"Granny, I want to learn how to make this," Qin Xiangnuan took the already completed shoe sole that Granny Lu had made, held it in her arms, and couldn’t let it go. She had thought about it for a lifetime, dreamed about it for a lifetime, and now it was right at her fingertips. How could she easily give up now?
"Sure thing," Granny Lu smiled, "If you want to learn, I’ll teach you. I taught your mother and she was really good at making shoes. It’s just a pity..."
Speaking to this point, Granny Lu didn’t continue, and Qin Xiangnuan’s bright eyes also dimmed slightly.
Granny Lu picked up a needle, threaded it, and while working, taught Qin Xiangnuan how to paste the shoe sole, how to sew, how to thread, and how to make them. Actually, making shoes is a very labor-intensive task. Qin Xiangnuan was too young and didn’t have much strength in her hands, so the needle simply wouldn’t go through, but the shoe sole she glued was quite good.
It was essentially a layer of paste, then a layer of cloth, just tightly pressed layer by layer, then sewing bit by bit with the needle. The corners of the stitches must be dense and even.
Although Granny Lu had already finished several pairs of shoes, Qin Xiangnuan’s shoe soles were still half-finished. However, she wasn’t disheartened; she believed that one day she could make beautiful shoes.
During the day, she followed Granny Lu to learn shoe-making, and in the evening, she worked on embroidery. When she had time, she also made shoes.
The system seemed to understand her and even found many shoe designs for her, various kinds of children’s tiger-head shoes, and women’s embroidered shoes. She was confident that if she took these to the era she died in, these retro, ethnically-flavored shoes would definitely earn her a lot of money.
And the year, actually passed really quickly, school was about to start.
One day, taking advantage of the good weather, Qin Xiangyang used a tricycle to take Qin Xiangnuan and Granny Lu to the county’s department store to buy things. It was said to have just been built with a variety of items, though the prices were quite expensive.
Granny Lu did not ask the two children what they were doing; she just followed the two children, fearing they might not know the way and get lost.
Once inside the department store, Granny Lu held tightly to her two grandchildren’s hands, afraid they might get lost in the crowd.
Qin Xiangnuan noticed a dark red dress. This dress would fit Granny Lu very well; mainly because Granny Lu was too skinny. Wearing Aunt Hua’s clothes, which were big and loose, wasn’t warm at all. They planned to buy a few dresses here for her and then tear off some fabric. Granny Lu, with her skills, could make dresses no worse than the tailors in the village.
Qin Xiangnuan had the salesperson bring out the clothes and then displayed the dress in front of Granny Lu.
"Granny, you should try it on,"
Granny Lu, frightened, dare not touch the dress. How expensive must it be? What if it gets dirty? What if they are made to pay for it?
"Granny, please try it on, we have money," Qin Xiangyang broke into a broad smile, showing his white teeth, "Sister is pretty good at making money. Over the New Year, we made a good few thousand. We want to buy Granny one too."
On hearing this, Granny Lu was startled but more incredulous than anything.
She had already decided to support these two children, even if it meant begging, she wasn’t afraid, but she had never imagined that these children could earn money.
Only when they sat in the tricycle again, having bought a pile of fabrics and clothes, did Granny Lu finally believe that her two grandchildren really could make money. Actually, she had heard from Aunt Hua that the small shop at the station did have something to do with the siblings, but she had never taken it to heart, not expecting that when these children bought things, they spent money without even blinking an eye. This trip alone, dozens of large bills of money were gone.