Lin Lan smiled. "She’s my grand-aunt’s youngest daughter. They live in the mountains, so you didn’t see her last ti."
Little Douzi nodded. "Got it!"
Li Xiangyang ladled the pea shoot and egg soup into a serving bowl and brought it to the table. "Dinner’s ready!"
"Coming!" Lin Lan saw the dishes on the table—shredded radish salad, stir-fried celery with shredded pork, and stir-fried pork liver with pickled chilis and scallions—and smiled. "Take a look, everyone. Our Chef Li’s cooking is pretty impressive, isn’t it?"
Little Douzi and Lin Yuezhen both smiled and nodded. "It looks delicious!"
’My cousin’s family eats so well,’ Qiaohui thought. ’Even the Brigade Leader’s family doesn’t eat this good.’
After dinner, the rain had lightened a little. Lin Lan brought sothing up with Li Xiangyang. "Can you get so ti off? I’m planning to stay in Shilian for an extra couple of days this trip. I want to visit my aunt’s place and see if I can source so good mountain products to sell for the New Year."
Li Xiangyang thought for a mont, then nodded. "If you want to go, let’s go. I’ll have Zhigang cover for at the slaughterhouse tomorrow."
Lin Lan nodded. "Okay, we’ll catch the early bus to Shilian tomorrow."
"Mhm. I’ll head back now to get things arranged."
"Okay, I’ll walk you out." Lin Lan stood, grabbed an umbrella, and they walked toward the courtyard gate together. Li Xiangyang took her hand and whispered, "Were you angry this afternoon?"
Lin Lan rolled her eyes at him. "I can’t be bothered with you!"
"You’re cute even when you roll your eyes!" Li Xiangyang said, ruffling her hair and chuckling softly.
Lin Lan pulled his hand away and swatted him lightly. "Don’t ruffle my hair."
Li Xiangyang smiled and nodded. "Go on back inside. I’ll co get you in the morning."
"Mhm!"
After seeing Li Xiangyang off, Lin Lan rembered that Lin Yuezhen didn’t know how to make the kidney bean rolls. She went back inside and told her, "Yuezhen, you don’t need to soak the great white beans tonight. I’m planning to go to Shilian and stop by my aunt’s place."
Lin Yuezhen nodded.
Qiaohui, who was squatting nearby helping to wash peas, looked up in pleasant surprise. "Cousin, are you really coming to my ho?"
"Mhm! I’m going to see what kinds of mountain products you have there and source so to bring back." Lin Lan paused. "Is your family in need of anything essential?"
Qiaohui hesitated. "Cousin, could you help buy so salt? And so pain-relief ointnt for my father... for his rheumatism." She looked at Lin Lan earnestly. "Cousin, I don’t have any money right now, but I’ll work hard. I’ll pay you back as soon as I get my wages."
"Of course!" Lin Lan agreed without hesitation. ’I guess this ans we’ll have to leave a bit later tomorrow,’ she thought. ’I’ll have to go to the hospital for the pain-relief ointnt first, then find Hou Gui to get the salt.’
"Thank you, Cousin!" Qiaohui said gratefully. "Su Family Mountain gets very cold. You’ll need to bring your thickest winter clothes and so warm, padded shoes."
Lin Lan looked at her. "Do you grow cotton in the mountains?"
Qiaohui shook her head. "No. We have a lot of mountains, but very little farmland. All the cotton my family has was given to us by my second and youngest aunts."
"I see." Lin Lan turned to Little Douzi, who was squatting next to Qiaohui and shelling peas. "Douzi, ti for bed. We’re going to Grandma’s house tomorrow."
Little Douzi nodded, then thought of sothing else. "Mama, when is Teacher Zheng’s cold going to be better?"
Lin Lan patted his head. "I don’t know. She’ll probably be better by the ti we get back."
After Little Douzi was in bed, Lin Lan went out to give Lin Yuezhen instructions for making the pumpkin and pea cakes. Together, they prepared all the pastries for the next day’s wholesale order. Only then did she return to her room, pack the winter clothes and shoes for herself and Little Douzi, and finally go to sleep.
