The Female Supporting Role Shows Out - Chapter 84

Translator: NovelMultiverse | Editor: NovelMultiverse

Zhang Hui put down the feather duster skeptically and took the embroidered cloth. Then she was stunned. The two aunts saw her expression and quickly approached her. They were also stunned.

“Is, is this really your embroidery?” Zhang Hui said in a trembling voice.

“Yes, it is. It took me a whole month to finish it.” Lin Dan finally sat down and took a deep breath.

Fourth Aunt touched the stamen of the peony and the dewdrop on the leaf. Then she sighed, “This stamen is embroidered using seed embroidery technique. It is done by twining the thread on the needle three times and making it into a knot, which can imitate the real shape of the stamen; The petals were using elaborate embroidery technique, the color is very natural. From light red to deep red, the colors are smudged with strand by strand of threads. It is almost impossible to find the joining ends between the colors; it is smooth; The stem is embroidered using the crewel embroidery technique, giving texture to it. The veins of the leaves were definite and lifelike. The most eye-catching ones were the dewdrops. They were embroidered with the Hardanger embroidery technique to form a protruding surface. It can see the reflection of the sunlight through the dewdrops. The color recedes, and the bending of lines, everything looks real. If I hadn’t touched it with my hand, I would have thought that a few dewdrops were dropped by Dan’er.”

Third Aunt nodded and clicked her tongue. “Oh my God! Our Dan’er is so amazing. She has used a total of more than 20 kinds of embroidery techniques in this embroidery. Many of them are extremely difficult. Even Fourth Sister and I can’t master them well. Apart from that, her color-matching was the most outstanding. A good embroidery work emphasizes seven key points: neat, lighting, straight, even, thin, smooth, and dense. However, Dan’er’s work had completely breached these concepts. She didn’t seek neat and even lighting, but instead, she combined the change in light and shadow and the shades of colors together. The side facing the light is bright and vibrant, while the side against the light is dark and dull. The overlapping connection between light and shadow was very natural as if it was real. These dewdrops were the best to reflect the characteristic. The needlework is still the same. But once the color scheme is changed, the light and shadow are added, the flower becomes lifelike.”

Third Aunt took out a piece of Meng Si’s work and said proudly, “Sister, come and have a look. This is Meng Si’s peony flower. What do you think?”

Zhang Hui didn’t know much about embroidery, but anyone with eyes could notice the difference between the two embroidery works. She stared at her daughter’s embroidered cloth and said in a trembling voice, “I think the peony flower embroidered by my daughter is thousands of times better than those embroidered by Meng Si.”

Third Aunt smiled in relief and said, “Yes, it’s true. Although Dan’er’s embroidering skills may not be as good as Meng Si’s, her color-matching and drawing skills were far better than Meng Si. It is impossible to find a second one like Dan’er, even if you travel throughout the Great Zhou Kingdom, let alone Su Province, who can have such embroidery work. But, of course, a top embroiderer must first have her own style so that others could call out her name at the sight of her work. Our Dan’er has yet to complete her apprenticeship, but she did such amazing work. But in time, she would be the world’s first-class embroiderer. So, Sister, you can’t belittle your daughter with Meng Si anymore. Our Dan’er is no worse than anyone else.”

Lin Dan, who was gulping water, quickly put down the teacup and straightened her chest. Although she was very confident in herself, she still needs affirmation from others.

Zhang Hui nodded happily, with tears welled up in her eyes.

Lin Dan felt grieved. She walked over and patted her on the back, and called Mother in a low voice. Now that she was here, replacing the original host, she would take care of the original host’s family and shoulder the responsibility. She would also restore the former glory of Lin Family Embroidery Shop.

