The Lin family were all amused by Xiao Linshuang’s innocent and adorable words.

Lin Jiaxin held his wife’s hand tightly, feeling a slight sourness at the tip of his nose.

Reflecting on the past six months, which felt like hell, he had never expected that today they could still gather together, laughing and playing happily.

Perhaps, this was what good days were all about.

Lin Yuan was particularly happy. These days, she had been coming up with various recipes to help Lady Liu’s recovery.

In addition to boiled eggs for every meal, she would also make an egg custard for her before bed, and every two or three days Lady Liu would have chicken soup or pork bone broth.

Lady Liu’s cheeks had become a bit plumper, and although her body was still cumbersome, she walked with much more spirit and vigor than before, no longer gasping for air after just a few steps like she used to.

However, there was one thing that still concerned her greatly.

She remembered that during the last childbirth, her mother didn’t have enough breast milk, and the child was frail, ate little, and still ended up thin and pale from constant hunger.

Now, looking at this child, he seemed sturdy, but Lady Liu had gained weight everywhere except her chest. Lin Yuan wasn’t sure if her mother would have enough milk to feed the baby when the time came.

She had anticipated this problem ahead of time, thinking that fattening her mother up might help her produce milk naturally, but it was almost eight months into the pregnancy and there was still no increase in her chest size.

She had to start preparing early. A dairy cow was out of the question; they would have to buy a sheep, but they couldn’t buy one too early or else the milk would run out by the time she gave birth.

At present, buying a sheep meant buying a pregnant one since there weren’t many who raised sheep in the village, and even fewer who were willing to sell a ewe, let alone one expecting lambs.

It seemed that this was an issue she would have to discuss with Lao Fan.

Before bed, Lady Liu brought her sewing basket to the west room.

When the three sisters saw the colorful shoes in her hands, their sleepiness disappeared.

All their lives, they had worn old shoes passed down from adults or plain black cloth shoes hastily made by their mother.

Shoes like these, pink and embroidered with flowers, were not only unworn by them but rarely even seen.

In truth, the embroidered shoes made by Lady Liu were not very exquisite, just simply decorated with a few patterns.

Xiao Linshuang’s pair featured a colorful butterfly; although called "colorful," they were actually only red, green, and pink because they didn’t have more colored thread at home. Lin Wei’s shoes had two lotus flowers embroidered on them, with emerald leaves and pink petals that caught Lin Wei’s eyes.

As for Lin Yuan’s shoes, they were much simpler, with two green bamboos, as Lady Liu felt her daughter’s character was most like that of the bamboo: upright and strong.

Lin Yuan loved these shoes very much, but she was reluctant to wear such nice shoes for work. She was now grinding tofu and making mooncakes, and these activities would certainly dirty the shoes in no time.

"Mother, these shoes are really beautiful," Lin Yuan treasured the shoes, then asked her mother for two pairs of black cloth shoes: "Mother, can you make me a pair of cloth shoes? If I wear these shoes to work, I won’t dare to walk."

Lady Liu initially thought that her daughter might not like the new shoes, but hearing her words, she felt a pang of sourness in her heart. She had made her daughter suffer.

"It’s my negligence. I’ll make you a pair of cloth shoes tonight," Lady Liu quickly added as she saw her daughter about to object: "Anyway, I can’t sleep that early. It would be just the right time for me to make the shoes while talking to your father."

But Lin Yuan still repeatedly urged her mother not to overexert herself.

Lin Wei, who had been intently examining the embroidery on the three pairs of shoes, finally looked up with her bright, shining eyes filled with excitement: "Mother, the embroidery is really beautiful! Can you teach me? I also want to learn."

Lin Wei already had some basic skills in embroidery, and with her gentle nature and love for quietness, embroidery suited her perfectly.

Lady Liu’s maternal family once owned an embroidery shop, so the girls in her family all had some skills in embroidery.

Lady Liu wanted to pass this craft on to her three daughters, but the eldest and youngest didn’t have the temperament to sit and embroider.

Lin Wei was the right fit, but due to the family’s circumstances and lack of energy, Lady Liu hadn’t taught her much, resulting in a missed opportunity.

Fortunately, Lin Wei was clever and deft with her hands, sometimes learning a little just by watching, showing great potential.

With someone in the house wanting to learn embroidery, Lin Yuan thought that the next time she went to town, she would definitely have to buy more fabric and colorful threads.

Table of Contents