Chapter 121: A teaser for Designer Shu's new novel.
The new article was successfully approved. Yao Xiaoyu hummed a song as she took Tao Xiaoxiao out for a big meal. The whole lamb feast at the Northwest restaurant was very generous, and the two of them ate to their hearts' content. Tao Xiaoxiao was so full that there wasn't an empty plate or cup on the table. In the end, she left with a food box containing half a lamb.
"Use it to cook noodles tonight?"
While asking Tao Xiaoxiao, Yao Xiaoyu was still thinking about the cream chestnut pasta on the table. It was a dessert, or snack, made by repeatedly grinding roasted chestnuts into powder and sifting it, adding fresh cream, and then embedding a red cherry on top.
Yao Xiaoyu isn't a professional foodie and can't quite distinguish the differences between these terms, but that doesn't stop her from enjoying the delicious food: fresh cherries aren't available yet at this time of year, and the waiter clearly stated that they used canned cherries. She didn't know how they made them, but the taste of the cherries was similar to the sweet toppings on modern birthday cakes. Paired with chestnut powder and cream, it wasn't greasy at all, and before she knew it, she had finished the whole plate.
If the waiter hadn't said that the creamy chestnut noodles could only be ordered and eaten immediately, Yao Xiaoyu would have really wanted to pack a few portions to enjoy slowly.
With a slight regret at not being able to enjoy her favorite food whenever she wanted, Yao Xiaoyu made her way into the poor house through a maze of turns. The woman inside saw her face and took out several oil paper packages.
"It's been revised and tested."
The oil paper package contained clothing produced by the Blue Bilingual Factory. Yao Xiaoyu originally planned to have the clothes altered as soon as they were officially launched on the market, but she really didn't want to go out in the winter, so she kept putting it off until now.
"The remaining money."
Yao Xiaoyu didn't check the clothes, paid the rest of the money, and turned to leave with Tao Xiaoxiao. She had already demonstrated Tao Xiaoxiao's fighting skills to these people. If there was really a problem with the clothes, the people who sewed the poor house should be the ones in a hurry.
After returning home, Yao Xiaoyu changed into her new clothes. The slightly modified clothes were more comfortable and fit her better, and she looked more pleasing to the eye. Yao Xiaoyu looked at herself in the mirror with satisfaction, preparing to go see Shulan the next day.
...
"You mean, someone has taken a liking to the clothing designs I drew?"
Shulan's eyes widened, as if she had encountered something incomprehensible. Yao Xiaoyu was puzzled by her expression. After talking for a while, Yao Xiaoyu realized that Shulan always felt that she was just repeating what others had said.
Yao Xiaoyu: ...
In short, there was a happy ending in the end. Lan Shuangyu did not deliberately lower the price because of Shulan's performance. There is too much land for planting flowers, and ordinary geniuses do not need to put in much effort. But there are different kinds of geniuses. Shulan has enough capital to drive capital crazy.
Shulan may not seem remarkable now, but she won't stay ordinary forever. Lan Shuangyu knows better than anyone the principle that good fortune brings health. As long as her mind is still sharp and her hands can still draw, fame and fortune will naturally come her way. What she needs to do now is to build good relationships.
The two signed the contract. Lan Shuangyu watched as Shulan continued to ramble on about how long the money would last for her child's education, how big a house they could build, and how much land they could buy. She smiled silently, straightened her back, and walked out of the hospital unhurriedly. Her subordinates, on the other hand, seemed somewhat worried.
"Designer Shu is only going to stay for a few years and then go home. What will happen to our factory?"
Lan Shuangyu stopped and bought a freshly baked pigeon pastry from the stall of an aunt whose face was red from the cold wind. She took a bite and tasted the crisp and moist crust and the tender filling. She squinted her eyes in enjoyment for a while before swallowing and speaking.
"Won't."
The subordinate looked bewildered by the answer, feeling like she was in her boss's English class and the teacher asked her whether to choose A or B, and she stammered out an abstract "or." However, she felt relieved—if Lan Shuangyu wasn't in a hurry, then there was definitely no problem!
As for why the answer was completely irrelevant... the boss must have his own reasons.
Her subordinates imagined a dramatic scene, but Lan Shuangyu, who was eating a pie, was genuinely answering the question very seriously. Her "no" didn't refer to the factory, but rather to Shulan not leaving the company.
Shulan may still find the days of managing household chores quite enjoyable, but after experiencing the joy of earning money with her own hands, especially after she was able to bring in a considerable income through her talent, Shulan can no longer go back to the old days—Lan Shuangyu went through the same thing.
What's that saying again? If a woman climbs to a high position, she'll realize that power and money are the best tonics, the greatest tonics!
Perhaps some women are naturally inclined to a life of being a wife and mother, but Shulan is definitely not one of them. Lan Shuangyu saw something similar to Shulan deep in her eyes. Although it was buried very deep and was small, weak and on the verge of death, as long as it was given some nourishment, it would grow like crazy. Lan Shuangyu had also gone through the same thing.
"Would you like some steamed buns? My treat."
