Chapter 22: These shoes are really pretty

Now he's going to go shopping, and those shoes on his feet are obviously too thin.

And they feel like they might break at any time.

After all, he'll be running around outside all day.

And it's cold right now.

Ji Bianran couldn't bear to see him get cold.

She squeezed the shoes in her hands before turning and walking out the door.

'Put these shoes on, they'll keep you warm.'

Ji Pianran was a very good craftsman, and although these were her own shoes, they were in no way inferior to the cotton shoes sold in the city.

Gu Chen looked at the shoes in Ji Pianran's hands, and her pupils dilated.

A flash of surprise appeared in her eyes.

'Did you make these... for me?'

Ji Pianran nodded.

'Well, put them on. You don't need to go to work today, and I can help you mend these shoes.'

The little girl had seen her mother make shoes before, but never these!

Her eyes widened, as if she had discovered something new.

'Daddy, they're beautiful!'

Gu Chen looked at the shoes and then at Ji Pianran's face. 'Yes, they are very beautiful!'

Ji Pianran pursed her lips.

Why was he looking at her?

Shouldn't he be looking at the shoes?

She always felt that he was talking about her, not the shoes.

She was not used to Gu Chen looking at her like that, so she stuffed the shoes into his arms and said, 'No, go try them on.'

After that, she went back to the small table and started eating her bowl of rice porridge.

Gu Chen was overjoyed.

He looked at the shoes in his arms and gave Tang Tang a big smile.

'Let's go, let's get ready and go!'

He washed Tang Tang's face before sitting back on the bed to try on the shoes that Ji Pianran had given him.

The shoes were really beautiful, with thick, soft soles, sturdy fabric and plenty of cotton padding.

But they weren't bulky at all, and the cloud pattern on the upper was beautifully stitched.

It looked even better than the picture.

And they were so comfortable to wear.

Tantan looked at the shoes on her father's feet and suddenly fell into deep thought.

Why did her mother make such nice shoes for her father but not for herself?

Did she love her father the most?

Wasn't her mother's first love Tantan?

As she thought, the little girl pouted her lips and ran towards the living room.

She saw Ji Bianran, who was putting the dishes away, and pouted her lips.

'Mommy, Tantan also wants nice shoes!'

Ji Bianran couldn't help but laugh.

This child, just now she was crying because she didn't like her father, and now she's competing with him for attention?

She laughed.

'Okay, you can have some too, and you can wear them during the New Year, okay?'

How could a mother not make them for her child?

She had already made them, she was just waiting for the New Year to come!

Having received her mother's affirmative reply, Tang Tang was happy again.

Gu Chen saw Xiaoniu running away and hurriedly followed.

He picked up Tang Tang and looked at Ji Pianran with his pair of peach blossom eyes, 'We're leaving now, you rest at home.'

Ji Pianran nodded and said with a worried heart, 'Be careful on the road.'

Gu Chen said a brief goodbye and then left the house with Tang Tang in his arms.

The father and daughter set off towards the bus station.

It was already 8 o'clock in the morning when they arrived at the market.

It was bustling with people, just like yesterday.

Gu Chen couldn't help but sigh, there were really a lot of people in the city, and they really had nothing to do.

They were wandering around the market early in the morning, not going to work.

He bought two more nylon bags and then went to the bathroom to put away all the broccoli that he hadn't managed to sell the day before.

He dragged three nylon bags out of the bathroom.

He took his daughter-in-law with him to the stall and began setting up.

Before he finished, he saw the woman who hadn't bought any vegetables yesterday.

She had been looking for him for a long time.

She almost thought he wasn't coming today.

When she saw Gu Chen, she hurried over.

'Young man, give me a whole one. I'll take it back and share it with my two daughters-in-law.'

Gu Chen smiled, 'No problem.'

Tantan is a little person, and when she heard someone was buying vegetables,

she hurriedly brought a plastic bag and came up to Gu Chen.

'Daddy, daddy!'

Gu Chen picked a vegetable and put it in the bag before weighing it.

'Seven catties and seven taels, let's say seven catties.'

The woman looked at Gu Chen with satisfaction. She hadn't kept him waiting for nothing, he was generous and knew how to do business!

She reached into her bag and handed Gu Chen a stack of change, totalling 42 yuan.

As Gu Chen took the money, he took a closer look at the woman.

She must be about fifty years old, and she has permed hair.

She is wearing a woolen coat, carrying a small red leather bag over her arm, and her black leather shoes are polished to a shine.

She is very particular about her appearance.

It is obvious that she comes from an ordinary family.

In particular, she is willing to spend more than 40 yuan on a vegetable dish, which in 1999 was a rarity.

He took the money that the woman handed over to him.

Only then did he hand over the cauliflower.

The woman smiled, and was content with the cauliflower in her hands.

Seeing that the woman was leaving, Tang Tang waved at her with a smile.

'Bye, pretty auntie!'

This voice made the scary woman laugh. Her grandson is older than Tang Tang, and she is still called pretty auntie.

She turned her head and looked at Tang Tang.

'This girl, she's not big, but her mouth is very sweet.'

Gu Chen had never expected that Tang Tang had such a sweet mouth.

He joked, 'Maybe it's because of the name, Tang Tang, that she's so sweet.'

When he said that, the woman laughed even harder.

'I didn't think that you, young man, would be able to do business, not to mention that you're quite humorous.'

Gu Chen touched his head, 'What kind of business? I'm just trying to make a living. If I knew how to do business, I wouldn't be selling vegetables with my daughter in the cold.'

The two of them chatted away.

The woman glanced down and saw the new shoes on Gu Chen's feet.

Her eyes lit up, 'Where did you buy these shoes? The stitching is really good.'

Her family makes cheongsams and specializes in the cheongsam business

These days, not everyone loves to wear cheongsams, but anyway, cheongsams are still the favorite of many rich wives.

Especially during the New Year, her family sold more than a hundred cheongsams.

Don't look at it as a small quantity of 100, but it's expensive.

The average is 500-600 yuan, and the better ones can even sell for 1,000-2,000 yuan.

After all, cheongsam is something left behind by our ancestors, and the materials, stitching, and embroidery are all extremely exquisite.

The most crucial part of cheongsam making is the embroidery!

I don't know if the craftsmanship has been lost, or if the reform and opening up has made it obsolete.

It's really hard to find good craftsmanship these days.

I've looked for quite a few embroidery masters, but their craftsmanship is just okay.

This is also a source of distress for her.

But the shoes on Gu Chen's feet are rare in both style and workmanship, especially the cloud pattern on the upper. The embroidery is beautiful, with neat but not rigid stitches, like flowing clouds and running water.

This really made her a little excited.