Since the other person had reached out and handed it to her, Zhang Shuzhen couldn't refuse, so she could only politely accept it.
Why are you being so formal with us?
When my two wives gave birth, you saved up some flour from your own mouth and gave us about ten pounds of it.
"It's all the same thing, let's not stand on ceremony." Qin Qiuyan laughed as soon as she heard that.
The Sheng family and the Liu family have a relationship here. When Liu's daughter-in-law gave birth, Zhang Shuzhen also sent a lot of things.
When people get along, it's all about reciprocity. If you're good to me, I'll be even better to you, and the more we interact, the closer we become.
Just then, there was another commotion outside. Zhang Shuzhen went out to see what was happening and found that Xu Xiuxiang had brought Zhao Juan in. She quickly invited them inside.
Just as Xu Xiuxiang and her mother-in-law sat down and chatted with Qin Qiuyan and the others, Chen Xiuzhi and Li Xue, Zhao Chunlan, Li Yuqin, and Tang Fengying, as well as Liu Yue'e, Pan Fusheng's mother, Zhao Fuzhi, Zhang Zhijun's mother, and Tao Chunhong, Wang Jiachuan's wife, arrived one after another.
The Sheng family became quite lively, with everyone chatting and laughing.
Once everyone had warmed up, they went to the west room in shifts to check on the children and Zhou Qinglan.
Tang Fengying made a single-layer shirt and a cotton-padded coat for the baby.
It is said that a aunt's skirt is a traditional dress and a maternal aunt's jacket. Although Tang Fengying was a cousin, she did not fall into this rule. Her clothes were made very finely, with the stitches hidden very well.
All the families in the Sheng family with whom they had good relations in Qianchuan Forest Farm had arrived. Zhang Shuzhen saw that it was getting late, so she quickly decided to give the child a bath.
Sheng Yunfang scooped half a basin of mugwort and locust twig water from the pot, added a ladle of cold water, put her hand in to test the temperature, and found it was just right, so she carried it directly into the west room.
In the past, the outer room would have been used to set up an incense table and offer sacrifices, and the baby's third-day celebration would also have been held in the outer room.
These old customs are no longer followed, so we simply wash in the west room.
The kang (heated brick bed) in the west room was burning quite warmly, and the fire in the fireplace had been burning continuously, making the room quite cozy.
Sheng Yunfang brought the basin of water to the kang (a heated brick bed), and Qin Qiuyan and Zhang Shuzhen took off their shoes and got on the kang.
Zhang Shuzhen took the child out of the quilt, unbuttoned the little one's clothes, and carefully placed him in the basin of water, supporting his head with one hand and his bottom with the other.
Qin Qiuyan then used a half-buried towel dampened with water to gently wash the baby's body. As she washed, she muttered some incantations to herself.
"Wash your hair first, and you'll become a king. Wash your waist, and each generation will rise higher than the last. Wash your testicles, and you'll become a county magistrate. Wash your ditch, and you'll become a prefect."
These are all old-fashioned terms; only older people would still use them. Younger people, like Tang Fengying, would never have even heard of them.
The baby had never been bathed since birth; at most, Zhang Shuzhen would wipe the baby's face, neck, and hair with a damp towel.
The little one was not used to being suddenly exposed to water and started crying.
His crying made several older people laugh, and they all said in unison, "It's a loud commotion! It's a loud commotion!"
"Wow, listen to that! This little guy has so much energy; even his crying is powerful."
The child is small, so don't bathe him for too long; just a quick wash is enough.
Zhang Shuzhen took the child out of the water, wrapped him in a dry cloth, and quickly and gently wiped his head with a dry towel, being careful to avoid the baby's fontanelle.
After drying the baby, Qin Qiuyan took a new comb and gently combed the baby's hair.
"Three combs, two tufts, grow up to wear a red hat. Comb your hair on the left, tidy your sideburns on the right, and you'll find a wife who's from all over the village."
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