novelhk Chapter 185 Playing Cotton
Chapter 185 Playing Cotton
He Zhijun nodded: "Okay, let's go now."
The two got on the vehicle, and the driver started pedaling. With nothing else to do on the road, they naturally began to chat.
"Master, is there a place nearby that gins cotton? I noticed yesterday that the cotton in my child's bedding wasn't soft anymore, and I'd like to have it refurbished," Jingyan asked.
The driver nodded quickly: "There's a cotton fluffer near my house. He's really good at it. He inherited the skills from his father. When are you planning to use it? Bring your bedding and I'll take you there."
“You said we should go over to Ci’en during his lunch break, take out his bedding, fix it in the afternoon, and send it back in the evening. Let’s also buy some cotton cloth. His quilt cover is still usable, but the cotton cloth inside is a bit worn out and needs to be replaced,” Jingyan said to He Zhijun.
He Zhijun nodded: "You can handle these things as you see fit. I really didn't notice his bed sheets and duvet cover yesterday."
Upon arriving at the mall, they went inside hand in hand. The mall wasn't very big. They left the driver outside and went to the fabric counter first. These days, only grain coupons were still commonly used; other types of coupons were rarely accepted in many places.
So when Jingyan spoke, she said, "Comrade, hello, I'd like to buy a few feet of cotton fabric to make quilt linings and bed sheets. Do you have any cotton fabric that doesn't require ration coupons?"
The sales clerk looked at her and asked, "Yes, this whole area doesn't require a coupon. Only the items on that display shelf over there require a coupon. Would you like to take a look first?"
After thanking He Zhijun, Jing Yan pulled him over to look at the fabric. "How about this sky blue one? It would be nice for bed sheets. And this red and white striped one would look clean for quilt linings."
He Zhijun never expressed his opinion on these matters, only his agreement. At this moment, a saleswoman came into the counter from outside, thanked the others, and then came over to serve them. It seemed that she was in charge of this fabric section.
"Comrade, my colleague told me you're looking to buy comforters and sheets? I don't know what size comforter you have, but our store has just received several new bedding sets, which include pillowcases, sheets, duvet covers, and pillow towels—six pieces in total."
However, they all come in fixed sizes. Many people's comforters are not standard sizes, so they're not selling well right now. But the comforter covers are removable, unlike our own comforters which need to have the seams removed after washing, which is a hassle.
Actually, in principle, the quilt cover and quilt should be washed as frequently as the bed sheets, but because it's too much trouble, many people only wash them once every few months or even half a year. To be honest, they're quite dirty." After saying that, she wrinkled her nose cutely, seemingly a clean freak, and what she said was genuinely what she thought.
Jingyan looked at her carefully. Indeed, the white polyester shirt looked quite old, but it was very clean and without any stains. For someone like her who wasn't very clean, she would never wear white unless necessary, because the color would become dull after a few washes. But this woman's clothes were still very white and clean, so she was definitely a clean person who loved washing clothes.
"What size is your duvet cover? I happen to have a quilt that needs to be fluffed again, so I can make one to match the size of the duvet cover. But I'd like to check if it's been opened before, to see the quality, and also, how do I put it on? Is it convenient? Can I do it by myself?" Jingyan's eyes lit up as she smiled.
The sales clerk happily led her to a display case, took out an opened duvet cover, and handed it to Jingyan.
"This is one of our types. You see, there's a large diamond-shaped hole here where you stuff the quilt in. Then you pull the four sides flat, and the quilt cover is done. It's very convenient. I'm using it myself now, and I only recommend it to you because I think it's great."
Jing Yan touched the fabric and felt the quality; it was indeed thick and felt excellent. "What about the size?"
"We have two sizes here, one is 1.2m*1.8m and the other is 1.5m*2m, which are suitable for single beds and double beds respectively."
“Ci’en dormitory has single beds, how about we buy 1.2-meter ones?” Jing Yan looked at He Zhijun.
He Zhijun nodded: "Okay."
"Comrade, could you help me pick out two darker-colored suits, suitable for boys?" Jingyan said to the sales clerk.
The sales clerk quickly found two sets. After looking at the patterns, one was sky blue with white checks, and the other was pure sky blue. They were indeed suitable for boys. After the couple paid, they went to the daily necessities section and selected towels, soap, laundry detergent, toothpaste, and a bottle of Friendship face cream.
