A whirlwind marriage with a high-ranking official: Lights out, don't force me to take the initi

Ye Wenxi hung up the phone and was about to go upstairs when she ran into Zhang Yunxia, ​​who was walking out.

"Sister-in-law, where are you going?"

Zhang Yunxia sighed.

"I couldn't sleep at all last night..."

"Whenever I close my eyes, I remember the way that child kept turning back to look at me."

"I want to find out where that child is now."

Ye Wenxi understood Zhang Yunxia's soft heart and kindness.

She instinctively wanted to speak up and persuade her.

I advised her that the more warmth she gives, the more her child will suffer when they lose it in the future.

A brief moment of sunshine can be another wound for someone who has already lost everything.

But as I tried to speak, the scenes from yesterday flooded my mind like a tidal wave.

Ye Wenxi ultimately couldn't bring himself to say the rest of the words.

"Okay, I'll talk to Lu Weidong and tell them to go ahead on their own."

"I'll go with you to see Zhang Xiangyang, and we'll go see them later."

For an orphan, the fleeting sunshine and warmth may be another kind of cruelty.

But when Ye Wenxi saw what hell looked like, she could no longer close her eyes and pretend she hadn't seen anything.

The two asked Lu Weidong to inquire and found Zhang Xiangyang's whereabouts.

A temporary orphanage in the rear of the Yunnan Provincial Military Region.

There, orphans who lost their parents in the war gathered, unclaimed, waiting for resettlement, their whereabouts unknown.

Most of them are orphans of martyrs, and some are children whose parents both died in the war.

The number of war orphans was staggering, probably close to one hundred.

After several transfers and a bumpy bus ride, Ye Wenxi and Zhang Yunxia finally found their destination.

After they got off the bus, they saw the scene in front of them from a distance.

It's not exactly a proper house.

It's a converted old military camp, and there are children ranging from a few years old to teenagers.

After showing my ID, the security guard let me in.

Outside the barracks, it seemed to be the children's outdoor playtime.

On the open ground of the loess plateau, children were running and playing with each other, while many more squatted in corners, silent, just like Zhang Xiangyang that day.

It's unclear who was the first to spot the two people who walked in.

"Someone's coming!" a child with a high-pitched voice shouted.

Instantly, all the children rushed over like a tidal wave.

Footsteps echoed, forming a circle of varying sizes.

"Auntie, are you here to give us some delicious food?"

"Auntie, have you met my mother?"

...

Ye Wenxi opened her mouth, but her throat felt like it was blocked by something.

He couldn't utter a single word.

She looked down at the pairs of eyes in front of her. The smallest one, unable to reach her hand, tugged at her trouser leg, tilted its head back, and asked again and again.

"Auntie, are you here to take me home?"

Zhang Yunxia quickly covered her mouth.

Tears welled up and I couldn't stop them.

Just as they were wondering what to do, a staff member from the reformatory came out.

"Are you Comrade Lu Weidong's wife?"

"Hello, comrade, I am Lu Weidong's wife," Ye Wenxi quickly replied.

Lu Weidong contacted the place through connections and gave advance notice, saying that a military family member wanted to visit a child named Zhang Xiangyang.

The staff led them to an office.

It was called an office, but it was actually a converted barracks, a place that combined office and dormitory, and was extremely simple and dilapidated.

A military wooden table with faded paint, its surface pitted and uneven, rested on several worn-out registration books.

Two wooden chairs creaked when you sat on them. Military slogans remained on the wall, half painted, the other half unpainted.

The windows were old-fashioned wooden frames, the glass was covered in dust, and some of the cracks were covered with newspaper.

The courtyard we just saw is right outside the window.

Several cots were stacked in the corner, their sheets faded from washing but folded fairly neatly.

This is the temporary orphanage after the war.

It's rudimentary, but at least someone takes care of it.

"Comrade Lu Weidong has already spoken to us. He's here to see Zhang Xiangyang, right? You know that kid?"

Zhang Yunxia explained the general situation, saying she just wanted to come and visit, offer her condolences, and learn about the children's situation.

"That child didn't sleep a wink last night."

"He just fell asleep. Should we let him sleep for a while?"

"You didn't sleep?" Ye Wenxi and Zhang Yunxia asked in surprise.

Seeing their confusion, the staff member explained in a low voice:

"That's how it is. When you first arrive, you feel uneasy and unsettled. There's also a lot of crying noise in the dorm at night."

"They're all crying, and we can't comfort them..." a staff member sighed.

The two fell silent simultaneously.

While waiting, Ye Wenxi and Zhang Yunxia got a general understanding of the situation here.

There was enough food, but we weren't full.

Each person was allotted 27 catties per month, of which only 30% was refined grains, and the rest was corn grits and dried sweet potatoes.

Meat, eggs, oil, and sugar all required ration coupons, with children being at the very end of the queue and rarely seeing meat even once a month.

I have clothes, but not enough to change into.

There are medical staff, but anti-inflammatory and antipyretic drugs are rationed.

But these aren't the hardest parts.

The crying continued throughout the night, and no amount of soothing could calm them down; all we could do was wait until they were exhausted from crying.

The older child suddenly becomes an adult, while the younger one remains a child, yet has to take care of the younger one.

It's because girls use old strips of cloth to cover themselves during their periods, and they're too embarrassed to ask for help.

So when children see adults, they flock to them.

They desperately need to be seen.

Ye Wenxi and Zhang Yunxia frowned simultaneously, the same question surfacing in their minds.

"Comrade, most of these children are orphans of martyrs, right?"

"Why are the conditions here so harsh?"

Ye Wenxi didn't understand. Logically speaking, the orphans of martyrs should be the focus of care and compensation.

The staff member gave a wry smile and shook his head.

"Comrade, it's not that we don't want to take care of you, it's just that we don't have the time or the capacity to manage it all."

"The battle just ended, and the people were just withdrawn. The children are being sent over in batches. We're just temporarily taking them in; we'll settle them later."

"Being able to take the children in, register them, and prevent them from ending up on the streets is already the best we can do right now."

She paused, then lowered her voice.

"We lack money, manpower, and supplies. The higher-ups are trying to find solutions, but there are just too many things to address: the wounded, the fallen, their families, resettlement, and compensation."

"As we put everything out of order, we can only make sure the children don't go hungry or get cold."

"As for the rest... we can only take it one step at a time."

Zhang Yunxia clenched her handkerchief tightly and remained silent.

Ye Wenxi looked at the children running around on the yellow earthen open space outside the window, and felt a tightness in her chest.

The policy exists, but its implementation takes time.

There is money, but when it is distributed to each person, there is only a small amount.

This is the reality after the war.

About an hour later

"Sister-in-law, the baby is here."

Ye Wenxi gently reminded him, and saw the staff leading Zhang Xiangyang slowly over from afar.

Zhang Xiangyang's previously expressionless face lit up the moment he saw Zhang Yunxia, ​​and a smile instantly bloomed on his face.

He forcefully shook off the staff member who was leading him, ran like a cannonball to Zhang Yunxia, ​​and hugged her tightly.

He tilted his head back, his big, round eyes were dark and bright, and his two protruding ears turned red with excitement.

He grinned, revealing a front tooth that hadn't yet grown in.

"Mom," Zhang Xiangyang called out, hugging Zhang Yunxia.