Chapter 31: Everyone Pitches In, Crocheting to Make Big Money

Chapter 31: Chapter 31: Everyone Pitches In, Crocheting to Make Big Money

The villagers obediently lined up in the Yun Family’s courtyard. No one dared to utter a single word, terrified of disturbing the Goddess.

The Village Chief usually only sounded the gong for major announcements. The last time it rang, he declared that Yun Zhen had become the Goddess, giving the entire village a glimmer of hope for survival. Their intuition told them today’s gathering was inextricably linked to her as well. Had she found more fresh food?

The more the villagers thought about it, the more excited they became, their faces flushing red.

"I’ve called everyone here today because the Goddess has an announcement to make!" the Village Chief’s authoritative voice echoed in every villager’s ears.

The villagers immediately voiced their support.

"Goddess, just give the order!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Whatever you ask of us, everyone in Taoyuan Village will obey absolutely."

"We wouldn’t dare disobey your words."

The Village Chief pressed his hands down to quiet the crowd. "Settle down, everyone! Let the Goddess speak!"

The crowd clamped their mouths shut.

Yun Zhen’s voice was gentle yet clear. "I’ve found a job from the Immortal Realm that anyone in the village who knows needlework can learn. If we do it well, we might earn a lot of money! Once we have money, you won’t have to drink watery gruel and eat vegetable leaves anymore. We’ll eat white rice. You won’t have to wear tattered clothes stuffed with willow catkins. I’ll buy you cotton clothes from the Immortal Realm, along with the heating stoves specifically used by the immortals."

To the villagers, this was news worthy of a universal celebration!

"AHHHHHH!" someone screamed in excitement.

"This is wonderful! The Goddess actually found jobs for us from the Immortal Realm! We have to do our best, earn big money, eat white rice, wear cotton clothes, and buy heating stoves!"

"Our Taoyuan Village has finally made it! Not only did we produce a merciful Goddess who saved us from suffering by giving us gruel and fresh vegetable leaves, but now she’s going to lead us to eat white rice and wear cotton clothes. I can’t believe we’re so lucky!"

THUD! THUD!

One by one, the villagers dropped to their knees. Some wept hot tears of emotion, while others laughed out loud in sheer elation. Without exception, their faces were brimming with gratitude and hope for a beautiful future.

"The Goddess saves us from misery and delivers all living beings! Our Taoyuan Village is willing to worship you for generations to come. You are our eternal faith!"

Watching the villagers’ extreme joy and excitement, the Village Chief also couldn’t hold back his tears. Their Taoyuan Village was truly blessed by the heavens!

"Goddess, please accept our sincere gratitude!"

Regardless of age or gender, the villagers began kowtowing to Yun Zhen.

Yun Zhen wasn’t as startled as she had been the last time. Instead, she was filled with profound emotion and an unwavering determination to fulfill her beautiful promises to them as soon as possible.

Yun Zhen smiled faintly. "Get up, everyone, and let me finish. I haven’t even told you what the job is or how we’ll make money, yet you’re already kneeling."

The villagers rose to their feet, though they still couldn’t suppress their bubbling excitement and joy.

"Goddess, may I ask what kind of job requires people who know needlework? Is it something like embroidering handkerchiefs or mending clothes?" the Village Chief’s niece, Li Cuilan, asked softly.

There were quite a few people in the village skilled at needlework. Women made up the majority, but some dextrous men also knew their way around a needle and thread.

Yun Zhen shook her head. "It’s not embroidering handkerchiefs or mending clothes. It’s crochet!"

"Cro-tray?"

Someone voiced their confusion. "What is a cro-tray... Is it a type of tray? Are we going into the woodworking business?"

"Goddess, how do we make this cro-tray?"

Yun Zhen corrected them, "It’s crochet. It involves using a few small, long hooks and a special bundle of thick yarn to weave things into shape. They’re called crochet dolls.

"Just think of it as weaving baskets. I’ll teach you properly in a bit. It’s very easy to learn. However, since these items are meant to be sold, they must be made beautifully. Only then can we sell them for more money!"

