American homeless people, surviving in the city

The next morning, Lin Qi was awakened by a series of chaotic dragging sounds.

Lynch had a terrible night. He had been in the tent for so long that the stench from his body made it impossible for him to sleep.

My toes, which were barely tingling in the cold wind, started to ache uncontrollably after I got into the relatively warm sleeping bag. I wonder if I've developed chilblains.

Tormented by both the stench and the pain, even though Lynch used to have excellent sleep quality, he managed to sleep for less than four hours that night.

Therefore, when Lin Qi was awakened by the chaotic noise in the freezing tent after a night of rest, he was somewhat grumpy upon waking.

He rubbed his hands together, crawled out of his sleeping bag, and tried to see where the chaotic noise was coming from.

The source of the sound wasn't far away. As soon as he crawled out of the tent, he saw Raul dragging someone into the bushes in the distance.

As a seasoned forensic doctor, Lin Qi could tell at a glance that the person had almost no vital signs.

If his fate is unknown, then he is probably dead.

Lin Qi was immediately startled awake.

But Raul, who was disposing of the body, remained completely calm, showing no sign of panic except for pinching his nose and holding his breath with one hand. When he saw Lin Qi emerge from the tent, he even had the leisure to greet him.

"Hey, good morning. Want to come with me to get a meal later? I know there's a new meal delivery truck on Ninth Avenue that just started operating recently. Not many people know about it yet, so there's no long line, and you don't even need to register your identity..."

Lin Qi stared at him blankly:

"Wait, is this the time to talk about what to eat for breakfast? What are you dragging along...?"

Before he finished speaking, Raul had already tossed the man, whose fate was unknown, into the bushes some distance away. Then he waved his hand, turned back to Lynch, and smiled.

"Oh, you mean old Joel? He was my closest neighbor before you came. But he was a loner, and I wasn't very close to him."

"Old Joel has been staying in his tent since the day before yesterday, and I heard him coughing incessantly inside. But when I woke up today, I didn't hear him coughing, so I wanted to check on him."

"I called his name outside his tent, but there was no response. I opened the tent flap, which wasn't fully zipped up, and found him frozen solid inside."

"That's not good. When the sun comes out during the day and the temperature rises, he'll inevitably stink in the tent, so I moved him a little further away to avoid affecting our living environment."

Lynch's mind hadn't quite caught up yet:

"So, we don't need to call the police or an ambulance?"

Upon hearing this, Raul froze, staring intently at Lin Qi's face as if he were an idiot.

"Hey boss, are you still half asleep? Wake up! Why are you even thinking of calling the police? Guess what they'll do when they get here: collect old Joel's body, or give us both an 'illegal camping' ticket and confiscate our tents and packs?"

"As for the ambulance... even if it arrives in time and manages to save old Joel, he'll only curse you for the rest of his life."

Raul spoke with a coldness that belied his youthful face, while sneering, "Boss, if you ever have a grudge against someone, just cripple them and call an ambulance. That way, they'll live with the shadow of medical bills and debt for the rest of their lives!"

Lin Qi was speechless.

He had indeed just woken up, his mind still filled with the lingering illusions of his time at Tokyo University, forgetting that the cold land beneath his feet was called America.

Lin Qi was silent for a moment, then suddenly spoke:

"What was your last sentence?"

"Huh? I meant the police will give us a ticket..."

"No, the previous sentence."

"Um, shall we go to that newly opened food truck to pick up our relief meals?"

"Yes, that's it." Lin Qi sighed, feeling utterly exhausted first thing in the morning. "Let's go together. I'm definitely feeling a bit hungry after staying up all night..."

The two found a public restroom, quickly washed up, and then headed together toward the relief food truck that Raul had mentioned, which had only recently started operating.

As the sun gradually rises, Seattle, known as the "Queen City" and the "Evergreen City," gradually regains its vitality.

Lin Qi walked along the roadside, casually responding to Raul's incessant chatter, while watching the luxury cars and new energy vehicles speeding past. For a moment, he felt that the roadside and the roadside, though only a few meters apart, were truly two different worlds.

But soon, his feelings were disrupted by the clamor.

As the two slowly moved forward, Lin Qi suddenly discovered that the road ahead was already occupied by a dense crowd, and bright yellow warning tape had been put up on both sides of the road.

Several police cars were already parked on the side of the road.

But neither the police officers chatting idly against the police car door nor the hurried crowds regarded this group of people as a threat.

Even though he wasn't very familiar with America, Lynch quickly realized: "This is... a protest?"

"What else?" Raul said with an expression that seemed unsurprised. "Looks like it's another protest over food stamps. This is the third such protest in this area recently."

"Food stamps? Oh..."

Lin Qi remembered that he had seen related news when he was at Dongda University. After the second term of the American president, the blond president drastically reduced the amount of food stamp subsidies and raised the requirements for receiving subsidies, resulting in a large number of people no longer being able to receive food stamps.

As the two were chatting, the marching crowd began to move in their direction.

The clamor gradually became clearer in my ears, turning into a chaotic yet unified protest:

"Increase food stamp subsidies, but don't cut taxes for the wealthy!"

"We shouldn't go hungry! We shouldn't go hungry!"

"Having access to food is our human right!"

The signs they held aloft often contained more aggressive statements:

The President has stepped down!

[President, stop using our money to repair your dilapidated estate!]

Silently watching the parade slowly pass by, Lin Qi didn't know what to say.

He turned to look at Raul, and seeing that Raul was merely observing indifferently, he suddenly asked with some curiosity:

"These food stamps sound like they're for the poor, right? Are we homeless people even eligible?"

Raul seemed to be used to Lynch's naive questions and dutifully provided an explanation.

"We still want food stamps? Don't even dream about it."

"Since the president took office, the requirements for receiving food stamps have been significantly raised. To receive food stamps, you must provide a whole host of tedious documents, including proof of identity, proof of income, proof of residence, proof of citizenship, and proof of household expenses. In addition, you must attend more than 20 hours of training at a designated location every week."

"After meeting the above conditions, passing a rigorous interview, and waiting for more than 7 days, you can receive the food stamps that the government 'kindly' provides to you, which have a much smaller quota than in previous years."

As he spoke, Raul couldn't help but sneer: "Even so, immigrants like us are not eligible for food stamps, and even many Americans struggle to meet the eligibility requirements."

"That's why we see wave after wave of large-scale protests."

As the two were chatting by the side of the parade, Raul suddenly spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

He rushed to the edge of the crowd and waved vigorously:

"Hey! Uncle Jason, over here!"