Chapter 50 The child with broken arms and legs escaped
After Zhou Qin stayed at home for a week, he appeared at the command center again. The first thing he did after arriving was to resign from his position as deputy commander.
Gu Jinsheng's handsome profile was exquisite in every detail, except for an indifferent look that always shrouded him. His eyes were dark, gloomy and deep, like a tunnel leading to the eternal silence of night.
But he is actually more fair and just than anyone else. He is just as impartial as the nickname "robot" that some people in the base secretly gave him, without any personal desires.
Obviously, Zhou Qin's resignation is only beneficial to Gu Jinsheng, as long as he is willing to promote someone, they will be loyal to him. They may even be more helpful than Zhou Qin, who is now disabled, and can deter some snakes and rats who are ready to make a move.
But Gu Jinsheng was like a robot that did not consider personal interests but only the overall situation. He once again seriously and solemnly rejected Zhou Qin.
Gu Jinsheng opened his lips and said, "I've said before that Jingshi Base is not a place where you can just throw away your money. I, Gu Jinsheng, am not a heartless person. You fought so hard for Jingshi Base to get this position of deputy commander. You deserve it."
Gu Jinsheng never used too many flowery words when speaking, unlike others who would exaggerate the smallest things they did for you as if they were willing to sacrifice their lives for you.
But these simple words made Zhou Qin's eyes red. Even after experiencing such a deep-rooted betrayal, Zhou Qin was still moved by Gu Jinsheng's words.
Perhaps it is precisely because of such a heart-wrenching betrayal that some of the beautiful things that appear again are so particularly touching.
Zhou Qin pressed his eye sockets to push back the moisture in his eyes and the sourness in his nose. He was not a weak person, nor was he someone who liked to cry.
When he raised his eyes again, Zhou Qin's eyes were filled with smile again, as if all the tragedy had never happened before.
"Boss, I'm very touched and grateful for what you said. But no matter from which aspect, it seems inappropriate for me to sit in the position of deputy commander-in-chief of this base." Zhou Qin smiled, and there seemed to be no trace of haze in his eyes, as if everything was over.
But this made Gu Jinsheng know that he had not let it go. Gu Jinsheng's eyebrows, painted like ink, slightly frowned, and it was impossible to see it without careful observation.
"Boss, think about it. Our base doesn't care, but as our base develops better and better, there will definitely be delegations from all over the world coming here in the future. By then, we will inevitably encounter trouble from idiots like Country R and Country M.
As the deputy commander of the Jingshi base, I cannot fight or fight back. This is a disgrace to our base and ruins the reputation that we have worked so hard to build through Cruz!"
Gu Jinsheng is not a person who is easily persuaded, otherwise he would not be the commander-in-chief of the Jingshi base. He always has the principles that he has always adhered to in his bones.
"Not everything in the base needs to be deterred by force. There are also civilian affairs that need to be managed." Gu Jinsheng did not allow for refusal and gave the order directly: "Switch with Kong Zhongcheng. Let him take over your work and you will be responsible for the affairs in his hands."
Kong Zhongcheng has been handling clerical work recently, and it just so happens that he has swapped places with Zhou Qin.
"Yes." Gu Jinsheng did not speak in a negotiating tone, but gave an order directly, and Zhou Qin had no choice but to obey.
As soon as Kong Zhongcheng saw Zhou Qin, he screamed and said in a funny way, "Old Zhou, you finally came to save me. You don't know how much of a headache I have because of these clerical staff. At night, I dream of signing all kinds of documents and listening to endless reports. The voices of those clerical staff reporting are louder than a thousand flies, buzzing in my ears. I have wanted countless times to have a supernatural power to go over and shut their mouths."
Kong Zhongcheng was talking a lot today. "Those scholars are not the kind of people that a rough guy like me should deal with. It's just right for you, a smiling tiger, to deal with them. In my opinion, we should have swapped positions a long time ago."
