RYEY – Chapter 157 First Time Taking a Photo

The next morning, before the sun was fully up, Mother Li and Li Le were already busy in the kitchen. Today they were going to the county town to take photos. Cheng Qiao would carry her son, Li Huan would drive the ox cart, and the two of them had to prepare plenty of things in advance.

Going out wasn’t like before. Now that there was a baby at home, a trip outside meant packing all sorts of things—diapers, bottles, warm water, and more. On top of that, Cheng Qiao herself couldn’t go hungry, otherwise what if she ran out of milk?

Watching Mother Li bustling about excitedly, Cheng Qiao couldn’t help but smile. Only now did she realize just how little her “space” actually contained for babies—other than formula and talcum powder, there was practically nothing, let alone disposable diapers.

Fortunately, Mother Li was resourceful. She had traded sorghum flour for some old bed sheets, cut them into pieces for diapers, washed them repeatedly, and boiled them in hot water before she felt safe using them for the child.

As for bottles, those were thanks to Qiu Min. Whenever the supply cooperative received bottles and formula, she always found a way to set some aside. Before they knew it, little Cheng Li had seven or eight bottles already.

When Old Niu learned that Li Huan was borrowing the ox cart to go to the photo studio, his heart itched—he had never taken a single picture in his life and desperately wanted one.

“Uncle Niu, come on. I’ll treat you to a photo. But then the ox cart ride will be on the house, alright?”

“Deal! I’ll feed the old ox first. You head back and finish your preparations, I’ll be right there.”

He tossed a large bundle of fresh grass into the ox trough. Zhao Xiaobao’s parents cut grass every morning at dawn, and the old ox loved it.

Then Old Niu returned to his house, rummaged through the closet, and after much searching, finally found a yellowed white shirt and a pair of khaki pants patched at the knees.

When the ox cart arrived, the Li family quickly locked their door. For little Cheng Li, this was the first time in both his lives sitting in an ox cart, and his eyes sparkled with excitement. His expression delighted Li Le so much that she kept saying her nephew was the smartest child in the world.

Meanwhile, Xu Laidi sat at the gate of her own courtyard holding her baby. Now that Chen Dazhu was dead, even Chen Tiezhu and the others didn’t dare bully her anymore. She had secretly dug up the clay jar buried under the old tree at the entrance of the village.

Inside was a gold ring she had once tricked out of Cheng Qiao. That foolish woman had so many valuables, she probably forgot it even existed.

There was also money from selling things on the sly all these years, plus her savings, and even cash Chen Dazhu had hidden under the heated bed that he revealed to her before he died. Altogether, it came to over a hundred yuan.

With this money, Xu Laidi felt she had the faith to raise her child. But when she saw the entire Li family riding off on the ox cart to the county town, the satisfaction she had just felt evaporated instantly.

Cheng Qiao noticed Xu Laidi’s malicious gaze at her and her baby. She glared back, refusing to yield. Li Huan also noticed the change in his wife’s expression and turned to glance toward Xu Laidi’s house.

Xu Laidi shivered. She couldn’t understand why Cheng Qiao seemed like a different person now. When Li Huan’s eyes also swept her way, she quickly hugged her child tight and retreated indoors.

The photo studio was deserted. Everyone wanted to have their photo taken, but few could afford it. When Mother Li heard that a one-inch photo cost fifty cents, she was so shocked she turned to leave.

But Li Huan was quick and held her back. He arranged them—Cheng Qiao holding the baby in the middle, Mother Li and Li Le on her left, and himself on her right.

The photographer was delighted to finally have business. He hurriedly adjusted his camera, and with a crisp click, a family of five was captured together on film.

When the photographer went to write out the receipt, Li Huan quickly added, “Master, please also take a photo of my wife and the baby together, one of just the baby, and one of the three of us as a family.”

The photographer’s eyes lit up. There was even a special white carpet in the studio for photographing infants—babies could lie down or crawl on it, whichever worked.

Cheng Qiao carefully set little Cheng Li down. “Baby, smile at the camera. We’re going to send this photo to your grandpa later.”

Little Cheng Li actually tried his best to lift his head, staring wide-eyed at the toy in the photographer’s hand without even blinking. The photographer was so pleased that he promised to enlarge a copy for free.

Li Le wanted to take a solo picture too, but when she thought about the fifty cents, she bit her tongue. No wonder her class monitor showed off so much—turns out photos were this expensive!

“Master, please also take a photo of my mother and my sister together.”

Mother Li was so angry she raised her fist to hit Li Huan, but her punches were as weak as a mosquito’s tap. Li Huan just laughed, pressed her down into the chair, and said, “We’re already here, what’s a few extra cents?”

When it came time to pay, Li Le watched in shock as her second brother handed over twelve yuan. Her heart nearly stopped—just a few clicks and more than ten yuan was gone!

“When will we get them?”

“The soonest is in a week. Come pick them up next weekend.”

The photographer beamed from ear to ear. Business was slow most of the time, but a big client like this covered three months’ worth of quota in one go.

Old Niu proudly posed too. The photographer even lent him a green military cap, which he wore with great swagger.

“Huan’er, where to now? Heading home or strolling around the county?”

“Uncle Niu, take my mother and sister home. My wife and I still have some business here.”

Li Huan unloaded the bicycle he had specially brought along. Coming to the county and not running a few private errands would be a waste.

Mother Li gave her son a deep look and reached out to take the baby, but Cheng Qiao shook her head. Xu Laidi’s venomous gaze earlier made her uneasy.

Mother Li, herself a mother, understood. With a baby only a month old, of course Cheng Qiao wouldn’t want to entrust him to anyone. She just handed her some diapers, reminding her to change the baby promptly if he wet himself.

After watching the ox cart depart, Cheng Qiao glanced around. Once she confirmed no one was watching, the cloth diaper in her hand vanished instantly. Then she carried little Cheng Li to the supply cooperative.

“Cheng Qiao, hurry and let me hold little Cheng Li. Oh my, it’s only been a week and he’s even cuter! I just adore this child.”

The moment Qiu Min saw Cheng Qiao enter with the baby, she ignored the customers, slipped out from behind the counter, and reached out eagerly.

Li Huan carefully handed the baby over. Qiu Min gazed at little Cheng Li’s big round eyes, utterly smitten, secretly vowing that she too would give birth to such a beautiful child.

Noticing the puffiness in Qiu Min’s face, Cheng Qiao quietly pressed her fingers against her wrist to take her pulse. Before long, Cheng Qiao’s expression darkened.