The women were very diligent in their work. Every time they carried the garbage, they would fill it to the brim. The dust they kicked up covered the sky and the earth. They walked through the dust that covered the sky and the earth. Other than covering the children behind them tightly and letting themselves be covered in dust, the children behind them did not make any noise and hid behind their mothers obediently, waiting for the next meal.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiaoqiang was quite satisfied with the women's performance. Among the thousands of young mothers, there was no lack of young and beautiful women. Perhaps if they abandoned their children, they might not necessarily be better off than they were now. At least, Zhang Xiaoqiang saw dozens of women who were more beautiful than the so-called school belles at the auction. They might be able to get a position beside the leaders of the outside forces without worrying about food and clothing.
"Let's go somewhere else. I'm so cold here …"
Zhang Xiaoqiang felt that he had to take care of his fellow townsman. As for Gao Jingjing, she was just a side effect. It seemed that Gao Jingjing did not have the slightest resentment towards him for killing her father. Instead, she seemed to be a little grateful?
"You don't have to do rough work here. You used to be a kindergarten teacher, so continue to be a kindergarten teacher. There are more than a dozen children in the camp who have no family. You will take care of them. The little girl beside you will be your assistant."
Wang Xueying returned to the side of Gao Jingjing, who was kneeling on the ground and concentrating on her work. At a glance, she saw the wound on Gao Jingjing's hand and cried out in alarm. She covered the small hands with her palms and asked with concern. Gao Jingjing did not answer. She gently twitched her small hands and wanted to withdraw them. However, the corner of her eyes swept over the mound in front of her. Her heart was still thinking about her hard-won job.
Wang Xueying carefully took the kettle and unscrewed it. She used clean water to wash Gao Jingjing's hands. Gao Jingjing knew Zhang Xiaoqiang, so she did not struggle. She let the water flow through her fingertips and drip onto the small mound that she had carefully gathered.
The two maidservants, one big and one small, were as dusty as the people around them. The older girl was not like the other women who held their breath and kept a straight face. There were two dimples on her face and even though her face was covered with a thick layer of dust, the dimples were still very clear.
Beside her was Gao Jingjing. As a child, she was weak and could not carry heavy things. Wang Xueying allowed Gao Jingjing to use her hands to carry the broken stones and sand into her bag. Gao Jingjing had a day where no one beat her, no one tortured her. This made her understand what Zhang Xiao Qiang meant by using one's own hands to fight for food. That was, to be able to eat, not to be beaten.
Gao Jingjing was perhaps the one who treasured this job the most out of all the women. She knelt on the ground with great effort and carefully gathered the scattered sand and gravel in front of her knees. She put them into a bag by her side. Some of the gravel cut her fingers and palms, but she did not feel the pain. She repeated the previous work with her injured hands.
Gao Jingjing nodded and looked at Zhang Xiaoqiang. Her eyes were no longer as grey and empty as they were yesterday. There was some life in them. Zhang Xiaoqiang was happy. Just as he was about to say something, Meow, who had her face buried in her back, used the tip of her head to push against his back and kept turning, urging him to leave this dusty place. It seemed like Meow could not take it anymore.
A dark green military canteen was handed to Wang Xueying. It was Zhang Xiaoqiang. He and Meow went to the two girls' side. Meow buried her face in Zhang Xiaoqiang's back and took in the smell of Zhang Xiaoqiang's body. Dust was everywhere around her. Although she was not satisfied, there was nothing she could do.
The team members were shouting from above, and the children of all ages were sitting upright. When the people above shouted, they followed suit. They were not absent-minded, and they did not whisper to each other. They used all their strength to shout those words. Their little faces were red, but the corners of their eyes were sweeping around them, afraid that someone would notice that they were not shouting with all their might.
Meow naturally followed the advice. She pushed Zhang Xiaoqiang's wheelchair towards the outer wall of the camp.
