I have just come back from Saudi Arabia. After watching the film Welcome to Dragon Restaurant, I was deeply moved. Food has always been a top priority in Chinese life. People’s simplest aspiration for a better life is to have a decent meal. Yet in this turbulent world today, for many people across regions, this simple wish of eating well has become a luxury.

Set in the Middle East, the film’s storyline is based on the Gulf War in Iraq. I once thought such stories were far removed from our reality. Having worked in Saudi Arabia for years and traveled across the Middle East, and with the US-Iran conflict breaking out earlier this year, my experiences have brought the horrors of war much closer to home. This land boasts prosperous modern cities, yet it is constantly under the shadow of unrest in surrounding regions. Peace is not an inherent state of the world, and a stable life is an extremely precious luxury.

Returning to life in China, I feel an even deeper sense of gratitude: how fortunate I am to be born in a peaceful country. The daily three meals we take for granted, the twinkling lights of thousands of homes on the streets after work, the bustling chatter at wet markets, and those ordinary moments when the whole family gathers around the dinner table — all of these are unattainable luxuries in war-torn lands. I once thought stability was something to be taken for granted. Only after going abroad and witnessing the realities of the world have I learned that this peaceful life never comes easily.

The core of Dragon Restaurant is not a grand heroic epic. It embeds anti-war reflections amid kitchen smoke and fire. There are no impassioned slogans throughout the film. Instead, it conveys its message through the joys and sorrows of ordinary people: the simplest kindness in the world is to grant every ordinary person the right to sit down and enjoy a peaceful meal.

May the smoke of war fade soon, leaving less displacement and suffering in the world. May peace prevail across the globe. People in every corner of the world, wherever they come from, need not flee artillery fire or wander in exile. May they all settle down to enjoy their meals and live in peace.