The Sweetness of the Seventies
Chapter 347 - 318 Satin, Optimistic (3/6)_1

Chapter 347: Chapter 318 Satin, Optimistic (3/6)_1

On this day, the men followed Village Chief Qi to deliver the public grain, while the women and children rested at home.

However, the women secretly made arrangements to buy some things to bring back when they went to Nan City, as it wasn’t easy to get out.

He Tiantian thought about the tickets she had saved up, and wanted to go to Nan City to buy a piece of purple silk and some embroidery thread for Third Grandma Qi to make her a beautiful qipao.

This was something He Tiantian had previously promised Third Grandma Qi, but she had never had enough tickets until now.

He Jingyu was going to Nan City to give a report and decided to accompany his daughter there.

This time, the bicycle he rode was not borrowed from Village Chief Qi, but was his own.

Jiang Lifang and Huo Zhekun, the considerate couple, had taken apart the bicycles that belonged to He Jingyu and Wang Shuping in Nan City, carefully packed them, and mailed them over after knowing He Jingyu didn’t have his bicycle here.

In this way, for just a dozen or so yuan in postage, they could have two bicycles.

It was a way to save money and ration tickets.

So now, not only did He Jingyu have a bicycle, but He Tiantian was riding Wang Shuping’s old women’s bike.

Since bicycles were faster than bullock carts, they arrived in Nan City earlier. He Jingyu dropped He Tiantian off at Niu Lili’s and then went to his unit.

Niu Lili happened to have the day off, so she went shopping with He Tiantian.

Because He Tiantian was coming to Nan City, Wang Lei and the other sent-down youths asked her to bring things for them. He Tiantian bought everything on the two sheets of paper they had given her.

Because He Tiantian bought a lot, the sales clerk’s attitude was a little better than usual.

"Tiantian, what are you buying the silk for?" Niu Lili asked softly, reminding her, "Although silk is beautiful, you can’t wear it now. You shouldn’t lose sight of right and wrong just because you’ve had a few days of peace."

He Tiantian knew Niu Lili was concerned about her, and explained carefully: "I’m buying this for grandma, who has always been a pretty lady. As she’s getting older, she’s started to miss the old days even more. So I thought I’d make her a piece of clothing she’d like while she is still well."

Niu Lili was surprised at first, but then remembered that the grandma He Tiantian knew was over sixty years old and she wasn’t sure how many more years she would live. It made sense to arrange for decent clothing while she was still alive.

"Oh, I see; that’s all right then. But you can only wear the finished clothes at home, not outside," Niu Lili advised, "Come on, let me take you."

Niu Lili took her to a familiar sales clerk and bought a piece of fine deep purple silk, soft and smooth.

As they were leaving, they saw a piece of sapphire blue fabric, shimmering beautifully, which would also be very suitable for Third Grandma Qi.

So she bit the bullet and bought it.

Good things come in pairs, so she decided to make two qipaos for Third Grandma Qi!

He Tiantian then went to buy embroidery threads and various sizes of needles, carefully storing them in a small wooden box.

After He Jingyu finished his report and had lunch, he took He Tiantian home.

Having a bicycle was great, at least allowing for a round trip in one day, more convenient and faster than a bullock cart.

By the time they got home, it was already seven in the evening, and dark.

After parking the bicycle, He Tiantian took a small parcel from the rear rack and said, "Grandma, Grandma, look what I bought for you?"

Third Grandma Qi tiptoed out of the house, her face beaming with a smile, and asked, "Well, let’s see what my dear granddaughter got for me?"

He Tiantian placed it on the table where an oil lamp was lit.

Wang Shuping held a needle, trimmed the wick of the lamp, and the light from the oil lamp, the size of a soybean, grew a bit brighter, lighting up the room some more.

He Tiantian had already opened the package, spreading out the two pieces of silk inside.

"Oh, the color is really nice," Wang Shuping exclaimed, "I haven’t seen such beautiful silk in so many years!"

Third Grandma Qi reached out her hand, gently touching the fabric, worried that her rough hands might snag it.

"Yes, indeed, it’s been many years since I’ve seen such good fabric," Third Grandma Qi said sentimentally, "Buying one piece would have been enough, why did you get two?"

Girl Tian had always remembered her words, which deeply moved Third Grandma Qi!

He Tiantian smiled and said, "Grandma likes it, so let’s make two pieces!"

"I’ll take the purple one, and the blue one, give it to your mother," Third Grandma Qi couldn’t accept both, even though she liked them very much. She knew when enough was enough, not greedy, sharing the good things with everyone.

Wang Shuping smiled and said, "Stepmother, even if you give me the fabric, I can’t wear it. If you like it, we’ll make all it for you. We’ll have Tiantian buy some for me when the opportunity arises later."

"Yes, grandma, this is for you," He Tiantian urged, "You’re not lacking anything, and Dad and Mom don’t know what to give you. We have coupons right now, and we’re not short of money, so I bought them over. Thankfully, Sister Lili helped us, and we were able to buy quality silk, much better than if I had gone by myself."

He Tiantian wasn’t familiar with silk; the few she had seen before weren’t as good as these two.

"This..." Third Grandma Qi hesitated, as she really loved it too much.

For most of her life, she had been a lonely person.

Ever since her son went missing and her husband passed away, Second Brother Qi had been the only one kind to her.

Now, He Tiantian’s family treated her so well, how could she not be moved!

Thinking about the treasure trove hidden in the secret room, if she couldn’t find her son later, she would leave it all to He Tiantian’s family as compensation.

"Stepmother, please keep it," He Jingyu said with a smile, "It’s normal for a son to show filial piety to his mother; if you don’t accept, you don’t consider us as family."

Seeing Third Grandma Qi, He Jingyu thought of his own mother.

Especially recently, after seeing Third Grandma Qi’s old photographs, it made He Jingyu think of his mother wearing silk cheongsams, sitting elegantly in front of the window.

"Haha!" Third Grandma Qi chuckled, feeling very content, "Alright, since it’s a gift from the younger generation, I won’t be polite. Tomorrow I’ll start making the clothes; I want to embroider white peonies on the purple one, and elegant magnolias on the treasure-blue one."

Third Grandma Qi wanted to turn these two pieces of fabric into the best-looking clothes, treating them with the importance of burial garments.

With Third Grandma Qi’s proud and stubborn character, even in death, she wanted to dress beautifully and with dignity.

In life, one might not dress as they wish, but after death, they could do as they pleased.

The next day, Third Grandma Qi asked Wang Shuping to take her measurements.

He Tiantian sipped her tea while watching Third Grandma Qi jot down her own measurements in a notebook.

He Tiantian noticed that despite her age, Third Grandma Qi still had bound feet, but her back was straight, and her grey hair was always neatly done—she was a graceful old lady.

After recording the measurements, Third Grandma Qi began cutting the fabric, humming a tune and in very high spirits.

The optimism and good mood of Third Grandma Qi was infectious, affecting Wang Shuping and He Tiantian.

Wang Shuping had said more than once in private that it was rare and precious for a woman to have such an optimistic attitude and state of mind!