"Sis, it’s really tasty," Tang Jun took a sip of water and passed the bag forward.
Tang Yue grabbed a handful of the rice-made popcorn, which is different from the corn-made popcorn, white and plump, crispy and delicious when bitten into.
"It is good indeed, but you can’t eat too much of it, be careful not to get heaty," Tang Yue reminded him.
"Come on, sis, I’m not a three-year-old kid," Tang Jun muttered in response.
On the agreed day, Tang Yue arrived at Deng Lanhua’s tailor shop. As she reached the door, Deng Lanhua excitedly shouted, "Xiao Yue, your clothes are ready! Lots of people have said they like them and even wanted to make one in the same style, but I didn’t agree."
Deng Lanhua never imagined she could make such beautiful clothes. As soon as the clothes were finished, people coming in to have clothes made saw them and wanted to buy them; when she said they were for someone else, they still wanted to make one in the same style, but Deng Lanhua did not agree.
If it were any other clothing, she would have made another without a second thought, as she could make a bit of money that way. But this piece of clothing was different—it was made from a design brought by Tang Yue. She thought to herself that it wouldn’t be good to make an exact copy for someone else.
"Sister Deng, let me see the clothes," Tang Yue said as she walked into the shop. Even though she knew the clothes would turn out well, she had never imagined they would be this amazing.
When Deng Lanhua brought out the checkered coat, it almost gave Tang Yue a sense of returning to the future; the classic checkered coat seemed never to go out of style.
Today, she specially brought a pair of black jeans, choosing the smallest size of slightly flared jeans, which should look good with the overcoat.
Tang Yue first inspected the coat; the stitching was fine and the cut was extraordinarily fitting. She took off her outer jacket and put on the checkered coat, which extended just above her knees. The coat wrapped around her body, seemingly elongating her height in an instant.
"It looks good, it really does," Deng Lanhua watched excitedly as Tang Yue tried on the coat. Holding it in her hands before, she felt the coat would look great when worn, but only upon actually wearing it did she discover that it looked even better than imagined.
Tang Yue, already tall and slender, looked even more spirited in the checkered coat.
"Sister Deng, your craftsmanship is truly remarkable," Tang Yue praised as she looked at herself repeatedly in the mirror. Paired with a pair of small boots or high heels, it would be even more perfect.
"It’s because the design was good," said Deng Lanhua, who had been a tailor for many years and never knew clothes could be made so attractive. Compared with what Tang Yue made, her previous clothes suddenly fell short.
"Sister Deng, thank you. Here is the rest of the money," Tang Yue handed over the remaining US$14.
Deng Lanhua counted it and returned 50 cents, saying, "Xiao Yue, I’ll charge you 50 cents less."
"Sister Deng, making clothes is not easy for you. We agreed on the price, so let’s stick to that," Tang Yue pushed the money back, decisively. "Sister Deng, I might come to you for making clothes in the future. Then you can give me a little discount."
Tang Yue had a vague idea in her heart, but felt it was a bit unrealistic; it still depended on the price she could sell the clothes for. She casually asked, "Sister Deng, do you get many people coming to you for clothes on a regular day?"
"Not really," Deng Lanhua replied honestly, sighing, "Compared to other tailors, I’m a bit younger, so people probably think I’m not as experienced as others."
"Sister Deng, your stitching is excellent, and so is the cutting. Doing good business is definitely in your future," Tang Yue confidently said.
Deng Lanhua smiled happily, "Then I’ll borrow your auspicious words."
"Right, Xiao Yue, your design," Deng Lanhua handed over the design.
Tang Yue took it, and Deng Lanhua said, "Xiao Yue, don’t worry, I won’t make a second one of this outfit."
"That won’t do, Sister Deng, what if I want another one made?" Tang Yue playfully blinked.
Deng Lanhua laughed, "Xiao Yue, you already have one, what do you need another for?"
Deng Lanhua thought Tang Yue was just joking and didn’t take it seriously.
Tang Yue smiled without explaining.
After leaving the tailor shop, Tang Yue headed straight for Xinlou Road. Tang Mingli bought painting supplies and then got to work on painting the walls himself, saving a decent amount of money. Tang Zhengde was free in the afternoon, so he joined Tang Mingli to help paint the walls. Both were dressed in filthy clothes, covered in white splatters.
"Dad, Uncle," Tang Yue stood sweetly at the door, a sweet smile on her lips.
"Xiao Yue is here," Tang Zhengde said, busy and unable to look at Tang Yue. Tang Mingli looked up, saw her clothes, dropped the painting tool to the ground, and excitedly ran over to Tang Yue.
"Xiao Yue, Xiao Yue, where did you get that coat from?" Tang Mingli excitedly looked at her wool coat. The coldest part of winter had just passed, and it was about time to wear wool coats.
From his six months’ experience selling clothes, he knew this coat would definitely sell well.
Tang Yue quickly stepped back, keeping her distance from Tang Mingli, "Uncle, don’t get so close, it’s new, don’t get it dirty."
"Then tell me quickly, where did you get that coat?" Tang Mingli excitedly said, circling around Tang Yue, his eager eyes looked as if he wanted to take the coat off her to have a closer look.
"It’s tailor-made," Tang Yue teased, twirling in front of Tang Mingli and asked, "How about it? Uncle, do you think it looks nice?"
"Which tailor can make such a beautiful garment?" Tang Mingli was skeptical, as more and more people nowadays are buying ready-made clothes, and not many go to a tailor.
"It really looks good," Tang Zhengde belatedly admired Tang Yue. She had just changed into a different piece of clothing, yet standing there at the doorway, she looked so fresh and pretty, he could hardly believe this was the daughter he had raised.
As a child, Tang Yue was very beautiful, especially adorable. As she grew up, she disliked him, and he rarely saw her smile. Later, when Tang Yue started calling him dad, he thought his daughter looked beautiful no matter how he looked at her.
Seventeen-year-old Tang Yue, at the flowering age, her smile was bright. She resembled the young Zhang Hualian, with a similar air of beauty.
"Xiao Yue, quit holding out and tell us, where is that coat from?" Tang Mingli left the wall painting aside, washed his hands, and started feeling the fabric of the coat on Tang Yue. The material was very comfortable to the touch. A tailor-made garment, the coat was waisted; no matter how you looked at it, it was pretty. He hadn’t seen such a nice coat even at the wholesale market.