ATDIWR Chapter 46
by VolareJi An was slightly startled. He knew Xiao ShitLittle Stone was pure, but he didn’t expect him to be this pure. When he had the chance to pick up a pen and paper, the first names he learned to write were actually his and Gu Jinsheng’s, the names of the two saviors in his life, and not his own name.
Yuan Mingan said emotionally, “Xiao Shit head is truly a pure child. He is a good child who knows how to be grateful.”
Ji An kissed Xiao Shit head. Xiao Shit head was stunned for a moment, his face turned even redder, but his mouth was grinning from ear to ear, clearly overjoyed. “I, I can also write 46 Pinyin letters.”
As Xiao Shit head spoke, he started writing on the sand table. He couldn’t bear to erase Ji An’s and Gu Jinsheng’s names, so he wrote the 46 letters small below their names.
“Xiao Shit head, amazing.” Ji An praised again. “Brother said excellent children will get rewards. Xiao Shit head can be the first to choose a reward.”
“Really?” Xiao Shit head had never received a gift before, feeling both nervous and expectant.
“Yes, go ahead.” Ji An encouraged him.
Xiao Shit head glanced at Ji An, then walked forward trustingly. He looked for a long time, touching this and looking at that, clearly liking all of them and wanting everything.
However, Xiao Shit head didn’t greedily ask for more. Instead, he turned to Xiao Meigui (Little Rose) and asked, “Which one do you like?”
Xiao Meigui’s face was flushed with excitement, clearly having something she liked and wanted very much, but she still sensibly shook her head and said, “Brother Xiao Shit head, just pick what you like.”
Xiao Shit head refused, softly muttering, “You promised to be my wife. Brother Ji An said I can’t let my family suffer.”
Xiao Meigui’s face got even redder. She covered her already small face with her small hand, clearly embarrassed by Xiao Shit head’s words, but she didn’t argue.
Finally, she peeked out with a big eye through her fingers, her gaze landing on a cheap plastic Barbie doll that might have only cost a few yuan before the Apocalypse, was roughly made, but now cost forty credit points.
Xiao Shit head almost didn’t hesitate. He immediately gave up the toy gun and a physical book that he liked, grabbed the cheap plastic Barbie doll, ran back quickly, stuffed it into Xiao Meigui’s hand, and grinned like a big fool.
Xiao Meigui hugged the Barbie doll, loving it. She gave Xiao Shit head a loud kiss on the face, making Xiao Shit head even happier.
When the other children saw that Xiao Shit head had actually received a toy and was praised instead of criticized, they all started actively showing off.
The second was Xiao Meigui. She was as capable as Xiao Shit head and also completely wrote out Ji An’s and Gu Jinsheng’s names. She could even write Xiao Shit head’s and her own names, and she could write the 46 letters.
Without exception, Xiao Meigui also received a reward. This time, she didn’t choose something she liked for herself, but immediately took the toy gun that Xiao Shit head had liked. It was clear that Xiao Meigui had been watching Xiao Shit head all along and knew what he had looked at the most earlier.
Xiao Shit head didn’t expect to get the toy he had lost and regained, and he smiled even more like a little fool.
The other children started writing one after another, but except for the little beggars Ji An had brought back, the other children couldn’t write Ji An’s and Gu Jinsheng’s names.
Even among the children rescued by Ji An, most couldn’t write the full names of both people, often missing strokes or simply not knowing how to write certain characters at all.
However, Ji An didn’t blame them. As long as they had this intention, it was the best comfort for Ji An.
Ji An comforted them, ranked the children, and let them pick gifts one by one.
This was the first time giving gifts, and Ji An didn’t leave anyone out, treating it as encouragement regardless of their performance.
It wouldn’t be like this in the future; only well-performing children would receive gifts.
“The children have all received their gifts, so thank your Brother Ji An. These gifts were bought by him with his own credit points and given to you.
Brother Ji An promises you that as long as you perform well, the top three next time will continue to receive prizes,” Yuan Mingan was truly a very gentle person. Having lost her own daughter, she poured all her patience onto these children, guiding and educating them gently and patiently as if they were her own daughter.
“Thank you, Brother Ji An.” The children thanked him loudly.
In the afternoon, Ji An spent time with the children at the orphanage, playing and learning, guiding each child to write their own name, and at the children’s request, he wrote his blessings for the children on paper. The children cherished them like treasures, looking at them repeatedly before hiding them away.
In the evening, Ji An walked out of the orphanage under the children’s reluctant gazes. The gate of the orphanage closed behind Ji An. Ji An turned back, and the old gate seemed to overlap with the equally old gate from his memory.
Standing at the gate was a small boy wearing worn-out, obviously ill-fitting old clothes that had been washed until they faded. He smiled and waved at him through the faded time.
Ji An reached out and waved back at the little boy, a smile on his face. As he turned away again, a tear quickly slid down and disappeared upon hitting the ground, just like the faded gate behind Ji An and the little boy standing at the gate.
