Chapter 80: Making Clothes
Before Yu Sisi went to Yang Xun’s house, she went to the cloth shop by the roadside and bought a lot of textiles, mostly black, white, and cyan. She found that her master seemed to only wear these few colors of clothes.
She took the textiles and continued walking forward. She pa.s.sed by various stores and finally stopped in front of a small courtyard with large bluestones at the door.
Yu Sisi gently knocked on the old wooden door and raised her voice, “Mrs. Yang, are you at home?”
“Ah! Yes, I am.”
Yang Xun’s mother’s reply was soon heard from inside the door. At the same time, Yu Sisi also heard the sound of hurried footsteps approaching.
The door opened very quickly. Yang Xun’s mother was dressed in ordinary clothes. There was a cloth wrapped around her head and she was using the ap.r.o.n on her waist to wipe the flour on her hands.
“It’s Miss Yu. Come in and sit down. I have just made breakfast. Let’s eat together.”
Yang Xun’s mother revealed a happy expression on her face. Even the fine lines at the corners of her eyes were unfurled. Yang Jian’s death had dealt a great blow to her. She looked ten years older overnight.
“I’ve eaten, Mrs. Yang. I’ll come down this morning because I’m free to see how you’re doing.”
Yu Sisi followed her into the courtyard.
The courtyard was not big. It was a flat piece of land that was more than thirty square meters. There were some common vegetables planted near the wall. There were also two apple trees that had already grown with some little green apples.
There were also some chickens and ducks kept in a corner. There were about ten of them. They were clucking and quacking non-stop.
The small yard was very lively because of the noise of the chickens and ducks. Moreover, Yang Xun’s mother was a diligent person. There were many things in the whole yard, but they were neatly arranged. There was also no strange smell.
After stepping through the small yard, they entered a small low house. Because the foot of the mountain was not very peaceful, everyone’s house was slightly lower than ordinary houses. They were afraid of attracting the attention of birds and beasts, and they were not afraid of collapsing.
The house had three rooms, one living room, and one bathroom. Yang Xun was rubbing his eyes as he came out of the room. He was putting on his clothes with one hand while he asked in a sleepy and young voice,
“Mother, who is it?”
“Why are you up? Go to bed later. It’s your Sister Yu. Come and greet her first.”
Yang Xun’s mother felt sorry for her son. He had learned hunting knowledge from his uncles last night, and he had woken up so early this morning. He had only slept for four to five hours. How could he endure it at such a young age?
“Mother, I’m fine. Sister Yu, Good morning!”
When Yang Xun heard that Yu Sisi had come, he became much more energetic. He ran to the two of them and greeted them.
“Tsk, you won’t grow taller if you’re not getting enough sleep.” Yu Sisi caressed Yang Xun’s messy hair and pretended to be worried.
“What! Really? Mother!” Yang Xun was terrified. His uncles said that they would bring him up the mountain when he was as tall as his mother. What if he couldn’t grow taller now.
Yang Xun’s mother looked at Yu Sisi gratefully and coaxed little Yang Xun with her, “Yes, you can’t grow taller if you don’t eat well and sleep well. Sigh, what will you do in the future?”
“No, I want to grow taller. Mother, I’ll eat well and sleep well. Can you let me grow taller?”
Yang Xun was anxious. She covered her head with both hands and completely believed the lies of the two adults.
“Then go to sleep. I’ll wake you up in two hours to eat and send you to school.” Yang Xun’s mother pretended to be dignified and gave an order. Yang Xun nodded like a chick pecking at rice and then rushed to his bed.
“Yang Xun has grown a lot, but he’s still a child.”
Yu Sisi sighed. She couldn’t help but think of her past, after losing her family, she grew up overnight.
Yang Xun’s mother was in Yang Xun’s room. She watched him obediently get into bed and cover himself with the quilt. She didn’t fiddle with his little bow and arrow before she closed the door and came out.
“Yeah, he’s really much more sensible now.” He wouldn’t laze in bed anymore, he wouldn’t run out without washing up, and he wouldn’t ask his father to play with him anymore.
“Ah, well, Mrs. Yang, have you finished sewing the cloth? I brought a new one to trouble you again. It’s okay if you haven’t finished the previous one. I’m not in a hurry!”
Seeing Yang Xun’s mother become sad, Yu Sisi blamed herself and changed the topic stiffly.
“I’m done. Miss Yu, don’t call me Mrs. Yang anymore. My real name is Xin. If you don’t mind, you can call me Mama Xin. My family used to call me that.”
Yang Xun’s mother wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes and said to Yu Sisi, “Okay, Mama Xin. You can call me Sisi too. You don’t have to be so formal.”
“Hey, Sisi. I’ve finished making the clothes. Let me show you.” As she spoke, Mama Xin went to wash her hands. As she wiped her hands, she went to the room to get the clothes for Yu Sisi.
Yu Sisi sat on the wooden bench in the hall and waited. She placed the cloth she brought on the table. She looked around.
The small house was very clean. There was a plate of pickled vegetables and half a pot of braised rabbit meat on the table. It had already turned into oil. It should have been leftovers from last night.
“It’s all here. I made two sets of outer clothes and three sets of inner clothes. I also made a belt out of the remaining cloth.”
Mama Xin carried the neatly folded clothes out and let Yu Sisi examine them.
Yu Sisi used her hands to measure them and felt that they should be suitable. She did not know the exact size, so she could only make a guess.
Mama Xin looked at Yu Sisi, who was really measuring them, and revealed an experienced smile on her face. She asked her, “Sisi, I don’t think this size is from Mr. Xiong. Who Is it made for? I want to see what kind of person he is to add some patterns or something.”
Yu Sisi tried hard to recall the clothes Jiang Yun had worn in the past. They seemed to be pure colors and didn’t have any patterns.
“There’s no need for that. I saw that he used to wear monochrome clothes and didn’t have any patterns either.”
“Sigh, you can’t put it that way. How would a man know how to dress himself? It’s still up to a woman to choose for him.”
Mama Xin covered her mouth and laughed. Yu Sisi felt that her words were a little strange, but she couldn’t tell what it was, so she could only agree.
“Then what patterns does Mama Xin think should be added?”
“It depends on what that person likes.”
“Uh, roast chicken?”
“… Let’s not talk about food, silly girl. Just look at what he usually plays with.”
“Then let’s make it lotus flowers and koi fish!”
Yu Sisi thought of the large lotus pond and the chubby koi fish in Jiang Yun’s residence.
“Alright, then we’ll add the lotus flowers and koi fish this time. Don’t worry, everybody knows how good my craftsmanship is. I will definitely make the best clothes for you.”
Mama Xin patted her chest and promised, “Then we’ll make the clothes and belts, and also the shoes. It just so happens that the cloth this time is thicker, so we can use it to make the shoes.”
Mama Xin flipped through the textiles that Yu Sisi had brought. It was not thick, but it wasn’t as thin as the textiles used to make clothes. It could be used to make clothes also, but looked Sisi, the person she liked must be amazing. She had to use this cloth to make shoes.
The two of them discussed the accessories and patterns of the clothes and shoes for a long time. Yu Sisi couldn’t help but admire Mama Xin’s rich experience in making clothes.