After Dressing Up As a Stepmother, I Transformed the Whole Family Into Working In the Fields

Chapter 8 Selling Straw Sandals

Qin Yao made boiled taro for dinner.

Even though she brought back two sacks full of taro, there were five mouths in the house, and each of them was starving to death. After two meals of about fifty kilograms of taro, only half of it was left.

Qin Yao had restrained herself and did not dare to eat more. Otherwise, she would not be able to eat even half of it if she was eighty percent full.

 After they were full, Liu Dalang and the others found that there was only a little food left, and they regretted that they had not restrained themselves.

Qin Yao didn’t think so much. There were still a lot of taros in the mountains. If they were all dug back, they should be able to eat them for a month.

 She doesn’t have to worry about starving to death in the short term.

 It means that taro cannot be stored under the current temperature and humidity conditions, so you have to dig it out when you want to eat it.

Qin Yao was glad that no one here would eat it, otherwise the free rations would have been wasted.

 At night, Qin Yao, who had eaten and drank enough, began to knit straw sandals by the torch.

 It was a bit unfamiliar at first, but once you get used to it, your hand speed will become very fast.

The twin brother and sister yawned again and again. Qin Yao asked them to go to bed, but they refused. They looked at the straw sandals in her hand eagerly, waiting to wear new shoes.

Qin Yao felt distressed and helpless, so she let them go.

The villagers here have no nightlife at all. In order to save money on lighting, they go to bed after dark.

Liu Ji's family lived in a remote place, and there was silence all around. Only the howlings of wild beasts on the mountain could be heard from time to time.

Possibly due to such an atmosphere, Dalang and Erlang suddenly remembered their **** father who was being carried away. They glanced at Qin Yao weakly and hesitated to speak.

Finally, Dalang couldn't hold it back and was about to ask Qin Yao when he would redeem his father. Qin Yao completed the first pair of straw sandals and handed them to him.

“The old and the young are in order, this pair will be given to Dalang first.” After Qin Yao finished speaking, she picked up the straw rope and continued to weave the second pair.

  She was also very tired this day, and after knitting another pair for herself, she was ready to rest.

 Da Lang had to hold back the question that reached his mouth.

However, seeing this pair of tightly woven straw sandals that looked very sturdy and easy to wear, the young boy was surprised and took the sandals off the table. Under the envious eyes of his younger brothers and sisters, he placed them at his feet for signs.

I don’t know whether Qin Yao did it intentionally or not, but the size is just right.

 These are a pair of thong-toed straw sandals. Although they are far inferior to cloth shoes, they are already the best for Dalang who has almost no shoes to wear.

 He picked up the straw sandals, looked at them again and again, and finally held them in his arms cherishingly, planning to wash his feet before wearing them again tomorrow.

 Although Erlang and the three of them were also envious, they knew that they all had a share, so they waited patiently.

 It’s a pity that Qin Yao only makes two pairs tonight.

 The three brothers and sisters could only regretfully go back to the house to sleep and look forward to tomorrow.

 Early the next morning, Qin Yao put on new straw sandals, ate two leftover taros cooked yesterday, and went out with a hoe.

Liu Dalang was awakened by the movement when she got up and wanted to go with her, but Qin Yao refused.

It would be faster for her to go alone. Liu Dalang followed, but she had to spare her energy to take care of him.

Qin Yao left early and came back early. He dug two pockets of taro and came back.

Her goal at this stage is to get better as soon as possible and let the wild beasts in the mountains go for the time being. She will come back after she recovers and gets all the equipment.

 So after digging three days’ worth of taro, I decided to go down the mountain.

After all, the body is the capital of revolution, and we can’t mess with this body too much just yet.

 The children at home have already made breakfast and will not start eating until she comes back.

This was beyond Qin Yao's expectation. She didn't expect that the four brothers and sisters would prepare meals and wait for her.

