The Little Life of a Big Landlord

Chapter 67 Textiles

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And so, the matter of using a sedan chair for the wedding was settled. Wei Qingqing took the jade material to Liu Sao to discuss the style of the jade ornaments, and also to inquire whether the "Grandpa Liu" mentioned by Liu Nannan was truly skilled, since one cannot believe everything Liu Nannan said!

The little girl, Liu Nannan, went to the greenhouse happily. Yesterday, a flower bud suddenly swelled up on a melon vine, and below the bud was a small green melon. When she looked at it this morning, the flower was half open. Now, it's probably fully open. The little girl was excited. How to describe the feeling? It was like watching her own child grow up day by day.

Yang Ming found a secluded spot, bought another transport vehicle, and handed it over to Lao Yang, instructing him to take it to a car modification shop to alter the exterior of the rear cargo area to resemble a sedan chair, while modifying the interior to resemble a motorhome. After giving these instructions, he went to the hot spring pool.

Instead of taking a relaxing bath in the hot spring, Yang Ming went into the wooden house and installed the spinning machine he bought from the sales system in the corner of the inner room.

Holding the instruction manual, Yang Ming carefully examined the textile machine.

This textile machine is quite small, rectangular in shape, about two meters long, one meter wide, and one meter high. It uses fresh water as its energy source, making it environmentally friendly and pollution-free. The top side has a large funnel-shaped opening for filling with fibers. Next to the opening is an LCD touch screen, and below the screen are two buttons: one for "power on" and the other for "power off".

These two buttons, "Power On" to turn on the machine and "Power Off" to turn it off, will display "Settings" and "OK" options on the touchscreen after powering on. The "Settings" option allows you to configure colors and patterns, while the "OK" button will start the machine.

Below is a fabric outlet. After the silk is woven, it will automatically wind into a cylindrical shape and fall out through the fabric outlet. At the very bottom, there is another small opening, which is an additional function of this machine: the thread outlet. If you fill the machine with fibers and press 'OK' without using the 'Settings' function, the thread will come out directly from this opening.

"Hmph, let's give it a try..." Although weaving is not a man's job, Yang Ming still felt a little itchy to get his hands on the weaving machine. This thing is high-tech.

The ten silkworms that Xiaobao got from her maternal grandmother's house had long been raised in the farm space. Now they had emerged from their cocoons and become butterflies. Several of the females had already laid their eggs. The ten empty cocoons were just the right amount to use. I wonder how big a piece of cloth they can weave.

Yang Ming tossed ten empty cocoons into the top funnel-shaped opening and pressed the 'Power On' button. A flash of light appeared on the LCD touchscreen, displaying two options: 'Settings' and 'OK'. Yang Ming tapped 'Settings', and the touchscreen flashed again, revealing two more options: 'Color' and 'Pattern'. Yang Ming then tapped 'Color', and a colorful pattern immediately appeared on the touchscreen. This pattern encompassed an extremely comprehensive range of colors, almost covering all colors in the world. Yang Ming randomly selected 'Black', and the touchscreen immediately returned to the power-on state. Yang Ming then tapped 'OK'.

As soon as Yang Ming touched the 'Confirm' option, the entire textile machine immediately started humming. Three breaths later, a piece of silk cloth the size of a handkerchief slid out from the cloth outlet.

"Wow, that was fast..." Yang Ming exclaimed in surprise, picking up the silk cloth.

This piece of silk is as black as the night sky, yet it reflects a glossy, warm luster. When it shines in the sunlight, it is as dazzling as the aurora borealis in the night sky.

The feel was superb; Yang Ming felt that the smoothness of this fabric was comparable to that of his wife's skin.

Yang Ming decided to take the piece of silk cloth to Aunt Liu for a look and say that it was woven by his wife. He wanted to encourage his lazy wife so that she wouldn't feel ashamed in front of the skillful Aunt Liu.

Yang Ming walked out of the wooden house, about to go home, when he suddenly realized that if he put the spinning machine here, the security here would have to be strengthened to prevent someone from breaking in and stealing the spinning machine. This spinning machine was not heavy; two adults could carry it.

Just in time, in the farm space, a pair of adult spotted dogs had just given birth to a litter of puppies. Besides giving two puppies to Xiao Bao'er, there were seven left. According to the ten-to-one time ratio between the farm space and the real world, they are now more than two months old. So, let's just scatter them all into the valley this time.

The puppies in the optimized farm space are very smart; they will find a secluded place to poop and pee and will never poop in the hot spring pool.

Dogs are different from pigs. Pigs are only for eating meat, while dogs are helpers to humans. Intelligence and courage are the most important qualities of dogs.

