Chapter 609: Before the Live Broadcast
The disabled, in some aspects, had a will far above that of an ordinary person's. The most appropriate word to describe it was that they were physically disabled yet mentally firm. From his contact with Little Blind, Tang Xiu could tell that the darkness in front of him didn't wear his will away, even causing him to adapt to that darkness instead. He was like an unyielding pine that stood proudly amidst the cold winter of the snowy world.
"Dean Wu, I would like to adopt this child," said Tang Xiu straightforwardly after greeting her.
Dean Wu turned a bit dazed, and there was a complicated look in her eyes. It had been seven years since she became Little Blind's half mother. When the world just lost all its color to him, she was the one who cared for him and helped him pass through the pain. She was the person who helped with the funeral arrangement of his parents after a traffic accident claimed their lives. In all due honesty, Dean Wu was truly happy that Tang Xiu wanted to adopt him, yet there was unwillingness deep down inside her.
"May I know the reason, Mr. Tang? After all, Hanhan is…" Dean Wu hesitated.
"There are two reasons," said Tang Xiu with all seriousness. "First of all, I like him. I can't see any sign of depression in him at all, and I even can feel that he is mentally optimistic instead. Secondly, a Chinese Medical doctor is one of the many identities I have, so I want to take him with me and try to treat his eyes with all the expertise I have in the arts of healing."
Dean Wu's eyes stared wide, along with a burst of joy and excitement within. Her lips trembled and she hurriedly asked, "Can… can you really cure Hanhan's eyes, Mr. Tang?"
"I don't have 100% assurance, but I believe it'd be for the best if he followed me than staying here," said Tang Xiu. "Of course, that would also be on the premise that I have your consent."
"I'm willing. Of course, I give my consent," said Dean Wu without hesitation. "If you can make Hanhan regain his sight, it's fine even if I have to take my eyes out to give them to him."
"Since I have your consent, please rest assured, Dean Wu. I will treat him as my own younger brother!" Tang Xiu smiled. "Furthermore, I just learned from Long Xueyao about the situation your welfare house is currently in, so I decided to donate 2 million yuan in the hopes that it can solve some of the problems you have here. Adding to that, I'll also find a construction team to help renovate your welfare house when the spring comes next year and also look for a few teachers to teach the children knowledge and culture."
His pledge made Dean Wu's body freeze. She could hardly believe what she heard. For countless times she fantasized that some good rich person would donate to her welfare house. But after all, imagining was akin to illusion, as many years had passed by and her wish never came true. Fortunately, there were some kindhearted people, such as Long Xueyao, who were willing to extend their hands and frequently sent some money, clothes, and daily necessities.
Two million yuan! With such amount of money, the living conditions of the children in the welfare house would definitely be improved greatly. At the very least, they wouldn't have to wear those stitched and patched clothes anymore. No longer would they only have meat every couple of days and gone was the scene where they had to burn charcoal stoves during the cold winter season.
"Thank you. Thank you so much, Mr. Tang." Dean Wu wiped the tears off the corner of her eyes and bent her waist while holding onto her walking stick.
Tang Xiu promptly held her and said, "Dean Wu, there was a sentence that I noted deeply during the great flood period in the past: 'when difficulties arise in one place, aid comes from everywhere'. What I'm doing is just what I can do, you don't have to thank at all since it's just me wanting to help the children here."
The snow was falling in the cold winter, and yet warmness filled Dean Wu's heart at this moment. What Tang Xiu said touched her. Just as she asked Tang Xiu and Long Xueyao to enter the house, Tang Xiu received a call from Li Hongji, who then gave him Tian Xiaomeng's cell number.
"Xueyao, go inside with Dean Wu ahead of me. I'm going to make a phone call first," said Tang Xiu before turning around.
****
Star City, Castellan Ellegarden neighborhood. [1]
Wearing cartoon-styled pajamas, Tian Xiaomeng was sitting on the balcony of her house in boredom. As the hanging basket kept swaying, her eyes watched the gentle falling snow outside with faint expectation painted on her face. Ever since she aired the live report about Tang Xiu, she had become a popular anchor on the live broadcast platform. And just the number of her hardcore fans now had surpassed 100,000, while hundreds of thousands of viewers visited her live broadcast channel every day.
