Seeing that Zhang Yi was still on guard, Zhou Ke'er thought to herself: No wonder he can live so freely in the apocalypse.
"Sit," Zhang Yi said, pointing to the sofa. His gun was already in his hand.
Zhou Ke'er sat down two meters away, hands folded neatly on her knees like a well-behaved child.
"Listen carefully," Zhang Yi said coldly. "I'm letting you move in because you have value to me. But remember this: this is my home. Staying here is a privilege, not a right. You obey every order I give. If you disobey, I kick you out. If you betray me, I kill you. No mercy."
So heartless, Zhou Ke'er thought. She understood his logic, but even so, the words stung. She didn't know that Zhang Yi had once been gentle—and that kindness had only led him to ruin.
He pointed toward one of the rooms. His apartment had three bedrooms: his master bedroom and two smaller ones."You'll live there. Every corner of this house has surveillance—no privacy. The door is reinforced; you can't open it by force. I control the locks. You leave only with my permission. If you object, you can go now."
She didn't hesitate. Compared to the outside, this place was paradise."I'll obey," Zhou Ke'er said softly.
Her compliance pleased Zhang Yi. Smart women are easy to deal with, he thought. Unlike Fang Yuqing—people like her were never meant to survive the apocalypse.
He set one gun aside and adjusted another. "You're intelligent. That makes coexistence simple. You know the outside world is hell. You have no path except relying on me. Now, I'll tell you a secret."
Zhou Ke'er's eyes widened. "You're… telling me a secret?"
"A secret meant to bind your survival to mine," Zhang Yi replied calmly. "If you leak it, I don't care. No one left can threaten me. Anyone who tried is already dead—you've seen that."
He spoke slowly, deliberately."The snow disaster was triggered by gamma radiation from a supernova. It altered some people. I gained an ability—spatial storage. That's how I live like this. I have more supplies than this house could ever hold."
As he spoke, he took a loaf of sandwich bread out of thin air and tossed it to her.
"If I live, you eat well and stay warm. If I die, this place becomes no different from the others—and you starve. I don't trust humanity. People twist too easily. The only loyalty I believe in is shared survival."
Zhou Ke'er stared at the bread, stunned. "So… superpowers are real?"
She hadn't eaten in two days. That single loaf was enough to make people outside kill each other—yet she waited.
"Eat," Zhang Yi said. "It's yours."
She bit into it greedily. He handed her water. The taste of cheap bread made her eyes burn with tears.
He continued, laying down rules as if reading a contract."You clean. You cook. You handle waste—sewers are frozen, so use the disposal bags and throw them out the window. In short, you work. In return, you get warmth, food, and safety."
She swallowed the last bite and nodded. "I understand… Master."
Zhang Yi raised an eyebrow, amused. "No wonder you became a chief doctor so young."
He leaned back, resting his chin on his hand. "Why do you think I chose you?"
"Because I'm a doctor," Zhou Ke'er replied. "You need someone for injuries and illness."
"That's one reason," he said. He took out half a bottle of red wine and two glasses from the space, poured them both. "And the second?"
She took a sip, then looked up at him, understanding dawning in her eyes."There's no such thing as free food," she said quietly. "Because I'm a woman. And because I'm attractive."
She stood and slowly loosened the belt of her bathrobe.
Zhang Yi made no effort to pretend otherwise. He had endured restraint for more than a month.
So—It was done today.