Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Ji Cheng and I were the only two Chinese people in the entire refugee camp.

Naturally, we became allies.

He was a bit different from my first impression of him.

In reality, Ji Cheng was extremely dedicated to his work.

He provided me with a wealth of detailed information regarding casualties and supply shortages.

In turn, I wove those figures and stories into reports to be broadcast to the world.

My very first report secured a donation of nearly a thousand tons of food for the local area.

At the time, Ji Cheng had discovered an abnormal mortality rate from AIDS within the camp.

“We’ve been distributing antiretroviral drugs, but they’re still dying in droves…”

“It doesn’t make sense, unless they aren’t taking the medication at all.”

I flipped through the patient records and said, “I’ll look into it.”

I conducted interviews everywhere and eventually discovered that it wasn’t just the antiretroviral drugs-nearly all the free medication being distributed was flowing into the black market.

Drug traffickers only needed a bag of moldy cornmeal to trade for those life-saving pills.

To the refugees, that cornmeal meant a month’s worth of rations for their families.

Once the report was published, it caused a massive stir in the international media.

The UN World Food Programme quickly mobilized and dispatched supplies.

The day the aid convoy arrived, cheers erupted in the camp like never before.

We helped distribute the relief food, working until we were drenched in sweat, but our hearts were filled with immense relief.

After handing the last bag of potatoes to a mother cradling an infant, Ji Cheng and I collapsed against the side of a truck.

He turned to look at me.

A smile lit up his entire face, making his handsome features shine even brighter.

“Nie Lan, thank you.”

“…Thank me for what?”

“Before you came, I could only watch helplessly as they suffered. There was so little I could do.

“But now, through you, I see the meaning of my work.

“You made the world see them-and us.”

In that moment, my heart drummed against my ribs.

I could hardly breathe.

Flustered, I brushed the hair by my temple, trying to hide my ears as they turned a deep crimson.