“If you’re not going out, are you planning to stay here for the New Year?” Paige looked at him.
Bastion stuck out his tongue, took a peek outside again, and then retracted his head again, scared by the scene outside.
Alfredo stood aside, pulled him over to his side, and petted his head to calm him down.
“Paige.”
A woman next to him looked nervously at Paige, ‘I’m a little regretting it. I’ve never seen such a scene before, nor so many people. This place is too unfamiliar to me. I want to go back to Wind Island.’
Just looking out the window, there were crowds of people by the sea, tall buildings in the distance, and even the blue sky and white clouds overhead were different from those on Wind Island.
Once, they had dreamed of escaping from Wind Island, but after so many years there, they were extremely uncomfortable and frightened when they came out again.
Many people nodded in succession, looking at Paige with pleading eyes.
They were afraid to get off the boat. In front of these people outside, they were like the most ragged clowns, ugly and shameless.
Facing this situation, Paige was not surprised. She folded her arms behind her back and said calmly, “As I said before, if you don’t want to sign the agreement and stay on Wind Island, I will provide simple supplies, but if you trust me and all of you sign, then there will be no conflicting issues.”
“…”
“Wind Island will soon begin to be rebuilt. It won’t just be a simple construction project, but the rebuilding of an island city. Once it’s finished, you can go back whenever you want and live a normal life.”
But there’s nothing on Wind Island right now, and she can’t just leave them there.
Upon hearing this, someone timidly said, ‘Then can I wait for the reconstruction of Wind Island? I’m a little… scared.’
The person who spoke was truly scared, and even their breathing was trembling.
The situation outside was like nothing he had ever seen before.
“Of course you can. You can join the reconstruction team and return to Wind Island to participate in the reconstruction. The future is the one you choose for yourselves,”
Paige said, pointing her finger outside. ‘But today, you must get off the ship with me, get off the ship with dignity, and tell everyone that from now on, there will be no more slums in this country!’
Her words were sharp and cold, her gaze resolute.
“…”
Everyone’s breathing stopped for a moment, both scared and a little excited.
Yes.
They are no longer slum dwellers.
“I don’t know what you’re afraid of. You are just like those people outside. You are all human beings, and there is no difference between the noble and the lowly. Unless you also consider yourselves inferior and refuse to start over,” Paige continued.
The people looked at each other, and the timidity and nervousness in their eyes gradually faded.
They came here to start over, but if they don’t even have the courage to walk into the crowd and announce it, what kind of a new start is that…
“Paige is right, we are going to get off this ship and tell everyone in Country A that we are not monsters or demons, we are not viruses or criminals, we are just people who want to live,”
Alfredo said slowly, leaning on Bastion’s shoulder and looking back at everyone.
“Okay, I’m getting off the ship,”
“I’m getting off the ship too!”
“Then let’s all be on our best behavior and not disgrace us Wind Islanders!”
“Yes, we’re Wind Islanders! We’re not slum dwellers!”
“Paige! Let’s go! We’re getting off the ship!”
Watching the crowd regain their confidence, a warm feeling swept over Paige’s heart. This was exactly what she wanted to see.
She turned with a slight smile on her lips and walked out of the cruise ship hall first.
…
Countless security guards formed a human wall to keep the crowd from pushing forward.
The weather was particularly warm that day, and the large sun shone down directly, causing the onlookers to perspire profusely and all being unable to move.
Someone looked up on tiptoe in the direction of the cruise ship and anxiously said, “Why haven’t they come down yet?”
“I don’t know.”
“Do you think that these people from the slums really carry viruses all over their bodies, like Thomas said? Then if we are so close to them, will we be infected?”
“No, I don’t think so. I’ve always thought this rule is very unreasonable. Why should those who can’t take care of themselves be sent to Wind Island? It’s so unfair.”
“Thomas said that the rule was inhumane at first, but over the past century, the slums have long since become a hotbed of crime. They are full of hatred, and everyone who sneaks out has committed crimes and endangered society.”
“I heard that a total of more than 3, 000 people were released this time. If they are all cynical and go on to commit crimes…”
“I don’t care, I’m just rooting for President Rafael and Carrie!”
Someone in the crowd suddenly raised a placard with the names Rafael and Carrie on it.
“…”
The people around them were speechless. Here we are talking about class equality and the presidential campaign, about who on both sides is truly considering the people, and you’re talking about the president’s love life? Is that appropriate?
“Hey, look, they’re coming out!”
Someone suddenly shouted, and everyone looked up.
They saw a large number of people walking onto the deck, led by Paige.
The sun shone on her, and although she had a pure face, she had an air of competence about her, her back straight, her steps unhurried, and her temperament compelling.
Alfredo, Bastion, and Uncle Artie followed behind her.
Behind them were the people from the slums, so many that they filled the entire deck.
“I thought everyone in the slums would be scruffily dressed, dark-skinned, with lice crawling in their hair, but that’s not the case.”
“Not only that, but look at that man walking in front of us, he’s so handsome.”
“Look, they’re smiling, they don’t look like they hate society.”
“Yes, they don’t look any different from us.”
As they talked, their voices gradually grew quieter, because the group of people noticed that many in the crowd were either leaning on crutches or missing an arm, and some even had a missing piece of their face or arm…
But they were also dressed neatly, and they walked out with smiles on their faces, each one trying to keep their backs straight, with a smile on their faces, not a hint of humility or resentment in sight.
The group fell silent.
They were always afraid that the people from the slums would pose a danger if they were released, but they never imagined that these people had suffered more than they could imagine.
The plutocrats stood with their respective people by the seaside. They had all come because they wanted to save face.
At the moment, they all stared at the people from the slums, searching through the crowd. They found none of their enemies whom they had sent in, and assumed that the people had died on Wind Island, which eased their minds. Those who found their enemies had a heavier expression on their faces.
They looked at Paige, who was walking at the front, young and spirited, having accomplished such a great deed.
However, the things she did were like a sword hanging over the heads of all the plutocrats, and they found it hard to bear.
If only someone could assassinate Paige.
With one less such person in charge, many things would change.
The plutocrats thought the same thing, and they saw several rows of bodyguards trot out in an orderly manner, run up to Paige and stand still by her side, then fall back in groups, forming a huge protective circle and keeping a constant watch on their surroundings.
“…” The plutocrats were silent.
“…” Paige glanced at them and then at Jaden.
She saw that these people were sent by Jaden.
Jaden bowed respectfully to her, then made a gesture of making a phone call, indicating that it was Enrico who gave the order.