She simply couldn't understand why Xie Yan, who already had leather shoes and sneakers, still had such a strong preference for cloth shoes.
After hearing Yu Yuehui's question, Xie Yan couldn't help but laugh and patiently explained, "Wife, leather shoes may look nice, but they're not practical!"
"You have no idea, wearing these in the summer is like having your feet in a steamer. They're unbearably hot, and sweat keeps pouring out. It's so miserable!"
Yu Yue listened with a look of surprise, her mouth slightly open, revealing an expression of incomprehension. In her mind, leather shoes were so expensive that they should be of very high quality, so how could they have such a defect!
Then he asked, "Then why were you still wearing leather shoes all last year?"
Looking at Yu Yuehui's adorable expression, Xie Yan's fingers were itching to pinch her cheeks, but he resisted the urge and said with a smile, "That's because I don't have cloth shoes!"
Yu Yue scratched her head. "I saw that you educated youth all wore leather shoes and sneakers. I thought you city people didn't wear cloth shoes!"
Xie Yan covered his face. Could he say that all of them, the educated youth, were rather pretentious?
When we went to the countryside, we always picked out the best ones to take!
Who would carry cloth shoes?
He thought to himself that even if he didn't wear the leather shoes anymore, he could sell them secondhand. If he wanted to buy cloth shoes, he could just buy them from his fellow villagers.
So when he went to the countryside, he really didn't bring a single pair of cloth shoes.
After marrying Yu Yuehui, he was too embarrassed to bring it up since they were newly married. Moreover, Yu Yuehui was so busy every day, so he was even more embarrassed to ask her to make shoes for him.
Later, when it got cold, I completely forgot about it.
Seeing Aunt Wu selling cloth shoes now, I suddenly realized that I've never had any cloth shoes to wear.
Upon hearing this, Yu Yue laughed so hard her eyes narrowed into slits, teasing, "Isn't this a case of suffering for the sake of saving face?"
"Last year I always thought you just didn't like wearing cloth shoes!"
"Don't do that again! If there's anything wrong, just say so. We're husband and wife!"
"Do you and your husband know?" she said, gently poking Xie Yan's chest.
"If you had told me sooner, I could have made it for you in two nights!"
Yu Yue gave Xie Yan a reproachful look, but her eyes were full of concern. "In the future, if you have something on your mind, don't keep it to yourself. Just speak up."
"Don't keep making me guess. I'm not a mind reader; I might guess wrong someday!"
Xie Yan laughed sheepishly, scratched his head, and said, "I had just gotten married back then, and I was too shy to ask."
"If it were now, I would definitely tell you right away!"
"Besides, I thought you didn't know how to make shoes, I've never seen you pick up a needle and thread."
Upon hearing this, Yu Yuehui tossed her hair and said with a defiant look on her face, "Hmph, apart from reading and writing, there really aren't many things that can stump me!"
Seeing this, Xie Yan smiled and leaned closer to Yu Yuehui, saying earnestly, "Then please trouble my all-around capable wife to make me two pairs of cloth shoes!"
Yu Yuehui proudly raised her head, deliberately dragging out her words: "Well... that depends on my mood!"
After saying that, she tossed her braid and took the lead, walking out with light steps.
Xie Yan hurriedly caught up with her and walked alongside her, gently touching Yu Yuehui's shoulder.
When Yu Yue turned around and looked at him, he raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "I'll treat you to a big meat bun!"
Yu Yuehui chuckled and readily agreed, "Alright! I'll make you three pairs for the sake of the big meat buns!"
Xie Yan chuckled softly upon hearing this and quickly replied, "Thank you, wife! Let's go eat some meat buns!"
After all, eating meat buns was something they had already agreed upon.
The two of them, carrying meat buns, walked and ate as they turned a corner.
Yu Yuehui's eyes lit up instantly when she spotted a vat vendor selling jars. She excitedly grabbed Xie Yan's arm and said, "Come on, let's go check out the jars!"
The jar at home was no longer enough, and Xie Yan especially loved to eat lard, so the jar of lard at home was simply not enough. Yu Yuehui had been planning to buy a new jar for a long time.
I saw a really nice one today, so I just bought it on a whim.
Xie Yan looked in the direction Yu Yue had pointed, pondered for a moment, and said, "Let's buy two large ones and a few small ones."
"The old pickle jar wasn't enough, so I'll buy a few more this time."
“We have an oxcart, so we’re not worried about not being able to get it back.”
Yu Yue nodded in agreement: "Okay!"
The two of them walked a few steps to the stall selling jars.
Yu Yuehui clearly recognized the stall owner, and greeted him with a smile as she called him "Uncle," then chatted warmly with him about the jars.
Watching the two people in front of him chatting enthusiastically, Xie Yan followed silently behind, without saying a word.
He really didn't know what to say, after all, he knew nothing about water jars, so he figured he could just follow the experts.
Soon, Yu Yuehui reached an agreement with the stall owner on the price.
After paying, they told the stall owner they would come back to pick up the jar later, and then the two turned and walked to other parts of the market.
For the rest of the time, Xie Yan took Yu Yue back, and the two strolled from one end of the street to the other.
The thank-you banquet featured many delicious dishes that I had never seen before.
He found everything novel and couldn't resist buying a few.
Before they knew it, they had bought quite a lot of things. By the time they finished shopping at the market, they were carrying bags and packages full of items.
Of course, most of the things were carried by Yuehui.
This wasn't Xiliu Village. Many people at the market didn't recognize Yu Yuehui. They only saw Xie Yan, a grown man, carrying only a few things in his hands, while his wife carried the rest of the heavy items. They couldn't help but cast disdainful glances at Xie Yan.
That look in his eyes practically screamed that Xie Yan was a gigolo who lived off women.
Xie Yan is no longer the same person he used to be; he can completely ignore such gazes.
After the two finished shopping, Xie Yan felt as if his legs were filled with lead, and he was exhausted.
He took out his pocket watch and checked the time; it was only a little past three.
Many villagers are still strolling around with great interest.
The agreed meeting time was 4 o'clock.
When Yu Yue returned and saw that Xie Yan was exhausted, she ignored everyone else and made the decision to head back.
The two arrived at the place where the oxcart was parked and carefully tied the things they had bought onto the bicycle one by one.
After tying him up, Yu Yuehui worried that Xie Yan was too tired, so she let him take the oxcart back, while she rode her bicycle away first.
Buying New Year's goods this time almost killed Xie Yan.
After returning home, he collapsed onto the kang (a heated brick bed) and lay there for two whole days before his exhausted body recovered somewhat.
On New Year's Eve, Xie Yan finally mustered his energy and got up to get busy.
They spent Chinese New Year with Gu Bin this year.
So early in the morning, just as dawn was breaking, Gu Bin and Zhang Linghui arrived, laughing and chatting all the way, to help with making New Year's goods.
Oh! I almost forgot to mention that Xie Yan and Yu Yue only visited the market on the 27th, and haven't been back since.
Gu Bin, like a peacock spreading its tail feathers, would enthusiastically ride his bicycle to the market every day with Zhang Linghui on the back.
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