Cheng Ruyi thought that the father and daughter would rather eat dry food than exchange it for two meals, probably because they wanted to save money as soon as possible to take their son to the city for medical treatment. However, it would be unreasonable for her to give them money directly without a reason, and it might arouse their suspicion.
How can I help them naturally and without being obvious, while still letting them know that it was she who helped?
After thinking about it all night, the next morning, Ruyi told Xu Cui to go to Lishan Village by herself, while she went to Zhiwei Restaurant to find Manager Huang.
"Madam Cheng? What brings you here today? The house is all set up?" Huang Youcai was a little surprised. Didn't you say before that you were in a huge rush and extremely busy every day? Could something have happened?
"Greetings, Manager Huang. Thanks to you, the house project is progressing very smoothly and should be completed in about a month. We would be honored if you could join us for a housewarming party."
"Haha, Madam Cheng, you're too kind. I, Huang, will definitely come!"
Cheng Ruyi looked at Huang Youcai with an innocent smile, "Manager Huang, I've come today to ask you something!"
Huang Youcai was quite frightened by Cheng Ruyi's smile. "No one comes to the temple without a reason. Could this housewarming banquet be a trap?" But that shouldn't be the case, since he hadn't offended her.
"Please speak, Madam Cheng!"
“I’ve been passing by the South Gate every day lately and I’ve noticed that the Zhou family occasionally comes to distribute porridge.” Ruyi said as she poured Huang Youcai a cup of tea. “Speaking of which, the Zhou family are truly kind people. When the city was under lockdown, it was thanks to their help that countless people were saved from suffering. I have the utmost respect for such benevolent, helpful, and chivalrous people!”
"To my shame, although I have sympathy for the refugees outside the city, I am powerless and have little influence, so I cannot help them. Whenever I see the Zhou family's good deeds, I feel even more ashamed!"
"Hehe, Madam Cheng, you're too modest!" Huang Youcai couldn't help but interrupt her as he listened to her increasingly absurd words. "Look, it's getting late. Madam Cheng must have a lot of things to do. Why don't we just get straight to the point?"
*
The next day, several cars arrived at the south gate of the city early in the morning, and then they began to set up one temporary hut after another with cloth.
When the large number of refugees saw this scene, they thought it was another wealthy family distributing porridge, so they rushed to line up.
After waiting for a long time, they didn't see any food. Instead, they saw several elderly people go into the small house and not come out. They couldn't figure out what was going on.
Once all the stalls in front of the small house were set up and the sign was put up, those who could read realized that it was a free clinic, and the crowd became even more excited!
How could they not be excited? This group of people had traveled a long and arduous journey south to escape their plight, only to be met with one heartless rejection after another.
Many people fell ill due to the exhaustion of the journey, and many others were injured, but they had no way to go to the city for medical treatment. For them, even living was a luxury, so they could only silently endure and rely on themselves to get through it.
Before long, the word spread like wildfire, and almost all the refugees came out, with the lines in front of the stalls stretching as far as the eye could see.
At this moment, a luxurious mule cart appeared, and then a middle-aged man and a young man got out. The two men looked very similar, so they must be father and son.
The middle-aged man had a thin face and regular features. Although he was wearing fine cotton clothes, they were starched and washed very neatly, making him look very respectable.
The young man followed behind him with his head slightly bowed, displaying a calm and reserved demeanor despite his young age.
As soon as the middle-aged man approached the stall, several elderly people from the small houses came out, bowed to him, and addressed him as "Manager Zhou".
Manager Zhou returned the greeting slightly and said, "Let's begin," and then everyone began the free clinic in an orderly manner.
The refugees standing in front vaguely heard their conversation and learned that it was once again the Zhou family from the city who were providing free medical treatment. Thinking that the Zhou family had also frequently come to give out porridge during this period, many people felt tears welling up in their eyes and couldn't help but kneel down and shout loudly, "Thank you, Zhou the Great Philanthropist!"
With a few people leading the way, the refugees in line followed suit, and the shouts of nearly a thousand people were deafening, even reaching the people inside the South Gate.
Upon seeing this, Steward Zhou immediately strode over and helped up the first few refugees, hurriedly stopping them from continuing to kneel and bow: "No, no, Old Master Zhou's original intention was to help everyone get through this difficult time. He didn't expect anything in return. You mustn't disappoint him!"
"Waaaah, thank you so much, Mr. Zhou!"
"Heaven has eyes! These days are so difficult; may God bless good people!"
"Thank goodness! My son can be saved! Doctor! Please come and see my son! He's been the only son in our family for four generations. I can't die without him!"
"If the Zhou family had any intention, why didn't they come a few days earlier? Then my father wouldn't have had to die!"
"Sigh! You're really going too far. The Zhou family has been giving out porridge and providing free medical care, and you're blaming them? Your father died because his son was useless. Blame yourself!"
"What did you say! Say it again if you dare!"
Just as the two were about to fight, the Zhou family guards, who were maintaining order, pulled them out of the line and forbade them from continuing to queue for medical treatment.
The onlookers immediately fell silent upon seeing this. They had finally managed to get medical treatment and didn't want to lose their chance by causing trouble. The two people who were dragged away were now filled with regret.
When Cheng Ruyi and Xu Cui passed by the South Gate in their mule cart, the free clinic had already begun in an orderly manner. It was already past Chen Shi (7-9 AM), and the workers at their construction site had long since gone to work, presumably having left before the Zhou family arrived.
So the two of them rushed to the construction site and explained the situation to the workers, asking them to notify their families as soon as possible, and that if there were seriously ill patients in their families, they would be allowed to take leave without having their wages deducted.
After hearing the news, everyone was incredulous that such a good thing could happen. After confirming it several times, two-thirds of the people chose to take leave, while the rest chose to inform their families and then return to work.
Cheng Ruyi agreed to all of them, and in an instant, only the old craftsman and the craftsmen he brought were left on the construction site.
The old craftsman slowly approached Ruyi, and together they stood watching the departing refugees' light and agile figures. He asked, "Was this your idea? Aren't you afraid of delaying the construction?"
"The old craftsman truly has keen insight and a meticulous mind; nothing can escape your notice!"
"Tsk tsk tsk! Smooth talker!" The old craftsman looked at Cheng Ruyi with a very complicated expression for a long time, and finally sighed deeply. "The most unpredictable thing in this world is the human heart. You... you'd better figure it out yourself!"
Without waiting for Ruyi's reply, he casually walked away with his hands behind his back.
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