Chapter 1: At the Start, a Shameless Couple

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…”

Amidst the cheerful music, Lin Buwan blinked, momentarily unsure of where she was. Whose birthday was this? Hadn’t she frozen to death in the end-times of the great frost? Why was she here now?

Before Lin Buwan could think further, someone gave her a gentle push from behind. A woman’s voice sounded, “Xiaowan, hurry up and give your birthday present to Ji Dong.”

Ji Dong?

Lin Buwan’s gaze turned icy as she looked toward the young man in the center of the crowd, handsome and fresh-faced, just about to blow out the birthday candles.

“Hurry up,” the voice behind her urged again, this time more forcefully. Lin Buwan, clutching a heavy mechanical keyboard, stumbled forward two steps and barely managed to steady herself in front of the large birthday cake.

“In such a hurry to give your present, are you?” someone teased.

Ji Dong glanced at Lin Buwan, his eyes locking onto the box in her hands. There was no wrapping paper, and the brand and model of the keyboard were clearly visible on the box. His eyes brightened instantly.

This was the keyboard Ji Dong had long coveted, an expensive one costing over two thousand yuan. He had hinted at it to Lin Buwan for a long time, and now, on his birthday, his wish had come true.

Just as he was about to reach for it, Lin Buwan, without a moment’s hesitation, brought the keyboard down with a smack onto the beautiful cake. Cream splattered everywhere, and the once-perfect cake was instantly reduced to a mess.

“Lin Buwan! What are you doing!?” a shrill cry rang out from behind. Lin Buwan knew that voice well—it belonged to Qin Wei, the same girl who had pushed her to present the gift moments before.

Ignoring the commotion, Lin Buwan dropped the keyboard now smeared with cream, picked up the eight-inch cake in both hands, and smashed it squarely into Ji Dong’s face. Another round of gasps erupted in the room.

The suddenness of it all left everyone stunned, too shocked to intervene.

Lin Buwan picked up the cream-covered keyboard from the floor, strode toward the door, opened it with a click, and slammed it shut behind her, leaving a roomful of bewildered people in her wake.

She exhaled, heading to the elevator. Casually, she tore open the keyboard’s packaging—what scum deserved such a fine keyboard? She tossed the cream-covered box at Ji Dong’s apartment door. The elevator arrived just in time; she pressed the button for the twentieth floor, and the doors closed swiftly.

Back in her own apartment, everything familiar unfolded before her eyes. As soon as she entered, her phone vibrated in her pocket. She glanced at the screen and rejected the call immediately.

The display showed the date: August 1, 2301.

It took Lin Buwan a moment to adjust to using her phone again. She browsed through some news, confirming she had been reborn—three days before the end-times began.

Memories from her previous life flooded back. At the start of the apocalypse, Ji Dong had been gentle with her; they became a couple and even exchanged tokens of affection. Lin Buwan had pursued Ji Dong first, offering him a jade pendant left to her by her grandmother as a symbol of their bond.

But Ji Dong, upon receiving the pendant, had secretly given it to Qin Wei.

At first, they managed to get along, but once the food in Lin Buwan’s apartment ran out, the true colors of that treacherous pair were revealed. They wanted to use her body to trade for food. If she hadn’t escaped, who knew how many would have abused her?

Life outside was hardly better. She survived by scavenging for scraps of food each day, sometimes living off rats she managed to catch. It was barely enough to keep her alive.

But as conditions worsened and the cold became unbearable, not even rats could be found. Hungry and frozen, Lin Buwan died alone on a bitterly cold night.

Now, as she recalled those days, small details she’d missed in her previous life surfaced. Lin Buwan had always been a compulsive hoarder; her apartment was stocked with plenty of food and daily necessities. Yet within just a month of the apocalypse, all her supplies had vanished.

Caught up in the chaos, she hadn’t thought much of it at the time. But now, in hindsight, it seemed deeply suspicious. Where had all those supplies gone?

At that moment, a loud banging erupted at her apartment door.

Lin Buwan approached and peered through the peephole. It was Qin Wei and Ji Dong.

So, they’d come looking for her.

A cold smile curled on Lin Buwan’s lips. She turned and went into the kitchen, grabbing a kitchen knife and holding it firmly in her hand. With a swift motion, she yanked the door open.

“What do you want?” Lin Buwan stared at them, expressionless.

There was still a trace of cream in Ji Dong’s hair, water streaked down his face—he looked utterly disheveled. He unleashed his anger at her, “Lin Buwan, are you insane? You—”

Before he could finish, Qin Wei gently tugged at his sleeve and spoke softly, “Ji Dong, if you have something to say to Xiaowan, speak nicely. Don’t shout at her.” She turned to Lin Buwan, her voice gentle, “Xiaowan, what you did today really was too much. Even if you’re upset, you shouldn’t have thrown the cake at someone.”

“Xiaowan?” Lin Buwan mimicked her tone. “And who are you, exactly? Are we close?”

Ji Dong, just beginning to calm down, flared up again. “Don’t think just because you’re a woman I won’t hit you!” As soon as the words left his mouth, he shoved Qin Wei aside and raised his hand, ready to slap Lin Buwan.

A cold light flashed in Lin Buwan’s eyes. She swung the kitchen knife straight at Ji Dong’s raised arm.

In a split second, Qin Wei shrieked and shoved Ji Dong out of harm’s way. The blade struck the white wall instead, carving a deep gash that exposed the bricks beneath.

Cold sweat broke out on Ji Dong’s brow. If that knife had struck his arm, the bone would have been shattered.

“Xiaowan! How could you? You could have killed someone!” Qin Wei was terrified. Meeting Lin Buwan’s icy gaze, she lost her nerve and bit back the rest of her words.

“Please, stop calling me by my name—it’s disgusting,” Lin Buwan sneered, then turned to Ji Dong. “And you. If you ever show your face in front of me again, I’ll cut you every single time. Don’t believe me? Try it.”

“Lin Buwan, are you crazy?!” Ji Dong thought the woman before him was utterly unreasonable.

Lin Buwan couldn’t be bothered to argue. She lifted the knife threateningly, and the two scoundrels scrambled for the elevator in terror.

Qin Wei was a strange one. Before the apocalypse, Lin Buwan hadn’t really known her; her only memory was meeting Qin Wei at this very birthday party. Had she been this attentive to her in her past life? Something about Qin Wei felt off—an inexplicable sense of discord.

But this wasn’t the time to dwell on it. There were only three days left before the apocalypse. If she wanted to survive, she had to get moving now.

Lin Buwan pulled her gaze back, turned, and shut the door to her apartment firmly behind her.