Zhong Erwa grumbled, “Then I won’t sew it.” As he spoke, he tossed his pants onto the chair.
“Well, let me tell you this, making five new pairs of pants for you all used up two fabric ration tickets,” Song Zhaodi said. “I still have five left, which need to be saved for making shirts and winter clothes for you all.
“If you don’t patch your new pants, you’ll have to wear your old ones. In a few months, when you’ve grown taller and your old pants are too short to wear, I won’t mend them for you, you’ll have to fix them yourself.”
Zhong Erwa pouted, looking at Song Zhaodi pitifully. “Mom…”
“Don’t act spoiled, it won’t work.” Song Zhaodi remained firm. “If you knew this would happen, why did you do it in the first place?”
Zhong Erwa’s eyes reddened, tears welling up, staring directly at Song Zhaodi without saying a word, just looking at her.
Song Zhaodi met his gaze, not backing down at all, silently telling him that she wasn’t bluffing or joking.
Tears streamed down Zhong Erwa’s face instantly. He felt like Song Zhaodi was deliberately making things difficult for him, that she didn’t love him anymore.
Song Zhaodi didn’t want to be harsh, but Erwa’s bad habit of randomly cutting things with scissors had to be corrected. “Will you cut your pants again in the future?”
Erwa lowered his head, sniffled, and pretended not to hear.
Gengsheng nudged Zili.
Zili hesitated for a moment, then reached over to wake up Sanwa, who was lost in his own world, doodling in his notebook.
Sanwa looked up, followed Zili’s gesture, and gasped. “Er ge, you’re crying? Er ge, why are you crying? Did da ge hit you?”
“I didn’t hit him.” Dawa had wanted to say a few comforting words when he saw Erwa about to cry, but he held back, afraid Erwa would go back to his old ways. Now, seeing Erwa’s tears falling one by one, he felt bad. “Erwa, just tell Mom this is the last time and promise her you won’t cut your pants again, and she’ll help you mend them.”
Erwa sniffled and pretended not to hear Dawa’s words.
Seeing this, Dawa pulled Sanwa away, deciding to ignore Erwa.
Song Zhaodi asked, “Do you think I’m being too strict? Erwa, do you think cutting a hole in your pants isn’t a big deal since the pants are still wearable, and I’m making a fuss over nothing?”
Zhong Erwa wiped away his tears.
Song Zhaodi knew she had guessed correctly. “If you think cutting a hole in your pants is no big deal, then sew it yourself.”
“You won’t help me make paste,” Zhong Erwa muttered.
Song Zhaodi asked, “Do you have to use paste?”
“Paste can stick paper onto fabric.” Song Zhaodi used paste to attach small fabric pieces together when making shoes. During the Spring Festival, they also used paste to stick couplets on the door. In Erwa’s mind, paste was the best thing ever.
Song Zhaodi said, “You have a needle and thread in your hands, why can’t you sew the paper onto the fabric first, cut along the paper’s outline, and then remove the thread?”
Zhong Erwa looked at the paper and fabric in his hands, then at the needle, then at Song Zhaodi, surprised and delighted, was that even possible?
“You don’t get it?” Song Zhaodi asked deliberately.
Zhong Erwa nodded vigorously. “I get it now!”
Since Song Zhaodi mentioned ‘removing the thread’, Erwa didn’t sew along the outline; instead, he stitched a few times just to hold the paper in place. Feeling confident he could cut out a cat shape, he asked Song Zhaodi for scissors.
Zhong Erwa loved playing with scissors, but all the scissors in the house were kept out of his reach. That was why he had borrowed a pair from the Qu family the day before.
Song Zhaodi handed him the scissors but couldn’t help reminding him, “Be careful.”
Wanting a cat badly, Zhong Erwa was extra cautious, cutting little by little. It took him five or six minutes just to cut out the cat’s shape.
Song Zhaodi reminded him that patching needed a smaller needle. Zhong Erwa put down the scissors and searched for the smallest needle. However, after staring at the needle for ages, he still couldn’t thread it.
Frustrated, Zhong Erwa instinctively sought help from his brothers.
Zili, Gengsheng and Dawa all disapproved of Erwa cutting a hole in his new pants. They supported Song Zhaodi’s lesson. Seeing him asking for help, Dawa simply pointed at Song Zhaodi, signaling that they wouldn’t dare help unless she approved.
With no other choice, Zhong Erwa turned to Song Zhaodi. “Mom, just help me this once, please?”
“Give me the needle and thread.” Song Zhaodi sighed when she saw the redness around his eyes. “Erwa, how do you feel about patching?”
Zhong Erwa pursed his lips, embarrassed. “It’s troublesome.”
