Wei Changchuan stood there for nearly a minute before pulling out a chair and sitting down.

Bright, warm light fell upon him. Not far away, in the kitchen, Min Shu was stir-frying; accompanied by the sizzling sound of oil meeting steam, the aroma of the food slowly wafted out.

If it weren’t for the violent snowstorm visible through the window, Wei Changchuan would almost feel a sense of security, as if he were at home.

But in reality, he had no home. At the base, there was only a narrow cot and alarms that could go off at any moment, while that apartment building in the distant East had long since been torn apart by the scythe of the apocalypse, along with all traces of peace and beauty, vanishing from his memory.

It was warm inside. The snow clinging to Wei Changchuan’s clothes began to melt, gradually making his clothes damp. He took off the cloak draped over his shoulders, folded it neatly, and set it aside.

Just then, a young man’s warm, friendly voice came from the kitchen:

“Bro, want me to add some spice?”

Wei Changchuan paused for a moment, then said, “Sure.”

Min Shu replied, “Sure thing.”

“I’ll add a little then,” Min Shu thought. This man had been walking in the bitter cold for so long; some spicy food would be just the thing to warm him up. He decided to make Wei Changchuan a bowl of vegetarian chili sauce noodles.

The chili peppers were vacuum-packed dried chili segments that had lost some of their flavor during long-term storage, but once stir-fried in hot oil and mixed with some Sichuan pepper powder, their fresh, spicy flavor would be fully revived. He heated oil in a wok again. Once hot, he added a few pieces of rock sugar. After lightly caramelizing the sugar, he added the ground pork. Once all the fat had rendered out of the meat, he poured in soy sauce and slowly stir-fried it, allowing the animal fat and vegetable oil to blend completely—thus creating the meat sauce.

Since it was for their own family, he was generous with the ingredients. Thinking of a healthy man’s appetite, Min Shu served Wei Changchuan a heaping bowl of noodles, topped it with a large spoonful of the sauce, and drizzled it with freshly made chili oil—and just like that, a bowl of vegetarian chili sauce noodles was ready.

Min Shu carried the bowl out and placed it in front of Wei Changchuan: “Try it and see if it suits your taste.”

He glanced at Wei Changchuan, worried he might find it too spicy, so he turned to fetch a glass of water. When he returned, she saw that Wei Changchuan had already picked up his chopsticks and was eating.

Min Shu placed the glass of water beside him and sat down to watch him eat.

Wei Changchuan’s table manners weren’t exactly refined, but he ate with great relish. He kept his head down, loading each pair of chopsticks with a large mouthful of noodles. Strangely, as he swallowed, he didn’t make much noise—it was as if the food had fallen into a black hole.

Min Shu watched him eat with his head down; before long, more than half the bowl was gone.

Min Shu, who had been wondering if he’d cooked too much, felt a moment of panic. A chef’s greatest fear: a guest saying they’re not full.

He looked at Wei Changchuan, feeling a bit anxious: “…Bro, does it taste okay?”

Hearing this, Wei Changchuan paused in his eating. Perhaps feeling the heat from the food, he looked up and removed the military cap he’d been wearing.

“It tastes great.” He set the cap aside and said to Min Shu once more, “Thank you.”

With the brim of his cap gone, light fell directly on his face. When Min Shu saw his face, he was genuinely startled.

The man’s features were a kind of purely masculine handsomeness, every line on his face sharp and defined. At that moment, he was pursing his lips slightly, his jawline sharply defined. A thin sheen of sweat glistened at the corners of his forehead, and his jet-black hair stood on end, with a few strands falling to rest against his thick, dark, arched eyebrows.

This strikingly handsome man looked at Min Shu with deep, piercing eyes and said, “Thank you.” Then he lowered his head and went back to eating his noodles.

It took Min Shu a moment to snap out of it. He exhaled deeply, looked at the man’s thick, dark hair, and said sincerely:

“Man, you’re so handsome.”

“You’re practically a heartthrob,” he exclaimed. “Why aren’t you a celebrity? If you were at our school, you’d definitely have a whole bunch of admirers.”

He genuinely believed that. In fact, it wasn’t just girls who liked handsome guys—boys did too. In his college dorm, the guy sleeping in the bottom bunk was a die-hard fan of Andy Lau, and the guy by the window had even stuck a poster of Takeshi Kaneshiro next to the sink, trying every day to comb his hair to look just like the guy in the picture.

