Chapter 342 A Meal That Triggered a Breakdown
Lily was visibly worried. For Steven and Elinor, a meal was just a routine part of their day. But for Lily and her students, it was a matter of survival.
The amount of food was already insufficient, and now this situation was making things worse, making Lily feel distressed.
Elinor seemed to remember something and quickly smiled at Lily, saying, "Oh my, I completely forgot about this! Ms. Evans, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Why don't you join us for a meal?"
Elinor warmly invited Lily inside to eat.
Lily's throat tightened.
Thinking about the hot, delicious food, she couldn't help but salivate.
But after a moment of hesitation, she shook her head and declined Elinor's kind offer. "No, thank you. I'll come back tomorrow," said Lily.
Her students were all hungry, and if she ate alone, she would feel guilty.
"I'm really sorry. You came all this way for nothing today." Elinor smiled apologetically.
"It's okay, he has his own things to do, I understand. Besides, it's always the tutor who adapts to the student's schedule, not the other way around." With that, Lily turned and left.
Elinor looked at Lily's stubborn back and couldn't help but laugh. "Ms. Evans is such a lovely person!"
In the living room, Cindy appeared, pushing a wheelchair.
She said calmly, "Perhaps that's the stubbornness of a teacher."
Elinor sighed lightly. "If she had asked, I could have packed some food for her to take back."
After all, Steven held Lily in high regard. Elinor understood this, so she was always very polite to Lily.
If Lily ever joined them, she would need to maintain a good relationship with her.
Cindy smiled faintly. "If she only took back one portion of food, that would be the worst."
Elinor tilted her head and asked, "Why? It's better than going back empty-handed, right?"
Cindy placed her hands on her legs, her smile somewhat mysterious. "My classmates are not kind and generous people. If Ms. Evans only took one portion of food, she definitely wouldn't eat it herself. But if she left it for others, how would she divide it?"
Cindy continued, "With a dozen people sharing one portion, it's impossible for them to politely offer it to each other. They would fight, curse, and even brawl over that one bite of food! Ms. Evans is already overwhelmed taking care of them; she wouldn't add more trouble for herself."
After listening to Cindy's explanation, Elinor nodded, finding it very reasonable.
However, Elinor could also understand Lily's actions.
Women were naturally nurturing creatures.
Lily had been their teacher for many years and saw them as her children, so she couldn't bear to see them helpless in the apocalypse.
In the past, Elinor would have felt sorry for these students too. But that was then. Now, while she still had a bit of kindness left, she wouldn't let it cloud her judgment.
Elinor looked through the window at Lily's desolate figure in the snow and couldn't help but ask, "Even if Steven left, he should have known Lily would come. Do you think he did it on purpose?"
Thinking of Steven's shrewd nature, Cindy's face blushed slightly, her smile tinged with girlish fantasies. "Yes, this must be part of Steven's plan!"
Elinor's eyes lit up, and she quickly turned around, saying, "You mean Steven did this on purpose to intensify the conflicts among your classmates or to put more pressure on Lily so she would quickly face reality?"
Cindy nodded. "Of course, Steven wouldn't overlook this. He used the excuse of being busy to pretend he forgot his appointment with Ms. Evans. In reality, he was creating trouble for those guys and disturbing Ms. Evans's mind."
"Steven is too smart!"
"Yes, this is exactly his style."
Elinor sighed, her admiration for Steven growing. "Every little thing he does has such deep meaning."
On the way back, Steven was driving. The car had an automatic driving assist feature, making driving quite easy nowadays.
Suddenly, he slapped his forehead and said, "Oh no, I forgot to tell Lily not to look for me today!"
Lily returned to Cox Town.
Passing by the Mississippi River, she saw women and children breaking the ice and fishing on the river.
All the adult men of Cox Town had died at West Mountain Base, leaving only women, the elderly, and children in the village.
But they still had to survive, so they had to do the work that men usually did.
As Lily passed by them, she saw faces filled with numbness.
