Zhao Futang applied tung oil to the small bed and made four small stools from the remaining wood, which he also carefully applied tung oil to and placed under the wall to air out the smell.
After finishing all that, he was about to return to the village, but Xu Qingning urged him to stay a few more days.
At first, she felt a little awkward when Zhao Futang came, but these days she has gotten used to the lively atmosphere of her home and is willing for him to stay for a while longer, or even longer.
Moreover, Zhao Futang liked to go for a stroll outside in the morning, and would often come back carrying two fish, which improved their meals considerably.
Xu Qingning especially liked the crucian carp soup he made; it was delicious.
“The autumn harvest is almost here. Your older brother works in the city, and your sister-in-law is too busy to manage everything on her own. There’s a lot of work to do just on their private plot.” Zhao Futang couldn’t stay any longer and was eager to go back. “I’ll come back after I finish working in the fields.”
“You should go back.” Yang Yuelan didn’t try to stop her husband, but instead urged him, “The autumn harvest is coming in a couple of days. Your eldest daughter-in-law is all alone at home and can’t manage it all. You need to go back and lend a hand.”
Xu Qingning didn't have much to bring back to Zhao Futang's hometown, so she went to a nearby grocery store and bought a pound of pig's head meat and two pounds of bread, and also bought a pound of sugar for him to take back.
If there are children in the family, when grandfather goes on a long trip, he will usually bring back some good food.
If Yang Yuelan hadn't stopped her, she would have liked to buy more; a dollar or two wouldn't have made a difference.
Yang Yuelan wouldn't let him buy it, saying that he already had everything he needed at home.
Zhao Futang didn't say anything, but he was very happy. He didn't refuse and quietly put everything into his bag, saying calmly that he would come back after the autumn harvest.
After Zhao Futang left, Xu Qingning told Yang Yuelan about her participation in the fashion design competition and asked Yang Yuelan to assist her and become her assistant.
Yang Yuelan was initially worried about Xu Qingning's health, but when she learned that Xu Qingning would still be in charge of drawing patterns as before, and that she would only need to help with the sewing, she readily agreed: "I may not know anything else, but I am very good at making clothes. I will do whatever you say."
Xu Qingning spent more than half a month completing the design, drawing the pattern, and making the specific production process. She then went to the department store with Yang Yuelan to select the fabric.
Because it was a company event, all expenses were covered by the company; she was only responsible for design and production.
Xu Qingning designed a four-season outfit. Considering the aesthetics of this era, she used three main colors: black, blue, and white, with other colors used as accents.
This combination is that every piece of clothing is connected. The outer coat is a black wool winter coat, take off the coat and it becomes a blue autumn trench coat, take off the trench coat and it becomes a white long dress for spring, and then take it off again and it becomes a short-sleeved dress for summer.
The coats and trench coats are not difficult to make; they are designed independently, and once finished, they can be assembled together using zippers.
The designs for the spring cheongsam and summer dress were a bit more complicated because showcasing the clothes required walking the runway, which meant constantly taking off the clothes in a short period of time, leaving no time to go backstage to change.
What she wanted was the kind of shock that each time she took off a piece of clothing would bring to the audience; this combination set of clothes made up of four seasons was absolutely stunning.
After choosing the fabric, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law got busy again, this time behind closed doors, not even leaving the yard.
Xu Qingning was busy cutting, while Yang Yuelan prepared various accessories. The two women were full of energy at the thought of receiving a bonus.
Liu Caixia revealed the prize money to her: 500 yuan for first place, 300 yuan for second place, and 200 yuan for third place.
Ten winners will receive an Excellence Award, which will be a piece of cloth.
Several participation prizes will be awarded, each consisting of a towel.
A person can't get rich without unexpected wealth, and a horse can't get fat without night grass. You can't save much money by just relying on your salary.
"Mom, we must get the 500 yuan bonus." Xu Qingning was very confident. Yang Yuelan's eyes lit up when she heard about 500 yuan. She dared not think about it. "Anyway, we don't have any costs, so any amount is fine."
“How can there be no cost? The cost is huge.” Xu Qingning knew that when Yang Yuelan said there was no cost, she meant that she didn’t spend any money. “The fabric didn’t cost money, but we also put in the labor. My design fee and our labor fee are also costs.”
“I’m just sitting here anyway, so I might as well do something.” Yang Yuelan felt that this little bit of work was nothing. “Once you’re done cutting, I won’t need you anymore. You can rest well, and I’ll take my time. There’s still plenty of time.”