The lingering glow of the sunset cast down, enveloping Ji An’s body, giving him a thin golden halo.
Ji An drove home, unwilling to cook for himself, so he ate a nutrition supplement, showered, and lay in bed, wanting to sleep. But the scene from his old memory in the twilight as he left the orphanage persisted in his mind like a nightmare, extremely stubborn.
No matter how Ji An tried to clear his mind, he couldn’t shake it off. Finally, Ji An got up, turned on the desk lamp, and drew the scene from his memory.
As the drawing on the paper gradually appeared, every detail of the little boy and the old gate became distinct.
Ji An wrote on the paper with a black pencil, stroke by stroke: May our tomorrow be a little better than today, just a little better!
Finally finished drawing, Ji An easily fell asleep this time.
For several consecutive days, Ji An commuted between the orphanage and home, bringing gifts worth about a thousand credit points to the children each time.
However, these gifts were not given to the children immediately but were locked in a cabinet by Yuan Mingan, stating that a ranking would be done every month, and the children could choose gifts based on their rank.
“The ranking is not limited to academics, but also includes life and hygiene. Whoever can keep themselves the cleanest and help the aunties clean will be the ‘Life Committee Member’ and will also receive rewards.”
After Ji An finished speaking, the children who weren’t good at academics and weren’t smart cheered in unison.
They couldn’t compare to Xiao Shit head and Xiao Meigui in academics, but they could keep themselves very clean.
Originally, these children also folded their quilts and washed some simple clothes themselves. Now, they folded their quilts into neat squares every morning, not allowing a single wrinkle.
Some children who were once messy, no matter how much Yuan Mingan talked to them, also started paying attention to hygiene. They checked the collars and cuffs of their clothes every day, afraid of getting a speck of dirt.
Of course, the younger children who were not yet able to take care of themselves couldn’t do this, but they could be ranked in other ways.
For example, calling someone promptly when needing to urinate or defecate today, not soiling their pants, or not wetting the bed, etc.
Some children might not be outstanding in all aspects and couldn’t have their own toys. Ji An also set up public toys at the orphanage that all children could play with.
To prevent some children from intentionally damaging the toys, Ji An would have the children request the toys they liked each day.
These toys would be distributed to the children by him and checked when they were returned. If a toy was intentionally damaged by the child who requested it, Ji An would punish that child by not allowing them to touch toys for three days, nor would he allow them to choose their preferred flavor of nutrition supplement.
These two forms of punishment were like life itself for these children who had previously lived as vagrants, living from hand to mouth. Suddenly, none of the children dared to be negligent.
They even supervised each other. If a child was capable but didn’t take care of their most basic hygiene, the other children wouldn’t play with them and would mock them for being dirty.
In a way, this was also progress; at least even wandering beggars knew to pay attention to hygiene.
Ji An also specifically hired several teachers who were formerly kindergarten teachers and primary school teachers before the Apocalypse to specifically tutor the children.
Given the overall social environment now, sending these children to school was unrealistic.
There were few schools now, and even fewer students. Moreover, tuition fees were expensive, only for children from wealthy families. This situation clearly didn’t suit these children.
So Ji An hired tutors for the orphanage. Don’t think that tutors are expensive. If you just hire ordinary people and include nutrition supplements, then these ordinary people are very cheap. It’s only about two thousand credit points. Even so, the ordinary people who were hired felt like it was a windfall and were extremely satisfied with their jobs, cherishing them greatly. They would not be negligent just because they were teaching parentless orphans, and they would be even more dedicated, afraid that they wouldn’t produce results and Ji An, the employer, would feel it wasn’t worth the value and directly fire them.
The Apocalypse was like this; the strong were respected, and the lives of the weak were much harder than imagined.
Ji An spent a month this simple way, and Gu Jinsheng returned one ordinary evening, opening the door to their home.
Ji An was quite happy. He sized up Gu Jinsheng and found that he was even more imposing and majestic. His aura was sharp and pressing, like a sword unsheathed, exuding a sharp edge. It made one instantly know that this was a person accustomed to being in a position of authority.
Ji An asked with a smile, “Successfully promoted? Was everything smooth?”
“Successfully, everything went smoothly.” Gu Jinsheng’s gaze on Ji An was very gentle. “You look good. How’s your mental power cultivation coming along?”
“Recovering very well.” Ji An said, “Since you went into seclusion, I haven’t been to the laboratory. These days I’ve been at the orphanage helping Yuan Mingan take care of the children. I’ve had a pretty leisurely time.”
“That’s good.”
Ji An asked, “Can you rest for a few days after coming out of seclusion, or do you have to go back to the Command Center immediately?”
“I can rest for three days.” Gu Jinsheng said, “Others have also successfully promoted. Zhou Qin and the three of them have all leveled up.”
It was much harder for dual-attribute Power Users to upgrade simultaneously than for single-attribute Power Users, which was why Gu Jinsheng took a few more days than others.
“Today is a good day, and to celebrate your successful upgrade, I’ll treat you to a meal,” Ji An said.
