While others were still out working, mainly transporting cow dung to the fields to fertilize the soil, Feng Qingxue was at home sorting through the items her uncle Feng had sent over. She continued drying vegetables and storing necessary items in the cellar. Then, she washed and ironed the military uniform meticulously before hurriedly starting to make winter clothes for the children.
She and Mr. Lu, being adults, didn’t change much in size and therefore didn’t need new clothes. However, it was different for the children.
Lu Tianjun and his brother’s size had surged, making last year’s clothes too small to wear, and the same went for their shoes.
Guan Cheng and Guan Yu, who just joined their family this year, didn’t have any winter clothes. Caught up in the frenzy of the autumn harvest, Feng Qingxue didn’t have time for it. The brothers were wearing Lu Tianjun and his brother’s clothes from last year as they were a bit shorter.
Feng Qingxue didn’t treat Guan Cheng and Guan Yu as outsiders, nor did she plan to make new clothes for her family every year. She straightforwardly told the brothers: "Tianjun and Tianzhi’s clothes and shoes were made last year. They fit you well, so I won’t make new ones for you yet."
"Auntie, this is perfectly fine."
Despite being young, Guan Yu knew to be grateful, whereas Guan Cheng wasn’t unappreciative. Although the clothes were old, they didn’t have a single patch and were clean, including autumn clothes, sweaters, and cotton clothes. Feng Qingxue dismantled the cotton clothes, washed the lining and the outer material, aired the cotton filling for two days, and then sewed it all together again. They were as good as new.
Feng Qingxue didn’t make new clothes for her sister either. She unraveled the sweaters and knitted them again with some more yarn. For the rest of the clothes, she simply sewed extra pieces of the same fabric onto trouser legs and cuffs. The cotton clothes were treated similarly.
The only ones really wearing new clothes were Lu Tianjun and Lu Tianzhi, including their autumn clothes, sweaters, and cotton clothes.
Since they gave their old clothes to Guan Cheng and Guan Yu, they had nothing left to wear and needed new clothes.
However, not all of the brothers’ clothes were new. The outer clothes were the same as for Feng Qingyun, extended by patching trouser legs and cuffs. Some were also made from Lu Jiang’s old military uniform which was resized.
Feng Qingxue used Lu Jiang’s old military uniform to make a set of clothes for Guan Cheng as well.
All of them got two pairs of new shoes, one pair of single shoes and one pair of cotton shoes.
They weren’t made by Feng Qingxue but were handmade cloth shoes she got out from the space. They were more in line with the current characteristics.
Even though it had been nearly half a month since the beginning of winter, it wasn’t cold enough to wear cotton clothes. However, on the way to Caohu Brigade with her sister, Feng Qingxue noticed many people were already wearing cotton clothes and coats over their single-layer clothes from spring, summer, and autumn.
Feng Qingxue was pushing her bike with a bamboo basket hanging on one side of the backseat while Feng Qingyun was sitting sideways on the backseat with her legs resting on the basket lid.
"Sis, the bumping is hurting my butt." Feng Qingyun grimaced. Riding a bike wasn’t as comfortable as she had imagined. She had always wanted to ride a bike, but now she wanted to get off and walk instead.
"Just sit there. If you were walking, it will slow us down. When would we get to Caohu then?"
As soon as they arrived at the gate of Caohu Brigade, Feng Qingyun jumped off the back seat and started rubbing her butt.
Ma Haiyan, who came to welcome them, laughed upon seeing this. "Yo, Xiaoyun, what’s going on with you returning by bike?"
"My butt hurts!" Feng Qingyun eyed the bike seat. "Sis, you should make a cushion and tie it on there, so my butt won’t hurt. I remember you used to do it for Brother-in-law."
Feng Qingxue’s response was to smack her on the head.