small hand in his palm. The warm light from the bedside lamp fell on Niannian's face, making her eyelashes tremble slightly.

Looking at his daughter, Li Zhou's eyes were filled with love and happiness, along with a hint of indescribable emotion. He gently began to tell a story that had been buried in his heart for many years.

"Once upon a time, there was a young man. In order to live a good life with his beloved, he plunged into the wave of entrepreneurship as soon as he graduated from university. However, he was unlucky and encountered trade turmoil, which not only caused his business to fail but also left him with a large debt."

Before he could even recover, a terminal illness diagnosis was handed to him, and his life was on a countdown. On a windless night, he stood on the bridge, preparing to quietly end his life.

"At that moment, a deity appeared, saved him, and gave him a second life."

Niannian blinked, seemingly understanding but not quite: "Gods? And then?"

"Later, the person who was saved decided to live a good life. The fairy gave him a job, and his life slowly began to improve. Later still, he married the person he loved and had a lovely daughter."

He named his daughter Niannian because he believed that if you keep something in your heart, it will eventually come back to you.

"Some things, some hardships, as long as you dare to face them, the world will always give you an answer. Whether that answer is good or bad, at least it will reduce your regrets."

"Niannian?" She tilted her head. "It's the same name as mine?"

Li Zhou paused for a moment, then gave a soft "hmm".

Niannian's eyes began to droop, but she still forced herself to look at him, as if afraid that when she woke up tomorrow, her father would be gone again.

Li Zhou then told a few more stories about the company, turning those thrilling negotiations into a fairy tale scenario of "defeating a monster."

As Niannian listened, the corners of her mouth slowly turned up, and her fingers gradually loosened. Li Zhou got up, tucked the blanket in, and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

The lights are off.

In the darkness, Niannian's soft, sweet voice drifted over: "Daddy, what happened to the person who was saved...?"

Li Zhou remained silent for a moment.

"He's fine," he said softly. "He's happy too."

Li Zhou gently closed the door.

Song Yaru stood in the corridor, holding a glass of warm water, and handed it to him.

Li Zhou took the water glass and looked at the woman in front of him who had been with him since college and who had never abandoned him when his business failed and he was diagnosed with a terminal illness.

"I've always known you were hiding something from me," Song Yaru said softly.

"Back then, you were diagnosed with a terminal illness, and your career suffered a major setback. You completely collapsed—you stopped talking, stopped eating, and your eyes were vacant, like you had lost your soul."

She paused.

"I stayed by your side, calling you repeatedly but you wouldn't respond. I felt like I was falling. I'll never forget that despair of watching you disappear and being unable to hold onto anything. I really thought you wouldn't make it."

Her eyes were red and her voice was choked with emotion.

"Later, you disappeared for one night. When you came back, you were completely cured and even founded the Dawn Group, getting busier every day."

She looked at him, her eyes filled with heartache, not accusation.

"I never asked you what happened back then. The fact that you're still by my side is the most important thing to me."

"But you must remember one thing."

She looked at Li Zhou intently and said seriously.

"Go ahead," Li Zhou said, meeting her gaze.

"Don't always push yourself. Take a break when you're tired. Niannian and I are waiting for you to come home for dinner."

Li Zhou looked into her eyes, put down his water glass, gently pulled her into his arms, and whispered, "I know. You've worked hard." His arms were tight, as if he wanted to make up for all the hugs he had owed her over the years.

Song Yaru leaned on Li Zhou's shoulder, and the two of them stood there quietly.

She rarely leaned against him like this, and he rarely stopped like this. This moment felt like it had been stolen from their busy lives; it was brief, yet they couldn't bear to let go.