A Young Woman's Heart

So, surrounded by everyone, Ashley was pushed into the elevator in her wheelchair and then left the building.

She was less sitting and more leaning or slumped, not using any strength to support herself, like a doll that was forced into a sitting position but looked awkward because of its loose joints.

At first glance, her deep blue eyes look like two glass beads embedded in their sockets, but upon closer inspection, they seem as deep as a starless night sky.

Ye Banxia and Cha Li both touched her, but the latter did not react at all, and both her hands and face were somewhat cold.

Mo Xueyao looked at her curiously and couldn't help but secretly touch her dark blue hair.

The sunlight bathed her in a pale golden glow, but it failed to awaken her from her 'slumber,' much like the glaciers in the Arctic that are difficult to melt.

Before long, the group arrived at a garden, which was the center of the maze-like orphanage. It was much more spacious than the other gardens, about the size of a middle school playground.

The design has a touch of European manor style.

A black lamppost stood to one side, and upon closer inspection, one could see that some parts were covered with reddish-brown rust.

Aishuer was placed in the sunniest spot, bathed in golden light, while the nurse and Teacher Su sat on a bench nearby, chatting about recent events—mostly related to Aishuer.

"Her skin is so fair, just like Xiaoyao's." Ye Banxia squatted down next to Aixiu'er and said with envy, unable to resist gently poking her porcelain doll-like face.

“Xiaoyao’s complexion is much healthier than hers,” Li Wanyan said calmly. “Her complexion is too pale.”

"Your eyelashes are so long." Cha Li leaned closer to look into her eyes. "Just like a doll's."

"Why do I actually find it a little scary?" Xuan Anyi said with a self-deprecating laugh. "Speaking of which, taking care of her must be a very tiring thing."

“It should be easier than taking care of a person in a vegetative state.” Mo Xueyao couldn’t help but touch the girl’s small hand; the soft touch made her want to touch it a few more times.

Compared to my own, it's definitely more comfortable to touch someone else's.

As Mo Xueyao was thinking this, she suddenly shivered and withdrew her hand.

Because she suddenly realized that her actions just now were almost the same as Hua Yinyin's.

"How pitiful, to have such an illness." Ye Banxia muttered, resting her chin on her hand. "I really want to see her running and laughing in the wind."

"If you're like this your whole life, does that even count as living?" Mo Xueyao couldn't help but ask. This somewhat philosophical question silenced the other girls.

"Physiologically speaking, as long as the heart is still beating and internal circulation can continue, then one is considered alive," Li Wanyan explained scientifically without much emotion.

“But living without any self-awareness is no different from being dead.” As Mo Xueyao spoke, she saw Ai Xiu’er’s fingers suddenly twitch slightly.

The nurse, who had been observing the situation while chatting, quickly came over: "It seems she needs to use the restroom."

"Eh?" Mo Xueyao took a half step back, blushing slightly.

"Well, I'll take her to the restroom first. The sun's been shining for almost an hour, it's about time she went back to her room. You can go look around elsewhere, and if you want to see her, just come back to that room." The nurse said this to the students, because it was clear that Teacher Su couldn't possibly be unaware of these things.

Su Yuqing gently smoothed her long hair and said to the students, "Okay, let's go to other places next. We're just here to learn about it today. We might come here to volunteer in the future."

"It has nothing to do with me..." Mo Xueyao pouted and muttered in a voice only she could hear.

This kind of volunteer activity is something that the Yu Kong Charity Association does, and she belongs to the art club. If Ye Banxia hadn't called her, she and Li Wanyan wouldn't have come.

The majority of children in the welfare home are under the age of twelve. These children are either too young to even take care of themselves, or they have not yet grown up to the point where they can enter society.

There aren't many children over sixteen, and these older children also take on the role of part-time teachers in the welfare home.

The welfare home has specialized courses, but the curriculum only extends up to junior high school level.

“These are all professional teachers. This small teaching building inside the welfare home is a real school,” Su Yuqing explained. “It’s just not open to the public.”

