Chapter 110 : Entrustment, Entering the City

While having dinner, Su Xieqiu discussed her trip to the city the next day with her two children.

“Chenchen, Aunt Su is going to the city to buy some things tomorrow. Can you and your sister go play with Sister Linglan?”

Linglan was the little girl of Sun Dahan and Wang Fengqin.

The little girl was sensible and hardworking. Although she didn’t go to the fields to earn work points, she still did the housework: washing clothes, cooking, feeding chickens, and keeping the house clean and tidy.

They also had a mission pig in their family, which was also taken care of by Linglan and her second brother.

Chenchen nodded, finished his meal, and said, “Aunt Su, if Sister Linglan is not free, my sister and I can stay at home alone. I can look after my sister.”

He knew that Sister Linglan had to do a lot of work every day, and whenever she had some free time, she would go out to catch insects for the chickens.

So, Chenchen didn’t want to trouble others, and he thought he could take care of his sister at home by himself.

“You two are too young. I am worried about you at home,” Su Xieqiu said with a smile. “I just want you to play with Sister Linglan at her house. You two are so well-behaved, and you won’t delay her work. It’s okay.”

“Okay, Aunt Su,” Chenchen nodded obediently.

An An didn’t understand what they were saying, but she laughed along.

The three of them finished their meal, and the villagers had just finished work.

Su Xieqiu took her two children to Sun Dahan’s house next door.

Sun Dahan and his two sons were collecting firewood in the yard, while Wang Fengqin and her daughter Linglan were cooking in the kitchen.

Knowing her purpose, Wang Fengqin readily agreed.

This kind of thing was very normal in rural areas. If someone had to go out for something or was visiting relatives and it was inconvenient to take care of the children, they would ask the neighbors to help.

“Zhenyu’s wife, just send the children here, and let my Linglan take care of them for you. You don’t have to rush back,” Wang Fengqin said with a smile.

Su Xieqiu looked at Linglan’s dry and yellow hair and gently touched her head with a smile. She liked this hardworking little girl very much. Linglan was shy but worked efficiently and effectively. Even though the clothes she wore were patched, they were washed very cleanly.

“Thank you, Linglan, in advance. I’ll bring you some candy when I get back.”

“Auntie, I don’t eat candy. Chenchen and An an are very well-behaved. I am willing to take them out to play.”

Linglan also liked this beautiful and fragrant aunt. She spoke very gently and was not at all as fierce as people in the village said. And the clothes she wore were very beautiful. She was even prettier than Sister Lanhua, the prettiest girl in their team.

Su Xieqiu smiled, thought of the original owner’s clothes, and planned to give two pieces to Linglan.

She had no shortage of clothes now, as the fabric in her space was enough for her to wear new clothes every month. Therefore, it would be better to give away the original owner’s clothes so that they didn’t take up space in the closet.

She said to Wang Fengqin, “Sister, I have some old clothes that I don’t wear anymore. If you don’t mind, I’ll bring them to you tomorrow, and you can alter them for Linglan to wear.”

Wang Fengqin’s eyes lit up when she heard this, and she said gratefully, “Zhenyu’s wife, we don’t dislike you at all. Thank you so much.”

It was difficult to buy cloth nowadays. Not only was it expensive, but it also required cloth coupons.

If the relationship was not very good, people wouldn’t be willing to give away old clothes, let alone a piece of ragged clothing.

Although Su Zhiqing had no relatives here, Han Zhenyu did have relatives in the area.

Su Zhiqing didn’t give the clothes to his relatives but thought of her daughter instead. Wang Fengqin was truly grateful from the bottom of her heart.

Country people could only get a few feet of cloth coupons after working for a year, which wasn’t enough for a large family.

Linglan, the youngest in her family, had always been wearing her second brother’s hand-me-downs since she was a child.

The second oldest wore the oldest’s clothes, and the oldest often wore their father’s.

The family’s clothing was patched repeatedly, and it was rare for anyone to get new clothes for years.

Now that Su Xieqiu was offering to give Linglan some clothes, Wang Fengqin was overjoyed and couldn’t hide her delight. She wouldn’t feel the slightest disgust, even if it were just scraps of fabric for patches.

However, Wang Fengqin wasn’t the kind of person who liked taking advantage of others. She remembered that Su Xieqiu had once mentioned she didn’t know how to make shoes.

Smiling, she said, “Zhenyu’s wife, the weather’s going to get cold soon. Once the busy farming season ends, I’ll make some time to sew a pair of cotton shoes for each of you.”

This came as a relief to Su Xieqiu. She had just learned how to use a sewing machine to make clothes, but making shoes especially stitching soles, was beyond her skill.

Some time ago, Han Zhenyu’s aunt had made two pairs of cloth shoes for them, but they still didn’t have cotton shoes for winter.

With the cold weather approaching, thicker clothes and cotton shoes were essential, not just for herself and Han Zhenyu but also for Chenchen and An’an. While they had brought plenty of clothes and shoes, the harsh winters here required heavier, warmer options.

After thinking it over, Su Xieqiu said, “Sister, to be honest, I was planning to ask someone for help with making cotton shoes. If you’re available, I’d like to entrust this task to you.”

Wang Fengqin smiled warmly. “No problem, leave it to me. Just let me know the shoe sizes, and I’ll have them ready in two days.”

Grateful, Su Xieqiu nodded. However, unsure of the costs for such work, she asked, “Sister, I’ll provide the fabric and cotton, but how much do you think would be appropriate for a pair of shoes? Or I could have Han Zhenyu bring over something else, like food or extra fabric.”

Wang Fengqin quickly waved her hands, declining. “Oh, Zhenyu’s wife, why are we talking about money? It’s just a few pairs of cotton shoes, it doesn’t cost much. Winter days are idle, and I’ll be happy to help. I wouldn’t dream of charging you.”

“Sister, we’re a family of four, and we’ll need spares. If you won’t take payment, I’d feel too embarrassed to ask for your help,” Su Xieqiu said, trying to insist.

“What’s there to be embarrassed about? I’m just sitting around in the winter, and the materials are yours. It’s just a little sewing, it doesn’t cost me anything.”

No matter what she said, Wang Fengqin firmly refused to accept money or compensation. She even declared that if she were paid, she wouldn’t do the work or accept the clothing.

Left with no choice, Su Xieqiu dropped the subject. She decided she would later prepare some good fabric and cotton for her as thanks.

—

The Next Morning

After sending Chenchen and An an to Sun Dahan’s house, Su Xieqiu headed to the village entrance to wait for the team’s ox cart to take her to the city.

She had inquired at the brigade headquarters the day before and learned that an ox cart would be heading to the city to transport goods that day.

The Sanhua Brigade was small and didn’t have any tractors, so ox carts and mule carts were the only options for transporting anything to the city. For villagers who needed to buy supplies, the alternative was walking.

As she waited, she thought about asking Han Zhenyu to leave his bicycle at home the next time he went on a business trip. That way, she could use it for more convenient trips to the city in the future.

What she didn’t know was that Han Zhenyu had intentionally taken the bicycle with him to discourage her from frequent city visits and, more importantly, from going to the black market.