The Female Supporting Role Shows Out - Chapter 91

Translator: NovelMultiverse | Editor: NovelMultiverse

Since Xu Qian walked on the street in the wisteria skirt, Ling’an Prefecture suddenly became popular to make silk into artificial flowers and sew them into the dress. However, no matter how others imitated, they couldn’t surpass the skills of Lin Dan. Instead, they felt that they were picking up people’s wisdom and making fun of others.

On this day, after resting for a long time, Lin Dan finally picked up the needle and thread and was about to start working. Sitting opposite her, Du Ruyan told her in detail about the situation of the guest, “This order was made by Miss Zhou, the daughter of Chief Envoy. She wanted you to make a flower dress like that of Xu Qian, but I refused. I said the dresses in our shop are unique. There is only one in the world, and we won’t repeat it. We will make a dress for her as we do to serve her. Only she wears the most beautiful dress, and no one can imitate her. She was very happy to hear that and gave me a deposit. It’s funny. Now embroiderers are learning from you to sew the fake flowers on the dress, but they don’t succeed. Instead, their dresses are very vulgar. Can you imagine what such a big artificial flower would look like on the hemline? It’s even more exaggerated than the big red flower on the bridegroom’s chest. The person who wears it is swollen several times!”

Du Ruyan laughed for a while, then picked up the order and said, “I’ll read Miss Zhou’s requirements for you. She wanted to wear a new dress to go up to the Double Ninth Festival, but she was thin and afraid of the cold. So she wanted you to make the dress thicker, but at the same time, she had to keep it light and elegant. It’s a little difficult to be thick and light!”

Lin Dan shook her head and said, “It doesn’t matter. I have a constitution in my heart. To make a thick dress elegant, one had to work on the material. What does she look like? What color does she like? Does she have a favorite pattern?”

“Although she is thin, her cheeks are plump, and her eyes are round and big. She is very cute. She likes pink and butterfly patterns.”

“Then make a pink dress with hundreds of butterflies for her.” Lin Dan said seriously.

“Wait, no, no. You can’t.” Du Ruyan hurriedly waved her hand and said, “I just got the news that Li Jiarong has also ordered a dress with hundreds of butterflies from Meng Si, and she is going to wear it to go up on the Double Ninth Festival. Both of them are Lin’an Prefecture’s noble ladies. They will definitely be together on the day of mountain climbing. Isn’t it a coincidence?”

“It doesn’t matter. If I have the same idea as someone else, I will consider changing it. But Meng Si? I won’t change it.”

Thinking of the rumor released by Meng Clan Embroidery Shop recently that her embroidering skills were mediocre and could only be opportunistic, Lin Dan was a little unhappy. Although she had calmed down a little, she still had an unyielding spirit in her heart. If Meng Si didn’t make things difficult for her, she wouldn’t take the initiative to provoke her. But now, it was obvious that Meng Si was deliberately targeting her, so she would not escape.

Du Ruyan thumped the table heavily and agreed, “Okay, I won’t change it. Let’s have a face-to-face battle with Meng Si! If you make a better dress than Meng Si, will Li Jiarong, who wore the same dress as Miss Zhou that day, cry on the spot? Hee hee…”

If Meng Si was Lin Dan’s sworn enemy, then Li Jiarong was her enemy. It would be great if the two of them could make a fool of themselves at the same time.

Lin Dan took the order and read it. She remembered Miss Zhou’s size secretly and then asked her two aunts to take the silk cocoons stored in the warehouse to the kitchen to roast. Although the two women didn’t know what she wanted to do, they went without asking. Since she started to make money, she had been the center of the family. No one else would object to what she wanted to do.

“It’s too late for you to make cloth by yourself, isn’t it?” Said Du Ruyan hesitantly.

“No, I’m going to blister the silk cocoon and pull it into a silk bag. Then I’ll sew a separate layer and put it into the cloth so that I can make a warm and light dress. When the dress is dirty, you can take out the inner layer and clean the outer suit.” Lin Dan explained briefly.

“You mean you want to make a cotton coat with soaked silk?” It suddenly dawned on Du Ruyan that silk could be stuffed in her clothes to keep warm like cotton. Silk was more delicate and thin than cotton. After layers of silk pockets were pulled together, the same thickness and weight were only 1/10 or even 1/20 of cotton. It looked very fluffy, but with a gentle press, it was as thin as a cicada’s wings. In this way, the dress would be thick, light, and warm. If it was in spring, summer, and autumn, they could also take out the inner layer and wear it as a thin dress, which was very convenient.

“Dandan! People always say that you are not good at embroidery, but it’s better than thinking. They are right! You are so clever! “

“Thank you. My brain is really working.” Lin Dan nodded without shame. No matter who she had become or where she had fallen, the only weapon she could use to live in peace was this smart head.

After thinking for a while, Du Ruyan said, “If Miss Zhou feels comfortable in my clothes, we can make some silk cloth and sell it. This is also an income. By the way, isn’t it troublesome to make silk cloth?”

“It’s time and energy-consuming. There are six steps in total. If you want to make mass production, you have to ask more embroiderers for help. Let’s talk about it after our embroidery shop opens. You can keep it in mind first.” Lin Dan waved her hand calmly.

