Chapter 7 (1/2)

The courtyard where Chu Jinyao lives is also front, with five upper rooms lined up. There are wing rooms on the East and west sides, and there is a row of inverted rooms in the south. Three small rolling sheds, called Baoxia, were built on the front eaves of the main house. Chu Jinyao lives in the main room, with a study in the East and a bedroom in the West. Chu Jinyao sleeps in the room in the West. The west room is her daily living place. The main hall in the middle is not very useful. On the contrary, it is Baoxia. Chu Jinyao makes needles and threads. When he sees the servants, they are all here.

Now lilac and Qiuju bring a sewing basket and stand in the East Baoxia waiting for Chu Jinyao. Qiu Ju brushed the cloud brocade with her fingers and asked, ”girl, this brocade is ten feet long. The clothes are for visitors. The pleats must be made more carefully. It must be at least two feet long, and the jacket must be one foot long. This is only the outer clothes, and the lining needs to be cut separately. Shall we make it ourselves or hand it over to the sewing room?”

A piece of brocade is ten feet long. It's only a set of clothes outside. It's already used up one third. Chu Jinyao was very fond of her, but she also knew that the women's skirts of noble families were extremely made. She had to go to see her aunt again. The skirts had to be made into seven pieces, and the pleats needed to be made fine. In this way, it would take three feet to calculate the whole. If there were some mistakes in cutting, there would only be more.

”Let's do it ourselves. We always have to be more careful.”

”OK.” lilac and Camellia said and took out the scissors, but Chu Jinyao shouted to them, ”wait. Cut from the middle, and finally the materials on both sides are wasted. Once they are cut into pieces, they can only make some purse. Give me the ruler.” Chu Jinyao took the ruler, made an oblique gesture and said, ”try it like this.”

Camellia hesitated: ”OK? Good material. Don't cut it at last.”

”No, I've tried before.” Chu Jinyao used to be in a bad situation at home. A piece of cloth had to be used for many years. She was sewing and changing clothes at home. Slowly, Chu Jinyao mastered a good hand of sewing. She has deep experience in how to save materials and look good.

Camellia still refused to make, or cloves. According to Chu Jinyao, it was crossed and cut. Chu Jinyao and clove matched each other, and several second-class servant girls came to fight. After a while, the upper jacket was cut out.

The second-class girl Kikyo exclaimed, ”it's really saved a lot. The most important thing is that the rest of the material is still whole. It's convenient to do anything in the future. If it's cut to pieces, it can only be used as a gadget like a handkerchief purse.”

Chu Jinyao said, ”it's just the bright surface on the outside, and the inner lining needs to be cut. Clove, go and get the plain yarn material. I remember there's still some left.”

After clove came over, several servant girls gathered around, weighed the cloth with their hands, and asked, ”girl, is this enough?”

Chu Jinyao touched it and said definitely, ”enough.”

Clove and Platycodon grandiflorum didn't know what to do. They did what Chu Jinyao said. Finally, they were just cut out.

Kikyo sincerely sighed, ”girl, your hands are so clever.”

Then came the cut Maxine skirt. Camellia asked, ”this is the material with purple flowers on a white background. It's just to make a jacket. Is it too light to make a horse face skirt?”

Chu Jinyao was also worried about this. She looked carefully at the patterns on the cloth and said, ”cut them out first and find a way when pleating.”

After the cloth was cut, Chu Jinyao took a piece of it and sat locking it. She pressed her hand, tried to make some folds, pulled out a satin from the cloth floor and made a gesture.

Lilac Platycodon grandiflorum was sewing. Suddenly Platycodon grandiflorum shouted, ”girl!”

The servant girls looked up. Kikyo came around and picked up the pleats locked by Chu Jinyao. Chu Jinyao sewed Purple Satin on the pleat, extending to the knee, then interrupted the satin, cut the lowest end into a pointed end, lined it with a harder cloth, and finally decorated it with tassels. Kikyo couldn't put it down and said, ”it's like a peacock's tail feather. When the pleats are finished, one of these hard ribbons must be as beautiful as a peacock's opening screen!”

The servant girls gathered around to see. Chu Jinyao demonstrated how to sew in front of them, and then closed the side. The handy servant girl would look at it once. She was too stupid to remember. She had to look around Chu Jinyao again. From time to time, a servant girl took her skirt and asked, ”girl, is that right?”

Chu Jinyao gave instructions one by one. The Baoxia was very lively for a while. Chu Jinyao was quick and finished a skirt in a short time. Worried about Qin Yi's boredom, she took a piece of cloud brocade satin, filled Xiao Lou with what she needed, and said, ”I'm a little tired sitting outside. I'll go inside and have a rest.”

”I'll serve the girl.” Kikyo stood up and said, ”girl, since you're tired, you don't have to take the cloth basket. Give it to us.”

”Nothing, I'll just sew two stitches.” Kikyo took the basket in Chu Jinyao's hand, followed Chu Jinyao into the west room and put it on the Kang near the window. Chu Jinyao said, ”I'll just rest here myself. Go out and make stitches with them.”

Kikyo hesitated, but was finally sent away by Chu Jinyao. When there was no one in the room, Chu Jinyao whispered, ”are you still there?”

Where else could he go... Qin Yi said helplessly, ”yes. What's the matter?”

”There were so many people just now that I can't talk to you. Are you bored looking at these?”

Although the jade pendant fell on Chu Jinyao's chest, Chu Jinyao could not stay in the house without seeing anyone all day. Therefore, when Chu Jinyao went out and talked to others, Qin Yi had to stay by himself. He could do nothing but wait.

Qin Yi also felt bored. When did he care about women's trivial and boring things such as making clothes, let alone watching them do sewing. But he can't go back now. He can only stay with Chu Jinyao. What else can he say?

Chu Jinyao said, ”I think the days of a great lady are too busy. Today, at any rate, we should make clothes. We have something to do on our hands. Sitting in the same way as we did the other day is too busy.”