The spaceship took off, gradually moving farther away from the ground.
As the buildings and people on the surface became smaller and smaller, Blue Star’s protective barrier opened a gap. After the spaceship passed through the barrier, the gap disappeared, and Blue Star vanished from sight.
All around them was a hazy gray mist.
And at this moment, Lian Qiguang…
“Sister-in-law, please endure it a little longer. We’ll arrive at the Undying Star in a few more days.”
Looking at the tightly closed bathroom door and listening to the painful sounds of vomiting coming from inside, Yuan Ling was anxious but helpless.
“Get lost!”
A clearly suppressed, irritated voice came from inside the bathroom.
Lian Qiguang curled up inside, his face pale. The extremely familiar dizziness and discomfort made him once again recall the embarrassing state he had long since forgotten.
“Sister-in-law, staying in there doesn’t really help. Come out. Maybe lying on the bed will make you feel better.”
“Get away from me… ugh…”
The violent churning in his stomach came again. Lian Qiguang almost felt like he was about to vomit out his own gallbladder.
“Sister-in-law…”
“Beep! Beep!”
The optical computer on his hand suddenly sounded.
Lian Qiguang weakly glanced at it. Seeing the name displayed—Xiahou Shaoxuan—he cut off the connection without hesitation.
On the other side, Xiahou Shaoxuan looked at the optical computer that had been hung up.
The gentle expression that had appeared on his face when he thought of Lian Qiguang slowly stiffened.
His dark, sharp eyes stared intensely at the device in his hand, as if trying to find something different.
After confirming that he had not dialed the wrong person, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s expression slowly darkened.
His eyes were practically freezing over.
With a cold, hard expression, he pressed Lian Qiguang’s contact again.
Originally, he had comforted himself by thinking that Lian Qiguang might have accidentally pressed the wrong button.
But as he watched the call connect again and again, only to be hung up every single time, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s face became as dark as a storm cloud covering the city.
However, after the unknown number of times he had been rejected, his anger gradually turned into worry.
Thinking carefully about all their conversations over the past few days, had he done anything to make this little guy angry?
Even if he really was angry, after he called so many times, even if Lian Qiguang found it annoying, he should have answered and then given him his usual silent treatment, waiting for him to apologize first.
But this time…
Could something have happened?
A bad feeling suddenly appeared in his heart.
Xiahou Shaoxuan quickly connected again, but this time the message showed that Lian Qiguang’s optical computer was turned off and could not be reached.
Xiahou Shaoxuan immediately became anxious.
He stood up quickly, thought for a moment, and contacted Yuan Ling.
This time, the call connected almost immediately.
“Boss!”
Yuan Ling gave a military salute.
“Yuan Ling, my wife, he…”
Before Xiahou Shaoxuan could finish asking, a violent vomiting sound came from the other side.
Normally, this would not mean much.
But the problem was…
That sound was far too familiar.
“What happened?!”
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s body instantly tightened.
His face became so cold that it could probably stop children from crying at night.
Even Yuan Ling, who was countless mountains away, could not withstand that pressure. His body immediately went cold, and he shivered.
“Boss, Sister-in-law… Sister-in-law is suffering from spaceship sickness.”
Yuan Ling had a bitter expression.
“Ever since the spaceship took off, Sister-in-law has locked himself inside the bathroom. No matter how much I call him, he refuses to come out.”
“…”
Looking at the tightly closed metal door behind Yuan Ling, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s brows furrowed tightly.
A violent storm was surging in his eyes.
“Boss, quickly persuade him. There are still several days before we reach the Undying Star. If Sister-in-law keeps locking himself in the bathroom without eating or drinking, how can he hold on?”
“Break the door down.”
After a long silence, Xiahou Shaoxuan spoke coldly.
“Huh?”
Yuan Ling froze.
After understanding what Xiahou Shaoxuan meant, he immediately became speechless.
“Boss, this isn’t our own property. If I break it, won’t I end up in military prison? Besides, even if I really wanted to break it, I probably couldn’t. Even if I used all my strength, I doubt I could leave a dent.”
