CHAPTER 44: CHAPTER 43: SISTER-IN-LAW IS CLEAN, SISTER-IN-LAW IS PURE

Lin Qiao naturally noticed him pinching the corner of his clothes. She’s now figured out two of his "hobbies": he stutters when lying and pinches his clothes when nervous.

If he were an actor, he’d surely be unqualified.

Ahem, unlike her, who can lie without blushing and change emotions with the plot—she could be Widow Song herself.

She’s a professional.

She softened her voice, "Alright, sister-in-law will be back soon."

After giving a few more instructions, she left the courtyard and headed to the cloth shop.

Today was market day, with people bustling back and forth. Lin Qiao was bumped by several carrying baskets.

The cloth shop was busy, and the boss couldn’t handle all the business. So she waited outside for a bit until the customers left before going in.

She politely said, "Boss."

The boss took a few sips of water, probably happy with the business, and smiled, "You finished in just a few days? You’re quite fast at embroidering."

Lin Qiao shook her head with a smile and explained, "I haven’t finished the square cloth yet. I wanted to show you the design."

She handed the items from her basket to her and added, "I pondered over it for several days, revised it multiple times. What do you think, boss?"

The boss glanced at it—a pair of birds perched on a branch. It looked quite nice, suitable for embroidery on clothes and shoes.

She looked up at the widow in front of her, a bit skeptical. A village widow who didn’t know a single character could paint?

"Did you draw this?"

"Yeah, I’ve liked drawing with sticks since I was a child. Over time, I learned a bit." Lin Qiao lied effortlessly.

Not afraid of being exposed, the cloth shop boss wouldn’t go ask anyone. Even if she did, so what? People in the village would just be surprised she could draw or think she might be possessed.

But they’d never know she wasn’t the original Lin Qiao.

The boss didn’t ask further, her gaze returning to the design, "What kind of bird is this?"

What kind of bird?

Lin Qiao improvised the bird. If asked directly, she wouldn’t know. But thinking quickly, she said, "This is a lucky bird, bringing double happiness."

The boss hadn’t heard of any lucky bird but thought it sounded auspicious, "Lucky sounds alright."

She, being an old hand, pretended not to be too interested, "The design is just average."

Lin Qiao subtly arched an eyebrow, trying to lower the price?

Competing with her acting skills?

She lowered her head in disappointment, "Then I won’t waste your time, boss."

Seeing her like this, the boss smirked arrogantly, then put on a generous, pitying look, "Seeing you’re in need, I’ll buy it for fifty cents."

Lin Qiao shook her head, reached out to take back the design, and folded it in front of her, tucking it into her sleeve.

She softly and helplessly explained, "Boss, you must know I’m just a village woman. Drawing such things takes a lot of time. At fifty cents, I can’t even save for my little uncle’s tuition."

She paused for a moment, her tone slightly apologetic, "I’ll sell it to the village auntie instead. Yesterday, she offered me 200 cents to make it into a wedding dress for her daughter. I didn’t sell it, thinking I’d keep my promise to you, boss."

"But... sigh, boss, I’m really sorry. It’s not that I don’t want to sell, but I can barely make ends meet at home..."

Her ideal price was 150 cents.

The boss, not suspecting she was lying, looked at her shabby clothes and waved, raising the offer, "Fine, fine, a hundred cents."

"Boss, I..."

The young widow lowered her head, seeming to live a very hard life.

The boss gritted her teeth, "One hundred and fifty cents, take it or leave it."

Lin Qiao hesitated for a moment, then took out the design from her chest and sincerely said, "Boss, you’ve always looked out for me. I’ll sell it."

She gained some silver coins and gave the boss a favor in return.

The boss felt something was off, but looking at Widow Song’s earnest eyes, she felt nothing was wrong.

She took out two strings of copper coins, splitting one in half, then handed them to Lin Qiao, "Bring it again next time, for the same price. But let’s be clear, only this price if you draw well. If not, I won’t take it."

Lin Qiao nodded, put away the copper coins, and thought of something, glancing at the hanging clothes, "Boss, how much for a piece of ready-made clothing?"

The boss looked at her and casually quoted, "A hundred and fifty cents for a cheap one, two hundred and fifty cents for medium quality, and three hundred and fifty cents for a good one."

Lin Qiao calculated the silver in her hand, then made a decision, "Boss, could you do a cheap one for a hundred and forty cents? If so, help me get a men’s outfit. My little uncle is a bit taller than me."

The antagonist’s clothes are all too small, leaving his wrists and ankles exposed. Though it’s not cold now, wearing them must be uncomfortable.

And the threads of the clothes are coming undone.

As his "mother," she couldn’t stand it.