TRCT_36

Chapter 36: Finishing an Order

At around nine in the morning, Ji Qingzhou carried his bag and hopped off the tram, walking into the bustling little lane.

He called out a 'morning' to Zhu Renqing, who was holding a wooden ladle watering the Chinese roses by the doorway, then covered his mouth and yawned, walking into the shop without much energy.

At the dinner table last night, he'd been asked by Jie Linglong again when her skirt would be ready to wear.

So as not to keep the little one waiting too long, he'd worked the sewing machine pedal a bit late into the night; if Jie Yu'an hadn't woken him up this morning, he might not even have managed to get up for work.

He stood by the long table looking over the work schedule for a while, and before long, Zhu Renqing took his teacup over to the café diagonally across the street, and brought back a cup filled to the brim with hot coffee, setting it by his hand.

Ji Qingzhou instinctively took the cup, lifted the lid and took a sip, then puzzled: "Why does it keep getting more and more? I remember it was only seven-tenths full to start with, wasn't it?"

Now it was almost overflowing.

Ever since being caught lying yesterday, Zhu Renqing's attitude had turned somewhat cautious and careful.

Hearing this, he considered for a few seconds before replying: "Maybe that shop clerk thinks you're a regular customer now, so they give you a bit extra."

"Fair enough."

After a few sips of the rich, mellow coffee, Ji Qingzhou perked up a little, and began the day's work.

Still that Suzhou silk gauze qipao—the collar had already been attached yesterday, and the side seams and sleeve seams sewn together; today's work was to make the sleeves, attach the sleeves, and do the piping and frog buttons.

This chinaberry blossoms patterned qipao of Shi Xuanman's took more effort compared to Miss Fang's pale-yellow ramie qipao, simply because this one was made of silk fabric.

Silk protein, due to its smooth and soft properties, was prone to distortion when pulled by external force, causing the fabric's yarn threads to slip, so extra care was needed during the sewing process.

Especially since the gauze weave structure was loosely spaced, even the slightest carelessness under external force tension could easily cause yarn displacement or fraying.

Although three-warp leno gauze was already sturdier compared to two-warp leno gauze, in order to make the garment easy for the customer to wear and maintain, the anti-fraying technique still had to be applied.

Aside from doing paste-stiffening treatment along the seam allowances around the edges of the garment pieces, and being especially careful not to leave needle-hole marks when hand-sewing, Ji Qingzhou would also, without compromising the garment's appearance when worn, add a layer of lining fabric at the seams before sewing them together, in order to increase seam strength.

Adding up all these tedious little procedures ended up stretching out the production time.

While he was busy at this, Zhu Renqing hadn't been idle either.

He'd moved a chair by himself and sat at the doorway, in a spot half in shade and half in sun, focusing wholeheartedly on making frog button cords.

Into a diagonally-cut strip of fabric about two fingers wide, he'd stuff a few strands of cotton thread, divide the diagonal strip into thirds, fold both sides inward, sew it with a slanted stitch, then fold it into thirds again in the same manner and sew it once more with a slanted stitch.

For Zhu Renqing, the most troublesome part of this process was naturally still that his hand-sewing skills weren't quite up to par.

However, after repeated practice with scrap fabric for a while, though it couldn't be said his sewing was beautifully seamless, it was at least neat, tidy, and presentable enough.

Ji Qingzhou had also checked the quality of the samples he'd made, and only after confirming there was no problem did he dare hand this work over to him, otherwise, if the garment fell apart halfway through being worn one day, wouldn't that ruin his reputation?

The two of them stayed busy in the shop the whole day, working from around nine in the morning to just past four in the afternoon, and finally finished sewing Miss Shi's qipao.

A little later, Ji Qingzhou spent over an hour more attaching the main label and doing the final pressing, and with that, the Suzhou silk gauze qipao was considered complete.

By this time it was almost closing time, but seeing that it was still quite bright outside, Ji Qingzhou thought he might as well make a trip to the Shi family's place, to finish up this order as soon as possible.

Shi Xuanman's family lived on Avenue Joffre in the French Concession; Ji Qingzhou had gone there once before for her first fitting, and the address was roughly at the junction area between Avenue Joffre and Rue Palikao.

Although it was in the French Concession, the distance wasn't actually far—starting from Love Lane, even walking it might only be a bit over a kilometer—but Ji Qingzhou chose to take the tram instead.

A round trip of three kilometers was really more than he could handle walking.