"It's getting late, it's almost the end of October, so there's still a little over a month left." Xu Qingning counted the days on her fingers. "Time really flies."
"Yes, you're getting heavier and heavier, so you have to be careful." Yang Yuelan looked at the fabrics she had spread on the kang (a heated brick bed). "I can also cut things, so let me do it. It's not convenient for you with your big belly."
"No need, the cutting is quick, it'll be finished today." Xu Qingning didn't think it was too difficult. There were only four pieces of clothing, and after drawing the patterns, the cutting was completed quickly.
As the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were chatting, they saw Wang Cuifen leaning against the window: "Why are you keeping the door closed in broad daylight!"
"It's been windy these past few days, so we've kept the door closed." Yang Yuelan went out to open the door, and Wang Cuifen came in. Seeing so much fabric spread on the kang (heated brick bed), she clicked her tongue and said, "No wonder you haven't been going out these days. Have you been making New Year's clothes at home?"
“Yes.” Xu Qingning didn’t want to talk to her about the fashion competition. “The New Year is coming soon, we need to prepare in advance.”
“We need to prepare in advance. You two have a big celebration at the end of the year, and you won’t have time to make clothes.” Wang Cuifen looked at Xu Qingning’s belly and then said, “Jingyu’s wife, haven’t you gone back to your parents’ home these past few days?”
"No, what happened?" Xu Qingning didn't even look up and continued cutting. Wang Cuifen slapped her thigh and said, "I heard it from Liu Yuzhen. She said that Xu Jianguo and his wife had a fight, and Xu Jianguo pushed Jiang Yumei. Jiang Yumei fell down the stairs and broke her leg. She's been in the hospital for the past two days!"
"Oh, I don't know." Xu Qingning was unmoved by the news; what did their family's affairs have to do with her?
“Yesterday, Liu Yuzhen went to the hospital to see Jiang Yumei and said that Tang Wenya has been taking care of her in the hospital for more than ten days!” Wang Cuifen continued gossiping. “Originally, Tang Wenya went back to her parents’ home to have Jiang Yumei take care of her, but who knew that she would have to take care of Jiang Yumei as well? Tell me, what kind of situation is this?”
“After something like this, someone has to take care of you.” Yang Yuelan didn’t know what else to say. “It takes a hundred days to recover from a broken bone. Even if you come back, you’ll need to take good care of yourself.”
Xu Qingning didn't say anything.
No wonder Tang Wenya hasn't made a sound these past two days; she's been taking care of Jiang Yumei at the hospital.
The mother and daughter take care of each other, which is quite good; this is just how fortunes change.
Seeing that the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law were not interested in the matter, Wang Cuifen didn't say anything more. She looked at Xu Qingning with great sympathy and sighed inwardly. The young daughter-in-law was still kept in the dark, which was quite pitiful.
Jiang Yumei stayed in the hospital for more than half a month before returning home. Her legs were wrapped in bandages, and she was still unable to walk normally.
Tang Wenya took several days off to stay with her at the hospital. She was exhausted from those days, and as soon as she got back, she lay down on the bed, not wanting to move at all. The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
Xu Jianguo and Jiang Yumei argued because of Xu Qingning.
If it weren't for Xu Qingning's interference, Xu Jianguo wouldn't have gotten so angry at Jiang Yumei. The two argued and even mentioned divorce.
System: "Host, I've thought about it these past few days. Let's focus on the main storyline and stop getting entangled with Xu Qingning."
The more they get entangled with Xu Qingning, the more unlucky they become.
It would be better to avoid their sharp edge for now and wait for an opportunity to strike.
"You mean, I should go to the provincial capital to find Xiao Tingshen?" Tang Wenya knew what the system meant. "Let's talk about it when he comes back from winter break!"
As November arrived, the weather grew colder and colder, and the elderly women only started to come out to bask in the sun around noon.
The midday sun shone warmly on my skin, making me feel drowsy.
Wang Cuifen sat on a small stool with her hands behind her back, half-closing her eyes. Just as she was about to say something, a tall and burly young man appeared at the entrance of the alley, carrying a suitcase and striding towards her.
"Look! Isn't Zhao Jingyu back?" Zhang Guo exclaimed. "Good heavens, am I seeing things?"
The old ladies were stunned.
They saw it too, what should we do?
Did I see a ghost in broad daylight?
Thank you for the monthly pass, Mengxinxiaweiliang.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com