Another Kind of Reproductive Isolation
Liu Chang'an has never had a child with a woman, nor has he ever had a child, much less produced any offspring.
Even when he was not human, he did not inherit his genes or any kind of original animal or plant.
From the perspective of any creature that needs to rely on reproduction to pass on life and maintain the existence of its species, this process is of extremely great significance.
It is a great epic that cannot be described by any words, poems, films, novels, dramas, or so on.
The birth of life has been a tumultuous process for countless groups, who have endured countless hardships and crises to survive and perish, searching for even the slightest chance to pass on their lives.
No matter how harsh or difficult the environment, there are songs of life. Deserts, Snow Mountain, volcanoes, deep-sea trenches—this planet, which is neither too big nor too small, is teeming with countless forms of life.
Many races have also gone extinct because the continuation of life is by no means a matter of course.
The extinction of some races is simply due to bad luck.
Liu Chang'an witnessed firsthand the disappearance and concealment, prosperity and growth of countless lives, and even saw some creatures become unrecognizable over long periods of time.
As an observer, this is a fascinating experience, no less so than witnessing the dramatic changes brought about by tectonic movements.
But he has no descendants to carry on his legacy, nor does he need to, for he himself is the legacy.
Even so, he tried, tried with countless women, more than ten thousand... but none of them could produce a child or anything else with him.
"Their inability to have children with me isn't their problem, it's mine." Liu Chang'an shook his head. "Neither can you. You've been with me for so long without ever using contraception, and you've never gotten pregnant. Don't you know that?"
Su Nanxiu raised her hand and gently stroked her lower abdomen. Although there was nothing inside, as a woman, creating life in her womb with the person she loved was the most sacred expression of the beauty of life.
"Just because I couldn't before doesn't mean I can't now." Su Nanxiu tilted her head, looked at Liu Chang'an, and lifted her skirt. "Try it if you don't believe me."
Su Nanxiu's skirt hem just covered her insteps. Her hands were clenched into fists, clutching more fabric at her hips. The skirt swayed and revealed a section of her slender calves. Then the side seam of the skirt parted, and a smooth, long leg was vaguely visible.
The body of a young girl, the subtle gestures of a mature woman revealing her charm.
"We've tried it countless times, so let's not talk about these things anymore." Liu Chang'an wasn't tempted; he just smiled. "Besides, how can you just try something like this casually?"
He already knew there was no hope in many things, so how could he be so easily tempted to try again? Especially since the person he was trying with was Su Nanxiu... Once he'd tried it with her, could he just back out? That would be a recipe for disaster.
Su Nanxiu ignored Liu Chang'an's rejection; a faint blush crept up her neck, spreading and spreading, just like the stain on her bedsheets that night, soaked in water.
"The past is the past, and the present is the present..." Su Nanxiu walked over, tugged at Liu Chang'an's sleeve, then let go, revealing a confident expression. "You couldn't have children with other women before because of reproductive isolation, and their fragile bodies were unable to support the offspring of Longevity."
Liu Chang'an sized up the petite Su Nanxiu. This delicate, girlish appearance was, of course, just an illusion. Su Nanxiu had acquired the abilities of the vampire Mrs. Karnstein. Did she mean that after this physical modification, she would have the ability to bear children with him?
"For eukaryotes, no matter how different they are morphologically, reproductive isolation is the key to whether two groups can truly differentiate into different species. There are many types of reproductive isolation: ecological isolation, mechanical isolation, behavioral isolation, and so on... Just like elementary school students know that red crickets look almost identical to Fulton crickets, but because their chirping sounds are different, they don't mate." Su Nanxiu frowned slightly, thought for a moment, and said, "If that's hard for you to understand, let me give you a suitable example. Nowadays, many men and women communicate on social media, but many men don't realize that if their emojis are incompatible, discordant, or have completely different styles from the women they're pursuing, it will make it difficult for them to reach a consensus on mating. This is actually a manifestation of reproductive isolation."
Liu Chang'an opened his mouth; this was the first time he had ever heard such a ridiculous notion of reproductive isolation.
"You don't need to explain to me. I'm a biology student, and I've even talked with Professor Crick. I'm not some elementary school student who needs science education." Liu Chang'an felt that Su Nanxiu's example was inappropriate. For instance, he would sometimes send An Nuan emojis like "Connected by the internet, cherish this bond" accompanied by glittering golden roses.
He believed that he and An Nuan had reached a mutual agreement on some kind of intimate behavior in the future.
"I know you must have thought about reproductive isolation, but your research has mostly focused on genetic structure, genotype frequency, and gene frequency. You haven't considered the nurturing environment that the mother can provide. Genes are instinctively for reproduction, but if the process of reproduction leads to the death of the pregnant woman, preventing the genes from being passed on, her genes will instinctively reject the inoculation of her egg into a fertilized egg."
"Our child's gestation period may not be just 266 days, it might be 2666 days, or even longer... How could an ordinary woman possibly endure such a long pregnancy? Moreover, the nutrients our child absorbs from the mother and the burden they place on the mother during their growth process should far exceed those of an ordinary fetus. What ordinary woman can provide that?"
Su Nanxiu looked at Liu Chang'an, who was deep in thought, took his hand, and placed it on his soft lower abdomen.
Feeling the softness and gentleness of the touch, Liu Chang'an's palm had pressed against it countless times, gently stroking it. As if his palm had a memory, Liu Chang'an came back to his senses and looked up at the familiar face in a daze.
He pulled his hand away. If only he had known this would happen, he wouldn't have done it in the first place.
"If that's the case... you can't afford it, you can't provide it." Liu Chang'an shook his head. "You think you're no longer an ordinary person, but in my eyes, you're not much different from an ordinary person."
"How will you know if you don't try?" Su Nanxiu felt that Liu Chang'an's attitude was too unenthusiastic, which was completely unexpected. He was once a scientific researcher; shouldn't he be brave and proactive in exploring the unknown? He rejected her suggestion without even trying, which was really infuriating.
"I also have my own favorite children. If it's just for research purposes, I don't have a strong desire to breed them. I find it hard to accept your sudden suggestion." Liu Chang'an smiled. "Besides, look at your Zhu Juntang. Just thinking about having a child with you and raising it to be just like Zhu Juntang makes me think it's better not to have one."
Su Nanxiu was speechless for a moment, unable to think of a way to refute such a viewpoint.
"We can talk again when we have time." Liu Chang'an waved his hand and walked out of the warehouse.
Su Nanxiu snapped out of her daze, realizing that such things couldn't be rushed. He himself might also be tempted... A hundred years had already passed, what was the rush?
Su Nanxiu followed Liu Chang'an back to the house on the ground floor with a blank expression. Watching Liu Chang'an leave, Su Nanxiu called Zhong Qing, her voice mature and cold. "Zhong Qing, confine Zhu Juntang to the house for a week!"
"Ah, why?"
There's no reason why!
The call ended on the other end. Zhong Qing turned to look at Zhu Juntang, who had just returned from the Central Sea and was now bossing the "Sect Master" around, ordering it to carry a plate. Had the Third Miss done something to enrage the Third Mistress this time?
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