Chapter 5

Ruan Xi and Ruan Jie lay down to sleep in their room.

Ruan Jie asked Ruan Xi, “Sister, are we really going to split the family?”

Yesterday, they were still one family, and now the serious talk of splitting up made it feel like they wouldn’t be a family anymore. After living together for over ten years, the sudden idea of splitting up was hard for her to accept.

Ruan Xi didn’t mind. As someone from the 21st century, she was more accustomed to small families with fewer people than large families with ten or more members. More people meant more issues, conflicts, and arguments, regardless of blood relations.

For people like Ruan Changgui and Sun Xiaohui, who only wanted to take advantage and couldn’t bear any loss, the sooner they split up, the better. Otherwise, once she mastered her skills, they would find ways to exploit her.

Once the family was split, everyone would live their own lives, and they couldn’t take advantage of her.

She said, “It seems so.”

Ruan Jie sighed, “But I don’t want to stay with Mom and Dad.”

Ruan Changgui and Sun Xiaohui didn’t treat her well. She was practically raised by Grandma Liu Xinghua, so Ruan Changgui and Sun Xiaohui focused all their attention on Ruan Yuejin and Ruan Yuehua. If they called her, it was always because they needed her to do something.

Ruan Xi said directly, “Then just say it.”

Ruan Jie hesitated, “Can I say that?”

Ruan Xi replied, “Why not? But if you stay with Grandpa and Grandma, don’t betray them. Remember, they raised you, so you should be good to them. Mom and Dad come after.”

Ruan Jie thought for a moment, “Then I’ll ask Grandma privately tomorrow.”

Ruan Xi didn’t dwell on these matters, turned to her side, closed her eyes, and soon fell asleep.

Going to bed early meant waking up early the next day. She got up, washed, did her hair, helped Liu Xinghua make breakfast, and washed dirty clothes with Ruan Jie. After breakfast, she didn’t stay home and headed straight to Jinguang Village with her backpack.

After everyone left, Ruan Jie asked Liu Xinghua, “Grandma, if we split the family, can I stay with you and Grandpa? I don’t want to stay with Mom and Dad. They only care about my big brother and little brother, not me.”

Liu Xinghua said, “Even if we split the family, we’ll still live together. It doesn’t matter who you stay with. If you stay with your parents, you’ll eat better.”

Ruan Jie shook her head decisively, “It’s not the same. Even if there’s good food, they won’t give it to me. It’s all for my big brother and little brother.”

Liu Xinghua turned to look at her, feeling tender towards her granddaughter, and said, “Well, it depends on your parents. If they agree, you can eat with us. But Grandma has to save money for your fifth uncle’s wedding, so we’ll be frugal.”

Ruan Jie smiled, “I’m not picky.”

Liu Xinghua, like a protective shield, said, “Then you can stay with Grandma.”

When Ruan Xi arrived at the tailor shop, full of energy, the old tailor was still having breakfast.

Ruan Xi greeted him, put down her backpack, picked up a broom, and started sweeping the floor.

The old tailor, blowing on his hot porridge, muttered to himself, “Quite diligent.”

He ate his breakfast leisurely, and by the time Ruan Xi had finished a quick cleaning, he had also finished his breakfast.

Still very diligent, Ruan Xi quickly helped him clean and wash the dishes.

Even the picky old tailor couldn’t find anything to criticize.

Ruan Xi noticed his subtle expressions and saw that he was quite satisfied with her. So, she dried her hands, stood before him, and asked with a smile, “How about now, Master? Can you teach me how to use the sewing machine?”

The old tailor cleared his throat twice, put his hands behind his back, and turned towards the main hall, “Follow me.”

Ruan Xi followed him to the sewing machine, watched him uncover the blue cloth on it, and sat down in front of it. She appeared eager to learn as if she knew nothing.

The old tailor cleared his throat again, “I’ll only teach you once. If you don’t learn, I won’t teach you a second time.”

Ruan Xi responded crisply, “Okay.”

Hearing this, the old tailor looked up at her in surprise and then slowly said, “Interesting.”

Ruan Xi’s eyes widened slightly—hey! This old man never has anything nice to say!

She pursed her lips and took a breath, looking at the old tailor, “Don’t underestimate me. I was born extremely smart, with a photographic memory. I’ll learn it in one go, and even if you want to teach me a second time, I won’t need it!”

The old tailor, never one to give compliments, said, “Blowing one’s own trumpet.”

Ruan Xi gritted her teeth, slightly raising her chin at the old tailor, “Enough talk, let’s get started.”