Fourth Aunt shook her head and said, “Sister, you’re wrong. What do you mean by Dan’er’s embroidery skills are not as good as Meng Si’s? I think this embroidery has used at least twenty kinds of embroidery techniques, including the unique, elaborate embroidery technique and needlework created by Ye Jinxiu (beautiful embroidery). Ye Jinxiu was the former imperial embroiderer of the previous dynasty, known as the God of Needles. Since Dan’er can master her unique skills, how can she be worse than Meng Si?”

Third Aunt stared at the embroidered cloth for a long time, hesitated, and said, “How can you be sure that Dan’er applies Ye Jinxiu’s elaborate embroidery technique and needlework? I think it’s just a little similar. You need to know that Ye’s embroidery techniques of Ye Jinxiu have been lost for a long time, and no one knows how to use them.”

Fourth Aunt said firmly, “My father once gave me an embroidered work of Ye Jinxiu. I observed and studied it day and night, so how can I not recognize it? This is Ye Jinxiu’s elaborate embroidery technique and needlework. How did you learn it, Dan’er? Quickly tell me!”

Lin Dan ran into the yard and took her own needle and thread box over and said plainly, “I cut open the God of Needles’ embroidery work. I looked for every needlepoint and marked the position, then only I learned how to mix and apply needles. Not only that, but I also cut open Embroiderer Su’s lion tiger artwork and Embroiderer Fang’s little elephant of the former Chu Dynasty’s Ping (tranquility) Prince. I learned their unique skills, fur embroidery technique, and face splitting embroidery technique, respectively. Here is the cut embroidery. The black dots on the cloth are the needlepoint I marked. You can just follow the needlepoints, and definitely, you will master it.”

Embroiderer Su and Embroiderer Fang were two other tip-top embroiderers in the same era as Ye Jinxiu. One of the two was skilled at embroidering beasts, and the other was skilled at embroidering figures. They invented the fur embroidery technique and the face splitting embroidery technique, respectively, to show the fluffy and delicate fur of the animals and the textures of human skin. Their style of work was the same as that of Lin Dan, in which they only cared about the realness. How to make embroidery as lifelike as possible was the lifelong pursuit of the two.

In the tireless pursuit and grinding, they finally became successful for a whole generation, shining in the river of history like Ye Jinxiu. Therefore, their works rarely appeared on the market. They were either kept in the palace or in the hands of the nobles. Any of them could be sold at a sky-high price.

It could be said that Lin Dafu had spared his life to collect these three works. But now, they had turned into three pieces of rags and were simply placed in Lin Dan’s needle and thread box.

Third and Fourth Aunt collapsed on the chair with their hands clenched on their chests, while Zhang Hui picked up the feather duster. She tried to tell herself that she was her daughter and must hold back her anger!

Lin Dan saw that the situation was not right. Lin Dan immediately explained, “Mom, Aunties, don’t think it’s a pity. Although these three works were precious, shouldn’t the more valuable things be the techniques to embroider them? I’ve mastered the needlework from the three embroiders, and I’ll be able to embroider more flower and bird patterns, lion and tiger patterns, and figures and elephants in the future. Then, maybe a few centuries later, people will collect my embroidery and call me the God of Needles. Don’t you think so?”

“Yes, that makes sense.” The two aunts broke free from the feeling of heartache and said with tears, “Dan’er, since you have cut open the embroidery works, you must study them carefully!”

“Don’t worry, Aunties. I’ve almost finished studying them.” Lin Dan comforted her.

Zhang Hui gritted her teeth, and, at last, she let go of the feather duster. She didn’t know whether she should laugh or cry. “Things are dead, and people are living. As long as my daughter is promising, I will be happier than anything else. Third Sister, Fourth Sister, you can also study the cut open embroidery works. In the future, we will work together and reopen the embroidery shop. Since today, Lin Dan has finished her apprenticeship. Let’s kill a chicken to celebrate. Oh, by the way, Dan’er, you said that you have got an embroidery job. Who is that hirer?”