Zhou Qin was smiling and there was no sign of anything unusual. He even made a few jokes with Kong Zhongcheng and successfully took over the work from Kong Zhongcheng.
Although Kong Zhongcheng complained a lot, he worked very hard. Especially recently, the base held an auction, and all the major bases were attracted by the space storage props and nutrients. Many people wanted to get these two things, and the civilian side was even busier, even busier than the military side.
Even so, Kong Zhongcheng did a perfect job, everything was on track, and each person in charge was able to take on his own work. Therefore, even if Zhou Qin took over suddenly, he didn't need to spend much effort.
Kong Zhongcheng still couldn't hide his good mood when he left. He looked back frequently, revealing his deep concern for Zhou Qin.
Zhou Qin pretended not to see it.
Maybe everyone is concerned about Zhou Qin's feelings, so now no one bothers Zhou Qin if the work doesn't bother him. The days when Zhou Qin is in charge are much more leisurely than when he was in Kong Zhongcheng.
Zhou Qin, who had nothing to do, went to the research institute after get off work that night. Everyone there knew him and greeted him.
"Commander Zhou, why are you here? Is there something wrong?" Wu Youyang had recently heard about Zhou Qin's injury and broken leg, so he didn't show any surprise when he saw Zhou Qin coming in with crutches. What surprised him was Zhou Qin's arrival.
Generally, whenever the command center needs to do any research, they will go to Han Yaokun. After all, Han Yaokun's side is the formal research institute of the base, and their side is at best a private laboratory opened in the institute.
Zhou Qin smiled and said, "I have something to talk to Boss Ji about? I didn't see him. He's not here?"
"Yes." Wu Youyang said quickly, "Commander Zhou, you came at the right time. If it were a few days earlier, our boss Ji would not have come. It's only in the past few days that he has come back."
Wu Youyang said with an apologetic look on his face, "But I may have to trouble you to wait here. Our boss Ji has a habit of not liking to be disturbed when he is doing research.
However, I guess he will be out soon, he has been out around this time these days."
"It's okay, I don't have anything serious to do, just some personal matters, just sit here and wait for a while." Zhou Qin said as he fiddled with his cane. He was new to using a cane and was not used to it.
It took me a long time to finally get it done. As soon as I sat down, Ji An walked out of the laboratory.
Ji An came out wearing a white coat, his brows slightly furrowed, his eyes not looking at any specific person or place, it was obvious that he was thinking about something.
He should be thinking about some profound research topic, and he is very likely in trouble.
"Are there any news about the Mexican axolotl, African spiny rat, and zebrafish that I asked you to find?" Ji An took off his white coat while thinking, and handed it to Wu Youyang who came over to take it. He didn't even notice Zhou Qin who was sitting on the sofa waiting for him.
"There's news about zebrafish. Someone asked about the price? But they're mutants." Wu Youyang replied.
"Mutation is fine. It can strengthen its own characteristics. It is difficult to find non-mutated ones at this time." Ji An responded casually, but he didn't seem to know what he was saying. It was obvious that he was absent-minded.
"Boss Ji, Commander Zhou is here and is sitting over there waiting for you." Wu Youyang had to remind him.
"Huh? Who?" Ji An seemed to have not heard clearly what Wu Youyang said. He just responded casually. His beautiful big eyes moved slowly, but they did not look dull. Instead, they were full of spirit.
Finally, his eyes fell on Zhou Qin, who was struggling to stand up with the help of crutches. It seemed as if he slowly regained his focus and saw clearly who the person in front of him was.
"Zhou Qin?" Ji An blinked his eyes, finally waking up from his research and seeing the person in front of him clearly. "Commander Zhou, you came to see me?"
Zhou Qin smiled, not feeling dissatisfied or being treated lightly, he knew that these researchers all had quirks. Ji An was the most normal one, when he was not doing research, he was no different from a normal person.
"Yes." Zhou Qin smiled and said, "Boss Ji, are you still busy? If not, I would like to ask you to take me to the Salesian Home."
