Rebirth: Making a Fortune in Ancient Times

After Zhang Youtie and Uncle Ma had put everything away, they looked at the heavy snow falling outside and said to Liu Shi with some concern, "Pack up Changyun's thick clothes and I'll deliver them to the school tomorrow."

Madam Liu sighed and said, "Oh dear, the new ones haven't been made yet. Last year's are a bit too short. The child has grown quite a bit this year, so I guess they won't fit him anymore. We need to buy so many new clothes for the family lately. We were just about to make some for Changyun, thinking that he could wear them during his next day off. Who knew it would suddenly get so cold today?"

Xia Yu was excited looking at the heavy snow falling outside, but also a little worried that Chang Yun would be cold in the school. She missed modern weather forecasts, which could clearly predict what changes would occur at any given time.

Upon hearing Zhang Youtie and Liu Shi's words, Aunt Ma volunteered, saying that she could finish making Changyun's clothes by tomorrow. Before, she couldn't do some things because she couldn't see, but now that her eyesight is better, she wants to do something for her master.

But Liu was still a little worried about her eyes and advised, "Aunt Ma, don't rush to do work. Your eyes have just gotten a little better, so it would be better to rest for a few more days."

"Madam, please don't worry. I know my own eyes. I can see even more clearly now than before, so doing these tasks won't be a problem."

Hearing her say that, Liu let it go. She gave Aunt Ma the fabric she had prepared beforehand and the cotton she had just bought, asking her to make a cotton-padded jacket for Changyun. As for Changyun's undergarments, Liu would make them herself.

Worried about her eyes, Madam Liu repeatedly told her that the weather was bad and the room was dimly lit, so she lit several oil lamps to prevent her eyes from getting worse. Afraid that she would waste the lamp oil, Madam Liu repeated her instructions to Uncle Ma, insisting that he light several lamps. She also asked Uncle Ma to take a pot of lamp oil back with him.

Aunt Ma worked very quickly, and that very evening she sewed a set of cotton-padded clothes for Changyun. There were no fancy designs, but the stitches were fine and even, and the workmanship was excellent.

The next day, just as Liu got up, Aunt Ma brought over two sets of clothes. Liu examined the clothes carefully under the lamplight, feeling quite emotional. She used to think her needlework was quite good, but now she realized she couldn't compare to Aunt Ma's.

Seeing that Aunt Ma had finished making the clothes so quickly, Zhang Youtie didn't even bother to eat breakfast and rushed off in his mule cart to deliver them to Changyun. He also took two thick quilts with him. The weather had been fine when Changyun returned from his last day off, so he had only taken two sets of padded jackets with him. He needed to deliver the cotton-padded jackets before Changyun started class, otherwise, his hands would be too frozen to hold a pen while sitting in class.

Xia Yu was also woken up early by the bright light outside. Enduring the chill in the room, she put on her cotton-padded clothes and trousers, slipped on her cotton-padded shoes, and ran out of the side room.

In her past life, in the city where Xia Yu lived, it hadn't snowed this heavily for many years. Even when it did snow a little, the sanitation workers would clean it up before dawn, leaving nothing visible except for the specks of white snow on the roadside green belts. Looking at the endless expanse of white outside her courtyard now, how could she not be excited?

When Madam Liu saw her daughter standing there grinning foolishly at Xue after leaving the house, she couldn't help but scold her.

"You silly girl, you get up and don't even wash your face or rinse your mouth. You just stand here grinning like an idiot. Be careful not to catch a cold."

"Mother, Mother, look! The snow is so thick! I haven't seen this in years!" Xia Yu gestured with her hands to show the thickness of the snow, which was almost a foot deep.

Uncle Ma, who was sweeping the yard, heard Xia Yu's words and laughed, saying, "Miss, you're joking. There's snow every year, how could I not have seen it before! It's just that the first snow came a little earlier this year."

Xia Yu realized she had spoken out of turn, pinched herself secretly, and quickly went to wash up.

"Uncle Ma, tell Aunt Ma that you two don't need to cook for yourselves at noon today. You can make dumplings here instead," Liu said to Uncle Ma, who was sweeping the yard.

"Oh, thank you, Madam."

Xia Yu knew this was a local custom: eating dumplings after the first snowfall of the year. Xia Yu didn't know the meaning behind it, but she figured it was probably a way for people to express their hopes for a better life.

After washing her face, Xia Yu returned to her room, scooped a spoonful of face cream from the earthenware jar, spread it evenly in her hands, and then applied it to her face. The faint fragrance was that of orchids, which she liked very much.

Xia Yu bought this cosmetics at a cosmetics shop in the county town. It wasn't cheap; just this small jar cost five hundred copper coins. However, after trying it out at the shop, Xia Yu still bought two jars. One of them was osmanthus-scented, which Liu Shi liked. Their family didn't need the five hundred copper coins now; she didn't want her face to be chapped like a pig's bottom after a winter's rest. Wasn't the point of earning money to make life better for herself and her family? She couldn't just hoard the money and continue living the hard life she had before!

The cosmetics shop also had clam oil for fifty coins a jar, so she bought two jars. It was too oily; she just wanted to prevent her hands from cracking. It originally came in clam shells for five coins each, but she thought the shells were too greasy and wouldn't keep well, so she opted for the smaller jars. She gave one jar to Aunt Ma and kept the other in her own main room so the whole family could use it.