“It’s Miss Du. She is going to attend the Buddhist Ceremony in half a month.” Lin Dan finally breathed a sigh of relief. She also knew that the embroidery works left by her father were very precious. So she shouldn’t destroy it unless she had to. However, most of the tip-top embroiderers came from aristocratic families, and they would never pass their family heirloom to outsiders. So the reason why Meng Si was famous in Su Province and Hang Province was because of her family history.

In this case, Lin Dan couldn’t find a top embroiderer as a master. If she was left to figure out herself, she might surpass Meng Si one day, but the time would be very long, three or five years, or even ten, twenty years.

Lin Dan wanted to learn it quickly, so she had no other way but to destroy the precious embroidery works.

What she could think of, Zhang Hui could definitely think of it. When she looked at her daughter, the anger she had just felt had dissipated entirely and turned into comfort and joy. “Our daughter has grown up, and she has become more and more decisive, just like your father. So you must work hard this time, and don’t let Miss Du be disappointed.”

“I know. I’ve already decided what to embroider. If I can make Miss Du a spectacular appearance this time, I can spread my reputation, and the business will gradually improve. When I have enough money, I will rent a small storefront for business dealings. In the future, when I become famous, I will recruit a few more embroiderers and open an embroidery shop. Mother, what do you think?” 

“Great, we take it slowly. Don’t rush.” Zhang Hui turned her head to another side and wiped her tears. Her daughter had become more and more mature and courteous. If her father was still alive, he would be so happy.

—

Du Ruyan was busy searching for the cloth to make a dress, and she had totally forgotten the five taels of deposit. Du Rusong had joined the army and had to go to the military camp for training every day, so he didn’t have time to ask Lin Dan. In the morning before the Buddhist Ceremony, Lin Dan finally walked out of her room that had been closed for half a month. She took a deerskin package in her hand.

At the same time, Du Ruyan also got up early. She was taking out the clothes in the suitcase one by one and spreading them on the bed.

“This one is too plain, and this one is too eye-catching. This one is a little old-fashioned… No, no, none of these is suitable!” She stomped her feet and pulled her hair as if she was on the verge of a breakdown.

The servant was even more frustrated than her. She mumbled, “But Miss, these are all the new clothes you made. If you can’t pick them out from here, you will only leave the option to wear the old clothes.”

Since Du Ruyan saw the silk embroidered with cotton rose, she had no interest in other cloth. Her mind was now full of the cotton roses that Meng Si had embroidered. They were vivid and beautiful, and the colors were just lovely. Who else had better embroidery skills than her? Which cloth could be more beautiful than hers?

“I would rather stay at home than make a fool of myself in these clothes.” After repetitively choosing several times, Du Ruyan had changed from anxiety to despair. She used to be the daughter of the imperial palace, and even if she became a commoner, she didn’t want to be inferior. So she would either not go or amaze everyone.

She rummaged through the box, refused to give up, but in the end, she sat down dejectedly. Without the identity of the daughter of the imperial palace, no matter how rich she was, she couldn’t buy exclusive cloths because the local nobles always ordered the exclusive fabrics before the goods arrived. Others could only purchase the leftovers. She used to enjoy this privilege.

She tried her very best to keep her pride, but reality reminded her repeatedly that she could never go back. The unfeathered phoenix is nothing better than a chicken; this sentence was like a knife pierced into her heart.

She sniffed and tried hard to hold back her tears, but she saw her servant come in with a package and take out a dress, a blouse, a set of jewelry, and a pair of embroidered shoes. They were neatly placed on the bed.

“Miss, Miss Lin sent it here just now. I think you’d better go to the Buddhist Ceremony as scheduled. If you don’t go, Lin’an Prefecture can’t see the most mesmerizing scenery.” The servant said with a smile.

Du Ruyan’s eyes were wide open. She covered her mouth with her hand, looking extremely shocked. Then, after a while, she shouted with joy, “Yes, today I definitely must go!” Read this novel and other amazing translated novels from the original source at the “Novel Multiverse dot com” website @ novelmultiverse.com