Yi Zhong Hai choked. As Da Ma's husband, how could he not know her health?
But since Da Ma had said it, he couldn't argue, he just said: "You have to take care of the old lady!
There's an old saying, there are no bad elders, only inconsiderate descendants. You can't just think about yourself, you have to think about others too!"
Da Ma didn't want to hear Yi Zhong Hai's long lecture. She put away the things, and went towards the West courtyard.
Along the way, she heard the people in the courtyard talking.
"Oh, Huai Ru, among all the children in our courtyard, only your family's Bang Geng is well-grown. I've seen it. Even Liu Widow's Shen Yuan Chao, at about the same age, is so small.
Compared to Bang Geng's chubby, strong appearance, he is far behind!"
Er Da Ma: "How can they be the same? Bang Geng eats Huai Ru's… That kid from Shen's family, I think he's lucky to have rice porridge. I'm afraid in a few days, the money from Liu Widow selling her blood will be gone.
The whole family will have to eat the northwest wind."
Qin Huai Ru, holding Bang Geng, straightened her back.
It's true, Liu Widow's Shen Yuan Chao definitely didn't grow as well as her Bang Geng.
After all, her Bang Geng had unlimited access to the granary since he was born, and there was still some left over.
As a woman, Qin Huai Ru was proud of this.
"Da Ma, what are you doing with the cloth? My family has a sewing machine!"
Qin Huai Ru looked at the cloth in Da Ma's hand, her eyes flashing with calculation.
Although it was just a piece of scrap cloth, it was clearly enough to make a new set of clothes for a child. Bang Geng didn't have many new clothes since he was born.
What Qin Huai Ru liked most was that there were some bright scraps of fabric in the cloth, which would be perfect for making a head covering and a small pillow for Bang Geng!
"Huai Ru, take care of the child. I'll go find Liu Widow, she's good with needles and thread!"
Having said that, Da Ma went straight into the West courtyard.
Er Da Ma whispered to Qin Huai Ru: "What Liu Widow being good with needles and thread? This cloth is clearly for Da Ma to send to that child in Liu Widow's house. These days, Lao Liu and I listened at the corner of the wall.
Lao Yi blamed her for only caring about Shen's child and not even taking care of the old lady!"
Yang Rui Hua: "Huai Ru, if we talk about closeness, it's your family and Da Ye's family that are closer! Dong Xu is Da Ye's apprentice, once a teacher, forever a father.
Your family's Bang Geng is practically Da Ye's grandson. How can there be good things that are not given to the grandson but instead given to an outsider?"
Qin Huai Ru was also unhappy. Shen Yuan Chao, just an abandoned child, how could he be worthy of such good things?
They should all be given to her family's Bang Geng.
Qin Huai Ru thought about it and carried the child into the room. She sat on the kang and wiped tears.
Jia Dong Xu opened his eyes as he heard the sound: "I said, are you going to stop? You only cry and cry all day long!"
Qin Huai Ru: "Do you think I want to? It's getting close to the New Year, and our family's Bang Geng has only two sets of clothes he's worn since he was born. He hasn't had new clothes since then.
He's growing fast, his old clothes are going to be too small soon. As his mother, I can't even get fabric to make clothes for him.
It's fine if we don't have any, but I saw that your Master's family has fabric. I thought Da Ma was going to make something and let her use our sewing machine.
Who knew she took the things straight to the West courtyard. What, is that abandoned child from the West courtyard so precious that he gets new clothes, while my Bang Geng can't?"
Bang Geng and Shen Yuan Chao were born in the same year, and the people in the courtyard couldn't help but compare the two.
Qin Huai Ru was ambitious, so how could she stand to see Bang Geng lose out?
Jia Dong Xu got up: "You said Da Ma gave her family's cloth to the abandoned child in Liu Widow's house?"
"Yeah!"
"I'll go to Master's house!"