It could be said that both fame and fortune came to her since then, though there were also some bad things nonetheless. For instance, she often met her fans in real life whenever she appeared in public. Some of them would find her, asking to take photos together as a memento as well as sign to them.
Alas, becoming a celebrity sure is not easy. I wanna go out play with snow, but I'm afraid I'll attract attention. Most of the people in this neighborhood already know me, so should I go to another place and buy a house just like what I have discussed with Mom and Dad the other day? Tian Xiaomeng drowned in her thoughts while holding up her chin.
"I'm a star, I'm a big star…"
The ringtone of her mobile phone suddenly sounding startled her so much that she almost jumped. She picked up the mobile in a hurry and looked at the number displayed on the screen. It was an unfamiliar number from this city.
"Hi, hello, Tian Xiaomeng speaking."
"Hello, I'm Tang Xiu. Can you please do me a favor?
"Tang Xiu? I don't know if you've made a mistake… AAH… I beg your pardon? What did you just say your name was?" Just as Tian Xiaomeng was about to say that she didn't know the caller, a handsome face suddenly appeared in her head and she exclaimed out loudly immediately after.
"It's Tang Xiu."
The voice replied again.
Tian Xiaomeng jumped down from the hanging basket. Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she asked in a hurry, "Are you the Young Divine Doctor of Star City Chinese Medical Hospital, Divine Doctor Tang?"
"That's right, it's me," said Tang Xiu with a chuckle.
Tian Xiaomeng was so excited that she spoke incoherently, "T-Tang… Divine Doctor Tang, you… Ah, Hi… I'm your loyal little fan. Just, just call me… call me Little Mengmeng. Oh, I'm so excited! Am I dreaming? How come I got a call from my biggest idol?"
"Let's not joke, shall we, Tian Xiaomeng?" Tang Xiu chuckled. "There's something I need your help with. Do you have some time to spare now?"
While suppressing the excitement inside, Tian Xiaomeng immediately replied, "I surely have time for my idol. I'll squeeze time even if I don't have it. Tell me what do you want me to do… I'm willing to do it…"
"As a matter of fact, I'm now in Star City in a certain welfare house," said Tang Xiu with a smile. "The condition of the place is very poor though, as it scarcely has attention from the society. I remember that you're an Internet broadcaster, so I was wondering if you can come over. I was thinking that it would be great if we make a live broadcast at this welfare house to report the situation here to the public in the hopes that I can get everyone's attention and their compassionate help."
A live broadcast at a welfare house?
Tian Xiaomeng's eyes blinked as ecstasy burst inside her heart. The last time she aired a live broadcast on Tang Xiu at the Star City Chinese Medical Hospital, her fans and subscribers had soared by a hundred times and, in extension, brought her fame and fortune as well. Some of her fans and some people, however, also believed that Tian Xiaomeng's live broadcast had returned to its previous state. Many even appealed and called out, hoping that she could feat the Divine Doctor—Tang Xiu again…
This was definitely an opportunity, a golden opportunity that occurred only once in a thousand years!
Tian Xiaomeng took a deep sigh to stabilize her state of mind and feelings before replying, "Please wait a while, Idol. I'll take my notebook to write the address. Also, I'll go out right away and make sure to arrive there as fast as I can."
A few minutes later, she hung up the phone and directly dashed to the study room, turning on her laptop and accessing her live channel.
"Oh? Strange, the anchor is actually online? Don't tell me the scheduled time for the live broadcast has changed?"
"Goddess Mengmeng goes online! MENGMENG FANS! WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU ALL?"
"Could it be there's a new topic now? The last time Goddess Mengmeng aired a live broadcast all of a sudden was the live show of that Divine Doctor, Tang Xiu..."
"Is there any thrilling surprise now?"
Tian Xiaomeng took a deep breath while looking at the countless messages that kept coming and the online subscribers that numbered to tens of thousands. Then, she began to speak, "Hello, my dear fans and subscribers. Many of Mengmeng's fans are asking whether there will be a great surprise today, given that I came online on my live channel all of a sudden today, and also, many ask as to, will there be any hot news today? Alright, everyone. Mengmeng will tell you now. You all guessed it right! Just a few minutes ago, I received a call from the Young Divine Doctor of Star City Chinese Medical Hospital, Tang Xiu!"