Nowadays, they were not much different from walking corpses.
They lived just for the sake of living, without any other meaning.
Lily couldn't help but think of her students.
They were young and strong, yet not as willing to strive for survival as these women, children, and elderly.
'Steven was right; I have indeed overprotected them.' Lily sighed deeply in her heart.
She touched her hungry stomach and silently made a decision.
This time when she returned, she would tell her students that they must leave their comfort zone.
After returning to Cox Town, Lily went to the house where her students lived.
Although there were many empty rooms in Cox Town, they all crowded together to keep warm.
At night, the girls would even crawl into the boys' beds because their body temperatures were higher.
As this situation continued, their relationships gradually became chaotic.
Seeing Lily return so quickly, the students were very surprised. Usually, it took her several hours to get food!
But noticing that she came back empty-handed, the students immediately became anxious.
"Ms. Evans, why did you come back empty-handed?"
"Where's the food?"
The students immediately asked about the food.
In their eyes, that was the most important thing!
Lily walked into the house, found a chair to sit on, and explained the situation to them.
"Steven had something to do today, so there's no food. Everyone should go catch some fish!"
As soon as Lily said this, the students immediately started to make a fuss.
"Why didn't he tell us in advance if he was going out?"
"If he's not home, aren't there other people? They have plenty of food; it wouldn't hurt to give us some!"
"Steven is so unreliable."
The students were very hungry and started complaining as soon as they heard there was no food.
Lily felt a bit unhappy. "Regardless, Steven has helped us a lot. Without him, many of us would have died at West Mountain Base. Besides, he and I are just in a transaction; he doesn't owe us anything. You shouldn't always blame others; you should rely on your own hands to get food."
Lily earnestly tried to educate her students, but they didn't accept it.
As soon as they heard they had to work themselves, the girls started crying. "Ms. Evans, the last time I went fishing, I hurt my hand! The wound still hasn't healed, and it hurts a lot."
Someone said, "We can't do this kind of work! We're not fishermen."
One girl suddenly complained in a low voice, "Speaking of which, isn't it Cindy and Aubrey who are too heartless? We've been classmates for years, but they only care about themselves and don't consider us at all!"
The girl added, "If they just asked Steven, we could all have a chance to live in that warm and comfortable shelter!"
This complaint seemed to flip a switch, suddenly directing the conflict toward Cindy and Aubrey.
Envy, jealousy and hatred!
These emotions slowly took root and grew stronger in their hearts. The harsh living conditions nurtured them into a big tree.
Although Aubrey and Cindy didn't owe them anything, in fact, they had been bullied by them in the past.
"If everyone suffered together, it would be better."
"Why do we have to starve and freeze while those two live in a luxurious mansion?"
"They get to enjoy heating and hot food every day, sleeping in soft, warm beds."
The girl's words were just an outlet for the long-suppressed emotions in her heart. She started, and the other students found a breakthrough, all cursing Aubrey and Cindy.
One girl said angrily, "Such despicable and selfish people! I bought Aubrey coffee two years ago! Now she doesn't even think of helping me, how shameless!"
Another one said, "Look at what you're saying. My family and the Yoders are distant relatives! Cindy didn't think of me either. She's so selfish!"
Someone else said, "Let me tell you, I always thought those two women were no good. Now I see, my judgment was spot on!"
The classmates found a target to attack and became excited, like a group of sharks smelling blood.
They fiercely criticized Aubrey and Cindy, as if the two owed them something.
Lily was dumbfounded; she couldn't believe her students were so baselessly slandering their classmates.
What noble academy, what high-society aristocratic children, high-quality talents.
Seeing this scene, one could only feel they were no different from the ruffians!
Lily's heart sank completely, and she finally decided not to pamper these spoiled and immature students anymore.
"Everyone, quiet down! I have something to announce," Lily said loudly, and the people around immediately quieted down.
Lily glanced at them and said word by word, "From now on, I will be living in the shelter with Aubrey and Cindy."
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