There was a tailor shop run by a family surnamed Li on the old street, which was famous for a while. Master Li had a unique job cutting clothes for others. He did not use a ruler to measure clothes, but looked at them with his eyes, looked left and right, and tailored clothes based on his memory.
There was a plaque handed down by his ancestors in the hall of his house, which read "Dun Pin Houde", which was the family motto of their old Li family. But God is not long-sighted, such a good person, who has been passed down for several generations.
One day, a young customer came to the tailor's shop. He was not very old, but he was a hunchback. The hunchback young man said that he wanted to make a suit and asked what kind of fabric to use. Master Li took a look and first weighed whether the other party was poor or rich, and his professional knowledge was in preparation for recommending fabrics. But looking around, he couldn't see what he was doing, so he couldn't help but be very strange. So Master Li recommended a mid-range fabric. Although he runs a tailor's shop, he always has a lot of fabrics.
The hunchbacked young man nodded in agreement, paid for the fabric, and asked Master Li to make the clothes. Master Li used his eyes to see the size as usual, and at the same time wrote it down on paper. The young man probably hadn't heard of his "accurate" nickname, so he said, "Can you just use your eyes to see it? What if it doesn't fit?"
Master Li smiled and said, "If it's too big or too small, as long as it's uncomfortable to wear, I'll pay you for the fabric." The young man shook his head: "If the fabric is too small, let's bet ten silver yuan. If it's done properly, I'll pay you ten yuan."
Master Li's heart skipped a beat when he heard that. The person who came was not good, and he looked at the person carefully, but he still didn't see the clue. However, he was brave and said: "Just bet, I will give you ten silver yuan if I lose, and I win, just give me the wages."
After the hunchback young man left, Master Li worked hard and carefully sewed the clothes, which was completed in half a month. The agreement to pick up the clothes was also half a month, but the young man did not come at all. His wife said, "Don't be a liar, this hunchback, he can't sell this dress, where can we find another hunchback?"
Master Li was not happy and said, "The money for the fabric was given. Although we are busy working for nothing, he also has losses. Let it go for three months."
Just as the three months were about to end, something happened at Wang Ji's cloth shop next door. The shopkeeper Wang was a small-minded person. He thought that the vendor who set up a stall at the door was blocking his storefront, so he drove the other party away. The other party refused to do it, and the two quarreled. In an moment of urgency, he broke the vendor's leg. The vendor's family reported to the government, and Shopkeeper Wang was detained by the government. The guys in the store fell apart, and Shopkeeper Wang's wife died for many years, leaving a nine-year-old boy. No one takes care of him now. Master Li couldn't bear it, so he took the child to his shop, asked his wife to take care of him, and taught him tailoring skills when he had time.
After a while, the child missed his father and cried and wanted to visit the prison. Master Li looked pitiful and bought some food, put it in a small basket, and took the child to visit the prison.
In the cell, shopkeeper Wang saw that Master Li not only brought food to visit, but also treated his son so well, that he could not help feeling ashamed and ashamed, and he was hesitant to say anything several times. Master Li didn't care about these things, but just told him that hurting people is not killing people, and he can get out after a few years in prison. It's not too late to get up again.
After visiting the prison, Master Li took the child out of the cell and passed another cell. Suddenly, he saw a young prisoner who looked very familiar. Thinking about it again, wasn't that the hunchback who went to the tailor's shop to make clothes three months ago? But isn't his back hunched?
Master Li stepped forward and asked, "Did you come to my shop to make clothes three months ago?"
The young prisoner shook his head, saying that he had never made clothes and did not know Master Li.
Master Li asked the jailer again why the prisoner was imprisoned. The jailer replied, "He is a liar who cheats, cheats, cheats, and cheats money. He has been in for more than three months, less than four months."
Master Li returned to the shop and thought about it carefully. He felt that his eyes were accurate at first glance, and it was not wrong to look at the size, and it was not wrong to look at the person. The young prisoner was the hunchback, but why didn't he admit it? Thinking of the crime he had committed, his mind suddenly lit up. This guy must have pretended to be a hunchback and came to the shop to cut clothes. After making that bet, he would come to the door half a month later. As long as he kept his waist and didn't hunchback, the clothes he made by hunchback would naturally not fit. In this way, ten silver dollars was cheated. But he was really unlucky, and before he could pick up the clothes, he was imprisoned by the government for other crimes.
Thinking of this, Master Li took out the hunchback suit, changed it overnight, and at dawn, changed it to the body of the young prisoner. He took the clothes into the cell again, saying that it was new clothes for the young prisoner.
The young prisoner put it on skeptically, just the right size. At this time, Master Li said: "If the clothes are wrong, you can change them, and if people make mistakes, you can also change them. As long as you are willing to change your ways, my tailor shop is always welcome."
The young prisoner, who had been imprisoned, was already feeling remorseful. He was deeply moved by her words, so he told the truth. His surname was Li Chi, and his parents had died since he was a child. He had become an orphan, and because no one was in charge, he had embarked on the evil path of deception. Just as Master Li had guessed, he was hired by someone to make trouble in Master Li's tailor's shop. He had deliberately pretended to have a hunchback, not to earn the ten silver yuan, but to ruin Master Li's reputation. As for who hired him, he could never say that he must not betray his employer. This was his principle.
Master Li stopped asking and went back to his tailor shop to continue his business. After two years, one morning when he opened the door for business, he saw a person kneeling outside the door. It was the young prisoner Li Chi. Li Chi said that today was the day he was released from prison, and he felt that he could no longer live the days of the old bastard. He wanted to be a good person and asked Master Li to take him in and learn tailoring skills.
Master Li helped him up and said, "A prodigal son cannot be exchanged for money, so you can start as an apprentice." From then on, Li Chi worked in the tailor's shop. Master Li had no son, only a daughter. After seeing Li Chi change his ways, his ability was very outstanding, and soon learned his ability to be "accurate at a glance", so he married his daughter to him.
After three years, the shopkeeper Wang was also released from prison. He found the tailor's shop, saw that his son had grown into a half-grown boy, and learned a cutting skill, and he was tearing at Master Li. At that time, he told the truth, Li Chi went to the Li family's tailor's shop to make trouble, and he was hired. Because Master Li's tailor shop also sells cloth, and his peers are enemies, he has a small heart and cannot see the prosperity of others. Unexpectedly, Master Li treated people generously, and he was very ashamed. So he simply asked his son to worship Master Li as his adoptive father.
Master Li was originally childless and had no successor, but because he abided by his family's motto and was kind-hearted, he got a half-son and an adopted son. And his tailor shop has been popular on the old street for many years.