"As for the details of the matter Divine Doctor Tang asked me to do, well… I'll keep you wondering for now. But I hope that you, as Mengmeng's fans, will notice the others timely when I arrive there. I believe that you will be able to see the Divine Doctor Tang again, and maybe…. there will also some other surprises for you."
"Anyhow, I'm off for now. See you all later, ciao!"
Tian Xiaomeng then saw messages coming from innumerable subscribes one after another, shouting "excited" and "looking forward to" emojis, making her nice and great inside. After logging out, she immediately packed her stuff and rushed outside.
****
At Bluestar Welfare House.
After sending the address and the name to Tian Xiaomeng, Tang Xiu went to the second floor of the small building and headed to the Dean's room. Dean Wu herself didn't have an exact room assigned as her office, since the layout of the building was rudimentary and only had a few rooms. Yet, though there were a lot of things in the entire house, all of them were neatly placed.
When Tang Xiu explained that he had invited an Internet broadcaster to air a live report regarding the situation of the Bluestar Welfare House, even though Dean Wu didn't know much about the job of a live broadcaster, she was, nonetheless, still very excited to be able to publicize the welfare house, since it meant that many groups in society would learn about them.
12:30 at noon.
Tang Xiu and Long Xueyao followed Dean Wu to bring the dishes to the table. More than 30 children who hadn't yet changed their newly down jackets had gathered in a large room and sat in front of the long table with a bowl and chopsticks in front of them. Their eyes were full of anticipation and longing as they looked at the meals prepped by Dean Wu, Tang Xiu, Long Xueyao, and the other two staff.
Ring, ring, ring…
Tang Xiu's mobile phone rang. After seeing that it was a call from Tian Xiaomeng, he directly went to the hall on the first floor.
At the entrance to the Bluestar Welfare House, Tian Xiaomeng ended the call and directly logged-in into her live channel with her phone. Just as she appeared on her live broadcast channel and looked at the number of viewers displayed there, her eyes stared wide and turned saucer.
760,000?!!! 760,000 people were waiting for her in the live broadcast channel, and the number was still increasing?! However, when she glanced at the gifts rewarded by the fans, she almost screamed inside and her heart crazily thumped, scared despite having experienced the previous live broadcast at the Star City Chinese Medical Hospital.
"I… I'm not dreaming, am I?"
Chapter 610: Heartfelt Throbbing Moments
Tian Xiaomeng's shocked expression looked somewhat silly and yet cute, causing her viewers to immediately drool. The comment section also produced innumerable tweets commenting on her expression, all of which said that they had been captivated by her cute, adorable expression. [1]
Tian Xiaomeng rubbed her eyes. Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly found that the number of the audience changed. It was around 761,000 a moment ago, but now the number unexpectedly blasted up to 770,000!
"I…. this scared the hell out of me, to be honest."
She collected herself and spoke with a moved expression.
Immediately after, she pointed the camera at the entrance of the Bluestar Welfare House and aimed it at the signboard at the entrance for a few seconds. Following that, she aimed the camera to herself and said, "Mengmeng's fans and subscribers, regardless if you just became one, Mengmeng wants to tell you all that the live broadcast will be broadcasted here. This place is a welfare house located at the suburbs of Star City. I only learned about this place after Divine Doctor Tang Xiu told me, else I wouldn't have known that Star City had such a… a welfare house for children. You can see that it looks very dilapidated and… very old."
"And now, please follow Mengmeng as I have a look and see Tang Xiu as well as the children of this welfare house."
After saying that, she attempted to capture all the surrounding environment as much as possible while keeping her pace forward. She stopped in front of the small building for a few seconds and then walked toward the fourth door to the east. After pushing open the door and seeing the situation inside, she immediately stopped.
"Hi everyone, I'm Tian Xiaomeng."
The first person her vision fell onto was Tang Xiu. She waved at him before coming over and saying, "Hello, Divine Doctor Tang."
At the moment, Tang Xiu was giving steamed buns to the children. After hearing her voice, he let out a faint smile and gently nodded at her. Following which, he looked at the mobile phone in her hand and smilingly asked, "Are you airing the broadcast now?"
