Chapter 24 Making a Menstrual Belt

After changing her menstrual pad, Jiang Zhi sighed softly, planning to rest for a while and make some more menstrual pads this morning to prepare for use after the unbearable abdominal pain subsided.

As she rested, she couldn't help but doze off in the sunlight on the bamboo chair.

Pei Ye, who had just finished eating his porridge and washed the two dishes, came out of the kitchen on the other side.

I happened to witness this scene.

The bamboo chair the girl sat on was positioned where light and shadow intersected. Sunlight fell, illuminating the girl's delicate yet slightly spirited features in a half-light, half-shadowed light.

Her eyes were lowered, she was probably asleep, and her expression was unusually tired. Her slender fingertips gently pressed on the armrest of the bamboo chair, and it seemed as if a breeze blew by, causing it to tremble slightly.

Pei Ye, who was not far away, was slightly stunned.

When he finally realized what was happening, he coughed twice, even though no one was around, to cover up his embarrassment and slight shyness.

He put down the bowl on the ground, then went over and gently adjusted the chair for the little girl who was already fast asleep. Then, he bent down and lifted the chair and the little girl together, so that her whole body could be exposed to the sunlight.

When Pei Ye saw Jiang Zhi's slightly relaxed fingertips, he subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

He went back inside and tidied up the pots and pans he had left behind, and even diligently gave the whole house a light cleaning.

*

When Jiang Zhi woke up again, the sun had already risen high, and the sunlight already carried a slightly scorching heat.

She touched her arm, which had just been exposed to the sunlight and was now slightly warm, and then looked at the bamboo chair that had obviously been moved.

My lips twitched involuntarily:

That guy, his intentions were good after all.

But please don't go next time, please!

Although she was so tired that she set up a bamboo chair and lay down outside, she wasn't truly brainless.

The spot she had chosen to place the bamboo chair would be shaded by the trees once the sun rose, preventing her from getting too hot from the sunlight.

Instead of facing the heatwave head-on like we are now!

Nevertheless, she was still somewhat relieved!

However, the thought of going to look at houses later made her feel a little guilty, and of course, there was also a little bit of nostalgia that she herself was unaware of flowing through her heart.

*

By the time Jiang Zhi arrived at the brokerage, the sun had already quietly risen to the middle of the mountain.

As expected, the young lady from the brokerage firm we chatted about yesterday has been waiting for her for quite some time!

When she arrived, he still maintained a smiling demeanor!

The two chatted and laughed as they arrived at the house that Jiang Zhi had chosen the day before.

The house is indeed in a good location, facing north, and right next to the night market. Although it might be a bit noisy at night, Jiang Zhi doesn't like to go to bed early, so she's not too afraid.

Jiang Zhi asked about the price and found that it was actually lower than the price she had expected, so she simply bargained a little and bought it from the landlord who was eager to make some money.

The young woman from the brokerage firm was overjoyed, after all, selling a house listed with them not only gave them a good reputation, but they also got a commission!

*

But after paying the money and registering at the government office, when everyone was happy, Jiang Zhi realized a problem.

She scratched her head, feeling slightly guilty, realizing she was getting a little out of control.

Now, how should she deal with Pei Ye's anger, who had previously lowered the price for her and only allowed her to rent for one month?

*

Forget it, we'll deal with it when the time comes.

Seeing that this matter seemed impossible to resolve, Jiang Zhi simply rested her hands idly on her hair, automatically putting this troublesome matter out of her mind, and continued walking back happily.

As for the matter of secretly packing up and moving his things to the other house after returning home and finding Pei Ye wasn't there, let's leave that aside for now.

*

This matter is now concluded.

This body was probably stronger than the original one, and Jiang Zhi started taking good care of herself as soon as she found out she had started menstruating.

This is a far cry from the state of mind I had in my previous life when I was single-mindedly focused on my career.

After buying the house, Jiang Zhi surprisingly felt that she still had some energy.

They first laid the prepared dried fish outside to dry in the bright sunshine until it was crisp and dry.

With the rest of her time, she simply started making menstrual belts by hand again.

As she did it, she increasingly missed modern sanitary napkins and overnight pants. You really don't know until you compare them; once you do, you realize...

If you travel to ancient times, putting everything else aside, the quality of life is really something else. If you want to improve it, you have to do it all yourself!

Making menstrual belts wasn't too difficult, and since there were no factories in ancient times to process such things, it all depended on the women of the people creating them themselves.

The working class is more simple and honest. They sew a little bit of highly absorbent plant powder into the bag, and then unseal it with coarse cotton cloth, focusing on low cost.

Then, slightly wealthier families would use fine cotton cloth to improve comfort, and the outer material would be gradually changed to plain-colored fine cloth.

More affluent families would use materials like silk or soft fabrics to further enhance comfort, and their branding would be similar to that of modern sanitary napkins, emphasizing "light as if it were nothing".

As for the menstrual belt that Jiang Zhi plans to make, she intends to make some slight modifications based on modern knowledge.

On her way back from renting a room earlier, Jiang Zhi passed by a cloth shop and took the opportunity to buy some fine cotton cloth and hemp cloth produced in Jiangnan.

But unlike the fabrics normally displayed in the fabric shop, Jiang Zhi made sure the shop owner did some special treatment for her.

