Chapter 464: 488 【IVF】or【Happiness】(Seeking subscriptions and monthly tickets)

"A child???"

The moment those two words left Lin YoonA's mouth, Krystal let out a gasp, and the smile on her face was frozen in place, as if someone had pressed the pause button.

One second earlier, the corners of her mouth were still curved in an arc; the next second, that arc had solidified.

Her lips were slightly parted but made no sound, as if her brain had short-circuited while processing this sentence, and the entire system had frozen on the spot.

She just stared blankly at Lin YoonA, her gaze filled with the emptiness that comes after being struck by a shock.

As for Lin YoonA, because she had finally spoken the words that had been weighing on her heart, she felt noticeably more relaxed.

So, when she faced Krystal's eyes, which were filled with shock, she did not dodge or panic; she just continued to speak very calmly.

It was as if she were taking things she had long since organized out of a drawer and placing them on a table one by one.

"Yes, that is the reason, so I had originally planned to take another half-year break this year to see how things went."

While speaking, Lin YoonA unconsciously folded the corner of the coat on her lap.

Then she smoothed it out, folded it again, and repeated this action several times.

"My idea was to take on less work in the first half of this year, adjust my physical condition, slow down the pace, and see if there was an opportunity. As it turned out, this temporary script offer was suddenly thrown in front of me, catching me off guard."

The situation was now very clear; what she was troubled by was not the script itself, but the fact that this drama happened to clash with that private plan in her heart.

"But..." a word finally escaped Krystal's lips.

Her voice sounded a bit dry, and she stopped halfway through, her mind flashing with countless images.

In her ears was the one word Lin YoonA had said.

Suddenly, amidst the chaotic images in her mind, Krystal grasped a single moment: "But I remember, in Lin Xiuyuan's situation, it seems he cannot have children."

The expression of her tightly furrowed brows was not her questioning Lin YoonA, but Krystal confirming that she had not remembered incorrectly.

So, when she looked up at Lin YoonA again, her eyes were filled with confusion: "So, Unnie, isn't this idea of yours a bit too sudden, and impossible to achieve?"

How could Krystal not remember the situation regarding Lin Xiuyuan's constitution—what they would jokingly call the "immortal medicine" in private?

She knew those details too well, so well that she felt even Lin YoonA shouldn't have forgotten them.

This was not some minor setting that could be ignored, but a solid, objectively existing physiological fact—a hard threshold standing in front of this topic.

To the point that after the initial surprise subsided a little, what welled up in Krystal's heart was not rejection or opposition, but pure curiosity and bewilderment.

Why?

Why would Lin YoonA, clearly knowing this situation and clearly knowing this threshold was right there, still say such things?

On this topic, the only explanation she could think of was that Lin YoonA might have found some method; there must already be a plan in her mind that she at least considered feasible.

Sure enough, it was just as Krystal had expected.

As she threw the topic out, Lin YoonA on the opposite side caught it, and then neatly threw out her solution.

"I want to try IVF."

Once these words were spoken, Krystal's reaction was even greater than when she had heard "want a child" just a moment ago.

Almost like a conditioned reflex, her entire body sat bolt upright.

It was no longer that lazy adjustment of posture; she sprang up from the backrest in an instant, her waist and back straight as a board, her shoulders tensed.

Her expression completed a switch from confusion to shock to seriousness in just one second, finally settling into a state of extreme gravity.

Looking into Lin YoonA's eyes, there was not a hint of hesitation or ambiguity in her gaze: "No, Unnie, this is absolutely not allowed."

When Krystal said this, her tone was ironclad, and she emphasized every word.

This was a very clear refusal.

And her refusal was so firm not because she didn't want Lin Xiuyuan and Lin YoonA to have a child.

She had no such narrow-minded resistance to the matter itself in her heart.

Nor was she the type of person to nitpick over such things.

The reason she shook her head so decisively was simply because she was afraid.

She was afraid that the IVF process would cause harm to Lin YoonA's body.

One must know that for men, the requirements for IVF are indeed very simple—so simple that it can almost be said to have zero burden.

It is just sperm; the extraction process involves no invasive procedures, causes no substantial damage to the body, and one can go about their business afterward, with no impact on normal life at all.

