After fleeing the famine, my older sister and I married the brother next door.

"Xiaoyin! Xiaoqing! Are you done yet? We're leaving!"

Mother Chen's voice, clear and bright in the morning light, rang out outside the gate of the new house. Today, she had specially changed into a half-new indigo jacket, her hair was neatly combed, and she carried a basket covered with coarse cloth on her arm, which contained some dried vegetables that she had dried herself. She planned to go to the market and exchange some odds and ends if her daughters-in-law took too long to choose embroidery thread and fabric.

"Coming, Mother!" Su Xiaoyin responded, and she and her younger sister Su Xiaoqing came out of the house one after the other. Both of them were neatly dressed, wearing newly made thick cotton-padded coats, their hair tied up with simple wooden hairpins, and each carrying a half-empty basket on their backs. Su Xiaoyin's basket contained a little bit of spare change they had saved, while Su Xiaoqing's contained some clean old cloth and a cloth bag for carrying things.

Surprisingly, Chen Dashan and Chen Xiaohe followed closely behind. Chen Dashan carried a long bundle wrapped in an old burlap sack on his shoulder, which looked like it contained wooden planks or strips. Chen Xiaohe carried a bulging, heavy basket on his back.

Chen's mother was taken aback and looked at her two sons: "You two... what are you doing? Going to the market too?" Usually, the two brothers rarely accompanied her on such delicate tasks as buying embroidery thread and fabric.

Chen Xiaohe chuckled and answered first, "Mom! My brother and I haven't had a moment's rest these past few days! We rushed to make a batch of little trinkets, some wooden, some bamboo, and we were thinking of taking them to the market today to see if we could sell them! If they do, our family will have another source of income!" As he spoke, he put down his basket and, as if showing off a treasure, pulled an object from it and handed it to his mother. "Mom, look! This is a little rabbit my brother carved, using scraps of jujube wood. Feel it, isn't it smooth? Its adorable appearance was even drawn by my sister-in-law and Xiaoqing!"

Chen's mother took the wooden rabbit. It was only the size of her palm, with a round body and two long, slightly drooping ears. It was cute and naive. Although it was unpainted, the wood grain was natural, and it was polished very smoothly, feeling warm to the touch. She then looked at the bundle on Chen Dashan's shoulder. Chen Dashan understood and untied a corner of the burlap sack, revealing several simply designed wooden combs, some smooth wooden hairpins, and a few small wooden swords inside, clearly for children to play with.

"Oh, it really does look quite good!" Mother Chen smiled, carefully examining the teeth of the comb—even and fine—and the hairpin, polished smooth and not prickly. "The craftsmanship is excellent! Alright, let's go try it together! Farmers' strength and time don't cost money; whatever we get in return is a bonus! I'll take Xiaoyin and Xiaoqing to the fabric shop first, and then come back to help you check it out!"

The group of five, trudging through the winter morning frost, once again joined the country road leading to the county town. It was market day, so there were more pedestrians than usual, and oxcarts were in high demand. They decided to walk, and their pace was quite brisk.

Upon arriving in the county town, the market was already bustling with activity. Knowing the area well, Chen's mother led her two daughters-in-law straight to the "Jinxiu Cloth Shop" she had mentioned. The shop wasn't large, but it was clean and tidy. Inside, finished embroidered items hung, mostly curtains, drapes, and pillowcases, as well as neatly folded embroidered handkerchiefs. A woman in her forties, dressed in a respectable blue cotton robe, was behind the counter, working on an abacus.

Seeing customers enter, the shopkeeper looked up, a professional smile plastered on her face: "Ladies, would you like to look at embroidery or buy fabric and thread?"

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Chen's mother explained her purpose: she wanted her daughter-in-law to try out some embroidery work. The shopkeeper glanced at the Su sisters, who were following behind Chen's mother and were dressed simply but had a calm demeanor. She then had a shop assistant bring out several embroidery samples of varying difficulty and a price list for them to see.

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing carefully examined the stitching, color matching, and completion of the samples, and quietly inquired about the wages for different embroidery items, gaining a general idea of ​​their abilities. With their current skill levels, they would probably struggle with large-scale, highly demanding intricate work, but embroidering common patterns on handkerchiefs, pillowcases, and baby bibs should be no problem. The wages wouldn't be high, but it would provide a decent supplement over time.

Seeing that they seemed somewhat interested, the shopkeeper kindly suggested, "If you two are new here and want to try your hand at embroidery, why don't you go check out 'Tao's Cloth Shop' at the end of the street? They mainly sell affordable fabrics, and also sell embroidery thread, fabric hoops, and other odds and ends. The prices are a bit cheaper than here. If you're doing your first job, using their fabrics to practice will keep costs down, and even if you're not entirely satisfied with the result, the loss will be smaller. Once you've improved your skills, or if you have any special work to do, you can come back to us."

The three thanked the shopkeeper and, as instructed, found Tao's Cloth Shop at the end of the street. This place was indeed more down-to-earth; the shop was spacious and piled high with various kinds of cotton and linen cloth, mainly in shades of blue, gray, and brown, with a small amount of brightly colored fine cotton fabric. On a shelf to one side of the counter, various embroidery threads, cloth frames of different sizes, embroidery needles, thimbles, and other items were neatly arranged.

