This person must be the Grandma Li Si ntioned by Lady Zhou. Could she be that terrifying, otherwise why would Lian Zhizhi have such a terrified expression?
"Grandma Li Si." Manman thought to herself and called out before pulling Lian Zhizhi aside to make way.
Grandma Li Si nodded her head, seeming satisfied with Manman’s understanding of propriety.
"These must be the second and third young ladies, long ti no see, you’ve grown quite a bit." As Grandma Li Si spoke, she glanced at their feet, her face revealing a hint of disapproval.
"Grandma Li Si, please co in, my mother is waiting. Our Yaya relies completely on you now." Lady He hurriedly ushered Grandma Li Si into the room.
Lian Zhizhi hurriedly pulled Manman along and they ran back to the West Wing Room.
"Sister, why are you so scared?" Manman asked.
"Look who’s talking; you used to be even more frightened of her than I am." Lian Zhizhi patted her chest, "Oh, you must have forgotten."
"Is Grandma Li Si really that terrifying?" Manman asked again.
"It seems you really have forgotten. Just two years ago, Sister Hong Xia from the eastern end of the village had her feet bound by Grandma Li Si, and she almost lost her life." Lian Zhizhi shuddered as if recalling sothing horrifying.
"Footbinding, isn’t that quite normal?"
"With Grandma Li Si, it’s anything but normal, especially at Yaya’s age." Lian Zhizhi said.
"Sister, you also don’t want to have your feet bound, do you?" Manman chuckled.
"When we were little... we didn’t bind, and now I’m used to it; I don’t want to suffer that pain. I’m fine this way. We’ll just work harder if we have to," said Lian Zhizhi. She rembered Manman’s behavior earlier in the Upper Room and asked, "Manman, do you want to have your feet bound?"
Seeing that no one else was around, Manman didn’t hide her feelings from Lian Zhizhi.
"I don’t want to at all. I was thinking, since Grandma thinks so little of , what if she insists on binding my feet when I show I don’t want to?" Manman said.
"Manman, how clever you’ve beco!" Lian Zhizhi laughed.
The sisters sat on the kang bed, chatting.
"... Sister Huahua and Duoduo both started having their feet bound when they were five years old. Now it’s Yaya’s turn, and they’ve even called Grandma Li Si. It’s going to be painful," Lian Zhizhi said.
Manman thought it over; she had never seen how footbinding was done, and she felt a little curious to see for herself.
"Manman, do you want to go see? I advise you not to," said Lian Zhizhi, discerning Manman’s thoughts.
"Just a quick look," said Manman, her curiosity uncovered by Lian Zhizhi.
"Zhizhi, Manman, co and light the fire," Lady He’s voice ca from outside.
"We won’t go." Manman grabbed Lian Zhizhi, knowing that Lady He was lazy and always liked to push the work she should do onto others. The few near-grown boys in the second household only ca ho at alti and never did any work; Lady He always said Lian Yaya was too young to work and never let her do chores, preferring to order her, Lian Zhizhi, and the people from the third household, Lady Zhang and Lian Yeye, around.
"... To bind your sister’s feet, and your mother tells you to light the fire," Lady He walked towards the West Wing Room, having heard no response.
"I’m coming now," Lian Zhizhi replied loudly outside, then turned to Manman with a smile, "Let her be lazy. It’s a small chore, I’ll do it. You stay inside, Manman."
Manman smiled, too. Lian Zhizhi and Lady Zhang were alike, both hardworking and with pleasant temperants. Manman always felt that the adults and children of the Fourth Household were so passive that it was frustrating, but given the choice, she would still prefer to stay in this household.
"I’ll go, too," Manman got off the kang, "and take the chance to have a look."
The sisters chatted and laughed all the way to the Upper Room.
"Boil a pot of water; we need it for Yaya’s footbinding," Lady He said, while she glanced at the feet of Manman and Lian Zhizhi and compared them to her own daughter Yaya’s soon-to-be-bound feet, feeling a surge of superiority.
"Auntie, go and keep Yaya company in the room; I’ll take care of boiling the water," Lian Zhizhi said.
Lady He nodded contentedly and went inside.
Lian Zhizhi started the fire under the stove while Manman scooped a ladleful of water into the pot, scrubbed the large iron pot thoroughly, then poured out the dirty water before finally filling the pot with plenty of clean water and covering it with a lid.
"Sister, I’ll get you a stool," seeing Lian Zhizhi squatting to tend the fire, Manman went into the east room to fetch a stool for her—and, of course, to use the opportunity to sneak a peek at Lian Yaya’s footbinding.
In the east room, a kang table was placed in the center, on it a Needle and Thread Basket with needles, thread, a large lump of cotton, a box of alum, and beside the basket, six blue cloth strips, each eight or nine feet long, thoroughly starched and neatly ironed.
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