At this moment, Fu Xinci, who was being envied by someone, was being kept in the room by Madam Fang to learn needlework, with the sisters Nuan Xin and Nuan Nuan also learning alongside.
Fu Xinci possessed the memories of the original owner. Although the original owner's needlework and embroidery were not outstanding, they were considered decent.
In Fu Xinci's own words, she could embroider a plump trumpet flower, mend clothes, or hem trousers without any issue.
However, when she saw the handkerchiefs embroidered by the sisters Nuan Xin and Nuan Nuan, she felt a bit of existential doubt.
Nuan Xin was understandable; she was the same age as the original body, eight years old this year. If she had shamelessly admitted her skills were inferior, it could have been barely acceptable.
But how was it possible that Nuan Nuan, who was only five years old, had embroidered little chicks that were so lifelike, even more vivid than hers by three parts.
"Oh my, you sisters are both so good at embroidering, are you letting anyone else live?" Fu Xinci simply put down her embroidery hoop and resorted to playing the spoiled child.
Madam Fang hadn't seen her daughter act so childishly in a long time. Since the family had been implicated, her daughter had changed drastically.
Her husband said it was due to experiencing such great hardship, and their daughter had forced herself to grow up overnight.
While her heart ached for her daughter, she also felt a bit unaccustomed, finding her daughter's transformation somewhat strange.
Seeing her daughter's childish behavior now, her heart warmed, and she wanted to hug her.
However, her peripheral vision swept across the two pitiable sisters opposite, and Madam Fang changed her mind, deciding to hug her daughter in private instead.
Laughter drifted from the courtyard; it was Qi He and Meng Yuluo, engaged in a snowball fight.
White snow was squeezed into balls, then hurled with force, tracing a beautiful arc in mid-air before landing on another person's shoulder, back, or even face.
"Haha."
"Haha."
The two youths laughed wantonly, leaving streaks of mottled footprints on the snow.
Through the glass window, Madam Fang and Fu Xinci focused their gaze on the little shadow trailing behind Qi He.
"Giggle."
In the morning, Fu Yu, fearing his son would be cold, had dressed him in extra layers. From a distance, Yu'er looked like a little chubby ball rolling around in the snow.
Fu Xinci couldn't bear to watch any longer. She got up, put on her shoes, and ran out.
"Yu'er, stop running, hurry and come to your sister."
"Okay." The little fellow agreed and toddled towards her.
Upon reaching his sister, Yu'er leaped into her arms, looking utterly exhausted.
"Tired?"
"Mmm-hmm." Yu'er's face was flushed, and fine beads of sweat had appeared on his forehead.
Afraid he would catch a chill, Fu Xinci pulled him back inside. Only after lifting him onto the heated brick bed did she discover that Yu'er's cotton shoes were soaked through with melted snow.
Madam Fang held her son's cold little feet and chided him with concern, "Yu'er, your shoes are soaked, why were you running around outside? It's a good thing your sister saw you and brought you in, otherwise your little feet would have been frozen."
Yu'er knew he had made a mistake today and could only cling to his mother's neck, trying to appease her.
Oh dear, the little fellow anxiously winked at his sister, signaling her to quickly help him out.
Seeing Yu'er's pitiful appearance, Fu Xinci quickly put in a good word for her younger brother. Madam Fang finally stopped her nagging.
However, she looked at her son's cotton shoes with worry. "It snows frequently here in winter, and Yu'er can't always be confined indoors. Even if I make him a couple of pairs of cotton shoes, it won't be enough to switch."
"Yes, it's not just Yu'er; we also need to go out. This problem of cotton shoes really needs to be properly considered."
Fu Yu recalled that they had previously only spoken about how difficult the winters in Liaodong were.
Last night was just the first snowfall. This morning, he and Meng Qicheng went out to clear snow. After they finished, he realized that his wife's newly made cotton shoes were half-soaked with snowmelt.
Grandpa Meng felt this was not a viable solution and expressed his plan. "The winter here lasts four to five months. Wearing these cotton shoes can get by when it's not snowing, but if there's heavy snowfall, we truly won't be able to go out."
"Isn't that the truth?" Qi He looked at the new cotton shoes Auntie had made for him and now regretted playing snowball fight with Meng Yuluo.
"How about I go to town tomorrow and buy some hides? Yu'er's wife, you can work a little harder and make a few pairs of boots, or I can just buy a few pairs of boots tomorrow."
"Father, the roads are covered in snow, I should go."
"I'll go."
"I'll accompany Grandfather."
Fu Yu looked at his aged father and then at his daughter, swallowing back what he intended to say.
A saying popped into his mind to console himself: An old general in action is worth two.
But his daughter? Was he supposed to say: A newborn calf fears no tiger.
Alas, where did all these thoughts come from?
The next day, both grandfather and grandson were bundled up tightly before Fu Yu allowed them to set off in the donkey cart.
"Alas, your father, his temper is becoming more stubborn by the day."
Fu Xinci smiled at her grandfather's words and then said playfully, "Grandfather, don't you think my father is becoming more and more like you?"
"Like me?"
"Of course."
As grandfather and granddaughter chatted, the donkey cart soon reached the intersection below the garrison.
Qi Yuanshan stood at the entrance of the garrison and greeted the grandfather and grandson.
"Uncle Qi."
"Ah."
"Uncle Meng, where are you and Xin Ci going?"
"Xin Ci and I are going to town to buy some hides to make boots. Alas, I didn't think much of it before, but after this snowfall, we finally understand that without leather boots in this region's winter, you can't even think about going out."
"Uncle, you've hit the nail on the head. But you don't need to go to town. I have some hides here, all tanned by myself. Although they don't look like much, they should be alright for making boots. Uncle, wait here, I'll go get them for you."
After speaking, Qi Yuanshan turned and ran back. In a short while, he returned with several hides.
"Uncle, here are three wolf skins, two goat skins, three fox skins, a deer hide, and two roe deer hides."
"My, that's quite a few."
"We got them last year when we went north with the thousand-household commander to chase the Tatars."
Fu Xinci listened, finding it quite commemorative.
"Uncle, you should hurry back, it's quite cold outside."
"Ah, thanks to Yuanshan, my grandson and I don't have to go to town."
"Uncle, I'm also grateful to you."
"Alright, we're mutually benefiting."
Under Qi Yuanshan's urging, Grandpa Meng leisurely drove the donkey cart back.
Seeing that the road was clear, Fu Xinci handed a bundle to her grandfather and said, "Grandfather, I had already prepared these short boots. Now, how should these boots be officially accounted for?"
Grandpa Meng looked at the bundle containing pairs of thick short boots, whose material was not discernible, and he liked them very much.