She went to the wrong table on a blind date and ended up getting married to a billionaire CEO.

As night deepened, the villa in the clouds fell into tranquility.

The only sounds in the room were the soft hum of the air conditioner and the occasional chirping of insects outside the window.

Su Maiqi lay on the bed with her back to Gu Tingyu, her body taut like a fully drawn string.

She closed her eyes, but wasn't sleepy at all.

Gu Tingyu's words echoed repeatedly in her mind: "When I was little, I always wanted a younger sister. I wish Chengze had one."

That seemingly unintentional remark was like a fine needle, precisely piercing the most sensitive spot in her heart.

She sensed Gu Tingyu's probing, and that cautious probing made her inexplicably irritated.

Was he testing my attitude towards having another child?

Is this preparation for the next step?

This feeling of being controlled made her very uncomfortable, as if she had returned to that passive situation.

In an instant, all the memories of Xiao Chengze's birth came flooding back to her like a burst dam.

Those wounds she thought had been healed by time were torn open again at this moment, bleeding profusely.

She remembered the afternoon when she regained her memories.

Sunlight streamed through the blinds of the hospital ward, casting dappled shadows on the floor.

She lay in the hospital bed, holding her newborn son, Chengze, in her arms.

The little one slept soundly, his little hands clenched tightly, his rosy face showing the delicate tenderness unique to newborns.

When the memories flooded back like a tide, she felt not the joy of being reborn, but a tremendous panic.

She remembered everything.

She remembered their contractual marriage, that cold agreement, and Gu Tingyu's words: "You just need to play the role of my wife well. The contract is for three years. After three years, we will divorce."

They remembered the original boundaries between them, where they kept to themselves.

I remembered my past principles and bottom line.

But where did this child she's holding in her arms come from?

What exactly happened during the time she lost her memory?

The feeling of betrayal is more intense than any pain.

She felt like a puppet being manipulated, unknowingly pushed onto a completely different life trajectory.

Amnesiac, she clings to Gu Tingyu like a fool, wanting a child of their own; while Gu Tingyu, knowing the truth, still decides to let the child be born.

That intense feeling of losing control made it almost impossible for her to breathe.

When she was suffering from amnesia and at her lowest point in terms of judgment, he made this life-altering decision for her.

Su Maiqi's hands unconsciously clenched into fists, her nails digging deep into her palms.

She recalled the period after giving birth, and how complicated her feelings were when she faced her baby son, Chengze, in swaddling clothes.

Love and hate, sweetness and pain, happiness and anger—all these emotions intertwined, almost driving her to the brink of collapse.

She loves the child; it's a maternal instinct.

Looking at his innocent smile and hearing his childish voice calling her name, her heart melted.

But whenever she thinks about how this child was born, she feels a heart-wrenching pain.

This pain is not because of the child, but because one's right to choose has been taken away and one's life has been controlled by others.

She felt like a reproductive tool, unknowingly completing tasks assigned to her by others.

The humiliation and anger almost consumed her.

Countless nights, she held Xiao Chengze in her arms, watching his peaceful sleeping face, tears silently streaming down her face.

She loved him, yet hated her own powerlessness.

She wanted to give him the best motherly love, but she felt desperate about her situation.

This kind of contradiction and pain is something outsiders simply cannot understand.

Su Maiqi took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down.

Over the past year, Xiao Chengze's growth has indeed brought her immense joy.

Watching him grow from a soft little baby into the lively and adorable little boy he is today has healed her heart a lot.

His first "Mama," his first time rolling over, his first crawl, his first standing, his first steps... every moment of his growth filled her with immense happiness and fulfillment.

Gu Tingyu is indeed an excellent father.

His love for Xiao Chengze was so sincere and profound.

She gets up in the middle of the night to make formula for her child, change diapers, and coax him to sleep, without ever uttering a single complaint.

No matter how busy he is with work, he will always make time to play with his child, tell him stories, and teach him to recognize words.

During her time in Paris, watching the interactions between the father and son always warmed her heart.

She even began to fantasize that maybe they could really become a happy family of three.

Perhaps the pain of the past will gradually fade away with the passage of time.

Perhaps they can start over and build a real family.

Those days in Paris felt like a beautiful dream.

They worked together, lived together, and took care of Xiao Chengze together.

Gu Tingyu would massage her shoulders when she was tired, and cook for her personally when she missed Chinese food.

They would stroll together along the Seine, pushing strollers, and watch the sunset together under the Eiffel Tower.

Those heartwarming scenes made her almost forget their past and those painful memories.

She almost fell right in.

I almost believed it; they really could live happily ever after.

But Gu Tingyu's words tonight were like a bucket of cold water, instantly waking her up.

She suddenly realized how naive she had been.

Their marriage was flawed from the start; it was merely a cold, hard contract.

And isn't Xiao Chengze's existence proof that this contract has been broken?

It was the product of her betrayal when she had amnesia and was least prepared.

Although the child was innocent and adorable, his very existence reminded her that she had once been controlled and betrayed.

Su Maiqi felt a chill run down her spine as she thought about it, and a sense of lingering fear welled up inside her.

She naively believed that time could erase everything.

She actually fantasized that she could live a simple life with Gu Tingyu like this.

She forgot her past pain and her past convictions.

She felt a deep sense of confusion and fear.

She doesn't know what she wants right now, nor how she should face the future.

Gu Tingyu's words tonight undoubtedly conveyed a message to her: he hoped she would have another child.

But when she thought about the past, their contractual marriage, her past amnesia, and the birth of Xiao Chengze, she became afraid again.

The pain in her heart washed over her like waves, one after another.

She felt like she was about to drown.

Behind him, Gu Tingyu was also awake.

He could feel the tension in Su Maiqi's body, and sense her resistance and desire to escape.

He wanted to turn around and hug her, to comfort her, but he didn't know what to say, and he was even more afraid that he would be pushed away.

That feeling of powerlessness caused him immense suffering.

He just lay there silently, filled with unbearable regret.