Chapter 83: Better to Teach a Man to Fish Than to Give Him a Fish

Although this community care center was not large, it was funded by the Yangcheng government, so the overall environment was quite decent. The exterior of the care center was surrounded by lush green trees. The building was simple and cozy, and some facilities had noticeably installed protective devices. At the entrance was a spacious garden where various colorful flowers bloomed competitively, adding a touch of vitality and life to the entire center. The exterior walls were painted in soft tones, appearing warm and comfortable.

Walking into the special care center, the first thing that caught the eye was a bright lobby. The lobby walls were covered with paintings created by the children using colorful brushes, showcasing their rich imagination and unique understanding of life.

The care center was divided into several areas. The muscle rehabilitation area was equipped with recovery equipment, such as yoga balls and balance beams, providing patients with a space for rehabilitation exercises. The rooms in the care center were spacious and bright, mostly four-bed or eight-bed wards. In this cozy space, the caregivers had carefully decorated the rooms and used warm lighting to create a home-like atmosphere for the patients.

The patients’ behaviors varied, but the conditions of most were not exactly great. Wenchu People introduced some of the patients passing by Li Xiao with great familiarity.

"This is Ming. His condition is very complex. Because his parents died in an accident, his autism symptoms have been severe since he was young.

"Although the care center regularly provides him with professional psychological guidance, he still frequently falls into deep self-isolation, showing extreme anxiety and resistance when faced with unfamiliar environments.

"This leaves the caregivers feeling at a loss, making it even trickier to address his emotional needs.

"Moreover, because of his self-isolation, he has now begun to develop a world-weary mindset and has even exhibited instances of self-harm.

"Lian is a cerebral palsy patient. Her condition is very severe; she has basically no ability to take care of herself and requires around-the-clock family care.

"At first, the problem wasn’t too big, but a few years ago, Lian’s father passed away in an accident at a construction site, instantly cutting off the family’s source of income.

"Now, her mother spends most of the day taking care of Lian, and during the nights and in her free time, she does some handicraft work to support them.

"I chatted with Lian’s mother a while ago. She feels incredibly helpless and desperate.

"Her child’s illness and her husband’s departure have almost left her suffocating under the pressure. What makes her feel even more hopeless is that she is nearly sixty years old. No matter how hard she tries, in a few more years, she probably won’t be able to continue taking care of Lian."

In the care center, the patients always had a look of unease and timidity on their faces, while their family members wore expressions of unhideable exhaustion. Aside from a few well-dressed individuals who seemed to be in better circumstances, the faces of most family members were etched with marks that clearly exceeded their actual years. Of course, this might not have been the weariness left by the passage of time, but rather the helplessness and pressure of life. The prolonged caregiving work and financial stress kept their physical and mental states in a constant negative loop, allowing anxiety and depression to spread among them.

After staying for about twenty minutes, Wenchu People took Li Xiao and left the care center. The two of them returned to the Xihan’er Milk Tea Shop in silence.

It was already 9:40 AM.

The Xihan’er Milk Tea Shop, which had been closed earlier, was now open. Before Li Xiao even got close, he saw several Xihuan’Er with simple, endearing smiles on their faces, somewhat clumsily holding tools to begin their cleaning tasks. Some were sweeping, some were mopping, and others were wiping the glass. Their movements appeared very clumsy, and their speed was far slower than that of an average person. However, Li Xiao could see that these people were working extremely earnestly—the kind of earnestness that made them want to scrub every single speck of dust off the floor. In the once-empty space outside the shop, a few outdoor chairs had gradually been set out.

If Li Xiao hadn’t just been to the care center, perhaps he wouldn’t have noticed anything out of the ordinary. But he had just come from that care center—a place that was bright and spacious, yet left one feeling overwhelmingly suffocated. Comparing the two, he immediately realized the difference between the Xihuan’Er here and the ones at the care center.

Although the Xihuan’Er had low intelligence, it didn’t mean they had no intelligence at all. They also had their own understanding of the things around them. Therefore, facing a hopeless environment and hopeless family members, even the intellectually challenged Xihuan’Er would show panic, unease, and timidity on their faces. However, the Xihuan’Er right before him clearly had significant impairments as well. Yet, on the faces of these hard-working Xihuan’Er were smiles filled with hope.

Wenchu People looked at Li Xiao’s thoughtful expression and carefully spoke up. "Mr. Li, you should know why I was so agitated earlier, right?"

Li Xiao nodded and said in a sincere tone, "I’m very sorry. I had only done a cursory search online before. I couldn’t see the forest for the trees.

"What Miss Wen wanted to tell me must have been that if these kids can have a job to support themselves, then there is still hope in their lives.

"As long as they have a salary—even if it’s not high—it is far better than those kids who are trapped at home or in the care center.

"I’m very sorry. I apologize for my previous arrogance."

Wenchu People was startled by Li Xiao’s sudden apology. She hurriedly waved her hands. "No, no, no, Mr. Li, you don’t need to apologize to me. Your willingness to provide them with financial aid already surpasses what many, many people would do.

"It’s just that you didn’t understand them well enough before, so you thought it would be better for them not to work.

"This is a common misconception for average people; many have it.

"This is also why Mr. Tang Wen made sure to specify in the transfer agreement that these kids must be continuously employed."

To be honest, Li Xiao’s original plan was actually to replace these people directly and hire regular employees. Although this location wasn’t a commercial center, there were still many residential areas nearby. In his view, getting the shop running and turning a profit wouldn’t be too difficult. When that time came, he could completely use the milk tea shop’s profits to support these Xihuan’Er.

Now, however, he realized that his thinking had been somewhat naive. What these people needed wasn’t actually that 1,500 yuan, but a job—a job that could provide them with self-worth, hope, and a future. 1,500 wasn’t much, indeed, but it was enough for them to survive on—enough for them to take care of themselves after their parents and relatives passed away.

If things went according to Li Xiao’s original vision, making the milk tea shop profitable actually wouldn’t be too difficult. But if he was to maintain the status quo, turning a profit would likely be very hard. If it were an average person facing a continuously losing storefront, they probably wouldn’t be able to hold on for very long.