In the anime series, Goto Ichiri is actually my childhood sweetheart?

He hoped that in the future Goto Ichiri would be able to muster up the courage, and no matter who he was facing, at least be able to communicate well with others, instead of being unable to utter a single word for a long time.

But what does courage have to do with?

tumbler.

This was the best and easiest thing he could think of to buy. He also considered a necklace or bracelet inlaid with red gems. These things in the game were all associated with courage and were a perfect match for Ichiri Goto's social phobia, but this was too strange for a kindergarten child, and most importantly - he had no money.

It's too much to ask Ryoko for the funds for all the gifts. No matter whether Ryoko agrees or not, Takahashi Kaede will not do it.

Since it was a gift, Takahashi Feng wanted to show his sincerity, so he planned to make it himself. He just needed to ask Ryoko for a little money to buy a file and a piece of wood, and then tinker with it himself.

Isn’t it just a handicraft? It is easy for him who has strong self-learning ability to make it.

When the appearance is ready, you can color the tumbler and draw some cute patterns that children like on it, or just draw a confident Goto Ichiri!

He got a little excited when he thought about it, and he was looking forward to how happy Goto Ichiri would be when he received the gift.

Takahashi Feng likes to see Goto Ichiri smile. Smiling more is good for the body. She always looks miserable at school. Every time Takahashi Feng sees her, he will pull the corners of her mouth upwards, trying to make her smile more.

He did what he said. Takahashi Feng took the key and went downstairs to find Ryoko who was busy.

Chapter 32: The Workroom Not Covered in Dust

"Mrs. Togashi, is there a call?" Standing next to the distribution box downstairs, Ryoko shouted to Mrs. Togashi upstairs.

Just now, the power suddenly tripped in the Togashi family's home. Mrs. Togashi was at a loss and contacted Ryoko. Ryoko was very knowledgeable about these things and helped them solve the problem in no time.

The lights in the house flickered twice and then came on.

"I'm here, Miss Ryoko, thank you--" Mrs. Togashi responded from upstairs.

Wiping the sweat off her face, Ryoko suddenly heard footsteps behind her.

"Hey, Xiao Feng, why are you here? Has Yili left?"

This apartment building has two corridors, and the one that Takahashi Kaede and Goto Ichiri walked through just now was the other one.

"I've already left, Ryoko. Do you have any files and wood at home? I'm going to carve a tumbler for Goto Ichiri as a Christmas gift."

He asked first if it existed. If it existed, he could just use it instead of buying it. After all, he was not sure he could learn how to carve out a finished product today.

"Yes, it's in my toolbox. You can look under my bed."

"Oh, okay, I'll go find it then!"

"Wait a moment."

Just as Takahashi Feng was about to run upstairs in a hurry, Ryoko suddenly called him.

"The file is used for fine-tuning. The initial shaping needs to be done with a chisel, which is too dangerous. Don't do it when you go back. Wait until I come back." This kind of handicraft is difficult to learn without a master to teach, and it is also very dangerous. Ryoko is worried about Takahashi Kaede doing such a dangerous thing alone.

"Ryoko, can you carve something like this?"

"Of course, I liked tinkering with these things when I was young. At that time, I repaired my bicycle myself when it broke down." Ryoko touched her nose and said confidently.

"Reliable! I'll go upstairs and wait for you."

Takahashi Feng returned home, ran to Ryoko's bedroom, lay down and looked under the bed. A small blue box with a very design sense was lying there quietly, covered with a layer of dust.

He grabbed the handle of the toolbox with both hands and dragged it out from under the bed. There were two red buttons next to the handle, which were obviously the switches to open the toolbox.

Dragging it to the living room, Gao Qiaofeng wiped the dust off it with paper.

The tool box has a rough yet sturdy appearance, giving it a sense of reliability and trustworthiness.

Press the red button and pull the toolbox outwards to open it. The slightly rusty tools inside lie there quietly.

Tools that are not used will only rust and be discarded. It can be seen that Ryoko has not used these tools for a long time.

The toolbox is almost full of tools including a claw hammer, an adjustable wrench, a screwdriver, as well as the chisels and files that Takahashi Kaede needs to use. However, the groove that looks like an electrician's tester is empty. Perhaps it is because he uses it frequently, so he took it out and never put it back in.

Gao Qiaofeng took out a wrench and twisted the nut. The opening smoothly became larger as he twisted it.

It seems that the rust is not very serious, which is probably because the air in the high-rise building is relatively dry. If it was placed in a basement with high humidity below the ground, it would probably be covered with rust if it was taken out now.

To make a tumbler, you also need a wooden board, and the wooden board should be in the utility room.

This utility room was originally a small room used as a guest bedroom, but was transformed by Ryoko into a place to store her strange and miscellaneous items.

