Chapter 391: Gathering
As soon as Xu Qingming's matter was over, Lu Dongping and Lu Donglin became busy again. The land outside the city had been bought, and Lu Donglin had to contact the construction team to demolish the old house and rebuild it.
Wen Wan found a professional to draw the blueprints.
After all, they were going to build a factory here, with offices, operating rooms, warehouses, and even dormitories and a cafeteria. The three acres of land, including the house, looked large, but it was not easy to build, so they had to make good use of it.
Of course, money is also a big issue.
Both stores need to keep funds for turnover, and the processing workshop must be operational first. At the very least, you need to practice and familiarize yourself with the operating procedures, and then check for omissions and fill in the gaps bit by bit in the process.
Lu Dongping went to Shanghai and got ten sewing machines, and then bought all the required fabrics.
The blueprints had been prepared long beforehand. Wen Wan and Chen Dongshuang both prepared them, then each made proofs and took them back to the workshop for future use. A job posting had also been posted.
They're just starting out and are hiring for two types of positions: a skilled seamstress and a handyman. They also need a foreman to be responsible for material input, finished product output, and provide technical guidance on machine maintenance. They need a versatile talent, which is really hard to find.
But even though it is difficult to find, they have to look for it, because neither Lu Dongping nor Lu Donglin can stay in such a processing workshop forever.
After the job recruitment notice was posted, several people breathed a sigh of relief at the same time.
Preparations began in April, and by the time everything was actually underway, we had everything in place. We prepared the drawings needed for the season and made samples, which were then sent from Ai Shang to Qixi Processing Workshop. It was the end of August that the first batch of finished garments came out.
Lu Chun'e's belly is already showing.
Her morning sickness lasted until the end of the fourth month, and she was so thin that she was just skin and bones. After she recovered, her appetite improved suddenly, and she gained a little weight than before, but her complexion was still not good. As her belly gradually bulged, her complexion became worse and worse. She always felt that the baby in her belly had sucked her dry.
Wen Wan was worried, so she asked her to live with her.
If she lived there, she would be alone and no one would know if something happened to her, so Lu Chun'e didn't agree. They each had their own homes, and it felt inconvenient to live together.
Zhou Mingli came back once, stayed for two days and then left, saying that he had news and he would try to come back when the due date arrived, and then he would never leave again.
Wen Wan was at Ai Shang on weekends, and she stayed there too. She was good at sewing, and although she didn't have many ideas, she was able to chat with Chen Dongshuang and the others.
When she's not busy, several people help her make clothes for the baby in her belly. Now that conditions are better, it's no longer like before when she had to scrimp and save for a piece of cloth. She already has a lot of clothes ready before the baby is even born.
It was hot, so Wen Wan installed ceiling fans inside the store and the operation room, which blew quite vigorously.
Xu Qingming drew a blueprint and asked a carpenter to make two folding chairs that can be used for leaning or lying down and placed them here, so that Li Laiyu can lie down when he is tired, and Lu Chun'e also benefits from it.
Li Lai Yu had her period last month and went for a check-up. She was found to be pregnant and her due date is in March next spring.
Wen Wan really didn't expect that such a thing as pregnancy would happen so often.
She was fine in the morning, but when she was having lunch, Li Lai Yu said she felt nauseous. When she heard the sound, her brows furrowed. She felt uncomfortable and her stomach was restless.
She felt really embarrassed. She was being too hypocritical. She felt uncomfortable just by hearing the sound of people retching. This was too much. She felt a little embarrassed when she saw Li Laiyu again.
After dinner, Li Lai Yu went back to rest. Lu Chun'e was also tired and took a nap leaning on the chair.
Wen Wan called her: "Chun'e, go back to sleep if you are tired. It's not comfortable lying like this."
Lu Chun'e squinted her eyes and didn't move: "It's okay, it's just like that. It's cool here, and I don't want to be alone." Maybe because Zhou Mingli was not there, she was particularly afraid of being alone and felt uneasy.
"Sister-in-law, you take care of your own business, don't worry about me."
Wen Wan didn't feel like moving at the moment. It was already the beginning of autumn, but it was still very hot and she felt a little breathless.
Both of them leaned back in their chairs, sitting in the shade under the eaves, dozing with their eyes closed.
Lu Chun'e asked Wen Wan: "Sister-in-law, Dandan is about to start school, won't you go to the compound?"
Wen Wan said, "I'll be back in the afternoon. I have to go to work tomorrow." After that, she opened her eyes a little, glanced at Lu Chun'e and said, "Chun'e, I'll find someone to look after you. With someone watching over you, we can all feel more at ease."
Lu Chun'e laughed: "I'm already a grown-up, and I'm with you guys during the day. If you're really worried that Zhou Mingli won't be able to come back when the due date is approaching, I'll move in and live in the same yard with you guys. What's there to worry about?"
