Chapter 353 - Chapter 353: Spoiled Tofu
Chapter 353: Spoiled Tofu
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Ding Wan thought the texture of anything woven from wool would be excellent. She could not help but touch the yarn. Just touching it felt comfortable, not to mention wearing it.
She felt things would be warm and comfortable if she could knit clothes with the yarn. She became excited when she imagined it and started to knit seriously.
Su Binglan patiently taught her aunt how to knit because there were many ways to make a sweater. After all, different knitting techniques could produce various patterns and styles.
The more Ding Wan learned from her niece, the more she found it novel. She was particularly interested in these knitting techniques. “So there are so many different knitting techniques. It’s amazing.”
Su Binglan was quick and soon finished knitting a small sweater for Su
Xuexuan and Su Xuehai.
Ding Wan looked at the little sweater her niece held and took them, unable to stop caressing it. “I used to think that knitted sweaters would have too many holes and wouldn’t be suitable for keeping someone warm.
“Now it seems I’ve been overthinking it. The wool is dense, and it looks nice and warm.”
Su Binglan laughed. “That’s why wool is better. Let’s finish these things first.
We’ll make down comforters when the embroidery shop is on the right track.”
She had many ideas and felt she had to slow down. Since she and her aunt did not have enough workforce, they could only do some things first.
They could start making down comforters when Su Xueye’s team finished building the shop, when they hired more people, and when the sales grew. After all, winter had not arrived yet.
Ding Wan used to think she knew many things but now realized she knew less than her niece. She felt guilty and embarrassed but could not help it, so she asked her niece, “What’s a down comforter?”
Su Binglan patiently explained, “Down comforters are similar to our cotton blankets, Aunty Ding. The outside is the same, but what we stuff them with is different.
“The blankets we use have cotton, but a down comforter has chicken, duck, and goose feathers. That makes the comforters light and warm. You’ll know what I’m talking about when you use one.”
The more Ding Wan listened, the more excited she became. “Then I’m looking forward to it. I want to see what a down comforter looks like.”
“We don’t have enough workforce yet, so we’ll make down comforters when Xueye completes the shop and we hire more people Those chicken, duck, and goose feathers we collected will be useful by then.” Su Binglan had many thoughts about this.
Ding Wan’s expression changed. “No wonder your grandparents washed and dried the duck and chicken feathers when they made their grilled chicken and roast duck. I wondered why they did that when I last visited them. I didn’t expect us to use them to make down comforters.”
She believed in her niece’s abilities. If Su Binglan said the comforters would be light and warm, Ding Wan would trust her. Ding Wan knew it would be much warmer than a cotton blanket.
“Binglan,” Ding Wan seemed to have thought of something and said, “Is the embroidery shop going to be bigger? Will we recruit a lot of people? Do we have enough people in our village?
She felt they would need a lot of workers when she heard Su Binglan’s many ideas. Ding Wan wondered if they would be overwhelmed if they made too many products.
Su Binglan nodded. “Yes, anyone who knows embroidery and sewing can work at our shop. Still, we’ll prioritize our villagers because they’re our people. We know how they are and what they do, so we won’t have to worry about them causing problems.
“If we hire people from other villages, we won’t know much about them or what kind of people they are. That’s why we must be cautious when hiring people from other villages.
“However, if someone we’re familiar with recommends other villagers to us, and if they can vouch for their recommendations, we can hire other villagers to work for us.
Su Binglan was still worried about hiring strangers. That was why she wanted to be familiar with whoever she hired to work at the embroidery shop.
“It’s best if our villagers are familiar with whoever they recommend. We’ll know their addresses and information if they come to work for us. Then if something goes wrong, they won’t be able to get away with it.”
Ding Wan immediately understood what her niece meant. “I get it. You only want to hire people if you know their background and specific situations. That should be simple because we can confirm their situation with them.
“We won’t recruit them if they’re dishonest. As for their character, they’re from the surrounding villages, and we can learn about them after some background checking.”
Su Binglan nodded. “Yeah, there’s no rush. Let’s wait for Xueye to complete the embroidery shop first. Then we’ll hire our villagers to make things before taking the next step.
“When Xueye finishes building the shop, you’ll be in charge of hiring alongside me, Aunt Ding. After all, there are some things I don’t understand about embroidery and will need your advice.”
“Listen to yourself,” Ding Wan said, “What do you mean by asking me for advice? I’ve learned a lot from you. If you need me to do anything, just tell me. I like to do such things anyway.”
Su Binglan stayed at Ding Wan’s until the evening when Shen Qiuhua rushed in. “Sister-in-law, are you home?
Ding Wan quickly stopped what she was doing and rushed outside when she heard Shen Qiuhua’s voice. “Is that you, Second Sister-in-law? Come in, come in quickly.”
“Is Binglan with you?” Shen Qiuhua sounded anxious.
Only then did Ding Wan realize something was wrong. “Second sister-in-law, what’s going on? Did something happen? Binglan is on the bed now.”
The sweater Su Binglan was knitting for Su Xuexuan was only short of a few stitches, so she quickly finished it and walked out of the room. “Mother, what’s wrong?
She saw her mother’s worried expression and became concerned.
Shen Qiuhua grabbed her daughter’s hand and said, “Hurry, come take a look. There are two boxes of spoiled tofu. We were supposed to ship them out, but I don’t know how they ended up in the warehouse.
“I only just realized they’re spoiled. What should I do? We’ve wasted so much tofu.” She was anxious, and her heart ached. After all, tofu costs money.
She could not bear to think it was okay because the family had lost a lot of money with two spoiled boxes of tofu.
Shen Qiuhua’s face turned pale, and she was out of her wits. In her moment of anxiety, Shen Qiuhua’s first thought of Su Binglan. She knew she had to tell her daughter.
“The tofu is spoiled?” Su Binglan’s expression was calm.
Ding Wan looked on from the sidelines and felt that her niece was still the calmest and steadiest person she had ever met. It was rare to appear so calm and collected at such a young age.
Still, she was a little worried. “Binglan, just do what you need to do. I’ve already learned enough from you. I’ll ask you if I have any questions.”
Su Binglan nodded. “All right, it’s getting late, Aunt Ding. You don’t have to knit anymore. You can do it during the day when it’s brighter.”
“All right, I’ll listen to you.”
Immediately after, Su Binglan and her mother went straight to the tofu shop..