Chapter 35 New Cotton-padded Clothes_1
As the day of their return to Mo Family Village from the capital drew near, the weather became increasingly cold. A few days ago, frost had yellowed the small bok choy in the yard, and Mo Yan, worried about the cold on the road, went to the shop and bought a good amount of cotton back home, planning to make a new set of cotton clothes and pants for everyone in the family, including Lizhong and Liyan.
On this day, when the weather was nice, Mo Yan worked on the cotton clothes in the yard, and Xin Er watched intently, occasionally helping to pad the cotton.
Liyan also brought over a chair and sat down with the sisters. Under Mo Yan’s guidance, she started to make cotton clothes for their grandfather and herself.
After finishing her calligraphy, Zhenzhen came over to join in the fun. The cotton, warmed and softened by the sun, was maneuvered by her hands into various shapes, and surprisingly, the little cats and dogs she formed looked quite realistic.
"Big sister, this cotton is so white, so soft. Clothes made from it will definitely be warm. Our previous cotton clothes were not only stiff but also had a musty smell!"
Zhenzhen recalled the old, un-warm cotton clothes she used to wear, her eyes filled with anticipation for the new cotton clothes.
While sewing the cotton clothes, Mo Yan felt a twinge of sadness upon hearing this. "Cotton clothes get like that after being worn for a long time. In the future, our family will make new ones every year!"
During those years in Mo Family Village, they ate poorly and dressed even worse. Cotton was so expensive, not to mention making new clothes every year; the original owner was thirteen and had never worn new cotton clothes. Even if they were old, adults altered them for the children to wear, or directly took the cotton out of unwearable clothes to make new ones. After being altered year after year, how could the cotton still be soft and warm?
"Sister, with such good new cotton clothes, we won’t have cold hands and feet anymore, will we?"
Liyan’s words brought back painful memories for Xin Er. Each winter, without good cotton clothes, the three siblings could only shiver and huddle together in bed. Yet even then, during the coldest days, they would still get frostbite; redness and bleeding were the lesser issues. The worst were the rotting backs of their hands, itchy and painful day and night, and the family was too poor to afford ointment, only hoping for spring to come sooner.