But for women, it is a completely different story.

This process is exceptionally cruel to women.

First, it requires undergoing an egg retrieval via puncture.

These few words only have a few syllables, but what is the concept when actually performed?

A puncture needle passes through body tissue to reach the follicles in the ovaries.

During the process, there is a high possibility of minor bleeding, and there may also be a risk of infection.

Even if the probability of that infection is only one in ten thousand, even if the doctor tells you that "basically there will be no problems."

But in Krystal's perception, gambling with that one-in-ten-thousand probability is not a good thing in itself.

If it's fine nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine times out of ten thousand, what if it happens to be that one time?

She felt a chill down her spine just thinking about that possibility.

And that is only the risk of the surgery itself; before the surgery, one also needs to take ovulation-stimulating drugs.

What happens after those drugs are taken?

They cause the body's endocrine system to be artificially interfered with and disrupted, which may trigger a series of other problems.

Some people have mild reactions, just a bloated stomach for a few days; others have severe reactions and may face more complex situations.

Regardless of which one it is, whether it is a high probability or a low probability, it is essentially using one's own body to bear extra risks that one did not need to bear in the first place.

So Krystal felt that letting Lin YoonA take this risk with her own body was by no means a good thing, no matter how one looked at it.

As for why Krystal was so clear about these things, it was truly a coincidence.

Because her own makeup artist happened to be considering in vitro fertilization recently, she had looked up a lot of information back and forth and discussed it many times with people around her.

For instance, while the two of them were doing makeup, they would chat about this matter off and on.

The makeup artist would talk about the surgical procedures she had looked up, talk about the doctor's advice, talk about the various side effects that might occur, and talk about the fear and hesitation in her heart.

Krystal just sat in front of the makeup mirror listening, while being swept by brushes, and bit by bit, she received this information into her brain.

That is why she knew the procedure and dangers of this surgery so clearly, so clearly that she could list the risks one by one.

To the point that in Krystal's view, no matter how small that probability was, this was not a worthwhile deal.

So the moment she heard Lin YoonA intended to go down this path, she immediately shook her head and refused, refusing without the slightest hesitation.

And as for Lin YoonA opposite her, how could she not be clear about these things?

She hadn't just come up with this idea on a whim either; she had also figured out the situation, looked up the relevant information, and knew how troublesome it would be if those low-probability events really happened, but she still brought this plan to the table.

However, before continuing to chat further, she still had to ask one more thing, "Xiujing, are you worried that something will go wrong with me, or are you afraid that Lin Xiuyuan will be discovered?"

Lin YoonA wanted to know which point was the core of Krystal's opposition.

Was it heartache for her body, or worry that Lin Xiuyuan would expose something when he went for a checkup?

"Both." Krystal didn't play any games with this question; she used a very serious tone to acknowledge both reasons.

Her expression remained as solemn, her sitting posture remained as upright, and there was not the slightest intention to relax.

"Since you proposed this, Unnie, you must know the dangers. And then there's Lin Xiuyuan's body; if he does this, he also has to go get a full-body physical. A full-body physical, have you thought about it, Unnie? That's checking everything from head to toe, inside and out, drawing blood and testing blood to check various indicators—who knows what might be discovered when the time comes."

"No, this is really very bad."

The "discovered" that Krystal spoke of, of course, did not refer to things like terminal illnesses, but rather those data points in Lin Xiuyuan's constitution itself that differed from ordinary people.

After a full-body physical, with the blood report and various indicators laid out there, what if some numbers didn't match the reference range for a normal person? How would that be explained then?

Would the doctor ask too many questions? Would the report be kept on file?

These were all uncontrollable factors.

In the face of that secret, the three words "uncontrollable" were the biggest trouble itself.

"Regarding the full-body physical, if it's a Private Hospital, we don't have to do it." After hearing Krystal's worry, Lin YoonA lowered her head and responded with this sentence in a soft voice.

When this sentence was spoken, the tone was very light.

It was as if she were responding to Krystal's concerns, and also as if she were convincing herself.

And facing this sentence, Krystal was quiet for a moment, not immediately following up.