"Um, yes!" Tian Xiaomeng gently nodded.
Tang Xiu smiled at the camera and said, "Hello everyone, I'm Tang Xiu. Firstly, I wanna say that I didn't get in touch with Tian Xiaomeng today on my own initiative. But, from the previous exchange and the help obtained by Star City Chinese Medical Hospital after the live broadcast she aired last time, then I thought to call her over. So, I would like to convey my gratitude to Tian Xiaomeng for being able to come here.
"As a matter of fact, I invited her here for one purpose only. I hope to see more people pay attention to the Bluestar Welfare House and show their care to the children here. And similarly, I hope that everyone is also able to show their compassion and pay attention not only to the Bluestar Welfare House. There still are many welfare houses whose condition is bad all over the country, along with more pitiful children who need our help. The ability I have as an individual is limited, so I hope everyone will also come forward to pour out your compassion and love to care and help them. On the behalf of these children, I thank you all."
After saying that, Tang Xiu's gaze left the camera and then nodded to Tian Xiaomeng. Following that, he continued to give the steamed buns to the children.
With her vision following Tang Xiu, Tian Xiaomeng's eyes then shifted after he turned around to the children in the dilapidated room who had already started their meal. Their meal was simple, containing only boiled cabbage and vermicelli cooked in one pot and some meat dumplings. There was nothing else but plain rice congee inside their bowls, which had many notches here and there, and yet the children ate the hot steamed bun given to them greedily as if it was the most delicious food in the world.
Tian Xiaomeng's gaze then fell on Long Xueyao at the side and asked with a complex expression, "Big Sis, they only have… this one dish?"
Long Xueyao was perfectly aware of Tang Xiu goal for doing all these and was grateful to him. When she heard Tian Xiaomeng's inquiry, she didn't face her phone cam but nodded silently, before letting out a bitter smile and saying, "It's great that you came today, since the cooked meal could be said to be better than usual with some meat in the dish. Usually, these children are only able to have meat in their dish in a two or three days' interval."
Tian Xiaomeng was taken aback. Her family's condition was average, yet they had at least one out of three meals a day with meat in their dishes. But these children could only have a meal with meat in two or three days, whereas they were precisely at their growth spurt...
Her vision fell onto the dish and she attempted to find the largest piece of pork meat. She ended up disappointed since the largest piece of meat she could find was only a thin, two thumbs wide piece.
On the live channel, the number of viewers now had exceeded 810,000. The comments that kept rolling on in the commentary section previously stopped at this time. No one posted any comment for a long time. Everyone's eyes were glued to the scene of the children wolfing down their meal. The more they followed and watched, the more they showed concern, as even tears broke out in their eyes. Pity and a sour feeling filled their hearts and in particular, there was also a depressing feeling which especially made them uncomfortable; feeling at a loss and stumped, unable to say anything.
It was not just their meals. It was more than that since they could clearly see the tattered cotton-wadded jackets these children wore. Many had stitches and patches on and they could even see cotton pad exposed on the shoulder of a small boy.
What was the most unsettling scene for them was that the oldest among these children seemed to be in their teens, whereas the youngest was placed in a small stroller nearby. There was a clear sign of frostbite on her thin, small face, whereas some other children had frostbites on the back of their hands along with traces of bloodstains.
Tian Xiaomeng was silent for a very long period of time. Only when Tang Xiu came toward her did she finally spoke to the camera, "All Mengmeng's viewers, Mengmeng is really wanting to cry at this moment, but I fear that it will be shameful and awkward to cry out in front of these children. Mengmeng is so sad, it's really heart-rending seeing these pitiable children..."
A few seconds later, the comments in the commentary section began to roll down crazily as countless people wrote their moods, feelings and were itching to do something. Even various gifts and rewards began to flood the live broadcast screen, nearly blocking Tian Xiaomeng's face.
Tian Xiaomeng lifted her head and waited for the tears in her eyes to slowly recede. She then lowered her head and solemnly said, "From today on until 12 AM of the 30th by the end of this year, all the gifts and rewards gifted by Meng's viewers and all the money will be donated to the Bluestar Welfare House. Mengmeng will also donate 100,000 yuan from my own savings, which I hope is enough to buy more meat and clothes for these children. Mengmeng only hopes… that these children can have a warm and happy new year…"
****
Beijing, in a certain office building where Star Live Entertainment Media Ltd. was headquartered.