The productivity of this dynasty was similar to that of the Song dynasty, and naturally, it also possessed techniques such as pounding cloth for processing fabrics.

That's right, it's the same "washing clothes" from the poem "A moon shines over Chang'an, and ten thousand households pound clothes."

Jiang Zhi also paid extra money to have the cloth shop owner soak the clothes in warm water and repeatedly pound the cloth with a washing mallet to soften the two pieces of cloth.

Then, taking advantage of this time, Jiang Zhi went to the market again and bought some dried rush pith.

If it were someone else who traveled through time, they might ask, "What is a rush?"

Jiang Zhi knew very well that this stuff was a common filler in ancient times. It had strong absorbency and was not easy to clump together. Jiang Zhi planned to mix it into the wood ash bag to help it fluff up.

After the fabric shopkeeper finished washing the clothes, Jiang Zhi bought a slightly thicker piece of fine linen from her, intending to sew it onto the outside later.

As for how to prevent menstrual flow from being leaked?

Although Jiang Zhiren was in a somewhat weak state at this time, she still smiled quietly.

She has her own clever tricks:

Simply apply a tiny bit of wax oil to it later. Just a thin layer is enough to prevent it from becoming airtight, which will directly reduce the probability of leakage.

*

After completing these simple but tedious steps one by one, Jiang Zhi began to sew patiently.

She's always learned a little bit of everything, but isn't particularly skilled at anything. Therefore, her needlework is just so-so...

There was nothing she could do; this would be considered an intangible cultural heritage technique in modern times. She searched for a long time but only found the basics.

However, although Jiang Zhi's hands aren't very nimble, she's quick-witted!

While sewing, she fiddled around and actually managed to make the menstrual belt detachable, so that the plant ash powder could be easily replaced. This was much better than what was available on the market!

*

After finishing the initial steps, Jiang Zhi hung the clothes in the backyard, intending to air them out before wearing them.

The needlework was giving Jiang Zhi a splitting headache, and her eyelids were so tired she wanted to just close them.

She simply filled a basin with water that had been sitting outside and was already slightly warm, washed her face thoroughly, and then stretched.

For lunch today, let's keep it simple and have some wontons!

Thinking this, she went to the butcher shop as usual to buy some meat to mince.

The boss recognized her immediately. As soon as the young woman entered, he waved his hand and the knife stuck stiffly into the nail board.

He laughed:

"Oh, young lady, you come here to buy so much every day, what would you like to buy today?"

"Brother Zhang, chop that piece of meat into minced meat for me. I'd like to make some wontons with it later!"

Jiang Zhi handed over the money with a smile, while pointing to a piece of meat that she had just been eyeing.

The meat was just right, eight parts lean and two parts fat, so it wouldn't be too dry or too oily when used for mincing. Then, add a spoonful of soy sauce and pour hot broth over it, and the flavor would be amazing…

Although Jiang Zhi was still standing at the butcher shop buying meat, she had already imagined the scene of eating it.

The butcher's man beamed with delight when he saw the slightly extra copper coins.

He became more attentive with his hands, cutting the meat much more finely.

After Jiang Zhi got the minced meat, she found an old man at the market who sold her vegetables at low prices and bought some cabbage, which is the kind of cabbage with a core that grows inside. She also bought three or five eggs there.

Jiang Zhi didn't plan to make those bubble wontons that were popular online in her previous life. Those things are delicious and look good, but they're not filling. If she wanted something filling, she preferred the kind of large wontons with thin skin and lots of filling.

Jiang Zhi planned to make wontons this time, which consisted of cabbage, eggs, and meat filling.

Although many people think of pure meat filling when they hear the name "wonton", Jiang Zhi can confidently guarantee that her filling is absolutely delicious!

As soon as she got home, Jiang Zhi started washing her hands and preparing the vegetables. She chopped the cabbage in half, as she didn't need that much for the time being.

Then peel off the leaves one by one and wash them carefully in running water.

During this time, Jiang Zhi also encountered a little surprise:

When Jiang Zhi broke open a cabbage leaf, inside the cabbage core, a bright green worm raised its head and looked right into her eyes.

Her lips twitched, and with a quick squeeze of her hands, she tossed the insect outside.

Of course! As a chef, she's dealt with far too many of these little Easter eggs!

After washing all the cabbage leaves clean, she scooped up the still-wet cabbage with both hands and placed it on the nail board. Then, holding a knife in both hands, she quickly chopped the cabbage into small pieces.

In this way, the dishes are initially prepared!

All that's left is to stir-fry the filling!

That's right. In Jiang Zhi's opinion, many people's wontons and dumplings just don't taste as good as those in restaurants. That's mostly because the filling isn't cooked properly!

Moreover, the preparation of the filling is quite particular.

Jiang Zhi first greased the pan with lard.

Then she cracked the eggs one by one into the pot, and they immediately started frying. Jiang Zhi quickly covered the pot with the lid, and with a forceful flip, she turned the slightly set eggs over completely.

Flip it a couple of times like this, and the oil inside will stop frying immediately.

Jiang Zhi opened the pot lid, and the aroma of oily eggs wafted out instantly.

At this moment, Jiang Zhi quickly and skillfully broke up the slightly formed egg with the spatula. The yolk immediately overflowed from the egg. After a few more quick flips and stirs, the egg pieces immediately took on a golden-brown appearance.