Chapter 291: The Little Girl Who Lost Her Family

Lu Ying couldn't help but worry, and felt unbearably sorry for the little girl's pitiful fate, so she had to bring her back first.

"Her family is all gone; she's just too pitiful."

Lu Cheng sighed, "Then let's board the train first; our department set up a temporary children's welfare shelter, so we'll take her back to the Capital City and place her there for now."

As for how to settle the girl later, he and his sister hadn't thought about it yet; the current situation was already overwhelming.

The train slowly started moving, and Lu Cheng finally had time to ask about the family situation.

"Sister, how are Mom and Dad?"

Lu Ying sat in the seat, coaxing the little girl to sleep; perhaps she was also exhausted from crying, lying quietly in her arms, though the child's small body still trembled uncontrollably.

"Mom and Dad are fine; everyone at our institute is now staying in the Earthquake Shelter, so you don't need to worry about home."

Lu Cheng relaxed and tidied the girl's messy hair, "Where's Qing Yan?"

"She was supposed to come with me to see you, but the unit had to coordinate international relief supplies, so she couldn't make it."

"Alright, we're really short on supplies right now; just have Qing Yan focus on her work, and I don't need you to worry about me."

Seeing her younger brother looking haggard, Lu Ying didn't want to waste a single second.

"Now it's okay; lean on my shoulder and rest for a bit. When we arrive, I'll call you."

"Alright," Lu Cheng replied, leaning against his sister's shoulder; he was so exhausted that he almost fell asleep immediately.

But before two minutes passed, Liu Jian'an shouted suddenly.

"Team leader, team leader, come quickly! Someone's trying to jump off the train."

Hearing the shout, Lu Cheng reflexively rushed to another carriage.

A rescued wounded passenger was clinging to the train window, his lower half hanging outside.

The train was speeding; if Liu Jian'an and Chang Jinbu hadn't held him tightly, the man would have fallen to his death in that position.

From his heart‑rending scream, it was clear he hadn't intended to survive.

"Let go of me, let go of me! I need to find my spouse and child, let me go…"

The man was strong; as the two were about to lose their grip, Lu Cheng hurried forward, and the three of them strained together to pull him back up.

"What happened?"

Liu Jian'an shook his head, "I don't know. At first he was just sitting there staring blankly, then suddenly opened the window to jump. Luckily Jinbu and I reacted quickly and grabbed him."

Lu Cheng was about to ask the man who tried to jump, but he didn't need to.

The man squatted in the carriage, clutching his head in pain.

"Why did you save me? Why… you should have let me die. I couldn't save my spouse or child, and I don't want to live either…"

His voice was hoarse, accompanied by sobbing.

Lu Cheng swallowed the words he had about to say, his throat choked; scenes like this, with a man separated from his family, seem to replay every second.

He had no idea how to comfort him, so he crouched down and gently patted the man's shoulders twice.

Any comforting words now would be superfluous.

"Jian'an, you two keep an eye on him."

"Don't worry, team leader."

Lu Cheng no longer looked at the man; perhaps for him, living would be more painful than death, yet watching him die helplessly was something no one could bear.

Back at their seats, Lu Ying asked worriedly, "What happened?"

"Nothing," Lu Cheng said, leaning on his sister's shoulder, intending to sleep again, but he couldn't fall asleep at all.

Lu Ying was silent for a moment, then said concernedly, "Don't overthink it; just do your job well and take good care of your health."

"Also, our institute and the Street Office have already started organizing donations; you didn't know, but it was Teacher Wu who first called everyone to donate."

"Teacher Wu?"

"Yeah, who would have thought?"

Lu Cheng shook his head slightly, genuinely surprised, since Teacher Wu was notoriously stingy, yet he rarely offered money voluntarily.

"I was also thinking of setting up a donation box at the department store entrance, since the train station has heavy foot traffic."

Lu Cheng thought his sister's idea was good, and suddenly remembered something, sitting up straight.

"By the way, sis, our older brother must have heard the news; when you go back, send him a telegram so he doesn't worry about the family—our sister-in-law Baoyue is pregnant."

Lu Ying nodded, "Yeah, I know."

After returning to the Capital City platform, Lu Cheng still couldn't go home; he had to continue directing the transport of the wounded, so Lu Ying took the little girl to the Welfare Institute first.

Only after coordinating with the staff did Lu Ying reluctantly put down the little girl, having learned that the institute already housed many children who had lost their families.

Clearly the girl couldn't adapt to the new environment; as soon as Lu Ying stepped out, she heard a wailing "Wah‑wah" cry that tugged at the heart.

But Lu Ying had no other choice; all she could do now was think of ways to raise more donations.

Returning home at dusk, the setting sun spilled into the Hu Tong Li, bathing the blue Earthquake Shelter in a continuous glow, while many families had already begun preparing dinner.

After mentioning seeing Lu Cheng to her parents, Lu Ying sat under the shelter, hugging her knees and staring blankly toward the sunset.

Lu Beitang, while picking vegetables, said, "See? I told you Lu Cheng was busy with work; no need to worry. The son is handling important matters, you should be proud."

Chen Xianglan rolled her eyes, "How could I not know? You still need to give me a political lesson… Hey, look at Ying Ying—what's wrong? She came home and hasn't said a word."

Lu Beitang glanced, "Didn't the broadcast already explain the situation on site? If you went there, you wouldn't have anything to say."

Chen Xianglan instantly understood, shaking her head helplessly and sighing.

At night, everyone slept in the Earthquake Shelter: men together, women and children together, and those who didn't want to crowd together built a small tent of their own using a sheet.

The next day, Lu Ying prepared to go to the Postal and Telecommunications Bureau to send a telegram to her older brother.

Chen Xianglan listed many instructions: "Tell your older brother that everything's fine here, so he doesn't have to worry. Also, ask about sister-in-law Baoyue—she's pregnant, maybe about to give birth—make sure she doesn't overexert herself. If she doesn't have time to care for the child, we can take the child back…"

Lu Ying pushed the bicycle out and said, "Mom, this is sending a telegram, not writing a letter; you can't write that many characters."

Chen Xianglan agreed, "Telegrams are charged per character—three cents each. If you send that many, it'll cost a few extra bucks."

"Alright, you just say it as you see fit; the main point is to keep him from worrying about home, and when you return, write a letter to your older brother."

"Hey, I got it, Mom."

Lu Ying rode the bicycle, just after exiting the Hu Tong Entrance, suddenly squeezed the brake and stopped there.

"Brother?"