The next day, the rain had eased into a fine drizzle. The entire village was shrouded in a dreamy mist, like a scene from a landscape painting.
Li Xiangyang arrived early in the morning. He wore a dark blue woolen jacket with a standing collar over a white wool sweater, paired with perfectly ironed, straight-leg navy trousers. He looked both handso and sharp.
Lin Lan bead at him. "That’s a nice outfit. When did you have it made?"
A proud smile flickered in Li Xiangyang’s eyes. "A few days ago. You think it looks good? I’m not so sure." As he spoke, he handed her a package he’d been carrying. "I had a set made for you, too. Try it on and see if it fits."
"You had one made for , too?" Lin Lan looked at him, pleasantly surprised. "How did you know my asurents?"
Seeing her delighted expression, Li Xiangyang grinned. "I asked Yuezhen!"
"Thank you! I’ll go try it on right now!"
Lin Lan took the package and went into her room. From the bag, she pulled out a three-button jacket with a small, rounded collar, made of the sa color and material as Li Xiangyang’s. Inside was a cream-colored, machine-knit wool sweater, done in a simple, elegant stitch.
Lin Lan slipped on the soft sweater, then the jacket. The length and fit were perfect. ’This Master Yao is really skilled,’ she thought. The waist was tailored beautifully. When she put on the trousers, they also fit perfectly. She then noticed that the side closure of the pants, where a button would normally be near the pocket, had been fitted with a zipper instead.
In those days, no one dared put a zipper on the front of a woman’s trousers; you’d be criticized to no end for it.
Once she was dressed, Lin Lan put up her hair and walked out. In the kitchen, Lin Yuezhen gave her a thumbs-up, while Qiaohui kept saying how beautiful she looked.
Lin Lan felt her face flush. She walked out of the kitchen and saw Li Xiangyang, thinking they looked like they were wearing a matching couple’s outfit.
Li Xiangyang’s eyes sparkled as he looked at her. "Master Yao tried to persuade to get you a lighter color, but I thought this would look best. And I was right, it’s gorgeous."
Little Douzi ran up to her, beaming. "Mama, you look so pretty today."
Lin Lan ruffled his hair. "And Little Douzi’s new clothes look very handso, too." He was wearing a new maroon corduroy outfit, which complented his rosy complexion and made him look as pretty as a little girl.
"Hehe!" The proud little guy scampered inside to look at himself in the mirror.
Li Xiangyang gave her a long, deep look. "Should we head out now?"
Lin Lan told him about needing to buy the salt and ointnt. "I need to find Hou Gui to get the salt, so let’s take a later bus."
"I’ll go find him. You go to the city hospital for the ointnt." Li Xiangyang took the large basket off the back of his bicycle, set it on the ground, and rode off.
"Uncle Xiangyang, I want to go with you!" Little Douzi shouted, running out of the house with a urea sack in his hand.
Lin Lan didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. "You little rascal. Grandpa wove you a perfectly good bamboo rain hat, but you’d rather wear a urea sack on your head."
Little Douzi shook his head. "Brother Kai says the bamboo hat is heavy and umbrellas are a pain to carry. A urea sack is light and easy! You don’t even have to fold it to stuff it in your bag for next ti, and you don’t have to worry about anyone stealing it."
"You’re a clever one!" Li Xiangyang gave his nose a little tweak, then lifted him onto the back seat. "Hold on tight to my waist."
"Okay!" Little Douzi shouted in response. He waved to Lin Lan. "Mama, bye-byeee~"
"Ha!" Lin Lan chuckled. "You little rascal, where did you pick up that funny voice?"
"All those scruffy-looking guys on the street in bell-bottoms talk like that!" Wang Zhixue said as he and Wang Zhilin walked in, carrying baskets on shoulder poles.
Wang Zhilin laughed. "Bro, you don’t get it. It’s called being fashionable!"
"So being fashionable automatically looks good?" Wang Zhixue shot him a glare. "The way I see it, if soone wears pants with legs that wide, at least they can sweep the floor without needing a broom."
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