"Not in a hurry." The experiment Ji An is currently working on is not an experiment that can be completed in a hurry, and it will take time to polish it. "Let's go, it happens that I haven't visited those children for a long time, let's go together."
After Ji An left, Wu Youyang went into the lab to take care of the lab that Ji An had used. Wu Youyang never delegated these tasks to others. Even if it was a small task like sweeping the floor, he would do it himself, fearing that students or the cleaning ladies would accidentally touch something and delay Ji An's experiment.
Seeing the cut earthworms and segmented starfish on the experimental table, as well as the densely recorded experimental data, Wu Youyang knew that Ji An was studying the innate regenerative ability of some animals.
Thinking of Zhou Qin's broken leg, Wu Youyang sighed deeply.
All Wu Youyang could do was to check whether the well-raised jellyfish, geckos and other animals were short of food and whether they needed to be fed some water or something.
On the way, Zhou Qin took the initiative to inquire about the situation of the orphanage and bought more than a thousand credit points of things for the children. Ji An also bought almost a thousand credit points of things.
Ji An never went empty-handed every time he went, mainly because he had the money now. He didn't have to spend money on food and accommodation, but he had some expenses for buying clothes, but even so, Ji An earned too much now, and that was just a drop in the bucket.
Only when he has the orphanage to run does he feel that he has a big expense. Moreover, the main investor of the orphanage is still the base. Ji An only needs to contribute 10 or 20 million credit points every year, so he really has no burden at all.
When the two arrived, the children were studying under the instruction of the teacher invited by Ji An. The clear and crisp sound of reading echoed above the orphanage, with a kind of youthful vitality, without the dull and depressing feeling of ordinary orphanages.
"This place is much better than I imagined." Zhou Qin said: "I thought the atmosphere here would be heavy and depressing, but it was completely the opposite of what I imagined. It's full of vitality. Being here, I feel that the future seems to be full of hope again."
"In fact, coming here itself is a hopeful thing for the future for these children." Ji An looked at the children sitting in the classroom studying, with a gentle smile on his face that he himself did not notice. Such a warm smile was shining in the sun.
Zhou Qin found it a bit dazzling, and suddenly understood what Ji An meant.
Children who were hungry, cold and facing the threat of death at any time suddenly came here. They no longer had to worry about hunger and cold, and they could study and even get rewards if they performed well. How could this not be a hopeful thing for the future for these children?
The salesian home, which he thought was not suitable for children to grow up in, might actually be a paradise for these children.
This is probably what people call one person's poison and another's honey!
"Mr. Ji." Yuan Mingan carried out a bucket of water from the house. Ji An saw it and hurried forward to help.
Yuan Mingan avoided Ji An and said with a smile: "Mr. Ji, this is not the end of the world. I have plenty of strength. This little bit of water is nothing to me."
Ji An said, "Even so, it's still hard for you to take care of the children every day. I'll come over and help a little bit, at least I won't make you so tired."
Yuan Mingan smiled after hearing this and stopped arguing. She asked Ji An to put the bucket in the sunniest spot in the yard. "Put it here. The water will get hot after a while. Let the children take a bath. They haven't had a bath for nearly a month. It's time for them to take a bath."
Before the end of the world, if someone didn't take a shower for a month, everyone would definitely complain about him being dirty. But now it is the end of the world, all water sources are polluted, and all water sources for human activities need to be provided by supernatural beings.
Fortunately, people with water abilities are relatively common in the apocalypse, but even so, there is still not enough water to supply so many people.
Therefore, many people complain that the water bill is too expensive, and they try to save water whenever possible. They don’t drink water unless they are thirsty to a certain extent, let alone take a bath.
For these fatherless and motherless children, being able to take a bath once a month is already a luxury.
This is because the person who takes care of them is Yuan Mingan, and Yuan Mingan happens to be a water-based mutant, so he can receive this treatment.
If someone else took care of these children, they would definitely not receive such treatment. Even if they were as dedicated as Yuan Mingan, they would not receive such treatment.
