The maid froze, thinking she had misheard, and didn't respond for a moment.
Lin Zhiqing, good-natured, spoke again: "Excuse me, do you have more of this fabric?"
"Oh, yes... yes, we do." The maid nodded.
She wouldn't dare to nod for other fabrics, but they had as much of this netting as needed in the storeroom.
Lin Zhiqing smiled contentedly: "Thank you for your trouble. Please bring out some more for me."
"You... you mean now?" The maid was clearly somewhat incredulous.
It wasn't until she saw Lin Zhiqing nod that she accepted the order and left.
Looking at the maid's retreating back, Princess Pingning was the first to laugh: "In this day and age, there are actually people who want to make clothes out of netting. How ridiculous, truly ridiculous."
Lin Zhiqing continued to choose the remaining fabrics on her own, ignoring her.
Princess Pingning felt a sense of powerlessness, like punching cotton, and could only snort coldly.
Meanwhile, Lin Zhiqing was looking for another type of material.
She had the flowing netting, now she needed a particularly smooth silk.
Watching Lin Zhiqing put all the fabrics he liked back in their original places, Lin Shi'an felt utterly frustrated.
He knew his cousin well. Lin Shi'an's impression of Lin Zhiqing always remained that of a well-behaved girl who rarely left her courtyard.
She always wore that faded dress, making others think the Lin family didn't give her good clothes.
This impression stayed with him until now. He was filled with distrust towards Lin Zhiqing, and quietly picked up his own fabrics again.
Lin Zhiqing saw his actions, but she had no time to argue, so she just let her cousin be.
Just as everyone was eagerly choosing, Lin Zhiqing had quickly found the fabric she wanted, then went to the place where the brushes and ink were laid out.
This naturally sparked another round of discussion.
The old lady, who had just started to have a better impression of Lin Zhiqing, frowned involuntarily upon seeing this:
"What nonsense! The time for one incense stick hasn't even passed halfway. Why is she in such a hurry?"
One must know that choosing a few pieces of fabric actually didn't take an entire stick of incense.
The old lady had given such a time limit precisely so that everyone would have more time to think, ensuring the finished products wouldn't be too ugly.
But Lin Zhiqing's actions went against her intentions, making people feel that she was arrogant and presumptuous.
"I used to think this Lin Zhiqing had a brain, but now she's acting foolish again. Not to mention the time isn't up, what kind of fabrics is she choosing?"
"You don't know the situation of the Lin family? Lin Zhiqing is shortsighted. She just got lucky once. Now she's showing her true colors."
"I don't quite agree with that. Isn't this round testing new clothing designs? What if her finished product turns out well?"
The discussions grew louder, and even the few people on the viewing platform began to whisper among themselves.
Lin Zhiqing ignored them and signaled Lin Shi'an to grind the ink.
Lin Shi'an, though he didn't approve of her actions, wouldn't defy her in this situation.
Lin Zhiqing purified her hands, then picked up the brush and began to draw on the paper without hesitation.
The others were still far away and couldn't see clearly, but Lin Shi'an, standing nearby, saw everything clearly.
His cousin's drawing skills were truly hard to describe.
The rough lines and unmethodical strokes were enough to make even him, someone not very proficient in literature, unable to bear watching.
"Lin Zhiqing, what do you usually do cooped up in the courtyard? Don't you make any progress in studying other skills?" Lin Shi'an took a step forward, trying his best to block others' views.
A person needs face, a tree needs bark.
He had never been as flustered as he was today, afraid that Lin Zhiqing would damage the Lin family's reputation.
"I only have one old nanny by my side. Where do you suggest I go to study?" Lin Zhiqing didn't even lift her head.
Lin Shi'an choked, unable to speak for a moment.
When they left home today, he found it strange. Other young ladies had several maids with them, but Lin Zhiqing was peculiar, choosing only an old nanny to accompany her.
He asked and only then found out that Lin Zhiqing didn't have any maids at all. This shattered his previous assumptions and made him realize some of the Lin family's shortcomings.
Of course, he wouldn't say it aloud.
With no one nagging her, Lin Zhiqing's speed was clearly faster.
Contrary to the rough lines, Lin Zhiqing, with just a few strokes, sketched out a strangely styled garment... perhaps something that could be called a garment.
Lin Shi'an's eyes had changed from initial worry to surprise.
How was this possible?
Lin Zhiqing's method of using the brush actually produced a complete drawing. However, this design wasn't quite right.
"Lin Zhiqing, you drew it wrong. Where are the sleeves of this dress?" Lin Shi'an pointed at both sides of the drawing.
"Cousin, don't move," Lin Zhiqing patted Lin Shi'an's hand.
This "outrageous" action made Lin Shi'an frown: "Who gave you permission to touch my hand? And you're not allowed to point out mistakes?"
Lin Zhiqing sighed and straightened up: "Cousin, if you keep being so noisy, I'll have to ask you to leave."
"How dare you..." Lin Shi'an frowned, about to speak, but in a flash, he saw Lin Zhiqing unroll another sheet of paper.
And she began drawing without hesitation, as if she already had a plan in mind.
Lin Shi'an's open mouth slowly closed, and he intently watched Lin Zhiqing's movements.
Soon, others also successively chose their fabrics and reached the stage of drawing their ideas.
As they passed by Lin Zhiqing, their eyes were not honest, constantly trying to spy something.
Lin Zhiqing noticed this and sped up.
Soon, the time for one stick of incense passed, and without any interval, it directly entered the "two hours" for finished product production.
While others were still deep in thought, Lin Zhiqing contentedly picked up her work and blew on the ink.
Then, she walked briskly towards the tailors.
This gesture of being several steps ahead of others was not a good sign in the eyes of some.
As soon as Lin Zhiqing stepped into the tailors' area, several scrutinizing gazes fell upon her.
But at the same time, she was also sizing up the tailors. This was actually a two-way selection.
Lin Zhiqing didn't rush to hand over her drawing to save time. Instead, she unhurriedly walked around.
Surprisingly, among the dozen or so tailors, there was only one woman, and she seemed to be at odds with the others.
Lin Zhiqing was only surprised for a moment before she began to observe the tailors.
Some, seeing that she was the first to arrive, pulled long faces.
Lin Zhiqing naturally wouldn't choose someone who clearly held a grudge against her.
Some were very enthusiastic towards her, but Lin Zhiqing noticed their forced smiles and twitching nostrils, which indicated they were feigning sincerity and perhaps had ulterior motives.
Avoiding several people with whom she couldn't establish a cooperative relationship, Lin Zhiqing fixed her gaze on the woman at the very end:
"Hmm, she's the one!"
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