Turning the handle, Takahashi Feng found that the door was locked. He returned to Ryoko's bedroom and found the key to the utility room in the drawer under Ryoko's dressing table.

Takahashi Feng had never been to that room before. He opened the door with the key and turned on the light switch. The expected smell of smoke did not appear and the room was unexpectedly clean.

"Does Ryoko come to clean the house often?" Takahashi Feng murmured.

Maybe because she was afraid that Takahashi Kaede would mess around with things inside, or for other considerations, Ryoko always cleaned the room when Takahashi Kaede was not around.

The cabinets built into the wall and rows of neat iron shelves occupied most of the room except the aisle, and they were filled with some old electrical appliances, spare parts and some sundries.

In front of the built-in cabinet is a work table surrounded by iron shelves.

Feng Takahashi even found a saw, an electric one, which consisted of a handle, a motor, a plastic shell wrapped around it, and a circular saw that looked like it had tetanus special effects. It looked scary, like a tool that a decorator could use.

Ryoko must have loved repairing things and making handicrafts by herself in the past. There was a wooden board on the upper iron shelf. The board was very long, with a small end sticking out from the shelf. However, it was placed too high, and Takahashi Feng was short, so he couldn't reach it even if he jumped. He had to give up and wait for Ryoko to come back.

When leaving the utility room, Takahashi Feng was actually quite shocked. Ryoko actually had such a side of her, repairing things and making her own furniture by hand, but why didn't she do that now?

The feeling of staying alone in one's own workshop, wearing light-proof and dust-proof glasses, and spending a whole day just to make a handicraft of one's own is a fatal temptation for a boy like Takahashi Kaede.

In his previous life, he always wanted to build himself a room like this, but unfortunately he was electrocuted to death before he could turn his idea into reality.

Taking a deep breath, Takahashi Feng closed the door of the utility room and waited quietly for Ryoko to come home.

......

Near noon, Ryoko returned home carrying the bag.

"I'm back! Xiao Feng, you don't have to cook for me at noon. I brought a lunch box." Ryoko said, panting, as if she had just climbed the stairs in a hurry.

"So slow, Ryoko, where have you been? Did you do all the work for the maintenance team?"

"No, the neighbor next door had a problem, so I went to help. Now, let me tell you, are you hungry now?" Ryoko picked up the bag and shook it. The meat inside was golden yellow, and it looked like a lunch box with a lot of meat.

"Take a break. You're sweating. Give me the bag. Go to the bathroom and wash your face."

Taking the bag, Takahashi Feng pushed Ryoko into the bathroom.

After washing her face, Ryoko looked much more refreshed.

"Alright! Let's eat. Did you see what lunch box I brought today?"

“Curry chicken bento, delicious.”

"Hehe, huh~" Ryoko laughed. She was happy too if Takahashi Kaede was happy.

The sun was particularly strong today, and they even felt a little hot while eating.

After closing the doors and windows and turning on the air conditioner, the two sat in the living room and watched TV while finishing their meal.

"By the way, Xiao Feng, you just said you wanted to make a tumbler, do you want to start now?"

"Wait a minute, there's no rush. Christmas is still a long way off, it doesn't matter even if it starts next week."

After running around in the morning, Ryoko was exhausted and felt drowsy after dinner. Takahashi Feng didn't want to force her.

Chapter 33 Pessimism

"Xiao Feng, making this kind of thing is not as simple as you think~" Ryoko looked at him with narrowed eyes.

"I suffered a lot when I was tinkering with these all day. The knife used to cut wood is much sharper than the kitchen knife."

"I'm not a little...well, my problem is that I may have been a little too proud of myself." Takahashi Feng was stubborn for a moment, but immediately realized his problem.

Not to mention whether you can use this tool and whether you can master it, just making this tumbler requires a lot of attention and it cannot be accomplished overnight.

"But you should go and rest first. I noticed that you yawned a few times. Don't do mental exercises when you are tired. It's not good for your health."

Takahashi Kaede's original intention was to let Ryoko rest, so naturally he had to explain it clearly.

"Kid, where did you learn these words? And you still have to use your brain to do this." Ryoko rubbed Takahashi Feng's head hard. She was very happy that Takahashi Feng cared about her.

Finally, she went to bed obediently. She was indeed tired. Before going to bed, she gave Gao Qiaofeng a book on the basics of woodworking and asked him to read it carefully. When he finished reading, she would teach him how to carve a tumbler step by step.

Gao Qiaofeng gladly accepted it and took the book back to his room to study.

Carpentry is complex, involving countless tools and intricate techniques. A mature carpenter needs more than ten years or even dozens of years of experience to be considered a master and to be able to treat the tools in his hands as an extension of his body.