Even within male cliques, there’s admiration for men with striking looks and athletic builds—especially guys like Wei Changchuan, whose good looks exuded an aggressive, masculine charm.

“You’re so handsome, and so tall—” Min Shu said enviously, “Bro, you must be the ‘Nuwa graduation project’ everyone talks about online.”

Wei Changchuan didn’t answer him; he just kept eating his noodles.

Min Shu didn’t mind his silence at all; he happily ladled a bowl of noodle broth for the handsome guy and even brought over a plate of kimchi.

“Take your time. There’s kimchi here, too.”

The kimchi was made from radishes he’d pickled just a week ago, so it wasn’t too sour. He scooped it out, diced it into small pieces, and drizzled a spoonful of chili oil on top—fresh, spicy, and refreshing.

In the blink of an eye, Wei Changchuan had finished the entire bowl of noodles, then polished off the kimchi as well, and finally lifted the bowl of noodle broth and downed it in one gulp.

Min Shu marveled at how even drinking soup looked so handsome on him, while thinking to herself that he really could eat. It took Wei Changchuan no more than five minutes to finish the bowl of noodles.

Min Shu glanced at the bowl on the table, then gave him a couple of looks. Seeing that he still looked hungry, he tentatively asked, “Bro, there’s more in the pot. Should I serve you some?”

Sure enough, Wei Changchuan nodded. “That would be great.”

“Hey, it’s no trouble at all.” Min Shu smiled. As a chef, he loved guests who enjoyed their food.

Min Shu happily went to scoop out more noodles from the pot. He watched Wei Changchuan finish eating with a look of satisfaction on his face, as if he’d successfully fed a guest until they were full.

Wei Changchuan finished the last bit of meat sauce, put his bowl away, then stood up and walked toward the kitchen.

Before Min Shu could react, the sound of running water came from the kitchen. Startled, Min Shu hurriedly got up to follow him and said urgently to the man standing at the sink washing bowls:

“Bro, let me do that!”

How could he let a guest wash the bowls?!

Wei Changchuan ignored him and silently washed the few bowls. Seeing that he wasn’t responding, Min Shu could only watch helplessly as the man finished washing the dishes and put everything away, then followed Wei Changchuan out like a little puppy.

Wei Changchuan returned to his original spot and sat down. Min Shu followed suit and sat down beside him.

The room was warm, and with his stomach full of delicious food, Wei Changchuan seemed much more relaxed than he had been at the start.

He leaned back slightly, resting one hand on the table. Only then did Min Shu notice the white gloves he was wearing—he hadn’t taken them off even while eating.

At that moment, the man looked somewhat languid, his eyes closed, like a male lion that had just finished hunting, exuding an air of sated satisfaction.

Min Shu watched him, thinking the scene was practically magazine-worthy. Wei Changchuan’s eyelashes were long even with his eyes closed. He asked, “Bro, are you mixed-race?”

Wei Changchuan didn’t open his eyes. “No.”

“Oh.” Min Shu thought to herself, so he must have been born with that natural beauty. It really is true that comparing people can be so frustrating.

He asked again, “Bro, where are you from? You’re seriously amazing. It’s so cold outside today, yet you can still walk around wearing so little. You must work out all the time, right? The airport on the island is closed now, and the port hasn’t been open for ages. Did you fly in on a private jet?”

As Min Shu rattled off this barrage of questions, Wei Changchuan’s eyebrows twitched slightly, and he slowly opened his eyes.

Min Shu looked at him and suddenly realized he might be talking too much. He was a bit of a chatterbox to begin with, and having not seen another living soul in so long, he couldn’t stop himself from talking.

Min Shu felt a little awkward and was just about to apologize when he heard Wei Changchuan say, “No.”

Min Shu was taken aback, unsure which question Wei Changchuan was answering. Compared to him, Wei Changchuan spoke very little—he was practically a man of few words.

Min Shu thought for a moment, figuring the man might be answering the last question, and said, “Didn’t you come by private jet? Then how did you get here?”

Upon hearing this, Wei Changchuan paused for a moment before uttering two words: “Submarine.”

Min Shu’s mouth dropped open. “A submarine?”

He was taken aback at first, then grew wary. The look in his eyes changed as he stared at Wei Changchuan, and he asked nervously, “Bro… what exactly do you do?”

