The elder sister’s reasoning made sense to the three younger sisters, after all, their youngest sister was only two years old. Weren’t they all incapable of anything at that age?
Qing’s reputation as a genius wasn’t groundless; who could have imagined a two-year-old girl possessing such an array of skills?
They, as sisters, knew certain things that they kept hidden from outsiders to help their parents.
Especially about their sister’s magic, which aside from them and their parents, even their grandparents might not know. It wasn’t due to those people being negligent, but rather because they were too greedy, thinking the items were gifts from immortals!
"Elder sisters, the jewelry that Qing carved is so beautiful. I almost asked her to make some for me, but I didn’t dare!"
Ye Fengqi felt comfortable confiding in her three elder sisters as she spent the most time with Ye Shiqi, even sharing a bed with her!
She couldn’t remember the smaller details, but Qing seemed very easy to talk to. She was good to her elder sisters and kind to the family!
As an elder sister, she never dared make demands of her younger sister. Sometimes, from the look in her younger sister’s eyes, unreasonable demands were met with a revealing gaze that could see through you.
"Forget about it, Qing didn’t have a choice in doing this. Didn’t you see her tender little hands getting injured in several places? Although they healed gradually without scars, we all felt pained seeing it. Better not to cause trouble for our little sister!"
"Second Sister is right; Fourth Sister, give it up. If you want something nice, go learn it yourself. Do you have the heart to let our little sister overwork herself?"
"Elder Sister and Second Sister are right. Fourth Sister, you are heartless to Qing. Young Master Tang gave so many valuable gifts, it would be inappropriate for her not to reciprocate. Furthermore, our parents don’t even dare to let her give things away, isn’t that because they care about her?"
Ye Fengqi hung her head lower and lower as she was reprimanded by her three elder sisters, no longer daring to bring up the matter.
Ye Shiqi, the subject of the conversation, was, as her sisters said, diligently carving; it was a technical task, and she really did have to exert herself as she held the carving knife.
She had hurt her hand several times, enduring the pain by drinking water from her magic space and applying medicine to the wounds.
She had made gloves for herself, but they were too thick and cumbersome. Even good gloves could cause injury. When the carving knife wasn’t held steadily, she sometimes longed for those electric tools that could be used back home!
Yet in ancient times, such high-tech, electrically powered products didn’t exist, and everything had to be carved out one slice at a time – not only laborious but also time-consuming!
No wonder the craftsmanship of ancient people became so valuable in later generations. With good skills, the items carved were also more exquisite!
The resilience and wisdom of the ancients were commendable, superior to some in the high-tech era!
Artisans were not valued in that time as they are in this one.
She deeply understood that everything comes at a cost, like accepting gifts from others, which incurred obligations.
Now, she had to pay the price and return the favor. Ye Shiqi did not feel impatient, treating it as a kind of leisurely entertainment!
There were operas in this era too, but they wouldn’t perform in rural areas. If a rich man from the countryside had money, he would go to the county or to specific places to watch operas.
On occasions of celebration, they would typically have performances at home.
Here, they did not speak Mandarin. When she first arrived in this era, she couldn’t understand some of the speech!
After getting used to it, she realized that the local language was neither Mandarin nor Cantonese from Nanyue Country but a kind of local dialect, somewhat similar to Cantonese, yet distinct.
The others could understand Cantonese, and they could also understand Mandarin. However, most people in this place spoke either Cantonese or the local dialect.
Only people from the North spoke Mandarin; it was the merchants who traveled from north to south who came here. When encountering these merchants, if locals did not recognize the goods, they could be taken advantage of.
No matter who you were in unfamiliar places, if you didn’t know the local market, there were always those who specialized in such trades to exploit you.
Ye Shiqi did not dislike the era she had landed in from the book; she adapted as needed and had thought about returning to her own time too!
But how could she find a mysterious space-time portal for a journey not explainable by science?
She dared not share her innermost thoughts with anyone; these matters could only be buried in her heart.
Where to find a time passage? She had crossed over and found herself in her mother’s womb as a baby, not even aware of how she came to be here!
She only knew she had died in her time and was reborn in this era. The times described in the book were neither explicitly good nor bad.
Her initial hardships had given way to sweeter times. Now, she could enjoy her parents’ love in this era, and she was quite content with her life here – where there was love, there was happiness.
Ye Shiqi wasn’t opposed to learning needlework. Perhaps when a little older, she would acquire more skills, but for now, she was too small and her abilities insufficient.
Others called her a genius, but she was no true prodigy; some abilities came from just memories, while she had learned carving from a young age from her father.