Noticing the redness at the base of his ears, Jiang Yingying deliberately giggled coyly, “Brother Yao, you have to protect me, okay!”
Shen Yao’s steps faltered for a moment before he quickened his pace. “Shut up!”
The fabric at the supply and marketing cooperative required ration coupons, and the colors weren’t appealing either. Following Shen Yao, Jiang Yingying noticed many people whispering to each other before quickly dispersing.
It seemed like they were exchanging some kind of secret signals.
Shen Yao was clearly familiar with the place. He led Jiang Yingying through a series of twists and turns into another alley, where a middle-aged woman sat on a stool, sewing shoe soles.
Shen Yao tugged at Jiang Yingying. “Take a look and see which colors you like.”
Jiang Yingying leaned in and saw that the shoe soles came in various colors and fabrics. She immediately understood that these were samples of the fabric available.
She crouched down and, referring to the designs in her mind, picked out a few. “Ten meters of this, ten meters of that, and this one too—ten meters. Also, I need different colored threads.”
Thirty meters of fabric plus threads would add up to several dozen yuan.
This was a big purchase!
The middle-aged woman abruptly stood up, opened the door behind her, and glanced around. “Come inside to talk.”
Only after Shen Yao nodded did Jiang Yingying feel at ease enough to follow her in. The woman went into the room and brought out a stack of fabric. “This is all I have at home.”
They weren’t full bolts—just one meter of this color, two meters of that.
Jiang Yingying’s heart stirred. These were all scraps from the textile factory, but the larger pieces had been carefully selected.
There were also some scattered, smaller fabric remnants, only suitable for making socks or underwear, completely useless for clothing.
Jiang Yingying shook her head. “I only want pieces that are at least one meter long.”
The middle-aged woman sorted through them and placed the selected pieces on a nearby bench. “How about these?”
There were all sorts of colors, especially a large piece of blue-checked fabric, nearly two meters long.
Only then did Jiang Yingying nod. “How much?”
The middle-aged woman swallowed hard and cautiously held up two fingers. “Twenty yuan!”
Her husband worked at the textile factory. These fabrics were all scraps, though some had been brought home without permission.
Afraid of being reported, she had been extremely cautious over the years, mostly trading small pieces for eggs or the like.
Jiang Yingying took fifteen yuan from her inner pocket. “If these will do, I’ll take them.”
The middle-aged woman was reluctant. “I even threw in some thread for you.”
Jiang Yingying smiled faintly. “Auntie, just tell me—is it a deal or not?”
This cunning little brat!
The woman stamped her foot. “Take them, take them! Hide them well once you leave. If you get caught, it has nothing to do with me!”
Shen Yao bundled up the fabric and stuffed it inside his coat, then pulled Jiang Yingying along. “Hurry up, the brigade will be sending people over soon.”
Although things weren’t as strict as before, if they were caught, not only would they face fines, but they might even end up in jail!
Sure enough, as soon as they stepped out of the alley, they saw people running frantically behind them.
Shen Yao’s expression changed. He scooped Jiang Yingying up by the waist and, within three seconds, ducked into another alley.
He moved swiftly and was familiar with the area, quickly shaking off the chaotic crowd behind them.
Jiang Yingying felt like a ragdoll, tossed around so much she nearly threw up.
Once they were safe, she gasped for breath and complained, “Brother Yao, you… you almost shook me to death…”
Shen Yao glanced at her. “If you weren’t the one buying fabric, I’d have left long ago.”
Jiang Yingying patted her chest coquettishly and shot him a flirtatious glare. “Brother Yao, I’m your wife. You wouldn’t abandon your own wife, would you?”
Wife? Since when did this wife ever consult him about anything?
He thought this wife had far too much of her own mind!
Shen Yao remained unmoved. “What if you can’t sell the clothes after spending so much money?”
“Then I’ll wear them myself!” Jiang Yingying was still wearing the dress she had on earlier. She admired herself for a moment before lifting her delicate face to ask, “Don’t you think this dress looks good on me?”
Shen Yao turned his face away. “Can looking good fill your stomach?”
So lacking in romance!
Jiang Yingying snorted, then fell into worry again. “How are we getting back later?”
“Uncle Li’s tractor will come pick us up soon.”
Shen Yao checked the position of the sun, stood up, and started walking ahead. “We need to hurry. We can’t leave all the farm work to Mother and Little Sister.”
Jiang Yingying was so exhausted she could barely move. “Can’t we rest a bit longer?”
“No.”
Shen Yao looked down at her. “If you can’t walk, I’ll carry you.”
Jiang Yingying, “…”
On the way back, there were far fewer people sitting in the back.
“Hey, I heard Shen Hongcui and her daughter got caught?”
“Really?”
Two people across from them whispered to each other: “I heard they dropped their meat while running, and got caught when they bent down to pick it up!”
Jiang Yingying sat with her eyes closed, but her heart was filled with lingering fear. Thankfully, Shen Yao had pulled her along to run—with her small frame, she would have been caught in no time otherwise.
Just before getting off the tractor, Uncle Li in front finally spoke up: “I heard they need someone from the village to claim them, or they’ll have to stay locked up!”
Everyone sighed along with him: “They saved up eggs for months just to exchange for some meat, and now they’ve gotten themselves into trouble. Who knows what Sister Hongcui was thinking!”
Jiang Yingying absentmindedly yawned. “So sleepy…”
After dozing off on the tractor, Jiang Yingying returned home full of fighting spirit. She immediately plunged into her room and began working with her fabric.
Li Xuelian and Shen Xiaoyun had both gone to work in the fields. Shen Yao casually grabbed a few pancakes and headed out with a hoe over his shoulder.
Jiang Yingying spent the entire afternoon alone in her room, drafting patterns.
Since the fabric was limited and expensive, she chose a standard size to work with. Girls in this era generally had similar figures, with none being particularly large.
First, she made two dresses similar in style to the one she was wearing, with slight improvements in design and different patterns.
Then she created a set consisting of a pinafore dress and a white blouse, followed by a long skirt paired with a small bolero.
After thinking for a while, she also made a work-style dress with a shirt-like top and a lady-like pleated skirt.
The reason she made all dresses was that they were less demanding in terms of tailoring and body shape—being a bit taller or shorter didn’t make much difference.
By the time Shen Yao and the others returned from the fields, Jiang Yingying had already cut out all the clothes in one go, leaving only the sewing to be done.
Looking at the piles of fabric pieces, Jiang Yingying became even more determined to get a sewing machine.
According to the timeline, there would be long meetings after the busy farming season, and the spring breeze of reform would officially sweep across the entire continent…
By then, small household workshops would be permitted, and she could openly sell clothes!
Outside, Li Xuelian returned home to find Shen Qinghong coughing as he cooked, with their two young grandsons helping wash vegetables, while Jiang Yingying remained alone in her room, doing who knows what.
Seeing this scene, Shen Xiaoyun instinctively wanted to make a sarcastic remark, but remembering yesterday’s rabbit incident, she held her tongue.
Shen Yao had long given up any hope for this woman. Since they were getting a divorce anyway, he thought, let her do as she pleases.
“Jiang Yingying, dinner’s ready,” he called out, knocking once on the door before losing interest in bothering further.
Whether she ate or not was up to her—no one in this house was going to indulge her anymore!