I was married off to a disabled hero in lieu of marriage; my in-laws doted on me and I aspired to gr

Soon, they arrived at a disinfection factory. Uncle Chen jumped out of the car and shouted, "The goods have arrived!"

Two workers came out of the workshop and said warmly, "Uncle Chen, you're here. You guys take a break, we'll unload the goods."

Chen Erniu didn't stand on ceremony and pulled Yao Xing to rest under the tree.

"We have to deliver the goods every three days. The dirty linens are brought over, the clean ones are washed and taken back, and the clean linens are delivered to the inpatient department tomorrow morning," Chen Erniu explained.

"Uncle Chen, what other work do we need to do?"

"Washing linens is the easiest part. Post-operative human tissues and organs, any supplies and garbage from the infectious disease department, must be buried promptly every day. After each department finishes administering IV drips, the bottles, needles, blades, etc., must be sorted and then transported to the garbage station. Yao Xing, don't rush, learn slowly. In two or three months, you'll know how to handle it."

The thought of human tissue made Yao Xing want to vomit.

Soon, all the linens on the truck were unloaded. The cleaned linens were packed into woven bags and thrown onto the truck in bundles.

A clean-cut middle-aged man came out carrying a bag: "Uncle Chen, thank you for your hard work. Please add an extra dish tonight."

Chen Erniu did not refuse and readily accepted the package, saying, "Okay, Factory Manager, you're busy. We'll head back now."

It seems this isn't the first or second time; the two have developed a tacit understanding.

Is this the pig's head meat that the two chefs were talking about?

It turns out, I didn't need to buy it; someone gave it to me.

On the way back, Chen Erniu said with a smile, "As long as I deliver goods, I get to eat pig's head. Tomorrow, when I deliver medicine bottles and needles, the benefits will be even greater."

"Shouldn't the needles be buried?" Yao Xing asked, puzzled.

"Silly child, the items from the infectious disease department need to be buried, but the medicine bottles from other departments, if intact, can be recycled," Chen Erniu said in a low voice.

"This..." Yao Xing was stunned. Could this really be done?

"We deliver it to the waste dump, and someone picks it up at the door. We've already thrown our stuff away, so whoever picks it up is none of our business. Of course, there are some advantages to this; even if the higher-ups investigate, we've already delivered it to the waste dump in a lawful manner."

"If someone else picks up those things and then returns them to the hospital, wouldn't that harm the patient?"

"The people who collect these bottles all have disinfection plants. A saline bottle costs five cents. It's not damaged, and no air has gotten in. After recycling and disinfection, it can be reused. We give them to recycling stations, and they sell them to small hospitals. This greatly reduces the costs for the hospitals, so they are willing to take them. Of course, the First Municipal Hospital doesn't collect bottles. Large hospitals purchase them through legitimate channels."

Yao Xing felt uneasy, but he was just an outsider and had no right to interfere with his two mentors' actions. He couldn't very well go and complain to Dr. Luo as soon as he started working, could he? He wouldn't be able to stay at the hospital then.

Back at the sludge treatment station, Yao Xing quickly carried the clean linens into the house, and Uncle Zhang also took a nap.

"Chen Erniu, you take Yao Xing to find a house. I'll stay here; there's nothing else to do today."

"Okay."

Chen Erniu took out the bag of pig's head meat and said, "Bring the lunchboxes, we'll divide it among the three of us."

The bag of pig's head meat probably weighed two pounds. Chen Erniu and Zhang Wu split it in half, leaving half for Yao Xing.

"No, no, Uncle Chen, Uncle Zhang, I can't eat that much by myself. I only need a little. You have families, take it back for your children."

"That won't do. How about we divide it equally among the three of us?"

"Uncle, I really can't eat that much. I have a lunchbox, can you give me some? I'll stir-fry some chili peppers."

Yao Xing insisted on taking only a small amount, leaving the rest for his two masters.

"Kid, if you're loyal, then we won't hold back."

After dividing the pig's head meat, Chen Erniu took Yao Xing to see the house.

Chen Erniu was very familiar with the shantytown area, so without asking around, he led Yao Xing directly to the door of a dilapidated house.

"Sister Fang, open the door, someone's here to see the house."

An old woman poked her head out from inside the house and replied, "Uncle Chen, he's here, he's here."

Aunt Fang opened the door and came out, not letting Yao Xing into the house. Holding a key, she said, "The house is in the front. It used to be where my old lady lived. Now that she's gone, the house is empty. Go and take a look."

Fang's wife led the way, followed by Chen Erniu and Yao Xing.