After squeezing onto a packed tram, winding this way and that, it took about twenty minutes before he arrived at the intersection of the two roads.

Ji Qingzhou hopped off the tram, bag tucked under one arm, and the wrapped qipao package in the other hand.

Raising his eyes to look, a broad, straight road stretched out toward the end of the setting sun, this was Avenue Joffre.

Along both sides of the road, neat rows of street trees stood in lines; one side was mostly apartment buildings, while the other side was entirely lined with upscale shops.

Under the glow of the setting sun's afterglow, Western-style tailors, Western restaurants, coffee shops, and general goods stores all lined up crowded together, awning after awning stretching along the doorways, exuding a rich air of leisure and fashionable style.

Since it wasn't early anymore, he couldn't afford to dawdle too much; after getting off the tram, Ji Qingzhou headed straight for his destination.

Along the way, he happened to catch sight of two small Western-style houses by the street, with cream-colored walls and rose-red roofs, their protruding semi-circular little balconies half-hidden among the lush shadows of the parasol trees.

Judging by the melodious strains of string music drifting out from inside, this was probably a Western restaurant.

This was a nice setting, once he had money, he'd move his shop here...

As Ji Qingzhou passed by, he couldn't help but let his mind wander a little toward the future.

Though he definitely couldn't afford to buy a place here, once he'd built up a bit of a name for himself down the line and had a stable income, renting a house here to open a studio wouldn't be out of the question either.

After walking a few more minutes, Ji Qingzhou arrived at Shi Xuanman's home.

Where they lived was a three-story Western-style house with three rooms front and back; the three rooms downstairs were occupied by the piano shop the Shi family ran, while the second floor was the living quarters.

Ji Qingzhou had been here once before, so he was already familiar with the way; he went straight around to the back door, and was led up to the second floor via the back staircase by one of the Shi family's servants.

At that moment, Shi Xuanman was sitting at the desk in her own bedroom, reading; hearing the servant knock and say that Mr. Ji from the tailor shop had arrived, her first thought was that her qipao must be finished, so she hurriedly set down her book and hurried downstairs.

Rounding the stairway landing, she glanced down past the handrail and saw Mr. Ji sitting in one of the wooden chairs at her home, waiting with a blank, absent-minded expression, looking somewhat tired.

A touch of guilt and tenderness suddenly welled up in Shi Xuanman's heart; she slowed her pace as she walked over and said: "Mr. Ji, I didn't expect you'd come by so late, it must mean my qipao is finished, right?"

Ji Qingzhou snapped back to himself, saw the tall Miss Shi standing in front of him with a smile on her face, and without much small talk, directly handed her the bundle tied with ribbon, saying: "Go try it on. If there are any issues, I'll fix them."

"Good."

Shi Xuanman took the bundle, and before returning to her room, specially instructed the servant to make a pot of hot tea for Ji Qingzhou.

Fifteen minutes later, she came back downstairs, having already changed into the Suzhou silk gauze qipao with its right-lapped closure.

Perhaps to match the effect of the garment, in that short span of time she'd spent changing, she'd also drawn on thin, long eyebrows.

She'd also imitated the way Shen Nanqi had worn it before, pairing it herself with a tea-brown wool shawl.

Her figure was already tall and well-proportioned to begin with, and after putting on this fitted, long-line qipao, she appeared all the more slender and graceful.

This slim-fit style, though somewhat unconventional for this era, was set off by the soft, elegant patterns and colors of the silk gauze fabric, giving off more of an impression of delicate, quiet refinement instead, the very image of a classical beauty stepped straight out of a painting.

No wonder she was destined to be a future social elite... Ji Qingzhou, holding his teacup, nodded in satisfaction at how the garment looked on her.

The servant auntie busy nearby turned her head and was left a little dazed, praising: "Miss, you look truly beautiful in this."

"I'm quite satisfied myself." Shi Xuanman said with a smile.

After changing into the qipao, she couldn't wait to look in the mirror, feeling that her bare face couldn't quite carry the garment, so she'd specially drawn on her eyebrows, dabbed on a bit of rouge, twisted her hair into a simple bun, and inserted two gold hairpins.

She'd then also put on a pair of newly bought high-heeled leather shoes, and paired it herself with a shawl.

Once she'd put the whole outfit together, she stood before the mirror admiring herself for a full three minutes.

No matter how much she admired it, it never seemed enough, the more she looked, the more satisfied she became, wishing she could go out shopping in it right this very moment.

