Short hair, dark skin, neatly arranged clothes, a deer carrying a bundle, and a wolf with a rope...
Upon seeing these, Huang Guo immediately smiled, as the tension that had just arisen from hearing noises transformed into joy.
The tribe that had left not long ago had come back with precious items!
Huang Guo and several others who noticed the arrival of the Green Sparrow Tribe greeted them cheerfully, even more excited than when welcoming the returning hunting chief...
The chief of the Huang Guo Tribe returned with the hunting party and their catch.
Their harvest today was quite good, so they were in high spirits.
When he returned to the tribe and saw the people from the waiting tribe outside the cave, his already good mood became even more pleasant.
This was because he received an extremely surprising and delightful piece of news from the members of that tribe—they were willing to exchange a small half-jar of salt for all the not-so-tasty food that his tribe had accumulated.
He felt that the not-so-tasty fruits from his tribe were not worth that much salt.
After hesitating for a moment, he still informed Shang and Mao about the unpleasant taste of the food, which could easily cause stomach discomfort after eating.
After saying this, he nervously looked at Shang and Mao.
He thought that upon learning about the shortcomings of these fruits, the people from this tribe would indeed not offer as much salt.
It was even possible they wouldn't use salt for the exchange.
However, to his surprise, after hearing his words, the two did not intend to back down.
Instead, they dug out two more spoonfuls of salt for him and indicated that if there were more such fruits, they would still exchange salt for them in the future.
This deeply surprised the chief of the Huang Guo Tribe and filled him with great joy.
The generosity of this far-traveled tribe moved him.
Primitive people express their welcome very directly; after transporting all the stored fruits from the cave, they gave them all to the Green Sparrow Tribe's merchant team. Then, the chief of the Huang Guo Tribe took out their new catch from the day.
Some were roasted over a fire, while others were simmered in clay pots to treat the generous Green Sparrow Tribe's merchant team.
After understanding the chief of the Huang Guo Tribe's intentions, Shang and Mao also began to take out food and mix it with the food from the Huang Guo Tribe for everyone to share.
The delight of receiving numerous soybeans made Mao, who was somewhat stingy, become highly generous.
He took out two cans from the few canned goods the merchant team carried, poured a bowl for the chief of the Huang Guo Tribe, and shared the rest with the minors from the Huang Guo Tribe.
The chief of the Huang Guo Tribe held a piece of boiled peach in his hand, looking at it with astonishment.
The peach blossoms had just started to wilt, and the peaches were only as big as a small finger, far from being ripe, yet the people from this tribe had produced mature peaches.
How... did they manage that?
The chief of the Huang Guo Tribe felt increasingly perplexed by the Green Sparrow Tribe and found the merchant team extremely mysterious.
His amazement intensified after taking a bite of the juicy peach and sipping the soup.
This wonderful flavor was even more captivating than eating a peach directly.
The minors who were tasting this delightful flavor for the first time slurped with saliva, squinted their eyes, and wanted to eat more but were reluctant to do so, savoring this intoxicating taste with exceptional care.
Some minors secretly gazed at the Green Sparrow Tribe's merchant team, filled with longing. The people of this tribe always managed to bring excellent items...
After a lavish dinner for the Huang Guo Tribe, illuminated by the flames, the people of the Huang Guo Tribe began to roll around on the ground, hugging the members of the Green Sparrow Tribe's merchant team...
Warm sunlight poured down, and the rapeseed flowers began to wilt. Near the edge of a vast field of rapeseed, close to the walls, there was a piece of land cleared explicitly for planting, where a patch of miscellaneous seedlings was sprouting, though it was unclear what they were.
The strange seeds brought back by Shang and Mao were not fed to the pigs, chickens, or geese as the shaman had suggested, as doing so would be a waste.
Instead, Han Cheng scattered them on the ground.
Looking at the seeds alone, he couldn't recognize many of them, but once they sprouted and grew, it would be different.
At that time, there would be more ways to identify and confirm their types and uses.
He hoped to discover some surprises in the future.
Han Cheng thought to himself.
Beside him, Bai Xue, whose belly was already visibly rounded, gazed at the spring-filled field beside him.
The clingy chicks nearby happily wandered about, occasionally jumping up to peck at some petals to eat.
After watching for a while, they both headed toward the mulberry trees. The spring silkworms they had raised in the yard were nearly out of mulberry leaves, and they needed to pick some more.
Han Cheng carried a basket in one hand while holding Bai Xue's hand with the other. Behind them trailed a group of lively chicks with tiny legs constantly chasing after them, along with Fu Jiang, their loyal dog, and its descendants—a truly grand procession.
The mulberry leaves had unfurled, still tender to the touch, feeling quite pleasant.
As Han Cheng and Bai Xue harvested half a basket of leaves, they noticed a commotion in the distance toward the tribe, where many people had gathered.
Han Cheng’s heart skipped a beat. Could it be that the slaves in the tribe were staging a rebellion?
He looked further away and saw more slaves still toiling away, cultivating the wasteland. It didn't seem like a rebellion at all.
Feeling somewhat vigilant, he thought for a moment before a person sprinted toward him from the direction of the tribe. Han Cheng frowned as he watched the individual...
Was it someone from the Fire Tribe?
Upon hearing this unexpected yet reasonable news, Han Cheng finally relaxed the tension in his heart.
Then he chuckled self-deprecatingly, realizing that since becoming a slave owner, he had started to worry about ghosts knocking at his door.
After picking some more mulberry leaves, he took Bai Xue and their growing entourage back to the courtyard.
Bai Xue, feeling sorry for the little chick's short legs and struggle to run, decided to put it in the basket.
The travelers from afar, including Huo Song and a few others from the Fire Tribe, were momentarily stunned by everything before them.
This tribe was truly incredible!
They had always thought that what they had seen before was the pinnacle, yet every visit brought new shocks, and each shock was more intense than the last.