Instead, she let those few seconds of silence flow by completely, and only then did she speak again, pushing the topic a step deeper, "Why did you suddenly think of this matter, Unnie? There must be some reason, right?"

She felt that Lin YoonA was not someone who would bring trouble upon herself for no reason.

For something so dangerous and requiring such a hassle, there had to be a reason to convince others, or even to convince herself.

Upon hearing this question, Lin YoonA opposite her first let out a laugh.

Then she gently exhaled a breath, moved her gaze away from her own hands, and looked up toward the ceiling of the studio set.

There, dense steel structures hung with various lamps and tracks, and the industrial-looking gray metal crisscrossed in a disorderly fashion, forming a sharp contrast with the incredibly soft thoughts in her heart.

Finally, she used a long-drawn-out tone to begin answering Krystal's question.

"How should I put it? First of all, it's definitely because I want to keep Lin Xiuyuan. Such an excellent man—relying on a woman alone really doesn't feel like enough; we still need a bloodline."

Bloodline!!!

These two words themselves carried a heavy weight, like a term borrowed from the mouths of the older generation and placed upon the heart's desire of a modern woman.

To the point that after Lin YoonA finished saying this, she even felt it was a bit absurd; a curve with a self-deprecating meaning appeared at the corner of her mouth, and she withdrew her gaze to look at Krystal, adding a sentence.

"It feels like I've gone overboard acting in historical dramas, hahaha."

She knew this thought didn't sound like something an independent woman living in the 21st century should say, but it was indeed a thought that had truly existed in her heart, so she didn't hide it and keep it unsaid just because she felt embarrassed.

And as Krystal listened to this description from Lin YoonA, her thin lips were tightly pressed into a line, and she did not open her mouth to interrupt the other party's continued speech.

"Secondly, on the night of the New Year, I don't know what happened, but on a whim, I felt like my age was about right, and it was time to have children. Since there's already no marriage to speak of, I feel that if the child is born sooner, it should be better."

While saying this, Lin YoonA's tone was very flat, as if she were stating an objective fact, without self-pity or resentment.

After finishing, she let out a long, stifled breath.

Then another light laugh emerged from her lips, "But this is just an idea, just an impulse, which is why I wanted to come over and chat with you."

Lin YoonA placed her gaze back onto Krystal; there was sincerity and trust in her eyes, "Sometimes, when facing Lin Xiuyuan, it's no longer a matter of what I want, or what you want, Xiujing, that we can make Lin Xiuyuan follow us."

This sentence was particularly realistic; for all of them when facing Lin Xiuyuan, the initiative was never entirely in their hands.

So she came to chat with Krystal because she wanted to hear Krystal's opinion, to see if this impulse was worth being taken seriously, or if it should be properly put away and returned to the drawer.

Opposite her, Krystal, who had quietly listened to all these words, also let out a long sigh.

Actually, as for the first point Lin YoonA was worried about, how could she not have thought of it herself? She had too much resonance with this point.

So much resonance that when Lin YoonA said it, a string in her heart was also accurately plucked, emitting a muffled sound that only she could hear.

Even though she knew very well that Lin Xiuyuan treated her differently from others, was gentler, and held her more in his heart.

And she was ten thousand percent certain that she had a very special position in his heart.

This certainty had never wavered.

But what of it?

In the end, Lin Xiuyuan's family and those connected by blood were in that space-time of 2013.

His parents were there, his sister was there, and his roots were there.

And this world where she was, this world that had been corrected, peaceful and stable, was ultimately a "later" place for him.

What if he passed through The Gate one night and went back, returned to that world where his biological parents were, and then lived, ate, chatted, and enjoyed the family warmth belonging to that space-time over there?

And never came back!!!

Krystal knew this feeling too well; sometimes when she woke up startled in the night, the first second she opened her eyes was to reach out and touch the side, and only when she felt warmth would she let out a sigh of relief.

In those deep nights when she woke up, the things in her heart were almost the same as what Lin YoonA had just worried about.

She was terrified that after waking up from a dream, Lin Xiuyuan would be gone, the returned Xueli would be gone, and the entire world would revert to that gray, "normal" state without him.

Just as she was lost in thought, an assistant walked over and asked cautiously.