He Zhijun pointed at the face cream and looked at Jing Yan: "You're going to put this on Ci'en? Are you sure he'll use it?"
“Who says boys don’t need to take care of their skin? Smooth, soft skin feels much better than rough, old tree bark. Girls care about more than just looks; they care about how their skin feels.” Jing Yan didn’t think much when she answered, but He Zhijun took it to heart.
He quickly grabbed another bottle and put it into Jing Yan's selection. "Let's pay for everything together. This one is for me. Honey, you've never said my skin doesn't feel good. I hadn't noticed before. If you hadn't brought it up today, I wouldn't have noticed. You seem to rarely touch my face. Do you dislike my skin?"
Jingyan... Sometimes it's pointless to reason with men, so she's too lazy to argue. If he wants it, he can just buy it.
After buying the daily necessities, they went to the food section and bought quite a lot of things: milk powder, milk candy, canned yellow peaches, malted milk powder, biscuits, and instant noodles with three kinds of fillings. He Zhijun pouted and said, "Are you really worried that he won't have enough to eat? Can he finish all this?"
“The child is still growing, and a big boy like him might get hungry at night if he only eats in the cafeteria. It’s not easy for him to come to the mall, given how far away it is. Since we’re here, let’s buy more, just to put my mind at ease,” Jingyan reassured him.
With all the food and supplies prepared, they took a tricycle to the research institute. It wasn't lunchtime yet, so the couple registered at the entrance. The gatekeeper then made an internal call to He Ci'en's office, and He Ci'en emerged shortly after.
Seeing the two of them, she was very happy: "Uncle, Aunt, why did you come at noon? I thought you would come in the evening."
He Zhijun smiled and asked, "Don't you still have half an hour before your lunch break? We'll just wait here for a while, and you can come pick us up during your lunch break."
He Ci'en shook her head: "I asked my supervisor for leave. He said it would be time for my break soon, so he told me to come out and see you first. I can go to work as usual this afternoon. Shall we go in?"
Jingyan pulled him along, carrying everything on the tricycle. The three of them each carried some, so they could manage to take it all at once. When they arrived at the dormitory, Jingyan took out the bedding set, opened a package, and took out a duvet cover, pillowcases, and a separate set of cotton fabric.
He Ci'en packed up the rest. "We'll refurbish your bedding this afternoon and bring it over tonight. You have the day off tomorrow, so ask your roommate if it's convenient for you to have a meal together. You two should look after each other since you live together. As your parents, we should treat you to a meal since we're here."
He Ci'en didn't stand on ceremony and agreed with a smile, saying that he would ask for his opinion later. The lunch break was not long, and Jing Yan wanted him to sleep a little longer. The couple took their bedding and pillows and left first.
Turning to look at the empty bed, He Ci'en smiled helplessly. Sometimes his aunt was just a bit thick-skinned. Not only did she take away the bedding, but she also took away the pillow. How was he supposed to take a nap?
Fortunately, his roommate returned and generously provided him with a pillow. Covered with the newly bought sheet, he managed to take a nap. Jing Yan, who had left the research institute, hadn't even realized what her nephew had done and was happily praising herself for being so clever as to remember to bring the blanket.
He Zhijun just watched her grinning foolishly without offering any advice. And so, the world of the aunt who did something stupid without realizing it, and the uncle who knew the problem but didn't say anything, ended perfectly, with only He Ci'en suffering.
When they arrived at the cotton-fluffing place, the family took a look at the cotton and found that it was all dark in color and had no fluffiness at all. They weighed it and found that the quilt and bedding together weighed only six pounds of cotton. Jingyan felt that it was too light and thin.
Even if Beijing has central heating in winter, how warm can a four-pound quilt really be? Boys just don't know how to take care of themselves. They don't even tell their families when they're cold, and they don't even know to buy a couple more quilts.
She told the shopkeeper that the mattress should be made to weigh four jin (approximately 2 catties) for comfort, and that two quilts should be made, one weighing two jin (approximately 1 kg) for summer and the other weighing six jin (approximately 3 catties) for winter. She said that if there was any missing cotton, she could just buy it from the cotton fluffer and add it in.
The dimensions are 1.2 meters by 1.8 meters. After the quilt is made, it is directly wrapped with cotton cloth as the lining, and then put into the quilt cover. This is mainly to make it fit better and more snugly. The shop owner readily accepted the order, but after the cotton is fluffed, it still needs to be stuffed with cotton and the lining sewn, which takes a long time.
