Chapter 5: More than just good luck, I won't be able to sign in tomorrow morning. ...
"Sister, should we sell these three pieces of cotton cloth?"
Bai Yu picked up a piece of cotton cloth, pulled the wide part with both hands to open it, and measured the size of the cotton cloth with her hands: "This piece of material can be made into a set of clothes without any problem. If Miaomiao's figure is suitable, it can be made into two sets of clothes."
Bai Xi looked at Bai Yu with anticipation.
"Let's make clothes," Bai Yu put down the material in her hand, "We haven't made new clothes for a long time."
"Are you really doing it?" Bai Xi was a little excited. He couldn't help but grab the material in front of him, but he was afraid of wrinkling it, so he quickly let go.
Bai Miao didn't quite understand Bai Xi's excitement. He was just happy to have new clothes. He knelt down and moved closer, looking sideways at Bai Yu, repeating Bai Xi's question: "Are you really doing it?"
Bai Yu laughed and raised her hand to poke Bai Miao's forehead: "I'll make you two new sets of clothes, okay?"
Bai Miao lay on the fabric, opened his arms and swam in a swimming posture: "Great."
Bai Xi also smiled and picked out a piece of light-colored cloth: "This is for Miaomiao to make clothes. She stays on the boat all the time, so it won't get dirty easily."
Bai Yu asked her, "Which one do you want?"
The three pieces of cloth were of different colors. One was light blue, which she pointed to Bai Miao, and the other two were blue and brown respectively.
Bai Xi looked at the remaining two pieces of material, then looked at Bai Yu.
Bai Yu nodded: "I'm fine with any of them. They're all brand new. You can pick the one you like."
Bai Xi smiled, picked up the blue piece and hugged it.
Bai Yu gently pulled the corner of the remaining brown piece.
It’s not that she didn’t want to pick it up, but the material was pressed under Bai Miao and she couldn’t pull it out.
As they chose the fabric, the two sisters couldn't help but laugh.
After laughing, Bai Xi scratched his head while looking at the fabric and asked, "Sister, can you make clothes?"
Bai Yu also looked at the fabric in silence.
Poor families have to take on responsibilities early. The two women can sew and mend, but it is limited to basic sewing. They can mend holes and sew bags, but they cannot make a set of clothes from start to finish. After all, they do not have the opportunity to make clothes from scratch.
There were no tools for cutting cloth on board.
Bai Miao "swimmed" on the cloth to her satisfaction. Noticing her sisters' silence, she raised her head, but found that she couldn't see her sisters even then. She turned over and spoke while lying down: "Second aunt knows how to make clothes."
Bai Xi's eyes lit up: "Yes, Second Aunt can make clothes."
Bai Yu frowned: "But how are we going to explain to Second Auntie where these three pieces of material came from?"
Bai Xi listened and frowned.
Ever since their parents passed away, the three of them had been traveling together on the boats of their eldest and second uncles. They had only been traveling separately a few days ago. Their eldest and second uncles knew best what they had.
They only had two or three sets of clothes to change into, which were made by dismantling the clothes left behind by their parents after their death. It was unacceptable to suddenly find three brand new pieces of cotton cloth in the cabin.
As for spending money, they had enough money if they pooled it together. However, they didn't buy any cloth when they went ashore yesterday, so it would seem strange if they suddenly took out some cloth today.
Bai Miao lay down and picked up the cloth bag filled with shells in front of him: "You can't say 'sign in successfully'."
"You can't tell anyone about this," Bai Xi covered the bag with his hand. "Except for the three of us, no one else can know about this."
"It's true that we can't talk about the shells," Bai Yu said, "but it's not completely impossible to find a way. After all, a complete piece of clothing is made up of pieces of cloth. We can take a piece of clothing apart, cut it according to the removed materials, and then sew it back together. Wouldn't that make a complete piece of clothing?"
"If that's the case, I can do it!" Bai Xi said immediately, rolling his eyes and thinking for a while, "Sister, I really can do it. Then there's no need to go to Second Aunt."
The more Bai Yu thought about it, the better she felt about this idea. "Then, when the rain stops, we'll go find Second Auntie and tell her... I have an old dress that's too small for me, and I want to cut it up to make clothes for Miaomiao. I want to borrow her scissors for a day."
Bai Xi nodded: "That's a good idea, big sister!"
Bai Miao nodded and said, "That's a good idea, big sister!"
Bai Yu smiled and pulled Bai Miao up, talking about her plans for making clothes next: "Miao Miao has started to grow, so the clothes can be made a little bigger so that she can wear them in two years. Last year's clothes are too small, so if we take them apart and piece them together, we can make a set of clothes for swimming. The leftovers and corners of the new material can also be used to make lining and underwear."
The rain outside hit the deck, making crackling sounds.
In the cabin, the three of them were biting on steamed buns that had become drier after being left for a day, and talking about their future plans and intentions. Their lives, which had been predictable at first glance, seemed to have taken a new turn.
The fork in the road was full of fog, but there seemed to be a faint scent of flowers coming from that side.
"The rain has stopped."
"Now cast your net."
The two sisters walked back and forth between the bow and stern of the boat, picked a good spot based on their experience, and lowered the fishing net.
At the same time, I began to busy myself with cleaning up the chores caused by the rain.