"Unnie, lunch is ready. Would you like to eat?"

At this moment, Krystal was finally pulled back from those deep thoughts by the assistant's voice.

She blinked, as if refocusing her vision, and then turned her head to look at Lin YoonA.

The heavy and serious expressions on her face were quickly smoothed away, replaced by a more relaxed, everyday look, and she asked, "Let's eat together, Unnie."

"Sure, it's been a long time since I've had a boxed meal." Lin YoonA didn't care at all what they ate.

Seeing that neither of them had any objections, the young assistant hurriedly turned and walked away quickly.

Before long, she returned, carrying two boxed meals and a container of cut fruit, which she carefully placed on the small folding table between the two of them.

The boxed meals were the standard type for film crews: one staple, two side dishes, and a bowl of soup, all arranged neatly.

The fruit was a mix of cantaloupe and strawberry chunks, and the colors were quite nice.

The scene that followed was Lin YoonA and Krystal sitting on those two folding chairs, picking up food with their chopsticks, and continuing to chat about the topic that had just been interrupted while they ate.

People walked back and forth in the Studio from time to time, and the sounds of footsteps and equipment clashing came through intermittently, but this little corner of their rest area seemed to be covered by an invisible soundproof shield; all the noise from the outside world was just background, unable to disturb the conversation between them.

Their expressions went from complex to silent, and from silent to furrowed brows.

In the corner of the set where the sunlight could not reach.

These two women turned a lunch into a long and quiet heart-to-heart.

……

……

And just as Krystal and Lin YoonA were meeting at the film crew's side, having that conversation about a major life decision.

Over in Los Angeles in 2013, Lin Xiuyuan had already arrived at the Jiudian with Xueli and Goo Hara and was checking in at the front desk.

The receptionist was a young girl with blonde hair and blue eyes who wore a standard professional smile as she handed the room card to Lin Xiuyuan with both hands.

Well, there was only one.

Lin Xiuyuan took the room card, looked down at it, and then raised his head to look at Xueli.

As he turned to walk toward the Elevator, he shook the lonely room card in his hand and said to Xueli with a smile in his tone, "Zhenli, did you and Zheng Xiujing look at this room together, or did she book it herself? I don't believe she would be willing to stay in here with me."

"Hee hee, I knew I couldn't hide it from you, oppa." Xueli didn't feel embarrassed at all about being called out; instead, she laughed even more happily.

She walked lightly beside Lin Xiuyuan and explained as they walked, "Zheng Xiujing originally planned to book two rooms, but I thought since we're out for fun, we're all close, so staying together is fine. Besides, it's a suite, and we each have our own room with an independent bathroom, so it doesn't affect anything."

Goo Hara, listening from the side, also laughed a few times.

While the few of them were talking, the Elevator arrived, and after entering, they reached their floor shortly after.

Walking a short distance along the corridor, they found the corresponding room number, and Lin Xiuyuan tapped the door lock with that single room card.

A green light flashed, and the door opened in response.

After pushing the door open and walking in, all three of them let out a "wow" in unison, then stood at the entryway and looked around.

This place was called a business suite, but it wasn't much different from a Presidential Suite.

It had a layout of three rooms and two living areas; besides the two bedrooms, there was a study, plus an open-plan dining room and a spacious Living Room, with the entire space totaling over one hundred square meters.

It couldn't be called extravagant, but it was definitely worthy of the word luxurious.

The decor style was modern minimalist, with off-white and light gray as the main tones paired with dark wood furniture, looking clean and comfortable.

Most importantly, the bellhop who brought the luggage up had specifically mentioned that looking out the window from the floor this room was on, one could see the distant coastline.

That line where the blue met the sky, viewed from the floor-to-ceiling windows on a high floor, must be a very beautiful sight during the day.

Although it was night now, so they couldn't see the view.

However, the first thing Lin Xiuyuan did after the door closed was not to pick a room or admire the scenery outside, but to start inspecting the room.

This had almost become a habit of his.

No matter how nice the Jiudian was, the first thing he did upon entering was to check it over to confirm there were no issues.

Xueli and Goo Hara both naturally put down their things and split up to help check every corner of the room.

