TRCT_39

Chapter 39: The Gift

That evening, in order to give Jie Linglong her gift, Ji Qingzhou had specially left work an hour early, arriving back at the Jie residence before half past five. At that time, Jie Jianshan and Jie Yuchuan had only just gotten home themselves.

Passing through the main hall and entering the large dining room from the west corridor, he found the father and son already seated on the high-backed chairs by the dining table, chatting about trivial work matters.

It was mainly Jie Yuchuan doing the talking, while Jie Jianshan leaned back against his chair leafing through the newspaper, occasionally responding with a word here and there.

Off to the side, Zhao Yanzhi was holding a small bowl, coaxing the little girl to eat some fruit, while Jie Yu'an hadn't even come downstairs yet.

Ji Qingzhou, hands clasped behind his back concealing the wrapped little dress, walked over to the dining table with easy composure and greeted Jie Jianshan and the others.

He then lowered his eyes to look at Jie Linglong, and meeting the little girl's large, dark eyes, broke into a sudden smile and asked: "Lingling, Cousin-uncle brought you a present, want to see it?"

Jie Linglong had a mouthful of melon she didn't much care for, and her lips had been turned down unhappily, but the moment she heard "present," her eyes immediately lit up, and she answered: "Yes!"

Ji Qingzhou deliberately drew out the suspense for a moment, and once the other adults' attention had also been drawn in, he swept the package out from behind his back with a flourish and set it down on the table in front of her.

Normally the clothes from his shop were wrapped in bamboo-hemp paper, but this time he'd specially used the somewhat more costly white hemp paper for the packaging, further decorated with a wide pale blue ribbon tied into a large bow.

"Wow!" Jie Linglong wasn't particularly sensitive to how nice the wrapping was, but the bow ribbon on top was still very much to a little girl's liking.

Seeing this, Jie Yuchuan stopped talking about work matters as well, turning to pat Jie Linglong's head and say: "Cousin-uncle gave you a present, what should you say to him?"

Jie Linglong, happy for the moment, chewed and swallowed the melon in her mouth, then tilted her head back and said loudly: "Thank you, Cousin-uncle!"

"No need to thank me, go ahead and open it up." Ji Qingzhou said, then pulled out a chair and sat down.

Zhao Yanzhi had actually already guessed what the gift was from early on. She gave Ji Qingzhou a gentle smile, then set the plate aside and helped her daughter undo the bow ribbon together.

As the last layer of wrapping paper was peeled away, the little cream-blue dress, sewn from layer upon layer of sheer chiffon, revealed itself before everyone's eyes.

"Wow, so pretty..." Jie Linglong let out an exclamation of admiration.

Even before seeing the full garment, the fresh, dreamy blue color and the airy sheer fabric on its surface had already captured the little girl's heart at once.

Seeing her so pleased, Zhao Yanzhi's own mood lifted considerably, and she stood up, lifting the dress to show her its full form.

As the layered, tiered chiffon of the skirt cascaded down, both Zhao Yanzhi and Jie Yuchuan, watching from the side, couldn't help but be astonished at just how exquisite this piece of children's clothing was.

Though they'd known for a while that Ji Qingzhou had opened a ready-made clothing shop, they hadn't expected he possessed such fine craftsmanship.

Jie Linglong alone, having already seen Ji Qingzhou's sketchbook, had thought this cousin-uncle of hers terribly impressive right from the start, and so she'd been looking forward to the dress he'd promised to make her for quite some time now.

And clearly, her anticipation had been well rewarded.

This was the first time Jie Linglong had ever seen such a beautiful little dress—the color, the style, the collar scarf, the sash, the bows at the cuffs—every single detail filled her with delight.

"So pretty, Cousin-uncle is amazing!" The little girl's eyes sparkled as she stared at the dress, utterly unable to look away.

"Does Lingling like it?" Ji Qingzhou asked, leaning back against his chair.

"I like it!" Jie Linglong nodded her head, reaching out to touch the light, drapey hem of the skirt, then looked up at Zhao Yanzhi: "Mama, I want to wear it right now."

Zhao Yanzhi found herself a little at a loss now, saying: "We're about to eat dinner soon, can you wait to try it on until after we've finished?"

"But I want to wear it now..." the girl looked up at her pleadingly, eyes brimming with hope.

