The happy little days of the Ye family

After Ye's father returned home, he went to Ye's mother with rabbit skins and wolf skins, and the two discussed how to make these skins into leather clothes.

Father Ye's price for collecting these leathers is not high, but if they are made into leather clothes, the price can be several times higher.

How can 16 rabbit skins be used to make a rabbit fur coat? Ye Mu planned to use two pieces of pure white rabbit skin for the collar, and gray rabbit skin for sleeves and other parts. This would look much better than a simple gray rabbit fur coat.

It's just that Ye Mu has never made leather clothes before, so she doesn't dare to do it easily for fear of ruining these good leathers.

The wolf-skin leaf mother was a little scared, and now she only had one wolf skin, which was not enough. There were several knife marks on the wolf skin, and Ye Mu didn't even know how to deal with it.

Grandma Ye was an embroiderer when she was young and was well-informed. Mother Ye took all the rabbit skins and wolf skins back to her parents' home. The mother and daughter discussed in the house for a long time before Mother Ye returned to Ye's house.

Mother Ye and Father Ye said: "When Mom was young, she made leather coats in the embroidery workshop, both rabbit and wolf skins. Mom said these 16 rabbit skins were only enough to make a short leather jacket. It takes at least 20 skins to make a coat."

"There is only one wolf skin now, and it can't even be made into a short fur coat. Aren't the people in Dashan Village also rely on hunting for a living? If you have time, go there and see if you can receive any skins, whether they are rabbit skins or wolf skins. , collect some and make leather coats.”

"This white rabbit skin looks good. Let's see if we can collect some more white rabbit skin. The pure white rabbit skin will be used to make the collar, and the gray rabbit skin will be used to make the sleeves and other parts. The leather coat made this way will be better than pure gray." Rabbit skin looks much better, and the price can go up a bit.”

Father Ye thinks that rabbit fur coats are highly profitable and he might as well give it a try. "I happen to be going to Dashan Village tomorrow to collect winter bamboo shoots, and I'm going to ask if there are any skins. There are many hares in Dashan Village, but I don't know if anyone knows how to knead the fur. "

Hare is common, but not many people know how to knead fur, otherwise the price of this leather coat would not be so expensive.

Mother Ye added: "In addition to leather, a lot of fabric is also needed. Thick burlap should be added to the inside of the sewn rabbit fur coat. This will make the coat more stylish and have a better outline."

"Then add a layer of muslin on the inside side to make it more comfortable to wear. Next time you go to the county, buy some good muslin."

Ye's father made an appointment with the villagers of Dashan Village to collect winter bamboo shoots this afternoon. In the morning, the villagers went to the mountain to dig winter bamboo shoots before dawn. When Ye's father came to Dashan Village, the whole village was quiet.

Father Ye went to the village chief's house first. Fortunately, the village chief was at home at this time. Father Ye asked the village chief about collecting leather goods.

"Leather, although there are many hares here, only Li Orion can knead fur. He spent a lot of money to learn it from other places. But I heard that he didn't learn it well and the leather he made was a bit hard. "

Father Ye wanted to go over and have a look. It would be great if there was something suitable. "Is Orion Li at home? I want to go over and see the leather he kneaded."

"Li Orion didn't seem to be digging bamboo shoots today. Let me take you to his house." As he said, the village chief led Father Ye out.

The two came to Li Orion's house, and Li Orion was chopping firewood in the yard.

When Li Orion saw the two of them, he put down the ax in his hand and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.

The three of them came to the hall. Li Orion poured water for them, "Brother Ye, are you here to collect winter bamboo shoots? I dug some at home in the past two days, but not much."

Orion Li's parents are no longer here, and there are only him, Madam Li, and three children at home. Orion Li mainly goes hunting in the mountains. His wife and her three children dig the winter bamboo shoots at home.

Father Ye quickly said: "There is no rush for the winter bamboo shoots. We will collect them together in the afternoon when the villagers come back. I came here mainly to collect the skins. I heard that Orion Li can knead furs, so I came here to have a look."

Orion Li scratched his head in embarrassment, "I'm not very skilled yet, so the leather I made is a bit hard."

Hunter Li hunts in the mountains all year round. The most common animals on the mountains are rabbits and wild boars, but wolves and foxes can occasionally be encountered in the mountains.

A few years ago, Orion Li hunted down a lone wolf. The wolf was killed by Orion Li. The wolf skin was still intact. Orion Li didn’t know how to make leather, so he had to sell it to the mountain people in the mountains at a low price.

Later, Orion Li thought about it carefully. The most common thing in Dashan Village was rabbits. If he could make rabbit skins into leather, he could have a stable income, so he wouldn't have to risk going into the mountains to hunt.

So I spent 5 taels of silver to learn how to knead fur from a mountain man. I don't know whether he didn't learn it well or the person who taught me didn't do his best, so the leather he made was a little stiff.

This method of making fur is relatively simple. It is to clean the fresh fur that has been peeled off, then rub it with saltpeter and plant ash, and then put the rubbed fur into a pit and bury it for a month.

The more difficult thing here is the ratio of saltpeter and plant ash. Li Orion suspected that the teacher did not tell him the correct ratio.

Li Orion came out with a lot of rabbit skins. "The rabbit skins that were kneaded at first were too hard to make leather clothes, but they are good for making blankets."

Li Orion dug out a small gray rabbit skin blanket from a pile of rabbit skins and handed it to Father Ye, "The furs I made at the beginning were relatively hard, so I used them to make blankets. They are quite warm. I usually spend the night in the mountains." I always carry a fur blanket."

"The current rabbit skins have been kneaded in the past two years. They are softer than the previous ones, but they are still a little hard. Can you see if they can be cured?"

Father Ye looked through the rabbit skins one by one. Most of the rabbit skins were still a little hard and probably couldn't be made into clothes. Only a few were still soft.

Father Ye picked out the soft rabbit skins. There were 7 pieces in total, and the remaining 18 pieces were relatively hard. One of the 18 rabbit skins is a pure white rabbit skin, but it is a pity that it was not kneaded well.

After looking at the rabbit fur, Father Ye picked up the rabbit fur blanket again. It was heavy and thick, but a little stiff and unsuitable. Father Ye put the blanket on his body, and he was sweating after a while. It was indeed quite warm.

"I've accepted the rabbit skins and blankets. Brother Li, please give me a price."

Hearing Father Ye say that he wanted all these leathers, Orion Li was extremely happy. He also asked for these leathers at cloth shops and clothing-making places in the county, but they all said they would not accept them. Unexpectedly, Father Ye actually wrapped them up in a big way. .

“这7张柔软一些的38文一张，剩下的18张就20文一张吧。毛毯当初用了20多张兔皮做成的，不过这些兔皮揉制得不好，就300文吧。”

"Okay, just as Brother Li said, the total rabbit skin is 626 yuan, and the blanket is 926 yuan in total."

"Brother Ye, I still have a batch of furs being kneaded here. It will be ready in about 20 days."

During this period, Li Lie hunted a lot of pheasants and rabbits to make bacon, and the rabbit skins were made into leather by Hunter Li. Although the leather made by Hunter Li was a little hard, it was good for making blankets and mattresses. Saved a lot of money on cotton.

"I'll come over and take a look when the time comes. I'll take it if it's suitable."