Chapter 12 is where I suffered the loss.
Reading by the bright window, Yao Fanghua, clutching a hot water bottle, felt much better. Reaching out to touch the hanging curtains, she realized they resembled old bedsheets from her childhood—two different sheets sewn together to form a curtain.
"Mom, I want curtains too." Yao Weimin protested. He loves to sleep in, and this morning the neighbors all saw him sleeping with his head down. Their eyes kept scanning in and out. Luckily, he was covered by a blanket. If it were summer, it would be terrible. He always sleeps naked.
"What do you need curtains for, you big guy?" There was no sewing machine at home, though her sister-in-law did have one, but they'd had a little argument yesterday, so she was too embarrassed to borrow it. Instead, she went to the Yu family's house, swallowing her pride. Bai Hui's husband, Yu Chengwen, was a low-level supervisor at the machinery factory. Their children were also successful: their eldest son was a policeman, their younger son was in the army, and their daughter was in the factory's arts troupe. Bai Hui's childhood wasn't as good as hers. They were neighbors when they were little; she had new clothes, but Bai Hui didn't. Her mother was a good cook and earned money, but Bai Hui's mother didn't. She vividly remembered Bai Hui standing at the door, snotty-nosed, dressed in dirty, tattered clothes, eyeing the white sugar cake in her hand. Who would have thought that after getting married, Bai Hui's life would change for the better, and she'd become increasingly aloof, always treating Li Chunying with cold indifference and contempt. This disparity already made Li Chunying uncomfortable. Now, she felt even more resentful, a nameless anger simmering within her.
"I don't care, I just want curtains! If you don't make them for me, I'll go out and buy them!"
"You little brat, you think you're all grown up now!" Li Chunying grabbed a broom and started hitting him, chasing him all the way into the yard. "If you dare to waste money, I'll break your legs."
Bai Hui happened to come out to take out the trash. She pursed her lips and said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, but clearly audible, "Chunying, you didn't clean up properly after using the sewing machine yesterday. You left a lot of fabric scraps on the floor. Please be careful next time."
Li Chunying hummed in agreement, then turned and went back into the house. As soon as she got inside, she felt her eyes tighten, and tears streamed down her face. "Serves you right for borrowing from someone else! Serves you right for borrowing from someone else! You deserve to be looked down upon, you deserve to be talked about!"
Bai Hui spoke so condescendingly, humiliating her, and all she did was grunt in response? That was it? She knew she was just a bully at home. Yao Fanghua slammed her pen against the table. Her sharp eyes swept over Yao Fangyuan, who was curled up on the bed knitting.
Yao Fangyuan shuddered, feeling inexplicably afraid. "Sister, should I go out and yell at her? Her son is a policeman, and Uncle Yu is Dad's foreman. Should I say something indirectly?"
Yao Weimin stood in the yard scratching his head. "Aunt Bai, how about I take this trash out for you?"
Bai Hui smiled and said, "I don't need you. Go and have some fun."
Yao Fanghua closed the book, carefully put away the sketches, and placed them in the safe. She slung her bag over her shoulder, intending to go out to buy a sewing machine. The overseas Chinese store should still be open.
Just then, Wu Peng carried a bag of wood into the yard. Tomorrow is the New Year, and he brought the bag of wood over so he could rest in the afternoon.
"Weimin, is your sister home?"
"Yes, I'm reading inside."
Wu Peng gritted his teeth. "Reading books, huh? He has books too! Fine, I'll go back and start reading tonight. I refuse to believe I can't outsmart her."
Wu Peng finally went to the Overseas Chinese Store and saw the watch with the same letters. Seeing the price, he knew he'd been ripped off. He slapped himself hard. He felt he'd suffered from ignorance. After browsing the Overseas Chinese Store, he couldn't shake the feeling of being cheated, constantly thinking about how he could get his money back from Yao Fanghua.
"Hua Hua, I brought you some wood."
Yao Fanghua put the bag back in the safe. How could she forget about Wu Peng, who had abandoned the whole yard? It was so wrong of her.
"Pengpeng is here?" Yao Fanghua said, seeing that Yao Fangyuan was dressed fairly neatly. "Come in, it's too cold outside."
That "Hua Hua" was disgusting enough, but her sister's "Peng Peng" gave Yao Fangyuan goosebumps. Her knitting hands moved even faster.
Wu Peng came in with a smile, carrying a bag, and laid out the wood on the floor. "See if any of this is usable."
Yao Fanghua looked at it and said, "No."
Wu Peng choked, "Look again, these are my..." They really were just a few pieces of scrap wood he'd picked up casually. Under Yao Fanghua's unwavering gaze, he couldn't bring himself to exaggerate.
"Alright, keep it for your aunt to use for firewood. I'll give it to her." She'd given up, not giving him any chance to get away with it.
As soon as Wu Peng arrived, Li Chunying became wary, fearing that the young man would try to swindle her money again. She still couldn't get over the fact that he dared to sell two broken cabinets for 150 yuan. Seeing that Yao Fanghua hadn't spent a penny and had even received a bag of wood, she felt a little better.
Yao Fanghua: "Aren't you going to collect recyclables this afternoon?"
"I'm not going. I'll take a break and we'll talk about it after the New Year." He can rest for half a month.
Yao Fanghua: "Do you have a sewing machine?"
"Yes, I have TVs. But they're all old things." Many of them were smashed; during the chaos of previous years, many homes were vandalized, and now people are gradually bringing them out to sell. He's collected quite a lot of broken jade and porcelain shards. The scrap yards wouldn't accept broken jade, porcelain, or bottles, but he'd take anything, and dare to take anything. He's mixed many good items in as scrap.
"Let's go to your place." Yao Fanghua picked up her toolbox, called Yao Weimin, and the three of them went out together.
Li Chunying was worried, so she chased after Yao Fanghua to the gate and told her not to spend money recklessly.
"Don't worry, Auntie. With your daughter like that, I'm the one who'll suffer." I'll lose about a thousand yuan!
Li Chunying berated him, saying that he was at a disadvantage being with her daughter? Shameless! Dream on!
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