There are five days left until next Tuesday.
On the way back, Jiang Zao went to the grocery store and bought some wax, a notebook and a pen.
Wang Yan has been in high spirits since she became pregnant. Her cheeks are rosy and she smiles whenever she sees someone. When she sees Jiang Zao, she can't stop baring her teeth: "Sister Zao, you haven't come recently. I miss you so much."
"By the way, have you sorted out your family issues?"
Jiang Zao put the things into a small army green shoulder bag. "My mother went to the northwest to visit my brother, so there's nothing to do at home. I go out in the morning and come back in the evening for work. Out of sight, out of mind."
Wang Yan felt relieved. She grabbed Jiang Zao's hand, leaned close and whispered, "Next month, when your wages are paid, on the 1st or 2nd, our store will need a batch of defective cloth. Each person is limited to buying three feet. If you come the night before, I'll reserve six feet for you, plus some cotton."
"After all, I'm a working class person. I can't wear washed-out, patched-up cotton shirts every day. I need to make myself a new cotton-padded jacket."
Wang Yan is not a nosy person.
Every time she saw Jiang Zao, she couldn't help but feel sorry for the child and treated Jiang Zao as her own sister.
Sometimes she couldn't help but say a few more words of advice. She thought that with Jiang Zao's personality, he wouldn't find her annoying. The child knew what was good and what was bad.
Jiang Zao felt warm in his heart.
"Thank you, sister. I'll come to see you in a few days."
It is like this now. There is no one in the state-owned restaurants and you can’t see good faces. There is no one in the grocery stores and you can’t see good goods. This is how the scarce goods are snatched away.
Wang Yan knew Jiang Zao was busy, so she patted Jiang Zao's hand and said, "Go back quickly before it gets dark, and be careful on the road, ah!"
Jiang Zao smiled and nodded: "Then I'll leave, sister."
After returning home, having dinner and washing up, she lit a candle. Red wax tears fell on the corner of the table. Before it dried up, she sat the candle on it to secure it.
The candle burned, the flames danced, and Jiang Zao's thin figure fell on the mud wall.
She opened the notebook and designed a three-layer flower bun on the back without grids.
"Good! It's much better than I expected. The individual small shapes are detailed and the shapes are diverse. The three layers together form a whole. It's a really good drawing!" Jiang Zao showed the drawings to Sun Ligen at noon the next day. Sun Ligen's eyes lit up when he saw the drawings and he couldn't help nodding.
"To be honest, I also drew a blueprint yesterday. I thought I'd ask you to follow mine today so I wouldn't show you off. I didn't expect that you not only have a good sense of touch, but also have a talent for drawing."
He is a genius in all aspects of white cases.
What Sun Ligen didn't dare to say was that with Jiang Zao's talent and hard work, he would definitely succeed in the red case. God was merciful and sent this child to him.
He was about to say something when he looked up and saw two pale blue spots under Jiang Zao's eyes. His face was haggard and he couldn't hide it. He swallowed and asked, "What time did you go to bed yesterday?"
Jiang Zao stood there feeling dizzy and yawned: "It's almost five o'clock before going to bed. If Master is free, I'll find a place to sleep for a while."
Sun Ligen: Wow, I can endure even longer than him.
"Go ahead, go ahead. Finish today and leave work early. We can practice again tomorrow night."
Jiang Zao couldn't hold on any longer.
She likes to do her work in one go. Yesterday she drew dozens of drawings and revised the details hundreds of times before finally finalizing the version she handed over to the master.
After finishing the painting, she was about to stand up, but she didn't dare move the back of her neck. The slightest movement would cause a pain like a needle prick. Her back was not much better, and her bones were stiff.
"Thank you, Master. I'll go back first."
She slept on the table in the lounge for half an hour, forced herself to stay awake in the afternoon to finish making the medicine, and went home early to catch up on her sleep.