Zhao Yanzhi's resolve softened somewhat, and she pressed her lips together, glancing sideways at Jie Yuchuan, unsure whether she should give in.

At this point, Jie Jianshan closed his newspaper and spoke up: "The dishes probably won't be served for a little while yet. Since Linglong wants to wear her new dress, why don't you all take her to the dressing room next door and let her try it on."

Zhao Yanzhi's earlier hesitation had mainly been out of fear of delaying dinner and displeasing her father-in-law, so hearing this, she let out a breath of relief, picked up the dress, and took the girl to the adjoining dressing room.

Jie Yuchuan followed along as well, presumably thinking he might be able to lend a hand if his wife needed help.

Once they'd left, only Jie Jianshan and Ji Qingzhou remained at the dining table.

Perhaps not wanting the atmosphere to go cold, Jie Jianshan looked over at him and said: "I've always heard from Nanqi that your tailoring skills were quite good, but never had the chance to see for myself. Seeing it today, you really do have some genuine skill, coaxed Linglong into beaming from ear to ear."

Ji Qingzhou smiled and shook his head: "Not at all, you flatter me."

Jie Jianshan lifted his teacup and took a sip of tea, then asked: "Business going well lately? If there's anything you need help with, you can talk to Yuchuan. He's the one managing the garment factory these days, so the two of you are practically in the same trade."

Ji Qingzhou nodded: "Thank you for your concern, business has been quite good."

They'd barely exchanged a few more words when the sound of two sets of footsteps came from the dining room entrance. Ji Qingzhou turned his head and saw Jie Yu'an and Huang Youshu walking in, one behind the other.

"Down already?" Jie Jianshan greeted him casually.

Jie Yu'an gave a soft "Mm," and walked at an unhurried pace to his own seat, sitting down.

After waiting a moment and not receiving the greeting he'd expected, he turned his head slightly and asked Ji Qingzhou: "Back so early today?"

"Early? It's fine, I'd say."

Ji Qingzhou turned to arrange the tableware in front of him, and using the movement as cover, leaned in a bit closer and lowered his voice: "What, do I have to work overtime every single day for you to be satisfied?"

Jie Yu'an's lips moved, and he was just about to say something when a bright, clear girl's voice rang out beside them.

"Cousin-uncle—"

The moment Ji Qingzhou heard the voice, he turned his head at once, and saw Jie Linglong, smiling like a blossoming flower, running straight toward him.

Having changed into her new dress, the little girl was so overjoyed she seemed to have lost all sense of direction, bypassing her parents behind her and running straight up to stand in front of Ji Qingzhou. She held up the edges of her skirt and spun around once, then tilted her little head up to look at him and asked: "Cousin-uncle, do I look pretty?"

Ji Qingzhou rested his chin on his hand and looked her over, nodding with feigned solemnity: "Mm, Cousin-uncle hereby certifies that Lingling is the prettiest one at this whole table."

This wasn't just him humoring a child either—Jie Linglong had naturally been born delicate and lovely as a carved jade figurine, and dressed in this little outfit she looked even more exquisite and adorable, like a porcelain doll, the kind that made you want to reach out and pat her little head.

"Hehe!" Jie Linglong broke into a grin, her cheeks flushing at the praise, her tone unusually bashful for once: "Cousin-uncle is also very handsome, just as handsome as me."

Ji Qingzhou let out a laugh: "Wow, I'm truly honored. Thank you for the compliment, little princess."

Jie Yu'an, listening, was thoroughly lost, not yet understanding what was going on, until Zhao Yanzhi came over and thanked Ji Qingzhou on her daughter's behalf for the trouble of making the dress—only then did he grasp what had happened.

Afterward, the servants brought out the food, and while no one around was paying attention, he lowered his voice and said to the person beside him: "Quite the knack for winning people's hearts."

Ji Qingzhou let out a soft, cold laugh upon hearing this, and replied quietly: "You flatter me. Haven't won yours yet, though."

Jie Yu'an, hearing this, froze for a moment, his lips pressing together lightly.

Though Jie Yu'an could tell the other man was mocking him, deep down he couldn't help but feel a jolt.

Could it be that Ji Qingzhou actually wanted to win his heart? What a...

"Wishful thinking."

He murmured it under his breath, then sat perfectly still, waiting for a reply.

For a moment, his mood was quite uneasy—hoping the person beside him had heard, and yet hoping he hadn't, both at once.