At this moment, the chairman of the board—Wei Qing was among the viewers watching Tian Xiaomeng's live broadcast. His face was a bit pale, and his slightly plump body was somewhat trembling, while clear tears glittered in the sockets of his eyes.
Snap…
He lit up a cigarette while he raised his head and looked up at the ceiling, trying not to let the tears fall down. Those children in the Bluestar Welfare House brought back memories of his past. He was also an orphan and lived in an orphanage in a small city in the Northwest Region where he spent his early life from five to 12 years old.
Life and living conditions back then was arduous and difficult. He recalled a longing to have some meat in his meal in the past, memories which made his eyes turn red. After he was adopted by his adoptive parents and by the time he graduated from college at the age of 22, he had never returned to that small town neither did he visit that orphanage again.
He recalled that after he turned 22 and graduated from college, he received his first-month salary from his job, and half of the money was sent by mail to that orphanage. He also sent the orphanage some money in the next few years, but never sent even a dime after the Dean of the orphanage passed away due to illness.
If it wasn't for this live broadcast, he knew that he really would have forgotten the orphanage he had once lived in, and forgotten the hard and difficult living conditions there.
"I gotta go to the live broadcast room!"
Wei Qing suddenly got up and strode toward the live broadcast room. After seeing more than a dozen employees busy at work inside, he immediately spoke in a heavy voice, "Split Tian Mengmeng's live broadcast screen into two. I need to call and speak to her in person."
The few staff exchanged puzzled looks but still executed Wei Qing's order.
****
At Bluestar Welfare House.
Seeing the rewards that kept coming in her live broadcast, Tian Mengmeng felt warm inside. This sort of good deed made her feel proud and fulfilled. At the same time, she also felt grateful to Tang Xiu. No matter if it was the number of her subscribers that already surpassed 1 million at the moment or the gifts and rewards bestowed by her viewers, it really touched and moved her.
"Umm?" Tian Xiaomeng's expression suddenly moved as saw that the window of her live broadcast screen was divided into two halves and a slightly plump face then appeared on the other half of the screen.
"Mengmeng, I apologize for disturbing your live broadcast. I'm the chairman of the Star Live Entertainment Media Ltd., Wei Qing," Wei Qing's attitude was very amiable, and inexplicable emotions were still on his face.
Tian Xiaomeng was stunned. Her live broadcast platform was under the Star Live Entertainment Media Ltd. So to say, this middle-aged man who appeared all of a sudden was her Big Boss?
"Y-you are… Hello!" Tian Xiaomeng stutteringly replied.
"I've been watching your live broadcast, and to be honest, your live broadcast is the only one that deeply moved and touched my heart ever since I established the Star Live Broadcast platform. I'm also very grateful to you for making me retrospect on myself, reminding me of something I have forgotten as time passed by, finally returning to my former self.
"Actually, I'm also an orphan. I grew up in an orphanage when I was a child. I still remember…"
The story narrated by Wei Qing was very slow yet very clear. After having narrating his past in the orphanage, he finally concluded with a bitter expression, "I really regret it. I really regret not going back and having a look at the orphanage even once all these years. Even though the Dean who had cared for me had already passed away due to sickness, the uncles and aunts over there were also very caring toward me; and also those brothers and sisters who lived with me in the orphanage I grew up with. Today, I suddenly realized that I really don't have even a shred of conscience for forgetting about them after I became rich and gained some power."
"I don't want to apologize for what I've done, however. What I want to do is to make up for it. Mengmeng, please convey my thanks to Divine Doctor Tang. After speaking with you, I'll immediately return to that small town to visit the orphanage I used to live before, of which I don't know its condition at present. Let the deeds I will do make up for my mistakes. I want to make it so the other children will to never have to experience being unable to eat until their bellies full and having no clothes to keep their bodies warm. Like what I have gone through in the past!"
Tang Xiu had been standing quietly beside Tian Xiaomeng while watching Wei Qing in the live broadcast room and listening to everything he said from deep within his heart. All of which created an inexplicable emotion to surge up inside his heart.
It's a very warm and genial feeling!