Zhang Xiaoqiang smiled at the two girls and patted Meow's head. The two of them walked through the dust. Seeing Zhang Xiaoqiang's wheelchair leaving, Wang Xueying could not help but hug Gao Jingjing and whispered in her ear, "You don't have to worry about anyone bullying you in the future. I will protect you …"
The children's tender voices could be heard from far away in the empty camp area. Even the gathering place could hear the noise coming from the lakeside camp.
Even so, it was not absolute. There were mothers who risked being chased away in order to ask the team to take in their children. There were also Yoshiko who risked his life to go to the lakeside so that his companions could have a meal. There was also Wang Xueying who was willing to be abused in order to feed five children. These people were the shining light of the apocalypse. They were rare in the cold and selfish world.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, who had sharp eyes, saw the young kindergarten teacher called Wang Xueying. She was also working with other women. Beside her was the little girl called Gao Jingjing. The little girl had reached the age of 13. According to the rules of the team, children above the age of 13 had to work.
Zhang Xiaoqiang did not stay for long. He and Meow walked around the periphery for a few rounds and then ran away. To be precise, they were disgusted. Even if they were the main characters, they were still disgusted. Whether it was Huang Tingwei or Lu Xiaobu, they used their loudest voices to explain a principle to the children who did not understand. Zhang Xiaoqiang was closer to them than their parents. If they wanted to eat well and wear well, they had to always think of Zhang Xiaoqiang.
"You did well, better than I imagined. Don't worry about anyone chasing you out. Follow your sister from now on. Remember, don't use your body to exchange for food …" Wang Xueying smiled. She was very satisfied with her current life.
The five children were taken in by the team. Although the food was not good, it was enough to fill their stomachs. There were no longer any students who could not sleep in a hurry to cry. She also did not have to endure the men tearing at her body. She shuddered at the thought of the belt being held in the hands of the men and falling on her body like raindrops. When she came back to her senses, she was standing on the construction site with sand and gravel on her back. It was like she was in a dream. This was her heaven.
The construction on the other side of the wall had begun to end. All sorts of bunkers and trench traps had been laid out. The remaining bricks had been laid, and all sorts of heavy vehicles had been pulled out of the construction site. Countless women were carrying children on their backs as they cleaned up. They used all sorts of tools to carry the construction waste along the short bridge made of scaffolding and bamboo planks. They dumped the waste into the large trucks parked at the side.
Seeing these beautiful women carrying children and working silently, Zhang Xiaoqiang could not help but sigh. In the apocalypse, most people were crazy. They would trample on everything that could be trampled. Self-respect, law, order, and humanity. They could kill others without hesitation for a piece of bread or a piece of clothing. They could also abandon their children and family for the slightest hope of survival.
At the most critical moment, they would push the people closest to them into a desperate situation just to buy themselves a little time to escape. The representative of this was Takahashi, who had been killed by Zhang Xiaoqiang.
Meow Meow, who was beside Zhang Xiao Qiang, was all smiles, making a face that looked like it was about to vomit. Zhang Xiao Qiang felt goosebumps all over his body, and he really wanted to rush up and teach those boot-licking fellows a lesson. He wasn't against boot-licking, but they had to be more subtle. Wasn't it disgusting to be so direct?
Wang Xueying nodded her head in gratitude.
Zhang Xiaoqiang, however, turned his gaze to Gao Jingjing, who was staring at him in a daze.
During the construction of the camp, a large piece of empty land was reserved. It was originally intended to be used as a warehouse or something else, but now it had become an open-air school. Huang Tingwei led Lu Xiaobu and a few off-duty team members. Each of them led at least one to two hundred children, and at most three to four hundred, to class.
A small disturbance was dealt with by Zhang Xiaoqiang with a signal to Zhang Huai'an. Yang Ke-er and Shangguan Qiaoyun led the team to continue searching for supplies. Zhang Xiaoqiang brought Meow to inspect the new children in the camp.
After thinking about it, Zhang Xiaoqiang still did not take any action. He thought of something. He was already disgusted listening to them, not to mention Huang Tingwei and the rest shouting it out. Wouldn't that be even more disgusting?