country bumpkin

Chapter 21 My Sister is Here

The house was completed after two and a half months. Construction began on National Day and it's now December 16th. It's already the 12th day of the tenth lunar month, and soon it will be the eleventh month of the lunar calendar.

The two were overjoyed to see their newly built house. The new house was too damp; it needed to be aired out for a month in the summer before they could move in, otherwise their bodies couldn't handle it. Now it's almost winter, and the weather is getting colder and colder.

Mu Shuyun advised the two to move out after the New Year, so that the dampness in the house could be aired out.

They agreed, since the house was empty and there was no furniture. They would need to buy furniture, daily necessities, pots and pans, etc.

The house cost 1400 yuan to build, with 120 yuan going to labor alone. There were also sand, lime, red bricks, tiles, and so on. With materials and meals provided, the family didn't have that much money, so Kong Xiangdong borrowed 300 yuan each from his eldest, second, and third sisters when he had some free time.

They even sold all their piglets to build a house.

There have been so many things happening this year: my second child's wedding, building a new house. After a year of hard work, I haven't saved a single penny; all I have left is debt.

Mu Shuyun frowned, her face full of melancholy. A whole year of hard work, all gone in an instant.

It's normal for a family to be financially strapped to get married and build a house.

That's just how realistic the world is. There's nothing we can do but start working hard again, with the only goal being to make money.

In those early days, just a few years after the reform and opening up, it was easy to make money doing anything. But for a housewife, the only options were raising pigs and sheep to sell. She also had land and a lot of other responsibilities, so going out to do business wasn't easy.

She also has Xiaoyunya to take care of, so she can't leave at all. She can only save money by living frugally to pay off her debts.

Before long, it was already winter, and the weather was getting colder and colder. Mu Shuyun glanced at the calendar on the wall, calculating the expenses for the upcoming New Year. She thought she needed to buy some cheap fabric to make some new clothes for the children before the New Year.

In addition, we need to prepare some New Year's goods in advance, and buy some meat that can be stored and marinated in advance, otherwise the price will soar in the twelfth lunar month, costing a lot more money. Although the family is not rich, we still need to have a festive atmosphere for the New Year.

The weather was cold, so Mu Shuyun decided to knit some scarves for her whole family. Every night, she would work under the oil lamp, the yarn in her hands seeming to become warm sunshine, gradually dispelling the gloom of life.

Despite the tight budget, Mu Shuyun believes that as long as the family works together, they will be able to overcome the difficulties.

One day, someone suddenly came to the house. Mu Shuyun looked closely and realized it was her eldest sister from her maternal family. She quickly invited her sister to sit down and asked why she had come.

The eldest sister, Mu Shufeng, said she knew the family was having a hard time this year, so she specially brought some grain and vegetables to help out. Mu Shuyun was deeply grateful and thanked her repeatedly.

The older sister also told Mu Shuyun that someone in the village was organizing the weaving of handicrafts, saying that a big boss was processing and recycling them to ship to big cities. The income was quite good, and asked if she wanted to join. Mu Shuyun was very interested and quickly agreed.

In this way, she could not only take care of her children at home, but also earn more money to supplement her family's income. In the days that followed, Mu Shuyun became even busier.

During the day, she's busy with housework and taking care of her children, and at night she seizes the time to weave handicrafts. Although it's hard work, Mu Shuyun's heart is full of hope. She believes that life will get better and better.

Fortunately, there's not much work to do in the fields during winter, otherwise we wouldn't be able to keep up at all.

The eldest sister, Mu Shufeng, came and went quickly, not even staying for a meal, and hurriedly went back. She said she had children to take care of at home, and the road was a bit far, so she decided not to eat. On her way back, she took a donkey cart for two cents.

The older sister was in a hurry to go home because she felt her younger sister's family was struggling financially this year and didn't want her to spend money on groceries and cooking. She wanted to save her some money.

When relatives come to visit, you have to prepare several dishes, at least two of them should be meat dishes! She felt sorry for her younger sister and didn't want her to suffer.

To pay off debts, we raised two more sheep and two more pigs this year. They were all females because the piglets and lambs sold very well.

Piglets grow rapidly after a month, eating and growing quickly. They can be sold after two months. However, raising fattened pigs takes much longer, requires more specific feed, necessitates the addition of concentrated feed, and involves a longer cycle, higher investment, and lower returns.

The same applies to sheep farming; smaller sheep bring in money faster. Mu Shuyun was only thinking about paying off her debts as soon as possible.

Being debt-free is certainly a good thing. Otherwise, one wouldn't feel at ease.

The next morning, Mu Shuyun took Yunya to Granny Zhang's house and then went to Mu Family Village. Kong Xiangdong and Zhou Caiyun went to the market early, one to sell tofu and the other to buy vegetables. Kong Tongming went to work as usual.

Mu Shuyun took a donkey cart back to her parents' home.

Mu Shuyun walked into the village and encountered many acquaintances along the way, all of whom greeted her warmly. She arrived at her parents' house, gently pushed open the fence gate, and saw her mother feeding chickens in the yard.

"Mother, I'm back," Mu Shuyun called out, handing her mother the bundle of pastries she was carrying.

Hearing the voice, her mother turned around with a happy smile on her face. "Oh, Shuyun is back! Come in and sit down. You're here, but I can't help you with anything you need to buy. You'd have to spend your money."

Mu Shuyun asked with a smile, "Mother, it didn't cost much. Oh! Where's my father? I can't see him."

Yunmu said, "Your father went to the next village to fluff cotton. He probably won't be back until dark."

"Oh, it's been so long, I really miss him," Mu Shuyun said with a smile.

Mu Shuyun chatted with her mother for a while, then started helping with the housework. She swept the floor, wiped the windows, and washed clothes, keeping herself busy and happy.

After finishing all that and having lunch, her mother took her to the village chief's house. The village chief's son ran a business in the city. He had also taken on a job making bracelets, which were intended for sale in big cities.

The big boss pays him a processing fee; he only has to worry about it and doesn't have to put in any effort, and he can still earn two cents per piece.

Back in the village, they distributed the goods, paying the workers 3 cents for each piece. It wasn't much, but the more they worked, the more they earned; a woman with quick hands could earn 3 yuan a day. That added up to 90 yuan a month, which wasn't bad.

Mu Shuyun learned quickly at the village chief's house. Since they were all family, no deposit was required. She took 3000 handicrafts, carried a fertilizer bag, and prepared to go home.

It was getting late, so I said goodbye to my mother and spent two cents to take a donkey cart home.

Her older sister married into the village, but she didn't have time to visit her sister today because she was learning handicrafts. She plans to visit her sister next month when she comes to deliver the work.

Mu Shuyun has an older sister, Mu Shufeng, who is married in the same village; her brother-in-law is a carpenter. Her eldest brother, Mu Zhijie, farms at home, while her second brother, Mu Zhiyong, works in another city.

She was the youngest in the family, so everyone doted on her.