Chapter 19 – Learning to Weave Bamboo Products

If that third sister-in-law couldn’t get along with Han Guolin, then the girls from town definitely wouldn’t be afraid. With a job in hand, everything could be discussed.

But Han Guobin was definitely afraid. For a country man like him, finding someone with such good conditions wasn’t going to be easy.

So it wasn’t the least bit surprising that Father and Mother Han treated Song Xiaoyu like their own daughter.

And that was exactly the case. Ever since the wedding, Song Xiaoyu had been living quite comfortably. She always commuted to and from work with Han Guolin on his bicycle.

The couple was still newlyweds, living a blissfully sweet life.

Song Xiaoyu’s salary wasn’t low—twelve yuan per month. In addition to that, she also received ration tickets and other coupons.

That twelve yuan was pure income. With her father-in-law and mother-in-law still earning work points, and her own husband working too, she didn’t need to spend a single cent of her own income—it was all saved.

In fact, she had started saving up her dowry at the beginning of the year.

Before she got married, of course, she couldn’t keep all her wages to herself. After all, her job had come from her family’s hefty investment—no small feat.

Out of her twelve yuan salary, ten went to her family. By the end of the year, she’d only saved about ten to twenty yuan.

But now that she was married, she no longer had to give money to her natal family. She could keep it all for herself.

What’s more, Han Guolin doted on her, and her in-laws valued her highly. Though she had married into a rural family, the marital home was spacious, and all the furniture was brand new. Song Xiaoyu was living an extremely comfortable life.

She had two older sisters who had also married well, but neither of them had it as good as she did.

That day, she came home with two jin of persimmons. She was a sweet talker too: “Dad, Mom, I saw that these persimmons were really sweet, so I bought some just for you to try. The weather’s getting colder and drier—these will help moisten your lungs and soothe your hearts.”

As she spoke, she handed one large persimmon to each of her in-laws.

Mother Han smiled and said, “You and Guolin eat them. What do we need them for?”

Father Han didn’t say anything, but his expression was clearly satisfied.

“Mom, since we live together, there are bound to be things we younger ones don’t do well. I still need you to teach me,” Song Xiaoyu said.

Mother Han was delighted by the flattery. This third daughter-in-law truly was raised by a salaried family from town—she really knew how to talk and was so sensible!

She couldn’t be compared to the wives of the eldest and second sons!

“Guolin, take me to visit eldest and second sister-in-law. Let’s share these persimmons with them too,” Song Xiaoyu said.

“Why bother sharing with them? Those two blockheads won’t appreciate it even if they eat it!” Mother Han snorted.

Song Xiaoyu’s eyes twinkled. “What’s wrong with eldest and second sister-in-law?”

“Before you married in, both of them came causing a scene,” Mother Han said, then recounted the incident where they had to shell out a hundred yuan. She ended by saying, “You need the bicycle because you have a job, so of course we had to buy it for you. But those two followed suit, even though they can’t ride! Especially that shrew from the second family—she burned through her fifty yuan in no time!”

“She burned through fifty yuan just like that?” Song Xiaoyu was stunned. “That’s not a small amount. Did she use it to help her own family?”

Mother Han replied, “That waste of space bought two sweaters and spent every penny in the blink of an eye!”

Song Xiaoyu gasped, “Wow… Second sister-in-law really dares to spend. I thought she’d at least give some to her parents.”

Mother Han didn’t want this youngest daughter-in-law sending money to her own family, so she said, “Once you’re married, you should focus on building a good life with your husband.”

“You’re absolutely right, Mom. I was just thinking that if Guolin and I live a good life, then I can better show filial piety to you and Dad. As for my natal family, it’s enough to bring them a little something when I visit occasionally,” Song Xiaoyu quickly replied.

Mother Han was extremely pleased. “As long as you and Guolin live well, that’s all that matters.”

“Then I won’t go visit eldest and second sister-in-law. Mom, Dad, eat more of these persimmons. If you run out, just grab more from my room—they’re on the table,” Song Xiaoyu said.

“Alright,” Mother Han said with a smile and a nod.

“We used up all the fabric coupons for the wedding this year, and there’s nothing we can do about that. But next year, we won’t need to make any new clothes. I’ll save up all my fabric coupons, and when New Year comes around, I’ll make new outfits for you both. I’ll pay for it,” Song Xiaoyu said.

“There’s no need for that. Your father and I aren’t short of clothes,” Mother Han said, smiling so hard her eyes disappeared.

Father Han puffed on his long pipe, but his face was full of happiness. When it came to filial piety, the third couple was the best.

Even Han Guolin was deeply moved by Song Xiaoyu’s words.

To be able to marry a wife like Xiaoyu in this lifetime—it truly felt like the result of good karma from his previous life.

As for Song Xiaoyu, she mentally calculated that by this time next year, the baby might be born. Would the old couple really have the nerve to compete with a child for fabric coupons?

Chen Rou had no idea how formidable her sister-in-law was, but to be able to coax the old couple into such joy, she clearly wasn’t lacking in skill.

Early the next morning after Han Guobin went out, Chen Rou slung a basket over her arm and headed out.