After junior high school, there will be teachers with different skills and expertise who will teach other more targeted courses according to the children's interests and hobbies.

If one has to go to high school and then university, the time span is simply too long. Even if the orphanage is sponsored by the family, the financial issue still needs to be considered.

Learning a skill or a profession is much easier, and in some ways, it can even lead to a better job.

"Hello, Teacher Su~" When Mo Xueyao and the others followed Su Yuqing to the door of a classroom, they heard the children who were studying inside greet her politely and respectfully.

These are all 'big kids' who look to be around sixteen years old, mostly girls with only one or two boys, totaling more than thirty people.

"This is the medical and nursing training class. After they've completed their training, we'll arrange for them to take certification exams. Those who are still minors will do internships at community hospitals, and after they reach adulthood, they'll become medical and nursing workers in various community hospitals or township service stations," Su Yuqing introduced to the students, cheerfully greeting the children, "Hello everyone~"

The so-called medical staff here are at most nurses, and often they may just be doing some miscellaneous tasks that not many people are willing to do.

Children are learning all sorts of professional courses. Some classes have many students, while others have only three or five students.

But the teachers were all very serious and dedicated.

Overall, it seems that there are more students studying carpentry, painting, sewing, and cooking, since these types of jobs are relatively easy to find.

“The older children don’t really need care anymore; it’s the younger children who need it,” Su Yuqing said, leading everyone into another courtyard in a corner of the orphanage.

This is a piece of land that has been divided and enclosed, and the building looks exactly like a kindergarten.

Or rather, is this actually a kindergarten?

It's time for these children's extracurricular activities. The slide is crowded with people, and some are even arguing and fighting over the rocking horse.

With only two teachers, it's clear they're not quite able to take care of everyone.

A group of students peered inside curiously.

"Wow, they're all so cute!" Aunt Xuan exclaimed with delight, beckoning to a little boy with wide, curious eyes who was staring at her. "Come here, come to your big sister~"

"It should be Auntie," Mo Xueyao joked from the side.

"Kids are such little sprites." Ye Banxia's twin ponytails swayed, tickling Mo Xueyao's face as she stood beside her.

"Ugh, I hate kids the most." Mo Xueyao shrank her neck and took a half step back.

"Why?" Li Wanyan asked.

"Because it's noisy and annoying, and they can't reason with me or anything like that."

"Xiaoyao lacks patience," Chali glanced at her sideways. "Or perhaps, she doesn't have enough maternal instincts?"

Mo Xueyao rolled her eyes inwardly—she didn't actually have that kind of thing.

Moreover, my dislike for children stems from being terrified of most little brats. After all, when you first meet them, you don't know if they are well-behaved or not, so I simply reject them all.

In fact, who wouldn't like a cute and well-behaved child like the godfather's daughter?

"Ah, it's big sister—" The children rushed forward, crowding around Su Yuqing and the students. "Big sister, did you bring any gifts? Big sister, I want some candy!"

"What kind of education did they receive..." Mo Xueyao's lips curled into a grin.

"Sorry, sorry, I didn't bring any candy today." Su Yuqing apologetically patted the heads of the children in front of her, but was met with disdain.

"whispering sound--"

"Ahem, everyone, you can't do that. The older sisters are here to see you and play with you. How can you only think about the gifts they will bring?" The teacher quickly came over and lectured the children.

Of course, not all children are like that.

A little boy, probably only four or five years old, toddled up to Mo Xueyao, sniffed around, and innocently asked, "Sister, can you milk cows like a cow?"

"Pfft!" After a moment of frozen silence, Cha Li was the first to burst out laughing, and because she laughed so hard, snot even came out of her nose, which was really affecting her image...

Mo Xueyao's eyelids twitched wildly, and for a moment she didn't know how to answer.

"Why do you say that?" Xuan Anyi seemed to have a lot of experience interacting with children, and she squatted down and asked with a smile.

"Because my sister smells like milk!"

