Noticing Chen Kai and Xiao Tian's gazes, Chen Lao Er looked up at the two of them and smiled. Xiao Tian frowned and nodded at Chen Lao Er. Although Chen Lao Er's smile looked fierce, Chen Kai still smiled and waved to him.
After a while, Chen Kai slowly moved over to Chen Lao Er's side on a stool. Chen Lao Er noticed that Chen Kai and Xiao Tian had come over, so he cleared a small space next to them, put some wood shavings in front of them, and said to them, "Little brother, Xiao Tian, you two can sit here and play. I'm making furniture, so be careful not to hurt yourself."
Chen Kai looked at the sawdust on the ground and thought about how he and Xiao Tian used to sit here and play with sawdust for a whole afternoon. He was speechless.
Chen Kai rummaged through the wood shavings on the ground and looked at Chen Lao Er, asking, "Second Brother, can you make a folding stool?"
Chen Lao Er asked in surprise, "Little brother, how did you come up with the idea of making the stool foldable?"
Chen Kai grabbed Chen Lao Er's arm and asked in a coquettish tone, "Second brother~, I was just thinking that if the stool could be made into a folding one, it would be convenient for you to carry when you go to town to set up a stall to sell things, and it wouldn't take up much space."
Chen Lao Er put down his tools, patted Chen Kai and Xiao Tian on the head, and said, "The craft of making furniture has been passed down from generation to generation. Everyone has always made stools this way. I don't know how to make a folding stool. Little brother, do you have any ideas?"
"Second Brother~, I just suddenly thought of making the stool into a folding one, but I don't know how to make a folding stool. Xiao Tian, do you have any ideas?" Chen Kai said, then turned to look at Xiao Tian.
Xiao Tian stood up, frowned, and said, "Ah! I don't have any ideas either. How about we wait until everyone comes back tonight and discuss it together, and see if anyone has any other ideas?"
After listening to Chen Kai and Xiao Tian's words, Chen Lao Er lowered his head and thought about what solutions he could come up with to make a folding stool.
Seeing Chen Lao Er deep in thought, Chen Kai knew that he already had some ideas. Although Chen Lao Er hadn't completed his apprenticeship, his practical skills were quite good, and he believed that results would be forthcoming soon.
Just before dinner, the eldest son's wife returned with a group of little ones, along with some vegetables. After they arrived, she had Daya boil a large pot of water and quickly washed the mud off the children's hands and bodies.
After the eldest daughter-in-law tidied herself and the children, she asked Er Ya and San Ya to wash the vegetables, while Da Ya tended the fire for her, and then the eldest daughter-in-law started cooking.
Before the meal was even ready, everyone had returned from their work. Chen Kai heard Zhou Shi's voice and carried the cooled water towards the door. He handed the bowl to Zhou Shi, saying, "Mother, are you thirsty? Give me some water."
Mrs. Zhou happily took the bowl, drank a sip of water, and said with a smile, "My dear baby, I'm not tired. Thank you for bringing me the water."
Hearing Zhou's laughter, Old Man Chen felt a little uncomfortable and deliberately teased Chen Kai, saying, "Sweetie, why do you only bring water to your mother? What about your father's water? Don't you like your father anymore?"
Just then, the meal was ready, and the eldest son's wife and Da Ya brought the food to the table and called us to start eating.
Chen Kai then took Old Man Chen's hand with one hand and Zhou Shi's hand with the other and walked towards the hall, saying in a coquettish tone, "I like both Mother and Father. Today I served Mother water first, and tomorrow I will definitely give Father water first."
Everyone sat at the table, teasing Old Man Chen. Old Man Chen didn't mind, just smiled and patted my head, saying, "It's settled then, everyone, let's start eating now."
During dinner, Chen Lao Er brought up the folding stool that Chen Kai had mentioned earlier and asked if anyone had any thoughts on it.
As soon as he finished speaking, everyone started discussing it. Chen Laosi spoke first, "I know what a stool is, but what is a folding stool? Can stools be folded?"
Chen Lao Er replied, "A folding stool is a stool that can transform. When it's not in use, it looks like an ordinary wooden board. When you need it, you can prop it up, making it easy to carry around."
Before Chen Lao Si could ask any further questions, Chen Lao Die spoke up, "Alright, let's discuss it together after everyone has finished eating."
After dinner, once the eldest and second sons' wives had finished cleaning up, everyone sat in the hall to discuss how to make the folding stools.
Old Man Chen spoke first: "Everyone, you can speak up now."
Everyone chattered and offered a number of ideas. Although some of them sounded far-fetched, messy, and incomprehensible at first glance, Chen Kai could tell from Chen Lao Er's thoughtful expression after listening that Chen Lao Er already had his own ideas.
Chen Lao Er felt that everyone had said enough, so he clapped his hands to quiet everyone down. With a smile on his face, Chen Lao Er said, "Alright, I have some ideas. I'll think about it some more tonight, and I'll try to make a few samples tomorrow morning. After lunch tomorrow, I'll show everyone the samples to see if they're okay, if they can be sold, and what improvements can be made."
"Alright, Second Brother, since you already have an idea, then think about it some more. Everyone else, go back to your rooms and get some sleep," Old Man Chen said to everyone, leaving no room for argument.
That night, Chen Lao Er tossed and turned in bed, his mind racing with ideas. He first mentally simulated more than a dozen ways to make folding stools, and then, based on his usual stool-making methods, eliminated several unreliable ones. He immediately wanted to make the remaining types of folding stools, but then he thought that working at night wasn't safe. So, with a mix of excitement and restlessness, Chen Lao Er slowly fell asleep.
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Chen Lao Er got up and began experimenting with his idea from the night before. With Chen Lao Er's continuous attempts, the morning quickly passed, and he found a lot of scrap wood and several completed folding stools around him.
After lunch, Chen Lao Er took out the various types of folding stools he had made that morning to show everyone, let them try them out, and see which one looked the best and was most durable enough to sell, and that someone would buy it.
The elders took turns trying out each type of folding stool, and then gathered together to discuss it.
Finally, after some discussion, everyone unanimously chose the sturdiest and best-looking folding stool and decided to make this kind of folding stool to sell. They would make thirty or forty folding stools first to test the waters, and if they sold well, they would continue production.
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