Wang Hongjun: "Fourth Uncle ca ho at the end of last year and brought a pair of small cotton pants for Shi Tou. Once he wore them, he cried uncontrollably, and it turned out there were several locust tree needles inside the pants."
"What? How could this happen, and why didn’t Liansheng and his wife say anything?" Wang Futang was shocked and spoke instinctively.
Wang Lianqi patted his father’s back to comfort him and sighed, "What could Liansheng possibly say? Sigh!"
Wang Futang was stunned for a long while and ultimately couldn’t say anything more, only letting out a long, dejected sigh.
Wang Liansheng seed encouraged by Ling Chengyan’s suggestion. That evening, he brought over several sketches for Ling Chengyan to see: "I went to the departnt store to look around. The furniture there is of average craftsmanship, and you need furniture tickets. I found out that if you get soone to make it, the materials are more solid, and you can customize the designs... I sketched so designs for children’s beds and wardrobes. Take a look to see if you like them..."
Ling Chengyan glanced at him and took the sketches to look over.
It was evident that Wang Liansheng had so drawing skills. The children’s bed he designed had railings with simple and stylish geotric patterns. Importantly, one side of the bed rail could be lowered so it could be placed next to a larger bed, making it more convenient for adults to watch over the child, help with urination, etc., at night.
The bed headboard also had cabinets and drawers designed to hold children’s clothes, diapers, and even toys and books. This design could be described as practical and thoughtful.
Looking at it, Ling Chengyan herself felt like wanting such a big bed.
Of course, the current house was cramped, and the bed provided with the house was sturdy and durable. Society also advocated frugal simplicity... This thought just swirled in her mind and wouldn’t be spoken aloud.
Ling Chengyan nodded and said, "Crafting these patterns on the railings requires a lot of work, ordinary circular railings will do. The important thing for the child’s bed is that it must be finely sanded, with no burrs or splinters."
As for the wardrobe, Ling Chengyan had no particular requirents for the appearance, just asked for one long compartnt to hang so clothes.
Wang Liansheng naturally had no objections and imdiately took a pencil to modify and annotate the drawings, explaining to Ling Chengyan: "Many people embed mirrors in wardrobes. I rember... the old custom is not to have mirrors facing the bed. Our room is small, embedding a mirror in the wardrobe makes it difficult to avoid facing the bed. So I thought of explaining to the carpenter to embed the mirror inside the door so it can be used when the door is open..."
Ling Chengyan agreed wholeheartedly. As soone with historical sensibility, she recalled more of such taboos. In ancient tis, mirrors not only didn’t face beds, but once used, they were often covered. Larger mirrors or those with bases would have special covers, which were used after finishing with the mirrors.
The two discussed these matters with a consensus of opinions, bringing a sense of joy to Wang Liansheng. He looked at his wife and said with a smile, "Then I’ll refine the designs tomorrow and send them to the carpenter. I’ve inquired about the wood; it’s pine imported from the Northeast. Not only is the quality good, it even has a faint pine scent. It’s the best material available."
Ling Chengyan nodded in agreent. She had seen a lot of wood, and pine wasn’t considered the best. However, she wasn’t one to pursue grandeur; simplicity, practicality, and comfort were just fine.
The next day, Wang Liansheng took his sketches to the carpenter and placed the order for the furniture.
In less than half a month, he ca back with a ticket for a television: a 12-inch imported from Japan.
"Look at this." Wang Liansheng presented a ticket as if showing off a treasure.
Ling Chengyan took a look and found it was a washing machine voucher.
"A washing machine? Sothing that can replace human hands for washing clothes?" The na was very straightforward, needing no explanation.
However, Ling Chengyan was sowhat skeptical. Washing clothes manually required careful attention to particularly dirty spots for thorough scrubbing. Could a machine, made to replace human effort, really clean clothes thoroughly?
Wang Liansheng was also unsure: "It’s new stock at the departnt store, only five machines altogether. One was set up as a display. Why don’t we go see it this Sunday?"
Looking at the washing machine ticket in her hands, Ling Chengyan nodded.
She spent little ti at ho, frequently went on long trips, and Wang Liansheng took on many household chores, mostly looking after the children, cooking, cleaning. Tasks like washing clothes and nding mostly fell to Xiaoyu. Even though she’d told Xiaoyu several tis to use hot water in the winter, the girl was always reluctant, and her chilblains never fully healed through the winter... If they could indeed buy a machine for washing clothes, it could relieve Xiaoyu of so difficulty.
After the three mbers of the Wang household left, Ling Chengyan didn’t urge Wang Liansheng to sleep on the small bed outside.
In these days, they had discussed making furniture and buying appliances together, becoming more communicative with one another, and their relationship seed to grow closer.
Watching his wife set the tickets aside and pick up a book to read, she appeared especially charming under the lamplight.
He didn’t understand the saying "appearance cos from the heart," but he felt that his wife was becoming more graceful, serene, wise, and decisive. Although slightly aloof, she exuded an ethereal, noble beauty akin to snow-capped peaks, drawing people toward her, enchanting them.
Ling Chengyan noticed Wang Liansheng’s gaze and looked up: "Is there sothing you need?"
Wang Liansheng, feeling caught like a guilty schoolboy, turned his eyes away in a panic, got off the bed, and said as he walked out, "Nothing... I’ll go warm so water for your foot bath."
His words trailed off as he walked out of the room.
Ling Chengyan glanced at the foot basin in the corner, raised an eyebrow, then lowered her eyes to continue reading. Though her lips slowly turned up into a small smile.
In the morning exercises, Liu Xianghu, a veteran, made a basic directional mistake.
Before setting off for driving, Ling Chengyan discovered that after Liu Xianghu started the vehicle, he forgot to remove the crank handle, almost taking it along on the drive.
She stopped Liu Xianghu and imdiately called Zhang Wanxiang over.
Liu Xianghu clearly realized his mistake and promised with his head down, "Don’t worry, Lieutenant, I’ll correct myself and will not be distracted while driving..."
Ling Chengyan nodded noncommittally and gestured for Zhang Wanxiang to go on driving.
That day, she headed to the sea defense.
Early April, the third lunar month, during the Waking of Insects solar term, it’s the breeding season for Chinese mitten crabs in the Bohai Bay. This ti, she not only delivered supplies to the Sea Defense Post but also took on a return mission to bring back the fish ordered by the cafeteria in the compound.
As Ling Chengyan arrived at the seaside, what greeted her was shiploads of large crabs. The biggest weighed up to two pounds, while the average ones ranged from seven ounces to one pound two ounces, sent directly to the pot after being unloaded from the boats.
The bright red crabs were abundant with at and roe. Breaking the shell open revealed a rich golden filling, and the white crab at in the legs was ample and succulent.
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