In the next few days, Jiang Zao got off work at eight or nine o'clock every day and made steamed buns on the table. She made simple ones in the factory and took a piece of dough back to make difficult ones.
Jiang Shan was also pretending to learn. On the way home from get off work, she asked Wang Meili, "Jiang Zao has been practicing making flower buns recently. What do you think of her?"
Her chin itched a little, so she scratched it. "Why do I feel like this is a little too simple? I can make it look about 70% like a peach or a flower, isn't it too easy?"
Wang Meili scoffed, "It's really simple. My dad told me that the master chef in Guanli who makes flower buns is particularly good. He uses the pinching, rubbing, twisting and cutting techniques to perfection. The shapes he makes are lifelike, complex and beautiful."
"Jiang Zao is a newcomer. Even if she has talent, it's useless if she doesn't understand the meaning and design. The higher she flies, the harder she will fall."
The weather in the north is getting colder as October approaches, and it is even colder in the morning and evening. After Wang Meili said this, she raised her hand and blew on her cold fingertips.
Jiang Shan was also cold, her nose almost freezing. She pulled Wang Meili and quickened her pace as they left. "I'm relieved to hear you say that. If we don't take action, she'll be embarrassed. If we do, we'll pin her down in one go and don't let her get back on her feet."
Wang Meili thinks this is the case.
Moonlight filled the yard. Under the windows of the Jiang family, there were layers of bricks and wooden boards, stacked up into five or six layers of wooden racks, with cabbages neatly stacked on the racks.
The outermost layer of the cabbage is wilted and yellow, and there are black spots on the cabbage stalks.
When Liu Chunhua left, the yard was not finished, and there were still a lot of potatoes and mustard greens left to be dug out of the ground. Someone had to do the remaining work.
Liu Cui was pregnant and couldn't do heavy work, so Jiang Ming prepared the cabbage after get off work and left the potatoes and mustard greens on the field.
Jiang Zao had just returned when Jiang Dashan came out of the house, holding a pipe. He was dressed in black, with dark skin and a very serious face. "Your mother is away and the garden is not finished. Your second brother has finished with the cabbages, and the rest is up to you. Hurry up these few days and move everything back before it freezes. Don't let it get frozen."
He is accustomed to speaking to people in an imperative tone.
Especially for the two daughters in the family.
Liu Chunhua planted two rows of potatoes, two rows of mustard greens, and two rows of cabbage. Before leaving, she dug up half of the cabbage.
Jiang Ming picked up the last bit of cabbage, hoping to leave the bulk of the work to her.
It's just a pipe dream.
"Dad, winter is coming soon. I'll pay two dollars for the coal. You can ask someone to buy some coal ash so we can make coal briquettes ourselves. This will keep our legs and feet from freezing in the winter."
Smart people don't need to be too clear. Jiang Dashan puffed on his cigarette and spoke slowly in his old smokey voice: "Physical work is not suitable for you girls. You don't have the strength to dig potatoes, so let your second brother do it."
Jiang Zao nodded: "I'll do as you say."
Even if you pay your salary every month, people may not be grateful to you.
Keep the money in your own hands and give a little occasionally, then the other party will appreciate it.
People should always be the masters of money.
Don't ever try to please others by being harsh on yourself.
Well, a lesson learned through blood and tears.
Jiang Zao took out two coins and gave them to Jiang Dashan. Jiang Dashan took it and a relieved smile appeared on his face.
Jiang Ming and Liu Cui, who were hiding under the window of the next room and eavesdropping, were stunned. Dad, are you going to let the third child go so easily?
The work is transferred to them again!
Jiang Ming was no pushover. He slammed the door open and walked out, rushing to Jiang Dashan with a fierce look in his eyes. "Old Third, you don't have to work just because I give you two dollars! I pay my family every month, why do you have to do everything for me? I harvested cabbages, and you want me to harvest mustard greens and potatoes? Am I a cow or a horse?"
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