The seven puppies are almost two feet long now. They were having a blast as soon as they came out, taking a stroll around the valley. Some of them burrowed into the woods, while others went under the wooden house and took a lazy nap. These little guys are really laid-back and adapt to their environment quite quickly.

Yang Ming took the silk cloth home. By then, it was already noon. Wei Qingqing was working the bellows to stoke the fire in front of the stove. Steam was hissing out of the small holes in the pot lid, making the room filled with moisture.

When Wei Qingqing saw Yang Ming return, she said, "Sister Liu said that Grandpa Liu is an old jade craftsman with superb skills. He won't sell anything unless the material is top-quality."

"Hehe, the jade material in our house is Hetian mutton fat jade. I guarantee he will definitely make a move..." Yang Ming laughed.

"That's what Aunt Liu said too. You know, Liu Family Village really produces talented people. Aunt Liu comes from a family of tailors, and Grandpa Liu is an old jade craftsman. According to Aunt Liu, it's a family heirloom." Wei Qingqing sighed.

"Talented people often come from humble backgrounds..." Yang Ming held up a piece of black silk in front of Wei Qingqing. "Look, your husband is also a talented person. This piece of silk was woven by my own hands."

Wei Qingqing's eyes were immediately drawn to the beautiful and enchanting silk fabric. Its beauty was beyond description; it was smooth and silky to the touch.

"Is this... woven on that textile machine?" Wei Qingqing's voice trembled.

"Of course..." Yang Ming nodded smugly.

"Where did you put the textile machine?" Wei Qingqing asked anxiously.

"Inside the cabin..." Yang Ming had barely finished speaking when Wei Qingqing ran out, leaving only her voice: "I declare that the spinning machine belongs to me from now on."

"Cooking..." Yang Ming called out.

"Start the fire, for half an hour..."

"She's gone mad..." Yang Ming had no choice but to continue Wei Qingqing's rant and sit down in front of the stove to tend the fire.

drop by drop...

While the fire was burning, a car horn sounded outside. Yang Ming was certain that it wasn't his own transport truck, nor their ostentatious business van, but a luxury sedan. Didn't you hear how smooth and resonant the horn sounded? For a typical family car, it's a miracle if the horn doesn't sound like a broken gong.

"Who's here?" Yang Ming asked, craning his neck to look outside.

"Brother, do you live here?" Zhang Yingning's voice came from over.

"Oh! It's Aunt Zhang?" Yang Ming quickly got up to greet her and went out. He saw Zhang Yingning standing outside with a beautiful young woman and a chubby-faced little boy. Beside them was a large suitcase. Behind them was a black Mercedes-Benz. The driver didn't get out of the car; after dropping them off, he drove away.

"Hehe, brother, we'll be bothering you for a while from now on..." Zhang Yingning smiled and took Yang Ming's hand. "Come, come, let me introduce you..."

Through Zhang Yingning's introduction, the two got to know each other. Yang Ming learned that this young woman was Zhang Yingning's daughter-in-law, named Liu Yun. She used to work at a magazine, but she resigned in anger after a quarrel with the editor-in-chief and is now unemployed.

The little boy is Zhang Yingning's grandson, named Xia Xiaoyang. He is only five years old this year. According to Zhang Yingning, Xia Xiaoyang is a very mischievous little guy. However, Yang Ming could not see where the mischief was. On the contrary, he gave people a feeling of introversion and gentleness. This was because the little guy always carried a Pleasant Goat plush toy in his arms.

Yang Ming ushered them into the house, and Zhang Yingning didn't stand on ceremony. She took off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Not bad, quite cozy..." Liu Yun glanced around the room and nodded in satisfaction. She and her son would be staying here for a week, and she was quite pleased with the environment. "Xiao Yang has good taste..."

"Hehe, Sister Liu, you flatter me. It was all arranged by my wife." Yang Ming took out a lot of fruit from the west room, washed it, filled a large tea tray, and brought it in, placing it on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed).

"Mmm! Delicious, just as good as your vegetables..." Zhang Yingning grabbed a large peach and started eating. "By the way, where's Qingqing? Where did she go?"

"Oh! Her? She went to the mountains, she'll be back in a bit..." Yang Ming handed an apple to Xia Xiaoyang: "Yangyang, have an apple."

Xia Xiaoyang timidly took the apple and was about to eat it when Liu Yun slapped him on the back of the head. Although she didn't hit hard, it was still quite loud: "Did you thank Uncle? All you know is how to eat, you don't know any manners at all..."

"Thank you, Uncle..." Xia Xiaoyang grinned, wanting to cry, but dared not make a sound. Yang Ming felt sorry for the little guy.

"Dad, I'm back..." Xiao Bao ran in from outside, but when he suddenly saw three more people in the house, he couldn't help but timidly hide behind Yang Ming.

