22
Watching the sun climb higher and higher, with the end of the queue still nowhere in sight, Jiang Suisui couldn’t take it anymore. She tapped the long-braided girl in front of her again and asked, “Excuse me, how much longer is this going to take?”
The long braid swung as the girl thought for a moment, then said, “We’ll scatter once they run out of stock.”
“Huh?” Jiang Suisui’s face scrunched up in frustration. “Then when will it finally be my turn…”
She muttered under her breath, “I just came to exchange some eggs, that’s all…”
“Exchange eggs?” The long-braided girl turned around and looked at the basket in her hand. “That’s all? Why didn’t you say so earlier? Head over there!”
She raised her hand and pointed. Jiang Suisui followed her gaze and noticed that there were also plenty of people going in and out next to the cooperative’s main entrance.
The girl explained, “Today the main entrance is all tied up with the fabric queue, so everything else got pushed to the side. Go take a look—you’ll see, though it’s still pretty crowded.”
“But hey,” she added, “you don’t want to buy fabric? You’ve already waited this far in line it’d be a shame not to get any.”
Jiang Suisui looked at the long snake of people ahead, then at the egg basket in her hands, then thought about the measly fifty cents in her pocket. In the end, she shook her head regretfully. “Never mind, I need to finish the task Grandma gave me.”
The long-braided girl sized her up and ventured, “Which village are you from?”
“Dayan Village,” Jiang Suisui answered.
“Dayan Village, that’s pretty far. Not easy to make the trip out here, is it?” the girl asked.
Jiang Suisui nodded. Yeah, no kidding—she’d nearly been rattled to pieces by the oxcart.
The girl suddenly flicked her braid again and said generously, “Alright, you’re in luck running into me today. Since you seem like a decent sort…”
She leaned in closer and whispered, “I’ll take your eggs!”
“Huh?” Jiang Suisui’s eyes went wide. “Is—is that allowed?”
Were private transactions even permitted these days?
“What’s not allowed?” The girl whispered back. “I’m not buying from you—I’m trading! We know each other now, and it’s perfectly normal for acquaintances to swap things. Get it?”
Got it! Jiang Suisui understood perfectly—it was all about how you framed it.
“By the way, I’m Chen Cuizhu. What’s your name?”
“I’m Jiang Suisui, nice to meet you!”
“Haha, same here. Actually, my sister-in-law is due any day now, so we need to stock up on eggs at home. Keep me company in line for now, and once I get my fabric, we’ll make the trade.” Seeing a flicker of hesitation in Jiang Suisui’s eyes, Chen Cuizhu added reassuringly, “Don’t worry, I’m not going to cheat you. My family lives right here in town, and I’ve got enough money. Besides, I’ll give you a better deal than the cooperative would.”
She leaned even closer and lowered her voice. “I’ll give you the market rate—seven cents each. No haggling down, and no ration tickets required. Deal?”
Jiang Suisui did the math. At the cooperative, eggs went for five cents each. Trading with Chen Cuizhu was definitely the better deal.
But then again… ration tickets were pretty precious these days.
Jiang Suisui’s mind worked quickly, and she asked, “Instead of cash, could you trade me some ration tickets?”
Chen Cuizhu immediately shook her head. “No can do.”
“Tickets are hard to come by, can’t swap those.”
“Alright, then…” Jiang Suisui hadn’t held out much hope anyway—these days, plenty of people had money but no tickets.
Seeing her disappointment, Chen Cuizhu comforted her, “There’s been a lot going on at home lately, and we’re running short on tickets ourselves, or I’d trade with you.”
Then she added a little sheepishly, “I’m getting married early next spring, so I need to prepare my dowry. All our tickets are being saved up for that.”
“I’m here to buy fabric today for my wedding trousseau,” Chen Cuizhu said dreamily, as if already picturing herself looking gorgeous in her new wedding clothes.
“Wow, congratulations!” Jiang Suisui said promptly.
Once the topic of her wedding came up, Chen Cuizhu seemed to have a lot to say. “My mom’s already got the dragon-and-phoenix quilt and all the other odds and ends ready. She told me to just handle the clothes I’ll need. But my sewing skills aren’t great—my sister-in-law, though, she’s a fantastic tailor. She even brought a sewing machine with her when she got married. She said she’d help me make my clothes, but unfortunately, she’s due soon and I don’t want to tire her out. So I’m planning to hire the best tailor in town to do it! It’ll cost a bit more, though.”
As Jiang Suisui listened, her eyes suddenly lit up. “Actually! To be honest with you—I’m a pretty good tailor myself. How about… you consider me?”
“What?” Chen Cuizhu swatted at the patched clothes Jiang Suisui was wearing. “When I say tailor, I don’t mean someone who sews patches…”
“I know,” Jiang Suisui nodded and smiled. “You’re talking about cutting fabric and making a full outfit. That’s exactly what I mean too.”
Jiang Suisui wasn’t bluffing—in her past life, doing handicrafts at home was one of her greatest pleasures. She and her mother often sewed their own clothes, made little skirts, and even embroidered simple patterns. Though her mom wouldn’t let her do too much embroidery since it was too tiring.
She’d thought those skills would be completely useless in a place where clothes were merely patched together but now she’d stumbled upon a business opportunity.