“…”
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s face darkened as he remained silent.
Seeing the cold aura radiating from Xiahou Shaoxuan, Yuan Ling shivered.
Helpless, he turned around, kicked the door lightly, and raised his voice.
“Sister-in-law, Boss is here. Hurry and open the door.”
“…”
Silence.
“Sister-in-law, don’t make Boss worry. You…”
“LIAN QIGUANG! OPEN THE DOOR!”
The gloomy voice mixed with fury interrupted Yuan Ling.
Xiahou Shaoxuan was nearly driven mad with anger.
This little bastard.
Every time something happened, he hid it from him.
And he even dared to hang up his calls.
When they reached the Undying Star, he would definitely teach him a lesson.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s anger caused the area behind the door to immediately become quiet.
Even the sound of vomiting disappeared.
“Lian Qiguang! Open the door! Don’t give me a reason to deal with you!”
His amplified roar almost made the metal door tremble.
Yuan Ling quietly moved backward and sighed inwardly.
As expected of Sister-in-law.
He could actually make Boss this angry and still calmly hide inside.
After a long silence, a weak voice came from behind the door.
“You already want to deal with me.”
“You!”
Xiahou Shaoxuan suppressed his anger.
“Open the door!”
“You want to hit me.”
“I won’t hit you. Come out.”
Trying hard to soften his voice, Xiahou Shaoxuan spoke gently.
There was silence behind the metal door again.
After a long while, the door slowly opened.
Lian Qiguang leaned against the doorframe and walked out.
His face was pale.
His eyes no longer had their usual brightness.
He looked weak and exhausted.
Seeing him like this, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s heart ached.
But his expression remained cold.
“Uncomfortable.”
Lian Qiguang leaned against the door, his head drooping as he spoke quietly.
“If I stayed inside, would you feel better?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan was angry and helpless.
“Don’t bother me. I am a patient right now.”
Lian Qiguang raised his head and looked at Xiahou Shaoxuan blankly.
His tone, however, was as serious as always.
“If you weren’t beside me right now, I really would want to hit you.”
Looking at Lian Qiguang’s dazed little face, Xiahou Shaoxuan almost laughed.
“You dare hit me, then I won’t make a little meatball with you.”
Lian Qiguang pursed his lips.
In Lian Qiguang’s heart, two people getting married and then having a little child—that was what made a family.
But in the apocalypse, because of viruses and constant killing, humans had lost the ability to reproduce normally.
Later, the human population became smaller and smaller.
They did not even need zombies to destroy them. Humans were already close to extinction themselves.
He had married Xiahou Shaoxuan.
Then they should have a little meatball.
But how could they have one?
He had researched it.
In this world, children were created by extracting the sperm and DNA from both parents and then specially cultivating them.
Xiahou Shaoxuan’s existence was what made him truly want a family.
And if he had a family, then he needed a little meatball.
So he had always kept this in mind.
Looking at Lian Qiguang’s completely justified expression, Xiahou Shaoxuan was unusually stunned.
Yuan Ling was even more dumbfounded.
He seemed to have just heard something incredible again.
“Ah…”
After recovering, Xiahou Shaoxuan looked into Lian Qiguang’s still pure eyes.
He immediately realized he had misunderstood.
With a helpless sigh, all his anger disappeared.
“Wife, go lie down on the bed.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan gestured toward Yuan Ling.
Yuan Ling understood and turned around to prepare the bed.
Lian Qiguang followed behind him in a dizzy state.
Like a falling onion, he plunged headfirst into the blankets and buried his head inside without saying another word.
Xiahou Shaoxuan frowned.
Then he said:
“Yuan Ling, prepare some medicine for motion sickness.”
“Yes!”
Yuan Ling saluted and turned to leave.
But after only taking two steps, the freezing aura coming from Xiahou Shaoxuan made him shiver.
He immediately removed his optical computer and placed it beside Lian Qiguang, then quickly escaped.
“Wife, lie properly.”
Seeing Lian Qiguang restlessly moving around inside the blanket, Xiahou Shaoxuan felt uncomfortable as well.
