My son is so filial~

Liu Yi was beside herself with excitement. She wiped her hands on her coat and solemnly accepted the piece of rabbit meat with both hands, rolling it carefully in the plate of barbecue seasoning. Opening her delicate pink lips, she tore off a small bite, chewing slowly and savoring each morsel.

Instantly, her fair, tender face lit up with a smile of surprise and delight. "The grilling is perfect, the meat is fresh and fragrant! The seasoning is even more authentic than mine! The flavor lingers on the tongue, lingering long after the bite."

My child is so filial~

She quickly took another bite. The crispy, juicy roasted rabbit was drenched in aromatic seasoning, and coupled with Liu Yi's somewhat fierce eating manner, it was enough to make both Tiger and Doggy drool with envy.

"Come, everyone, let's eat together." Seven Kill wanted to eat too, but saved his portion for the little tiger cub. He waited until his son finished before eating what was left.

Ice Lump buried his head and ate heartily.

"Awwooo~" This was the most delicious roasted rabbit he had ever tasted, far superior to what Great-Grandmother made.

Sparkle and Water Cannon nodded their doggy heads in agreement, and their appetites noticeably increased.

Liu Yi took a deep breath, feeling everyone's disdain for her, yet the roasted meat in her mouth tasted even better, and she ate with renewed vigor.

Liang Zuan could clearly sense everyone's goodwill and acceptance. Ironically, though born human, he felt more kindness from beasts than from people.

After dinner, before Liu Yi could tidy up, Liang Zuan came over to help wipe the table. He waddled over on his short legs covered in white feathers, his jade-like paws clutching a rag as he scrubbed the greasy surface, working silently and diligently, without a single complaint—truly tireless and hardworking.

Liu Yi: "..." My child is so filial~

With this comparison, she looked at the furry dogs and tigers, and found them less remarkable, her affection for the little phoenix even stronger.

Just look at those furry ones, all they did was act cute and beg. As for the little phoenix, though they couldn't communicate heart-to-heart, his actions spoke louder than words.

Never judge by what someone says, but by what they do. This rule applies not only to humans, but to birds and beasts as well.

With the little phoenix's help, she finished the chores. Meanwhile, Sparkle and Water Cannon had already leapt onto the bed, lazily sprawled out, waiting for their dog mother to join them.

"You two are already three or four months old. From now on, you need to learn to sleep on your own," Liu Yi thought her double bed had become almost entirely the domain of these little puppies.

Other than eating, they wished they could stay on the bed all day. She used to think they were too young to discipline, so she let them be, but now, with the phoenix as a contrast, these two seemed hopeless.

Thus, Liang Zuan successfully displaced the two little puppies, earning the privilege of sharing the room and bed with Liu Yi alone.

As the door closed, Liang Zuan obediently curled up at the foot of the bed, his black round eyes shining brightly.

He was a happy bird.

Sparkle: "..." You scheming bird.

Water Cannon: "..." You green tea bird.

The two little puppies awkwardly dragged their mats and went to join Ice Lump.

Ice Lump was still young and had no sense of territory; he truly regarded them as brothers. Without waiting for Seven Kill to speak, he cheerfully welcomed the puppies into his bed.

Come on, let's sleep together~

Seven Kill: "..." One cub is trouble, three cubs are trouble too.

He closed his blue tiger eyes, leaving them only the back of his head, refusing to engage.

Liu Yi lived her days with flavor and contentment, while outside, certain matters were beginning to ferment.

Their area was elevated, and they were lucky to escape the devastation of the massive flood, avoiding a massacre.

At the same time, the island nation, plagued by its own disasters, retaliated with increased nuclear wastewater discharge. Marine pollution led to rampant algae growth, and red tides swept across coastal regions worldwide.

Microorganisms in the ocean died en masse, and all creatures along these waters perished in turn. Almost overnight, coastal waters became as turbid as the Yellow River.

At first, humans thought it was just another red tide.

But then, the lakes experienced "water blooms" as well.

This was nature's counterattack.

Red tides and "water blooms" harmed more than just fish. The balance of marine ecology, wantonly destroyed by humans, brought catastrophe to fisheries and aquaculture.

Fresh water became scarce, and large-scale skin allergies and poisonings plagued humanity.

That streak of dark red, like a bloodthirsty abyss, reminded people once more of the terror of the sea's dominion.

But all high-tech measures were powerless before nature, as insignificant as ants trying to move a tree.

The most advanced water resources produced by human technology were utterly insufficient for all the refugees, so scarce that each family received only one 300-milliliter bottle of purified water per day, rationed according to labor.

The shelters were sharply divided into clear social classes. Those at the bottom suffered dry, cracked lips and constant hunger and thirst, with riots erupting one after another.

Every day, intellectuals died in the chaos of looting and violence, tearing off their masks of civility to reveal humanity's ugly nature.

Among them was Liu Yi's cousin, Lu Yunshu, living in the Di family shelter.

It wasn't just her truckload of medicine and supplies that attracted hungry wolves, but Lu Yunshu herself—fair-skinned, beautiful, with long legs—became the object of many covetous gazes.

She had once viewed the Di family prince as prey, but ever since Liu Yi had burned her waist-length hair, that noble man lost all interest in her.

With no other options, she had to promote her backup to official status, namely Jiang Guangyu, the young man who had obtained Liu Yi's shelter ticket.

With his merit of delivering the experimental subject, he had risen from a street thug to an intern doctor at the Di family hospital, earning respect and a bit of status in the shelter's middle ranks.

He made Lu Yunshu donate most of her supplies, barely managing to protect her and her family.

"Why is it biscuits again? Even instant noodles would be better!" Lu Yunshu's throat went dry at the sight of compressed biscuits, and she threw the food to the floor with force.

Jiang Guangyu squatted down, picked up the biscuits, and ate them piece by piece.

"If my brothers hadn't disappeared, we wouldn't be so helpless."

"Are you blaming me? Blaming me for sending your brothers after Liu Yi?" Hunger and thirst made Lu Yunshu irritable, with none of her former gentleness.

Jiang Guangyu wondered when his goddess had turned into nothing but a shrill, complaining shrew.

He slumped his shoulders helplessly, chewing the compressed biscuit. When his throat was too dry to bear, he tried to take a sip of water, only to have Lu Yunshu snatch the bottle away first.

"You go drink the patients' water at the hospital. This water is for me to wash my face and remove my makeup. Women need 1500 to 2000 milliliters of water a day. Without water, I can't manage!"

Jiang Guangyu really liked her, but at this moment, he found it hard to tolerate.

He lowered his voice and growled, "No matter how much water you drink each day, I won't say a word. But at times like this, not only do you insist on makeup, but on washing as well? Don't you realize that women outside are afraid to let anyone see their good looks?"

"You've changed, you don't love me anymore! You promised to spoil me for life!" Sensing the situation turning bad, Lu Yunshu shed crocodile tears.

A backup always remains a backup. Even if she reluctantly made him official, his behavior lacked the dignity of the Di family prince, and every gesture reeked of petty-mindedness...