The night sky was a muted canvas of silver clouds, the city lights twinkling below like fireflies scattered across velvet. Inside Ji Yanluo's penthouse, the air was still. The faint hum of the heater buzzed in the background, broken only by the sound of soft footsteps entering the rooftop garden.
Bai Zhiqi stood by the railing, arms crossed over her robe, the breeze tugging at the strands of her loose hair. Her silhouette was calm, yet her eyes were sharp with thought. She didn't turn when she heard Ji Yanluo approach behind her.
"I figured you'd be up here," he said quietly, his hands tucked into his pockets.
"I needed air," she murmured. "I've been thinking."
He stepped beside her, gaze fixed on the horizon. "About the next move?"
She turned to face him, eyes steady. "Yes."
He waited, watching her with that unreadable gaze of his.
"The buzz has worked," she began. "The performances, the livestream, the mystery—Ji Lanxue's reaction is proof that we've caught the public's attention. And more importantly, we've caught Bai Lanyue's."
Ji Yanluo nodded slightly. "So what's next?"
Bai Zhiqi's eyes glimmered beneath the moonlight. "The gala."
He raised an eyebrow.
"I say," she continued, "we go by Ji Lanxue's idea. Let the curiosity stew. Let *Lotus Bloom* vanish for a while. Don't give the public another show. The more they hunger, the louder they'll talk. And when the gala comes…"
"You make your appearance," he finished.
"Exactly," she confirmed. "Public eyes, media presence, influential figures, and most importantly—Bai Lanyue will be there. She'll hear the music, she'll feel the familiarity. She'll look at me, and for the first time, I'll look back."
Ji Yanluo looked at her for a moment, his expression unreadable.
"You want to corner her on stage?"
Bai Zhiqi gave a faint smile. "Not yet. That would be too easy. I just want her to feel that sense of déjà vu. The kind that keeps you up at night."
He watched her in silence for a long while. "You're planning to haunt her before you strike."
"I'm not in a hurry," she said softly. "Five years of silence. What's a few more weeks?"
The wind tugged again at her sleeves. Ji Yanluo studied the woman in front of him. No longer the girl shackled by her past—Bai Zhiqi stood tall now, her presence laced with calm precision and an unsettling grace
"She won't recognize you immediately," he said.
"She will," Bai Zhiqi replied, looking toward the city. "She just won't believe it."
Ji Yanluo's voice dropped low. "And what happens when she does?"
Her lips curved slightly. "That's when the real music begins."
He tilted his head. "You enjoy this."
"I've learned to."
There was a long pause before he spoke again. "Very well. I'll let Lanxue continue her plans for the gala. That way, the stage will be set. You just have to appear."
"And disappear," she added. "Let the mystery stretch a little longer."
He gave a short nod. "We'll keep the veil until the final act."
She turned toward him now. "I'll need a new piece. Something haunting. Beautiful, but just eerie enough to unsettle her."
"I'll have the music room cleared."
"And the hanfu," she said. "This time… red."
Ji Yanluo's eyes narrowed faintly. "Red?"
"For blood," she said softly. "But no one has to know that yet."
A beat of silence stretched between them, thick with implication.
Finally, he gave a quiet chuckle. "You're more terrifying than I expected."
Bai Zhiqi smiled faintly. "I had five years to become this."
They stood together under the moonlight, quiet but not companionable. Two people bonded not by warmth—but by a shared understanding of retribution.
"You'll get your moment," Ji Yanluo said finally.
She turned back toward the skyline. "No, Ji Yanluo. *We* will."
And somewhere in the distance, far below their silent rooftop, the city pulsed—unaware of the storm quietly gathering its strength.