Ji Qingzhou, of course, hadn't heard it at all. He was busy holding out his rice bowl to receive the braised pork trotter Jie Yuchuan had picked out for him.

Though he hadn't deliberately meant to curry favor with the Jie family, it was simply a matter of professional attitude—having promised Jie Linglong he'd make her a little dress even prettier than the sketch, naturally he had to deliver on that.

Still, it was plain to see that after he'd given Jie Linglong the dress, both Jie Jianshan and the Jie Yuchuan couple across the table had clearly grown noticeably warmer toward him than before.

The one thing that remained unchanged was this particular young master beside him—impervious to blade or fire alike.

A mouth like a stone in a latrine pit, foul and hard, rarely ever softening in attitude.

Ji Qingzhou set down his rice bowl, turned his head, and once again found this fellow wearing a cold, displeased expression—no telling who had gone and upset him this time.

That foul temper of his...

Fortunately, they'd be parting ways sooner or later—otherwise, the rest of his life would probably never know peace.

.

That night, once Jie Yu'an had gone to bed, Ji Qingzhou made his way alone through the darkness up to the study on the second floor of the East Hall, settled into Jie Yu'an's easy chair, and picked up his pencil and sketchbook to begin drawing.

Miss Jin's request was for a full Western outfit to be finished within five days—with the timeline so tight, there was simply no possibility of having fabric custom-dyed or ordered; he'd have to base his design on whatever materials were commonly available in the fabric market.

Since Miss Jin wanted to become known through this beauty pageant, her look would need to be bold and eye-catching, capable of outshining every other beauty present.

Ji Qingzhou had observed Jin Bao'er's physical features—he wouldn't comment on her figure, but her unmade-up face clearly leaned toward the "striking" type rather than the delicate kind.

Her facial contours were pronounced, her features well-defined, with fairly strong bone structure, and from certain angles she leaned slightly masculine. Given this, a demure, understated, elegantly plain style wouldn't suit her at all—only something bold and radiant would truly flatter her.

And when it came to bold, dazzling brilliance, the first thing that came to Ji Qingzhou's mind was red.

Whether it was a passionate, fiery scarlet, a vintage-chic persimmon red, or a mature, elegant wine red, nothing commanded attention quite like red.

But then it occurred to him—the photograph would be printed in the newspaper, and photographs and newspapers these days, let alone lacking color, would be lucky just to come out not blurry.

Even the most beautiful red, once printed in the paper, would only translate into varying shades of grey and black.

To stand out on black-and-white newsprint, the first choice would surely have to be a light color instead.

What kind of light-colored fabric would be both commonly available on the market and fashionable, lively, yet not fall into cliché? Ji Qingzhou pondered for a moment, and a classic motif surfaced in his mind: polka dots.

Large polka dots were romantic and bold, small polka dots elegant and playful; combinations of dots in varying sizes carried an inherent sense of movement and whimsical charm, and dots of different colors, sizes, and densities could each conjure an entirely different atmosphere.

Though this wasn't currently the polka dot's most glorious era, it had already become all the rage across Europe and was spreading worldwide—no matter which foreign goods shop you walked into, you could generally find one or two bolts of fabric featuring polka dots.

To some degree, the pattern itself was, in a sense, synonymous with fashion.

With a clear style and design elements now in mind, Ji Qingzhou mulled it over for a moment, then picked up his pencil and quickly sketched out a waist-fitted dress with a crossed front and a notched lapel collar.

Miss Jin wasn't particularly tall, so rather than eye-catching large polka dots, smaller dots would suit her better.

So Ji Qingzhou designed the pattern as black polka dots of medium spacing, set against a cream-white base, with the dress body and sleeves both made from the same fabric. Only the lapel and cuffs, in keeping with his original idea, he designed in a vintage-inspired orange-red.

After coloring it in simply with paint, Ji Qingzhou looked over the overall effect and nodded, satisfied, but then immediately picked up his brush again, pondering further.

For this dress, whether the lapel was red or black would create two entirely different visual effects.

How could he ensure that, the moment someone reading the newspaper laid eyes on this photograph, they'd immediately be able to imagine that the collar of this dress was red?

Ji Qingzhou furrowed his brow, thinking it over, and then, struck by a flash of inspiration, the corner of his mouth curved slightly upward as he added a vivid rose blossom tucked by the model's black hair, near her temple.

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