"Brother, aren't you getting married on October 1st? How come you already have such a big daughter?" Zhang Yingning was a little surprised. When did Yang Ming suddenly have such a big daughter?

"This is my goddaughter, our neighbor's daughter, her name is Zheng Bao'er..." Yang Ming held Bao'er's little hand, pointed to Zhang Yingning, "Bao'er, this person is called Grandma..."

"Grandma..." Xiao Bao called out.

"Oh, oh, oh!" Zhang Yingning beamed, got off the kang (a heated brick bed), took out a beautiful fountain pen from her suitcase, and stuffed it into Xiao Bao'er's hand: "Look, we didn't bring any gifts when we came. This fountain pen is for you. You should study hard and make progress every day."

Xiao Bao glanced at Yang Ming, and seeing that Yang Ming nodded, she took it and said, "Thank you, Grandma."

"Look how polite that young lady is." Liu Yun never forgets to educate her son, and has already used the back of his head as a fan. She's not afraid of making her son stupid.

"This is Aunt Liu," Yang Ming introduced Liu Yun to Xiao Bao'er.

"Aunt Liu... Aunt Liu..." Little Bao had just witnessed this pretty aunt slapping that little boy. It was really fierce. Without realizing it, Little Bao shrank his little body closer to his godfather.

"Oh, hey, hey... Your name is Bao'er, right?" Liu Yun was overjoyed, snatching the Pleasant Goat toy from her son's arms. "Auntie didn't prepare a gift for you, so take this little toy to play with..." Xia Xiaoyang, who was standing to the side, was almost crying.

Xiao Bao looked at Xia Xiaoyang, then at Aunt Liu, and then at her godfather. She didn't dare to take it and instead shrank behind her godfather.

"Xiaoyun, you're not allowed to hit the child all the time. Do you think Yangyang will want the toy you snatched from him?" Zhang Yingning criticized her daughter-in-law.

"It's shameful for a boy to play with a doll." Liu Yun stuck out her tongue and tossed the Pleasant Goat toy back to her son.

Holding her recovered toy, Xia Xiaoyang's tears streamed down her face.

"Hehe, we originally planned to come again on October 1st, but who would have thought that your Sister Liu would get fired, so we've been idle for a while now. So I thought, since she's just sitting at home doing nothing anyway, let her and her daughter come stay here with you and get a good education." Zhang Yingning said with a smile while eating a peach.

"Mom, how many times have I told you? I fired them, not the other way around," Liu Yun said, somewhat dissatisfied.

"Fine, fine, you fired them..." Zhang Yingning rolled her eyes. If you hadn't fallen out with the editor-in-chief, would you have resigned? What's the difference between you being fired and them firing you?

"Hehe, I think Sister Liu is a good person. Those bosses always make things difficult for their employees for no reason. Sister Liu is good. She only had a few words with the editor-in-chief. If it were me, I would have thrown a cup of tea in his face..." Yang Ming thought of the manager who always made things difficult for him. He threw the documents in his face back then. It was too good for him. If he had thrown a cup of hot water... that would have been more satisfying.

"Oh, Xiao Yang, what you said really hit the nail on the head. We create value for them, and they still treat us like livestock. Is he even human? There was no hot water in his room back then, otherwise I would have splashed a face full of blisters on him." Liu Yun suddenly felt a sense of kinship.

"Hey, do you two think I'm invisible? I have plenty of employees. When have I ever treated them like animals?" Zhang Yingning rolled her eyes. She was the owner of a big hotel and felt she treated her employees quite well.

"Mom is a good boss..." Liu Yun flattered her.

"Hehe, Aunt Zhang is a good boss. You all rest inside. I'll go to the outer room to start the fire; I'm cooking right now," Yang Ming said with a smile.

"Do you need my help?" Liu Yun asked.

"You think you can help? Can you even start a fire?" Zhang Yingning rolled her eyes. She knew her daughter-in-law well; Liu Yun could only turn on the gas and use an electric cooker. Cooking in a large pot? She couldn't…

"You're too kind..." Liu Yun playfully stuck out her tongue at Zhang Yingning.

"Why did you come out with me? Let's go inside and watch TV." Yang Ming went to the outer room, but found that Xiao Bao'er had followed him out, so he couldn't help but say.

"Daddy, that auntie was so scary, she hit so hard..." Xiao Bao said, still shaken.

"What's making such a loud noise?" At that moment, Wei Qingqing's voice came from behind. Wei Qingqing walked in through the back door with a smug look on her face.

"Godmother..." Xiao Bao ran over and grabbed Wei Qingqing's little hand.

"Aunt Zhang is here, she's inside. Go in and chat with her for a while..." Yang Ming said.

