Chapter 211 Sister-in-law
When Wen Wan came home from school the next day, she saw Lu Dongcai's new wife in her home, holding Chuyi in her arms, sitting at the door of the kitchen with disheveled hair.
It was already late, and smoke was rising slowly from the chimney above the kitchen. Lu Chun'e called Hu Qingqing "sister-in-law," and Zhang Hongying came out of the kitchen. "You're back. Qingqing has been here for a while. Your aunt sent her here, saying that since you two are not too far apart in age, you should chat. Oh, she brought over some clothes. They were worn by Dongfu a few years ago. They've been washed clean. She said she wanted you to use the loom to alter them. Hurry up! Look at her clothes. The fabric is all ripped from washing. She can't wear them anymore."
Wen Wan agreed and said, "That's not a big deal. Where did you put the clothes? They're still on the light. I'll change them first."
"I'm in your room now. Don't you want to take a rest? We just got home."
Wen Wan waved her hand: "It's okay, let's do it while it's light." After that, she looked at Hu Qingqing and said: "Come up to my room, I'll take your measurements."
Hu Qingqing was unfamiliar with the idea of size, but she nodded subconsciously as she looked at the person in front of her. Her voice was so soft, her smile so gentle and beautiful, and the clothes she wore were also beautiful. She had never seen such a beautiful girl before, and it made people want to get close to her.
Lu Chun'e put down her book bag and came over to hug Chuyi: "Little sister-in-law, you can go with my sister-in-law. She is very fast at operating the sewing machine. It will be done in a short while and you can wear it tomorrow."
Hu Qingqing looked at Chuyi who was carried by her. The little guy was more familiar with Lu Chun'e than with her. When he was in Lu Chun'e's arms, he started to talk "ah ah oh oh". Then he pinched the corner of her clothes and followed Wen Wan into the house.
As soon as I entered, I saw a brand new square table with an emerald green vase on it. There were a few pink flowers in it, which were peach blossoms, and there were also a few epimediums dotted in it. It was so beautiful.
The floor was very flat and swept clean. There was another door on the right, leading to the bedroom, which had a brand new wardrobe, a bed with a canopy, a sewing machine, and more. She had never seen such a bright room in her life, nor had she seen such new and beautiful furniture.
Wen Wan took the clothes that were on the table outside.
The dress was Lu Dongfu's childhood autumn dress. It was dusty, and the collar and cuffs were worn to a pulp, but the body was still in good condition, though the front was a bit torn. It was considered a good dress, and Gao Xiulan had kept it carefully, thinking she would have it for a child when she had one.
The clothes didn't require much effort. Wen Wan compared them to Hu Qingqing. The sleeves were frayed, so she could just hem them. She found some scraps of fabric and sewed a pocket in front. The gray, washed-out navy blue autumn sweater was originally sent by Lu Dongcheng, worn by Lu Dongcai and then given to Lu Dongfu. It was baggy and a little too loose on Hu Qingqing.
Especially the collar, which was too exposed, so Wen Wan took a piece of white cotton and linen cloth to add a collar.
The only sound in the room was the sound of the sewing machine.
Lu Chun'e poked her head in and called Hu Qingqing, "Sister-in-law, come out for a moment."
Hu Qingqing turned to look at her, then looked at Wen Wan. Seeing that she was busy, she did not bother her. She turned and left the room, and asked Lu Chun'e in a soft voice, "Where's Chuyi?"
"My aunt just came over to take it back. Come with me and I'll teach you how to comb your hair.
She was holding two old hair ties in her hands, which she had used before. The one she was wearing now was a new one that Wen Wan bought for her.
He took a comb and asked Hu Qingqing to sit on the bench, then slowly straightened her hair: "Your hair is short and you can't braid it, so I'll give you two small brushes. It's easy, I'll teach you and you'll be able to do it quickly."
Hu Qingqing smiled and said "thank you". Although she had only been here for a day, she felt that the people here were different from those back there, and it felt good.
Lu Chun'e combed her hair and told her how to do it. After tying her hair up, some of it couldn't be tied up in the front, so she simply took a pair of scissors and trimmed it for her, letting it spread in front of her forehead to cover it. Her face, which was not big to begin with, now looked even smaller.
The days are getting longer day by day now, and it is still bright outside after six o'clock.
After combing Hu Qingqing's hair, Zhang Hongying came out of the kitchen. She looked at the two of them and smiled, "She should tie her hair up. It will make her look more energetic." Then she asked Lu Chun'e, "Where's your brother?"
In the past, the four of them almost always came back together.
"I went to Tianbali with Dongfu. Aren't we plowing the fields today? My brother said he wanted to catch eels."
Zhang Hongying said angrily, "There are so many people in the field, and he hasn't been to the fields yet, so why would he go fishing for eels now?"
Lu Chun'e said: "Dad and Donglin are in the fields, so there must be a lot."
Then he asked Zhang Hongying, "Mom, are we going to the fields tomorrow?"
Zhang Hongying said, "Not so fast. Sowing seeds is a man's job. We can still relax in the house for a few days."
As she was talking, Wen Wan came out of the room, holding clothes in her hands and calling Hu Qingqing: "Okay, do you want to try it on? If there is anything that doesn't fit, I can make some changes to suit the machine."