Behind the curtains, the corners of the bathroom, power outlets, smoke detectors—they went through them one by one.

The three of them busied themselves for about ten minutes, going over every corner of the suite, and only after confirming everything was normal did they put down their tools and sit comfortably on that soft sofa.

"OK, no problems. We'll stay here for the next few days and get some good rest."

Hearing Lin Xiuyuan say this, Goo Hara followed behind him and sat down to the side.

She then habitually kicked off her slippers, sat cross-legged on the sofa, and asked a question with some curiosity, "Xiuyuan, since we're here to play, why not stay in Malibu? There should be houses available for rent there, and staying there would make it convenient to see the sea and play in the water, right?"

Malibu, that seaside community stretching along the Pacific coastline.

It was famous for its beautiful scenery and high privacy, and many celebrities and wealthy people had houses there.

So if one were out on vacation, renting a seaside Villa in Malibu, where you could open the door to the beach and waves, would indeed be a choice that better fit the image of "vacation."

"I mentioned it to Zheng Xiujing." Before Lin Xiuyuan could speak, Xueli walked over from the other side to answer for him.

She took a few bottles of mineral water from the minibar, handed the water to the two of them, and sat down.

Then she briefly recounted the situation she had discussed with Zheng Xiujing back then.

"It's just that Zheng Xiujing said that for that kind of house, if you aren't living there long-term, short-term rentals are very troublesome, and given our own situation, we have to guard against passing strangers. Although the beach there is beautiful, there are many tourists and passersby, so it's not as safe as staying directly in a Jiudian. The management is strict, and privacy is guaranteed."

"Oh, that's true." Goo Hara nodded in sudden realization after hearing this, then subconsciously glanced at Lin Xiuyuan.

Lin Xiuyuan, having been seen, shrugged his shoulders and didn't say anything more on this topic, instead patting his knees with both hands, "Alright, it's not early anymore, why don't we all wash up and go to sleep."

Facing this suggestion, Xueli patted the cushion beside her with a headache, "Oppa, can you even sleep? We were sleeping the whole way here."

During those ten-plus hours on the plane, she had basically slept the whole time, and now her energy was at its peak; asking someone to sleep at this time was simply unreasonable.

"Well, we have to adjust to the jet lag; we really can't stay up all night until tomorrow evening to sleep, right?" Lin Xiuyuan looked at Xueli with a wry smile.

Jet lag wasn't something you could just indulge; if you didn't force an adjustment now, the itinerary for the next few days would be a complete mess.

No sooner had he finished speaking than Goo Hara flopped down right beside him, her two feet propped up on the sofa armrest, kicking aimlessly in the air as she let out a muffled complaint.

"Ugh, you guys even woke up in the middle to eat, you didn't sleep straight through, I'm the only one who slept from start to finish, what am I supposed to do now that I'm really not sleepy?"

Lin Xiuyuan watched Goo Hara's posture as she lay on the sofa kicking her legs, silent for a moment, as if seriously considering some countermeasure.

Then he turned his head and locked eyes with Sulli.

A mischievous, irrepressible curve then rose at the corner of his mouth, and he whispered a suggestion, "How about we play a game?"

"What game?" Goo Hara's reaction speed was astonishing; she sat up in a flash, legs crossed on the sofa, eyes shining as she stared at Lin Xiuyuan.

Lin Xiuyuan glanced at her, the mischievous smile at the corner of his mouth widening, and then he spoke slowly.

The next day.

The high-noon sun squeezed in through the gap where the curtains weren't pulled completely shut, a golden ray of light striking straight onto the quilt at the foot of the bed, slowly warming the entire bed from the feet up.

Lin Xiuyuan was woken up by this light and the gradually rising temperature of the air.

He opened one eye in a daze, glanced at the bright blue sky outside the window cut into a sliver by the curtains, then rolled over to bury his face in the pillow, lingering for another ten minutes or so.

Only after a dozen minutes did he finally resign himself to reaching for his phone, squinting one eye to check the time on the screen.

One o'clock in the afternoon sharp.

This time was neither early nor late; for someone who only went to sleep at three or four in the morning, it was just right.

