Chapter 6 Replacing Sacks with Rice

It's been drizzling these past few days. Although Lin Xiushui hasn't set up her stall, she's taken on some odd sewing jobs, mostly with people in the alley who are acquaintances of Wang Yuelan.

Most of them sew hairbands for children, repair shoe uppers, or mend quilts.

But I took on other jobs this morning.

It's really strange. The patrolman came to call her early this morning, "Young Lady Lin,"

Upon seeing him, Lin Xiushui immediately said, "Here's the money. I have no intention of going back on my word."

Li Sanlang, the patrolman, chuckled. “I’ve brought you business. Grab your needles and thread and come with me quickly. I won’t charge you for today.”

"Li Xunlan, what work do you need to do? Are you quick?" Lin Xiushui quickly packed her things, stuffing the needles, thread and fabric scraps into a small bamboo basket. "I need to wait for someone to bring me clothes later."

She couldn't refuse to patrol the fence, fearing that people would make things difficult for her.

Li Sanlang explained to her, "Just past the bridge, a rice cart overturned, and the burlap sacks are torn quite a bit. See if you can mend them."

Actually, it was too early at this time. The shops selling linen in the southern goods market hadn't opened yet, and there were no bags to be found. The rice was scattered all over the ground. This bridge was also the only way to the chicken and duck market, and every day people would get up early to drive hundreds of chickens and ducks over.

At this moment, they were blocked by the rice shop people, and the chicken and duck shop people were cursing. A group of chickens and ducks were running around and jumping, and some ducks even went into the river. People chased the ducks and fled, and the scene was chaotic for a while.

"Hurry up, hurry up and replenish the bags, the price is negotiable," Li Sanlang said hurriedly, then went up to scold those who were trying to break up the fight, and told those who were just there for the fun or those who had set up stalls to make way.

The rice was scattered all over the ground, and some rice shop workers were cleaning it up, cursing as they swept. Lin Xiushui went over and shouted, "Hey, you sack menders, bring out the sacks that need mending."

She didn't want to step on the rice paddies; having worked in the fields and relied on the weather for her livelihood, she couldn't bear to do that.

The rice shopkeeper delivered five burlap sacks, all of which had two large rips and some even had holes. The shopkeeper spoke politely, "Please trouble you, young lady, to mend them quickly."

This bag is particularly easy to mend, and doesn't require any special skills. Lin Xiushui threaded the needle, picked up the bag, and began to sew. She didn't hesitate at all when she put the needle in, and the stitches were very fine.

She even had time to ask the rice shop assistant, "Are you going to sell this rice that's covered in dust?"

“I’m not selling it,” the shopkeeper said. “I’ll send chickens and ducks as an apology.”

Lin Xiushui said "Oh", then paused and said, "I'll charge two coins for each burlap sack, which is ten coins. You can sell me the rice from your fields at a discounted price for those ten coins."

She didn't mind that the rice was dusty; she just sifted it a few more times with a rice sieve. Anyway, no matter how bad the rice was, it couldn't be worse than Champa rice.

After listening, the shopkeeper glanced at her several times, remained silent for a while, and then said, "That's fine then. I won't charge you by price; I'll give you half a bag."

Lin Xiushui nodded repeatedly. She quickly finished sewing the burlap sack and watched them pour the rice into it.

Seeing that the patched sack didn't leak at all and the patch was neat and tidy, the worker figured it would be fine to use again next time, so he filled it with more rice, making it half full.

"This is the finest rice, so sift it several times."

Lin Xiushui was also polite, saying that if there were any problems with the stitching of the burlap sack, she could just go to the old mulberry tree to find her.

She half-pulled, half-dragged the rice bag; it was really heavy, but no matter how heavy it was, she could carry it back.

When she left, Lin Xiushui thanked Li Sanlang and gave him the two coins she had earned from selling her stall, saying, "This is my business, I can't let you, Li Xunlan, have a hard time."

"I'm hoping you can bring me some other chores next time."

Li Sanlang was a little stunned. He didn't refuse, but simply said, "Okay, I'll ask you for help again next time I have other jobs."

