Chapter 40: The Radio

◎ Plans in Her Heart ◎

Wei Xuan nodded. “I haven’t made too many clothes, mainly because I’m worried that when the baby is born, I’ll be too busy to find the time. So now, while I have the time, I want to make all the clothes for the next year.”

“As long as you know what you’re doing. I can’t help with making the clothes, but when you’re done, I can help you wash them a few times. After washing them soft, they’ll be more comfortable for the baby to wear. Babies’ skin is very delicate—just a little friction can cause redness, so you have to be careful.” Wei’s mother, now older, had blurry eyesight and hadn’t touched a needle and thread for years.

“Thank you, Mom. We have to work, and we don’t have much experience with these things. We really need you to help us take care of everything at home.” To be honest, it was Wei Xuan’s first pregnancy, and given the not-so-ideal medical conditions of the time, she was a bit fearful. However, her mother’s arrival eased some of that anxiety.

“Don’t worry, that’s what I’m here for. With me around, you’ll be able to have the baby safely and peacefully.” Noticing her daughter’s unease, Wei’s mother comforted her.

After chatting a bit more, Wei’s mother asked, “Have you thought about what to do after the baby is born? What about your job? Can you take the baby to work?” She wanted to stay and continue taking care of her daughter, but there were many things at home to handle, and her husband was also at home, so she couldn’t just leave everything behind.

As for her son-in-law’s mother, who also had a job, it was unlikely she could rely on her. Could she quit her job to help take care of the baby? Even if she were willing, what would her son-in-law’s family think?

As a mother-in-law, Wei’s mother knew how important it was to be fair. To keep the family stable, they couldn’t show favoritism. If they did, the children would start to feel resentful, and over time, the conflicts would only grow.

It was different from when Wei’s mother favored her daughter Wei Xuan. After all, Wei Xuan was just a girl and would eventually marry out. Parents’ favoritism, like giving her extra food, didn’t cross the line with her brothers’ wives, so it didn’t cause any harm. But if Jiang’s mother decided to quit her job to help Wei Xuan take care of the baby, it would be a different story. Jiang’s mother had a job and earned a salary, and with that money gone, would her brother-in-law and sister-in-law feel okay about it?

As long as they felt even a little uncomfortable, there would inevitably be future conflicts, even if they didn’t express it at first.

When Wei Xuan got married, her mother gave her a hundred and fifty as a wedding dowry, but she didn’t tell anyone, not even Wei Xuan. She knew it would cause issues, especially when money was involved. Even though Wei Xuan’s three older brothers loved their little sister, they probably wouldn’t have been happy to give away such a large sum.

Moreover, they were all married men now, with their own families. How could they not think about their own household first?

Because she understood this so well, Wei’s mother asked Wei Xuan if she had any plans for the future.

Wei Xuan certainly had plans. She had already decided that once the baby was born, she would quit her job at the supply and marketing cooperative and start her own business.

With a baby as her excuse, her in-laws wouldn’t stop her from quitting. Otherwise, if she were to say she was quitting to start a business, her family would think she had lost her mind and wouldn’t agree with her decision.

Most people wouldn’t understand why she would leave a steady, formal job to become a self-employed business owner.

But if she framed it differently, saying she was quitting to take care of the child and that she would be bored at home and wanted to open a shop to pass the time, it would be more understandable.

However, she couldn’t tell her mother about this plan yet. So, Wei Xuan just casually lied, “I’ll ask about it tomorrow at work. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll find someone to cover for me for a few months. When the baby is a little older, I can put him in the daycare at the street office and go back to work then.”

“Daycare at the street office? There’s such a place?” Wei’s mother was hearing about it for the first time.

“Yeah, it’s meant to help families like ours with dual incomes, where no one can look after the child.”

“That sounds pretty convenient.”

Wei Xuan also thought it was quite convenient. Although she didn’t plan to send her child there, ever since she found out she was pregnant, Jiang Che had taken her to see the place. The environment was pretty good. If she didn’t have other plans, she might have considered sending her child there.

The mother and daughter chatted at home until late morning. Around 10 o’clock, Wei’s mother decided to go to the kitchen to cook and dragged Wei Xuan outside with her. “You’ve been sitting here all morning. Come with me for a walk outside, get some fresh air. It’ll change your perspective. When you’re young, you don’t think much of it, but when you’re old like me, you can’t see anything clearly.”

By the time lunch was ready, Jiang Che and Wei Xiaolong still hadn’t come back. Wei Xuan said, “They’re probably eating out. Let’s not wait for them, we can eat first.”

Wei’s mother, worried about her daughter going hungry, didn’t dare to make her wait. After all, they were family, and there was no need to stand on ceremony.

Jiang Che and Wei Xiaolong didn’t return home until about 4 or 5 in the afternoon.

As soon as they got home, Wei Xiaolong immediately started talking nonstop about all the things he had done and seen while out playing that day.

“Alright, alright, how can you not be tired after playing all day? Drink some water and rest for a bit,” Wei’s mother interrupted him and immediately poured a glass of water for her son-in-law.

“Thanks, Mom.” Jiang Che quickly stood up to take it, since he was indeed tired after running around all day.

Wei Xiaolong, however, seemed genuinely not tired at all. He was full of energy, and after finishing the water, he continued talking endlessly.

This time, Wei’s mother didn’t interrupt him and listened attentively.

It wasn’t until after dinner and a bath that Wei Xiaolong lay down on the bed and immediately started snoring.

