As Zhang Cui listened to Su Tang, she felt that what she said made sense.
The people in this family compound were experts at seeing which way the wind blew.
After all, Hu Lili had been in the compound for many years, so people were more inclined to side with her.
It just meant that Su Tang seemed a bit out of place.
'That really is a great idea of Su Tang's.'
As they were talking, Zhang Cui looked down at Mai Sui's little flushed face and gently stroked it, her own face full of heartache.
"This blasted weather has chapped the child's face all dry."
Seeing this, some of the traditional medicine knowledge Su Tang had learned suddenly came to mind.
Her eyes lit up, and she immediately grabbed Zhang Cui's hand.
"Sister-in-law, I have an idea. We could make some herbal sachets. The climate in the Northwest is so dry, and a lot of people have sore throats and dry skin. I know a bit about medicinal herbs and which ones can help with these problems. If we make some sachets for soothing throats and moisturizing skin, I'm sure everyone will want them."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Cui's eyes instantly lit up. "What a great idea! Educated people like you are really different; even your ideas are so practical. I knew it! Marrying into our community, you were bound to bring good things to everyone."
All the women here were sent down to the countryside to work, exposed to the wind and rain all day, but they never complained.
But in this blasted Northwest weather, the wind chapped everyone's faces until they were completely dry.
No amount of moisturizing cream did any good.
As she spoke, she looked down at her own rough hands and smiled a little sheepishly.
"These hands of mine are only good for rough work. I'm clumsy with things like embroidery, but sewing a simple cloth pouch is no problem."
Su Tang smiled and patted Zhang Cui's hand. "Sister-in-law, let's divide the labor. I'll be in charge of mixing the herbs, and you'll be in charge of sewing the pouches. How does that sound?"
"You bet!"
Zhang Cui agreed cheerfully and stood up, holding Mai Sui.
"I have some clean old clothes here. Mai Sui's dad can't wear them anymore, so they're perfect for this. They've all been washed and are very clean."
Zhang Cui pulled out some old clothes and fabric scraps, while Su Tang carefully selected materials suitable for the sachets.
She chose some coarse, breathable cloth. The colors were plain, but its practicality was what mattered.
Looking at these old clothes, Su Tang thought of her own plaid tablecloth.
She couldn't use it as a tablecloth, but it would be perfect for making sachets.
"Sister-in-law, I'm going home to get something. Wait for me, okay?"
With that, Su Tang ran home. Lu Xiao was just about to put some noodles on to boil and hadn't even had a chance to ask if she wanted any before she darted away.
She also took a small box with her.
Inside were some medicinal herbs that Mr. Su had specially given to Su Tang.
He was worried she wouldn't be able to adapt to life in the Northwest.
These traditional Chinese herbs were extremely valuable, but Su Tang needed to use them now.
She didn't feel that reluctant to part with them.
"Sister-in-law, what do you think? Will this fabric work?"
Su Tang rushed back and asked, holding up the plaid cloth.
Zhang Cui leaned in for a look and nodded. "Yes, this will do. Let's sew a few small pouches first and see how they turn out."
With that, the two of them sat down on small stools in the courtyard and began to sew the pouches.
Although Zhang Cui's hands were rough, her movements were skillful. In no time, she had sewn several neat little pouches.
Meanwhile, Su Tang was mixing the herbs. She found some with throat-soothing properties like mint, honeysuckle, and licorice root.
There were also skin-moisturizing herbs like angelica root and astragalus. She carefully ground them into a powder and then filled the different pouches.
"Sister-in-law, take a whiff. How does this smell?"
Su Tang handed a throat-soothing sachet to Zhang Cui.
Zhang Cui took the sachet, held it under her nose, and a satisfied smile spread across her face. "It smells wonderful. Just sniffing it makes me feel comfortable."
The faint medicinal fragrance offered a gentle relief from the knife-like wind of the Northwest.
Just as they were busy working, Mai Sui suddenly started to cry. Zhang Cui quickly put down her work to soothe the child.
"This little one, already giving me trouble."
Zhang Cui nursed Mai Sui, who then finally fell asleep.
Once Zhang Cui had settled Mai Sui, the two of them resumed making the sachets.
The herbs Su Tang had brought were all top-quality; they would have cost a fortune if bought outside.
Zhang Cui could also tell good from bad. Seeing that Su Tang wasn't at all pained to use them, she couldn't help but comment.
"You know, the people here aren't really that bad. It's just that Hu Lili, who's always running her mouth, made everyone misunderstand you."
Hearing this, Su Tang smiled. "Are you worried I'd take it to heart, Sister-in-law?"
"I can tell who's good and who's bad. I'm also doing this to make my own life a little easier."
Su Tang was no saint, nor was she that kind-hearted.
If she weren't the one who stood to benefit from all this, she wouldn't have gone to such trouble.
After all, she would be living in the family compound for a long time. She was doing this to make her own life more comfortable.
"Yes, yes, of course. You see things as clear as day, little sister."
As they worked, they chatted, and Zhang Cui started telling Su Tang about Lu Xiao's past.
"Brother Lu, back in the day, he was a real tough guy. Always had a stern look on his face, didn't say much. We all thought he'd never get married in his life. But then you came, and he's a completely different person."
"What's that saying? A tough guy with a tender heart, right? I think you two are the most perfect match."
Listening to this, a small smile appeared on Su Tang's face.
She thought of Lu Xiao's bright red ear tips, of the flustered look on his face, and felt that this outwardly cold man actually had a soft side to him.
"Sister-in-law, was Lu Xiao really that serious before?"
Zhang Cui nodded. "Absolutely. He's incredibly strict with himself. During training, he was always the first to arrive and the last to leave. And while he looked out for us family members, he just wasn't much of a talker."
She paused, then added with a smile, "But ever since you arrived, he's clearly different. He smiles more, and sometimes he even jokes around with us."
"Having a wife changes a man. He's just like my Wang now."
As the two were chatting happily, the vegetable sauce Zhang Cui was simmering in the pot was ready.
"Just eat here. I'll make you some hand-pulled noodles today."
Su Tang wanted to refuse, but looking at Zhang Cui's sincere expression, she had to accept.
'How presumptuous of me,' she thought. 'I forgot it was lunchtime and just rushed over to find Zhang Cui.'
The two of them packed up their things and went inside, where Zhang Cui skillfully started making the hand-pulled noodles.
The hand-pulled noodles Zhang Cui made were no worse than what you'd get in a restaurant. Su Tang ate two large bowls.
This prompted Zhang Cui to joke that she must have never had coarse grains before and had gotten carried away.
After the meal, Su Tang said goodbye to Zhang Cui and returned home with the few sachets they had made.
Lu Xiao had already eaten and was in the courtyard chopping firewood.
He was wearing a worn-out military uniform, his face dotted with wood chips. Sweat trickled down his forehead and dripped onto the ground.
Lu Xiao looked up and saw Su Tang. He put down his axe and wiped the sweat from his brow.
Suddenly noticing the sachets in her hand, he asked, "What's that?"
Su Tang handed him a sachet. "These are herbal sachets that Sister-in-law Zhang Cui and I made. For soothing the throat and moisturizing the skin. Want to try one?"
Lu Xiao took the sachet and held it under his nose to smell it. "Smells nice. This little pouch can soothe your throat and skin?"