 Perhaps because she brought the food back, she has the right to distribute it by default. The remaining taro from yesterday was half boiled, weighing about eight or nine kilograms. Qin Yao divided the big heads into portions, and the four children divided them according to their food intake.

 Si Niang clings to A Niang and feeds her from time to time.

Qin Yao took a small bite willingly, and the little girl laughed so hard that her eyes rolled up. She put her little head on her back and happily ate the sweet and glutinous taro in small bites.

 After breakfast, with the expectant looks of Erlang and his three children, Qin Yao picked up the straw rope and started the day's craft work.

This time I had more time, so I finished three small straw sandals in one day, and also made an extra pair of adult-sized shoes.

Several children washed their feet very carefully, put on new shoes, and walked around the yard with a satisfied look on their faces.

Looking at Qin Yao, the stepmother, there was a hint of intimacy in their eyes that they were not even aware of.

Erlang walked over with new shoes, looked at the extra pair of straw sandals, and asked tentatively:

“Auntie, can I take these shoes to the village and sell them?”

Qin Yao’s first reaction was surprise, “Can this be sold?”

Erlang was not sure, but he wanted to give it a try, "Even if you can't sell it for money, it's good to be able to provide some food for the family."

Qin Yao didn't expect this kid to have such a business acumen. It may be that poverty forced them to learn how to survive early.

 Qin Yao nodded and agreed.

Erlang greeted his eldest brother and the twins in surprise. The four brothers and sister carefully held the pair of straw sandals and walked towards the most lively well in the village.

The water tank at home was empty again. Qin Yao picked up the lonely bucket in the corner, locked the door, followed the four siblings, and went to fetch a bucket of water.

 She had no expectations that the four brothers and sisters would be able to sell their straw sandals, but she did not interfere and watched secretly.

Unexpectedly, after Erlang hawked for a while, people actually came around to look at the straw sandals, and after some bargaining, they got a handful of green vegetables and a loofah.

 The four brothers and sister were so surprised that they hurriedly took the vegetables they had exchanged and ran to Qin Yao to ask for credit.

Qin Yao smiled and raised her thumbs at the four people. Looking at the back of the woman changing into straw sandals, she had an idea in her mind.

Perhaps, she can make a few more pairs of straw sandals and exchange them with the villagers for some daily necessities.

Such as oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, tea, pots and pans, and seasonal vegetables grown by farmers themselves. They may have plenty of these things, but she just needs them.

Liu Ji's family is poor, and Qin Yao has complained enough about it yesterday.

The whole family couldn't find five pairs of complete dishes and chopsticks, and there was only one bucket to fetch water. The water tank was so small that she had to fetch water four or five times a day, which was a waste of time.

“Let’s set a small goal first and come back in exchange for a barrel and a pole.”

Early in the morning, Qin Yao stood in front of the four brothers and sisters with her hands behind her back and spoke seriously, as if she were a military training instructor.

 Dalang and Erlang nodded seriously, full of enthusiasm.

The twin brother and sister were still young, and they nodded their little heads in confusion, looking like they were ready for battle.

Qin Yao raised her lips and smiled, looking at Dalang and Erlang, "Let's borrow some straw from your father's field first, and then pay him back after making money. What do you think?"

The two brothers looked at each other and without any hesitation, turned and ran towards Old Man Liu's field.

 A family of five, with a strict division of labor.

Dalang and Erlang are responsible for transporting raw materials, Sanlang and Siniang are responsible for pre-processing, and Qin Yao is responsible for twisting the straw rope.

 In less than a day, a large roll of straw rope was piled up in front of the house, enough to make at least ten pairs of straw sandals.

As the sun set, Dalang and Erlang ran back out of breath and empty-handed to report: "Auntie, all the straw in the field has been moved!"

Qin Yao looked at the large rolled straw rope next to her, and then at the pile of straw piled in the house. She nodded, relieved them of their carrying tasks, and transferred to the rope-twisting guidance group, striving to get the first batch of straw ropes piled up early tomorrow morning. Take out the straw sandals!

 (End of this chapter)