The little one's purse connects the two worlds, turning a desolate village into a paradise.

The courtyard fell silent for a moment, then erupted in soft gasps of surprise.

Mudslides and landslides destroyed all the vegetable fields in the village, leaving not a single seed. During this period, people relied on digging wild vegetables to survive.

The land lay barren, and the old man felt empty inside. Without farming, he couldn't feel at ease living.

Now, upon suddenly hearing that vegetable seeds were available, everyone was so excited that their hands trembled.

"Seeds? We have seeds?"

"My goodness, now I can plant vegetables in the garden, and I can finally relax!"

"Ya Ya, you even brought this along..."

"We know about vegetables and radishes, but how do you grow corn? Are there any special techniques? It's a rare crop; it would be such a waste if it wasn't grown well!"

Ya Ya took out another neatly folded piece of paper and handed it to Grandpa Fang: "Grandpa Fang, this was given to me by the auntie at the seed shop. She wrote down how to plant the seeds. Take a look and I'll teach everyone later."

Fang Tiesheng took the paper, and when he opened it, the densely packed small characters made his head spin and his eyes blur.

But this was a task given to him by Ya Ya, and he couldn't let Ya Ya down.

He nodded quickly, "Yes, yes, okay!"

He secretly thought to himself, everyone knows how to get vegetable seeds, but with corn seeds, when the sun is stronger, he can figure it out slowly, and maybe even have Xiaodouzi trace these tiny fly-like characters onto the ground for him to practice.

Once everyone's excitement had subsided a bit, Ya Ya took a small step back, bent down, gently took off her little cotton shoes, sat on the small stool, revealing her soft white cotton socks underneath.

She wiggled her toes and said with a smile, "Ya Ya saw some cotton shoes for sale over there. They're so warm, and they also have socks."

She handed the cotton shoe she had taken off to the village chief so that everyone could pass it around and look at it. "But the shoes have to be bought according to the size of your feet. The auntie at the stall said that if they don't fit, you can't wear them. Ya Ya didn't know how big everyone's feet were, so she only bought socks."

However, I made an appointment with the stall owner, an auntie, to ask about the size before I went to buy it.

She then wiggled her toes to demonstrate the advantages of the socks: "These socks are soft, they don't slip off the heels, and they won't ride up to the toes while you're walking. They're so comfortable to wear."

Everyone felt a surge of excitement once again.

The straw sandals on their feet were worn out one pair after another, and the winter wind would chill them to the bone. No one dared to imagine that they could wear such soft cotton socks and cotton shoes.

Upon hearing this, one would know that it was made of the precious cotton that only wealthy merchants would be willing to buy.

The soles of those black shoes were thick and elastic, and the uppers were made of very thick fabric. The beige stuffing inside was probably cotton from over there. Oh my, it was like a cloud. If you put your hand inside, it would warm up in no time.

Ya Ya took out stacks of clean, snow-white socks and distributed them to each person, one pair at a time.

Little Bean took his little socks, looked at them curiously from left to right, and then stuffed his hands into the socks, making two little white fists.

Little Shuanzi, following suit, also made two small white fists, and the two of them laughed and punched each other.

The adults held the socks in their hands, reluctant to wear them. They were so white and made of such fine fabric. They would wash their feet thoroughly when they got home, making sure their toes were clean before wearing them.

No, my own shoes are dirty too. I'll wait for Ya Ya to bring back the cotton shoes before I can wear a new set.

But when they thought about the shoe size Ya Ya had mentioned, everyone was stumped.

They've spent their whole lives making their own shoe soles and weaving straw sandals. None of them have ever measured their own size, let alone known shoe sizes.

We can't expect Ya Ya to bring a bunch of worn-out shoes to the store and compare them one by one, can we?

Just then, Zhao, the hunter who had been keeping quiet all along, slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "I've got it! Let's twist some straw rope, measure the length of everyone's soles, and then cut the rope to the same length as their soles. The shopkeeper will know what's going on when he sees the rope!"

