Disaster and rainy season.
Rainstorm comes at once. The sky that has just scattered sunshine is immediately covered by dark clouds, and heavy rain pours down. The slum residents who are planning to go out for activities immediately hid in fear of being splashed by the rain.
Rainwater accumulated on the streets and quickly spread through the slums. Some low-lying slums were already submerged in rainwater to the threshold, and the drainage system that had not been repaired had no effect at this moment. In a moment, the entire outer wall of the slums had become a vast expanse of water.
In Meishan Orphanage.
At the entrance of a residential house, a woman in her thirties led a dozen or so Qiminghe Technology, which had been completely destroyed by the disaster. Throughout her time, she had seen and heard nothing that symbolized the technology of the old era. Humans not only lost the power to conquer this planet, but even their basic lives were extremely difficult.
As his thoughts drifted, the storm outside the window gradually subsided at some point.
Watching the water level in front of the threshold stop rising, everyone inside breathed a sigh of relief, as if they had experienced a prolonged battle, and everyone felt exhausted. At this moment, the middle-aged woman looked at the sky and saw that the dark clouds were gradually melting away, revealing a murky glow. Knowing that it wouldn't come down again for a while, she immediately said, "I'm going to the cafeteria to eat, everyone put on their wax grass shoes
All the children's eyes lit up when they heard the word 'eat', and their previous fatigue was swept away. They went back to their rooms, put on their wax grass shoes, and obediently lined up in a line.
Dean, go put on your shoes and get ready to eat. "At this moment, a voice from the back of the queue called out to Dudian, speaking to a seven or eight year old boy. As soon as he finished speaking, he seemed to remember something. He patted his head and stepped forward to pat Dudian's shoulder, gesturing and pointing in the direction of the dining hall with one hand, while the sleeve of his other arm was empty.
Dudian remembers him, named Barton, as one of the few children in the orphanage who had good intentions towards him. This is probably related to himself. After three hundred years of changes, his language has long been renovated. When he first came to the orphanage, he could not understand what others were saying, nor could he speak their language. He could only remain silent. Over time, everyone felt that he was a bit foolish and perhaps had intellectual problems.
So naturally, he was classified as a deformed child like Barton.
The children in the orphanage are divided into two factions, one is physically sound and abandoned by their parents, and the other is physically deformed and abandoned by their parents. In this world, even children have already learned to live together.
Dudian nodded, indicating his understanding, and then followed Barton to the back of the team. Barton was about to ask Dudian to change into his straw shoes first when he accidentally lowered his head and noticed that Dudian was already wearing a pair of light green high-heeled shoes under his pants, leaving him speechless.
Before the invention of plastic in this world, shoes and clothing made of wax grass became the most commonly used rain gear. This is a natural mutant grass that can be seen everywhere, with large leaves and a slightly raised wax layer on the surface that can effectively block radiated rainwater. It has become a must-have item for every household.
Everyone walked cautiously along a narrow stone path half a meter high in front of the threshold. The accumulated rain only submerged their ankles. If they accidentally fell into the water, even the strongest adult would inevitably suffer a serious illness.
When they arrived at the cafeteria, everyone immediately began to grab their seats. The limited seats were immediately swept away by the physically fit children in front of them. Dudian, Barton, and other physically deformed children had already become accustomed to it and arrived at the corner behind, where there were several piled up stones, which were their dining tables.
Have you heard? Among the adopters who came this time, there are doctors and wall builders
Auntie Dai has already said that she wants us to seize this opportunity and perform well
If I could be adopted by a doctor, I would be so happy
I would rather be adopted by a bricklayer, maybe I have a chance to climb up the Silvia Wall and see the world outside
The food hadn't arrived yet, and Barton and a few other children started chatting quietly. These children either had missing ears or had small bumps on half of their faces, none of whom looked normal.
Upon hearing their words, Dudian's gaze flickered and he remained silent.
Unfortunately, Dean's brain is not good, otherwise with Dean's appearance and body, he would definitely have been chosen by those people, "Barton sighed for a while, glanced at Dudian, and said with some regret.
The other children looked at Dudian, who had no response, shaking their heads and sighing.
