Chapter 1127, The Finest Materials Store

Translator: Silavin

 

“If we use linen, it will be uncomfortable against the skin. After all, this is something worn directly against the body.” Su Bai murmured to himself.

 

The sheet of white paper in front of him remained completely blank. His brow was furrowed tightly enough to trap a fly.

 

Su Bai had intended to work out a fitted upper garment for women, but he had yet to arrive at a satisfactory solution.

 

He idly tapped his charcoal pencil. “What if we used a new woven plant material? That would likely take a very long time to develop, and the result would probably still be uncomfortable.”

 

He shook his head and pushed the stray thoughts aside. He decided he would draw the design first.

 

Su Bai resolved to stop agonising over the raw material for now. What mattered most was getting the design down on paper. Without that, everything else was just pointless thoughts.

 

He drew upon his memory and sketched out the rough outline of a fitted upper garment for women.

 

With the support of the Ferocious Beast Crystal and the continuous strengthening of his Physique since his Transmigration, his memory had grown sharper and sharper. Buried recollections from the deepest parts of his mind were beginning to surface.

 

This was a very good thing. It would serve him well in managing the Tribe’s development in the years to come.

 

There was simply too much from the modern world that could be put to use in this Primitive Era.

 

Chemical experiments, physical principles, all manner of discoveries. Every one of them could be realised here and used to make life better.

 

The invention of the steam engine. The creation of cement. All of it was the crystallised wisdom of Humanity.

 

*Scribble scribble scribble…*

 

Su Bai’s charcoal pencil moved steadily across the paper. Before long, the rough outline of an undergarment had taken shape.

 

The design he produced was on the conservative side. Mainly, it was meant to suit the sensibilities of the people here.

 

The thinking that people in this Primitive Era were not particularly open, and Su Bai was not about to demand them to be. However, he could not make them overly restrictive. In the early stages, at least, he needed to meet the people’s needs and comfort first of all.

 

If the fitted garment was too revealing in its design, it would inevitably provoke resistance.

 

What he had drawn departed from standard proportions somewhat. The upper edge was no longer V-shaped, but instead ran parallel to the lower curve.

 

The effect was much like wearing a tube top underneath. And, he had to admit, it looked rather good.

 

“If I hadn’t Transmigrated, I believe I could have done quite well as a designer.” Su Bai chuckled to himself.

 

With the broad design sketched out, it was time for the structural diagram. Every garment required both a finished drawing and a structural breakdown.

 

Without the structural diagram, the clothing workshop would struggle to produce an actual garment from a finished-product illustration alone.

 

They were not people of the modern world, after all. They did not inherently know, for instance, that the front and back panels needed to be cut separately.

 

Though, to be fair, they were quite capable now. They had made enough garments by this point.

 

Many of the senior figures in the Flame Dragon Tribe wore clothing that came from the clothing workshop. But what they knew how to make was standard clothing. Upper garments, trousers, skirts, that sort of thing.

 

Fitted undergarments for women were another matter. No one had ever made one before so a structural diagram was essential.

 

The clothing workshop would use the diagram to create a 1:1 pattern, then place the pattern on the fabric and cut from there.

 

“This is not going to be simple. Should the internal support be made from steel wire or bamboo?” Su Bai set down his pencil.

 

He had fallen into the same difficulty he had faced with the fabric: what to use for the material.

 

The design was essentially finished. The material was the only thing left. Once that was decided, the clothing workshop could begin.

 

A fitted undergarment for women required an internal support structure. In the modern world, this was almost always stainless steel underwire.

 

But he had read an article once that argued the steel underwire in undergarments was actually harmful to the body. Something about compression restricting blood circulation.

 

So, Su Bai ruled out steel underwire from the start. He then thought of using the material from the Hollow Tree instead.

 

“That might actually work. Once it’s been processed, the branches of the Hollow Tree should become pliable. That ought to make it more comfortable to wear.” Su Bai turned the idea over quietly.

 

He made a note of it in the margin immediately, not wanting the idea to slip away.

 

“The next thing is resolving the material question. That’s critical. The whole point of a fitted garment is that it should be comfortable against the skin.”

 

He tapped his charcoal pencil against his temple. “Animal hide isn’t realistic. It will be far too hot and not breathable.”

 

He found himself imagining a material that was light, breathable, and pleasant against the skin. How good that would be.

 

“Wait. The forest should have something like that. Such a vast store of materials cannot go to waste.” Su Bai’s dark eyes brightened.

 

The Primitive Forest was full of all manner of plants. He refused to believe there was not something in there that could serve as the fabric for this.

 

*Step step step…*

 

Yu Ying had just returned to the Yong’an Building from outside, her basket filled with fresh vegetables.

 

Her delicate face still held a faint flush. “Shaman, the cabbage today is really fresh. I picked some to stir-fry for tonight’s dinner.”

 

“Good. Xiao Yu, could you ask Ah’Lan to come in? I’d like her to take some people into the forest to help me find something.” Su Bai said.

 

Whatever came to mind, he acted on immediately. That had always been his way. He had no habit of putting things off.

 

“Of course.” Yu Ying’s clear voice rang out.

 

Half an hour later, Sha Lan arrived at the living room having changed out of clothes soaked through with sweat.

 

She flicked her cat tail and asked with curiosity, “Shaman, what is it you’d like me to do today?”

 

“I’d like you to take some people into the forest to look for materials that can be used for fitted undergarments.” Su Bai passed over the completed diagram.

 

The diagram showed not only the finished design of the fitted garment, but also a figure wearing it, so that the effect could be seen at a glance.

 

Even someone unfamiliar with such things would understand what they were looking at. And Su Bai had already explained it was a fitted undergarment.

 

Sha Lan took it and went still for a moment. Her blue eyes moved back and forth across the page with visible unease.

 

She understood at once what the diagram showed. Then, without quite meaning to, she glanced downward at herself.

 

A flush rose immediately across the cat eared girl’s delicate, pale face. Her cat tail swung without stopping.

 

It was clear that Sha Lan was embarrassed. The way her cat ears drooped told the whole story.

 

“You understand what I mean, right?” Su Bai could feel her awkwardness from where he was sitting.

 

“Understood. I’ll take people to look right away.” Sha Lan turned and walked away quickly.

 

Su Bai smiled with a hint of resignation. Helping everyone see that none of this was anything to be embarrassed about was going to be a long road.