Chapter 24: Getting Along

Basic tasks like washing and mending clothes, cutting and sewing a garment from a regular piece of fabric, stitching soles, or cutting shoe uppers—any woman in Beiguan Village could do them with ease.

But turning one or two old garments into a new-looking outfit, or embroidering over holes to disguise a patch, or even using silk thread to embroider beautiful patterns on quality fabric…

That sort of craftsmanship far exceeded the abilities of the average village woman.

When Xia Daohua found out that Jiang-shi possessed such skill, she was overjoyed.

After thinking hard for a while, she finally remembered—when the original Xia Daohua was still very young and Linghua hadn’t yet been born, Jiang-shi often did embroidery work, such as shoe tops, handkerchiefs, and pouches, which she sold to embroidery shops in town.

But the money she earned always had to be turned in to the communal family fund, while Jiang-shi herself had to supply the fabric and threads. Over time, she became increasingly frustrated and gradually stopped.

After Linghua was born, Jiang-shi became even busier with the children and housework and simply had no time to return to it.

Now that the family was separated, it was finally time for Jiang-shi’s embroidery work to resume.

Xia Daohua delightedly came up with several plans.

Food, wine, game, herbs, embroidery—there were quite a few directions to make money…

Of course, all her current ideas were still fairly rough. To make more detailed plans, she’d have to wait for feedback from the market!

Just as she was deep in thought, her ear was suddenly yanked painfully. Lihua’s voice nearly pierced her eardrums:
“Daohua, I’ve been explaining for ages. What were you thinking about? You’re about to drool on your own shoes!”

Daohua quickly wiped her mouth. Tch, Lihua was always trying to scare her! Her lips were perfectly dry—what drool?

“Still not convinced, huh?”

As she spoke, Lihua gave Daohua’s ear another twist.

Though she hadn’t used much strength, it still hurt. Xia Daohua quickly pleaded,
“Okay, okay! I’m wrong, I admit it! I won’t do it again!”

Lihua let go.
“You think I’m bored enough to tease you for fun? Teaching you how to cut and sew is a real skill! It’ll be useful when you grow up!”

Xia Daohua nodded earnestly,
“You’re right, Sis. It was my mistake. I’ll study hard from now on.”

Truthfully, Xia Daohua had no particular talent for making clothes.

But clothing in this era didn’t require three-dimensional tailoring or precise pattern-making.

Especially for farming families making clothes for their own use, there was no need to worry about accentuating figures or hiding flaws.

Both cutting and sewing were much simpler than in modern times.

The main issue was that Xia Daohua had never done any needlework before.

As soon as she picked up a needle, her inexperience would be obvious.

Luckily, it was still the first month of the lunar year, and needlework was traditionally avoided during this period.

Seeing that Daohua had sincerely admitted her mistake but still looked miserable, Lihua lost her enthusiasm for teaching. With a few quick motions, she folded Jiang-shi’s summer shirt and put it back into the chest.

“You’re just lazy! You’ll suffer later!”

Wulang leaned close to Daohua’s ear and whispered,
“Don’t worry, Daohua. I memorized everything Sis said. I’ll teach it to you again later.”

That gentle reassurance touched Daohua—and amused her.

Becoming a crafting expert or mastering traditional women’s work had never been part of her original plan. But for the sake of this warm-hearted new family, she was willing to change.

Later, Xia Daohua found Lihua again, sincerely apologizing and promising to work hard to learn everything Lihua taught her.

Lihua touched the half-inch fuzz on Daohua’s head and sighed softly. Her earlier impatience eased.

“You’re still just a kid.”

She pulled Daohua into her arms and gently patted her back.

“Sis knows you’ve forgotten a lot. Maybe even how to hold a needle. It’s okay. We’ll learn one thing at a time, slowly. It’s still the first month—no scissors or needles allowed anyway. No point rushing it.”

That last sentence—it was unclear whether she was comforting Daohua or herself.

With Lihua slowing the pace, Daohua’s learning became much easier.

She quickly “relearned” the different garments worn by commoners and the names of each part. She also picked up a little knowledge about fabrics and color choices.

Life in the Xia family’s fourth branch was peaceful and warm.

After observing for several days, Xia Daohua discovered that her parents’ relationship, though seemingly calm on the surface, actually had a sweet undercurrent.

Xia Youtian always appeared honest and slow-witted in front of outsiders. But when alone with Jiang-shi, his words flowed easily and affectionately.

This surprised Daohua quite a bit.

Jiang-shi was gentle, kind, and valued etiquette—particularly concerned about appearances. She didn’t want to be laughed at by outsiders. But that didn’t mean she’d sacrifice her family’s well-being just to save face.

The more time Daohua spent with this household, the more she saw their individual charms. Perhaps the bond of blood between her new body and this family was affecting her too.

The fourth branch of the Xia family lived in harmony—but the other households weren’t as fortunate.

The first branch hadn’t brought any servants home, so Liu-shi had to personally care for everyone.

She could’ve made Jin Hua and Yin Hua help out, but both she and Xia Youcai were focused on finding a wealthy husband for Jin Hua.

Except for embroidery, they didn’t let her lift a finger—afraid rough hands would ruin her beauty.

As for Yin Hua, she was still young, a bit dim-witted, and completely lacking in awareness. She was like an abacus bead—only moved when pushed.

Even if Liu-shi were willing to let her work, there wasn’t much she could do.

Having grown used to a pampered life in town, Liu-shi was clearly unhappy with her current situation. After several days of tending to the whole family, she grew increasingly irritable.

She might have tried to exert her authority as a mother-in-law and ordered her daughter-in-law Zhu-shi around.

But that wouldn’t work—Zhu-shi was heavily pregnant, waddling as she walked, looking like she could topple at any moment. Who would dare ask her to work?

In this bitterly cold winter, the ground was hard and slippery. If Zhu-shi fell and harmed the precious grandchild inside her, the loss would be too great!

So Liu-shi stewed in silent frustration, her tone growing sharper and her actions more aggressive.

Xia Youcai snored loudly on the heated bed, unaffected by any of Liu-shi’s banging and clattering.

Xia Dalang, annoyed, took a book and left the house.

(End of Chapter)