Hu Qingqing took the clothes and thanked her: "I, I'll go back and try changing."
"That's fine." After all, I just arrived and I'm not familiar with this place.
After Hu Qingqing left, Lu Chun'e said, "She is indeed very pretty. Of course, she is not as pretty as my sister-in-law!"
Wenwan laughed.
She added, "He just seems a little timid and shy, and his voice is as soft as a mosquito's."
Zhang Hongying said, "It's natural that I can't relax since I'm not familiar with the place. Li Laiying was also very shy when she came here. I just hope this is a good one."
Hu Qingqing took the clothes back. Gao Xiulan was chopping pig grass at the door with Chuyi on her back. When she saw her come back, she asked, "Have you finished mending the clothes?"
"Okay, sister-in-law, let me try it. If it's not suitable, I'll change it."
Gao Xiulan nodded: "Then you can try it. Wanwan's skill in making clothes is very good, so it shouldn't be inappropriate."
Hu Qingqing glanced at her and thought about the smiling person again. She felt that everyone in the family seemed to like her very much. But when she thought about it, it made sense that no one would dislike such a good and beautiful person.
After she went into the house and put on her newest and best dress since she was a child, Gao Xiulan wiped her hands and looked back and forth: "They added a collar to your dress and asked her to put some patches on it. But she is very skillful. The collar and pockets are very nice. I think it's okay. It's a little fat. She probably didn't make any major changes to it. It's good like this. I'm sure you still have a lot of growth to do. You can wear it if you grow a little bigger."
The doll collar made of white cloth already looked small, and it looked even smaller after changing the clothes and styling the hair.
"Did you thank anyone?"
Hu Qingqing said, "I did." Then she went back into the house and said, "I'll change my clothes and chop grass to feed the pigs."
"No, no need to change, just wear it like this. If you can't bear to part with your clothes, keep them. If you do, you can take them apart when you have time. You can use them to press the soles of your shoes when it's hot. You should help me watch over Chuyi. I'll be done soon."
The people in the fields didn't come back until it was almost dark. Their trouser legs were covered in mud, their feet were swollen from blisters, and they were so cold in their straw sandals that there was no warmth at all.
As soon as Lu Donglin arrived in the yard, he shouted anxiously: "Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, look, there are so many eels and loaches." He went to the fields today to learn how to paste the field ridges with others. He was concentrating on learning from others in the first half of the day, but started to do multiple things in the second half. The things in the baskets he took out were entangled and squirming, which was very creepy.
Lu Dongping raised his hand and called out to him, "Get out of the way, take it away." His wife was so timid that she would have a nightmare if she saw this thing.
Wen Wan didn't go any closer. She was indeed very afraid of this thing, but it tasted delicious.
After soaking their feet in hot water, they each took a bowl to eat under the eaves and chatted while eating.
Lu Donglin spoke the most, and eating didn't affect his speaking speed at all: "I heard that we are going to send educated youth here again."
Lu Mingjiang asked him, "You've been with me all day. Who told you that? How come I don't know?"
"Don't disbelieve me, this is real, everyone's talking about it! We already have so many educated youth in our team. We had a year of adjustment last year, and things are finally getting better this year, and now they're coming again. We had so many problems last year, each one more serious than the last, and now they're coming again. How can we live in peace anymore?"
Wen Wan asked him, "You have a deep prejudice against educated youth!"
Lu Donglin was stunned for a moment, but the rice in his mouth did not prevent him from denying it: "No, no."
The days are getting warmer, and once the seeds are planted, they will grow faster.
The things in the fields grew rapidly, and people became busy.
Lu Chun'e and Wen Wan carried baskets and went up the mountain together. Oh, and there was also Hu Qingqing. The three of them went up from Hongliaogou to the bamboo forest below Maoerling to pick bamboo shoots.
April has arrived in a flash, and it's not just bamboo shoots that are popping up, but also fern moss. Anyway, as long as it's edible, I'll grab whatever I can find.
When we got to know each other, I found that Hu Qingqing was a girl who loved to talk and laugh, and she also liked to ask a lot of questions.
Because I grew up in the deep mountains and forests, I feel like a fish in water once I enter the mountains.
The most shocking thing was that she was not afraid at all of the pot of eels that Lu Dongcai brought back last time. She asked Gao Xiulan for a pair of scissors and took them to the bamboo forest. She didn't need Lu Dongcai or Lu Dongfu to help at all. She finished it in a short while, very skillfully.
Wen Wan was shocked when she heard this.
What she didn't know was that Hu Qingqing's past life was even harder than she had imagined. She did as much work as others, but had never had a proper meal. She ran around in the mountains all day long, eating everything she knew to be edible. When she was extremely hungry, she even caught frogs and snakes. What was an eel?
In this season, bamboo shoots have just emerged, each one as thick as a finger. They are easy to break but difficult to peel.
Wen Wan thought that the thing was too heavy, so she would pick a pile of it on the mountain and then sit there to peel it. After peeling it, she would pick more of it. She would go back and blanch the tender yellow bamboo shoots in boiling water, then put them outside to dry, or pickle them. This was not her job.
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