Du Ruyan nodded and wrote down this profitable project on a small notebook, full of admiration for Lin Dan. Lin Dan was not only good at embroidering but also smart. When she encountered difficulties, she was not afraid of difficulties and would not admit defeat. Following her, Du Ruyan had learned a lot and was full of hope for the future. If it weren’t for her, she would still complain about the beautiful and muddled along, and how could she understand the joy of fighting.

“It’s so good to be indifferent to you! Why are you so capable?” Du Ruyan’s heart was touched. She walked to the embroidery rack and kissed Lin Dan with a smile.

As usual, Lin Dan worked, unmoved. Du Rusong, who had just jumped up to the wall, coughed awkwardly. He had found out the little girl first, but now she became his sister’s apple of her eye?

“Yan’er, Aunt had a cold and felt unwell a few days ago. You go to the Taoist temple to see her. I’ve been very busy recently and can’t come back. I’ll leave everything to you.” He urged, “I’ve packed your luggage. Come back and change your clothes. Uncle Sun sets up a carriage and sends you up the mountain.”

Hearing that her aunt was sick, Du Ruyan didn’t dare to delay and hurried back. Lin Dan opened the back door and watched her carriage leave. When she saw Du Rusong come out on his horse, she said in a hurry, “Young Master Du, the thing you want is ready. I’ll go get it for you.”

Du Rusong immediately tightened the reins and stopped at the roadside.

After a short while, Lin Dan handed him a huge package and seriously said, “Young Master Du, you must come back alive.”

She had already known that the illness of the empress was fake, and it was true to send Du Ruoyan to the Taoist temple for proper treatment. The determination and cruelty in Du Rusong’s eyes were undisguised, which only belonged to a soldier who was about to enter the battlefield.

Du Rusong was slightly stunned, but soon he smiled and replied seriously, “I will.” He took the package, but his arm was pressed down by the unexpected weight. He was surprised.

“Hurry up. No one is waiting for us in the battle.” Lin Dan said. Du Rusong suppressed his curiosity and left in a hurry.

—

At the same time, Li Jiarong was discussing with Meng Si about what to do with her new dress.

“A dress with hundreds of butterflies could be good, but it’s a little monotonous. Why don’t you cut the gauze into the shape of a butterfly and sew it to the dress? Isn’t it more agile and outstanding?” Li Jiarong suggested excitedly.

“There are both butterflies and flowers in the pattern. Why is it so monotonous?” Meng Si protested. Even if everyone in Lin’an Prefecture was imitating what Lin Dan did, she wouldn’t follow. She could lose to anyone, but she couldn’t lose to Lin Dan. Although there were reasons for the family’s hatred, it was because she had an inexplicable fear and rejection of her.

“The flower pattern has been out of date for a long time,” Li Jiarong opened her suitcase and complained, “Look, every dress I pick out is a flower pattern. It’s either butterfly dancing or flowers blooming. Can’t you be as creative as Lin Dan? I also want to wear clothes different from others, and I want to be the object of everyone’s imitation. If they sew fake flowers, let’s sew butterflies. That’s beautiful? Meng Si, if you keep acting like this, you will lose to Lin Dan sooner or later. Lin Dan just started to learn embroidery, and, indeed, she’s not as good as you, but the embroidery skill can be improved through hard work. Not everyone can learn novel ideas and ingenious workmanship. You are not as talented as her in this respect. You should work harder since you are less talented than her!”

The last sentence seemed to be a heavy blow to Meng Si. Her eyes darkened. She struggled for a long time and said, “Okay, I’ll do as you think.”

Li Jiarong immediately became happy. She held Meng Si’s hand and said, “That’s right! There is no limit to any skill or knowledge. We should always learn from others’ strengths to improve ourselves. This is the way to advance.”

Although Meng Si seemed to agree with her, she still felt a little uncomfortable.

—

A few days later, Du Ruyan was still accompanying the empress on the mountain, but Du Rusong came at night and knocked on the back door of the Lin manor.

“You’re back alive!” Lin Dan greeted with a wave of her hand.

What did she mean? Du Rusong shook his head and said in a gentle voice, “Yes, I’m back.” He took out a small bag from his pocket and handed it to her. “This is my spoil of war. I’ll give it to you.”

As soon as Lin Dan opened the bag, she saw a golden doll as thick as a thumb lying inside, with a round head and a round belly. It was very cute. She immediately returned the bag and waved her hand. “This is too expensive. I can’t take it. You can give it to Ruoyan.”

Du Rusong grabbed her hand and stuffed the bag into her palm. He said word by word, “I have prepared another gift for her. This is yours. Look.” He pointed at his leather armor and said, “You saved my life, but I just gave you a golden doll. I feel guilty in the end. If I can return to the capital city in the future, I will realize a wish for you. This is my promise.”

It was not until then that Lin Dan found that his leather armor was cut by the enemy from the shoulder to the waist. His cowhide had been cut and rolled over, revealing the pure black iron in it. Without the protection of this layer of leather armor, he was very likely to have turned into a broken corpse.

Young Master Du’s life was naturally more precious than a golden doll. Thinking of this, Lin Dan immediately closed her fingers and took the trophy with ease.

“Then you must work hard and come back to the capital city as soon as possible. I’m waiting for you to protect me.” Du Rusong was amused by her serious warning.

“Okay, I will remember what you said.” He couldn’t help but rub the little girl’s head before striding away. The night slowly spread over, completely swallowing his back full of blood.