After walking a few steps, we came to a small house with a broken door and a yard surrounded by a mess of wooden planks.

As we opened the door and entered the house, a musty smell wafted out. Aunt Fang busied herself opening the windows: "No one lives here, so the windows are closed all the time, hence the musty smell. It's alright, just heat the kang (heated brick bed), and it'll dry in a couple of days."

There are two main rooms in total: one for sleeping and the other for storing miscellaneous items and cooking.

There's practically no furniture in the house; you have to buy your own stove and coal to cook.

"Isn't there a toilet?" Yao Xing asked.

"There's a public toilet up ahead. You can use a chamber pot at night and empty it in the morning. There's also hot water up ahead; a bottle of water costs one cent. If you cook at home, you can boil your own water," Aunt Fang enthusiastically explained.

"Yao Xing, is it okay?" Chen Erniu asked.

"Yes, that's good."

What more could I ask for? As long as I have a place to stay, that's all I need.

"Sister Fang, Yao Xing is just like my child. He's new here, could you lower the monthly rent a bit?" Chen Erniu asked Sister Fang tentatively.

"Four yuan and fifty cents a month, is that alright? It's empty and no one lives here, there's no life in it. You're saying that two big rooms are only four yuan and fifty cents? Go ask around, you won't find this price anywhere else." Aunt Fang readily agreed.

"Thank you, Auntie, I'll take it." Yao Xing said, taking out four yuan and fifty cents from her pocket.

Both being straightforward people, Chen Erniu, concerned that Yao Xing might not have dinner, asked Sister Fang, "Could you cook an extra bowl of rice tonight? Yao Xing isn't settled in yet and can't cook. He has vegetables, so just give him a bowl of rice."

"Okay, come to my house to get your rice later." Sister Fang was indeed generous.

After settling Yao Xing in, Chen Erniu said, "You can get ready now. I live up ahead, about a mile away. I'll invite you to my house in a couple of days."

"Thank you for your trouble, Uncle Chen. Please go back soon."

Yao Xing quickly cleaned up the area. The leather mattress on the earthen bed was covered in dust. He wiped it clean so he could sleep better that night.

The only advantage of this house is that it has running water in the dilapidated courtyard, which makes it very convenient to use water. However, it is unclear how the water bill is calculated.

After wiping and sweeping, it was quickly cleaned up. The cotton quilts and sheets were spread on the spacious kang (heated brick bed), finally providing a place to stand.

We got some pig's head meat this afternoon, enough for dinner.

I took the lunchbox and went to Sister Fang's house to get my food.

When Sister Fang saw Yao Xing, she was very welcoming: "I was just about to call you. The food is ready. Please take as much as you like, there's plenty for you."

Yao Xing kept saying thank you, and opened the lunchbox. Several of Fang's grandsons, drawn by the aroma of the braised pork head, gathered around.

Yao Xing paused, looking at the children swallowing hard, seemingly at a loss. After a long while, she asked, "Do you want to eat? This is my dinner."

The children remained silent, staring blankly at the pig's head meat.

"What do you eat at home? How about... we change it?"

Yao Xing was only eighteen years old, and he really didn't know what to do in this situation.

I gave it to them, and then I had no food left for dinner.

"My family eats cabbage," a little girl said, licking her lips.

"Then bring a bowl. You can have the pig's head meat, and I'll eat the cabbage."

As soon as Yao Xing finished speaking, the little girl quickly went to get the bowl.

As the pig's head meat was poured into a bowl, Aunt Fang, who had just come out of the kitchen, saw it and shouted, "You bunch of starving ghosts! You want to eat my food too? What a sin! Yao Xing, you eat it yourself, don't worry about them, let them starve to death..."

"Auntie, I... I also had pig's head meat for lunch. Give it to them. I want to eat cabbage," Yao Xing stammered.

"Well... Yao Xing, you're a good boy. There's no oil in the cabbage at home. Why don't you give each of them a small piece of pig's head meat, and you can eat the rest yourself? If there's not enough vegetables, your auntie has some pickled radishes."

"Auntie, I like to eat pickled radishes."

Aunt Fang sighed and went to prepare the stew. Yao Xing opened the iron pot. The so-called "all-you-can-eat" rice was actually only half a pot of rice, and there were still a bunch of children in front of him.

After filling half a bowl, picking up a piece of cabbage and a few pickled radishes, Yao Xing said "thank you" a few times and quickly left Aunt Fang's house.

The so-called shantytowns are inhabited by poor people. There are many families like Fang's. They are people on the edge of the city, without stable jobs or income, and can only make a living by doing odd jobs.

The same is probably true for Chen Erniu's family, isn't it?