Operation Red Book

The facilities in the welfare home looked old, but they were all cleaned spotlessly. Everyone walked across the hall and came to a crowded room.

This is the dining room of the Florence Welfare Home. There is a long table in the middle, with long wooden benches on both sides. At the end of the long table are two square tables and three large wooden barrels neatly arranged.

An old nun wearing round glasses hunched over, took the child's plate in front of her, and scooped out boiled potatoes, lentils, onions and two radishes from the wooden barrel in turn.

After handing it to the child, he squeezed out an old and weak voice: "Go, may God bless you, poor child."

The children were all wrapped in coarse linen clothes. Most of them were pale and thin, with bloated bodies and messy hair.

After receiving the meal, the child ran to the dining table and sniffed his nose, without touching the meal in front of him, as if he was waiting for something.

Ivy and Joshua sat at the end of the table, watching the children waddling from side to side like little penguins, and then looking at the ugly-looking food on their plates.

"If I ate these dishes every day, I would also find ways to steal money from others."

Ivy said to Joshua, her anger long gone, her eyes filled with unexplainable emotions.

"If it weren't for my grandparents, would I have grown up in an orphanage as well?" Joshua looked straight at the old nun with a heavy tone.

Ivy turned her head and looked at Joshua, her eyes mixed with some surprise: "You don't have a father or a mother? I'm so sorry."

"Yes, I do. My father is in China and my mother is in Canada. They are both scientists and come back once a year." Joshua replied blankly.

Ivy turned her head away speechlessly, sighed, and said helplessly: "You won't go to an orphanage. You have a father and a mother. The welfare in the UK is so good, you can live comfortably on your own... But these children don't have families. Social welfare in the Victorian era was not yet perfect."

The two fell into silence for a while until Grace brought out two plates of bacon broccoli mashed potatoes.

Grace changed into new clothes and redid her makeup, looking a little more gentle and friendly than she was just now.

She placed the plate in front of them, got up and went to the old nun, and when she came back she and Henry sat opposite Ivy and Joshua.

"This is the leftover dinner from yesterday's dinner of Dean Morris. It's the best meal I can find. I'm sorry, I hope you can make do with it." Grace explained gently.

"That's great. Thank you for the treat..." Joshua replied stutteringly.

Ivy smiled back and picked up her fork to fiddle with the bacon on her plate.

Seeing this, Grace hurriedly waved her hand to stop her: "Ms. Ivy, we have to wait until Mr. Morris speaks before we can eat."

"Huh? Why?"

"Since Mr. Morris is the dean, he will lead us in prayer before meals."

Henry stared at the food on Joshua's plate, spinning the wooden spoon in his mouth.

Seeing this, Ivy looked up at Grace, grabbed Henry's plate and swapped it with her own.

Henry was confused for a moment, and looking at Ivy's smug look, he blushed and said loudly: "What are you doing?"

"I want to eat radishes, what's wrong?" Ivy made a face at Henry, "I don't like mashed potatoes."

"You're talking nonsense, mashed potatoes are the best!"

Ivy ignored Henry's "mashed potatoes are the best" theory and turned to chat with Grace.

"Where are you from?"

"We are from Manchester, and live in Baker Street now."

"So what are you doing here in August Street?"

"Looking for a job." Ivy pursed her lips. "I haven't found a job in the past two days. From Baker Street to Regent Street, they don't hire women."

"And me, they said I had no strength," Joshua interrupted slowly.

Seeing the two people's dejected looks, Grace smiled and held their hands and said, "Maybe you can stay here! Our welfare home is short of staff!"

"Really?" Ivy's face was filled with joy, and her tone gradually rose. "It would be great if we had a source of income!"

"After dinner we can go ask Mr. Morris...Henry, are you happy they will be keeping us company in Florence?"

Henry had just given the last piece of mashed potatoes to the little blond girl sitting on the right. When he heard Grace's words, his face instantly turned the color of liver. After a long pause, he finally uttered a syllable: "No..."

Grace turned to the two of them awkwardly and said apologetically, "Actually, he doesn't think so."

As they were talking, a short man with a big belly walked in. The sunlight shone on his bald head, and Ivy felt that the room suddenly became brighter.

"This is Mr. Morris." Grace said to the two of them secretly.

Mr. Morris was wearing a gray suit and holding a brown umbrella in his right hand.

He looked at the golden pocket watch he took out of his jacket pocket. His face was covered with fat, and his neck was almost invisible.

"Okay, what do we do now, kids?"

Morris put his pocket watch back, raised his head and looked around the room, his voice deep and powerful.

“Pray before meals!”

"Then quickly reach out your little hands and hold the hands of the people next to you."

The adults and children in the room moved in unison. They all held the hands of the people next to them, stood up, closed their eyes and raised their heads.

“Heavenly Father, we thank you for…”

“On busy days, we pray for those who prepare food, hoping to bless them in our brief encounters. They are also your children, and they deserve to be treated with kindness and respect, so that they can see and know you in our actions. Bless our bodies and keep us safe on the road.”

“In Jesus’ name. Amen.”

"Amen," "Amen," "Amen."

After a round of “Amen”s, the children were allowed to sit down and eat.

Morris also put down the umbrella in his hand and started to eat the rich food on the plate.

The only sound left in the huge room was the sound of chewing food, as everyone was swallowing the food on their plates in big gulps.

Sunlight streamed in through the windows, and microorganisms flew wildly in the rays.

Ivy felt indescribably awkward. When she turned around to talk to Joshua, Grace stopped her with a "hush" gesture.

Finally, lunch ended in a weird atmosphere. The children were taken to have a nap by the old nun, while Ivy and Joshua were taken to Morris' office by Grace.