But Takahashi Kaede’s goal was not to become a carpenter, that was too ambitious, he just wanted to make a wooden tumbler.

But even so, it is inseparable from three basic techniques: pulling, chiseling and scraping.

First, use a saw to cut the wooden board into small pieces of wood, which is the prototype of the tumbler.

Then use a chisel to carve out the general shape of the tumbler. The requirement is that it must conform to the characteristics of the tumbler with a small head and a large body, and the size must be appropriate to facilitate painting on it later.

The last and most difficult part is scraping. Use a file to slowly scrape the edges and corners of the tumbler, making its appearance closer to a perfect circle, so that it can be pressed down and bounce back up.

If you don't control the force well when scraping, the surface of the tumbler will be uneven, and the tumbler may be crooked when standing.

While reading the book, Gao Qiaofeng wrote down all the key points on paper.

"If I can't make it in the end, what should I buy for Goto Ichiri—"

Holding the closed notebook, Gao Qiaofeng stretched out on the bed and suddenly thought about what he would do if he failed to finish it.

Although I will definitely try my best and I will definitely make rapid progress with Ryoko's guidance, what if I fail in the end?

With this in mind, preparing an extra gift becomes a necessary choice.

"Give her a small hairpin," he thought.

If it really doesn't work out, then I'll just give him a small hairpin and wrap it in a small gift box. Goto Ichiri will definitely... maybe... probably... be very happy...

"No, no, no!"

Holding his head, Gao Qiaofeng suddenly imagined a scene where Goto Ichiri looked at him with disappointment. He finally failed to make a tumbler and only gave Goto Ichiri a small gift box. Goto Ichiri was stunned and slowly opened it. His expression changed from confusion to disappointment. Finally, Christmas was spent in silence. Since then, they have never had any contact again...

"Takahashi Feng, Goto Ichiri is not that kind of person, don't think like that." Takahashi Feng said to himself.

He knew that Goto Ichiri would be happy no matter what gift he received, but what if? What if Goto Ichiri had high expectations for his gift?

When expectations are dashed, no one knows what will happen.

"Oh——" Unable to control his thoughts, Gao Qiaofeng sat up and let out a long sigh, as if he wanted to get rid of all the suspicions in his heart.

He was very clear about the little tricks in his mind, but understanding did not mean he could resolve them.

Just like little Albert, he was forced to undergo fear experiments since he was a child, and he was unable to get rid of this psychological shadow even when he grew up.

The white mouse is so small and humans are so big, but he is still afraid.

This kind of thing is deeply rooted, and in Takahashi Feng's opinion, there is no way to change it.

"Xiao Feng~, did you see anything?"

Ryoko, wearing pajamas, suddenly appeared at the door of the room. She heard some noise in the room and thought that Takahashi Kaede was getting bored from reading, so she came to check it out.

"I did look into it, but...I was a little afraid of failure after realizing the difficulties." Gao Qiaofeng said sullenly with his head down.

"It's okay. If you can't do it, I can help you. As long as your kindness is conveyed, Xiao Yili will definitely be happy." Ryoko sat down on the edge of the bed, touched Takahashi Kaede's head and said gently.

But if it's not something I did, would I really be touched?

Seeing that Gao Qiaofeng was still a little stubborn, Ryoko continued:

"You do it first, try it first. You can not believe in yourself, but you can not not believe in me. I am Ryoko!" Ryoko's confidence seems to be contagious.

"Ryoko..." Takahashi Feng was very touched. Now that he had Ryoko to back him up, he no longer had time to be depressed.

The two walked into the living room and prepared to start practicing.

Ryoko gave Takahashi Feng a piece of wood and a carving knife, and sat aside to watch and point out where Takahashi Feng had problems.

Gao Qiaofeng originally thought that there would be a lot of waste and a lot of wood would be wasted, but each cut was very delicate, and the wood was not as easy to cut as he had imagined. As a result, he only managed to carve out a rough shape until dinner time. It was very strange that the upper and lower circles did not seem very symmetrical.

"Try to finish every work. Even if you find that you are on the wrong path, you still have to finish it. Do you understand, Xiao Feng?"

After watching Takahashi Kaede for an entire afternoon, except for replying to messages occasionally, she was basically observing and correcting Takahashi Kaede's movements. It can be said that she is worthy of being Xiao Feng, and the progress is almost visible to the naked eye. This further strengthened Ryoko's determination to teach Takahashi Kaede completely.

"I understand." Takahashi Feng responded tiredly.

Carving with full concentration is indeed a physically demanding job. His fingers are so sore now that by now only his thumb has the strength to hold the knife and carve the wood.

Rubbing his hands, Takahashi Feng prepared to go to the kitchen to cook.