Peace returned to the household.
Zhao Gao and his two children were cleaning up the yard. Mrs. Li had made a mess of the bamboo strips they had spent time whittling, and some were snapped and ruined. Madam Chen gathered up the useless strips, noting that they could at least be used as kindling later. Zhao Yun efficiently sorted the remaining intact strips, setting them aside for Zhao Gao to weave into winnowing baskets.
Zhao Gao continued to whittle bamboo at the side. They had a large number of baskets to make today, and since they hadn't whittled enough to begin with—and Mrs. Li had destroyed several more—he was now running short on materials. He had to pick up the pace; if he didn't finish, there would be nowhere to sun-dry the persimmons.
Chapter 35