She had seen her mother make it a few times, but later found it too troublesome and went to buy fabric from a shop. Now, not many people know how to do it.
Firstly, the process was complicated, and secondly, everyone's skills were limited, so the cloth they made wasn't very attractive. Apart from farmers, even wealthy families wouldn't consider it.
Even if they were to sell them, they wouldn't fetch a good price. Occasionally, some skilled craftsmen could become weavers in cloth shops, but most others would make clothes for their own families.
Farmers rarely wear new clothes; most clothes are patched and patched, and even fewer people weave their own cloth.
Gradually, fewer and fewer people joined the farmers' association.
If Zhao Xing'er hadn't said she knew how, they definitely wouldn't have made this thing.
Zhao Xing'er also said, "This is really troublesome. If I hadn't had some free time recently, I wouldn't have thought of doing these things."
The process alone involves more than a dozen steps. They've only just begun peeling the hemp; the next steps include rinsing (drying in the sun and dew), spinning, forming into thread, twisting, combing, sizing, and weaving. (Source: Internet)
So many steps, not one can be omitted.
Jiang Yimian nodded, asked a few more questions, and then bent down to help peel the shells.
She had taken out quite a bit of fabric from her storage space last time, but neither the Chen nor the Liu families wanted it, saying that such good fabric would be wasted on them. Only her mother made a few sets of clothes for the children, while the others still wore old clothes full of patches.
She had no other choice; at least she could weave her own cloth now, so she wouldn't have nothing to wear.
Although the war outside has stopped, judging from the situation on the mountain, it is estimated that the situation outside is not much better. There are always refugees gathering and forming bandits. If the court does not send people to suppress them, they will have no choice but to continue living on the mountain.
We have plenty to eat and drink, and nowadays we have no shortage of clothes. Living here is great, except for the lack of money.
However, in these chaotic times, having money isn't necessarily a good thing.
The group chatted and laughed as they worked.
Suddenly, someone mentioned the people of Xinghua Village, and everyone was taken aback.
Yes, according to the returning refugees, the imperial court seems to be driving them back to their hometowns, and there are already quite a few people from nearby villages on the mountain.
It is estimated that the people from Xinghua Village will return after some time.
Zhao Xing'er snorted coldly and said irritably, "So what if you're back? When you left, you were all eager to leave. You even separated your families. Now that you're back, it has nothing to do with us."
Although her family initially listened to Old Man Liu and didn't plan to flee the famine, her uncle's two children divided the family property in order to escape the famine, and even encouraged them to abandon Old Man Liu and run away on their own.
The purpose was to obtain their family's food.
They didn't agree, and those shameless guys even secretly came to steal grain, which almost made them furious.
Thankfully, she was her uncle's child. If her uncle hadn't passed away, she would have given those two families a good beating.
One experience of fleeing famine made me see those people for who they really were; they were all bad people.
Although neither Liu Xiaoyun nor Wang Fengqin spoke, they clearly shared the same thought.
They were abandoned by the villagers and their relatives. When those people left, they only saw them as a burden, afraid of getting involved with them. Even if they come back now, they won't care, let alone help.
Given their selfishness, if they knew they were having food and drink here, they would probably cause a huge scene and disturb everyone's peace.
After more than half a year of peaceful days, they really didn't want to go back to how things were before.
Seeing that everyone was silent, Gousheng said with a face full of indignation, "Mother, Aunt, don't worry. If the villagers come back and dare to cause trouble for us again, I will definitely not let them off."
Jiang Yimian said coldly, "Those people can't find their way here."
Even if they really come, she won't let them get away with it.
Hearing this, the group relaxed and started a new conversation.
"Hey, Xing'er, you look much better lately, your complexion is rosier."
Liu Xiaoyun stared at Zhao Xing'er and asked curiously.
Wang Fengqin glanced at the other person a few times and nodded, "Yes, she looks much better."
Zhao Xing'er used to have a sallow complexion and looked listless, but she looks much better these days, with a fairer complexion.
Zhao Xing'er touched her face somewhat embarrassedly before smiling and saying, "Perhaps it's because of the medicine Yi Mian gave me to nourish my body, I feel much more comfortable after drinking it, and I don't feel as bad as before."
She discovered it early on and was overjoyed. A few days ago, she consulted Yi Mian again, who gave her another prescription, which she is currently taking.
Seeing this, the others praised him a few more times and didn't ask any more questions.
After a busy afternoon, everyone finally finished peeling the hemp. They then soaked the peeled skins in a large vat before the job was done.
Seeing that she had nothing to do, Jiang Yimian pulled Gou Sheng aside and started talking about the wheelchair.
Gou Sheng's eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly, "Sister Yi Mian, you mean to make a chair with wheels so that my father can move around more easily!"
His father has been much better these days. He can basically move around by supporting himself with a chair and can sit and do some simple things. He and his mother are overjoyed.
If there were a chair that could move on its own, it would be much more convenient for his father on a daily basis.
However, he had never seen such a thing before.
Jiang Yimian just smiled and took out the drawing she had made earlier. "This is the wheelchair I was talking about. See if you can make it. You can ask Grandpa and Uncle Dayong for help."
She didn't quite understand some of the structures, so she only drew a rough diagram, unsure if Gousheng could understand it.
Gou Sheng took the drawing and saw that it depicted a normal chair, except that there were two wheels drawn below the armrests on both sides of the chair.
He understood instantly, and just smiled and nodded, "I understand, Sister Yimian, you're so smart."
It's a shame that he learned carpentry from his grandfather and father for so many years, only thinking about tables, chairs, benches, and cabinets every day, yet he couldn't come up with anything like this.
Jiang Yimian was a little surprised, but she just smiled and said, "Then try it first, and come to me if you have any problems."
Gou Sheng nodded repeatedly, carefully put away the blueprints, and quietly went to the woodshed, clearly to start preparing materials.
Jiang Yimian smiled, stretched, and looked at the children playing with Mimi not far away, feeling happy.
*
Life in that little depression was indeed comfortable and pleasant.
Aside from fertilizing and weeding the vegetable garden every day, the group didn't have much else to do.
Now that three young and strong men are helping, these chores can be completed quickly.
As the number of refugees on the mountain gradually increased, Jiang Yimian and Gou Sheng took Zhao Dashu and Zhao Erhei to repair the traps and dig some more.
Wang Xiaohei then went to work with Old Man Liu.
As soon as Mimi saw Jiang Yimian about to go out, she excitedly followed and circled around her.
Jiang Yimian sighed and ruffled Mimi's fluffy head before taking it out with her.
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