The weather gradually turned cooler, especially with the difference in temperature between morning and evening growing even greater. And since Shangliang Village sat on relatively high ground, it made people feel the chill all the more.
Zhang Yuniang and her mother-in-law, Lin Sanniang, each sat on a stool in the courtyard, sewing new clothes for the men of the Li family. Though Lin Sanniang was already over sixty, her eyes were still remarkably sharp, and the needlework in her hands was better than that of many young daughters-in-law in Shangliang Village.
At noon, Zhang Yuniang took out the two colors of homespun cloth from the wardrobe, blue-green and blue. Then, according to the measurements she had just taken for Li Dazhu, Li Zhiming, and the others, she cut out one garment in each color. That way, when it came time to make them later, she could simply take them out and sew them, saving the trouble of cutting again.
When sewing clothes for her own family, her hands and feet were quick, and there was no need for embroidery. All she had to do was make the stitches a little denser. Besides, with her mother-in-law, Lin Sanniang, helping at her side, finishing the clothes for her two sons and her daughter today should not be a problem.
Zhang Yuniang also looked at the two kinds of floral cloth Li Menglan had bought back and began calculating in her heart, thinking of making two more sets of clothes for her daughter so she could change between them. But… after making clothes and shoes, there might not be enough fabric left for the quilts. Zhang Yuniang frowned slightly.
“Mother, where are the big bags of cloth scraps and fabric pieces Father and I brought back yesterday?” Li Menglan came out after washing the bowls and tidying up the kitchen.
“Oh… they’re all set aside in the room. Daughter, what do you need so many scraps for?” Zhang Yuniang did not know what use her daughter had for pieces of cloth and scraps.
“Mother, let me take a look first, then I’ll tell you.” Li Menglan ran excitedly into the room.
Li Menglan eagerly poured all the scraps and cloth pieces out from several sacks. Hoh… good heavens. She had originally thought they would be no more than scraps three or four inches long or wide. Who would have imagined… several whole bags were filled with cloth pieces larger than a palm? She had truly picked up a bargain for nothing.
Hehe… there was no denying it. Li Menglan knew she had once again benefited from Zhao Qingyun’s favor. The clerk at the cloth shop must have let her get such a great bargain out of consideration for his young master.
Li Menglan looked them over carefully. Most of the cloth scraps in the bags were blue and blue-green, with a smaller portion made up of all sorts of floral fabrics. Li Menglan carefully picked out the scraps that were about the same size.
Back when Li Menglan had first seen these cloth scraps, she had suddenly thought of a kind of patchwork art from the twenty-first century. Her family’s current situation was just like this: there were still many places that would require money, and she intended to uphold the idea of saving wherever they could. Li Menglan planned to solve the matter of their quilt covers and pillowcases with patchwork.
Having made up her mind, Li Menglan first chose a few pieces of floral cloth that were about the same size and pattern. In the twenty-first century, Li Menglan had always liked things like cross-stitch and embroidered insoles. Added to the residual memories left behind in the original body, it did not take long before a brightly colored floral pillowcase with fine, dense stitching was completed.
“Mother, Grandmother, look—isn’t it pretty?” Li Menglan excitedly carried the newly made pillowcase over for Zhang Yuniang and Lin Sanniang to see.
“Daughter, what’s that in your hands?” Zhang Yuniang was busy making clothes for the men of the family and asked without stopping her work.
“A pillowcase. Mother, look—isn’t it pretty?” Li Menglan said with a beaming smile. “This is called patchwork. It means using scraps of cloth to piece together something you like, something you want.”
Zhang Yuniang’s face was full of disbelief. She said in astonishment, “Daughter, you’re saying such a pretty thing was made out of cloth scraps?”
“That’s right! Mother, I’m also planning to make our quilt covers with patchwork. What do you think?” Li Menglan smiled and handed the floral cloth cover in her hands to Zhang Yuniang and Lin Sanniang.