Lan Shuangyu, in a good mood, asked her subordinate after spotting a genius designer. The subordinate looked up blankly and had a bun the size of half her face stuffed into her mouth. She protested with a muffled groan. Lan Shuangyu swallowed the last bite of the bun and ran away. This action was a bit out of line for a woman, but the bystanders only glanced at her in surprise before looking away.
Since a small fish appeared in Shanghai, although newspapers have been filled with heated arguments every few days, the restrictions on women have quietly lessened.
...
"A small fish that turns yin and yang upside down and disrupts the universe—its heart is despicable!"
Yao Xiaoyu looked at the headline in big black letters on the newspaper with great interest, and was amazed at how quickly she had managed to retweet it.
Counting the publication date of "Back to the Ming Dynasty," and considering this particular date, this person has powerful connections. She's really something, having such a heavyweight hater. Let her see what this person has written—
Yao Xiaoyu put down the newspaper expressionlessly.
With such a grand title, the whole thing is just rambling about his own little affairs. He even blames Zhang Xiu for his fall, accusing her of being a hen crowing at dawn when she ascends the throne. Why doesn't he also link the fact that he was choked by the mouth above and couldn't open his mouth below to Zhang Xiu?
She wasted a full three minutes of her time just to see this person's financial power!
Yao Xiaoyu tore the newspaper page out expressionlessly, intending to use it as toilet paper for Yao Xiaoli later.
...
The fierce criticism of "Back to the Ming Dynasty" in the newspapers did not dampen people's enthusiasm for buying it. Other articles might have made people hesitate to spend money if they were subjected to such 360-degree, no-dead-angle scrutiny, but "A Little Fish" has been accompanied by bloodshed since its first article was published. People resisted the first time, worried the second time, and were nervous the third time... but now they have gotten used to it.
The newspapers continued to criticize, and people bought them as usual. Those who could read immersed themselves in the world of "Back to the Ming Dynasty," while those who couldn't read brought their newspapers and showed off their skills, either by joining the storyteller's performance or by having literate relatives or friends read them to them.
teahouse.
The group, whose clothes were missing a few patches, were chatting and laughing loudly. Old Han was eating a big, greasy meat bun. The waiter would occasionally bring out a plate of snacks like melon seeds. The shopkeeper's child was quietly eating egg noodles in a corner. It was a scene of everyday life.
Old Han swallowed the last bite of his steamed bun, drank half a cup of water in one go, and finally struck the gavel to begin his storytelling. He should have looked older year by year, but in the last two years he looked younger and younger. Old Han used to think he wouldn't live past winter, but now he felt he could live another ten years.
"Cough cough..."
The room quickly quieted down, and Old Han opened the final chapter of "Back to the Ming Dynasty" and began to read it aloud clearly, word by word.
"You all keep saying this never happened before, but if Emperor Wu hadn't ascended the throne, would I still be unable to become emperor?"
"If the woman stands up while the man falls down, it can only mean that the man was standing with his foot on the woman's spine the entire time."
[...Zhang Xiu's next successor was a woman, and the next generation after that was also a woman. Hundreds of years later, in the era Zhang Xiu originally lived in, women actually lived better lives than in her previous life...]
After Old Han finished reading the last word, the teahouse was still not satisfied, so Old Han read the preview of the new book again. Before everyone could feel disappointed, they were immediately drawn to the new book.
What kind of doctor stories will Little Fish write?
A burly man nudged his friend with his elbow and asked with great interest, "I wonder who this little fish is. Every article he writes is so good."
"I only know a little bit."
The friend successfully piqued the burly man's curiosity, and only after the friend had said all the right things did the man finally speak:
"The protagonist of the next story will also be a woman."
The burly man rolled his eyes, deeply ashamed of his subservient behavior. His only consolation was that he had only used his words and hadn't spent any money. Apart from the emotional hurt, he hadn't suffered any visible loss—who didn't know the next story would definitely be about a girl? A little fish doesn't write stories about men anyway.
His daughter has changed her wishes many times because of a little fish. When Ding Xian's biography was being serialized, she clamored to study abroad. Miao Youjin Liuxing clamored to be the owner of a factory. Now she says she wants to go to university and be the emperor in the past. He has to smile and learn English with her, watch how she manages the factory, supplement his school knowledge, and work part-time as a eunuch.
Oh, now that a new article has come out, his daughter probably wants to become a doctor again.
The burly man sincerely hoped that the protagonist's medical skills wouldn't be too high this time, otherwise he would have to memorize the prescription formulas and act as a patient at the same time, which would be too much for him, especially since he had also happened to witness the old doctor using the python needle, and that stick stabbing down...
Why won't you show your daughter a new article about a little fish?
That won't do. Although Xiaoyu always brings new torment, her encouragement to study is genuine. His daughter's grades are getting better and better. Her teacher told him that, at this rate, his daughter will be able to get into middle school!
He and his wife weren't very capable and couldn't guarantee their daughter a lifetime of food and clothing. But as long as she had a high school diploma, even if she couldn't find a job, she could earn money by writing letters for others, so she wouldn't starve.
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