Chapter 4 Let’s Make a Living by Cooking

The old man looked Du Ruo up and down in surprise. This girl is quite good, but...

He snorted and said, "No matter how good your words are, what's the point if you can't repair it?"

Du Ruo smiled and said, "If I have the right tools, I can fix it within a day."

The old man sneered: "Young people nowadays really don't know how high the sky is and how deep the earth is. Can it be repaired in one day? Tell me first, how do you plan to repair it?"

Du Ruo looked at the brush washer for a while and said, "There are two peach blossoms in the middle of this peach branch. It would be better to carve a flower bud at the break. It will not destroy the overall beauty and it will be easier to work with."

The old man was really moved. He carefully looked at the female comrade in front of him. Her eyes were bright and confident, and her whole body was graceful and elegant. Her temperament was very convincing.

The old man hesitated for a moment and said to Du Ruo, "Come with me."

Du Ruo followed the old man into the yard. It was a small courtyard house that was decorated quite elegantly. She followed him all the way to the west wing.

Judging from the layout of the room, it should be a study. Under the window against the wall is a large desk. On the desk are a pen holder, pen washer, inkstone, paper weight, ink pad, and everything else you need. There is also a roll of rice paper on the desk.

The old man threw a piece of jade to Du Ruo, which was ordinary and not valuable. He said, "Girl, don't just talk without practicing. Try your hand at it."

Du Ruo put the things aside, picked up the tools the old man handed her, and picked out a horn carving knife.

Du Ruo held the jade in the palm of his hand, first looking at its shape, letting it slowly turn in his palm, outlining its lines in his mind.

After a moment, she began to cut. Her eyes were fixed on the tip of the knife in her hand. She was completely focused and seemed to have entered a state of ecstasy.

The old man's eyes were also fixed on the tip of Du Ruo's knife. Slowly, his body sat up straighter and the light in his eyes became brighter and brighter.

An expert can tell whether something is good or not with just one look.

This female comrade looks young, but her knife skills are skillful and her cuts are clean and neat. You can tell at first glance that she is an experienced carving master.

The old man felt a little regretful. He shouldn't have given such a broken stone to Du Ruo to test his skills. Not to mention his precious stones, even if he had taken one with slightly better quality, after being handled by such a master, it would definitely be worth a hundred times more.

The old man's regret grew as the stone carving in Du Ruo's palm gradually took shape.

It was not until the lights came on and all the lights in the house were turned on at some point that Du Ruo moved his stiff neck and put down the carving knife in his hand.

The old man could not wait to take the jade carving from Du Ruo's hand and examined it carefully in his palm. Wonderful! Really wonderful!

A snow-white pear blossom is carved so vividly that one can almost smell its fragrance. It is like spring in the palm of your hand!

Du Ruo looked at the sky and realized that something was wrong. As soon as she picked up the carving knife, she forgot about the time. She still had a son at home.

Du Ruo picked up his things, stood up and said, "I have to go home first. If your things need repairing, I will come back tomorrow."

The old man seemed to have just woken up from a dream. He stood up and said, "Yes! Yes! I'm counting on you. I'll be waiting for you at home tomorrow. Please be sure to come."

As he spoke, he motioned for Du Ruo to wait for a moment.

After a while, the old man came in with an envelope and said, "Here is 5,000 yuan. It's for today's jade carving and tomorrow's repairs. Do you want to add more?"

The old man's jade-carved brush washer was very valuable, even now it would be worth six figures, so the repair fee he gave was quite reasonable.

Du Ruo shook his head, took the envelope and put it in his pocket, saying, "My last name is Du. I will definitely come tomorrow."

The old man smiled and said, "My last name is Yang, you can just call me Old Yang, Mr. Du."

Du Ruo smiled and said, "Shall I call you Uncle Yang?"

Old Yang smiled cheerfully and said, "Okay!"

Old Yang personally sent Du Ruo to the gate and agreed to meet at eight o'clock tomorrow morning. Then the two of them parted.

Du Ruo was walking all the way home. When she passed by the convenience store, she saw that the light at the door was on. She went in and bought two canned fruit and a box of luncheon meat, and took them home to feed her son a snack.

Du Ruo walked to the door of her house and just as she raised her hand to knock, the door opened immediately and Han Zhe threw himself into her arms: "Mom, why did you come back so late?"

Du Ruo hugged her son for a while, went into the house to put down her things, held Han Zhe in her arms and asked, "Do you miss your mother? Are you scared?"

Han Zhe lay in his mother's arms without saying a word. He was afraid that his mother would never come back. People always told him that sooner or later his mother would abandon him and leave. He was very scared.

Xiaozhe said, "Mom, I want to grow up quickly and earn money to support you." That way, you won't abandon me.

Du Ruo touched her son's head and smiled. She said, "Our Xiaozhe is filial. Mom will wait for you to grow up."

In this life, she will definitely protect her son and ensure he grows up safely and lives a long life.

After the mother and son had dinner, Du Ruo opened a can of fruit and gave it to her son.

Xiaozhe was smiling happily while eating. He took a bite himself and also fed his mother a bite. He was so attached to his mother's arms that he couldn't get out.

The next morning, Du Ruo got up, and the mother and son had breakfast. Du Ruo cleaned up Xiaozhe and took him out of the house.

I went to Mrs. Chen's house next door and said, "Sister-in-law, I want to entrust Xiaozhe to you for a month. I will give you 30 yuan every month including food expenses. What do you think?"

Mrs. Chen's husband had an accident in a mine a few years ago and injured his leg, but he didn't get much compensation. Now he makes money by doing odd jobs.

Mrs. Chen had no other source of income, so she did some needlework for others at home, and her income was very unstable.

Now I heard from Du Ruo that she would be paid thirty yuan a month to help take care of the child, which was quite a lot.

The child can run and jump, so there is no need to hold him all day long. Just keep an eye on him.

Even if he has to eat a meal at noon, how much can such a young child eat?

Mrs. Chen said happily, "Okay, sister, leave the child with me, don't worry, I promise to take good care of him for you."

Du Ruo said, "Sister-in-law, I don't have any other requests, just pay attention to safety and don't let the children run out into the street."

Mrs. Chen said, "Don't worry, sister. I will take the child with me wherever I go."

Du Ruo nodded and said to Xiaozhe, "Mom will come pick you up when she comes back. Don't go out alone. Do you hear me?"

Xiaozhe nodded solemnly and said, "I'm not going anywhere. I'm just waiting for my mom to pick me up."

Du Ruo smiled and touched his son's head, then turned and left Mrs. Chen's house.

Walking eastwards, we soon arrived at Lao Yang's house and saw Lao Yang wandering around the door.

Du Ruo was amused. She raised her wrist, glanced at her watch, and said half-jokingly, "Uncle Yang, I'm not late, am I?"

It is Du Ruo's old habit to arrive twenty minutes early for appointments with clients.