CTF 0033

When the Qingming festival¹Qingming or Tomb-Sweeping Day is a festival celebrating spring. It falls on the first day of the fifth Chinese month. came, Xu Zhinian returned to the village to pick up his wife and children.

Other people’s wives would seemingly age by five or six years after giving birth to their second child. However, that didn’t seem to be the case with Xu Zhinian’s wife. On the contrary, her skin and complexion seemed to have improved compared to before she had the baby. When she was asked about the secret behind this, she said that it was her sister-in-law’s doing. 

Xu Zhinian was puzzled after hearing this.

How could it be his little sister’s doing?

Xu Yin had never even given birth herself. How could she know anything about how to look good after giving birth?

Even though Xu Zhinian was puzzled, he still gave his little sister a red envelope regardless.

He’d originally planned to give her one after she was admitted to college. However, she got recommended to a university, and it was even Tsinghua University. He had to celebrate it with her somehow, and so he decided to give her a big red envelope.

When Xu Yin received the heavy red envelope, she felt quite surprised.

“Keep it! Living in the capital will cost a lot, so it won’t hurt to have some more money with you.” Xu Zhinian covered his lips with his fist and cleared his throat. “You have become a lot more sensible recently. This is the right thing to do. Continue to work hard in the future.”

Xu Yin: “…Thanks!”

That reminded her, that she should also give him some words of advice.

“Brother, since my sister-in-law is going to follow you away, treat her well and don’t ignore her. It’s not going to be easy for her to raise two children on her own, so you should help her with housework whenever you have time. Also, my sister-in-law may not have been highly educated, but she’s clever and hardworking. Give her some time and she’ll blossom into an even better person. 

“I’ll also send some clothes in the future. She can sell them or give them to her family as gifts. No matter what, you must always encourage and support…”

“Okay, I got it.” Xu Zhinian nodded. “Your sister-in-law’s craftsmanship is indeed great. Many people praised the shirts she made for me. Even my old superior said it made me seem more spirited when I wear them.”

“So you must cherish her.”

“Of course. How can I possibly not cherish my wife?”

Xu Yin glanced at him. His answers were straightforward and he said them without any hesitation. Hopefully, his answers came from his heart, and they’d always remain the same in the future.

“Auntie, aren’t you coming with us?”

Doudou pulled the hem of Xu Yin’s clothes and looked at her eagerly, hoping that she would nod and say yes.

She had treated him so well that he couldn’t bear to leave her.

Mother Xu felt both exasperated and amused. She said, “Your family is going with the army, what’s your aunt doing going along?”

“Aunt can go with us,” Little Douding replied confidently.

Mother Xu flatly refused, “No, she can’t.”

The little one pouted, his eyes welling up as if he were about to cry.

Xu Yin patted his head and said, “Auntie will come to see you when I’m on break.”

“When will that be? How long do I have to wait?” Doudou stretched out his hands, ready to count on his fingers.

Xu Yin: “…”

In the end, she promised him that she would visit them after the busy farming season.

The little guy finally smiled.

Ever since her sister-in-law decided to go with the army, she hadn’t taken any clothing orders for a while. 

She had saved up some scraps of fabric. She couldn’t make clothes with them, but she could still make shoes with them. Besides making patchwork fabric shoes for her two children, she also made a pair for Xu Yin.

At first, she was worried that Xu Yin wouldn’t like them and planned to find two complete pieces of fabric to make her a separate pair. However, Xu Yin was delighted when she saw her nephew’s patchwork fabric shoes.

“Sister-in-law, the next time you have fabric scraps, just make these shoes and send them to me. I’ll pay you.”

Xu Yin’s sister-in-law didn’t wait for her mother-in-law to speak and said proactively, “Why pay? It’s just a few fabric scraps. If you like wearing them, I’ll make them for you whenever I have time.”

“Of course, I love them. Fabric shoes are much more comfortable than liberation shoes.”

Xu Yin showed her some shoe designs, including modern mom shoes, maternity shoes that would be popular in the future, and casual slippers for home use. They were all suited to being made with fabric scraps.