They had already agreed that whoever was adopted would do their best to come back and help the rest. In terms of appearance alone, Dudian was undoubtedly the most hopeful person to be adopted, but if he had a brain problem, it was even more serious than a physical problem. For example, the child with half of his face covered in flesh lumps, although he looked terrifying, had sound hands and feet, normal intelligence, and could at least do manual labor and find a job.
Hmph, a group of incomplete things still want to compete with us for the opportunity of adoption, "said a skinny child sitting nearby, coldly snorting contemptuously upon hearing Barton and the others' words.
His words immediately caught the attention of others, and for a moment, contemptuous and disgusted eyes fell on Dudian, Barton, and others.
Compared to deformed children, those who are physically sound but abandoned have a stronger sense of hostility in their hearts.
Dudian gave these people a faint glance and didn't say anything. Although he was also a child, seeing more things gave him a deep feeling that many adults don't possess.
And his appearance, in the eyes of these people, is' stupid '.
Look at this fool, I can't even understand scolding him
A guy with a damaged head, no wonder he was abandoned
Do you still want to be adopted? Just wait patiently until you're thirteen years old and thrown into a mine to mine
These children do not hide their contempt and disgust at all, and take pleasure in it.
At this moment, the food arrived and the middle-aged woman who brought them over whispered, "Quiet down, don't you even want to eat
Upon hearing these words, the children's anger finally subsided, their faces full of innocence, as if nothing had happened just now.
...
The next day.
The silver gray dark clouds gradually spread out, and the sunlight shone down on the slums.
During the rainy season, this is a rare sight of clear and beautiful weather.
Today happens to be a long-awaited big day for the children at Meishan Orphanage - Adoption Day!
All the families who made advance appointments rushed to the orphanage on this day to choose their satisfactory children.
Early in the morning, Du Di'an woke up on time. Although there were no alarms in this world, his biological clock never went wrong. After tidying up his bedding, he washed his face with a simple filtered well water. He picked up another set of coarse cloth clothes next to his pillow, which had been washed white. Just as he was about to change them on, he suddenly pinched a soft small ball inside and found it was a purple handkerchief that had been crumpled into a ball.
Du Di'an was momentarily stunned and couldn't help but think of the little girl who led him to this orphanage on that cold night. Unfortunately, the sky was pitch black and he couldn't see her clearly. During his three months in the orphanage, he naturally knew that those who could afford this exquisite fabric were definitely the upper class people in the outer wall area.
There is still a black stain left on the handkerchief from wiping his face, which cannot be washed clean.
After a moment of silence, Dudian put the handkerchief into his arms, changed into clothes, and rushed to the open space outside the orphanage.
Although he only had one parent in his heart, he had to be adopted as soon as possible. If a child was not adopted by the age of thirteen, they would be abandoned by the orphanage and sent to the mining area controlled by the "Meishan Coal Mine Chamber of Commerce" behind this Meishan orphanage, where they would become permanent free laborers until they died of exhaustion and old age, never having a chance to see the light of day again.
Like Dudian, on this day, all the children in the orphanage "dress up and attend", washing themselves clean one by one and changing into clothes they have been reluctant to wear for a long time, all of which are coarse cloth clothes distributed when they first entered the orphanage.
If your body emits a strange odor, no one wants to approach you.
This is what Aunt Dai warned them.
Looking around, in front of the rain soaked sand in front of the orphanage, stood a large group of children, but vaguely divided into two camps, the able-bodied and the deformed.
After all the children stood up, the adults who came to adopt, led by Aunt Dai and other orphanage caretakers, came to the children and looked at the group of orphans who might become their own children.
Hello uncle and aunt
Under Aunt Dai's guidance, except for Du Di'an and a few other deformed people who couldn't speak, all the other children were obediently shouting words, their black eyes full of innocence, and their faces full of longing and hope, welcoming the adults. This fiery gaze made some adults feel sad and unable to bear it.
Quickly, Du Di'an, who was thin and thin but tall in the crowd, became the target of attention for all the adults. His pale skin was just too eye-catching, and his temperament was completely different from the children around him. The adults couldn't say exactly what was different, but they felt that this child was very calm and had a sense of nobility, yes, it was nobility.
This surprised many adults, who didn't expect such outstanding seedlings to exist in orphanages in impoverished areas.
For a moment, many adults were moved.