“Will you cut your pants again?” Song Zhaodi quickly threaded the needle without even looking.
Zhong Erwa envied how easily she did it. Taking the needle, he whispered, “Thank you,” but avoided answering her question.
Song Zhaodi wasn’t in a hurry. “Do you know how to sew it?”
“Follow the lines you drew,” Erwa replied, having watched her do it many times and thinking it looked easy.
Song Zhaodi nodded. “Smart boy. Take your time sewing.”
Zhong Erwa snorted proudly.
Seeing this, Song Zhaodi chuckled softly, thinking, Let’s see how long you can stay smug.
Zhong Erwa carefully stitched along the outline. After tying off the thread, he was eager to show off his work. However, when he lifted the pants, something seemed off.
The pants he was wearing had a duck patch that Song Zhaodi had sewn on. No matter how he looked at it, the duck seemed to be part of the pants. But the cat he had just sewn had uneven stitches, some too big, some crooked. From a distance, it looked fine, but up close, it was a mess.
Without hesitation, Erwa grabbed the scissors, ready to remove the stitches and redo them.
Song Zhaodi quickly stopped him. “For your first time, sewing the patch onto the pants at all is already impressive.”
“But it looks ugly.” Zhong Erwa pointed at the cat’s crooked chin, clearly dissatisfied. “It’s all uneven, I need to redo it.”
Song Zhaodi said, “If you redo it, it’ll still turn out the same. Don’t think I’m lying to you.” She pointed at the duck on his pants. “I can sew so well because I started helping my family with sewing when I was your age. I’ve been sewing for over ten years.”
Erwa was stunned. “Then I… I…” He hesitated before asking, “I have to sew for ten years too?”
Song Zhaodi nodded. “Practice makes perfect. Only when you become skilled will your cat look real.”
“But I want to wear my new pants tomorrow,” Erwa said.
Song Zhaodi replied, “Then just wear them. Your classmates and friends won’t be lying on your pants staring at them.”
It was true that classmates wouldn’t be staring at his pants, but Zhong Erwa wanted to show off to them. He wanted to tell them that there was a little animal on his pants and that he had sewn it himself.
“Mom…” Zhong Erwa looked at Song Zhaodi. “I won’t ask you to sew it for me, just teach me how to sew it nicely.”
Song Zhaodi said, “Even if I teach you, I would just be following the lines on the paper while sewing. There’s no special technique to pass on to you, unless I guide your hands directly.” Before Erwa could speak, she added, “But that’s impossible. I told you not to cut your pants, but you didn’t listen. You made me angry, so why should I help you?”
“Because, because…” Zhong Erwa thought for a moment. “Because you’re my mom.”
Song Zhaodi smiled slightly. “Not your real mom, I’m just your stepmother.”
“Mom!” Zhong Erwa was furious and shouted, “Every time you don’t want to help, you say you’re my stepmother. Mom, you, you’re cheating!”
Song Zhaodi laughed. “But what I said is still true.”
“Mom, mom, mom…” Zhong Erwa had tried crying before, but it didn’t work. His only option was to pester her. Otherwise, he would have to go to school wearing pants with crooked stitches. “Mom, mom, teach me how to sew. Mom…”
Zhong Dawa felt a headache coming on. “Erwa, shut up!”
“I’m not talking to you,” Zhong Erwa glared at Dawa, then turned back to Song Zhaodi with a grin. “Mom, “
Song Zhaodi was also getting a headache from his pestering. “Sewing isn’t something you can really teach.” She paused and continued, “Even if I held your hand and helped you sew this cat on, what about next time?
“Zhong Erwa, you love cutting up clothes so much. If I have to hold your hand and sew it for you every time, what’s the difference between that and me just doing it myself? Right now, I’m punishing you by making you sew, not teaching you how to sew. I already told you that earlier.”
Zhong Erwa pouted and was about to cry again.
Song Zhaodi almost laughed. “If you promise in front of your brothers that you won’t randomly cut up your clothes again, I’ll help you fix your pants. But if you do it again, you’ll have to draw the design and sew it yourself. Deal, Zhong Erwa?”
Zhong Erwa whined, reluctant to agree, and stared at Song Zhaodi with pleading eyes.
Song Zhaodi stood up. “Time to cook. Dawa, go pick some vegetables from the field, whatever you want to eat, just pick it.”
“Mom, don’t go!” Zhong Erwa blocked her path. “The sun hasn’t set yet. Mom, just teach me, just once!”
Sanwa watched Erwa acting like a little rascal and was confused. “Er ge, you’re not crying anymore?”
Zhong Erwa glared at Sanwa.
Sanwa frowned. “What’s wrong with er ge?” He turned to Zili.