Apart from the thousand-layered old cloth shoes, rubber-soled shoes with buttoned fabric were also in vogue at that time, Xu Yin drew several shoe designs she thought were delicate and attractive for her sister-in-law. After she had finished drawing them, they not only lost their old-fashioned look but also gained a touch of elegance with patchwork fabric.

Xu Yin’s sister-in-law happily accepted them. 

After they swept the family’s graves²This is what people usually do during Qingming., Xu Zhinian’s family of four went to live in his military residence.

The home felt much emptier with a few people missing.

Fortunately, this year, there was plenty of rice paddy fish in the fields, and they’d also planted three mu of watermelons. Xu Yin’s two parents seemed to have their minds set on either the fish or the watermelons. Every day, they would head to the fields. Even when it rained, they would put on raincoats and rain boots to check on the fish and watermelons.

The home might be quieter, but as long as people left in it didn’t feel lonely, it was fine. 

Xu Yin, feeling bored, created several designs for summer clothing. She removed the dust cover from the sewing machine, worked diligently for a whole morning, and made a set of short-sleeved undershirts and capri pants for her parents to wear in the summer.

The fabric was fine linen that Xu Yin’s mother had bought before the Lunar New Year during a bazaar. It had some minor flaws, but Xu Yin cleverly tailored the fabric. Once the clothes were done, one couldn’t tell that the fabric it’d come from was flawed.

People in the past generally dressed more conservatively compared to people in the future. Even in the sweltering summer, her parents refused to go out in shorts, so these capri pants were just right.

When Mother Xu received the clothes, she held them lovingly and examined herself in the mirror. Unfortunately, the weather was still cool, so she couldn’t wear short sleeves. She took the clothes and went next door to show off to the neighbour, saying, “Yinyin made these.”

“What? Yinyin made them? I thought it was Zhinian’s wife who made them.”

“Yinyin can also make clothes?”

“The stitching is very delicate! The style is unique too. Did Yinyin make this?”

“Of course!” Mother Xu boasted. “I’m not exaggerating. Our Yinyin is clever. She learns everything quickly. Take making clothes, for example. She watched her sister-in-law make a few pieces, and she learned from her. And what’s more, she makes them even more stylishly and beautifully than her sister-in-law. Look at these clothes; the style is unique. It’s something you won’t find anywhere else. She came up with it herself.”

“Really! Jinhua, when can you have Yin Yin make me one too? I’ll provide the fabric, and I’ll pay her for the tailoring. I want a set like this. These pants must be very comfortable to wear in the summer.”

“Me too, Jinhua! The rust-red coat you wore that once was quite fashionable. I’ve been wanting to have one for a long time. If Yinyin knows how to make it, I’ll bring the materials to your house tomorrow.”

“As expected of a top student who got a recommendation to Tsinghua! The clothes she makes can’t be found anywhere else. Jinhua, you’re so lucky. Both of your children are so promising…”

Mother Xu had been praised so much by her neighbours that she felt like she was floating on air. She readily agreed to their requests. However, when she returned home and thought about it more calmly, she realised, ‘Oh no! What if my daughter doesn’t want to make clothes for others? I’ve bragged so much…’

She tapped her head, saying, “How could you brag and listen to flattery like that?”

“Mom? What are you doing?” Xu Yin came out of her room and saw her mother standing under the eaves, lightly hitting her head.

“Yinyin, well, it’s like this…” Mother Xu hesitated and then explained.

Xu Yin laughed. “Why worry about it? I’ll take as many orders as there are. It’s not like I have much else to do at home, and earning some extra money is a good thing.”

“But they might not all want summer clothes; some might want winter coats.”

“That’s no problem. I can make it all.”

Mother Xu hesitated for a moment and finally couldn’t hold back, “They’ve been saving those fabrics for a long time; they’re all good materials. If something goes wrong, they could lose a lot of money. Please be careful.”

Xu Yin chuckled. “Mom, don’t worry! It’s just a few pieces of clothing, and I’m confident I can do a good job.”