Chapter 221: Eating Melon in the Contemporary Literature (Thirty-three)
Gu Ersao was standing at the entrance of the alley. When she saw Gu Qingcheng getting off the jeep, she quickly said something to the neighbor aunt and came over to greet her with a smile.
When she was knitting a sweater, she used a bag, put the wound cotton thread in the bag, and hung the bag on her wrist.
She pulled a thread out of the cloth bag and skillfully knitted it with a knitting needle.
One advantage of doing this is that it doesn't interfere with her knitting, nor does it prevent her from walking around the streets and chatting.
"Xiao Ni, that's the aunt of the Niu family in Dongsi Hutong. Her daughter also works in the machinery factory."
There was a cloth bag hanging on Gu Ersao's wrist, and she was holding Gu Qingcheng with both hands.
He whispered, "I heard that he has a son, but he is weak and can't do heavy work. He can only write and draw at home."
Gu Qingcheng: ...This second sister-in-law is not only deft with her hands, but also with her mouth.
It’s only been a few days and we’ve already established contact with our “neighbors” three blocks away?
She nodded, and caught a glimpse of the semi-finished product rolled up in Gu Ersao's cloth bag out of the corner of her eye and raised her eyebrows.
Noticing Gu Qingcheng's little move, Mrs. Gu smiled and said, "This is what Aunt Feng from West Second Hutong taught me. Those cotton gloves you gave out can never be used up."
"It wouldn't be a waste if I just left it there, but wouldn't it be better to take the gloves apart and use the cotton thread to knit a sweater or a waistcoat or something?"
"This cotton yarn is not as warm as wool, but it is soft and breathable, perfect for Qiaoer to wear!"
Gu Qingcheng smiled and nodded, "When I first went to the moving class, Master Chen there also mentioned it."
"My second sister-in-law is really good with her hands and brain. She has learned it in just a few days."
"Oh, I still have some cotton gloves. After you finish knitting one for Qiao'er, please knit one for Huzi."
Mrs. Gu treated Gu Qingcheng and her daughter with some sincerity, and Gu Qingcheng was willing to take extra care of them.
Hu Zi is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Gu Er, and he is seven years old.
The little guy is chubby and full of energy, just at the age when people hate him and dogs hate him.
As for that piece of clothing, I wore it in the morning and it was "new", but by the afternoon, holes were already worn out on my buttocks and knees.
Fortunately, Hu Zi's clothes were all altered from his parents' old clothes.
Otherwise, given the shrewd and housekeeping nature of Second Sister-in-law Gu, she would have been heartbroken. She also beat Huzi, the naughty child, three times a day.
But despite beating him, Gu Ersao, his biological mother, still loves Hu Zi very much.
As a mother, it is natural for her to hope that her children can be well-dressed and well-fed.
A "sweater", although made of cotton, is a rare and valuable item in the countryside.
Oh, how handsome and stylish would it be if my son could wear it?
After leaving home and coming to take care of her sister-in-law, what Gu Ersao was most worried about was her own children.
Of course, she knew that there was a husband, a mother-in-law, a sister-in-law, and a younger brother and sister-in-law at home.
Tiger will not be treated harshly.
But as a mother, she will worry as long as her child is not around.
It's nothing but motherhood.
"Oh, he's such a naughty boy, it would be a waste of nice clothes for him to wear!"
Mrs. Gu was already moved, but she still pretended to refuse.
Gu Qingcheng smiled more sincerely, "How is it ruined? Second sister-in-law, you have to think about it this way, if there were no clothes, Hu Zi might have been rubbed directly."
In addition to keeping warm, clothes also have a certain protective function.
For someone like Gu Qingcheng who has not experienced hard times and is not used to being frugal, as long as things are "useful", they are not a waste.
Mrs. Gu: ...Huh, you can say that?
However, Mrs. Gu had lived a hard life since childhood. She had only worn a few new clothes until she was thirty years old.
For truly poor people, having clothes worn out is much better than having their skin worn out.
Compared with scarce materials such as cloth and food, people are not that precious.
"...After Xiaoni entered the city and gained some skills, she became a different person. She became so noble and sophisticated."
Although Mrs. Gu did not agree with Gu Qingcheng's statement, she still felt the kindness of her sister-in-law.
She was a competitive person, and she lived well both in her parents' home and in her husband's home thanks to her clever mouth and deft hands.
She prefers to take advantage.
If you don't handle it well, it will probably be as bad as the top grade.
But, in Gu Qingcheng's case, Second Sister-in-law Gu couldn't even think of this——
Before she even had time to make any secret plans, her sister-in-law took the initiative to give her the things.
What else is she making a fuss about?
Even the best have to have dignity.
Under the premise of ensuring her interests, why would Second Sister Gu be willing to throw a tantrum? As for greed?
Oh, she is not stupid. She can still tell the difference between a good meal and every meal.
Just then, Second Sister-in-law Gu was thinking about how to get some cloth for herself, when her younger sister-in-law pointed to a piece of beautiful floral cloth and said, "We went to the printing and dyeing factory this time, and they had some badly printed floral cloth. It would be a pity to throw it away, so they gave it to me!"
"Sister-in-law, I have work clothes issued by my company, but I don't use them on a daily basis. You can use this cloth to make yourself some clothes."
