Luo Chunlei walked towards Lin Xiaocui with a steamed bun in his hand.
Lin Xiaocui didn't notice the person coming from behind. She picked up the winnowing basket, preparing to blow away the skins from the mung beans. Just as she puffed out her cheeks, she saw Luo Chunlei standing beside her.
She blinked and exhaled softly.
"What are you doing here?" she asked.
Lin Chunlei frowned slightly. "Didn't you see me? Your sister-in-law treated me to steamed buns to thank me for helping her family plant rice."
He stuffed a steamed bun into her hand and continued, "Thank you for delivering my clothes last time!"
With that, he turned and left, a hint of displeasure on his face.
Lin Xiaocui pouted behind him, "Sigh, no need for your thanks..." She could earn two cents for each piece of clothing she delivered, enough to buy herself steamed buns.
She didn't dare say it out loud; if Wang Xiuqin heard it, she would definitely beat her to death.
Hearing the commotion, Lin Gou Dan rushed out, his shifty eyes fixed on the steamed bun, ready to snatch it.
Lin Xiaocui, quick-witted and agile, hid the steamed bun behind her back, refusing to give it to him. The two played a game of cat and mouse, making the east courtyard quite lively for a while.
When Luo Chunlei returned to the old locust tree and saw this scene, his mood inexplicably improved.
As the last rays of the setting sun faded and the moon climbed above the treetops, everyone ate and chatted, still reluctant to leave.
Luo Hao and Wang Tiegang usually enjoy a little wine, and today they drank even more, their faces flushed.
Luo Chunlei took only a small sip before pushing the wine to his brother.
Lin Ye is not a strong drinker; he probably drank the first cup too quickly and is now a little drunk.
The man, who was usually very sparing with words, became quite talkative this time, but he kept mentioning "my wife" in every three sentences. Lu Wanqing looked embarrassed and wished she could cover his mouth with her small hands.
Wang Tiegang wasn't much better off. Holding his wife's hand, he kept saying words of repentance and promised that he would work hard to earn money and live a good life in the future.
Only Luo Hao, the single guy, was drinking while shaking his head and rubbing his forehead. What's wrong with them? They've lost all their manliness after getting wives.
Suddenly, the face of Li Ping's cousin flashed through his mind. What was her name again? Mu Xiaoting. Why would Tiger leave her to help? She had no strength at all, and he still had to help carry a fifty-pound bag of rice.
However, he only touched her fingertips, yet he felt an electric shock.
Women are such a hassle!
Just then, Lu Wanqing remembered seeing Luo Hao that morning and casually asked him what had happened. He looked away guiltily.
"I'm fine!"
He didn't want to talk about it, probably because it had nothing to do with buying and selling, so she stopped asking.
After finishing a bottle of baijiu, everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves and agreed to get together again next time to finish the rest of the liquor.
Luo Chunlei helped the tipsy Luo Hao home. Before leaving, Lu Wanqing wrapped four large meat buns in oil paper and asked Luo Chunlei to deliver them to Liu Jie and Su Dazhuang at the educated youth settlement on the way. The two had helped out when they were planting rice, so they should be thanked.
Lin Chunhua and her husband didn't stay long, as there was nowhere for them to sleep.
Before leaving, Lu Wanqing gave her the money from selling the porcini mushrooms.
Lin Chunhua pulled out a ten-yuan note and stuffed it back into Lu Wanqing's hand. "Wanqing, here's the five yuan you borrowed last time. Consider the remaining five yuan as money for my mother-in-law to make clothes. She's been quite sympathetic to me this time when we divided the family property, so I should repay her kindness."
Lu Wanqing initially wanted to refuse, but seeing Lin Chunhua's insistence, she didn't back down and turned to take out the dress she had made for Wang Xiuzhi.
"If you hadn't mentioned it, I would have almost forgotten. Take it back to her, and if there's anything wrong with it, bring it back to me to fix."
Lin Chunhua unfolded the dress and looked at it, marveling at its beauty. It was a lake-blue dress with a cheongsam-like top but a loose hem; it would definitely look beautiful on her.
“My mother-in-law will definitely like it.” Lin Chunhua smiled as she folded the bag and put it into the cloth bag she carried with her.
After everyone left, Lin Ye, slightly drunk, ushered Lu Wanqing and Zhao Xiaolan back into the house so he could clean up the dishes.
Lu Wanqing didn't insist; she needed to quickly help Zhao Xiaolan take a bath and coax her to sleep.
In this situation, you definitely shouldn't go swimming in the river anymore; you should wash yourself at home.
After she finished washing up, Zhao Xiaolan was already asleep in her own bed.
She took out the tin biscuit jar where she kept her money, and took out all the money inside, piling up 15-cent and 1-cent bills all over the bed.
Lately, I've been so busy taking orders and working that I just jot down each payment in the ledger and put the money in the cookie tin without having time to reconcile the accounts.
This pair was no small matter; she almost cried out in surprise. In less than a month, her account balance had reached 481.22 yuan.
She started counting the bills one by one and came up with 438.24 yuan. She paid 24.6 yuan to Lin Xiaocui for the delivery fee and order fee, and there was still more than 18 yuan left. This was because some people suddenly couldn't come up with the money and had to pay on credit.
Making a few pieces of clothing every day doesn't tire her out. She has time to rest at noon and take a walk in the evening. With word of mouth spreading, she doesn't have to worry about not having orders, because they only make a maximum of four pieces of clothing a day, and their orders are already booked for ten days in advance.
Lin Xiaocui deserves much credit. She would give out advertising slips she designed to any aunties or young wives she could talk to. Now, everyone in the surrounding villages knows that the Lin family in Shengli Brigade has a talented clothing designer and a skilled tailor.
The two women, mother-in-law and daughter-in-law, are quite famous.
Lu Wanqing tied the thick stack of money together with a rubber band and put it in her spatial storage.
Lin Ye was also very capable; every time he went hunting, he could catch a lot of pheasants and rabbits.
Luo Hao was particularly envious of his luck. When he followed him, he never returned empty-handed; his basket was always full.
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