Chapter Nineteen: Cloth Tickets

The pig stomach for the pig stomach chicken was ready, but there was no chicken or the essential seasonings.

Chicken alone could be bought in the county town, and maybe wild chickens could be found in the mountains by chance, but the seasonings were the soul of this dish.

At noon, two pots of steamed white flour buns were made. The dishes served were stir-fried cabbage with pork and spicy stir-fried pig liver with chili. The two little girls ate until their mouths were greasy.

After finishing the meal at home, Tiezhu hurried over, changed into his cotton shoes, and was about to head to the Fuzhuang Brigade.

“Tiezhu, take this with you,” Zhang Huacheng said as he shoved a cloth bag into his hands.

He didn’t share the money with Tiezhu, but he still gave what was due.

“Brother, what’s this?” Tiezhu asked, scratching his head and grinning.

Zhang Huacheng patted the cloth bag. “Inside are ten white flour buns. The two oil paper packages on top contain spicy stir-fried pig liver and pork cracklings. At the bottom, wrapped in oil paper, are salt and chili. Go and get your younger brother and sister’s shoe sizes and clothing measurements. Tomorrow, I’ll try to get some cloth coupons to make cotton-padded jackets and shoes for them.”

Cotton shoes and jackets were too expensive to buy outright.

Though they had earned quite a bit of money, there were many places that needed funds, and what was in their pockets was far from enough.

Tiezhu nodded repeatedly, skillfully placing the cloth bag into a bamboo basket, covering it with a layer of firewood. After greeting Zhang Huacheng, he ran off quickly.

“Those cloth coupons aren’t easy to come by,” Zhang Huacheng muttered, feeling a bit overwhelmed.

But he knew that as long as you had money, cloth coupons could be bought on the black market. Coupons for cloth, coarse grains, and food were relatively easy to obtain. The hard ones were bicycle coupons and sewing machine coupons.

It was just a matter of how much money you had.

The first batch of new clothes needed was for Wang Lin, Hua Ling, the little girls, Da Bao, Xiao Bao, and Tiezhu’s younger siblings. The second batch included himself, Tiezhu, the eldest brother and sister-in-law, and their parents.

“What kind of cloth?” Wang Lin asked curiously upon hearing this.

Zhang Huacheng stepped forward and embraced her slender waist, feeling her blush deeply before saying, “Tomorrow I’ll buy some cloth and cotton to make you new clothes. What style of cloth do you like?”

“I-I already have clothes to wear…” Wang Lin lowered her head shyly, glancing nervously at the little girls playing on the kang bed.

“You have to wear new clothes for the New Year. Your clothes are still from before the wedding. I have to make you a nice set,” Zhang Huacheng said, lifting the sleeves of her patched and faded garment, which made Wang Lin shyly shrink back.

“Come on, tell me what kind of cloth you want.”

“Coarse, coarse cloth,” she replied.

Coarse cloth was thick, durable, and hard-wearing, usually used for work clothes. It wasn’t very comfortable to wear. There was another kind of coarse cloth made from recycled old strips, rough in texture and cheap, and didn’t require cloth coupons—but it was scratchy against the skin.

“That coarse cloth would waste cloth coupons. Let me choose for you,” Zhang Huacheng thought it over. Fine cotton cloth was too thin, twill was passable, khaki was not much different from coarse cloth, and the high-quality oxford cloth only became common in the 1970s—still not available now. The best fabrics currently were corduroy and thick velvet, but these were special supplies and couldn’t be bought just with cloth coupons.

——

At the Fuzhuang Brigade, Wang Fuguo had finished cooking while Zhao Xianglan was standing at the door, looking around.

“Daddy, I’m hungry,” the two little toddlers licked their lips, peering over the stove, salivating at the smell of meat.

In the pot was stir-fried pork with cabbage, surrounded by a ring of corn cakes. The eldest sister kept running out to peek.

“Wait until your brother comes before eating,” Wang Fuguo said, sneaking a look into the pot. When would they ever afford to cook a dish with half a catty of pork? The corn cakes were lined all around the pot.

They had even added pork lard for flavor.

When Tiezhu arrived in the middle of the night carrying meat, they thought they were dreaming.

That morning, he had gone to the brigade and bought ten bags of charcoal. Now the house could stay warm. Such days were something they hadn’t dared to imagine before.

“Mom, brother is here!” the eldest sister called happily as she ran back, shouting loudly.

The two toddlers immediately ran outside with joy, but Wang Fuguo hurriedly grabbed them. Neither of the toddlers had pants or shoes on; running outside like that would freeze them to death.

“Mom!”

“Eldest sister!”

Tiezhu, carrying the bamboo basket on his back, quickened his pace when he saw his mother and elder sister coming to meet him.

Wang Fuguo quickly lifted the lid of the pot and took out several bowls containing stir-fried pork and cabbage. They had no plates, only a few chipped big bowls.

Even the chopsticks were whittled from branches and then polished.

“Brother!”

“Brother!”

The two little ones adored Tiezhu, as he always brought them delicious treats whenever he came.

“Brother, what’s this?” the eldest sister curiously poked at a cloth bag Tiezhu took out of the basket.

“Tiezhu, you’re bringing stuff again? There’s enough food at home. You should take it back to Huacheng,” Zhao Xianglan hurriedly stopped him upon seeing the gifts.

“Mom, brother told me to bring this. He said it’s buns and pork cracklings,” Tiezhu explained.

He carefully unwrapped one oil paper package, and the aroma of meat immediately filled the air.

The eldest sister took another oil paper package and opened it, releasing a spicy and rich fragrance.

“This is spicy stir-fried pig liver.”

The white flour buns were large and fragrant. The two little ones reached out to grab them but were stopped by Wang Fuguo.

“Brother, why are these corn cakes white, so big, and so fragrant?” the eldest sister sniffed curiously. She was used to black or yellow corn cakes.

Tiezhu scratched his head.

“These aren’t corn cakes. They’re buns, made from white flour,” Wang Fuguo said with a complex expression. Who in the Fuzhuang Brigade could afford white flour buns? He hadn’t eaten many since growing up.

“White flour?” The eldest sister asked curiously.

When Wang Fuguo tore apart a white flour bun and gave each child a small piece, their eyes widened as they stared at the remaining buns.

“Mom, brother asked for the sizes of my clothes and shoes and those of the younger siblings. He said he wants to make new clothes and cotton shoes for them,” Tiezhu recalled Zhang Huacheng’s instructions during the meal.

“Huh? New clothes and cotton shoes for your younger siblings???” Zhao Xianglan was shocked. If the children didn’t grow up, when would they have the chance to wear new clothes?

Huacheng wanted to make new clothes for Tiezhu’s younger siblings?

The two toddlers only had eyes for the meat and didn’t understand a word.

The eldest sister did, her big black eyes sparkling with excitement. She might finally have new clothes.

Tiezhu nodded and repeated what Zhang Huacheng had said.

“Tiezhu, if you still need help, bring me along. I’ve got strength to spare!” Wang Fuguo finally couldn’t hold back. Working himself to exhaustion for a year, he still couldn’t afford new cotton clothes for the children at home. Better to take a chance and make a few good days for the family than starve.

Tiezhu scratched his head, a bit overwhelmed.

“Brother, am I really going to have new clothes?” the eldest sister asked happily.

She had never worn new clothes, only ones that had been altered smaller.

The two toddlers didn’t yet understand what new clothes and cotton shoes meant—it meant they wouldn’t have to hide inside all winter anymore.