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Trying to cut a bamboo strip, Jiang Mixia inspected its thickness and shook her head, “Still too thick.”
“Should we tighten the blade further?” Song Jingyun asked. “By how much?”
“Let’s try tightening it halfway for now,” Jiang Mixia replied. At this point, she was uncertain about the exact thickness she needed, so she was experimenting.
After adjusting the blade’s thickness, she cut another strip and assessed its thickness. Feeling it was still not quite right, she continued to adjust the blade…
After three or four adjustments, Jiang Mixia finally achieved the desired thickness for the bamboo strip. “I think this should be about right,” she said, proceeding to cut more strips of this thinness.
“Will things made from such thin bamboo strips be too fragile? They might not hold much,” Song Jingyun questioned, concerned about the durability of such delicate material.
“Those are not for making baskets,” Jiang Mixia replied.
“If not for baskets, then what are they for?”
“For making fans.”
“Fans?”
“Yes, that’s right. I plan to make thin and lightweight fans from these bamboo strips,” Jiang Mixia explained, gesturing. “You should give it a try and see if you can make one.”
“Alright.” Song Jingyun took the bamboo strip and, using the simplest weaving pattern, crafted an oval-shaped fan.
After finishing, he showed it to Jiang Mixia. “Like this?”
“Yes,” Jiang Mixia took the fan and fanned herself. At first she nodded, “Much lighter and more comfortable than the palm leaf fan.”
However, she then frowned, “But it’s still not light enough. The bamboo strips need to be thinner.”
While making baskets from thinner strips would be unfeasible, it was achievable when making fans.
Song Jingyun understood Jiang Mixia’s intention and assisted in adjusting the bamboo strip cutting knife.
After some tweaking, they finally produced bamboo strips that could be described as thin as a cicada’s wings. Using these, Song Jingyun crafted a fan that was extremely lightweight yet sufficiently sturdy, providing ample airflow.
“This is perfect,” Jiang Mixia said, shaking the fan in her hand, increasingly satisfied. “It’s lightweight and easy to hold, and it looks much more delicate than a palm leaf fan.”
Seeing Jiang Mixia holding the newly crafted bamboo fan, the apprentices in the workshop gathered around to see and try it out.
“It’s really light and easy to handle.”
“It looks good, much more exquisite than those heavy bamboo fans. It seems like a great product.”
“With the increasing heat, if we sell these fans, they’ll probably sell well.”
“Moreover, the weaving process is simple. It’s just that cutting the bamboo strips thin enough is a bit challenging.”
“No problem. Our bamboo strip cutting knife ensures a consistent thickness for the strips we cut.”
As they discussed, even those who had finished their work for the day tried their hand at weaving the fans.
The process was simple and easy to grasp, and the finishing was straightforward.
Overall, the feedback was positive.
Jiang Mixia had the workers produce a few fans in preparation for a trip to the county town, planning to present some samples to Zheng’s shop, and also preparing some to offer to Zhao’s shop and the tea garden as a token of appreciation.
The workshop once again bustled with activity.
Taking advantage of the post-dinner lull, Song Jingyun wove a bamboo mat for Jiang Mixia.
Even though his wife had slept well while holding him last night, he could tell she was very warm.
For the sake of her peaceful sleep…
Just endure it!
Song Jingyun sniffed and, upon lying down, turned his back to her.
When Jiang Mixia received the new bamboo mat that night, she didn’t think much about it. She hugged the mat happily, fanning herself with the new bamboo fan. In her mind, she planned how many of these fans she should make. For the upcoming trip to the county town and Zheng’s shop, she needed to figure out how much merchandise to bring.
By the time she had a rough idea, it was already late at night.
Yawning, Jiang Mixia closed her eyes to sleep.
However, it seemed that her husband was drowsily nudging closer to her side.
Jiang Mixia, “…”
She turned over, preparing to push her husband away.
Unexpectedly, as she turned her head, she coincidentally met her husband’s drowsy head inching closer to hers.
“Thud…”
Jiang Mixia’s lips touched Song Jingyun’s cheek.
Her husband’s skin had always been good, fair, and delicate, with a smooth and pleasant touch.
Moreover, with such tender cheeks and those lips…
Her husband had rosy lips and white teeth. On a summer night, with faster blood circulation, his lip color appeared even more pink and fresh, like plump cherries.
It was… oddly alluring.
Jiang Mixia thought of leaning down to reach for it.
But then she hesitated.
She was over forty years old in total, and now she was contemplating making a move on this young man. Would that be too much of an age gap?
The thought made her feel like a rogue!
But then again, Song Jingyun had mentioned that he was already an adult in the Interstellar, nearly a hundred years old. Adding his Earth age, he was essentially a centenarian!
Her son-in-law was the “old ox” in this scenario!
Moreover, her husband’s “tofu” could only be consumed by her, his wife, right?
Jiang Mixia made up her mind and leaned down.
She successfully tasted the cherry.
Tender, smooth, with a hint of sweetness…
Mmm, it tasted exquisite.
After savoring the moment, Jiang Mixia pushed Song Jingyun to the side and hugged the bamboo mat to continue sleeping.
The next morning, when Jiang Mixia opened her eyes, she saw that Song Jingyun was already awake.
He was sitting on the bed, touching his lips, lost in thought.
“Um… What’s wrong?” Jiang Mixia felt a bit guilty.
“I had a strange dream last night,” Song Jingyun’s face contorted into a frown, “I dreamt that a pig was chasing me. I ran as fast as I could, but the pig caught up with me in the end.”
“I was trembling with fear, worried the pig would trample me, but instead, it just nibbled at my face, even my lips. I tried to scream, but no sound came out. When the pig stopped, I woke up…”
“Wife, could that dream be real? Could I have really been bitten by a pig last night?”
Waking up with slightly swollen lips, Song Jingyun felt as if the dream had truly happened, leaving him deeply concerned.
Jiang Mixia, “…”
“You’re the pig, your whole family are pigs!”
Wait, Song Jingyun’s family now consists of her and her parents.
You, Song Jingyun, are the pig!
Jiang Mixia’s face contorted, but she still had to comfort Song Jingyun with a smile, “It’s just a dream. Look, you are sleeping soundly in bed. It couldn’t be true.”
“Besides, this dream is the opposite…”
Upon hearing this, Song Jingyun’s expression grew even more troubled.
Was his wife implying that he might end up chasing a pig and then bite it?
How terrifying is that?
Because of this dream, Song Jingyun refused to go to the backyard where there were many pigs today, and even chose to walk around the yard.
Life is tough…