Mrs. Gu: ...
She was so surprised, okay?
I hurriedly opened the stack of cloth, unfolded it, and looked at it carefully. The so-called "bad printing" was just a tiny misprint, which was not obvious at all if you didn't look carefully.
Besides, so what even if it’s obvious?
This is new! No patches!
Mrs. Gu wore a brand new dress when she got married.
It's been several years and she hasn't been able to make a new dress.
Now, after only a few days of going to the city to help my sister-in-law, I—
"Oh, Xiaoni, you can't say that. You usually wear work clothes to work, so can't you wear something nice after get off work?"
"I'd better use this flowered cloth to make you a new coat."
Mrs. Gu said words of concession, but she kept reaching her hand holding the flowered cloth towards Gu Qingcheng.
But from her expression, it can be seen that she really can't bear to do so.
Seeing this, Gu Qingcheng secretly laughed but did not show it.
She raised her delicate and fair face, "It is said that 'clothes make the man, and saddles make the horse'. But, sister-in-law, look at me, do I still need clothes to set me off?"
Mrs. Gu: ...Really! With my sister-in-law's appearance, she would look good even in a sack.
Seeing that Gu Qingcheng had said so much, Second Sister-in-law Gu no longer pretended to give in.
However, she still said happily, "I think this piece of floral fabric is quite large, and can be cut into two pieces of clothing, one large and one small."
The big one naturally belonged to her second sister-in-law, Gu.
As for the smaller one, give it to Qiao Qiao.
Second Mrs. Gu is so smart that she knows who Gu Qingcheng cares about the most.
"clever!"
There is no mistake in the poem, post, content, and read the book on 6, 9, and bar!
Gu Qingcheng secretly admired.
As I said, people can be bad but not stupid.
Gu Qingcheng likes to deal with smart people.
Gu Qingcheng is really generous, and Gu Ersao is really smart.
Therefore, this aunt and sister-in-law get along very harmoniously.
Mrs. Gu played the role of "housekeeper" very competently, ahem, not a nanny.
Because Gu Qingcheng's family has no shortage of people to work.
What Gu Ersao had to do was to watch over the apprentices and do more delicate work.
For example, making clothes, or chatting with the aunties and grandmas around.
Every day when Gu Qingcheng returned home, she could get the latest gossip in the alley from Gu Ersao.
Gu Qingcheng's courtyard is increasingly feeling like home.
…
"Oh! A bicycle?"
"Hua Zi, you are so good that you can even ride a bicycle? Tell me, where did you get it?"
"You didn't pick it up from your master, did you? Be careful with it when you ride it, don't break it!"
That evening, some aunties and grandmas from the compound sat at the door, chatting and looking around.
Don’t underestimate these middle-aged and elderly women. The so-called “bound-foot detective team” refers to them.
If there is any movement around, they will be the first to discover it.
Of course, their original intention may be just pure gossip, but the reasons and process are not important, the result is the most critical.
Sometimes, aunts can always play a magical role!
An old lady looked up and saw someone riding a bicycle towards the entrance of the alley. She squinted her eyes, looked carefully, and found that it was Lu Xinhua from the backyard.
The other aunties also noticed it and stood up, surrounding Lu Xinhua and the bicycle.
The 28-inch bicycle has a very sturdy frame.
The car body is painted with shiny black paint, which looks very imposing.
"Oh, this looks new!"
"Hua Zi, did you buy it?"
The aunties touched the bicycles carefully, with obvious envy and jealousy in their eyes.
"Yeah! Just bought it!"
Lu Xinhua has been working in the automobile class for more than two months.
He finally coaxed his master into taking him out for a long trip.
Just got back yesterday, Lu Xinhua made a lot of money by using the usual tricks used by the drivers.
Lu Xinhua is bolder and more intelligent than his predecessors.
He earns the most from his extra income.
I went to the black market and bought a bicycle ticket, and I actually had some money left over for the bicycle.
Nothing to say, just one word – buy!
As soon as he got off work today, Lu Xinhua went to the department store with money and tickets, and then pushed a Phoenix brand bicycle.
If it were in later times, Lu Xinhua would simply look down on this clumsy and ugly iron thing.
But, in this era, bicycles are comparable to Maybach.
Oh no, that’s not right. It’s even cooler than a luxury car.
Because in later generations, not everyone knows luxury car brands, but in the 1960s, everyone knew the value of a bicycle.
"Huh? Huazi should be considered the first young person in our compound to buy a bicycle."
People seem to compare easily and always like to be "first".
There are more than ten households in the compound, and there are three or four young people of Lu Xinhua's generation.
Neighbors will inevitably compare themselves with their peers.
In the past, Lu Xinhua was not outstanding.
He has good conditions, but his family is a burden.
On the contrary, Qiao Jianguo, who is the same age as him, is more respected than him.
There are also one or two children who are two or three years younger than them. As they graduate from high school and start looking for jobs, they are also qualified to compare with "big brothers" like Lu Xinhua.
"Ma is truly Hua Zi's benefactor. Ever since she slapped him, Hua Zi has become more and more promising!"
"That's right, now he even bought a bicycle!"
The neighbors watched Lu Xinhua riding away on his shiny bicycle and sighed again.
PS: It's Monday again, dear ones, please give us your support!
(End of this chapter)
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