“Your second brother saw the cat on your new school bag and liked it,” Zili explained. “So he cut a hole in his pants and asked Auntie to sew a cat on them for him.”
Sanwa still didn’t understand. “Er ge wants a cat? He should just ask Mom to sew one. Why cut his pants?”
“Because if the pants are torn, Auntie has to patch them,” Zili said.
Sanwa still didn’t get it. “Er ge doesn’t need to ask Mom to patch them, he just has to ask her to sew a cat.”
Gengsheng’s eyes lit up as he suddenly realised something. “Erwa, if you wanted a cat, you could’ve just asked Auntie to sew a piece of fabric onto your pants. Why did you have to cut a hole?”
“If the pants aren’t torn, Mom won’t patch them,” Erwa said.
Gengsheng said, “But Auntie never said she wouldn’t sew a cat on if your pants weren’t torn. You could’ve just asked her. She would’ve done it.”
Zhong Erwa quickly turned to Song Zhaodi. “Mom, is that true?”
“It is,” Song Zhaodi smiled. “If you had told me in advance that you wanted a cat, I would have sewn one for you. But you didn’t say anything, you just went ahead and cut up your pants. If you don’t even cherish your own clothes, why should I help you?”
This time, Erwa really wanted to cry. “Mom!”
“Do you think I’m mean?” Song Zhaodi said. “But you’re even worse, you keep finding new ways to drive me crazy every few days.”
Zhong Erwa stared at Song Zhaodi in disbelief. Was there any mother like her?!
Song Zhaodi pointed at the pants in his hands. “Do you still want the cat?”
The little boy’s breath hitched. He was angry and wanted to cry. Why was his mom so mean?
“Mom, I was wrong.” Zhong Erwa grabbed Song Zhaodi’s hand. “I won’t cut my pants anymore.”
Song Zhaodi asked, “If I’m too busy to sew little animals for you in the future, will you cut holes in your clothes again and say you have nothing to wear, so I have to sew them for you right away?”
Zhong Erwa pouted. “I won’t dare do that again.”
“Then put your pants on the chair. I’ll sew them after dinner,” Song Zhaodi said. “Go help your brother wash the vegetables.”
Zhong Dawa said, “Mom, I want to eat vegetable pancakes.”
“No,” Song Zhaodi replied. “We don’t have much white flour left. Tonight, we’ll have steamed rice and stir-fried vegetables.”
Zhong Dawa didn’t believe her. They had been eating rice for days. He ran into the kitchen, opened the cabinet, and saw two bags of rice but only a little bit of white flour, probably not even enough for a single scoop. “Why didn’t you buy more flour?”
“Your dad has been obsessed with eating rice lately,” Song Zhaodi said. “I told him we were running low on both rice and flour, and he just bought two bags of rice and no flour. If you want to know why, ask your dad when he gets back.”
Zhong Dawa shook his head. “Forget it. Yesterday, he was going to beat me up but didn’t. I’d better behave for a few days.” Then he grabbed a basket and went outside to pick vegetables.
Song Zhaodi almost burst out laughing. “Zili, Gengsheng, go with him.”
“Okay.” Zili took Sanwa’s hand, and Gengsheng put away the books and pens from the table before running off to the water pump.
Since it wasn’t cold during the day, Song Zhaodi wasn’t worried about the five kids getting chilly outside. She stayed inside and began undoing the crooked stitches Erwa had sewn, preparing to fix them properly.
By dusk, she figured Zhong Jianguo would be back soon, so she plated the dishes and rice. Just as she and the kids sat down, they heard Zhong Jianguo’s voice outside.
Song Zhaodi stepped out and saw a car leaving the front gate, it must have been Xiao Li dropping Zhong Jianguo off. “Why did you have Xiao Li drive today? Didn’t you say he’s about to be discharged?”
“Today wasn’t a good day to drive myself,” Zhong Jianguo sighed. “Are the kids all inside?”
“Yes.” Song Zhaodi walked up to him and noticed something was off about his expression. Her heart sank. “Did something happen?”
Zhong Jianguo opened his mouth but paused when he saw one of the children running out. Looking closer, he realised it was Zili. He swallowed his words. “No, just some trouble at work.”
Song Zhaodi wanted to say, “Your work is just training soldiers and organising defenses, what trouble could there be?”
“Uncle Zhong, you’re back,” Zili greeted him.
Song Zhaodi’s eyelid twitched. “Is this about the kids?”
Zhong Jianguo hummed in agreement, then quickly told Zili, “Yes. Now go back inside and eat. I need to wash my hands first.” As he spoke, he gave Song Zhaodi a nudge. “Don’t ask. We’ll talk about it later.”
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