The couple didn't want to wait there and thought they'd go back to the guesthouse for lunch and a nap before coming back to pick it up. Sensing their desire to leave, the driver spoke up: "I'm their neighbor, we know each other very well."
If you trust me, you can settle the bill first, and I'll take you back to the guesthouse. Once they've settled things here, I'll pick you up and bring the blankets with me. That way, you won't have to make another trip; you can go directly to the research institute to deliver the blankets.
Jingyan looked at He Zhijun, who nodded: "How much will it cost in total? Let's calculate it and settle the bill first. Once it's done, please have the driver take it with us when he picks us up."
The shopkeeper quoted a price, and Jingyan took out her wallet to pay. The driver was very excited: "Don't worry, I'm not the kind of person who's greedy for small gains. I will definitely take it to you and won't hold back."
He Zhijun replied with a smile, "Of course, if you weren't comfortable with it, you wouldn't have booked your car. So please take us back to the guesthouse first, and then come pick us up after the research institute closes for the day. You can take care of your own business this afternoon; we don't plan to leave the guesthouse."
Back at the guesthouse, Jingyan yawned and fell asleep immediately. Putting everything else aside, her sleep quality was indeed very good. He Zhijun had just finished tidying up and hadn't even lain down yet when he saw Jingyan already asleep. He smiled helplessly, then lay down as well and closed his eyes.
Summer days are long, and the couple woke up around 4 a.m. They rubbed their stomachs; they hadn't eaten lunch very early, but they were still hungry. Since they weren't planning to eat with Ci'en that evening, they went out and found a small restaurant to order dumplings.
After eating and drinking to our hearts' content, we stepped out of the shop and saw a pedicab parked across the street in front of the guesthouse. A large bag was bulging on the pedicab, and the driver was still squatting on the steps.
The two hurried over. "You're here. Have you been waiting long?" He Zhijun asked.
Upon hearing this, the driver quickly stood up and said with a smile, "No, I just arrived too. Are you leaving now or waiting a little longer? The research institute won't close for another fifteen minutes."
Jing Yan glanced at the watch on He Zhijun's wrist: "Let's go now, the sooner we get there, the sooner we'll come back."
When they arrived at the research institute, He Ci'en was already waiting at the gate. Seeing their car arrive, she smiled and said, "Uncle, Aunt, you've arrived."
Jingyan jumped out of the car: "Why are you waiting at the door? You should have gone to eat dinner first. Your uncle and I have already eaten. Um, when we get to the dormitory, you should go to the cafeteria to get food first, so you don't go too late and there won't be any left to eat."
He Ci'en smiled and agreed, while He Zhijun carried the large bag on his shoulder and followed behind them. He Ci'en wanted to help, but he refused: "It looks big, but it's not heavy. I can carry it. Let's go to the dormitory and settle you in first, then we'll get ready to go back."
He Ci'en stopped being coy. When he got to the dormitory, he took his lunchbox and went to the cafeteria to get food. Jing Yan made the bed and looked at the quilt in the duvet cover. She was very satisfied. "Actually, these new sheets, duvet covers and pillowcases should be washed first. I always feel strange using them directly."
He Zhijun shrugged: "Tell Ci'en later to wash it and use it when he has time. Don't spoil him too much. He's an adult now. If it were before, when he was a father, you would still think of him as a child."
Jing Yan glared at him. When He Zhijun returned, she looked at the food in his lunchbox and found it to be quite good. She gave him a few more instructions, and He Ci'en promised to wash all the bedding before using it. For now, they could use the old sheets and pillowcases. As for the quilt, they could just use it for one night and wash it the next morning so it would be ready to use that night. It wouldn't cause any problems.
The couple arranged with He Ci'en for the driver to pick them up at 10 a.m. the next day, and then left the research institute. There was no way around it; for Jing Yan, who was not a good student, such a culturally rich place made her too uncomfortable. She felt that the ordinary life in the city was more suitable for her.
The next day, the couple leisurely ate breakfast and strolled around the area for a while before going to a decent-sized restaurant and reserving a private room. They looked at the menu and were still discussing whether to have hot pot or stir-fries. Hot pot is very famous in Beijing, but of course, it's not the mutton that's famous, it's the hot pot itself.
But the stir-fried dishes were still pretty good. While still undecided, He Ci'en and his roommate went inside, while the driver left first, planning to come back around 2 p.m. to pick them up and take them back to the research institute.