The old tailor, not one for many words, began teaching her from threading the needle without pausing for digestion or memory. He operated with his hands while giving brief explanations, refusing to elaborate.

“Thread the needle like this, pull the bottom thread through the needle hole with the top thread, align the two threads, place the fabric to be sewn, and lower the presser foot. Turn the wheel on the right while pressing the pedal with your foot, and the sewing machine will start. The wheel must turn forward, not backward, or the thread will break immediately.”

After teaching, he didn’t ask if Ruan Xi understood or remembered. He simply removed all the threads from the sewing machine, stood aside, and said, “Come on, you smart aleck.”

Ruan Xi: “…” So now she was a smart aleck?

She held her breath lightly, not arguing with the old tailor, and sat at the sewing machine. She picked up the thread, threaded the needle, easily pulled out the bottom thread, placed a piece of scrap fabric, lowered the presser foot, and sewed a straight line.

The old tailor initially showed little interest, expecting Ruan Xi to fail. But seeing her pull out the bottom thread and sew a straight line, his expression gradually froze, and he even squinted his eyes. He had taught many apprentices this way, and out of ten, three couldn’t remember how to thread the needle, five couldn’t pull out the bottom thread, nine broke the thread as soon as they pressed the pedal, and the remaining one couldn’t sew a straight line. He was impatient and had a bad temper, so he never successfully trained an apprentice. He couldn’t stand their clumsiness and had no patience for hand-holding, while they couldn’t stand his sharp tongue and eccentric personality. He wouldn’t teach properly and never had a kind word to say.

He thought Ruan Xi was like the previous apprentices, but to his surprise, she learned it in one go.

He looked at her with suspicion, “Have you learned this before?”

Ruan Xi straightened her back and met his gaze, her eyes sparkling with amusement, “Of course not. There’s only one tailor shop on Fengming Mountain, and you’re the only tailor with a sewing machine. Who could I have learned from?”

That made sense. Although there were over a dozen villages on Fengming Mountain, he was the only tailor.

His family had passed down the tailoring skills for generations, making a living from it even before the revolution, though they didn’t have an official shop. After the revolution, they formally established a tailor shop with the commune’s agreement. The shop was public, but he managed it alone since no one else knew how.

Seeing him silent, Ruan Xi smiled and asked, “So, am I smart?”

The old tailor snorted, “It’s just because I taught well.”

Ruan Xi smiled without saying anything.

The sun set behind the mountains, casting long shadows on the narrow path.

With their goal achieved, Ruan Changgui brought Sun Xiaohui home, saying as they climbed the mountain, “Mom and Dad agreed to split the family. Gao Wu is already building the stove today. Once the stove is done and we have the pots, bowls, tables, and benches, we’ll divide everything else equally and start cooking separately.”

Sun Xiaohui was very happy but said, “I’ve become the villain in your family. Who knows what your parents will say about me behind my back? Your mom has always disliked me, and now she’ll have even more reason to.”

Ruan Changgui didn’t care, “Just pretend you don’t see it.”

Then he remembered something and said, “By the way, Xiao Jie said she doesn’t want to stay with us. She wants to stay with her grandparents. Mom and Dad are okay with it. What do you think?”

Hearing this, Sun Xiaohui’s eyes lit up, “Isn’t that great? If Xiao Jie stays with them, that’s one less mouth for us to feed. Who wouldn’t want someone else to raise their daughter for free?”

Ruan Changgui said, “If you’re okay with it, let her stay with her grandparents.”

Sun Xiaohui smiled, “Of course, I’m okay with it. Xiao Jie is sensible and knows how to save us food. She’ll eat with her grandparents but still help us with chores. It’s perfect. When she gets married in a few years, we’ll easily get a dowry.”

Thinking of Ruan Xi, she added, “I heard your elder brother still wants to take Xiao Xi over. Why bother? She’s grown up now. Why not just arrange a marriage for her here? Or do they want to marry her to a cadre’s son? Would anyone from a cadre’s family want a country girl like Xiao Xi?”

Ruan Changgui understood her meaning and replied, “Even if they don’t take her, the dowry from Xiao Xi’s marriage won’t come to us. Mom raised her, so you can’t decide that.”

Sun Xiaohui said, “It’s all about effort. She grew up here, and with her parents not around, we, as her uncle and aunt, are like her parents. Why can’t we decide for her? But going to the military district? That’s only empty talk.”

Returning to the topic, she said, “As long as I can decide for Xiao Jie, that’s enough.”