It was the middle of the night.
At Su Le’an’s villa, she had just finished taking a shower when the doorbell rang.
On the monitor beside the door, Si Yanli stood outside holding late-night food.
“An’an, I brought you your favorite preserved egg and lean pork congee.”
Su Le’an hesitated for a moment before opening the door.
Si Yanli entered the house and swept his gaze across the living room.
“He’s been here?”
“Who?”
“Lu Chenzhou.”
“No!”
Si Yanli suddenly stepped closer and cornered her against the sofa.
“An’an, whenever you lie, your eyes always move upward. You don’t even dare look at me.”
Su Le’an’s heart skipped a beat. She quickly changed the subject.
“…Brother, you’re standing too close.”
Hearing the word “Brother,” the smile on Si Yanli’s face froze for a moment. He lowered his voice.
“An’an, call me by my name.”
“The two of us aren’t related by blood. I’m not your biological brother.”
The System screamed, “Host! He’s making his move!”
Just then, a faint sound came from the balcony.
Lu Chenzhou vaulted through the window with one hand on the frame. His military boots landed on the floor.
“Sorry. I was afraid using the front door would scare Dr. Si.”
Si Yanli sneered.
“Colonel Lu, is breaking into people’s homes at night your usual habit?”
“I make a habit of protecting important people.”
Lu Chenzhou’s gaze fell on Su Le’an’s reddened earlobes.
“Especially someone who’s easily led away by an old fox like you.”
The three of them fell into a tense standoff as undercurrents surged between them.
Su Le’an covered her face in despair.
“I’m going to bed… Can you two please leave and argue somewhere else?”
Time flew by.
Now, only one day remained before the Apocalypse.
At 10:15 p.m., on the streets of A City, Su Le’an wore a white hoodie with both hands in her pockets as she wandered aimlessly.
Tomorrow at 4:44 a.m., the Apocalypse would arrive.
At this moment, the streets were still bustling. Neon lights flashed, traffic flowed continuously, and pedestrians hurried past one another.
The aroma of hotpot drifted through the air. Couples walked by hand in hand, while children laughed and played with candied hawthorn skewers in their hands.
The entire atmosphere was filled with quiet, peaceful happiness.
The System said, “Host, an abnormal fluctuation in your emotions has been detected. Would you like psychological counseling?”
“No.”
Su Le’an gently shook her head.
“It’s just… a little hard to let go.”
When she had first arrived in this world, she had not been able to adapt to it. But after experiencing so many things, she seemed to have gradually become a part of this world.
No matter which world it was, Huaguo was still just as wonderful, and its people were still just as lovable.
Su Le’an raised her head toward the night sky and took a deep breath.
Just then…
“Big Sister!”
A clear child’s voice came from behind her.
Su Le’an turned around and saw a little girl with twin ponytails. She had a lollipop in her mouth and was blinking her big eyes at her.
It was Aileen. She looked no more than twelve or thirteen years old. She wore a fluffy short skirt and little leather shoes, looking like an exquisite doll.
However, three burly men were sneaking along behind her.
Su Le’an frowned and quickly walked over.
“Little girl, are you alone?”
Aileen tilted her head and smiled innocently.
“Yes! Big Sister, you’re so pretty!”
The System suddenly sounded an alarm.
“Host! An abnormal energy fluctuation has been detected in the target! Danger level: SSS!”
Su Le’an froze.
“What?”
But the little girl in front of her had already tugged pitifully at her clothes.
“Big Sister, I’m lost. Can you take me home?”
Behind Aileen, the three men exchanged glances and revealed lecherous smiles as they slowly approached.
Su Le’an’s gaze turned cold.
“System, activate the Buff.”
[Advanced Martial Arts Proficiency activated instantly!]
Five minutes later…
Three bruised and battered men lay on the ground groaning.
Su Le’an shook her wrist and turned toward Aileen.
“It’s fine now. Where do you live? I’ll take you ho—”
Before she could finish, Su Le’an froze.
She had just witnessed something completely unbelievable.
Aileen was tilting her head. Somehow, she had a thirty-meter-long machete in her hand.
The blade was pressed against the neck of a man who had tried to sneak up on them from the side.
She wore a sweet smile, but there wasn’t the slightest trace of emotion in her eyes.
“Uncle, it’s wrong to follow little girls, okay~?”
Su Le’an: “…?”
The System trembled.
“H-Host… I just checked. She’s a retired big shot from the Fast-Travel Bureau…”
Aileen seemed to remember only now that someone else was standing beside her.
She knocked the bad guy unconscious with the hilt of the blade.
Then she immediately put the blade away and switched into a pitiful expression in one second.
“Waaah~ Big Sister, you’re amazing! You scared me to death!”
Su Le’an: “…”
The System whispered, “She was trying to chop someone up just now.”
Su Le’an said, “I saw that.”
11:30 p.m.
Aileen really wanted to chop them all up immediately.
Forget it.
(It’s a law-abiding society now. Strike that previous sentence.)
She took out her phone, entered 110, and called the police to report them. Soon, the men were taken away.
Aileen clung to Su Le’an’s arm like a clingy kitten.
“Big Sister~ You looked so cool when you were fighting! I want to learn from you!”
