After breakfast, the village party secretary’s wife and the brigade leader’s wife brought some fabric to Lin Shu, asking for help in making clothes.

The brigade leader’s son and the secretary’s youngest daughter were both about to have marriage meetings soon.

They had previously discussed this with Lin Shu and had taken their measurements, but they hadn’t found any fabric they liked until now.

The ordinary fabric at the supply and marketing cooperative didn’t meet their standards.

Recently, they had someone bring back some fabric from the city that they liked, so they came to Lin Shu for help in making the clothes.

Lin Shu charged everyone except her own family for making clothes.

For a simple summer outfit, she charged a friendly price of one yuan and fifty cents per set.

However, for outsiders like Zhang Sigu from the city, she charged at least one yuan and seventy cents per set, adjusting the price based on the complexity of the design.

Even Secretary Jing paid one yuan and eighty cents.

Winter, after the issuance of fabric ration tickets and dividends, was the peak time for people in the countryside to have clothes made.

Older folks could make do by sewing their own, but the younger generation, especially those preparing for marriage, cared more about appearance.

They believed that “clothes make the man, just as a saddle makes the horse,” so the clothes had to fit well and look good.

The clothes that Lin Shu’s family wore were like living advertisements, especially since they had dressed up yesterday, drawing a lot of attention.

In addition, people like Zhang Sigu and Secretary Jing, who had clothes made by Lin Shu, spread the word, attracting even more people to come to her.

Some city folks, who had tailors in the city, insisted on coming to Lin Shu instead.

In just a few days, Lin Shu had taken on orders for more than ten sets of clothes!

It was already late December, not far from the New Year.

Even with a sewing machine, it would take Lin Shu at least three days to make a set of clothes, and even with others helping with hemming, buttoning, and ironing, it would still take more than a month.

Working non-stop for a month just making clothes?

That was too exhausting and competitive!

Even the public tailors weren’t that diligent—they took four or five days, sometimes a week, to finish a set.

Lin Shu decided to be selective in accepting orders, taking on those referred by acquaintances and declining those who were simply following trends.

Some customers were in a hurry, so she let them go elsewhere.

For those who weren’t in a rush, she put them on a waiting list.

Some wealthy customers discreetly offered to pay extra for priority service, willing to pay two yuan instead of one yuan seventy.

That was something Lin Shu could consider.

However, she didn’t want to do all the work herself; she thought of asking Lu Xiuxiu to help.

Lin Shu could do the cutting while Lu Xiuxiu did the sewing, and they could split the money evenly.

Lu Xiuxiu had spent nearly two years learning from Tailor Guo at the commune.

Tailor Guo was over sixty years old, an old master from before the founding of the People’s Republic of China, specializing in making qipaos with very meticulous workmanship.

Lin Shu figured that, as his apprentice, Lu Xiuxiu must be quite skilled as well.

Lu Xiuxiu paid one yuan for tuition in the first year, five yuan in the second year, and in the third year, there was no tuition fee, but she had to continue helping Tailor Guo with his work.

Tailor Guo was the master craftsman at the commune’s tailoring shop.

Originally, there were two other tailors working there, but one left to work at a garment factory in the city through connections, and the other got married and moved away.

Instead of hiring new tailors, Tailor Guo decided to take on two apprentices.

Once these apprentices completed their training, they could work at the tailoring shop.

However, during the first three years, apprentices had to do odd jobs without any pay and even had to bring their own food.

Lin Shu discussed with Fang Dihua about asking Lu Da to find an excuse to bring Lu Xiuxiu back home for the New Year.

Fang Dihua was worried that Tailor Guo wouldn’t let her go, especially since the commune’s tailoring shop would be busy at the end of the year, and they would need Xiuxiu’s help.

But Sister Lu Da didn’t care and decided to give it a try anyway.

After all, her daughter had hardly been home all year; she should be allowed a two-month break at the end of the year.

In the end, Tailor Guo said that she could only take a break starting from the 20th of the lunar month.

Lu Da, after much pleading, mentioning how much Xiuxiu’s grandparents missed her, managed to get Tailor Guo to agree to let her off on the 15th of the lunar month.

When Lu Da returned, she complained, “It seems they’ve gotten too used to using her as free labor.”

Lin Shu could understand, saying, “That’s how it is with the old craftsmen. They’re afraid that once the apprentice learns everything, the master will be out of work. So, during the three-year apprenticeship, they squeeze every bit out of you and only teach the real skills at the last moment.”

Even though Lin Shu thought making clothes was simple and didn’t see what secret skills there could be.

In her past life, she relied entirely on her passion, buying books, experimenting, and teaching herself through videos.

She got better and better at it.

Later, she even went to a garment factory to learn from a pattern maker and found that her work was more refined than what the pattern makers in the factory could produce—it was on par with bespoke tailoring.

But nowadays, many people with some skill kept it hidden, and there were no books or videos for self-learning.

If the master didn’t explain the key points, the apprentice really couldn’t figure it out on their own.

As the lunar month progressed, the weather became freezing, but the villagers’ enthusiasm for preparing for the New Year was ignited.

They flocked to the market and the supply and marketing cooperative to buy New Year’s goods.

Getting new clothes was also a necessity.

Lin Shu was very busy, and since she charged money for making clothes, most villagers were too embarrassed to ask her to make anything.

After all, if they didn’t pay, it would seem like they were taking advantage of her, and if they did pay, they were a bit reluctant to spend the money.

