Seeing that Granny Lu had truly fallen asleep, she finally let down her guard. She closed the door and, upon entering her small room, entered the system. Hours of calligraphy practice followed by four to five hours of embroidering; when tired, she would just lie down and nap within the system, continuing her practice upon waking.
Her Basic Needlework had already reached complete proficiency. Truthfully, once one masters the Basic Needlework and if one has perseverance, learning complex embroidery patterns is not at all difficult.
She only emerged from the system in the evening, at which point the system opened a new course for her: the most basic embroidery patterns. These were pre-drawn designs, starting from the very basics. After completing them, she could even make money — not in reality, but in the system, earning system coins. With system coins, she could purchase items within the system, such as embroidery needles, threads, and fabrics not available elsewhere.
The goods sold by the system were naturally of good quality. Currently, she was using the free supplies provided by the system and had grown accustomed to them. However, they couldn’t be taken outside. When she earned enough money within the system, she could buy her own embroidery needle and thread to take out and embroider with.
She pulled up her quilt, preferring to sleep outside, despite how harshly the system tortured her. As long as she slept through the night outside, she would wake up the next day energized and ready to go.
In the morning, when Qin Xiangnuan woke up, Granny Lu had already cleaned the entire house, inside and out. Despite the oldness of the house, a good cleaning made it feel like home.
Granny Lu made breakfast: a savory pot of red bean and millet porridge, a plate of pickled vegetables, and seasoned radish strips, all simple home-cooked dishes. Qin Xiangyang and his sister enjoyed the meal immensely, feeling satisfied. After a long time, it was the first time they could wake up to a meal not made by themselves.
Qin Xiangyang and Granny Lu heated a large pot of water, ready for Granny Lu to have a good wash, as her hair, which hadn’t been washed for ages, had matted into tufts.
Now that everyone was away for the New Year, there were no clothes for sale, so Qin Xiangnuan went to ask Aunt Hua for help. Aunt Hua, not one to be stingy, gave several of her own clothes. Aunt Hua was sturdy and tall, so the clothes might be too large for Granny Lu, but they were better than nothing. Moreover, the clothes were nearly new, as Aunt Hua had barely worn them.
When Granny Lu put on these clothes, even though none of them fit properly, she secretly wiped away tears.
She had never worn clothes so nice before.
The Du Family had always valued sons over daughters. When she was young, Granny Lu had suffered greatly alongside Mr. Lu. If there was food at home, it was reserved for the males. Granny Lu and Du Ping alternated between fasting and feasting. Soon after Du Ping passed away, the family divided the property, and their children never thought to take care of their own mother. Grandma Pin’s clothing had always been just a couple of pieces; if they tore, she would mend them; if they got dirty, she would wash them. The colors had long faded, and they were patched over and over. Now that the Reform and Opening Up Policy had been implemented and people’s living standards had improved — though still poor and despite three years of natural disasters — there were no more reports of starvation. Back then, community dining was the norm. As long as you had hands and a bit of strength, there was no reason for life to be so miserable.
Yet, that was indeed the state of the Du Family.