“Ugh.” The wind and rain were fierce.
The moment Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue stepped out of the apartment building, they were drenched to the bone.
“Sister Ning, are you okay? Maybe you should go back first,” Yan Yuansi said, looking at her.
Seeing that he really didn’t want to turn back and not feeling at ease letting him go alone, Ning Xinyue clenched her teeth. “It’s fine. I’ll go with you.”
The rain was torrential. Relying on the strong physiques of interstellar humans, they trudged through the storm for forty minutes before finally finding an open pet shop. Yan Yuansi bought a lot of supplies for the cat.
Ning Xinyue helped carry some of the bags.
On the way back, they were silent. This was only the first day—not even the worst stage yet—and already they were struggling.
As they neared the residential complex, the wind and rain intensified. The umbrellas in their hands bent and deformed; they let go just in time to avoid getting hurt.
“Ah!”
A food delivery rider on the roadside slipped and fell. He struggled to get back up and tried to push his bike upright; even wearing a raincoat didn’t help.
Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue ran while glancing back. When they reached the apartment building, they exchanged a look—this apocalypse seemed far more severe than they had imagined.
Back home, the smell of meat hit them. Their eyes turned in unison toward the kitchen, where a pot was bubbling away.
Li Yao was still busy; they couldn’t even tell what she was making.
“Brother Yan, Sister Ning—you’re back.”
They were soaked from head to toe. Thankfully, the cat food was in plastic packaging.
Li Yao’s hands didn’t stop moving. After seeing the cat food in their hands, she fell silent for three seconds. “Brother Yan, you only bought two bags of cat food and a few packs of freeze-dried treats?”
“I think that’s enough,” Yan Yuansi didn’t see a problem. “It should last at least half a year.”
Li Yao felt a headache coming on, but swallowed what she wanted to say. Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue went back to their rooms to take care of themselves—it was too cold.
When they came out, Yan Yuansi fed the kitten. The cat only took a couple of bites. Watching Yan Yuansi call out “Mimi” in a cutesy voice, Li Yao really wanted to smack him with a stick.
Expressionless, she continued with her own tasks. After feeding the kitten, Yan Yuansi leaned over to her. “Li Yao, what are you doing?”
“Preparing food. It’s already the apocalypse—might as well give myself something to do,” Li Yao said calmly, putting the already-skewered meat into her storage space.
She had plenty of lamb and beef in her space—there was even rabbit.
She thought for a moment. After finishing the beef today, maybe tomorrow she’d make cold-spiced rabbit. Rabbits were so cute—of course they should all be eaten.
Yan Yuansi watched her swift, efficient movements with curiosity. At the same time, Li Yao’s phone vibrated—residents had started reporting that the underground garage in the complex was flooding.
Property management was powerless. The wind and rain outside were too severe; the engineering team couldn’t get there at all.
【Show the same enthusiasm you had when collecting our management fees!】
【My car is parked on B2—it’s brand new!】
【Property management is completely useless.】
For now, Li Yao paid close attention to the situation inside the complex. Once water and power were cut, things would descend into chaos. By then, these neighbors would become potential dangers.
She ignored Yan Yuansi. This was the early stage of the apocalypse—after a few days of suffering losses, they’d understand.
Yan Yuansi looked at her, aggrieved. “Li Yao, why are you ignoring me?”
Li Yao gave him a surprised glance. Among the three of them, Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue were closer.
“I’m busy,” Li Yao replied.
Ning Xinyue changed into dry clothes and went straight to the treadmill. What she’d seen outside today had cast a shadow over her.
She glanced at Li Yao—her strength was even more astonishing than her looks. With Ning Xinyue’s martial arts foundation, she still couldn’t run at Li Yao’s speed for an hour.
Yan Yuansi was full of curiosity about Li Yao.
Annoyed by him, Li Yao turned on the TV—still that classic palace intrigue drama, starting from episode one.
“Brother Yan, let’s hone our acting skills together.”
After watching for a bit and seeing Li Yao seriously busy with food prep, Yan Yuansi asked in confusion, “Why aren’t you honing your acting skills?”
Li Yao looked up, a trace of mockery flashing in her eyes. “Because I’m a flop. If you had the chance, you’d see my livestream is full of people cursing me.”
Yan Yuansi: I… don’t really understand you.
Zhou Chengxing was watching Li Yao’s livestream. When she said that, the chat froze for a brief moment. Had Li Yao really just guessed?
Li Yao stood up and put all the braised food into her storage space. Yan Yuansi withdrew his gaze. He didn’t understand Li Yao’s proposal, and he didn’t want to do it. He had nutrient solutions—surviving the apocalypse would be enough. But her cooking really smelled amazing.
Watching Li Yao busy in the kitchen, Yan Yuansi wavered. Still, he didn’t want to let Li Yao achieve her goal too easily.
In the kitchen, Li Yao prepared marinades and put them into her storage space to take out when needed.
She might live here for a lifetime. Once the human bases were completed, she would definitely move to one.
After tidying up the kitchen, Li Yao thought for a moment, then took out the rabbit as well. Cold-spiced rabbit could be added to the plan.
The aroma of stir-fried spices made both Yan Yuansi and Ning Xinyue look toward the kitchen. It smelled incredible. After so many years of nutrient solutions, they had zero resistance to Earth’s cuisine.
Li Yao put the fried seasonings into her storage space, silently thanking the heavy rain outside for washing away the cooking smells.
The afternoon passed like this. The rain outside still hadn’t let up. Watching it, Li Yao had an idea—she carried a small charcoal brazier to a corner of the balcony and started grilling while livestreaming.
She tossed an alcohol fuel block into the brazier. When the heat rose, she placed the iron rack on top and laid out the marinated beef and lamb. The aroma rushed straight to the head.
She flipped the skewers, sprinkled barbecue seasoning, doubling the fragrance, eating as she watched the rain outside.
Ning Xinyue and Yan Yuansi couldn’t stand the smell. To avoid embarrassment, they retreated straight to their rooms.
Yan Yuansi even downed a bottle of nutrient solution—tasteless and dull. He sighed.
【What was that smell just now? So good.】
【I’m going to Li Yao’s livestream to check it out.】
【Wait for me—I can’t stop drooling.】
The viewer count in Li Yao’s livestream visibly increased.
Zhou Chengxing and Jiang Yong both watched Li Yao’s stream while swallowing saliva. Jiang Yong said to Zhou Chengxing, “Director, with Li Yao’s cooking skills, even if she quits acting someday, she could open a restaurant and make it big across the galaxy. We should get on good terms with her early.”
Zhou Chengxing agreed. “You’re right. We can tell the team—give Li Yao more positive exposure later on.”
In Li Yao’s livestream, there was the sound of rain and the smell of meat. Many people who came to cause trouble found themselves cursing her while drooling.
【Seriously? Li Yao is eating all by herself? She’s really selfish.】
【Haters, can you shut up? When you talk, the whole stream smells worse.】
【I know what you’re trying to do, but please wait until after she finishes eating to trash-talk.】
【From now on I’m a die-hard fan of Li Yao’s food. No one is allowed to trash Li Yao while I’m drinking nutrient solution.】
The onlookers’ combat power was too strong. Even the haters liked the “smell” of Li Yao’s stream—honestly, they were watching while chugging nutrient solutions.