bullyxtreme Chapter 63 "Full of Love" - World Widows Raising Children 4
Chapter 63 "Full of Love" - World Widows Raising Children 4
The other housewives in the courtyard, after discussing with their families and taking inspiration from Liu Yuxi's purchases, also decided what they needed to buy. Besides items they were missing, they also stocked up on refined grains, oil, pork fat and meat, as well as cotton and cotton cloth. These were all essential items for food and clothing, things they would definitely use, so having extra wouldn't hurt.
These past few days, the women coming and going in the courtyard have frequently attracted inquiries from the older women in other courtyards. When asked, they truthfully answer what they bought, saying it's all things their families lack, and they buy more at once to save trouble. They even suggest that the older women buy some too. Some listen, some don't, and they think these women are wasteful. Why buy so many things that aren't important and just leave them at home? Do you plan to keep the food you buy for a long time? It'll only be enough when the little ones at home start fussing and end up in your stomach.
Taking advantage of her two or three days off, Liu Yuxi bought some cabbage to make sauerkraut. She also borrowed first-grade textbooks from her third uncle and spent her spare time teaching Jianguo and Jiandang to read. It wasn't that she didn't want to get textbooks from her spatial storage; the current textbooks were in traditional characters, and simplified characters wouldn't be published until next year. The original owner of this body had learned some characters from the military while stationed in the rear, which is why she told Director Wang of the street office that she only had an elementary school education. She also genuinely planned to attend night school after starting work, otherwise, it wouldn't be reasonable for her to take the advanced fitter exam later.
Monday arrived in the blink of an eye. It was December 20, 1954. Liu Yuxi prepared breakfast, left some food in the pot for her two sons, and rode her bicycle to the steel rolling mill, still in her work clothes. Upon arriving at Workshop One, she first greeted her foreman, Sister Chen. Sister Chen explained the main tasks of a fitter and the tools used. Then, she had Liu Yuxi assist a senior fitter next to her, observing how the senior fitter processed workpieces.
She and Sister Chen don't have a formal master-disciple relationship, so she might not be able to teach Liu Yuxi like Yi Zhonghai taught Jia Dongxu, who taught her step by step. However, Sister Chen will answer Liu Yuxi's questions seriously. Liu Yuxi feels that this level of teaching is sufficient for now. She will look for more materials later to see what level she can reach by learning this way. If all else fails, she will still have to find a master.
Half a day passed, and Liu Yuxi diligently observed and recorded the processing flow of the first-level workpieces and the qualification standards for each workpiece. At noon, she went to the third canteen with Sister Chen, the canteen where He Yuzhu worked. He Yuzhu hadn't taken his certification exam yet and was still an apprentice, so he was getting his food at the window. He wasn't in the habit of flipping the wok at this time. "Sister Liu!" she greeted, filling Liu Yuxi and Sister Chen's bowls to the brim. "Hey, thanks, Yuzhu!" She also got four steamed buns. Liu Yuxi then told Sister Chen that she had to go home for lunch, since her two sons were still at home. Sister Chen knew about her family situation and told her not to be late in the afternoon, urging her to hurry home.
Liu Yuxi put the lunchbox in the bag she had prepared when she left home in the morning, rode her bicycle back to the courtyard, and when she was almost in the courtyard, she secretly transferred another lunchbox from her spatial storage into the bag. Inside were three white steamed buns and some scrambled eggs that Liu Yuxi had prepared in advance. Children still need to supplement their nutrition.
When she got home, she saw the two children sitting in the main room reading. Her aunt, hearing her return, came out and said, "Jianguo and the other boy are so well-behaved; they've stayed inside all morning and haven't come out." "Really? Okay, thank you so much. I'll need you to look after them again!" "Of course, don't worry! Go back inside and eat; you have to go to work this afternoon!" "Okay, you go back too. I'll let you know when I leave this afternoon!" "Okay, just let me know when you leave!" "Okay!"
Back inside, I first asked the two brothers, "You two didn't go out to play all morning?" Jian Dang eagerly replied, "My brother helped me review the characters Mom taught me these past few days!" "You two are great, but you need to get up and move around after reading for a while. Lying down to read all the time isn't good for your eyes. Jianguo can play with his brother for a while, as long as they don't leave the yard. If they're not playing in the front yard, remember to close the main room door!" "Mom, I know!" "Okay, you two go wash your hands and tidy up the table. I'll go heat up the food!"
I took out the lunchbox. I had specially cooked extra corn porridge this morning, and now I added two ladles of water and boiled it to make a thinner consistency, which would be perfect for heating up the lunchbox. It's the dead of winter, and the food was all cold on the way back from the factory. After the three of us ate, I told the other two to take a nap, and Liu Yuxi washed the pots and dishes, said goodbye to Auntie San, and went to the factory.
The afternoon followed the same process as the morning, with Liu Yuxi assisting the first-level fitter next to him. He had recorded three types of workpieces in the morning, and the same three types in the afternoon. Liu Yuxi did not aim too high; he simply handed over the workpiece blanks while mentally simulating his own operation to deepen his memory.
After getting off work in the afternoon, I greeted Sister Chen, Uncle Chen, and Jia Dongxu, then hurriedly rode my bike back to the courtyard house. As usual, I greeted Auntie San first, then went home. Seeing my two children at home, I changed out of my work clothes, washed my hands, and started cooking dinner. Jianguo and Jiandang squeezed in front of the stove to help me light the fire, and the mother and children chatted while cooking.
"What did you two do this afternoon?" "After my brother and I got up, we played with Yan Jiekuang in the yard for a while, and then we brought him home to read comic books. Yan Jiekuang just got home." No wonder I saw Auntie holding Yan Jiekuang's hand earlier. "Okay, you two should play with Jiekuang whenever you have free time, don't just stay at home all the time."
All the other children in the courtyard have gone to school. Yan Jiedi is three years old now. Boys generally don't like to play with girls, and there are no girls her age in the courtyard, so she mostly stays with the third aunt. Liu Guangfu is also three years old, but he's too young and usually plays in the backyard. Banggeng is two years old and is still being held in someone's arms. Only Yan Jiekuang is the same age as the twins.
(Besides the main characters, the other characters in "Full House of Love" don't seem to have specific ages. The author's setting here is based on inferences from the plot, so it's just an approximation and shouldn't be taken too seriously. Because people in the past didn't use the actual age, they used the traditional Chinese age system, so we'll use that here as well. For example, in 65, He Yuzhu was 30 years old:)
He Yuzhu was born in 1936 and is 19 years old this year.
He Yushui was born in 1945 and is 10 years old this year.
Qin Huairu was born in 1934 and is 21 years old this year.
Jia Dongxu was born in 1932 and is 23 years old this year.
Bang Geng was born in 1953 and is 2 years old this year.
Xu Damao was born in 1938 and is 17 years old this year.
Xu Xiaoling was born in 1945 and is 10 years old this year.
Yan Jiecheng was born in 1941 and is 14 years old this year.
Yan Jiefang was born in 1945 and is 10 years old this year.
Yan Jiekuang was born in 1949 and is 6 years old this year.
Yan Jiedi was born in 1952 and is 3 years old this year.
Liu Guangqi was born in 1942 and is 13 years old this year.
Liu Guangtian was born in 1947 and is 8 years old this year.
Liu Guangfu was born in 1952 and is 3 years old this year.
Wang Jianguo was born in 1949 and is 6 years old this year.
Wang Jiandang was born in 1949 and is 6 years old this year.
Next up is Xiao Dang (tentatively born in 1956, Huaihua born in 1962).