Cuixiang didn't want to continue the topic and suddenly looked at Cuiju.
"Stop blaming me, second sister. What about you? Eldest sister is already married, and you're only a year younger than her. Shouldn't you find me a husband too?"
Tang Cuiju will be twenty-five next month. In this day and age, isn't that considered an older single woman?
Her situation is different from Ye Zhen's, who comes from a well-off family. Ye Zhen is not young anymore; she will be twenty-four next year.
But their older and younger brothers are both soldiers, and their parents are both state-owned employees; everyone has a legitimate job.
Although her family is not weak, they are not locals in Los Angeles after all. Without her family's support, they are subject to scrutiny when going on blind dates.
Tang Cuiju only wants to study hard and get her junior high school diploma first, so she hasn't thought about her own future yet.
Some enthusiastic older women at her workplace did try to introduce her to potential partners, but she refused them all. The reason was simple: she didn't have time.
She was supposed to go to school after get off work today, but her period started and she was experiencing severe abdominal pain. If Cuixiang and the others hadn't come over, she could have gone straight to sleep.
"Second brother-in-law, I guess you'll have to wait a while longer. As for you and Huangfu Biao, I've said everything I needed to say. Just let things take their course!"
When Cuixiang saw Tang Cuiju return to the room and lie down on the bed, her expression turned somewhat unpleasant.
"What's wrong, are you on your period? Do you have any brown sugar? Let me pour you a cup?"
Cuiju's lips had turned white, and she curled up on the bed, clutching her stomach.
Startled, Cuixiang quickly took off her shoes and outer cotton-padded coat. When she tried to take off her cotton-padded trousers, she was slapped away mercilessly.
"I can take it off myself, don't interfere, and lower the bed curtains."
When you sleep, please draw the curtains of the bed next to yours; there's a difference between men and women.
Cui Xiang's lips twitched. "Who just told me to forget my identity from my past life?"
"How can that be the same? You've been keeping this from us for so many years!"
"If you hadn't suddenly changed, why would we all be putting curtains on our beds at home?"
It would have been better if Cuiju hadn't mentioned it, but mentioning Cuixiang made things even more awkward.
"How am I supposed to explain this?"
"Then you might as well have never said anything."
Cuixiang was on the verge of tears, "Well, I was just embarrassed,"
Ever since she said it, her sisters said it was okay, but they showed her through their actions that 'men and women are different'.
Even with limited resources, we still drew curtains over all the bunk beds—that was the first step. Next, we went to the public bathhouse together, without taking her along.
No matter how cold it was, she could only shower at home. They wouldn't let her go to the public bathhouse with them, nor would they let her go to the public bathhouse by herself.
I always felt that was a bit perverted...
Thankfully, she later passed the entrance exam and went to school; otherwise, Tang Cuixiang would have died of depression.
"I haven't tried on the cotton shoes my godmother made for me yet!"
"No rush, we can try it tomorrow morning. Oh, by the way, the brown sugar is in the cupboard, can you pour me a cup?"
"I see now. I was wondering why you were being so kind. Turns out you're staying to serve me!"
Tang Cuiju gave a noncommittal snort, "It's snowing outside. This is an older sister showing concern for her younger sister."
"Are you going to sleep now? Should I bring the bucket in? Will you need to wear sanitary napkins tonight?"
Upon hearing this, Tang Cuiju, who had been keeping her eyes closed, suddenly opened them.
"You're on your period too?" Only after saying that did he realize her age.
"Oh right, my sixth child is eighteen now, it's about time,"
After murmuring for a moment, she suddenly laughed, "Tell me quickly, what does it feel like for a man to experience menstruation?"
Tang Cuixiang's face darkened. "Why are you being as fussy as my older sister and the others? What's there to say about this?"
Cuiju pouted, "I don't use toilet paper or sanitary napkins at night. I sleep so well that I sleep through the night."
If it doesn't rise properly in the middle, it easily gets soiled on the bedding, so I made my own sanitary pad? I just changed it.
Tang Cuixiang immediately came closer out of curiosity.
"Sanitary belt? You mean the kind of reusable sanitary belt that the old folks in the village talk about?"
Tang Cuiju hummed in agreement.
“There’s a small, broken iron pot outside. I use boiling water to wash the cloth strips during these days every month.”
It was filled with clean wood ash that Xiaojiu had collected for me; I would pour it into the outhouse after using it.
I've never had that kind of problem, which shows that the sterilization was effective.
My older sisters and the others also use it this way when conditions allow.
"But won't hot water wash away the bloodstains?"
"After I disassemble it, I will first clean it with cold water and soap. Hot water is only used to sterilize it."
Moreover, Xiao Jiu doesn't let me use these fabrics for too long; I replace them every two or three months on average.
Cuixiang listened thoughtfully, but still shared her solution.
"I didn't want to wash the bedding either. I had no experience at first and suffered a lot. Later, I saw my classmate lay out a plastic sheet."
Even if I spill it on myself, I only need to wash my underwear. The toilet paper gets wet quickly, so I have to change it several times a night; I've never had a full night's sleep.
"I thought you would use sanitary napkins!"
In those days, only Cui Mei and Xiao Jiu could afford sanitary napkins at home; most of the other sisters used toilet paper.
Even the red toilet paper wasn't something every woman on her period could afford.
Their family consists entirely of girls, so the bare minimum they have is toilet paper. Even though Xiaojiu provides sanitary napkins for everyone, they are reluctant to use them.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com