However, Lin Xiuyuan, holding his phone, was in no rush to get up, instead leaning against the headboard to briefly handle the messages he hadn't had time to reply to last night.

Lin Xiaolu and the others had sent some daily trivialities; he tapped to read them one by one, then slowly typed a few lines on the screen to reply.

After finishing all this, he finally threw off the quilt and got out of bed, walking barefoot into the bathroom to wash up.

After washing up, he didn't even bother changing his clothes, simply wearing his pajamas to open the bedroom door and come out to the Living Room.

As soon as he stepped out, he discovered that Goo Hara and Sulli had already been up for a while, huddled on the large sofa in the Living Room taking selfies.

The California sun spilled generously in from the huge floor-to-ceiling window, illuminating the entire Living Room in a bright, warm glow.

The scenery outside the floor-to-ceiling window looked even clearer in the daylight than it had last night; the distant coastline was a thin blue line under the sun, the sky and sea overlapping at the horizon, with a few thin clouds hanging leisurely.

The entire scene looked like it had been cut straight out of a travel magazine.

The two girls were bathed in this sunlight, holding their phones and changing various angles to take pictures, one moment huddling together to make funny faces, the next striking different poses individually.

They were laughing and giggling, looking to be in an incredibly good mood.

Seeing Lin Xiuyuan walk out, Sulli was the first to wave her hand at him as a light greeting, smiling and saying good morning.

Goo Hara, however, rolled her eyes at him.

Then, with seven parts petulance and three parts gloom, she set her phone on her knees, used both hands to rub her temples, and began to complain about someone with a pitiful look.

"Xiuyuan, you slept soundly, but my brain is still buzzing now, tell me what I should do."

"Nah nah nah, Hela, you can't blame me; you were the one who said you couldn't sleep first. Playing a game to burn off some energy, isn't that just the thing?"

Lin Xiuyuan walked toward the sofa, spreading his hands with a face full of innocence, "Didn't you sleep very soundly afterward?"

"Was that sleeping? That was nearly passing out; who plays a game by throwing a pillow at someone?"

Goo Hara got angry just thinking about it.

A certain scene from last night flashed involuntarily through her mind.

Herself squatting on the floor, carefully adjusting the strength and angle of her wrist, trying to stand that water bottle steadily on the coffee table.

She tried several times to no avail, the bottle wobbling and falling over every time.

And then, the second after the bottle fell each time, before she could even react, a pillow would come crashing down on her head with a dull thud.

Although a down pillow didn't hurt when it hit, that sudden, unexpected impact and the muffled *thwack* sound still made her body shudder instinctively.

Even now, on the second day, as she spoke of it, her body gave a habitual, slight tremor, and the look she gave Lin Xiuyuan held a lingering sense of gloom.

She really worried this guy was some kind of enthusiast for certain fetishes.

Lin Xiuyuan's response to this accusation was a righteous counterattack, "Don't just talk about me; when I lost, who jumped up and hit me? You were even worse than me, Hela."

Exposed, Goo Hara's cute face turned a little red all of a sudden.

But she certainly wouldn't admit defeat verbally, so she stiffened her neck and threw the blame right back, "That's because you started it first."

"Those were the rules of the game," Lin Xiuyuan replied calmly.

"Then you couldn't have been gentler?" Goo Hara continued to struggle.

"You were the one who used force first," Lin Xiuyuan didn't yield an inch.

"No, it was you."

"It was you."

The conversation between the two entered an infinite loop from here, like two elementary school students pushing the responsibility onto each other, neither willing to admit defeat first.

Nearby, Sulli sat quietly in the corner of the sofa, watching these two bicker.

She didn't interject, nor did she try to mediate, just curling her legs up on the sofa, arms wrapped around her knees, chin resting on them, a faint smile hanging on her lips.

Her body was bathed in the warm California sun, a sun that was neither harsh nor intense.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling window was the beautiful California scenery and seascape; the distant coastline shimmered under the afternoon sun, and a few palm trees swayed their crowns gently in the breeze.

This trip had been incredibly happy from the very beginning.

Having the person she liked nearby, having good friends by her side.

Having the sun and the sea breeze, having several complete and leisurely days that hadn't been disturbed by any accidents.

If this isn't happiness, what is?