"Got it!" Huang Wanzhen said quickly and hung up the phone. She found a pen and paper and wrote down the number 27, City God Temple Sipailou, on a piece of paper before taking it to see Mrs. Huang.
When we got to the first floor lobby, we saw Huang Dongshi holding Zhenzhen and teaching her to speak. Sidonie was standing next to her. Huang Dongshi pointed to the magpie in the painting and taught her, "Magpie."
Zhenzhen and Sidonie followed suit, "Magpie."
Huang Dongshi said again, "What a good bird."
The two people followed suit, "Good bird."
Huang Dongshi: "The best bird in China."
Zhenzhen: "China... um, uh... birds."
Sidonie: "The best bird in China."
Huang Dong first corrected Sidonie, "The best bird, the best bird." Then she corrected Zhenzhen, "Repeat after grandma, China—the best—bird!"
Huang Wanzhen saw that the three of them were getting along very harmoniously. She didn't want to disturb them. She walked to the sofa not far away and sat down next to Song Wenyin. "What are you looking at?"
Song Wenyin handed the small notebook to Huang Wanzhen and said, "Memorize the formulas. You know I'm not good at physics and chemistry. I have to go back and take the make-up exams, so I have to memorize them in advance."
Well, another one to study, this one is even more inconvenient to disturb. Huang Wanzhen stood up and deliberately walked towards the three people of Huang Dong with heavy steps. Sure enough, before she reached them, Huang Dong turned around and saw Huang Wanzhen. Her eyes lit up and asked, "Did you ask?"
Huang Wanzhen handed the note to Huang Dongshi. "I found out. It's at the City God Temple. When you have time, ask where it is, or call a taxi. You can't go alone. If you get lost, I won't be able to find you. When you go, let me know in advance. If I'm busy, I can ask Uncle Nine or Hai Li to go with you. OK?"
Mrs. Huang let go of Zhenzhen and smiled, covering her mouth. "I know, I know."
Huang Wanzhen asked Sidonie whether she wanted to stay or go back to the shop with her. Sidonie preferred to be with Huang Dongshi and Zhenzhen, where she could learn Chinese and feel at ease.
Huang Wanzhen left Xidonie and Song Wenyin and returned to Jixiangtang by herself.
There was no customer in the shop. Xiuzhu was training three new employees. Huang Wanzhen did not disturb them. She went back to the office, took out a half-finished design drawing, and continued drawing.
When the painting was finished and they came out, only Hongying and Haili were left in the hall.
"What about them?"
When Hongying heard Huang Wanzhen's question, she quickly put down her needlework and said, "Some customers came for beauty treatments. Sister Xiuzhu took them to the second floor."
Huang Wanzhen nodded and looked at the clothes she was sewing. "Well, not bad, the stitches are quite dense. That's because there's not much work in the shop. If there was too much work, we couldn't finish it all by hand. We even bought ten sewing machines in Beijing."
Hongying's calm eyes suddenly lit up. "Hey! I can use a sewing machine too. My aunt has one. I heard it cost quite a bit of money. My mother went to borrow it once, but my aunt wasn't too happy about it, so she didn't go. I'm good friends with my cousin. I often go to her house and watch her pound flour bags with the sewing machine. I learned from her and occasionally help her pound some flour bags."
"My cousin uses a sewing machine and can make over 200 bags a day. She can earn more than 20 cents."
Huang Wanzhen smiled and asked, "Do you really want to own a sewing machine?"
Hongying smiled sheepishly. "I dream about it. Manager, don't be afraid of you laughing at me. I often dream that I really have a sewing machine. I also follow my cousin's example and take jobs from the factory and go home to do them. In my dreams, I keep pounding my pockets and can't bear to go to sleep."
Huang Wanzhen reached out and touched the clothes Hongying was sewing. "Okay, since you can do it, I'll go to the second-hand market to look for a sewing machine. When I buy one, I'll keep one specifically for you. Then, I'll give you a commission based on the piece."
"Really?" Even though Hongying was usually not very talkative, she couldn't help but flatter him when she heard that she could make more money. "Manager, you are such a good person."
Huang Wanzhen laughed with her for a while, then asked her, "Did you learn these sewing and embroidery skills from your mother?"
Hongying nodded. "My grandmother's family is from Suzhou. Every family there raises silkworms and embroiders. When they have free time, they also take on lacemaking work. My grandfather runs a small embroidery workshop. He and my grandmother had six daughters and three sons. Before the daughters left home, they all embroidered in the workshop. Now it's the daughters-in-law and granddaughters who do the work."
"Lace? The kind you see on clothes, hats, and bags?"
Hongying nodded. "Yes, some companies that do domestic and foreign trade often go to my grandmother's house to pick up goods, and sometimes they also post some work."
"What about now? How is your mother's eyesight? Can she still work?"
Hongying nodded at first, then shook her head. "Her eyesight is fine, but her hands are clumsy. My mother does all the laundry and cooking at home, and her hands can't handle silk anymore. She's OK at making clothes and crocheting lace, but she doesn't embroider much anymore." Then, Hongying sighed, "People like us don't wear embroidered clothes, and there's no point in embroidering. We might as well take a break if we have that kind of time."
"Why not? If I don't need them at home, I can sell them to the shop and earn enough to live on."
Speaking of this, Hongying became angry. "My grandparents favor my uncle, and even my aunt is favored over my mother. My mother is busy from morning till night and has no time to embroider. My father was the eldest son and grandson, so he should have gotten the biggest share when the family property was divided. But when my grandfather died, the shop and the larger house were given to my uncle, and only two Shikumen houses were allocated to my family. My father had no choice but to work as a shopkeeper for a family he knew well."
Huang Wanzhen was not surprised by this kind of thing. People are naturally biased. As long as there are more than two children in a family, it is difficult for parents to be fair and just. Many siblings become enemies because of the uneven distribution of resources by their parents. As an outsider, she cannot comment on it. "As long as the whole family works together, everything will be fine. My family is looking for two people to do housework and look after the children. If your mother has time, please come over."
When Hongying heard this, she stopped complaining about her own troubles and rushed to help her mother accept the job. She even asked, "The manager wants to hire two people? Has the other one been found?"
Huang Wanzhen shook her head. "Not yet. Don't worry, your mother won't be tired. Until we find someone, my mother and Zhao Dahua can lend a hand."
Hongying quickly explained, "Manager, you misunderstood me. That's not what I meant. My mother is very capable. If she has work to do, she won't sleep at night even if you ask her to. She's more addicted to making money than I am."
"I was thinking, if you haven't found anyone yet, I'd like to recommend my eldest cousin. She's only ten years younger than my mother and works very hard."
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