After Lin Xiushui returned and put away the rice bag, Wang Yuelan opened the back door and fetched water from the river with a wooden bucket. Seeing that Lin Xiushui was panting heavily, she asked in confusion, "What did you buy?"

"I went to the rice shop to get a replacement sack. They didn't charge me, and I got some spilled rice in return," Lin Xiushui patted the sack. "There's a lot of dust, but I can just sift it out. It'll last us for a while."

“This is seven or eight liters,” Wang Yuelan said, lifting the rice and immediately estimating its volume. She then grabbed a handful of rice and, seeing that it was medium-colored white rice, couldn’t hide her delight.

Wang Yuelan laughed and said, "You've really gotten a good deal. Right now, a dou of old rice costs eighty wen, and a dou of white rice costs one hundred and twenty wen."

"It doesn't matter if it's covered in dust and sand. Let me sift it a bit more, and I'll cook you some rice tomorrow."

Lin Xiushui was about to say something when someone called her from outside. She quickly went out and saw that it was Zhang Niangzi, whom she had mentioned yesterday, who lived on the back street.

"That explains why there's no one in front of us," Zhang Niangzi said to Lin Xiushui, calling her Xiushui affectionately. "Do you think this can be fixed?"

Lin Xiushui took it; it was a long, flat pillowcase, silver-red in color. It had originally been dyed from white ramie cloth, but the pillowcase was tattered and the silk lining was showing through.

How would you like to get it fixed?

Madam Zhang quickly said, "It would be best to repair it to its original condition. This is the one my youngest daughter uses. She sleeps on it every day, and she won't accept a different one. I've repaired it before, but she cried and made a fuss, insisting on having the same one."

Lin Xiushui examined the pillowcase closely for a while, pinched the corners, and said, "It's not easy to mend. This fabric is very brittle. Even if you patch it, it will break in a few days."

"When you buy it, do you have any fabric of the same color? If so, take it apart and get a new one."

Madam Zhang sighed, "We have this cloth, but she only accepts this one. Even if we change it to the same cloth, she still won't accept it."

Lin Xiushui picked it up and smelled it. It had a smell that was both foul and fragrant. Moreover, the pillowcase was flattened and it wouldn't be comfortable to sleep on, probably because of the smell.

She suggested, "Let the original fabric and this pillowcase sit together for a few days, until they smell alike, then cut them and see how it goes."

"Will this work?" Zhang Niangzi was a little skeptical. She had originally thought that Lin Xiushui, who worked in a tailor shop, must have some skills, based on Wang Yuelan's praise.

Hearing this, she was half-believing and half-doubting, but since the other party hadn't taken any money from her, she could only laugh awkwardly and leave, preparing to go back and try it out.

After she left, the rice shop owner who had asked her to change the door curtain into a tablecloth also came. The door curtain was indeed wide.

Lin Xiushui refused. She didn't have a long wooden table or large scissors, and she needed a gray thread and a long wooden ruler to mark the lines before she could cut. If she tried to cut it by force, it would be crooked, and she couldn't do anything about it.

Lin Xiushui wasn't bothered by the two tricky cases in a row. She believed that one should take things one step at a time.

Before Wang Yuelan went to the dye shop, she woke up Xiao He and asked her to go and call out to the vendors.

Lin Xiushui couldn't bear to part with it, so she combed Xiaohe's hair in front of the stall and tied it into a three-bun hairstyle, saying as she did so, "When your older sister finds some nice fabric, I'll make you lots of hair ornaments."

Right now, Xiaohe is still wearing the red thread that Lin Xiushui made.

"I don't want any hair accessories," Xiaohe said earnestly, "I'll give you some money instead."

"It would be best if some money rained down, all for you, sister."

Lin Xiushui had nothing to say; Xiaohe was as pragmatic as her mother.

But she also felt that Xiaohe was not doing well, fearing that she might be lured away by money or sweets.

She asked, "Dabao, if a stranger on the street offers you a coin, would you take it?"

“No,” Xiaohe replied seriously, “I don’t know what a real copper coin is.”

Undeterred, Lin Xiushui continued, "What if someone gives you candy?"

How much?

Just one.

Xiaohe stretched out her hand and asked, "Is there anything else?"