Ye Banxia couldn't help but sniff it, muttering to herself, "It's milk that tastes like flowers and fruits..."

Li Wanyan couldn't help but raise the corners of her mouth slightly. In order not to be discovered by Mo Xueyao, she pretended not to know anything and looked at the distant sky.

Fortunately, Hua Yinyin wasn't there, otherwise Mo Xueyao didn't know what she might have said that would have caused the situation to spiral out of control.

The innocent child didn't actually think too much; she only felt embarrassed because she knew more than she did.

In other words, it's because she herself isn't pure enough...

"Alright, now everyone can pick one to take care of, or gather them together to play games or whatever, as long as they don't leave the orphanage grounds." Su Yuqing said, walking towards the two teachers, giving the other students a strange feeling of being inspected by leaders.

……

Chapter 108 Huang Zhengyang the Deliveryman

In front of a farm on the outskirts of the city, Huang Zhengyang was sweating profusely as he helped load goods onto a truck.

This farm is larger than you can imagine, almost like a large village. As a result, it is far from the city. Even outside of peak hours and at a slightly excessive speed, it takes two hours to get here from Huang Zhengyang's house.

There are not only farmlands here, but also orchards, supplying fruits and vegetables to many businesses in the city. At first, he thought it was a joint venture by several business owners, but later he learned that it was all run by one owner, and the scale is still expanding.

He wasn't the only one delivering goods, but the delivery times for the others were different. Some delivered in the early morning, while others delivered at night. He was the type who delivered during the day.

"Zhengyang, this truckload of vegetables is all destined for the Kongqing Children's Welfare Home. You should remember the route, right? Usually, Aniu delivers it in the early morning, but there was a slight problem with the harvesting this time, so it was delayed by a few hours. This batch is entrusted to you for delivery." The boss, who had a thick beard and looked more like a butcher than a businessman, patted Huang Zhengyang heavily on the shoulder. "Take the route map I drew for you. You can refer to it if you forget. Here is the list, and don't forget to bring the receipts with you."

"Okay." Huang Zhengyang took the list, checked the boxed goods again, and after confirming that there were no problems, he put the documents into the drawer next to the driver's seat.

Huang Zhengyang didn't set off immediately because he was covered in sweat and couldn't get into the car. So he rested for a while on the side—flapping the hem of his long-sleeved casual clothes up and down to cool himself down, while his firm abs were occasionally visible.

"Hehe, Zhengyang, is that your sister in the passenger seat? She's quite cute. Why don't you let her get out and sit down, have some snacks and drinks?"

"Well, that's my younger brother..." Huang Zhengyang explained somewhat awkwardly, "He's a bit shy, so he didn't come down."

"Is that your brother?" The bearded shopkeeper looked at him in surprise. "Are you kidding me, kid?"

"Really." Huang Zhengyang said earnestly.

"This is the first time I've ever seen such a handsome young man," the boss said tactfully.

Huang Zhengyang used drinking water to hide his embarrassed expression.

The boss turned around and took a bag of sandwich cookies and two cans of Want Want milk from his minivan: "Take these for your sister...brother to eat on the way."

"I couldn't possibly accept that."

"You've got it, why are you being so polite with me!" The shopkeeper kicked Huang Zhengyang irritably and stuffed the snacks into his arms. "It's just a little snack, why are you arguing like that? Alright, I have to get back to work, I have a lot to do!"

"Okay." Huang Zhengyang stood there for a while longer in the breeze before getting into the small truck and driving off with a load of vegetables.

"Oh, right, these snacks are for you. Eat them if you want, don't be stingy." Huang Zhengyang almost forgot about the two cans of milk and a box of biscuits in his pants pocket. He stopped at a traffic light and handed them to Huang Yuxi next to him.

Huang Yuxi took the snacks, nodded vigorously, and couldn't wait to tear open the cookies.

It's a black chocolate sandwich cookie with a rich, slightly bitter flavor that makes it even more unforgettable.