One day, while Lin Shu was busy sewing, Lu Hehuan came over with fabric and money, asking her to make a nice outfit for Xu Shihua to wear for the New Year.

He had seen the brigade leader’s son wearing a new outfit and had commented, “The style is elegant, and the craftsmanship is meticulous. It’s just a shame that the person wearing it isn’t as impressive, wasting the clothes.”

Lin Shu flatly refused, saying, “I’m so busy. Where would I find the time to make it?”

“I can pay more! Others give one and a half, I’ll give two!”

Lin Shu looked up at her, pressing the edge of the fabric with an awl, smiling faintly. “Do you think I care about anyone’s money? Let me be frank, if it weren’t for you throwing yourself at him, I wouldn’t even spare him a glance, let alone make clothes for him.”

Lin Shu didn’t mind putting her sister-in-law down; she wanted to make it clear that the man her sister-in-law cherished was worthless to her, and she shouldn’t be so eager to throw herself at him.

After being suffocated by her mother-in-law before, Lin Shu, who held grudges, couldn’t resist getting her revenge.

Lu Hehuan was so upset by Lin Shu that she began to cry right on the spot.

Fang Dihua saw this and, finding it annoying, quickly drove her away.

It’s the New Year, why are you crying at your mother’s house?

Who are you trying to bother?

Feeling rejected by her own mother, Lu Hehuan returned home in tears and complained to Xu Shihua, wondering why both her mother and sister-in-law disliked her.

Instead of comforting her, Xu Shihua scolded her with a cold face, “Why did you ask her to make clothes for me? Are you brainless? Can’t you see that she despises me?”

“She clearly looks down on me, yet you still insist on asking her to make clothes? Are you doing this on purpose?”

Xu Shihua had previously suspected that Fang Dihua and Lin Shu were deliberately trying to demean and humiliate him by sending vegetables to his house, which had tormented him for some time.

After much reflection, he decided he shouldn’t give them the satisfaction!

They are ignorant women, no matter how capable or beautiful they are, they’re just… petty and small-minded.

He is an artist, a poet, above the mundane.

He only needs to look down upon them; he must never view them as equals, and certainly not look up to them!

That flame was toxic, and he couldn’t let it consume him.

He needed to ignore her, even if she was parading in front of him; he would never give her another look!

So, he made every effort not to mention her and never brought her up voluntarily. If Lin Shu came to his house, he would hide away.

Was he not supposed to be furious when Lu Hehuan asked her to make clothes for him?

Xu’s mother added sarcastically from the side, “Yaoyao, look, there’s a shameless person in the house.”

Lu Hehuan felt both aggrieved and angry, losing her appetite.

It was Xu Xiaoyou who comforted her, telling her not to be sad. “Auntie doesn’t like Dad, so Mom, you shouldn’t use his things to irritate Auntie.”

Lu Hehuan’s grievances poured out like the roaring Yellow River, unending and uncontrollable.

How could a man as noble as Xu Shihua be just another scoundrel?

Why does Sister-in-law dislike him so much?

Despite being busy, Lin Shu remained composed, and even found time to use pretty fabric scraps to make several hair accessories for Tiantian.

In these times, girls mostly used rubber bands to tie their hair, which could easily get tangled.

Lin Shu never used them for her daughter, Tiantian; instead, she preferred using red hair ribbons.

However, she discovered that wrapping three rubber bands with pretty fabric to make a fabric hair flower not only looked nice but was also practical.

She made about ten of these hair flowers in one go, allowing her daughter to wear different ones in various styles.

Tiantian, being a generous child, got Lin Shu’s permission and shared two of the hair flowers with Xu Xiaoyou, and gave one each to Hua Hua, Hong Hong, Juan Juan, and others.

Even Huzhi, a boy, was so envious that he insisted on having one too.

Now, everyone except for Panpan had a pretty hair flower to wear.

Typically, before the New Year, daughters could return to their parents’ homes for a few days, and then again during the first month of the lunar year.

In the countryside, people were busy with farm work all year round, and these were the only days when women could go back to visit their parents.

Fang Dihua never stopped her daughters-in-law from going back to their parents’ homes.

In addition to the gifts they prepared themselves, the family also added some extra items for them.

Each person got two ribs and a pickled radish.

Five bright red, oil-dripping salted duck eggs, along with ten regular eggs.

The radishes and salted duck eggs were Lin Shu’s contribution.

The eggs were from Old Lu, her father-in-law.

Of course, what Lin Shu took when she visited her parents wasn’t included in this.

Fang Dihua let her take whatever she wanted.

Besides the ribs, Lin Shu was given some meat, and she could also take radishes, pickled cucumbers, fermented tofu, salted duck eggs, pickles, spicy cabbage—whatever she liked.

After all, her daughter-in-law and the children, Tiantian and Panpan, needed to eat well during their stay.

Lu Da rarely stayed overnight at her parents’ home because her mother was busy weaving cloth and didn’t have time to take care of her.

When she did visit, she had to eat there, and her large appetite often annoyed her sister-in-law and brother’s wife.

So she preferred to stay at her own home, where she could still do some work in the team and earn labor points.

Lu Ping and Lu An also didn’t like visiting their maternal grandmother’s house.

Although their grandmother was kind, her meals were meager, and she was too frugal with food.

They felt they would be hungry there.

Lu Er didn’t want to go back either because she hadn’t made shoes for her brother’s wife, and to be honest, she didn’t want to.