Give me two more.

Xiaohe calculated the accounts clearly: "One yuan for my older sister, one yuan for my mother, and one yuan for me."

Lin Xiushui was amused that she hadn't suffered any loss, but then pretended to be serious: "If you eat the candy, you'll be sold to another place and never see your elder sister and mother again."

Xiaohe frowned, sighed softly, and shrugged, "Well, I guess I'll still need the money."

"Money can buy candy."

Lin Xiushui covered her face, "You just want some candy, don't you?"

"I'll take you to buy it later, secretly, don't tell your mother." Xiaohe whispered back, "Then I'll eat it secretly."

A few more people came, and Xiaohe called out to them one by one: "Grandma, do you need your pants sewn?" "Auntie, do you need your clothes mended? My sister is very skilled at it."

She actually managed to bring two people over: one wanted to mend his trousers, and the other wanted to sew a handkerchief. She sewed very quickly, earning five coins, and even gave one coin to Xiaohe to buy her candy.

At noon, Lin Xiushui cooked rice, washed the rice and put it in the pot to steam. When Wang Yuelan hurriedly returned, the chives were already stir-fried. She casually asked as she entered the door, "What do you want to eat?"

Xiaohe was rummaging through candy wrappers by the door when she heard this. She quickly hid herself, inadvertently admitting, "I didn't eat any candy."

“Ah Qiao,” Wang Yuelan glared at Lin Xiushui.

Lin Xiushui wanted to cover her ears. This little brat, she didn't even learn from her. Back when her mother was alive, she stole a candy bun and smeared it all over her mouth, but she wouldn't admit it.

Wang Yuelan didn't bother arguing with the two of them; she had something else to say to Lin Xiushui: "This afternoon, you and Xiaohe will come with me to the dye shop."

“You made those oilcloth gloves yesterday, didn’t you? I took them with me this morning, and the other ladies thought they were pretty good and wanted to make a pair too. I don’t know much about them, so why don’t you come and take a look with me? It’s a big job for five or six people.”

“I need an oilcloth to make it,” Lin Xiushui moved the soup pot aside and picked up a bowl and chopsticks. “Otherwise, I don’t have the money to buy an oilcloth; one bolt costs two strings of cash.”

Wang Yuelan said, "Forget it, I'll go back and ask them. I'm afraid they won't be willing to provide oilcloth."

She had no choice but to accept it, unless she lived in an oilcloth shop.

She added, "If you really want me to do it, I don't want any money, just give me those scraps of cloth."

Wang Yuelan said she would discuss it with them, but Lin Xiushui spent the whole afternoon tending the stall and only earned three coins.

Even now, she still believes she can make a lot of money, not a single coin, not five hundred coins, fifty coins would be a lot of money.

It's really hard for tailors to make money.

With this feeling in mind, she walked into the clothing store on a cold, windy morning, her face pale.

An incense burner was burning inside, and the fragrance made her sneeze loudly. She rubbed her nose and went inside.

Xiao Chun'e came running over like a butterfly, "Ah Qiao, I'm here to light the fire for you again."

"I love it most to light the fire for you."

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiushui concluded that her mother must have been scolded for cooking for her yesterday.

"Please sit down, I've been saving up all day to tell you something."

Before speaking, she reached into her pocket and asked, "Ah Qiao, what do you eat the most of?"

"Endure hardship."

Lin Xiushui casually spoke the truth.

"Then eat more sweets," Xiao Chun'e pushed a few candies over and said very seriously, "You can't just eat bitter things."

Lin Xiushui thought this made a lot of sense, so she unwrapped the candy and asked, "Where did this candy come from?"

“It was given by Madam Gu,” Xiao Chun’e suddenly remembered. “She received a contract for a wedding, and you have a large batch of red cloth to iron.”

"Why didn't you tell me sooner that this was so important?"

When Lin Xiushui saw those dozens of bolts of red cloth, she felt as if she were seeing her own trembling hands.

Who exactly said that clothing shops are very quiet in the second month of spring?

A note from the author:

Wishing everyone good health and good luck in the new month! [kissing emojis]

This chapter features red envelopes! [Sprinkling flowers][Sprinkling flowers]