"Alright, for the remaining hour, do you want Thai or Chinese style? I can also do an aromatherapy back massage."
An aromatherapy back massage requires undressing, and she wasn't foolish enough to let Fu Yunting take advantage of her.
"Thai style is fine, and be gentle! This is my waist, not dough!"
Fu Yunting could encompass her waist with both hands and still have room to spare.
If no one had witnessed it firsthand, no one would have imagined that the infamous 'Ghost's Terror' San Yanwang from before would now stoop so low as to give massages to others just to live in their home.
Although it was limited to An Nuan alone, it was enough to subvert everyone's perception of reality.
Of the three rooms on the first floor, one was converted into a large storage room, another was for Juanzi and Daidai's marital home, and the remaining one was vacant. It was originally intended to be a playroom, but now that Shi Huai had arrived, his large and heavy frame made climbing stairs inconvenient, so this room was arranged for him.
Shi Huai no longer slept on a bed.
First, a latex mat was set up, then covered with dry hay, and a few thick, old bamboo stalks were placed for him to sharpen his claws.
An Nuan gave him some carrots and bamboo shoots, and Shi Huai ate them with great delight.
"Are you a panda or a human now? Is it okay to just eat bamboo and carrots?"
"Pandas are actually omnivores. They are now protected and artificially bred, so they appear very docile. But in reality, their combat ability is no less than other omnivores. I think I can still eat meat!"
An Nuan asked curiously, "Besides communicating with animals, do you have any other abilities now?"
"Last time, an異種 attacked them, and I punched it away. Does that count?"
"Well... it counts, I guess."
Sheer strength works wonders. Not bad.
An Nuan repositioned herself and extended her legs towards Fu Yunting.
Braised potatoes with beef, braised quail eggs with pork belly, braised fish with glutinous rice cakes, and cheese-baked sweet potato.
To welcome her best friend's husband into their midst, Luoluo had specifically selected a prime cut of steak and a suitable bottle of wine.
"Luoluo, you don't need to prepare anything special for me. I'll just eat what everyone else is having."
"Ah... you don't like these? But I thought 'overbearing CEOs' loved this sort of thing!"
Fu Yunting had eaten Western food for ten years abroad and was sick of it.
While some of it was delicious, he wanted to be closer to An Nuan.
To eat what she ate, to watch the movies she liked.
Luoluo changed several drinks and took out ingredients for cooking from the refrigerator.
An Nuan rolled over, preparing to get up and help cook, but Fu Yunting pressed her back onto the sofa and wrapped a blanket around her.
"What are you doing?"
"It's your period. You need to stay warm."
"How did you..."
An Nuan suddenly realized it must be related to his abilities.
Zombies were sensitive to blood, and Fu Yunting likely had similar capabilities.
He was indeed sensitive to blood. After An Nuan came out of the bathroom, he knew she was on her period and silently etched the 16th into his memory.
Heavy snow began to fall outside, and the fireplace crackled with burning charcoal. Coupled with the previously stored electricity, the entire villa maintained a temperature of twenty-five degrees Celsius.
Shi Huai and Chen Wenjing created a long trough on a platform by the window and repurposed several cardboard boxes into small planters.
They sowed seeds of bok choy and tomatoes inside.
A small bamboo frame was erected to support the seedlings, and the chives that Luoluo had planted were trimmed, with the remaining parts transplanted.
"Brother Panda, how long will it take for the seeds you planted to grow enough for our bowls?"
"Little Dragon, don't worry. They'll grow in a while, especially the chives. When the next batch is ready, we'll make dumplings, okay?"
Little Dragon was happy to hear about food.
An Nuan never imagined that their small home, originally meant only for her and Luoluo, would now be filled with so many people, and that they would even start a gardening and vegetable-growing venture at home.
However, An Nuan didn't dislike it.
Vegetables grown with one's own hands tasted better, and having some flowers and vegetables around the rooms was beneficial for both mind and body. There was no downside to it.
An Nuan was just worried if this small villa could sustain the lifestyle of so many people.
There couldn't be any more people.
Fu Yunting went to the kitchen to make her brown sugar water and brought it to An Nuan. As he approached, the television switched channels.
[Brother, you've changed! You're not my brother! Honestly, tell me, what kind of evil spirit has possessed my brother?]
"Brother? Are you two brothers? Is that Fu Yunlei?"
"Fu Yunlei?"
Luoluo, holding a freshly prepared chicken, rushed into the living room.
"It really is Fu Yunlei? I knew it! I was wondering who played computer games so skillfully, turns out it's you!"
"Luoluo, you know him?"
An Nuan didn't mingle in hacker circles and was unaware of Fu Yunlei's fame.
She had even automatically blocked information about the Fu family, so it was understandable that she didn't recognize Fu Yunlei.
But Luoluo did. In her circle, everyone knew Fu Yunlei's name.
"This guy is incredibly arrogant. Ordinary hackers use pseudonyms, but he uses his real name to challenge others and has never lost!"
[Little beauty is eating chicken? I can tell it's delicious!]
"Less nonsense, wait until I finish cooking, and then we'll have a one-on-one!"
[Brother, take your time coaxing sister-in-law. Call me if anything happens. Don't worry about home.]
The television returned to its normal programming.
Luoluo stomped her foot in anger, cursed Fu Yunlei a few times, and vented her frustration on the chicken.
"Black Smoke was my younger brother's old handle. When he found that no one in the hacker community could beat him, he started using his real name. We'll just use it casually this time."
Luoluo rolled her eyes so hard they threatened to fly out of her head.
She had seen arrogance before, but never this much.
Luoluo chopped the chicken with her knife, the cutting board shaking with each stroke.
An Nuan asked curiously, "Is your brother staying alone? Aren't you worried about him?"
"No need to worry about him. He won't die."
Since his own brother was so unconcerned, An Nuan didn't worry either.
An Nuan discussed her past life with him and received a confirmed answer.
Fu Yunting was also a reborn individual, and he had been reborn in the twenty-first year of the apocalypse.
Considering only the mental timeline, he was already an old man in his sixties!
"After you were reborn, you tied the technology team to your side?"
"Yes. In my previous life, some died, and others were taken advantage of. This time, I decided to act first. I sold my properties and stocks and invested heavily to bring them to my side. Technology is power. With power, one can survive."
An Nuan looked at his profile and finally understood the feeling of unease she had in her heart.
Resonance!
As people who had experienced the apocalypse, there was something different in their souls.
Unlike Luoluo and her group, who had guidance and protection from the moment they entered the apocalypse, An Nuan and Fu Yunting had endured hardships they couldn't imagine.
The hardships Fu Yunting endured were something An Nuan couldn't imagine either.
After all, she had died early, while Fu Yunting had lived through twenty-one years.
Sometimes, living a long life wasn't necessarily a good thing.
"It's amazing. Our death years are so far apart, yet you returned earlier than me. You arrived two years ago. How did you manage it?"
"If I say it was luck, would you believe me?"
—
Tomorrow I will go and correct typos and any character name mix-ups. First, a plea: Esteemed readers, if you could take a moment to leave a five-star review in the comment section, I would greatly appreciate it, and I will reward you with bonus chapters.
As for those who dislike this book, please refrain from leaving comments or negative reviews. There's no need for that.