When she returned, there was an extra piece of meat in the basket—mutton, covered with a rag. She quickly stashed it in her personal space after arriving home.

When Han Guobin returned, she planned to cook lamb and radish soup for him.

The trip out was just a pretext.

When Chen Rou was home alone, she usually didn’t eat well and would rely on whatever beef she had left over. Like today, she made herself a pot of beef and rice porridge.

She chopped the beef finely and cooked it directly in the porridge. That would last her the whole day.

She always did this when she was alone, not bothering to light a fire for every meal.

When Zhou Zhen came over that afternoon, she found Chen Rou mending Han Guobin’s socks and couldn’t help but say, “Don’t you get bored? Staying at home all day long, not going out to chat with others to pass the time?”

“If you’re going this afternoon, I’ll come with you,” Chen Rou replied.

“Alright, let’s go together,” Zhou Zhen nodded.

When Chen Rou headed out in the afternoon, she brought along a plate of boiled peanuts.

Thanks to that plate of boiled peanuts, she successfully made friends with several older women—around Zhou Zhen’s age. Zhou Zhen was five years older than her.

At first, Zhou Zhen used to call her “Sister-in-law Han,” which was the polite way to address her. But according to local customs, once you got familiar, everyone just used names.

One had to admit, though, the women in the village were formidable. There wasn’t a single event within a ten-mile radius that they didn’t know about.

When Chen Rou returned with Zhou Zhen in the evening, carrying the now-empty plate, she said she would come again tomorrow.

“It’s fun over there, isn’t it?” Zhou Zhen laughed.

Chen Rou smiled. It wasn’t really about whether the gossip was interesting or not.

The reason she wanted to go was because the host of their gatherings, Old Master Lu, knew how to weave bamboo products like baskets.

There was a bamboo grove just outside the village, and the bamboo was free—anyone could go and cut it.

But her home really lacked these kinds of items, so Chen Rou decided to learn.

That was why she joined Zhou Zhen. Being thoughtful, she brought a gift for Old Master Lu—a bundle of dried noodles.

“These were bought by Guobin for me, but I couldn’t bear to eat them. Master, I’d like to learn how to weave bamboo baskets from you, so I’m giving you this bundle of noodles,” Chen Rou said with a smile.

“If you want to learn, just sit down. I don’t need your noodles,” Old Master Lu replied directly.

“That won’t do. One should at least offer a token of respect when learning from a teacher. I’m here to learn a skill, I can’t just come empty-handed—that would be shameful,” Chen Rou said cheerfully.

The bundle of noodles was about 200 grams. It wasn’t much in terms of filling a belly, but it was refined grain—quite a rare treat.

Since Chen Rou sincerely insisted, Old Master Lu accepted the gift and taught her patiently.

Chen Rou was the kind of person who could pick things up just by watching. Bamboo weaving wasn’t easy, but it wasn’t something that could stop her. Once Old Master Lu explained the key points, she could start doing it herself.

At first, her work was a bit rough, but as she practiced, it quickly improved.

By the end of the day, Chen Rou was able to weave independently. Old Master Lu praised her generously.

The other village women were also amazed. Bamboo weaving wasn’t an easy skill. While not impossible to learn, being able to do it solo after just one day was truly impressive.

Chen Rou didn’t pay much attention to their praise. She knew that her Guobin would be coming home soon, so in the evening after she got back, she scrubbed out the pot and started stewing lamb.

She didn’t use much—just about half a pound of lamb ribs—stewed with white radish and a bit of ginger. Even with so few ingredients, the stew smelled wonderful.

Even though she had already eaten some beef porridge made with hot water, she still had a bowl of the hot lamb soup. It warmed her whole body.

She poured the rest into the pot to save for the next day to eat with Han Guobin.

It wasn’t very late yet, but Chen Rou went to bed after locking the door.

When she said it was late, it was actually just around 7 p.m. But since it was winter and the days were short, it got dark early, and she didn’t want to waste lamp oil.

The cold winter days made her worry about Guobin. It couldn’t be easy for him out there alone.

Chen Rou felt reluctant to let Han Guobin go out again. It was just too cold. It was bearable inside the house with the heated kang bed, but once you stepped outside and opened the door, the chill made you shiver uncontrollably.

Especially at night—she figured it must be several degrees below zero. The thought of him eating and sleeping outdoors was truly heart-wrenching.

With thoughts of her Guobin in her mind, Chen Rou fell asleep.

At that moment, Han Guobin had just come down from the mountains, carrying a burlap sack and heading to find Old Yang.

Old Yang gave him a brand-new thermos, which Han Guobin had asked for. Old Yang had connections and could get his hands on anything.

But with the previous debt still unpaid, even though Han Guobin had caught quite a few wild rabbits and pheasants, he hadn’t gotten any large game. After deducting what he owed Old Yang, he only earned two yuan this time.

Han Guobin then brought up his request for a large wooden tub for bathing.

“Still working, huh?” Old Yang agreed with a smile.

“Yeah,” Han Guobin nodded. He had to. The only chance to earn some money was from now until spring. The rest of the time, he would have to go work regular jobs.

“Now that you’ve got a wife, you’re really putting in the effort. In past years, you’d already be preparing to hibernate around this time,” Old Yang said.