Submarines were something he’d only ever seen in books or on TV. It finally dawned on Min Shu that Wei Changchuan’s identity seemed far from ordinary. He eyed Wei Changchuan suspiciously from head to toe and cautiously said:

“You… you tell me the truth, and I promise I won’t tell anyone.” Min Shu was deeply anxious: “I can’t break the law—my visa expired ages ago, and the embassy never replied to my letters. If the police catch me, I’ll end up in jail!”

Wei Changchuan listened to his long string of explanations, his expression becoming rather subtle.

After rambling on, Min Shu added pitifully, “Don’t scare me—I haven’t even graduated from college yet.”

Although by now, his student status had probably been revoked! Wei Changchuan looked at him and said after a long pause, “I’m in the military.”

At those words, Min Shu’s train of thought halted. His eyes widened in surprise, but once he snapped back to reality, it suddenly clicked—of course! A uniform, a submarine… what else could it be? How could he have been so dense!

Min Shu’s attitude did a complete 180-degree turn. He stuck out his neck, which had been tucked in, and broke into a beaming smile: “I knew it. With your distinguished appearance and those thick eyebrows and big eyes, how could you possibly be a bad guy? The moment I saw you, I knew you were a man of integrity!”

Wei Changchuan looked at him and leaned back slightly, as if to see what else he might say.

“Hehe.”   Min Shu rubbed his hands together, a flattering smile on his face. After lavishing Wei Changchuan with compliments from head to toe, he finally asked: “Do you know anyone at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?”

Wei Changchuan：……

Even if it weren’t the apocalypse, the college student standing before him seemed to have a rather skewed understanding of how the entire state apparatus functioned. He raised an eyebrow slightly, looking somewhat amused. “What are you up to?”

Min Shu smiled obsequiously: “You see, about this visa of mine—” He said pitifully, “It’s not like I meant to stay here. The port and airport on the island are both closed, and I can’t afford a private jet, so I can’t get back.”

As he spoke, he leaned in closer, widening his eyes as much as he could in an effort to win Wei Changchuan over with his sincerity: “Bro, you’re my only connection left in the country right now. You can eat and drink whatever you want here—please, do me a favor and see if you can find out anything for me.”

As the young man drew closer, Wei Changchuan tilted his chin slightly upward, studied Min Shu for a moment, then let out a derisive chuckle.

Seeing him laugh, Min Shu grew a little annoyed and said, “Bro, don’t laugh. I know the food here is just home cooking. But Chinese food is a real luxury on this island—just that bowl of noodles over there used to cost a pretty penny!”

Wei Changchuan looked at him, seeming somewhat exasperated. He lowered his head, rubbed his temple with his fingers, then gestured toward him. “Go get your passport.”

Min Shu didn’t know what he was up to: “W-what are you going to do?”

Wei Changchuan raised his eyes and furrowed his brow. “Hurry up.”

Min Shu jolted to his feet and obediently went to retrieve the passport he’d been keeping safely tucked away in the TV cabinet.

But then he saw Wei Changchuan take the passport, pull a seal out of his breast pocket, open it, and stamp it:

“The Supreme Commander has approved your visa.”

He said, then handed the passport back to Min Shu.

Min Shu: … 

Min Shu: ???

Min Shu was stunned. For a few seconds, his expression and mind went blank. After standing there dumbfounded for a while, he finally looked up at Wei Changchuan with an expression as if he were staring at an alien.

This handsome guy… isn’t he a bit of an idiot?

He thought to himself, “He’s handsome, sure, but why is he acting so childish? What’s this about the Supreme Commander? Can he just stamp my passport however he pleases?!”

Min Shu was heartbroken. He looked down and saw a bright red seal on a blank page of the passport. The outer ring contained text, the inner ring a circle of letters, and at the center was an intricately patterned emblem. Min Shu leaned in for a closer look and read:

“Permits the holder to travel worldwide.”

“Allows Global Entry”

It actually looks quite legitimate, Min Shu thought.

What he didn’t know was that once upon a time, hundreds of millions of people from all over the world had flocked to the base. Among them were billionaires, royalty, celebrities, and even presidents of small nations—all willing to trade all their money, power, and even nuclear weapons for a single seal held by Wei Changchuan.

Because this seal granted access to any human survival facility on the planet—whether the Far East Underground City, the North American Sky Tower, or even the Eden, now permanently cruising through space—they were all eligible to enter.

However, Min Shu clearly did not grasp the seal’s value. He stared at it for a long time, then cautiously looked up at Wei Changchuan, who was holding it around his arm:

“Bro… can this be wiped off?”

Wei Changchuan：……