“Mm.”
Lian Qiguang turned over, hugged the blanket, and leaned weakly against the headboard.
His lifeless eyes looked at Xiahou Shaoxuan.
“Wife, do you see the button beside you?”
Not wanting to see Lian Qiguang looking so dispirited, Xiahou Shaoxuan began trying to make him happy.
“Mm.”
“Press it.”
Lian Qiguang lifted his eyes and casually pressed it.
Immediately, a virtual floating screen appeared.
“Click the bottom right corner.”
“…”
Not knowing what Xiahou Shaoxuan wanted to do, Lian Qiguang obediently pressed it.
With the information received, a series of clicking sounds rang out.
The metal wall opposite Lian Qiguang began shifting and moving.
Lian Qiguang froze.
His eyes moved slightly.
As the metal wall moved, the originally wide silver wall was replaced by a special transparent glass.
The scenery outside the spaceship instantly entered Lian Qiguang’s eyes.
Lian Qiguang slowly sat upright.
His eyes stared directly outside the spaceship.
Slowly, they began to brighten.
The endless universe.
Within the darkness that swallowed everything, countless stars filled the sky.
Star systems of various sizes intertwined and scattered throughout the mysterious, boundless cosmos.
Floating stardust filled the sky.
Everything inside this vast universe seemed to feel its own insignificance.
The universe was endless.
And oneself was merely a grain of dust within it.
Seeing the light return to Lian Qiguang’s eyes, Xiahou Shaoxuan’s gaze also softened with a smile.
The stars fell into Lian Qiguang’s eyes.
But in Xiahou Shaoxuan’s eyes, no matter how beautiful a galaxy was, it could never compare to the person before him turning back for a glance.
“Is it beautiful?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan softened his voice.
“Mm. Very beautiful.”
Lian Qiguang nodded.
His eyes never left the view outside the spaceship.
He did not even blink.
After the apocalypse, stars had disappeared completely.
Back then, whenever Lian Qiguang looked up at the gray sky, he would wonder:
What did the stars and Milky Way described in books actually look like?
Were they really the same as the pictures in the books?
Now that he saw them, Lian Qiguang felt that they were even more beautiful than every picture he had ever seen.
“Wife, when you arrive at the Undying Star, we’ll look at them together.”
“Is it there too?”
Lian Qiguang turned around and looked expressionlessly at Xiahou Shaoxuan.
“Yes. It is even more beautiful than this. The Undying Star is located at Blue Star’s border and is very close to outer space, so you can see it very clearly.”
A faint smile appeared at the corner of Xiahou Shaoxuan’s mouth.
Lian Qiguang tilted his head and stared at Xiahou Shaoxuan.
After a long silence, he suddenly spoke.
“Shaoxuan, let’s go on a date.”
“…What is a date?”
“According to books, dating is one stage of human courtship. Through spending time together and talking, people understand each other and find their compatibility.”
“But wife, we’re already together.”
“That works too. Dating can improve feelings and understanding between two people. Because people continue growing and changing, if two people don’t date often, they will become bored, then like someone else. Scientifically speaking, that is called cheating.”
“…”
“Wife, I am very worried about you.”
Xiahou Shaoxuan looked at Lian Qiguang uncertainly.
“…”
Lian Qiguang pursed his lips and continued seriously teaching Xiahou Shaoxuan the “knowledge” he had learned from books.
“Our current date would be a romantic relationship date. It is very serious.”
“Then how do we date?”
Xiahou Shaoxuan secretly began calculating how he could give his wife a satisfactory date.
“We can go shopping, take walks, eat meals, and watch movies. Also, dates are for two people. We cannot invite others.”
Thinking of the most important point, Lian Qiguang seriously reminded him.
“Just the two of us?”
A clear light appeared in Xiahou Shaoxuan’s deep eyes.
“Mm!”
“Then let’s date, wife.”
Just the two of them?
He could not ask for anything better.
“Okay!”
Lian Qiguang nodded.
“Wife, how about we date every day?”
“…”
Lian Qiguang.