Jian Ning felt a pang of pity at Cao Xue's soft sobs.

But that's the truth, and no one can change it.

He gently comforted her, "Normally, locusts don't attack humans unless you've harmed them, so check if any windows in the house are open."

If there are only a few locusts, try to eliminate them, but be careful not to get bitten. If there are many, give me a call.

"Okay, I'll go look for them now. Zhang Xiaoqiang just swatted a few that flew in through the window screen, but I don't know if they're still around." Cao Xue wiped away her tears, forcing herself to be strong.

He hung up the walkie-talkie and went inside to look for locusts.

The whole night was quiet. Jian Ning didn't go downstairs and didn't know what had happened downstairs. The next day, when she went out with Xiao Lingfeng carrying the kayak...

Looking at the scene before me, I was truly shocked.

Not far apart in the stairwell were rows of skeletons, gnawed clean of any flesh and blood.

Even the sofas placed in the hallway were not spared. It is estimated that now, apart from the people living in the houses, there is no one alive in the hallway of Jinmao Mansion!

Thinking of the tattooed man, Jian Ning sighed. She had no memory of a locust plague. Perhaps her memory was inaccurate.

"Let's throw these skeletons into the water. Wait a moment, I'll collect them." Xiao Lingfeng took the initiative to put down the kayak and came over to throw the skeletons, whose identities were unidentifiable, into the water through the window.

Watching them sink one by one to the bottom of the water, Jian Ning felt a mix of emotions. Perhaps she had done something wrong?

They should be allowed to move into houses; that way, these people should still be alive and well.

Instead of dying in the mouths of locusts.

Before they could finish dropping the skeleton, they heard the sound of propellers overhead. Both of them leaned out the window and looked up. A string of five or six planes flew over, dropping supplies onto the roof.

They also threw one from the rooftop of the leaning building across the street.

They were almost at Jinmao Mansion. Jian Ning and Xiao Lingfeng exchanged a glance, then turned and ran upstairs.

The government hasn't forgotten these suffering people; although the gifts are few, they're better than nothing.

When the two of them reached the sixteenth floor, Jian Anping came out carrying a large package.

"What are you two doing? Climbing the building for fun? Look how bored you two are. This thing was dropped from a plane. I was just about to ask you what to do with it."

"Take it downstairs, open it, and let everyone see. Don't open it now!"

Jian Ning knew that even a single biscuit could be a lifesaver. These supplies were provided by the government, and they certainly couldn't keep them all to themselves on the 16th floor. So they decided to take them down and share them with everyone.

Just then, someone at the stairwell started shouting: "Upstairs neighbor, what did the plane drop down? Can we see it? Please have mercy!"

My family has been out of food for several days. We're just hoping for government relief! Even just two packets of instant noodles would be enough to keep my child and me alive.

The voice was weak and feeble, sounding like a woman's. Her tone was full of pleading, fearing that the people on the 16th floor would take all the supplies for themselves, which would leave them with no way to survive.

After all, Jian Ning had been exchanging things with her neighbors for the past two days, and she hadn't dared to leave her house. Her husband was out of town.

She was the only woman living alone with a little boy who was not even ten years old in their home on the thirteenth floor.

If someone really had bad intentions, she wouldn't have been able to resist at all. She wouldn't have come out to ask for supplies if she hadn't been so desperately hungry today.

"Brother, let's go downstairs." Jian Ning wanted to help Jian Anping carry the package, but he refused.

"No need for you, I can carry it myself. Brother Xiao, could you open the door for me?" Jian Anping was quite strong, and with a effort, he slung the large package onto his shoulder. He carried it towards the stairs.

Xiao Lingfeng opened the gate for them. The woman who had been crying downstairs immediately turned from sorrow to joy when she saw that they had actually come down with things. Wiping away her tears, she made way for them.

When Jian Ning reached the fifteenth floor, she knocked on the door and called Cao Xue and Zhang Xiaoqiang out as well. Although they weren't native residents, they should still get a share based on the population.

They didn't go too far down. Jian Anping carried the things down to the tenth floor and stopped. The people upstairs knocked on their doors and called out.

Jian Anping, a resident downstairs, used the megaphone Cao Xue had given him to shout, "Neighbors, the government has started distributing supplies to us. We're on the tenth floor now!"

Everyone can come over and discuss how to distribute it. I only have ten minutes; if any neighbor doesn't come up, I won't get any!

Upon hearing that there was something to share, the families downstairs all climbed up to the tenth floor in less than five minutes. To Jian Ning's surprise, the tattooed man was actually in the crowd.

This person is really lucky, but his arm is wrapped in a thick bandage, so he was probably bitten by locusts.

Once everyone had arrived, Jian Anping pulled a dagger from his pocket, cut the rope holding the package open, and found compressed biscuits, beef jerky, and chocolate inside.

These are all things that can quickly replenish energy. Although there's no water, if someone is extremely thirsty, they can drink the floodwaters outside. They won't die of thirst no matter what.

"You all line up and each of you take one portion first. We'll discuss how to distribute the rest later." Jian Anping estimated the contents of the large package and figured that two packs of biscuits and two small packs of beef jerky would definitely be enough for each person.

But they didn't give them all at once. The neighbors were quite cooperative this time; it was much better than everyone rushing in to grab the supplies. The woman who had been pleading earlier was first in line.

"Brother, there are two of us in my family. My son is still young, so I locked him at home. Could you give me two portions?"

Jian Anping didn't say anything, but simply took two servings and stuffed them into her hands.

The older woman, her eyes brimming with tears, thanked them profusely. Wiping away her tears, she retreated to the back. She was reluctant to leave, hoping that if there were any left over, she could share them again in another round.

When it came time to distribute the food, Xiao Lingfeng only kept one portion for himself. He didn't really need it; his family wasn't short of it. But with so many people watching, if he didn't take it, everyone would probably think he had plenty of food.

That won't do. No matter what you do, you have to be wary of others.

After the first round of distribution, there were more than twenty portions left in the package. These should belong to those who died in the stairwell. It's a pity they couldn't come back alive.

"These are what I have left. I'll just unpack them and distribute them to everyone. I trust you wouldn't trust me to keep them safe. I'm an honest and upright person, and I would never take advantage of you like this."