If there’s something to say, it’s long; if not, it’s short. What seemed like endless days suddenly flashed by, and time arrived at early summer.
Though called early summer, the temperature was already relatively high.
Between the old and new walls of the Green Sparrow Tribe, people were still busily working in an orderly manner. Some houses had already appeared on this open land.
The heat was indeed intense—look at the big and small “uncle-like” pandas sitting in a water pit on the east side of the tribe.
The two guys sat in the pool, one leaning against the edge with its two front paws spread on the banks on either side, looking very imposing and dominant. The other rested against the back of the pool, holding a bamboo stick and leisurely gnawing on it.
If these two came with sunglasses, a big gold chain, and a cigarette dangling from their mouths, they’d look exactly like local “big shots” or gangsters.
However, when a small figure ran out from the tribe and approached them, shouting intermittently, these two cool, calm, and domineering “social pandas” suddenly panicked.
The one with paws on the edge quickly withdrew them; the one chewing bamboo even dropped the stick.
Both jumped up, scrambled out of the pool, and dashed toward the bamboo forest like a flash.
Children aged two or three, three or four, are at that mischievous age—kicking toads, teasing monkeys, disliked by everyone, and chased by dogs. Despite their small bodies, their destructive power is formidable.
Generally, the family cats and dogs tuck their tails and hide whenever they see them, keeping as far away as possible.
Fujang is no exception and definitely won’t go near little Pea now.
So these two social pandas, freeloading in the tribe, met a harsh fate.
After spending over half a year in the tribe, the two had lost much of their wildness. Considering they got free food and lodging, they tended to give way to little Pea, the Green Sparrow bully.
“Don’t run, hug, hug…”
Just like when catching a thief and shouting “don’t run,” after little Pea shouted, the two big guys with short legs and round bodies ran even faster, fearing this tougher kid catching up…
In the northwest of the Green Sparrow tribe, the kiln door was opened, releasing a wave of pungent heat.
Amid the swirling smoke, a patch of bright white appeared. Seeing this, Han Cheng couldn’t help but rejoice—after so much experimenting and effort, the lime was finally properly burned!
To confirm whether the lime was ready, Han Cheng suppressed his excitement and used a long-handled bronze shovel to scoop a shovel full of white ash from the kiln mouth.
He poured it on the ground and poured some water over it. Immediately, hot steam mixed with white smoke rose.
Bubbles even gurgled on the surface!
Han Cheng reached out to feel the temperature—it was very hot. If used in quantity, it could easily boil eggs.
The shaman also squatted down, placing his hand near the bubbling lime. Upon feeling the temperature, he was startled.
In his memory, only fire could heat water, and that required pottery vessels.
The sun could heat water, too, but the temperature was nowhere near as high as the lime steaming after water was poured on it.
Shaman scratched his thinning hair, puzzled. After a while, he stood and scooped some lime from the kiln with another bronze shovel.
He put it on the ground and touched it with his hand. Although warm, it didn’t burn his hand much.
But unlike Han Cheng, he didn’t pour water directly onto it. He waited a while to confirm the lime had cooled, then poured some water on it.
Then, the astonishing thing happened again.
The cool lime immediately steamed and bubbled when water was poured, releasing a lot of heat.
Everyone who saw this was amazed, their mouths agape, unable to comprehend what was happening.
“Divine… Divine Child, this…” Shaman was the first to speak, pointing at the still-warm lime pile, asking Han Cheng what was happening.
This question truly stumped Han Cheng.
He already knew that quicklime (unslaked lime) heats up when mixed with water and was used to this. But as a liberal arts student hopeless at math and science, he didn’t understand why.
After thinking a moment, he didn’t use “divine” or similar excuses but seriously said, “Why does this happen? I don’t understand. But I’m sure that if we use it properly, it will only benefit us and cause no harm.”
After finishing, he added, “If we want to know why, it will require us and our descendants to think and study carefully…”
Han Cheng was not someone with an idol image to protect. He knew his limits, so admitting ignorance wasn’t tricky.
Moreover, except when necessary, he rarely used gods or divine explanations to deceive or placate people, especially when discussing scientific matters; now, he wouldn’t hide behind a ‘divine’ cover.
Although he bore the aura of a “Divine Child,” he was generous in sharing scientific knowledge with the tribe.
Because he knew such knowledge was the true driving force behind a tribe’s advancement and development.
As for gods and similar ideas, once society develops to a certain level, they tend to hinder progress.
Of course, for the current Green Sparrow Tribe, these divine ideas still bring more benefits than harm, so there’s no rush to tackle the issue.
Shaman and others understood Han Cheng’s words vaguely. Han Cheng had no intention of leading them further yet—many things needed to be done step by step, no rush. With gradual guidance, many tribe members would eventually change…