“Thank you,” Gu Jinsheng said.
The two chose a Western restaurant located on a prosperous street in West City. It was said that the food here was delicious, but a bit expensive. But this was no problem for Ji An at all. He had plenty of money now. Sponsoring the orphanage with ten million credit points was completely painless.
Ji An and the two drove there. As soon as they got out of the car, they found that this street seemed even livelier than usual, with more people shopping and eating.
“Hi, Commander Gu, Mr. Ji, are you also here for dinner?” A person from the Command Center happened to be out for dinner with his family, and they bumped into each other.
“Yes.” Gu Jinsheng was always taciturn with outsiders.
Ji An smiled and nodded in response.
He saw that the Command Center staff member had quite a few people behind him, his wife, child, and both sets of parents.
Such a large family would spend a lot on a meal before the Apocalypse, let alone after the Apocalypse.
Ji An had some impression of this person, vaguely knowing that his family’s financial situation seemed not very good. Logically, even if there was a happy event at home, buying ingredients and cooking at home to celebrate, eating the same things, the price difference would be significant.
Ji An thought about these things in his heart, but he didn’t show it on his face. Besides, it was just a fleeting thought; he wasn’t curious about other people’s affairs.
Ji An didn’t bring it up, but the Command Center staff member voluntarily said, “My ability upgraded a few days ago. I was happy about it and wanted to eat something good to celebrate. My family originally wanted to buy ingredients and cook at home to save money, but I insisted on eating out.”
“Speaking of this, we really have to thank the researchers. If it weren’t for the nutrition supplements they developed, which our internal employees can buy first and get a discount on, our family wouldn’t be able to afford a good meal out today.”
The man’s wife followed up, “Isn’t that right? The money we used to spend on one person’s food is now not even enough for our whole family.
Especially Dongdong, he used to go to school, and tuition was okay, but food was the biggest expense. Now there are nutrition supplements in school too, only five yuan a piece, enough for a full day. This has immediately cut our family’s expenses by fifty percent.”
The man’s parents and the woman’s parents all praised the nutrition supplements profusely. Fortunately, the fact that Ji An was the researcher who developed the nutrition supplements had been kept confidential, becoming a top secret file of the Command Center and the Research Institute. Otherwise, if these few people knew it was Ji An who developed it, who knows how they would react.
After the few people parted ways, Ji An noticed that the number of people eating on this street seemed to have increased significantly compared to before.
The owner of a restaurant was welcoming guests at the door and saw Gu Jinsheng, greeting him warmly, “Commander Gu, thank you so much. Ever since our Base started promoting nutrition supplements, our business has gotten better.”
The restaurant owner scratched his head happily and said, “I originally thought that with nutrition supplements being so cheap, and given the state of the world where everyone was just trying to survive, people would definitely buy nutrition supplements and no one would come to my restaurant to eat anymore. I was already prepared to close down.
Who knew that business was indeed bad for a while, but then it suddenly picked up.
Then I understood. Nutrition supplements are cheap, and the money that used to be enough for one person’s meal is now not even used by the whole family. People have surplus money in their hands now, so they are willing to improve their lives and enjoy life. Now even ordinary people who wouldn’t dare to look in my direction before want to come and try.
They can’t eat out every day, but once a month, they treat it as improving their lives.”
The boss laughed heartily, very happy, “Commander Gu, come, come eat at my place, it’s on me. Thank you for strongly recruiting scientific research talents, finally inventing nutrition supplements, and vigorously promoting them.
Thank you so much for letting all of us have enough food!”
“Who says my food isn’t delicious? Look, my restaurant has more customers than yours.” The boss of the restaurant next door wasn’t happy that his food was called not delicious.
The Western restaurant boss rolled his eyes, “That’s because your place is cheaper than mine. Commander, come eat at my place, I guarantee it’s so delicious you’ll swallow your tongue.”
The two almost got into a fight over which place Gu Jinsheng should eat at, and even other restaurants came to poach customers, wanting to pull Gu Jinsheng and Ji An to eat at their restaurants.
Finally, only when Gu Jinsheng and Ji An voluntarily walked into the Western restaurant did the customer-snatching battle end.
Even so, the others still looked at them through the glass window with reluctance, urging them to definitely come eat at their places another time.
Such intense enthusiasm, perhaps partly due to Gu Jinsheng’s status, but Ji An knew it was definitely only a tiny bit.
If it were just out of consideration for Commander Gu Jinsheng’s status, being polite would suffice. They definitely wouldn’t show such sincere enthusiasm in their eyes.
It was enthusiasm coming from the bottom of their hearts, not a superficial show. Ji An could feel it.
So he was genuinely happy, for Gu Jinsheng and also for himself.
This both affirmed Gu Jinsheng’s ability as a commander and was the highest praise for his creation of nutrition supplements! It was all glory!
The affirmation from the Base’s high-level officials was far less real than the affirmation from the common people. The praise of the common people was the highest glory!
Ji An was already in a good mood, but now he became even happier, shining like the proud sun in March!