The bucket containing rainwater was full, so they covered it with a lid to prevent fallen leaves from falling into it. The water in the bucket would be what they would drink for the next few days.
The areas on the planks that are wet by rain need to be wiped dry as much as possible. Otherwise, if they are always wet, the wooden boards will corrode easily and deteriorate quickly. The dirty areas also need to be wiped clean one by one.
Then check the place where the charcoal and firewood are stored to make sure it is not damp. If it is damp, they will have to find someone to repair it next time they go ashore, otherwise the charcoal will not be able to be stored and they will have to eat raw food on the boat.
It’s okay to eat cold food, but eating raw food will harm your body.
After a busy period, the two began to close the net.
Maybe it was because it had just rained, or maybe there were not many people around here, the fish and shrimps below were very active. I could feel the weight of the net when I pulled it up, and I really got a lot of catch.
This opportunity is rare. After the two of them caught the fish online, they quickly got down to sea again.
Pulling it up again will bring another wave of harvest.
The two trips combined are more than the quantity sold yesterday.
But their small boat could not hold many fish and shrimp.
It was still early, but it would take a long time to go ashore and back. Bai Yu made a quick decision and asked Bai Xi to untie the rope and row the boat towards the direction of his uncles' homes.
The harvest there today was pretty good, but of course not as much as sold yesterday.
When they heard that Bai Yu was planning to sell fish, they packed up and sent him to a boat, which took Bai Yu's small boat to the shore to sell fish.
This time we went to the same place as yesterday.
The three sisters sold the fish and shrimp on their small boat for more than a hundred coins today.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, Bai Yu quietly leaned over to Bai Xi and spoke into his ear.
Bai Xi listened and said a few words in her ear.
After the two sisters discussed it, Bai Yu went ashore and took out the three pieces of cloth she had obtained in the morning on the pretext that she was short of some supplies yesterday and had to go buy some things.
Cloth is made into clothes to be worn, so it can be concealed if necessary, but it is naturally better not to conceal it if possible.
When the cloth was taken out, the two sisters gave the same reply to their second aunt who asked them about it.
"These three pieces of cotton fabric aren't very big, but they're just right for us to make clothes, so we bought them all. The price is cheaper than usual."
"It's not too small, it can make a whole set of clothes. You've stumbled upon a good opportunity," Second Aunt unfolded the cotton cloth and examined it carefully. "It's possible that someone secretly stole it from a cloth shop, so they can sell it to you at a low price."
Bai Yu and Bai Xi exchanged a glance, having unexpectedly found a suitable excuse for their unexpected success: "Is there such a thing?"
"Will there be any problem?" Bai Yu pretended to be worried.
"What's the problem? If you had a permanent place to stay on shore, you'd be afraid of being found. Stay on the boat and don't go there next time. Even if someone wanted to look for you, they wouldn't be able to find you," the second aunt consoled her, stroking the fabric with envy. "It's a pity that such opportunities are so rare. You're really lucky."
The two looked at each other again, and both saw what was in each other's eyes.
In fact, it’s more than just good luck.
"Second aunt, we want to make some clothes after buying these pieces of cloth. Usually, it's you who makes clothes, and I'm not very good at it, so I want to learn." Bai Xi said his plan.
Although we now have a source of fabrics, we still have to learn how to make clothes ourselves.
Bai Xi told her second aunt all about her plan to learn how to make clothes. She thought there was no problem. After listening to her, she went back to the cabin to get a pair of scissors and asked her to take them back.
"Don't worry, there's no time to use the scissors now," Second Aunt handed the scissors and cloth to the two of them, "We'll need them later."
Afterwards, she talked about some techniques for making clothes so that you wouldn’t find problems while making them and waste your time.
Bai Xi listened carefully and took it to heart.
As they were talking, several ships not far away started to move.
They are going to change the fishing spot today and have to find a new place before nightfall.
Bai Xi and Bai Yu also picked up the oars again, adjusted the position of the bow, and kept up with the main force.
Every time they arrive at a place to stay, they will stay for a while, so the initial location is very important. It’s not that they can’t stay in one place all the time, but every place has its own rules, and not all fishermen who live on the water can stay.
After all, if more people fish in any place, it will affect the number of fish and shrimp in the local area and affect the income of local fishermen.
However, it took a lot of time to find a place this time. By the time we found a suitable location, it was already completely dark.
"Xiaoyu, you guys should rest here tonight. We'll find another place for you tomorrow morning."
"I understand, Second Aunt."
As they were talking, everyone started to move and tie the ropes on the boat to the appropriate location on the shore.
It was already dark, and the water was even darker. Someone on the shore was holding a not-so-bright kerosene lamp. Every time someone went ashore to tie a rope, the kerosene lamp would come over to help light the way.
The waters were vast, and Bai Yu quickly tied the rope. He looked into the distance, shivered, and returned to the cabin, pulled down the curtain, and lay down.
She whispered, "Miaomiao, you can't sign in tomorrow morning."
"I'll cover her mouth then." Bai Xi said.
Bai Miao: "Yeah."
Bai Xi listened to the childish voice beside her ear and chuckled softly, "You 'hmm'?"
Bai Miao: "Yeah."
Bai Xi and Bai Yu couldn't help laughing, and both of them gently patted the little sister in the middle.
"Go to sleep."
Bai Miao: "Yeah."
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