Lin Sanniang was the first to take the floral pillowcase from Li Menglan and examine it closely. “Mm… Lan girl, your needlework is getting better and better. Look at these stitches, so dense and fine. You really can’t tell at all. Yuniang… I think Lan girl’s idea is quite good. We can give it a try. If it succeeds, we can save quite a bit on cloth money. And taking a step back, even if it doesn’t turn out well, isn’t it just some scraps of cloth? It can’t be considered a waste.”
Since her mother-in-law had already said as much, Zhang Yuniang did not say anything more. She merely told Li Menglan to go ahead and try as she saw fit.
Though Zhang Yuniang’s thoughts were good, Li Menglan was not having it. “Grandmother, Mother, you two should make them together with me, all right?” Li Menglan said, acting spoiled with a shameless little grin toward Zhang Yuniang and Lin Sanniang.
“Daughter, can’t you see your mother and grandmother are busy making clothes for the family?” Zhang Yuniang smiled and glanced at her daughter. “Come now, tell me. Why do you want your mother and grandmother to join you in this nonsense?”
Zhang Yuniang actually knew her daughter had her own ideas, but seeing Li Menglan looking like a little adult, she could not help wanting to tease her.
Not far away, Li Dazhu, who was repairing the wall around their courtyard, looked at his wife and daughter and chuckled happily… Being a little poor, a little bitter, was nothing. As long as the whole family could stay together, that was better than anything.
In the heart of an honest man like Li Dazhu, being together as a family was happiness.
“Mother, you can put the clothes aside for now. Making them tomorrow is fine too,” Li Menglan said, pursing her lips. “The nights are already starting to get cold. Those old cotton quilts at home aren’t warm at all. Grandmother and Grandfather are getting on in years too. What if they accidentally catch a chill? That’s why I wanted to get the quilts done first.”
Li Menglan’s words made Zhang Yuniang and Lin Sanniang feel deeply warmed. Lin Sanniang in particular smiled with such loving affection that the wrinkles on her face seemed to bloom like flowers. “Hehe… my good granddaughter really has grown up and become sensible! Now you even know how to care for people. All right, Grandmother and your mother will help Lan girl make that quilt cover you mentioned first.”
It was often said that many hands made light work, and those words were not false at all. With the three women of the Li family—Lin Sanniang, Zhang Yuniang, and Li Menglan—working together, the Li family’s first quilt cover modeled after those of later generations was soon finished.
The simple patchwork quilt cover, interwoven with blue and blue-green, was completed. Three sides of the cover were sewn shut, and only one end had several small cloth strips sewn onto it by Li Menglan. After Li Menglan stuffed a five-jin cotton wadding into the quilt cover and tied the little cloth strips together—ta-da! A brand-new quilt appeared before Zhang Yuniang and Lin Sanniang, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law pair.
“Mother, Grandmother, look. Isn’t it very convenient?” Li Menglan said as if presenting a treasure. “It’ll be convenient to take apart and wash later too. You just untie the cloth strips.”
“Mm, Yuniang! I think Lan girl’s method really is quite good. It’s convenient and saves trouble… not bad… not bad,” Lin Sanniang said with a smile.
“I think it works too.” Zhang Yuniang glanced at Li Menglan, whose eyes were curved with joy, and could not help saying with fond reproach, “She really… who knows where that little head of hers gets so many strange ideas. But the things she comes up with really are quite good. Let her do as she likes!”
“Thank you, Mother!” Li Menglan cheered and threw herself into Zhang Yuniang’s arms.
“You!” Li Menglan’s laughter infected Lin Sanniang and Zhang Yuniang as well, and the whole family could not help laughing.
The laughter reached Li Dazhu’s ears outside, and he could not help feeling a thousand emotions. “Father, our family hasn’t been this lively and happy in a long time. This is truly good!”
“Alas… it can only be blamed on this old man for dragging the family down,” Li Fujin said somewhat sadly.
“Father, you are my father. A son providing for his old father is a matter ordained by heaven and earth. Life will get better from now on. Father, just wait to enjoy your blessings!”
“Good… Father is old now. From now on, I’ll just wait to enjoy the blessings of my children and grandchildren! Hahaha…”