The corner of Su Le’an’s mouth twitched.
“…What about that giant blade you had just now?”
“What blade?”
Aileen blinked her innocent big eyes.
“You must have seen wrong, Big Sister.”
The System whispered, “She’s pretending.”
Su Le’an rubbed her forehead.
“Fine… Then where do you live?”
Aileen suddenly lowered her head, her voice trembling with tears.
“I don’t have a home… My mom and dad both…”
The System couldn’t help commenting.
“She’s lying.”
Su Le’an: “…”
But looking at the little girl’s reddened eyes, Su Le’an eventually softened.
“Forget it. You can stay at my place tonight.”
Aileen immediately looked up. Her eyes sparkled.
“Big Sister is the best!”
At this point, Su Le’an still had no idea that she was about to knock over the two biggest vinegar jars in her house.
In the early hours of the morning, the villa’s doorbell rang.
Su Le’an opened the door.
Lu Chenzhou and Si Yanli were standing outside at the same time, both with dark expressions.
Lu Chenzhou rested one hand against the doorframe, his lips pressed into a straight line.
“It’s so late, and you’re only coming back now. You even brought someone home?”
Si Yanli looked displeased as he stood at the door with his arms crossed.
“Underage?”
There was no time for Su Le’an to close the door now.
“…How are the two of you so well-informed?”
Aileen peeked out from behind her and smiled sweetly.
“Wow! Hello, handsome big brothers!”
Lu Chenzhou narrowed his eyes.
“Where did you pick her up?”
“On the street.”
“Did you verify her identity?”
“Uh…”
Si Yanli immediately took out his tablet and pulled up the database.
“There is no record of her in the national household registration system.”
Aileen suddenly wrapped her arms around Su Le’an’s waist and looked pitifully at her.
“Big Sister, they’re so scary…”
Su Le’an patted Aileen on the head.
“…Don’t worry about this. She’s fine. As for the two of you, go back and sleep.”
She ignored everything else and directly shut the door, leaving Si Yanli and Lu Chenzhou standing in the corridor in the cold night air.
The System automatically switched into spectator mode.
“Host, Shura Field +1.”
The next morning, the international forum exploded.
In recent days, Huaguo’s large-scale purchases of supplies from foreign countries had already attracted the attention of many nations.
Then Huaguo began bringing its citizens back home from various countries.
Everyone internationally knew that whenever Huaguo evacuated its citizens from a country, something major was bound to happen there.
So what exactly was Huaguo trying to do this time?
Huaguo issued a statement:
“Upholding the spirit of humanitarianism, Huaguo is issuing an Apocalypse warning to all countries around the world.”
The international forum erupted once again.
The President of M Country posted:
“@Huaguo Ministry of Foreign Affairs Please stop spreading panic!”
(In reality, the clever people within the country, especially those in high positions, had all begun stockpiling supplies. They told ordinary citizens not to believe it while secretly hoarding supplies themselves.)
The R Country Cabinet took the opportunity to post:
“We suspect that the person who looted our warehouses and stole classified information from our laboratories has fled to Huaguo. Huaguo must immediately hand over the criminal suspect.”
E Country posted:
“We will treat this matter with due seriousness. Thank you to Huaguo for sharing the information.”
At the villa, Su Le’an planned to have one last barbecue before the Apocalypse arrived.
The following noon, a barbecue party was set up in the backyard of the villa.
The four of them gathered around the grill.
Lu Chenzhou was grilling delicious food.
As for why Su Le’an wasn’t doing the grilling herself?
Of course, it was because she only knew how to eat. She didn’t know how to grill.
Aileen sat on Su Le’an’s left and handed her grilled meat.
“Big Sister~ I grilled this delicious meat for you.”
Si Yanli stood on her right, elegantly threading potato slices onto skewers. The distance between every slice looked exactly the same, an absolute blessing for anyone with obsessive-compulsive tendencies.
Lu Chenzhou stood beside the grill with food in his hands, but his eyes were fixed on Aileen’s arm wrapped around Su Le’an.
The System automatically announced:
“Current jealousy level: Lu Chenzhou 80%, Si Yanli 75%, Aileen… 200%?”
Su Le’an felt completely overwhelmed.
“Can you three just enjoy the barbecue properly?”
Aileen suddenly leaned closer and whispered into her ear.
“Big Sister, I’ll protect you after the Apocalypse~”
“Swish!”
Lu Chenzhou somehow produced a military knife and stuck it into the plate in front of Aileen.
Si Yanli pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses.
“Colonel Lu, don’t be so rough with a child.”
Aileen smiled sweetly.
“It’s okay~ Big Brother’s knife is so cool. Can you give it to me?”
Lu Chenzhou sneered.
“You want it? Come and take it yourself.”
Su Le’an took a deep breath and raised her glass.
“…To the last barbecue before the Apocalypse. Cheers?”
The three of them looked at her simultaneously and spoke in unison.
“Le’an, you can only drink juice.”
Lu Chenzhou and Si Yanli rarely found themselves saying the exact same thing at the same time.
“Big Sister, drink some juice. Be good.”
Aileen directly took the wine glass from her hand and replaced it with a glass of juice.
Su Le’an: “…”
Just listen to them.
This was completely turning things upside down!