"No, that being said, you see, I'm still in the compound most of the time. Your brother and Lu Donglin are out all day, and Zhou Mingli isn't here either. You're getting older, and it's definitely not okay to be alone. And even if Zhou Mingli were transferred back, it wouldn't be easy for him. You need someone to take care of you and take care of the baby. I'm just worried about you, but I can't really help you at all."
"You must listen to me on this. Don't worry, I will definitely find you someone reliable and easy to get along with."
Lu Chun'e sighed when she heard this: "Okay!"
"Sister-in-law, I miss my mother a little bit."
Wen Wan opened her eyes and glanced at her. Lu Chun'e's eyes were still narrowed, and her voice was soft as if she was singing a lullaby. "I was in my sophomore year. After Lu Donglin came here, he went back with Zhou Mingli, and then he never went back again. They didn't get to see me get engaged. I only wrote them a letter when I got the marriage certificate. I didn't go back after graduation, and now the baby is about to be born. After the baby is born, I have to recuperate and feed it, and then maybe I have to continue working. I don't know when I can go back to visit again."
"I've been thinking about them a lot lately. I keep thinking about how hard those days were, but they still gave birth to the three of us and raised us to adulthood. In the end, we all left, and they were the only two left at home."
Wen Wan sighed and said, "Chun'e, do you feel a little regretful?"
"Regret? No, how could I regret it? It's just that sometimes I think about it and feel a little regretful. I was too greedy. No matter what you do in this life, it's hard to be perfect. There will always be regrets, but I still feel a little unwilling to accept it."
At this time, the most frightening thing is to overthink things. Wen Wan comforted her: "Don't think like that. Your brother and Lu Donglin originally planned to go back home for the New Year this year. You can't go back, but it's the same for them and Dandan. Go back and talk to your family and see if your parents are willing. If they are, they can come over and see you."
"It's a bit far, but it would be easier if they took a sleeper. They've never been far away in their lives, so it would be great if they were willing to come."
Regardless of whether it would work or not, Lu Chun'e was still very happy after hearing this. She curled her lips and smiled, "Yes, it would be great if they were willing to come and take a look."
"The only one left who hasn't gotten married yet is Lu Donglin, who's already 23."
"Don't worry, twenty-three isn't that old. Didn't your brother start dating me at twenty-three?"
Lu Chun'e laughed. "That's different. Lu Donglin is different from my brother. My brother has a goal. Lu Donglin is a complete blockhead. I asked him about it. Guess what he said?"
Wen Wan turned to look at her with interest, and suddenly she felt less sleepy: "What do you mean?"
Lu Chun'e coughed and cleared her throat. "Sister, why are you bringing up something else? Dating? What kind of dating? Can dating be as interesting as making money?"
"Money can be turned into a car or a house, but can an object be turned into a car or a house?"
Wen Wan was overjoyed: "It sounds like you haven't figured it out yet. But, fate is really unpredictable. You may not understand it now, but when you meet someone you like, you will understand it all at once."
Lu Donglin, the person at the center of the topic, was riding his bike back from outside the city. He had been staying there during this period to supervise the progress of the project and do some shopping. He got so tanned that he looked like a completely different person.
It was a hot day, and I was sneezing one after another. I had to find a cool place to stop and rub my still itchy nose. I caught a cold in such a hot day? That shouldn't be the case!
He glanced at the scorching sky above him and cursed softly, "This damn sky, it's always scorching hot." Just as he was about to continue walking, a familiar voice came from behind him: "Lu Donglin?"
Lu Donglin turned his head and glanced, stunned for a moment, then grinned and said, "Classmate Chen Wenqin, what a coincidence!"
Chen Wenqin was waiting for the bus with two classmates under the shade of a nearby tree. She hadn't expected to run into him there. They hadn't seen each other for ages, and even though he was tanned, he still stood out. She couldn't even look directly at him when he smiled, and her heart, which had finally calmed down, suddenly began to fluctuate again.
She whispered to her classmates: "Sorry, I met a friend, so I can't go with you."
His companion smiled knowingly and said, "Go ahead, and tell us the truth when you come back!"
Chen Wenqin didn't think much about what he said. She walked over to Lu Donglin in a few steps, her bag slung over her shoulder. She looked at him and said, "It's really a coincidence. The capital is so big, and we've met each other many times." So, this is a deep connection, right? So, she's not wrong to cherish fate, right?
"So, Lu Donglin, can you give me a ride?"
Lu Donglin's legs were planted on the ground, still sitting on the bike seat, his arms casually draped over the handlebars as he watched her. The girl still had her braids, a long floral dress with lotus leaf sleeves, and a sunhat. It was one of the first batch of women's clothing released by Qixi this year, and it suited her perfectly.
"So, you're not riding in the car with your friends anymore?"
Chen Wenqin said, "It's so hot, you'd be steamed in a car. It's not as comfortable as riding a bicycle!"
After saying that, he looked at Lu Donglin cautiously: "Is it not possible?"
Lu Donglin raised his eyebrows: "Okay, come up!"
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