As for how well the garment fit and how comfortable it was, there was nothing more to be said, this was the first time in Shi Xuanman's life that she'd ever worn a garment that fit her body so closely.

When the qipao was put on, her arms, chest, waist, hips, all were wrapped just right, the soft, silky lining fabric clinging close to her body, yet without feeling tight, both comfortable and full of a sense of security.

So without Ji Qingzhou needing to ask further, when she came downstairs she'd directly brought her coin purse with her, and paid the remaining balance of eleven dollars and fifty cents.

Seeing her take out the silver dollars directly, Ji Qingzhou took the payment while asking: "So this means no alterations needed?"

"I've never worn anything that fit me better than this." Shi Xuanman closed her coin purse, took a seat in a nearby chair, and said: "In a few days, I'd like to come by your shop again to pick out another one. I really love this qipao, but it's a bit too formal for everyday wear, so I'd like to have a more casual style made as well."

"Sure, though the turnaround time might have to wait a bit."

"As long as it's made by your own hands, waiting a bit longer is no trouble at all."

Shi Xuanman had clearly been won over by the garment on her body, and had come to trust Ji Qingzhou's craftsmanship immensely.

"Alright then, come by my shop when you're ready to pick something out."

As he spoke, Ji Qingzhou took a sip of tea, glanced around at the freshly decorated room, and suddenly asked: "This house of yours looks quite new, when did you buy it?"

"We bought this house the year before last, and only moved in last year, we originally lived on Avenue Edward VII." Though Shi Xuanman didn't know why he was asking this, she still answered in full detail.

"Would you mind sharing the purchase price?"

"That, hmm... the price the year before last, I recall it was 8,600 yuan."

Having said this, Shi Xuanman raised her thin, long eyebrows and asked curiously: "Mr. Ji, is asking this because you're planning to buy a house? Actually, I feel that shop on Love Lane is too small for you as well, not quite enough room to really stretch your talents."

Ji Qingzhou shook his head with a smile: "Buying is definitely something I can't afford for now, at most I'd rent a place, but not right now either. Once I've saved up enough money, I'll consider the matter of moving the shop."

8,600 yuan, it truly was expensive; just a couple of days ago, Ji Qingzhou had seen in the newspaper that a large siheyuan* courtyard house for sale in the capital cost only 3,200 yuan.

*t/n; a traditional Chinese courtyard house.

In comparison, the property prices in the Shanghai concessions really were considered quite steep indeed.

But for Ji Qingzhou, coming as he did from a later era, being able to buy a three-story street-facing house on Avenue Joffre for 8,600 yuan was absolutely quite a bargain.

At the very least, it was a price that, with his current income, he could reach by saving diligently for about ten years.

And the property prices and cost of living at this point in time were already considered a relatively stable period in modern history, if he could just manage to buy a Western-style house like this one, he certainly wouldn't hesitate.

"If you were to open your shop here, it would be much more convenient for me to come have clothes made at your shop in the future."

As Shi Xuanman spoke, a sudden idea struck her: "Oh, why don't I keep an eye out for you, if there's a house for transfer on this street, at a suitable price, I'll let you know."

Ji Qingzhou hastily waved this off: "No need to rush on my account, I only wanted to inquire a bit first, just to have a rough idea in mind."

"There's no harm in keeping an eye out regardless," Shi Xuanman still insisted. "Besides, I think that with your talent and skill, you're sure to save up enough money quite quickly.

"I heard from Birong that the gown you designed for Lu Xueying, not only was she extremely satisfied with it, but even someone as exacting as her mother couldn't find a single flaw."

At this point, Shi Xuanman lowered her voice slightly and slowed her tone, "Next month is Miss Lu's birthday banquet, who knows, you might just make a name for yourself in Shanghai overnight because of it."

Ji Qingzhou couldn't help but laugh despite himself, not having expected that Shi Xuanman, a mere customer, would be even more concerned about his career than he was.

"Then I'm much obliged to you, Miss Shi. If you have the time, feel free to keep an eye out for me."

Shi Xuanman nodded with a smile, then politely asked: "You haven't eaten yet, have you? Why not eat here at my place, just wait a little while longer, and once my brother gets home from work, we can have the meal ready."

"No need, my family will surely have kept a meal for me."

Ji Qingzhou naturally didn't take her polite offer at face value; after declining plainly, he glanced at the sky outside the window, stood up, set down his teacup, and said: "Then I'll take my leave for now. See you next time."

