In addition to Xu Lai, Xu Haiguo and Li Qingya also insisted on accompanying Liu Ziqian to the orphanage this time.
The nearest orphanage to them in City C was a converted primary school not far from the government supermarket.
The so-called renovation was just a change of the school sign outside the school gate to "Jinxiu District Orphanage".
This is also the school where Li Qingya used to teach.
Having survived the disaster for almost a year and a half, Li Qingya stood once again at the school where she used to work, feeling as if she had lived through another world.
Although only a year and four months have passed, the buildings of this school, or rather the entire city, have become dilapidated after being ravaged by torrential rains, floods, and extreme heat.
In particular, large chunks of the exterior wall plaster have peeled off, revealing the cement bricks underneath.
The group stood in front of the orphanage gate, watching the children lining up with their luggage, and their hearts grew heavy.
These children are all orphans who have lost their parents.
Xu Lai looked up and observed the children. Most of them were pale and thin, and their bodies were dirty.
Only a few children had relatively normal complexions and their clothes and shoes were still relatively clean. The parents of these children must have passed away recently.
One disaster after another has claimed countless lives and orphaned countless children.
Xu Lai told Liu Ziqian to line up, while Xu Haiguo and Li Qingya helped him carry his luggage and stood beside him.
Xu Lai walked over to the gatehouse and took a look. The procedure was simply to register the orphans' identity information, age, and name, and then let them in.
The process was very simple, so when it was Liu Ziqian's turn, it took less than half an hour.
"Little friend, please tell me your name, age, and ID number!"
If this were a normal time before a natural disaster, the staff of those organizations would definitely be impatient to see so many people queuing up to get things done.
But at this moment, the two staff members in charge of registration spoke very gently. Even though they were working in the high temperature, neither of them showed any impatience.
Xu Lai thought, this is the compassion that a human being should have.
After the staff registered Liu Ziqian's identity information, a staff member inside the gate gestured for Liu Ziqian to stand in the line with people of similar age to him, and then led them inside.
Xu Haiguo, pushing Liu Ziqian's suitcase, also wanted to go in: "Comrade, we are Liu Ziqian's neighbors, can you help him take his luggage in?"
The man who registered Liu Ziqian shook his head and refused, saying, "Outsiders are not allowed to enter. If the child has a lot of things, the staff will help!"
Upon hearing this, Xu Haiguo could only pull Liu Ziqian, who was about to queue up, aside and whispered to him, "Ziqian, your uncle won't see you in. This little bag contains some work point cards. Keep them safe. If you need anything, you can use this to buy it from the staff!"
Liu Ziqian, who was already ten years old, naturally knew that the work points card was equivalent to money. Having lived a difficult life with his grandmother for more than a year, he also knew the importance of the work points card.
Therefore, he did not refuse the uncle's kindness.
He reached out and took the small black cloth bag from Xu Haiguo, carefully placed it close to his body, and then bowed deeply to Xu Haiguo: "Thank you, Uncle Xu!"
Xu Lai quickly stepped forward and tied a black plastic bag full of snacks to the handle of Liu Ziqian's suitcase.
"There's some food here, remember to eat it when you get hungry!"
After tying up the bag, Xu Lai reached out and patted Liu Ziqian's head, giving him some instructions.
Standing on the other side, Li Qingya placed a small box in Liu Ziqian's hands: "These are some medicines for reducing fever, stopping coughs, and reducing inflammation. Keep them for your own use and don't give them to others!"
Little Liu Ziqian knew how scarce food and medicine were at that time.
He was so moved by his neighbors who helped and cared for him that he almost cried.
At that moment, he really wanted to cry like the younger children in the group.
He had just promised his grandmother that he would be a man and would not shed tears anymore, so he forced the tears back.
He bowed ninety degrees and greeted Xu Lai and Li Qingya respectively: "Thank you, Sister Lai Lai, thank you, Sister Qingya, and Uncle Xu, don't worry about me, I will live well!"
Liu Ziqian's hoarse voice was full of determination.
After saying goodbye to Liu Ziqian, Xu Lai and the others watched as he was taken away by the staff of the orphanage, then turned around and got on the electric tricycle and headed straight home.
By the time they got to this point, it was already past 10 a.m. On the way, the sun seemed to be throwing its needle-like rays at the earth as if it didn't care about the cost.
Despite the high temperature and hot weather, Xu Lai and the others wore sun-protective clothing, hats, and face masks to avoid direct sunlight.
But like being steamed in a steamer, even sitting on a tricycle, even with the electric tricycle generating some hot air as it moved, they were still so hot they could hardly breathe.
Along the way, as they sat in the car, they would occasionally encounter people who had collapsed on the road.
At this point, they really didn't dare to do good deeds indiscriminately.
Fortunately, after the military and government sent people to melt and clear the asphalt on the road, their electric tricycles were able to travel smoothly on the road.
Otherwise, based on previous experiences shared by netizens, the car tires would get stuck to the melted asphalt on the road.
"I can't take it anymore, I'm so hot I can hardly breathe!"
Unable to bear the scorching sun, Xu Haiguo reached out and used his hand as a fan to cool himself.
He was in a hurry when he went out, and he only focused on putting on his sun protection clothing, forgetting to bring his gloves.
The back of his bare hand was covered in a dense layer of blisters from the sun.
"Dad, quickly rinse the back of your hand with water!"
Hearing her father's words, Xu Lai, who was riding an electric tricycle ahead, stopped her vehicle. She opened her backpack hanging on the handlebars, took out three bottles of Huoxiang Zhengqi Water, and prepared to hand one to Xu Haiguo.
When she saw the blisters on the back of his hand, she was shocked and quickly reached into her backpack to take out two bottles of water. She handed one to her father and the other to Li Qingya, who was sitting next to her.
Xu Haiguo was so hot and dizzy that he didn't care whether the blisters on the back of his hand from the sun hurt or not.
Only after his daughter reminded him did he notice.
After taking the water from his daughter, he quickly unscrewed the cap and rinsed the back of his hand for a while. He then poured the remaining half bottle of water directly onto his sun hat, which made him feel a little better.
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