books44 Chapter 269 Bamboo Basket
Chapter 269 Bamboo Basket
Lin Chunyi had only ever heard that bamboo was very resilient; she never imagined it could be so "unruly"!
She thought she had been very careful and patient when she broke it open, but she still ended up being proven wrong!
She could only cough awkwardly and say, "It's because it's my first time and I have no experience. You wait, I'll definitely succeed this time!"
Moreover, her inaccurate control of the force in her hands while sitting must have affected her performance!
She thought for a moment, then stood up, exhaled a long breath, and began to try again.
Toast it, then slowly bend it into an almost right angle, hold it for a while, and then release it...
"It's done! Hahaha, I knew it! I must have messed up just now. Look how well I did this time, it's just right, isn't it!" Lin Chunyi held up a bamboo strip bent into a right angle for her sister to see, her face beaming with pride.
Lin Lanshan clapped her hands and nodded in praise, "Amazing! My sister is a true crafts genius!"
Lin Chunyi felt a little embarrassed after being praised by her younger sister like a child. She didn't say anything more and continued grilling and breaking bamboo strips.
After the first success, there were no more problems. The two of them used minimal force, applying pressure little by little to their hands, and one by one, the unsealed "口"-shaped bamboo frames took shape.
As darkness fell, they finally succeeded in making fourteen complete bamboo strips, excluding the one and a half that were broken off!
Lin Lanshan rubbed her back, which she had unconsciously bent over while breaking the bamboo, and looked at the half-finished boxes scattered all over the ground. She suddenly felt a great sense of accomplishment.
"Sis, it seems we do have a bit of talent to be bamboo craft masters."
Lin Chunyi, stepping out of the bedroom, echoed, "Of course!"
She pulled half a bolt of dull-colored old cloth from some box and threw it on the ground. "Use this to tie it up. Cloth strips are easier to tie than hemp rope."
Lin Lanshan sniffed, delicately picked it up with her fingers, and then disdainfully shook off non-existent dust.
"Wow~ I could smell the scent of old fabric from far away. Where did you find this fabric? I don't remember it at all."
"There are plenty more inside, like treasured items, you know? There's one at the bottom of every box." It mainly served as a lining for the boxes.
"I was wondering why I didn't remember it. You've brought out our family's fabric ancestor!"
Lin Lanshan grinned and then took scissors and made a small cut in the fabric. "Sis, quickly help me straighten it. I'm afraid I'll tear it crookedly if you just tear it directly."
"..." Their ancestors must have been quite numerous, too many to count.
When her older sister picked up the two corners of the fabric on the other side, she used scissors to cut along the small opening with a "snip-snip" sound, cutting a bunch of thin strips of fabric.
The process was quite smooth and stress-relieving.
The two sisters then used their hands and feet to hold down a bamboo frame, tying a thin strip of cloth tightly at intervals, and then placed a second frame and tied it up again.
Repeat these two actions until all the bamboo frames are used up. Tie a knot in the last bamboo frame and cut off the excess cloth strips.
A slightly crooked bamboo basket is now complete!
Lin Chunyi looked at the ugly baskets they had worked on all day and clicked her tongue, saying, "Sure enough, some things just can't be done by trying hard. Look at these baskets, tsk~"
After saying that, he kicked it, and the basket actually wobbled a couple of times, as if trying to show her how fragile it was...
Lin Lanshan, too, found it hard to look at the work she had painstakingly completed. She stood with her hands on her hips, looking indignant, and said:
"Once the weather gets warmer and I can go down the mountain, I definitely want to find Ashu and learn a few tricks for making baskets! Then I'll get back up from where I fell down!"
Not only bamboo, but she also plans to find a master to learn a few basic woodworking techniques when she has the chance.
From now on, they won't have to rack their brains and frantically try to find something when they need it temporarily.
Because here, you have to do so many things yourself...
But her sister's words made Lin Chunyi's mind go blank for a moment. She murmured, "Lanshan, now that you mention it, I suddenly remember, why don't we just use bamboo baskets to grow vegetables? We have so many bamboo baskets..."
It's just a handful of pea shoots; they're not planting a huge amount across a large area. Those deep bamboo baskets are just ready-made, well-ventilated planting boxes that can also be used for growing vegetables.
As A-Shu's bamboo weaving skills improved, he wove more and sold more, and his house was piled high with bamboo strips in the corner of the backyard.
Every time they went down the mountain, the two siblings would try to fill their carriage with all sorts of woven bamboo baskets. They would also always put their hands behind their backs and refuse to accept money.
So they have quite a lot of bamboo woven products at home.
"..." Bamboo basket? ??? Lin Lanshan's mind went completely blank, as if struck by lightning.
The bamboo basket was also open. Yes, it can also be used to grow vegetables!
They've been busy with all sorts of random things all day. What have they been up to? Are they lonely?
And the other day we almost had a big argument about whether to plant cilantro or scallions, and it was all for nothing.
They have a bunch of spare bamboo baskets at home, but they don't use them! Instead, they brave the cold wind and trudge through the snow to run all the way to the bamboo forest to cut bamboo and drag it home.
Before he could even catch his breath after getting back, he started splitting bamboo and bending bamboo strips again, wasting half a bolt of old cloth in the process.
In the end, they made this ugly thing that they didn't really need?
Haha, I'm so ashamed of myself!
Lin Lanshan wished she could shake her head and ask it where all the walnuts she'd been eating had gone!
So irritating!
Without saying a word, in a fit of anger, she picked up the broken basket they had painstakingly made with one hand, went down the steps, and strode out.
Lin Chunyi followed her and asked, "Where are you going?"
If this basket is no longer needed and is to be taken away for firewood, shouldn't it be taken to the kitchen...?
"I'm going to fill the soil and plant peas," Lin Lanshan said casually.
Well, so she got angry and got a little angry.
What else can we do? It's already made. We can't just throw it away or burn it. It's all handmade and requires a lot of effort.
Given its condition, it's impossible to display it openly indoors as an exhibition.
There's no other way, so let's just keep using them! Let's just pretend they didn't remember, didn't know, or didn't understand about using bamboo baskets for growing vegetables...
The two women filled most of a basket with soil and carried it back to their bedroom, where they placed it in a row with their other two planting boxes containing lettuce, cilantro, scallions, and chili peppers.
Of course, peas haven't been planted in the ugly bamboo basket yet.
After all, soil dug from under the snow, no matter how deep, is still frozen. It's difficult for seeds that aren't cold-resistant to grow.
So they planned to let the soil sit in the warm bedroom for two days before planting the peas.
While waiting for these two days, I'll soak a small bag of peas that I haven't found yet in the cellar, and let them sprout.