Su Xiaoyin and Su Xiaoqing carefully selected their items. They chose several pieces of fine white and indigo cotton fabric suitable for making handkerchiefs and pillowcases, along with embroidery threads in basic colors such as red, green, yellow, and black, and bought two medium-sized fabric hoops. In total, they spent a full one hundred coins. This was no small sum for their newly independent family, who needed money for everything.

While paying, Su Xiaoyin noticed some scraps of fabric piled up in the corner of the counter, varying in size and color. A thought struck her, and she asked the shopkeeper somewhat shyly, "Shopkeeper, we bought these, could you... give us some scraps of fabric as accessories? We can go back and practice our needlework."

The shopkeeper was a plump middle-aged man. Seeing that the two sisters had indeed bought what they needed for embroidery and were willing to spend money, he readily waved his hand, pulled out two bundles of cloth tied with straw rope from under the counter, and said with a smile, "Alright! These two bundles of cloth have all sorts of things. Take them! Remember to come back to my shop next time you need something!"

"Oh! Thank you, shopkeeper!" Su Xiaoqing happily accepted the two bundles of fabric. They were quite heavy. Although they were all scraps, some pieces were quite large and the colors were rich, enough for them to practice and make many small embroidery items.

Seeing that everything was bought, Chen's mother asked, "Is everything complete? How much did it cost?"

"Yes, I bought everything. It cost a hundred coins," Su Xiaoyin replied, carefully wrapping up the fabric and embroidery thread. "When we get back, we'll practice with these scraps of fabric first, making some handkerchiefs. Once we're more skilled, we can use better fabric to make pillowcases and things like that."

"Okay, that's good to know. Let's go see how Dashan and Xiaohe are doing with their sales." Chen's mother led the two of them back to the bustling main street of the market.

Following my memory, I found the spot where the two brothers had set up their stall. It was next to a pancake stall, and they had borrowed a corner from the owner. The place wasn't big; an old coarse cloth was spread on the ground, and their goods were neatly arranged on it: small bamboo winnowing baskets, bamboo boxes with lids, bamboo cups, wooden combs, wooden hairpins, small wooden swords, and several adorable wooden animal carvings (rabbits, small fish, and lambs).

Two or three people were gathered around the stall. Chen Xiaohe was enthusiastically promoting a small bamboo winnowing basket to a woman with a child: "...Look at this size, it's perfect for holding snacks for the child, like peanuts and melon seeds! The bamboo strips are smooth, so they won't be rough on your hands! Three coins each, what a bargain!"

The woman seemed persuaded and bought two. On the other side, Chen Dashan silently picked up a small wooden sword and handed it to the father of a little boy who was watching eagerly. The father asked the price, two coins, very cheap, and bought it readily.

After the group of people dispersed, Chen's mother and the others went over. "How was it?" Chen's mother asked.

Chen Xiaohe couldn't contain his excitement. He lowered his voice and said, "Mom! We sold quite a few! I sold four small winnowing baskets and two bamboo cups! My older brother did even better; he sold several wooden swords, two wooden combs, and four or five hairpins! And that set of little animal carvings..." He pointed to a spot where five different animal carvings had previously been, but now had a small empty space, "an old man took a liking to them, saying they were for his grandchildren, and bought them all at once! He gave him ten copper coins!"

Chen Dashan stood to the side, not saying a word, but a hint of relaxation and a subtle sense of accomplishment flickered in his eyes. He had previously made practical, large items, and this was the first time he had made these "impractical" little gadgets; he hadn't expected anyone to actually like them.

"Oh, that's wonderful!" Mother Chen beamed with joy, glancing at the remaining items on the stall. "There's not much left, it seems your business model works! Keep it up! Come whenever you have time during the market days!"

As the sun rose higher, the market reached its peak in numbers. The two brothers sold off the remaining few small items, leaving only two wooden combs and a bamboo box. Seeing that it was almost noon, the five of them packed up their stall and found a noodle stall on the edge of the market. Each of them ate a bowl of hot vegetarian noodle soup as a treat.

On the way back to the village, their steps were lighter than on the way there. Their baskets, once empty in the morning, were now filled with embroidery materials and a few remaining bamboo and wooden crafts. More importantly, everyone carried a heavy sense of accomplishment—not just the few dozen coins earned from selling their goods, but also the encouragement of recognition for their efforts, confidence in their craft, and a clear vision of the many possibilities for their new home.

Chen Xiaohe spent the whole way planning what more exquisite bamboo ware he would make next. Su Xiaoqing and her sister were quietly discussing which piece of cloth to use first and what patterns to embroider. Chen Dashan listened, occasionally glancing at Su Xiaoyin's calm profile beside him. She was carefully protecting the fabric in the basket on her back, and there was a familiar light in her eyes when she was focused on something.

Under the clear winter sky, the five figures stretched long along the country dirt road. Life in their new home was like this road beneath their feet; though occasionally bumpy, it always stretched forward, and with their joint efforts, it was gradually widening, becoming more and more solid and full of hope.