.

When Ji Qingzhou stepped out from Shi Xuanman's home, though a trace of rosy sunset glow still lingered on the horizon, the moon had already risen above the clouds, casting a crystalline white glow across the vast night sky.

At around seven o'clock, Ji Qingzhou took the tram back to the Jie residence.

As expected, dinner had already ended, but the Jie family had kept a meal for him in the kitchen.

Ji Qingzhou, as usual, asked a servant to have the reheated food brought up to the small dining room in the east wing on the second floor.

In the room lined with dark green ceramic tiles and floral wallpaper, a dark green glass pendant lamp gave off a warm yellow glow, casting crisscrossed patches of light and shadow against the rear window glass.

Ji Qingzhou had just finished serving himself rice and hadn't taken more than a couple of bites when he looked up to see, by the black-lacquered wooden door inlaid with frosted glass up ahead, Jie Yu'an standing at the doorway in a dark blue jacquard silk robe, along with his attendant A' You.

Ji Qingzhou looked away, calmly picked up a chicken wing with his chopsticks and took a bite, neither greeting them nor showing any intention of inviting them in to sit.

But after standing there for a few seconds, Jie Yu'an walked in on his own, feeling his way forward step by step with his cane.

Huang Youshu hurried inside first, quickly pulling out the wooden chair by the round table for him.

The chair legs scraped against the wooden floor, letting out a faint, grating sound.

Jie Yu'an waited a moment, then sat down without a word at the round table draped with a lace tablecloth.

Seeing this, Ji Qingzhou tilted his chin toward Huang Youshu, signaling that he could go rest now.

He then asked while eating: "Did you drink your medicine?"

"Mm." Jie Yu'an answered flatly.

Hearing him speak, his posture had clearly relaxed a bit, leaning back against the chair.

"Was it bitter? Did you eat the sweets I bought you?"

"Do you think I'm a child?"

Ji Qingzhou set the picked-clean chicken bone down on the empty plate, clicking his tongue lightly: "To me, you're pretty young."

Jie Yu'an paused, then replied: "You're only five years older than me."

"Five years isn't a lot? There's a whole Jie Linglong's worth of difference between us."

Ji Qingzhou bit down on his chopsticks, musing, "Put it this way, by the time I was already performing on stage, about to become famous throughout the capital, you were still off playing hide-and-seek with Luo Mingxuan!"

"Who played hide-and-seek?"

"Luo Mingxuan said so," Ji Qingzhou said, blinking at him, "When he came by my shop to pick up his clothes, he told me quite a few stories about you two as kids. He also said, don't be fooled by how tall you are now, when you were little, out of the whole group of playmates, you were the shortest. At eleven or twelve years old, you weren't even four chi* tall.

*t/n; about 133 cm.

"When you were eleven or twelve, I was almost an adult already, so back then, wouldn't you have only come up to my belly button?"

Luo Mingxuan...

Jie Yu'an secretly ground his teeth, sneering coldly: "That mouth of his can spin tales better than a beggar, and you actually believe him?"

"I'll believe whatever I please to believe, none of your business."

"......" Jie Yu'an pressed his lips together and said nothing more.

After a moment, seeing that he kept his face cold and said nothing, Ji Qingzhou leaned in a bit closer to observe his expression, asking: "What's wrong, are you angry?"

Jie Yu'an turned his head slightly to the right, still not speaking.

Ji Qingzhou then looked away, thought for a moment, and changed the subject: "Didn't you say before that you wanted to come by my shop and sit for a while? It just so happens I finished up an order today, and I'll have a bit of free time tomorrow, why don't you come to work with me tomorrow morning?"

"Not going."

"Are you really angry?"

Jie Yu'an said, not without coldness: "What would I have to be angry about?"

"If you're not angry then just come along, otherwise you're just being stubborn about it." Ji Qingzhou said, his words coming out light and quick.

Seeing that he still kept a stern face, looking rather displeased, he softened his tone slightly: "Hm? Come on then? Tomorrow I'll buy you some crispy fried fish to eat, that shop across from mine, freshly made and piping hot, it's really good."

What kind of tone was that, coaxing a child?

Jie Yu'an inwardly grumbled.

But inexplicably, the anger that had just been rising in him dissolved all at once.

"Playing mute again?" Ji Qingzhou raised a brow, and simply decided for him, "If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes, you're coming to work with me tomorrow morning."

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