"Weaving baskets?" Hunters Wang excitedly raised his hand. "Goddess, I know how to weave baskets."

Carpenter Zhao also said joyfully, "I know how too! I do the carpentry for the village, so weaving baskets is a piece of cake for me."

Grandpa Zhang said in a trembling voice, "No one in the village weaves baskets better than this old man."

The Village Chief said to Yun Zhen, "Doesn’t that mean Grandpa Zhang, Carpenter Zhao, and Hunters Wang can do it too? Even if we don’t know the technique of weaving baskets, we can learn."

Yun Zhen explained it to them, "Weaving baskets has little to do with crochet. I was just giving an example.

"What I meant is that crochet is similar to basket weaving in concept. Basket weaving starts with a single willow branch, while crochet starts with a single thick thread. They aren’t directly related, but the principle is much the same. Crochet requires people capable of doing fine, detailed work."

The villagers understood. It meant this lucrative job could only be done by those skilled at needlework.

Yun Zhen addressed their most pressing concern. "I found out in the Immortal Realm that a crochet doll half the size of a palm can sell for twenty cents. A slightly more exquisite one—like a doll wearing a skirt and a flower crown—can sell for sixty cents. If you make cartoon dolls that are popular among most people in the Immortal Realm, they can sell for one hundred cents. And if you have the skill to create something completely novel, it can sell for three hundred, five hundred, or even six hundred cents!"

Now they surely understood, right?

BOOM!

The revelation was deafening! The villagers exploded into an uproar!

What? Could these crochet dolls really sell for that much money? Twenty cents! Sixty cents! One hundred cents! Three hundred, five hundred, or even six hundred cents!

The women were astounded. They had never heard of a job that could earn so much money. They had always envied the families capable of raising chicks; with a hen laying eggs at home, a family could save an extra hundred-plus cents a month after covering household expenses. With the job the Goddess had brought from the Immortal Realm, even if they only made one small doll a night, they could earn twenty cents. In a month, that would be six hundred cents.

This was truly divine! Absolutely divine!

The men were equally shocked. When they went to the county docks to haul cargo, they worked themselves to the bone for a mere 80 cents a day. Those lucky enough to get a job as a waiter at the town tavern only made thirty cents a day. Yet, a single crochet doll from the Immortal Realm could bring in over a hundred cents.

Their hearts churned with a complex mix of emotions. Then, wild ecstasy washed over them!

The Goddess truly possessed boundless Divine Skills. They might actually get to eat white rice and wear cotton clothes!

"Goddess! Please teach us how to make these dolls. We will definitely listen to your guidance!" Li Cuilan couldn’t wait to learn this highly profitable craft.

The others were just as eager. Every single person wore an expression of intense longing, their eyes sparkling like bright lanterns.

"That’s right! It’s not just the women in our village who know needlework; some men do too."

"I know needlework too!" Zhou Dashan stretched his arm high into the air.

"Not only do I know needlework, but I can also embroider! The handkerchiefs carried by the young ladies in the county town might just have been embroidered by me!" Tian Ergou squeezed his way to the front in his eagerness.

His elderly mother had been an embroiderer in her youth, supplying goods to the embroidery pavilions in the county town. Hoping her son could earn a little more when he grew up, she had taught him embroidery from a young age. While Tian Ergou wouldn’t claim his embroidery was masterful, any piece he took to the county town was always purchased by the pavilions.

After a final tally, there were surprisingly sixty people in the village who knew needlework. Among men, women, the elderly, and the young, almost every demographic had someone skilled with a needle.

Yun Zhen said, "Alright. Ten people can come every evening, and I will teach you how to crochet. The Village Chief will arrange who comes on the first day, who comes on the second, and so on."

The crowd had no objections.

The Village Chief pointed at the group. "Today, Cui Lan, Dashan, Er Gou, Daya, Erya... you ten will learn the craft from the Goddess."

The ten people called upon by the Village Chief held their breath. They secretly hyped themselves up, determined to master this lucrative craft. This was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!