Chapter 281

Ji Wanmei nestled against Lei Tingjun, glanced at the crowds coming and going at the school gate, and pushed him away with a slightly flushed face: "Okay, okay, there are people everywhere here, be mindful of your image."

Lei Tingjun released her, stood tall, and pursed his lips: "Well, go back and rest early."

"See you tomorrow then." Ji Wanmei took two steps back, her eyes gentle as she waved to him, then picked up her small bag and walked away briskly.

Lei Tingjun stood still, watching her graceful figure from behind, and smiled.

He turned and walked out, returning to the bookstore's small attic.

Ji Wanmei had kept the small pavilion very clean and tidy, and when Lei Tingjun returned, he felt as if he had returned to a warm home.

The only regret is that he now lives here alone.

Lei Tingjun has already started considering buying a house in the provincial capital of East China in two years.

He thought that since Ji Wanmei planned to open another branch in Huadong City, regardless of whether she planned to stay in Huadong after graduation, she would definitely be coming and going here frequently in the future, and would need a place to stay.

On the rooftop of the small attic at night, Lei Tingjun casually pulled up a stool, sat down, put his long legs on the balcony, placed his hands behind his head, and looked up at the clear starry sky.

Night falls, the stars twinkle, and the moonlight is deep.

There was a glass of water beside me.

At this moment, Lei Tingjun felt calm and at peace.

For the next week, Lei Tingjun studied under Professor Liang and lived a normal college student life, just like the other students at East China University.

In the evening, I met Ji Wanmei at the library, and then the two of us went to the school cafeteria for dinner together.

When the weekend came, Lei Tingjun needed to go back to the Pingdong City Transportation Team to check on the situation.

Ji Wanmei also had her own plans for the weekend. She planned to go to Grandma Song's place on Saturday to learn Shu embroidery for a day, and on Sunday she would invite two roommates to go to Huadong City to find a suitable store.

To prepare for her to open her next branch.

After seeing Lei Tingjun off, Ji Wanmei dressed up and took a bus to Shuxiutang at nine o'clock on Saturday morning.

The master craftsmen at Shuxiutang were already very familiar with Ji Wanmei, and they would greet her with a smile every time they saw her.

Ji Wanmei herself lived up to expectations, and after nearly a year of study, she quickly mastered the skills and concepts of Shu embroidery.

Now, she can independently complete a highly complex and challenging work.

Recently, she has been copying an ancient painting of the Four Gentlemen. Once she finishes copying it, she will embroider it onto a cloth frame according to the design.

She was sitting on the veranda drawing when Grandma Song quietly came over, looked at her from behind for a while, and then smiled and said, "Wanmei, you've drawn it quite well."

Ji Wanmei then noticed that Grandma Song had been standing behind her for quite some time. She stood up and said, "Grandma Song, I don't think copying a painting is difficult. What's difficult is how to embroider the copied painting with silk thread."

"You've already learned the several difficult and complex needlework techniques I taught you. Now, it's all about practical application and practice." Grandma Song patted her shoulder kindly.

Ji Wanmei is very focused when she does embroidery. Once she gets into it, she can stay in one position for two or three hours without changing her posture.

When you feel your shoulders and back ache, lift your head, massage your neck and shoulders, and the morning will pass by without you even realizing it.

At noon, she had a casual meal with the master craftsmen at the Shuxiu Hall.

After dinner, I accompanied Grandma Song for a walk and listened to her read a few stories about the history of Shu embroidery.

Then, Ji Wanmei returned to the embroidery cloth and continued her work.

While Ji Wanmei was working on the embroidery design, Grandma Song and the old housekeeper were drinking tea in the back.

The old steward said, "Madam, the disciple you took in is truly talented. In less than a year, he has already surpassed many of the disciples in our embroidery hall."

Madam Song also said with satisfaction, "Yes, my judgment was correct. Wanmei is a very rare child who is both talented and hardworking."

The old butler folded his hands and bowed, saying, "Moreover, judging from the way Young Master Zhuo Xuan looks, he seems to be quite fond of Miss Wanmei."

Madam Song picked up her teacup, lowered her head to wipe away the foam floating on the water, and said with a smile, "That's a matter for the young people. I'm too old to interfere."

Ji Wanmei finally finished embroidering a plum blossom screen. She first got up to admire it herself before coming over to invite Old Madam Song.

"Grandma Song, I've finished making a screen. Would you like to come and take a look?" Ji Wanmei came over and helped Grandma Song up.

"Oh, so fast? Then I'd like to come and admire it, and see how well Wanmei's first painting of the Four Gentlemen (plum blossom, orchid, bamboo, and chrysanthemum) is done."

Grandma Song put on her reading glasses, walked to the plum blossom screen, and looked at it closely for a while.

He then praised, "Not bad, not bad."

"It's really impressive that you've done such a good job on your first time independently designing such a large screen piece."

"Your use of the 'blossom needle' technique is excellent."

"A mature Shu embroidery piece must at least have some stitch blurring. The style of our Shu embroidery is mainly expressed by unique techniques, that is, using needles as brushes and threads as ink, expressing any artistic conception through different needlework techniques and rich silk thread colors."

"The characteristics of Shu embroidery's shading needle technique are: smooth and bright threads, neat stitches, meticulous needlework, soft color blending, free twisting of the sewing machine, vivid energy, and a proper balance of solid and void. Every piece of Shu embroidery vividly demonstrates these unique techniques. Wanmei, you can now be said to have grasped the essence."

Ji Wanmei was in a great mood after receiving praise and recognition from Grandma Song: "It's all thanks to Grandma Song's unreserved and selfless teaching that I was able to learn so quickly."

The butler chimed in, "In my opinion, if Miss Ji were to take this Four Gentlemen screen she made to our Shu embroidery shop, there would be people willing to pay a high price for it."

"You flatter me, butler. My skills are far from being presentable," Ji Wanmei said modestly.

Despite being very humble towards the master craftsmen, Ji Wanmei actually had a certain degree of confidence in her own skills.

She had planned to make a set of clothes for Lei Tingjun herself, but had been putting it off for a long time.

Spring is now transitioning into summer, which is the perfect time to change clothes.

Ji Wanmei could tell that Lei Tingjun wasn't quite used to wearing a white shirt and casual pants that looked like a school uniform.

She thought about it carefully and realized that Lei Tingjun didn't seem to have a suit of his own yet.

Why don't she make him a tailor-made suit herself?

only……

There is a problem.

Although Ji Wanmei knew that Lei Tingjun was very tall, she could roughly estimate his body measurements, but she didn't know the exact size.

She didn't plan to let Lei Tingjun know until the suit was finished; she wanted to give him a surprise.

So how to secretly measure his body size became a problem.

What should we do?