"Ms. Yuan cares a lot about children." Zhou Qin suddenly said with emotion.
It was only then that Yuan Mingan noticed that the man with a broken leg and a crutch following Ji An was actually Zhou Qin!
Yuan Ming'anyuan stayed in the orphanage all day and rarely went out. She had no idea what had happened to Zhou Qin.
Although she was curious and surprised, she quickly suppressed them.
It is painful enough to see a man who was once so strong become like this. Yuan Mingan doesn't want to open his scars again.
"Commander Zhou, I'm sorry. I was busy with something just now and just noticed you." In fact, Yuan Mingan had noticed the man with a broken leg a long time ago, but out of politeness she did not pay too much attention to him. She never thought that the man with a broken leg would be Commander Zhou, who was so high-spirited when they met just over a month ago!
"It's okay, you're busy too." Zhou Qin smiled and spoke as if his leg was not broken. "Ms. Yuan, you take good care of the children. Thank you."
Yuan Mingan waved his hands and said, "This is what I should do. Besides, I am paid, so I should do my job well. Commander Zhou is embarrassed by what he said."
"How could that be?" Ji An followed up, "Whether you get paid or not, being serious about your work and not being serious about it are two different things."
As they were talking, the teacher finished his lesson and let the children go home.
The teachers were all selected by Ji An himself, so she knew Ji An. When she saw him coming, she hurried out to greet him, "Mr. Ji is here."
Ji An asked, "How's work going? Are you used to it?"
"Get used to it. The kids are very well behaved."
"Brother Ji An." A loud call rang out, and a small stone rushed out like a cannonball and crashed directly into Ji An's arms.
"Hello, Brother Ji An." Little Rose also ran over, but the little girl was very reserved. She didn't try to get into Ji An's arms like that naughty boy. She just gently pulled the hem of Ji An's clothes and looked at him eagerly.
Ji An's heart was melted by what he saw.
"Little Stone, I miss you so much." Ji An had stayed with the children here for nearly a month. He was friendly and patient with the children. The children were very close to him, and he was their savior. Similar to the fledgling complex, the children had different feelings for Ji An.
"Brother Ji An misses you too." As he spoke, many more children gathered around him, and a few younger children climbed onto Ji An, asking for a hug.
Ji An picked up one of them. Zhou Qin was surprised, as if he didn't expect Ji An to be so close to these children.
Yuan Mingan explained: "Commander Zhou, these children were all rescued by Mr. Ji, so they treat him very well."
"Is that so? That's indeed the case," Zhou Qin said.
Little Stone looked at Zhou Qin curiously with his big eyes. It's not like he had never seen people with broken arms and legs. In fact, he had seen as much darkness as any adult.
He just had never seen a person with a broken leg dressed so brightly and beautifully, and who seemed to have the kind of majestic aura that was unique to those awesome psychics.
"This is Brother Zhou Qin." Ji An introduced him to the children, "He is the deputy commander of our base. The reason why our Salesian Home was built is also due to Brother Zhou Qin's vote of approval."
Speaking of this, the children immediately changed and began to get close to Zhou Qin.
Zhou Qin was surrounded by children, listening to their innocent but sincere words of thanks, and at that moment his heart felt unprecedented peace.
Just then, Ji An and Zhou Qin, two grown men, arrived and helped to bathe the child.
Although Zhou Qin has difficulty walking, he can still help by sitting on a low stool.
At that time, water resources were so scarce that it was naturally impossible for each child to take a bath in one tub. Instead, we used a large tub to put as many children as possible in it, and then used the water to scrub the children. No one should complain about anyone else's dirtiness, as there was not much water left.
While Ji An was giving a child a bath, he said to Zhou Qin, "I haven't been here for only two weeks, and it seems like there are a dozen more children here."
