Chapter 97 – Making School Uniforms

Zhou Yimin thought of a word—school uniforms.

When he got back, he simply suggested making two sets of school uniforms for those kids. Giving them out for free didn’t feel quite right, so charging a symbolic one or two yuan seemed appropriate. Zhou Yimin believed no parent would object.

Even in rural areas where people weren’t well-off, spending one or two yuan on a couple of brand-new outfits was an opportunity no one would pass up.

Zhou Yimin went to the courtyard next door to find Zhou Dazhong.

“Dazhong, have you learned to ride the tricycle yet?” Zhou Yimin asked.

He knew that the boy had started learning after work just yesterday. The tricycle the factory had originally assigned to Zhou Yimin had been passed on to Zhou Dazhong.

“I have. It’s not hard.”

That was true—learning to ride a tricycle was much easier than learning a bicycle. After all, it doesn’t tip over, so there’s no need to learn balance; as long as your hands and feet work in sync, you’re good to go.

“Great! Later, come with me back to Zhoujiazhuang. Use the tricycle to haul those old books back,” Zhou Yimin began assigning tasks.

Wasn’t the whole point of training Zhou Dazhong to make his own life a bit easier?

Zhou Yimin had no qualms about putting people to work.

And Zhou Dazhong was more than happy to help out—he finally felt like he could contribute something. If Uncle Sixteen didn’t start having him do things soon, he’d feel bad about it himself.

“Okay, I’ll head over in a bit.”

Zhou Yimin then asked, “By the way, didn’t you go to Hongxing Commune to make some purchases yesterday? How did it go?”

Zhou Dazhong looked a little embarrassed, like he’d let Zhou Yimin down after all the effort he’d invested.

“I didn’t get anything. Hongxing Commune doesn’t have surplus grain either. Uncle Sixteen, I’ll go a bit further tomorrow and try again,” he promised.

Zhou Yimin smiled lightly. “No rush. Take your time, and be careful when you’re out. Don’t go too far off the beaten path.”

He wasn’t in a hurry to hand resources over to Zhou Dazhong—let him be tempered a little first.

Seeing that Uncle Sixteen didn’t scold him and even offered comfort instead, Zhou Dazhong felt relieved and even more grateful.

Two hours later, he came to Courtyard 56 to find Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin offered him some watermelon.

He had a hundred big watermelons—plenty to go around!

“Once you finish eating, head over to Dapeng’s place and move the books. Bring them back here,” Zhou Yimin instructed.

“Got it!”

Before even finishing the watermelon, Zhou Dazhong went to work. He loaded up a big pile of old textbooks and study materials onto the tricycle—it must have weighed several hundred pounds.

At that moment, Zhou Yimin came out carrying two watermelons and placed them in the middle of the tricycle bed. The books were underneath and all around to hold them in place.

“Take all of it back to the school. You go ahead; I’ll head back a bit later,” Zhou Yimin said.

“Alright!”

Zhou Dazhong started the trip back to Zhoujiazhuang.

Truthfully, even if Uncle Sixteen hadn’t told him to, he would have done it gladly. All these books were going to the village elementary school, and his little brother was in third grade there!

An hour later, Zhou Yimin finally set off on his bicycle.

He thought, It’d be great if I had a motorcycle or something…

Riding a bicycle was tiring.

Just before reaching Zhoujiazhuang, he placed two large watermelons into the huge shopping basket and stacked four rolls of blue cloth on top. Blue was the popular color at the time.

Meanwhile, Zhou Dazhong had already arrived at the school and parked at the small playground.

Zhou Zhigao and his daughter quickly told the students to keep reading, then walked out of the classroom toward Zhou Dazhong.

“Uncle Sixteen asked me to bring these back,” Zhou Dazhong said as he unloaded the books.

“This much?” Zhou Zhigao and his daughter were both stunned.

They found that, in addition to textbooks, there were also some study materials that their school needed. They were thrilled.

Zhou Zhigao sighed inwardly—his sixteenth brother was really reliable!

“Oh, and these two watermelons are also for the school. Uncle Sixteen told me to bring them,” Zhou Dazhong added.

Actually, the father and daughter had already seen the big watermelons, but they hadn’t expected them to be for the school. Asking Zhou Yimin to help find some old books was already a favor.

How could they dare ask for anything more?

“The school doesn’t need them. Take them back to his grandfather’s house later,” Zhou Zhigao shook his head.

The students were already well taken care of—books to read, meals to eat, and no one going hungry. In the past, parents didn’t like sending girls to school, but now, as long as the kids were the right age, they sent them all in.

The reason was obvious.

If there weren’t an age limit, they’d probably bring in newborns too.

“Uncle Sixteen said they’re for the school, and I don’t dare take them back. If you don’t want them, you’ll have to talk to him. I’m just the delivery guy. Uncle Sixteen says take it here, so here it is.

Besides, Uncle Sixteen still has more watermelons at home,” Zhou Dazhong said.

Before leaving, he’d seen several big watermelons lying on the floor at Uncle Sixteen’s place.

After hearing that, Zhou Zhigao didn’t say anything more. He helped Zhou Dazhong carry in all the old books and supplies.

“Dazhong, thanks for your hard work. Sit for a bit and have some watermelon,” Zhou Zhigao offered.

Zhou Dazhong shook his head. “I already had quite a bit at Uncle Sixteen’s. I’ll skip it. If there’s nothing else, I’ll head back to check on my mom.”

With that, he turned and left.

There were a lot of kids at the school. With only two watermelons, he didn’t want to stay and snatch a bite—didn’t feel right to fight the children for food.

“Uncle Sixteen really cares about the village school,” Xiaolan said emotionally. She was a little disappointed there weren’t any old clothes.

Zhou Zhigao nodded. “Yes, he really does.”

It was precisely because the school had Zhou Yimin backing it that he could focus on teaching, without worrying about all the other nonsense.

Just as the father and daughter finished slicing the watermelons—but before handing them out to the students in the classroom—Zhou Yimin came riding back on his bicycle. The father and daughter came out again to greet him, beaming with smiles and repeatedly thanking him.

“Brother Zhigao, there’s no need for thanks. I’ve got something I need you to inform the parents about.”

“What’s that?” Zhou Zhigao asked.

“I’ve got a friend at the textile factory and got hold of four rolls of fabric. I was thinking—let’s make two sets of clothes for every student at the school, as uniforms.

We’ll charge the parents just one or two yuan for the fabric. Ask some of the village women to help sew the uniforms, and the labor cost can come from the village.

Would that work?”

The father and daughter were stunned—especially Xiaolan.

She had only asked Uncle Sixteen to help find a few old clothes. She never imagined it would turn into this—two whole new sets of uniforms for the students! Even if they charged one or two yuan, as long as the parents weren’t fools, they’d be happy to pay.

“Alright, I’ll go talk to the Party Secretary right away and notify the villagers.”

This was a big deal, and Zhou Zhigao couldn’t sit still anymore.

After he left, Zhou Yimin turned to Xiaolan and said, “These four rolls of fabric should be enough. The leftovers can go toward making a set for you and your dad, too.

The school uniforms need to be coordinated in style…”

What girl didn’t love new clothes?

Xiaolan was overjoyed and quickly handed over a slice of watermelon for Zhou Yimin to eat.

“No thanks, I’ll head back now,” he said, pointing under his shopping basket—two more watermelons were lying underneath.

Seeing those, Xiaolan didn’t insist and went to divide the watermelon for the students.

(End of Chapter)