Everyone was taken aback for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Wow, Tiger, you look so simple-minded, but you're surprisingly quick-witted when it comes to this!"

"Yes, yes, measuring feet with a rope is a good method."

"Ya Ya only needs to bring a straw rope, that's good!"

The courtyard suddenly became lively as everyone went off to find grass on the ground to make ropes. The village chief went up to Ya Ya and put her little cotton shoes on.

"Darling, are those cotton shoes expensive? Will the money from selling wild vegetables be enough to live on?"

He was really worried that they wouldn't have enough money. Little Sprout certainly wouldn't tell anyone; she might go off to work somewhere else to earn money to support them.

Ya Ya tilted her little face up and smiled, her eyes crinkling: "It's not expensive, Grandpa Village Chief, it's fifteen yuan a pair, just five yuan more than the flowery jacket. The socks are ten yuan for ten pairs. Oh, and the stall owner auntie also gave me a few pairs of little socks, they're even thicker than these white socks. You can give them to Xiao Douzi and Xiao Shuanzi."

As she spoke, Ya Ya pulled out a few more pairs of fleece-lined socks and stuffed them into the hands of the village chief.

The village chief felt a pang of sadness and took her little hand: "Ya Ya, why don't you wear it yourself? This is so pretty and warm."

"Ya Ya only needs white socks," the little girl said seriously. "Xiao Douzi and Xiao Shuanzi are boys, they have to support the family."

Upon hearing this, the village chief felt a pang of sadness. This child always thought of others first when it came to good things, and he had even internalized this idea.

He crouched down, looked Ya Ya in the eye, his gaze earnest yet gentle, and spoke to her, word by word:

"My dear, listen to your grandfather. In our Lotus Village, the one who truly holds the reins is you, not anyone else."

"The pillar of our village isn't determined by whether it's a boy or a girl, but by whether they have the ability and the will. Look at your Aunt Lin, she can support a family just as well as any man. What in our village is this now, and why didn't you bring it back? You are the true pillar of our village."

"Our village has never looked down on girls, and it never will. Remember, right now, everything in the village is focused on you first, so you must take good care of yourself. Only when you eat well, dress warmly, and live comfortably will we all feel at ease and be able to benefit from it."

"The money we earn is meant for you younger generation to spend, so you can't skimp on yourselves and give all the good things to others. Xiaodouzi and Xiaoshuanzi are still young. When they grow up, it's their responsibility to earn money and support the family. You don't need to shoulder that burden and make sacrifices at such a young age. They'll be protecting you in the future."

The village chief gently patted Ya Ya's head, his tone softening: "From now on, if you have anything good, use it for yourself first. Eat whatever you want, buy whatever you want. Don't mistreat yourself, okay?"

Ya Ya blinked her big eyes and her little brows furrowed slightly, as if she was carefully digesting what Grandpa Village Chief had said.

She doesn't feel like she's lost out. She's well-fed, warmly dressed, and has even been to such a magical place where she's met so many new uncles and aunts. She's so happy.

In Ya Ya's heart, being able to bring back good things for everyone and see their happy expressions makes her happier than wearing new clothes herself.

She held the village chief's rough fingers in her little hand and shook them gently, her voice soft: "Grandpa, Ya Ya didn't lose out! Ya Ya is even happier to see everyone warm and happy!"

"And... Ya Ya now has new cotton shoes and white socks, making her the happiest little girl in the whole village."

She paused, tilted her head, as if suddenly understanding something, and nodded seriously: "Then... then Ya Ya will remember Grandpa's words. In the future, if there are good things, Ya Ya will keep a little bit for herself first, and then share the rest with everyone. That way... isn't that not treating myself unfairly?"

The village chief patted the little girl on the back, hoping she could understand as much as she could. Children are innocent and kind, and they couldn't force her to become what they thought was good: "Yes, of course, our Ya Ya is the best girl."