Zhou Qin had never helped anyone take a bath before, so he was busy taking care of these children. He also had to find time to answer Ji An's questions, "Life is hard in the apocalypse now. Everyone is just trying to survive. No one has the extra energy to pity these children. There will be more and more children here in the future."
Ji An said, "It seems that we still need to make more money."
Zhou Qin was almost speechless, "You are already able to make enough money."
Ji An burst into laughter.
Just then the door of the Salesian Home was banged on rapidly.
Ji An's expression changed, he put down the child in his hands and walked out. Zhou Qin wanted to get up and follow him, but he fell back as soon as he raised his butt. He forgot that he only had one leg now.
Zhou Qin's eyes darkened, but he was quickly called back to attention by a child who tried to scrub himself and then splashed water all over Zhou Qin's face. He had no time to think about his broken leg.
Little Stone saw this and said with a smile: "You are so stupid. You scrubbed your own bath and splashed water all over Brother Zhou Qin. You see, I always wash myself. It was only Brother Ji An who scrubbed my back which I couldn't reach myself."
Ji An opened the door, and outside stood a skinny man who looked like a monkey, with small eyes that were not too big, bulging outwards, and shifty eyes. While he was talking, he also looked into the yard behind Ji An, and saw that in the yard, besides a group of children, there was only Ji An, a seemingly frail little white-faced man, and a man with a broken leg, and a calculating gleam flashed in his eyes.
"I heard you guys are taking in kids here. Here's one with broken arms and legs. Do you want him? If you do, keep him. If not, throw him away."
At the man's feet lay a child with long, messy hair like a chicken coop, whose gender could not be identified.
One of the child's legs was missing along the thigh, and the other leg was still there, but it was crooked from the ankle. It looked like he had suffered an injury and the bone was not straightened.
The same was true for his two arms, one was twisted at the wrist, and the other was broken at the wrist. The wound on the broken arm had grown back and was covered with skin.
The child's clothes were tattered, with holes all over them, just like he was wearing rags, so Ji An could see the child's condition clearly.
The child just lay on the ground motionless, and I don’t know if he was dead.
Ji An quickly squatted down to check on the child. Fortunately, the child was still breathing and was not dead. However, his breathing was very weak, as weak as that of a newborn kitten.
"Who is it?" Yuan Mingan, who was bathing the girls in the house, heard the noise and came out to ask. He saw the man and also saw the miserable state of the child lying at the man's feet, so he hurried over to check.
Yuan Mingan exclaimed: "What's going on? Why is this child in such a miserable state? Is he still alive?"
"Alive." Ji An had already picked up the child. The child was so light that he seemed to have no weight in his hands, as if he was not even heavier than a solid wooden chair.
There were many wounds on his body, some of which were still oozing blood, and some were blue and purple, looking like they were newly caused.
The child's body was covered with new and old wounds, and there was not a single piece of intact skin or flesh.
When the skinny man saw Ji An and the others discover the child's injuries, he quickly said, "This is none of my business. I found this child on the street. I felt sorry for him and heard that you guys specialize in taking in children, so I sent him here."
The skinny man jumped up and ran away as he spoke. It was inconvenient for Ji An to chase him as he was holding the child. Yuan Mingan wanted to chase him, but the man ran too fast and seemed to be very familiar with the terrain. He disappeared in the blink of an eye.
Yuan Mingan ran back and said breathlessly: "He ran away."
It’s not that Yuan Mingan didn’t want to use his superpowers to stop the skinny man who was obviously guilty, but the first article of the laws and regulations of the Jing City Base clearly stipulates that it is not allowed to use superpowers to fight in the base. The punishment would be expulsion from the base at the very least, and the superpowers might be abolished at the worst.
This provision is intended to protect ordinary people and to prevent people with special abilities from abusing their special abilities to fight and destroy public facilities at any time and place, causing serious property damage or casualties.
"Forget it." Ji An carried the child into the house. "I've memorized the man's appearance. I'll draw it and give it to Gu Jinsheng, asking him to help find him."
"That's the only way." Yuan Ming'an replied.
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