webnovelvip Chapter 36: Donation
Chapter 36: Donation
Yi Zhonghai continued, "The second thing today is about donating money to the Jia family. As everyone knows, our institute is a united big family; when one person is in trouble, help comes from all sides."
"As for the Jia family, only Dongxu among the four members receives a ration, and they are having a really hard time. Now is the time for everyone to contribute their love and care."
"Our compound has always been recognized as a model of civility, so we definitely need to be at the forefront of this kind of mutual help!"
Qin Huairu stepped forward with red eyes and a nasal tone in her voice.
Her eyes reddened, and tears streamed down her face.
She first bowed deeply to Yi Zhonghai, then choked out, "Thank you, Uncle, and thank you to everyone in the courtyard, young and old. Our Jia family is truly facing dire straits."
"Dongxu works alone to earn work points and receive a ration to support me, my mother-in-law, and our son Banggeng. We have to carefully manage our food supply at every meal."
"Sometimes when we're really starving, seeing the pigs licking their fingers because they're so hungry, it hurts like needles are pricking my heart."
"You are all kind-hearted people. Please have mercy on us and help our family. Dongxu and I will always remember your kindness and repay you properly when we have the chance!"
As she spoke, she pulled over the stick-like figure hiding behind her and made the child bow along with her.
She cried even harder, her pitiful appearance bringing tears to the eyes of many in the courtyard.
Watching Qin Huairu's tearful and impassioned performance, Zhang Lei couldn't help but secretly admire her.
This performance is truly award-winning; if it were in the 21st century, it would undoubtedly crush countless young actors with terrible acting skills.
He'll have to give Qin Huairu a Golden Chrysanthemum Award no matter what.
Yi Zhonghai watched Qin Huairu's tearful plea and secretly gave her a big thumbs up.
He pulled twenty yuan from his pocket and declared loudly, "As the oldest man in our compound, I should set an example and donate twenty!"
The courtyard immediately fell silent after those words were spoken.
Liu Haizhong was stunned when he saw Yi Zhonghai donate twenty yuan. He really didn't expect Yi Zhonghai to donate so much.
He gritted his teeth, steeled himself, pulled out ten yuan from his pocket, and said defiantly, "As the second oldest man in our compound, I can't be stingy, I'll donate ten yuan!"
As he spoke, he stuffed the money into the donation box that had been temporarily placed next to him.
Yan Bugui frowned and rummaged through his pockets for a long time before finally finding two yuan.
Holding up the money, he said with a bitter face, "Everyone knows our family's situation. We have many children and a lot of expenses. As the third uncle, donating two yuan is just a token of my appreciation."
At this moment, when Sha Zhu looked at Qin Huairu, who was in tears, his heart melted and he felt extremely sorry for her.
He quickly pulled out ten yuan from his pocket, strode forward, and said, "I, Sha Zhu, also want to contribute to charity; I'm donating ten yuan!"
As he spoke, he couldn't help but glance longingly at Qin Huairu.
When Qin Huairu saw that Sha Zhu had donated so much, her eyes lit up, and she immediately gave Sha Zhu a flirtatious wink.
This made Sha Zhu so happy he was practically beside himself, his heart filled with sweetness.
But this joy didn't last long and gradually faded away.
He suddenly stared intently at Qin Huairu, his brows furrowing slightly. He wondered if it was just his imagination, but the feeling of liking her he had just felt seemed to have faded.
Seeing that the three old men and Sha Zhu had donated money, people began to step forward one after another, some giving two or three cents, others five cents, and stuffing the money into the donation box.
Once everyone had donated, Liu Haizhong cleared his throat and called out, "Is there anyone who hasn't donated yet? If not, come forward quickly!"
No sooner had these words been spoken than Sha Zhu, who had been staring at Zhang Lei, jumped up and shouted, "Second Uncle, Zhang Lei's family hasn't donated yet!"
Liu Haizhong followed the conversation, looked at Zhang Lei, frowned, and shouted, "Zhang Lei, why aren't you donating?"
Zhang Lei looked up at Liu Haizhong and said slowly, "Second Uncle, I'm thinking about something right now."
Liu Haizhong immediately became impatient, waving his hand and saying, "What problem do you have to think about now? Can't you go back and think about it slowly after you donate the money?"
Zhang Lei waved his hand, his tone firm: "That won't do. If I donate the money, this problem won't exist."
Hearing this, Yan Bugui's curiosity was piqued, and he leaned forward to ask, "Zhang Lei, what exactly are you thinking about?"
Zhang Lei looked at Yan Bugui, his voice not loud but clear enough to carry throughout the entire courtyard: "Third Uncle, my question is, why are we donating money to the Jia family?"
Liu Haizhong immediately objected, glaring at Zhang Lei and saying, "Hey, Zhang Lei, we've said so much, and you haven't listened to a single word, have you? Donating to the Jia family is obviously because they're in trouble!"
Zhang Lei feigned sudden realization, slapped his forehead, and said, "Oh, the donation is because the Jia family is in trouble."
He scratched his head, then changed the subject, his face showing doubt: "But that doesn't make sense. Before, Jia Zhangshi and her family occupied my house, but they still paid me a lot of money in compensation. How could they be short of money?"
These words immediately caused an uproar in the courtyard. Everyone looked at Zhang Lei with curiosity, and someone couldn't help but stand up and ask, "Zhang Lei, how much money did the Jia family actually pay you in compensation?"
Zhang Lei smiled and glanced at Liu Haizhong and Yan Bugui: "Second Uncle is the most qualified to speak on this matter. Their family, Third Uncle's family, and the Jia family all paid me about the same amount of money."
"Whoa!" A gasp rippled through the crowd, and someone immediately turned to Liu Haizhong, demanding, "Second Uncle, tell me, how much money did the three of you actually pay Zhang Lei?"
Liu Haizhong's expression froze instantly, feeling incredibly embarrassed. Occupying someone else's house was already a shameful thing, especially since he was ambitious and cared deeply about his reputation. Now that he was being questioned about it in public, he wished he could disappear into the ground.
Sha Zhu, however, was eager for more drama and joined in the commotion: "Second Uncle, tell us quickly, how much did you lose?"
Liu Haizhong's face turned bright red, his lips moved, and he muttered in a voice only he could hear, "A little over two hundred."
Sha Zhu couldn't hear him, so he shouted again at the top of his lungs, "Second Uncle, speak louder, we can't hear you!"
Liu Hai's chest heaved violently as he pointed at Sha Zhu and roared angrily, "Over 200! Over 200! Did you hear me?!"
These words caused an uproar in the courtyard. People whispered among themselves, their eyes filled with shock.
Sha Zhu was dumbfounded. He never expected to lose so much. He immediately raised his voice and shouted, "What? Second Uncle, you lost more than 200 yuan by your family? Wouldn't that be more than 600 yuan for all three families combined? You guys are really rich!"
These words were like a divine assist, and Zhang Lei couldn't help but laugh out loud. He continued, "Yes, those three families can come up with more than 600 yuan at once. They're living a really comfortable life."
Zhang Lei abruptly changed the subject, his gaze sweeping across the room, his tone tinged with a hint of mockery: "But since the Jia family is so wealthy, why should we pool our money to donate to them?"
These words were like a bucket of cold water poured over everyone's heads. The Central Courtyard, which had been buzzing with discussion just moments before, suddenly fell silent. Everyone looked at each other, completely stunned.