Sangsang dug out the anime cards she'd found in the children's room and begged Lin Yi to play with her. She'd been dreaming of playing with those colorful cards for a long time. Everyone was too busy these days to play with her, and when Lin Yi had some free time, he was too busy studying to pay her any attention. Now that they were at night, Ningxia wouldn't let Lin Yi read, which was a good deal for her, fulfilling her dream of playing cards.

The brother and sister were having fun while Ningxia picked up the stuffed dolls and started mending them.

After filling Ningxia with cotton and then unpacking and sewing, the doll, unlike its original plump, three-dimensional, and delicate form, has become a thick, flat, and completely aesthetically pleasing doll. Its bright colors are a striking contrast, adding a touch of cuteness to the look.

"Xia Xia, what is this?" Sangsang frowned and picked up a piece of paper and looked at it again and again.

Ningxia saw her disgusted look and grabbed it: "What do you care about me? I just like sewing like this."

Sangsang giggled twice, and then fell on Lin Yi with a few laughs as if she couldn't control herself: "Hahahaha...Brother, look at Xia Xia's ugly baby! Hahaha...It's uglier than me!"

Lin Yi pushed Sangsang away, frowning.

Although Ningxia couldn't see where Lin Yi was ugly, she couldn't help but smile. She walked over and held Sangsang's face. "Laugh again? Laugh again!" She said while rubbing the soft flesh on her face. "I'll use this ugly doll to sew you a mask and let you wear it every day!"

Sangsang struggled to free herself from Ningxia while climbing onto Lin Yi. Lin Yi had no choice but to join the fray, and the three siblings began to clash.

"Okay, okay, stop making trouble!" Ningxia helped Sangsang up.

After a while, the three of them were sweating profusely again. Ningxia raised her hand to fan herself. It seemed that in this awful weather, she couldn't be too happy. After fetching more water to clean herself up, Sangsang and Lin Yi no longer needed Ningxia's supervision. They consciously picked up the kettle and gulped down several large gulps of salt water.

Once you get used to it, it's fine. Ningxia uses the refined salt she exchanged for in Xuanwuzhou, and it's not a lot, so it's quite thirst-quenching. There are two large kettles on the table now, one filled with patchouli water, the other with salt water. Whenever they run out, Lin Yi or Ningxia will fill them up immediately.

After figuring out his drinking pattern, Lin Yi and Sang Sang drank a large glass of patchouli water before bed and a large glass of salt water upon waking. Normally, he drank more chrysanthemum tea, so it was acceptable.

Calmness returned. Sangsang and Lin Yi were playing cards seriously without being disturbed. Ningxia's hands moved quickly and in a short while she had sewn more than ten dolls of different sizes.

Feeling bored, Ningxia put down her needle and thread, raised her sore neck and stretched it hard.

It was not until the brother and sister were tired from playing and lay down that the three of them realized how slowly time passed and how difficult it was to pass the late night.

After lying down for a while, Lin Yi went to the children's room to find the picture album that Ningxia had sorted out from the small room on the side.

"Why are you looking at this?" Ningxia took it and casually flipped through two pages. The drawings were exquisite and the details were clear. It was a work album left by the previous hostess. The styles of each piece of clothing were printed on it, which looked particularly beautiful.

"You want to learn to sew?"

Lin Yi nodded sheepishly. The characters in the books at home were too small, and Ningxia wouldn't let him study. Since he had nothing to do anyway, he might as well learn something.

Ningxia didn't laugh at him. Instead, she followed him through the pages and said, "You're starting out by learning how to make clothes? You should first learn how to mend those clothes with holes at home."

Lin Yi nodded in agreement. There were no entry-level books at home. They were all collections of works with very personal characteristics. They could only be used as references. If one really wanted to learn, he had to start little by little from the patchwork of daily life.

Ningxia was only a novice in this area, and only knew one needlework technique. She had learned the art of cutting garment pieces from someone she had consulted at the base, but everything else was learned by her own hands. The stitch marks on her garments were easily visible on the outside. But she didn't mind. As long as it fit her well and was strong, it was a good garment.

After finally waiting for six o'clock in the morning, the three siblings were already exhausted. They quickly ate the steamed buns that were still warm in the kitchen and fell asleep in a row. The scorching sun outside affected the temperature in the house, and the three of them tossed and turned frequently. After waking up from the heat, they were able to roll over to a cool place and close their eyes again.

Sleeping during the day, being active at night, bathing, sewing, and cooking became the three of them's regular routines. Life was both good and difficult, and it just passed one day at a time.

Remarkably, within just a month, Lin Yi had already mastered the art of sewing a suitable and aesthetically pleasing mask and gloves on his own. Ningxia had never made these before; he had come up with them all on his own. Following Ningxia's idea, he added a thick, waterproof layer of coarse cloth to the outside of the thin fabric. This way, once Lieyangyue left and went to the trading point to exchange some fur for the inside, Yanhanyue would have all the necessary equipment!

Ningxia was secretly happy. It would be great if the child was diligent. It would be even better if he was both diligent and eager to learn. She even secretly thought about exchanging some wool yarn and introductory crochet books for Lin Yi. Then he would have a scarf and a hat! She quietly kept this in mind.

Sangsang's doll cotton jacket took a month to complete. Ningxia felt that she would starve to death if she opened a tailor shop. It took her a month to make a piece of clothing.

However, this dress is indeed complicated. Ningxia started making clothes only after she had sewn about twenty dolls. She used the fabrics cut from several large rolls of coarse cloth in the side room and the pure cotton four-piece suit.

She sewed two layers of pure cotton lining, and the outer layer of the clothes was khaki coarse cloth. Sangsang didn't like this color, but Ningxia was very proud of it. This color is stain-resistant. For a child's clothes, apart from warmth, what is more important than stain resistance?

The cotton filling in the center is also tightly packed, and the cotton at the back and arms is pressed and sewn in grids, preventing it from leaking out. The cotton is plentiful, ensuring warmth. The front has relatively less cotton. Once Ningxia has sewn all the dolls together tightly, the garment is considered complete.

Sangsang no longer found the clothes' primary color tacky, nor the dolls' ugliness. Every night before bed, he would open his wardrobe to look at and touch them. The clothes were warm, lightweight, and unique. The brightly colored dolls, each the size of a plate, were sewn flatly onto the clothes, a real eye-catcher.

Not to mention Sangsang, even Lin Yi liked it a little. Ningxia was secretly proud of this, and her confidence soared. It was a pity that there were only a few dolls left, otherwise Lin Yi could have one too. But let's put these aside for now.

"Sister Xia Xia, what's wrong?" Lin Yi was standing by the river. After washing the dirty clothes he brought, he turned around and saw Ning Xia looking at the river with a serious expression.