Chen Cuizhu suddenly felt the confidence radiating from Jiang Suisui, but she still couldn’t quite believe it. What kind of skills could a young village girl possibly have? She’d probably just end up piecing fabric together haphazardly.
She shook her head. “No way. This is my wedding dress I can’t mess around with it. I’d rather spend more and hire a real tailor.”
Jiang Suisui grew anxious—this was a chance she couldn’t let slip by!
“It’s different. I’m a young girl, and you’re a young girl too. Young girls know best what styles suit themselves—and other young girls. Every tailor in the village or town is an older woman, isn’t that right? Their craftsmanship is reliable for sure, but their designs are always the same! The only difference is using new fabric, but the finished look is no different from what you’re wearing right now.”
Then she blurted out, “If you’re worried, how about you give me a trial run? Do you have any clothes at home that need mending? Let me try—free of charge! If you’re not satisfied, I… I’ll give you this whole basket of eggs!”
She held up the basket and gestured toward Chen Cuizhu.
Grandma, forgive your unfilial granddaughter… but your granddaughter definitely won’t lose your eggs. Jiang Suisui thought to herself.
Chen Cuizhu was a little swayed by her words, and also caught up in her determination. She mulled it over and felt Jiang Suisui made some sense—the tailors in town all churned out the same styles, just swapping in new fabric.
But… could Jiang Suisui actually make something different?
Chen Cuizhu rolled her eyes thoughtfully and said, “Tell you what—my sister-in-law has been preparing clothes for my soon-to-be-born nephew, but this pregnancy has been rough on her, so she hasn’t gotten much done. We’ve got a bunch of old cotton fabric at home. I’ll sneak a few pieces for you to try. But like you said, if I’m not happy, the eggs are mine.”
Jiang Suisui nodded eagerly. “Of course! But I promise you’ll be satisfied!”
“Deal!” Chen Cuizhu said heartily. “Once I’m done buying my fabric, you’ll come home with me, and you can show me what you’ve got this afternoon.”
“Great!” Jiang Suisui replied excitedly.
After a moment…
Wait…
Wasn’t she forgetting something?
Jiang Suisui suddenly felt something was off. Then it hit her—oh no! The oxcart from her village was heading back at noon!
Chen Cuizhu noticed Jiang Suisui’s sudden look of distress and teased, “What’s wrong? Having second thoughts? That’s fine—it’s not like I’m dead set on your eggs. You don’t have to do it.”
“No, no, it’s not that.” Jiang Suisui said dejectedly. “It’s our village cart—it leaves at noon. If I don’t leave by then, I won’t know how to get back.”
“Is that all?” Chen Cuizhu waved it off dismissively. “I thought it was something serious! You know the next village over, Heshi Village?”
Jiang Suisui nodded, she vaguely remembered Grandma Jiang mentioning it. It was close to their village, and the two villages’ elementary schools were combined.
Chen Cuizhu continued, “I’ve got a friend from Heshi Village. She’s heading back today, and she’s leaving in the evening. I can have her take you along.”
Jiang Suisui’s eyes sparkled. “Really?! That’s perfect!”
Chen Cuizhu patted her chest. “Small favor. She lives near my place right now I’ll just let her know when we get back.”
“Wow!” Jiang Suisui happily threw her arms around her. “Cuizhu, meeting you is seriously the luckiest thing ever!”
Caught off guard by the hug, Chen Cuizhu said nervously, “Hey hey, even if you’re a girl, we don’t go around hugging in the middle of the street!”
“Hehe!” Jiang Suisui let go and grinned.
Seeing her adorable smile, Chen Cuizhu couldn’t help but laugh too. “Ah, it’s only because you’ve got a likable face.”
“But… you look younger than me, don’t you?” She eyed Jiang Suisui skeptically. “I’m already eighteen. Shouldn’t you be calling me sister?”
Jiang Suisui laughed. “I’m seventeen, but honestly, you seem pretty young-looking. You appear younger than me.”
Flattery never goes out of style.
“Pfft! I’m old enough to get married—no way I’m younger than you! But you sure know how to talk!” Chen Cuizhu said cheerfully.
The two chatted and laughed together as they waited in line, and suddenly the queue didn’t feel so agonizing anymore.
Before they knew it, they’d finally reached the front.
Chen Cuizhu pulled a wad of fabric ration tickets out of her pocket with a flourish, making Jiang Suisui’s eyes go wide.
She’d been observing for a while—most people ahead only had two or three tickets at most.
Loaded! Jiang Suisui felt like she’d latched onto a big shot.
Chen Cuizhu bought a few lengths of white, blue, and gray cotton fabric each, then picked out a piece of diqueliang.
Diqueliang was really expensive. Even Chen Cuizhu winced at the price and, gritting her teeth, only bought one piece—just enough for half a garment at most.
After hemorrhaging both tickets and cash, Chen Cuizhu held the diqueliang fabric in her hands, emotions equally split between joy and heartache.
“So expensive but the color is so bright… too bad there’s no red left.” By the time it was her turn, only yellow was available.
Jiang Suisui leaned in to take a look and nodded. “It’s really vivid. It’d make a nice dress—it should look great.” At least it’s not a muddy brown.
“Let’s go!” Chen Cuizhu clutched her fresh, newly bought fabric, suddenly feeling eager. “Come home with me, let me see what you can do!”
**