Jia Dong Xu got dressed and went to Yi Zhong Hai's house. Yi Zhong Hai was wiping his face with a hot towel: "Dong Xu, what are you doing here so early?"
"Da Ye, my Bang Geng has been growing a lot recently, and the clothes at home are almost too small. I was thinking if you have any scraps of cloth at home, could you give some to Huai Ru so she can make a set of New Year's clothes for the child?"
Yi Zhong Hai: "It's getting close to the New Year, it's time to make new clothes for Bang Geng. Alright, your Da Ma will be taking care of things at home. I'll talk to her later and let her send it to you!"
Jia Dong Xu: "Okay, thank you, Da Ye!"
Jia Dong Xu returned home, Qin Huai Ru was looking forward to it: "Dong Xu, how did it go?"
"Master said Da Ma will send the cloth to Bang Geng later!"
Qin Huai Ru happily hugged Bang Geng: "Bang Geng, we're getting new clothes this year!"
Jia Zhang Shi snorted coldly: "Huai Ru, when she sends it, you say it's not enough and you need to make a full set, and tell her to bring back those for Liu Widow's family!"
Qin Huai Ru: "Okay, Mom, I got it!"
Now, people in the courtyard rarely see Liu Hui Zhen and her family.
Da Ma was in Liu Hui Zhen's courtyard: "Hui Zhen, take a look. If you use this cloth sparingly, can you make a full set?"
In the 1950s, babies' clothes were a full set, including a head covering, a small pillow, a small cotton mattress, a small quilt, single, double, and cotton long-sleeved coats, open-crotch trousers, and diapers.
Except for the small cotton mattress and the small quilt, Shen Yuan Chao had everything else.
Head covering?: To protect the baby's head, use a piece of cloth to cut out a "convex" shape like a "small screen" and sew on a red or green satin or cloth face.
Before the founding of the People's Republic, some wealthy families would even embroider auspicious patterns like woven fabrics and cloud patterns, or embroider blessings like "long life and good fortune".
But after the founding of the People's Republic, everyone's life was difficult, so they didn't follow the rules so much. In the 1950s, if anyone's child had a set like this, they would be envied by the whole alley!
Liu Hui Zhen looked at the fabric and was overjoyed: "There are so many red colors, it's so festive. If I patch it up a little, I should be able to do it.
This is just right for him to make two pairs of trousers, one pair of Chinese trousers, and one pair of trousers with feet attached!
I just got two small pieces of satin, I'll make him a pair of tiger head shoes!"
The satin was only the size of a palm, and it was Chen Xue Ru who gave it to Shen Yuan Chao from her scraps.
Shen Yuan Chao listened to Liu Hui Zhen's arrangements, his heart filled with joy. Bang Geng didn't have it, but he did!
Da Ma smiled: "That's great. If you don't have time, I'll come and help you make it in the evening!"
Liu Hui Zhen: "Da Ma, how can I thank you? If it weren't for you, my Yuan Chao would be suffering so much now?"
Da Ma: "It's nothing. I don't have the blessing to adopt Yuan Chao, I just hope you can raise him well!"
"Oh, Da Ma, I go to the literacy class at night. Why don't you come with me? Director Wang said that as long as you can read, you will be prioritized for work in the future!"
Da Ma: "I...can I do that?"
Liu Hui Zhen: "Of course you can! I heard the teacher at the literacy class say that this winter, they've started winter classes in the countryside, focusing on promoting fast literacy. The movement to eliminate illiteracy is in full swing. We don't need anything else, we just need not to be blind!"
Da Ma's mind was working. She thought that others and Yi Zhong Hai were all pointing fingers at her and calling her a hen that couldn't lay eggs. If she could read and get a job, even a temporary job, the next time something like adopting a child happened, even if Yi Zhong Hai didn't agree,
she could divorce him and adopt the child herself.
Depending on Yi Zhong Hai and Jia Dong Xu, her later years might not be good. She had to think about her own future.
"Okay, I'll go with you. If I don't understand, you have to help me!"
"No problem!"