Jiang Che thought to himself, “I actually thought you weren’t tired!”

Wei Xiaolong stayed in the capital for five days, and then Wei’s mother decided it was time for him to go home.

“You’ve played enough here, and you’ve seen the school. You should go back tomorrow. Your sister and brother-in-law are busy with work, and it’ll be tiring for them to entertain you. When you come here to study in the future, you’ll have more time to play. The farm is busy right now, and since I’m not around, it’s better for you to help out at home.” Even though Wei Xiaolong had gotten into college, he still had to do his part in the family.

Wei Xiaolong didn’t find this unusual at all. Apart from his sister, whenever he wasn’t at school, he had always worked in the fields with the other kids in the village.

Plus, he had already had a fun time touring the capital with Wei’s mother. He was happy enough, so he readily agreed to his mother’s suggestion.

Wei Xuan and Jiang Che received this news when they got home from work.

“So soon? How about you stay for a couple more days?”

Jiang Che also said, “Yeah, Little Brother can stay with Mom during the day. Otherwise, when Wei Xuan and I go to work, Mom will be home alone and bored.”

“No need, let him go back,” Wei’s mother refused. “The family’s busy, and he can help out at home. Here, he can’t really be of any help.”

Since Wei’s mother had already made up her mind, and Wei Xiaolong agreed, Jiang Che and Wei Xuan didn’t try to persuade him further. They just started packing things he could take back to the family.

“Take these candies back for Mingming and the others to eat, and also bring the peach crisps,” Wei Xuan said as she looked at the things she had gathered. “Mom, if you were going to send Xiaolong back, you should’ve said so earlier. The supply and marketing cooperative is already closed now, and we can’t buy anything.”

Jiang Che reassured her, “It’s fine. Tomorrow morning, you can make some more nine-layer cake and hawthorn cake. Whatever’s extra, take it back for the family to try. I’ll buy some more meat from Wu Yun’s place. It’s not the busy farming season, so it’s a good opportunity for Xiaolong to take some back to help supplement the family.”

Wei’s mother sat contentedly by, listening to her daughter and son-in-law making plans about what to bring back for the family. She didn’t interject. Her daughter didn’t really need these things, but she had come to the city to take care of her daughter. Now that she couldn’t take care of things back home, bringing a few items back would help her shut up the mouths of the daughters-in-law.

This way, they would know that their daughter hadn’t taken advantage of her family.

The next day, after sending Wei Xiaolong off, Wei’s mother fully took over the kitchen duties, getting up early to help her son-in-law make pastries and marinated meats.

This also allowed Wei Xuan to sleep in a bit longer in the mornings. With the weather getting hotter, the kitchen was warmer than the rest of the house. As a pregnant woman, Wei Xuan was especially sensitive to the heat. Every time she came out of the kitchen, her clothes would be soaked with sweat, and she’d need to take another shower. This made both Jiang Che and Wei’s mother feel very sorry for her, and they firmly disagreed with her helping out in the kitchen anymore.

Reluctantly, Wei Xuan agreed.

Making pastries wasn’t difficult, and after watching for several days, Wei’s mother had already learned how to do it. However, the marinated meats still required Wei Xuan to help with seasoning the night before, which was something she couldn’t master right away.

But Wei’s mother wasn’t in a hurry. Seasoning the meat wouldn’t tire her out, and as long as Wei Xuan learned before her postpartum confinement, it would be fine. They still had several months before that, so she wasn’t worried about Wei Xuan not learning.

Wei’s mother settled in the capital, and in the meantime, took over most of the household chores.

However, there wasn’t much to do at home. The baby hadn’t been born yet, and besides the three daily meals, there was only laundry to do, and nothing else.

Wei’s mother was bored, and every day, she could only spend her time in the small vegetable garden at home, which originally took up one-fifth of the yard but had now expanded more than twice its size.

Seeing that Wei’s mother had started eyeing the empty plot of land by the door, Wei Xuan quickly stopped her, explaining that she couldn’t plant anything outside. Wei’s mother, looking disappointed, gave up on the idea.

That night, as the couple lay in bed chatting, Wei Xuan brought this up and asked Jiang Che if he had any ideas to keep Wei’s mother busy, so she wouldn’t be so bored.

The old lady had gotten used to being busy at home, and suddenly having nothing to do made her feel uncomfortable. She had to be occupied with something, or else she would get restless and anxious. It was still a long way until she gave birth, but if this continued, the old lady might end up worrying herself sick.

That evening, Jiang Che didn’t say much. About half a month later, he brought a radio back with him.

“You got a ticket for this?” Wei Xuan asked, surprised. She knew that getting a ticket for a radio was even harder than getting one for a bicycle, mainly because they were so rare and thus more precious.

“Hehe,” Jiang Che chuckled a couple of times before replying, “I had Wu Yun keep an eye out for me. This morning, he told me someone was willing to give up their ticket, and without thinking, I bought it right away.”

It was the first time Wei’s mother had seen one of these and was very curious.

Jiang Che then showed her how it worked: “Mom, look, this is the power switch, this is the volume control, and this one switches the channels.” He demonstrated while explaining.

Wei Xuan saw that Wei’s mother was learning with a serious expression and sighed in relief. At least she was interested.

She leaned in to take a closer look. “There are quite a few channels.”

“Yeah, there’s storytelling, news, and even songs from Hong Kong and Taiwan,” Jiang Che replied, then turned to Wei’s mother. “Mom, when we’re not home during the day, you can listen to this to pass the time. Pick whatever channel you like.”