Year 1983: I was a carpenter in Northeast China

Chapter 148 finalized

Then they unloaded the goods from the carriage and carried them into the shop.

Zhao Fengying was in a hurry to use the restroom, so she went straight to the nearby public restroom without even entering the shop.

The two sisters cut open the sack with scissors and discovered that the goods they had received this time were different from those before; there were actually quite a few pieces of cloth inside.

"Hey bro, why do you guys have so much fabric?"

"Brother, should we sell fabric or make clothes to sell?"

Xu Bei put down the hat and gloves he had taken off on the counter and smiled as he answered the questions of his sisters.

"Make clothes to sell. Wasn't that actress who played Xiaohua the host of the Spring Festival Gala? I heard the red shirt she wore was a huge hit in Beijing."

Xu Li's eyes lit up immediately. "Ah, I remember now. I heard Sister Liu chatting with Mom at the shop the other day. She said she wanted to get a red shirt made like the ones the hosts wore on the Spring Festival Gala."

Xu Juan asked with some regret and curiosity, "What exactly did the clothes look like? We don't have a TV at home. We listened to the Spring Festival Gala on the radio on New Year's Eve, but we couldn't see any people in the pictures."

Xu Bei tried hard to recall the style of Xiaoqing's shirt from his memory. "It has a small lapel and a fitted waist, with a row of white pearl buttons on the placket. You'll see once it's made. I'll give one to each of you and Mom."

The Xu sisters, Xu Li and Xu Juan, quickly voiced their opposition.

"No need, let's keep them and sell them."

"Yeah. And, bro, I've never worn a red shirt before. I feel like the color is too eye-catching. A plain color would be better."

""

Xu Bei knew that many people's aesthetic sense was still based on the three basic colors of blue, black, and gray, so it was normal for his sister to feel uncomfortable.

The emergence of Xiaoqing shirts quickly became a nationwide hit, which was also related to the fact that it precisely met the strong desire of the public for individual expression and aesthetic awakening in the early days of reform and opening up.

He raised his hand and patted his sister's thin little shoulder, laughing, "What's the big deal? You should wear it even more if you've never worn it before. Your classmates and teachers will all envy you for being able to keep up with the trend. It'll also help promote our family's shop and make us sell more."

"Really?"

"Of course it's true."

After receiving a positive answer from her brother, Xu Juan immediately changed her tune, "Then I'm willing to wear it."

""

Xu Bei and Xu Li exchanged a smile. "And you, sister?"

"Needless to say, I'll wear it then." Xu Li gently stroked her still flat stomach. "It's just that when they make the clothes, they'll have to make my size bigger, otherwise I won't be able to wear it when my belly gets bigger."

Xu Bei also subconsciously looked at his sister's belly and said with a smile, "Don't worry, for a pregnant woman like you who is receiving special protection, we will definitely tailor the treatment to your needs and leave room for extra milk."

When Zhao Fengying returned from the restroom, the mother and her two daughters began to busy themselves with checking and arranging the goods.

Xu Bei didn't sit idle either. Soon, he took a roll of cloth and some accessories he got from Boss Zhang and went to Sister Liu's tailor shop.

Having just reopened after the Lunar New Year, the tailor shop's business has plummeted, as all those who wanted clothes made before the holiday had already done so.

As soon as the door opened, Xu Bei was greeted by a strangely cold and desolate feeling, unlike the usual hot air from a mixture of old-fashioned sewing machine oil and ironing cloth.

Sister Liu was sitting next to the table inside, intently locking the buttonholes. Hearing the noise, she looked up, saw it was Xu Bei, and quickly put down her work to greet him with a smile.

"Brother, I just saw you and your mom come back through the window. I was thinking of going over to your house for a chat after I finished this little bit of work."

Oh dear, why are you carrying a roll of fabric, and it's red! Do you want me to help you make clothes?

Xu Bei placed the rolled-up red cloth on the cutting board and casually untied the strip of cloth that was being used as a rope.

"Yes, Sister Liu. What I want you to help me with is the red shirt worn by the female host on the Spring Festival Gala that you told my mother about."

"Oh my, you're such a thoughtful son. I haven't even started making something for myself yet, and you've already bought all the fabric."

Sister Liu smiled enviously, reaching out to touch the red fabric, feeling its slightly elastic texture with her fingertips. She nodded repeatedly, "Oh my, this material is really good! But we can't use all of this!"

Xu Bei had no need to hide anything from Sister Liu, so he went straight to the point and said, "I'd like to ask you to help me make some to sell in our shop."

Sister Liu immediately exclaimed, "Oh my god, it's you young people who are so quick-witted! I can do chores myself, and I never even thought of that."

That shirt is indeed stylish; there should be no shortage of buyers. It's just that the buttons seem hard to find. Where in our forest area can we get the same or similar ones?

Xu Bei poured a handful of lustrous white pearl buttons from the accessory bag he had brought, which jingled as they landed on the cutting board. "Sister Liu, we found similar buttons in the provincial capital. Do you think they're okay?"

Sister Liu picked up a button and examined it closely. She smiled with satisfaction, "Perfect! Absolutely perfect! It's so beautiful! With this button, I guarantee that if I were to make this dress, it would look seven or eight tenths like the dress worn by the female hosts on the Spring Festival Gala."

Xu Bei was quite satisfied with the tailor's skills and believed she hadn't exaggerated. "That's wonderful. Sister Liu, how much do you think it costs?"

Sister Liu said somewhat embarrassedly, "To be honest, Xiao Xu, given our relationship, if you only make one, I definitely won't charge you. But it looks like you'll have to make quite a few, so just give me two yuan per piece."

Xu Beigan realized that Sister Liu's asking price was definitely not high.

After all, this Xiaoqing shirt is different from an ordinary shirt. It requires a fine waist-cinching cut to outline the figure, and a row of 16 buttons, usually made by hand, must be sewn on the placket. It is a very time-consuming and laborious process.

"Sister Liu, the better our relationship is, the more important it is to keep things separate. We can't let money cause a rift. I'll give you two yuan for each piece of work. Let's make one first, and when can you come and pick it up?"

Sister Liu hesitated for a moment, "I still need to find some designs—it should take two or three days. Anyway, we live close by, so you can check on the progress anytime."

After Xu Bei finalized the processing arrangements with Sister Liu, he returned to the shop.

Zhao Fengying and the others were quite looking forward to seeing the finished product in two or three days.

As for the two yuan processing fee, I didn't think it was expensive at all; it felt like a friendly price.

Afterwards, Xu Bei made up an excuse to go to the carpenter's shop to report to the Chen brothers about mailing samples and left again.

Then I rode my bike to my new home near the movie theater.

Xu Bei felt that Da Hei had done a good job of starting the fire, and he didn't feel too cold when he entered the house.

After the stove and the heated brick bed were lit again, the room became even warmer.

He had just filled the stove with coal, loaded the wooden stool and folding table onto his back, locked the door, and headed to the forestry bureau's train station to inquire about shipping services.