If we swapped lives, I'd be the CEO and you'd take care of the kids.

As night deepened, it was as if a thick black curtain was slowly descending, completely enveloping the sky.

The night sky had turned pitch black, the moon had long since disappeared, and even the few stars that were originally scattered were now obscured by thick, dark clouds, unable to let out a single ray of light.

The entire villa was shrouded in darkness; all the lights were off. This massive and luxurious building appeared exceptionally desolate and lonely at this moment.

The spacious living room, the winding corridors, and the numerous rooms were all swallowed by endless darkness, without a single sound emanating from them.

Suddenly, a faint, almost inaudible creaking sound rang out, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, instantly shattering the tranquility of the space.

The faint sound seemed unusually abrupt and jarring against the backdrop of the deathly silence around them.

Immediately afterwards, two dark figures appeared silently like ghosts.

They moved stealthily and furtively toward the stairs. Their footsteps were so light, as if they were afraid of crushing fallen leaves, that the sound was almost negligible.

Not only that, but even their breathing seemed to be deliberately suppressed to a minimum, for fear that even the slightest breath would reveal their whereabouts.

Shortly afterward, two dark figures stopped at the door of a room on the second floor.

The tall, dark figure approached the door silently, like a ghost, his footsteps so light they were almost inaudible.

He slowly squatted down and pressed his ear tightly against the cold door panel.

At this moment, his breathing became extremely slow and weak, as if he was afraid that making even the slightest sound would disturb the people inside the room.

Time passed by, and he remained motionless, listening intently to every subtle sound that might come from the room.

However, after a long wait, he heard nothing but deathly silence.

Finally, he shook his head in disappointment, stood up, and a look of frustration that he could not hide appeared on his face.

The short, dark figure also pressed his ear closer, but unsurprisingly, there was no sound.

The shorter, darker figure patted the taller, darker figure on the shoulder and muttered, "Look at you, always coming up with terrible ideas. What are you doing up here in the middle of the night instead of sleeping? Are you happy now? Feeling relieved?"

The tall, dark-skinned figure wasn't angry after being slapped. He muttered an apology, "Yes, yes, it's all my fault. I was worried about my daughter, and I insisted on pulling you up here. It wasn't your idea! It was all my own!"

The shorter guy, his face exposed, punched the taller guy a few more times. This time, the taller guy grabbed his hand instead. He said, embarrassed and annoyed, "Zhu Mingchuan, I'm going back to sleep. I'm too lazy to waste my breath on you!"

The two dark figures turned out to be Zhu Mingchuan and his mother!

Zhu Mingchuan didn't let go, and said softly, "Don't rush, wait a little longer. We're already here, we'll go down later."

Once she held his hand, Zhu's mother stopped arguing. What Zhu Mingchuan said was exactly what she was thinking, so she simply went along with Zhu Mingchuan and waited quietly in the darkness.

Time passed by, and before you knew it, most of the day had gone by.

However, this long wait did not bring them any results, and they still could not detect any unusual activity.

At this moment, the entire Zhu family home was eerily quiet, as if shrouded in an invisible silence.

Apart from the faint, rapid beating of their hearts, there was no other sound around them.

Mother Zhu frowned slightly. Her legs were numb from standing. At this moment, she was gently shaking her numb legs, which felt as if they had been gnawed by thousands of ants.

She tentatively stretched her leg, which seemed to be electrified, then turned to look at Zhu Mingchuan, who looked equally exhausted, and softly suggested, "How about... we go back first? Waiting like this isn't a solution."

After saying that, she couldn't help but let out a long sigh, her heart filled with helplessness.

Zhu Mingchuan pondered for a moment, then said something that shocked his mother: "Do you think the silence from our daughter's room means she might have gone to that boy's room by herself?"

In the pitch-black darkness, Zhu's mother was so startled that she suddenly opened her mouth wide, as if she could fit an egg inside.

Her already large eyes were now wide open, like copper bells, filled with disbelief and astonishment.

She stood there, stunned, completely frozen by the shocking news. It took her a while to recover before she hesitantly asked, "You...you mean, Yueyue actually went to Xiao Shen's room on her own? How is that possible?"

Zhu Mingchuan nodded first, then, as if suddenly realizing that his wife couldn't see his movements in the dark, he quickly replied, "Yes, I think it's very possible! Think about our Yueyue's impulsive and decisive nature. When has she ever been a passive person? Maybe she couldn't hold back and went straight to his room!"

His words made Zhu's mother's heart, which had just been at ease, jump again. The two of them knew their daughter's temperament all too well!

Without saying anything about going back, Zhu's mother pulled Zhu Mingchuan towards Shen Yanqiu's room: "Let's go, let's go take another look!"

"Hey, keep your voice down, keep your voice down!" Zhu Mingchuan reminded his wife as she followed.

When they arrived at Shen Yanqiu's room, the two of them crouched down at the door in the same position to eavesdrop.

"How is it? Did you hear anything?"

Zhu Mingchuan was tall and big, taking up most of the doorway by himself. There was nowhere for Zhu's mother to stand if she wanted to listen, so she had to ask him quietly.

Upon hearing his wife's question, Zhu Mingchuan replied quietly, "Do you want me to hear this, or do you not want me to hear this?"

What is this nonsense?

Zhu's mother, feeling both anxious and relieved, gave him a hard slap and pushed him away, saying, "Go away, I'll listen to it myself."

Zhu Mingchuan obediently gave up his seat; to be honest, he hadn't heard a sound at all.

The same was true for Zhu's mother. She had been on tenterhooks because of Zhu Mingchuan's words, but after listening for a while, her heart, which had been hanging in mid-air, could finally be put at ease.

She breathed a sigh of relief and muttered to herself, "Now I can finally relax!"

Zhu Mingchuan joked from the side, "Are you relieved now? Listen a little longer! It's still early, we're not in a hurry to go back."

After receiving a glare from his wife, he finally left, satisfied, with his wife in his arms.

Just as the two reached the stairs, a creaking sound came from a short distance away, successfully stopping them in their tracks.