"Oh? Aunt Zhang is here?" Wei Qingqing had a good impression of Zhang Yingning. The key point was that Zhang Yingning was the first person to praise her beauty upon their first meeting. She quickly led her goddaughter into the house. After introducing themselves, everyone started chatting, and laughter occasionally broke out.

Around noon, Liu Nannan returned from a stroll around the greenhouse, and then everyone ate lunch together. Zhang Yingning and Liu Yun praised Yang Ming's lunch highly, while Xia Xiaoyang didn't say a word, but his ravenous eating was more effective than any words.

After lunch, Xiao Bao'er rested for a while before going to school. Wei Qingqing took Zhang Yingning, Liu Yun, and Liu Nannan to the hot spring pool, leaving only Yang Ming and Xia Xiaoyang at home.

"Yangyang, stay home and watch TV. Uncle is going out for a bit," Yang Ming said.

"Yes!" Xia Xiaoyang nodded seriously.

"Watch TV properly..." Yang Ming smiled and patted his little head. He took the black silk cloth and went to Aunt Liu's house. He wanted Aunt Liu to help him appraise it. The craftsmanship of the silk cloth was good, but it might not be suitable for making Hanfu. He needed to have an expert appraise it.

The little guy watched Yang Ming walk out of the yard, then suddenly jumped off the kang (a heated brick bed), and sneaked out of the house...

"Did Qingqing really weave this?" Aunt Liu held the black silk, somewhat incredulous. "Although Qingqing isn't too stupid, she's definitely not particularly skillful either. I don't think she could weave such fine cloth at all."

"Hehe, you can't judge a book by its cover! My wife is more than just pretty..." Yang Ming chuckled. "Do you think this kind of silk fabric is suitable for making Hanfu?"

"Of course, this is the best silk fabric I've ever seen. However, the silk thread is also a problem. If the silk thread is not the right color, the finished garment will have flaws."

"I'll take care of the wiring too," Yang Ming said, patting his chest.

"Your outfits will definitely be finished before October 1st. Once they're done and you're satisfied with them, we can discuss the collaboration. Have Qingqing prepare the silk fabric so that we don't run into any delays due to material issues when we start work." It seems Aunt Liu is quite confident.

"Okay!" Yang Ming replied, and without lingering, left Aunt Liu's house and went back to his own home.

"Don't move, hands up..." As soon as Yang Ming entered the gate, a childish voice rang out from behind him, and a long, hard stick was pressed against his lower back.

"Japanese devils, if you don't raise your hands and surrender, I'll shoot..." The voice was young but full of spirit.

Yang Ming finally realized that he had been fooled by the little guy's first impression. This guy really was a bandit. He reached behind him, grabbed the hard stick, and snatched it away. It was a gun.

"The Japanese devils are coming into the village! I'll fight them! I'll fight them!" The little guy bared his teeth and brandished his little fists, then started hitting Yang Ming.

Yang Ming wasn't about to let this little brat hit him. He grabbed the boy by the back of the collar, subduing him. "Little brat, do you believe I'll tell your mother and have her spank you in half?"

"If you can't beat them, you tell your parents. You're not a good kid..." The little thing immediately wilted and pouted unconvinced.

"Little brat... if you dare to cause trouble, I'll sell you to human traffickers behind your grandma's and your mother's backs," Yang Ming threatened viciously.

"Okay, okay, hurry up and sell me! I've had enough of my mom. She was bullied by my dad and comes to me to take it out on me. Go find me a new mom!" The little thing wasn't scared into crying; instead, its eyes shone with excitement.

Yang Ming was speechless. This little thing was truly something else... "How did your dad bully your mom?"

"Hmph, my dad always pins my mom down, making her scream and cry. Mom is so miserable..." The little one pouted, her eyes filled with anger towards her father. Who told you to always bully Mom?

Ultimately, the son is still closer to his mother. When he sees his mother being bullied, even if it's his father who is bullying her, he is still indignant.

Yang Ming suddenly felt like laughing and wanted to explain it to him, but then he thought that the little guy was only five years old, so he decided not to instill any mature ideas in him.

"Little brat, let me tell you, if you ever dare to take my gun again, I'll throw you into the woods. There are big tigers in there that can eat you in one bite," Yang Ming threatened.

"I'm not afraid at all. It's just a tiger. I've seen plenty of tigers at the zoo. It's just a big cat." The little thing wasn't scared at all.

"Then I'll feed you to the big bad wolf..."

"It's just a dog, you can find them at the zoo too." The little thing was quite proud of itself.

"Well..." Yang Ming was speechless. This little thing was really hard to reason with. "Then I'll hand you over to your mother and let her give you a good slap..." Threats and intimidation were back to square one.

The little creature immediately wilted. Clearly, in its eyes, its mother had become a more terrifying presence than a tiger or a wolf.

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(End of this chapter)