In the little courtyard, Song Ying sat on a low stool trimming vegetables, while in the kitchen Huang Ling poured the washed rice into the pot and lit the fire.
When Huang Ling came out of the kitchen, Song Ying looked up and could not help asking, "Sister Ling, these days we cook as soon as we get off work, and after dinner we have the whole evening free, enough to drive us stir-crazy. Have you ever thought about doing some handicraft work too?"
"I actually have," Huang Ling replied. "Don't laugh, but I went over to the Zhang family's place a couple of days ago to have a look. The stitching their daughter-in-law uses for her handicrafts is a little different from what we usually do, but it's simple enough. She makes cup coasters that sell for two yuan each. If you're quick, you can finish one a day.
"I also heard that orders for sweaters, towels, and scarves pay ten or twenty-something yuan apiece. Over a month, you can earn more than your factory wages!"
Song Ying nodded eagerly. "I heard that too. Someone from that household by the alley entrance was even showing off about it at the factory today. Hearing that was what gave me the idea."
She paused, then added in puzzlement, "Sister Ling, there's something I just don't understand. Yiming brought back all those handicraft orders. He even gave some to Wang Chaoyuan's family, so why hasn't he come and mentioned a single word to us? At New Year, Yiming and Xiangyang came over together, saying Wu Feng had helped them enormously and insisting on giving him a watch as thanks. We just didn't accept it. Now that they've found a way to make money, they've forgotten us instead? Surely refusing their gift couldn't