“We can ask Gu Zhe about these things next time we see him!” Zhou Quan said softly.
"Hmm, did you dream about things you've never dreamed about before?" Li Mai asked Zhou Quan on their way to the backyard.
"Well, I don't know the exact time, but it should have been a long time ago. The weapons those humans carried were quite primitive. Moreover, it was an era in which humans and mythical beasts coexisted." As Zhou Quan spoke of his dream, he unconsciously tightened his grip on Li Mai's hand.
Li Mai's mind raced, and she instantly understood what he was dreaming about. "Did you dream about the Azure Dragon and the Qilin?"
"Yes, I dreamt of the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Phoenix, and Qilin, along with many of their offspring and a large number of humans. They wanted to kill me, saying that their king wanted my elixir of life and that they wanted to capture me alive."
"So, you killed them all?" Li Mai seemed to understand something.
"Mmm!" Zhou Quan's reply was trembling.
"Don't worry, it's just a memory. They wanted to kill you, and you were just defending yourself. You're not the same person you were back then either. Have you forgotten? You became a teacher later, and you saved many people." Li Mai gently comforted her.
If a person lives too long, they will definitely experience a lot. If they remember all of those things, Li Mai worries that it might affect Zhou Quan's dream of living a peaceful life in this lifetime.
Li Mai was thinking that the next time she saw Gu Zhe, she should ask him if there was any way to help Zhou Quan forget those memories.
The more he remembered, the more unhappy he seemed to become.
"Yes, I know that's something from a past life, I'm not afraid!" Zhou Quan replied hastily, seemingly afraid of affecting her mood.
Li Mai smiled and glanced at him. Now he was just a kind person, someone who wanted to live a peaceful life.
"It's just a dream. The two of us are now considered strong in this world. As long as we treat this world and people kindly, believe me, that kind of thing will not happen again." Li Mai gradually understood that perhaps, her birth was to save him.
When they arrived, Old Man Zhou, Mrs. Zhao, and Zhuzhu the Magpie were making dumplings.
"Mom, are we having dumplings today?" Li Mai asked with a smile.
"Well, the meat you bought won't keep, let's make dumplings today!" Zhao said.
"You two should go and have breakfast. We're having sour porridge today. Didn't Xiaomai say she wanted some yesterday?" Zhao said with a smile.
Li Mai and Zhou Quan responded and went to the kitchen to eat.
After they finished eating, the family went back to the dye shop to continue their work.
However, they still dyed it red in the morning. This time, Li Mai had so much more knowledge in her mind. Based on that knowledge, she increased the dye ratio and concentration in the dye bath. She then conducted one or more dyeing experiments with cotton, linen, and silk under three different pH conditions. The final values of a, b, h, C, and L were all different, and the final colors were all different.
She also personally led her family to experience the charm of plant dyeing.
Even Zhuzhu happily rolled up her sleeves to help dye and wash the fabric.
However, today they are dyeing large pieces of cloth, not small pieces.
In this era, a bolt of cloth was generally four zhang long. Cotton and linen cloth were either four chi and two cun wide or two chi wide, while silk was two chi wide.
The cloth woven by the villagers in the village mostly sells cloth that is two feet wide to Limai, but two families sell cloth that is four feet two inches wide, and the prices are different.
What they're dyeing today is two feet wide cotton cloth, along with the linen and pure white silk they bought.
The family worked hard all day, but they were still very happy when they saw the finished dyed fabric.
Especially after increasing the concentration, the resulting color is even more appealing than yesterday's.
"Mom, Zhuzhu likes this. Can you make a little red dress for Zhuzhu?" Zhuzhu asked, pointing to the red cotton fabric.
Li Mai nodded, "Sure, we can use this cloth to make new clothes for Zhuzhu and Sister Nannan, okay?"
"Okay, hehe, okay, I want Auntie to help me embroider," Zhuzhu said happily.
“Okay, Zhuzhu, you can decide which flower you like!” Li Mai replied with a smile.
Li Mai pointed to the purplish-red silk and said to Zhao Shi, "Mother, keep this piece of cloth for you. You can choose another color for the New Year this year to make matching tops and bottoms. When Xiao Lin gets married, the leftover fabric can be used to make a dress, with some beads and embroidery, which will make it even prettier. It can also be used to make a cape."
Zhao coughed lightly, "Xiaomai, your mother is a grandmother now. Is this color inappropriate for you? This color looks better on you!"
Li Mai smiled and said, "Mom, here you go. I already have so many dresses, I don't want to make any more. I'll make some after I give birth!"
“Yes, Mother, you’re still young, you can still wear this color,” Zhou Quan said to Zhao Shi with a smile.
"Okay, hehe!" Zhao also liked it very much, but she was afraid that it was too red and that people would point and whisper if she wore it out.
Old Zhou chuckled, "Your daughter-in-law gave it to you, so just wear it!"
The family finished cleaning up happily before going home.
Not long after they returned home, Zhou Shizhou came to Zhou Quan to discuss something.
Zhou Quan left with him, saying they had some village matters to discuss.
Zhou Quan told Li Mai to wait for him to come back so they could go home together.
Li Mai agreed and went to investigate the herbs that Zhu Zhu had carried.
Zhao went to cook dumplings, and Old Man Zhou went to tend the fire for her.
Magpie helped wash Zhuzhu and her clothes, but Zhao, the old lady's wife, didn't want her to wash them, saying that she should just take good care of Zhuzhu.
Zhou Shizhou led Zhou Quan to the gate of the village school, pointed inside, and said to Zhou Quan, "There are more children coming to study in the village now, and we've divided them into three classes. But one teacher simply can't handle it all. And right now, the only person in our village with the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the imperial examinations) is Teacher Zhou."
Zhou Quan thought for a moment, "Are there any scholars in the surrounding villages?"
“Yes, they’re in Shenjia Village and Zhaojia Village,” Zhou Shizhou said.
"Does their village have a school? Are there many children?" Zhou Quan asked.
Zhou Shizhou asked, "You mean, we should invite scholars from other villages to teach in our village?"
Zhou Quan nodded. "As far as I know, among the surrounding villages, it seems that our village has the fewest scholars. In recent years, the talented people who have passed the exams have all moved away. If our Zhou family wants to focus on our children's education, we need to put more effort into finding good teachers."
“Aren’t there still several empty courtyards in the ones we’ve built? Let’s recruit two scholars, those with good knowledge and good character, and pair them up with one in each class. If they have wives and children, we can provide them with accommodation, and they can move to our village. Their children can also study at our Zhou Family School.”
Zhou Quan said.
Zhou Shizhou thought for a moment, then his eyes lit up. "That's right, this method works! Why didn't I think of it?"
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