Harvest season, the Xia clan from the forest

Lingyuan and her clansmen hurried back to the clan with large bags and small packages, next to them was a group of argali beastmen with similarly large bags and small packages.

The argali beastmen went to work for the Xia clan, leaving their cubs behind in the argali tribe's habitat on the grasslands. Mian Gaoya returned with gifts to thank Chief Antelope and also to take the cubs to the Xia clan.

The Xia clan was a powerful clan.

The exquisite pottery, the fine sea salt, and the tall houses are the best proof. Mian Gaoya recited these words in his heart in the Xia language, secretly proud that his Xia language skills had improved again.

Not to mention that the Xia clan's orcs bring back prey every four days, and they also possess a natural talent that allows food to grow from the ground.

Everything about it filled Mian Gaoya with longing.

So when Lan inadvertently revealed that she was not used to the emptiness of the clan on her days off and that she hoped there would be more clansmen in the clan, Mian Gaoya decisively took action, trying to remain reserved but actually shouting very excitedly that he wanted to bring all the clansmen to join the Xia clan.

Jiang Yunlan, who was preparing to extend an invitation in the next step: !

Fearing Lan might change her mind, he only brought a few clansmen back today, his day off, to pick up the cubs. After picking them up, they returned directly to the Xia clan, not lingering for even a minute longer.

He can still distinguish between being full temporarily and being full at every meal.

He knew very well that the Xia clan needed laborers now, but wouldn't need them forever.

“Chief Antelope, thank you for taking care of the cubs these past few days. This is a gift from our tribe to express our gratitude for accepting us before.” Mian Gaoya waved his hand, signaling his tribesmen to take the vine baskets off their shoulders.

The grassland sheep-beastmen had to offer tribute to the Hati clan every harvest season, making it difficult for them to save anything. He brought Ling Xiaocao a small bowl of salt, a few animal hides, several earthenware bowls, and some food. Meat from the Xia clan was easy to trade, but vegetarian food was not so easy to trade, so he could only exchange for other essential items to bring over.

When Ling Xiaocao saw that these items were much more abundant than those brought back by her people, she was taken aback.

“You should have moved out to find a new place to live. You shouldn’t have left so much stuff behind.” She looked at Mian Gaoya with disapproval.

The argali beastmen appeared on the grasslands during the last fruit season. They were emaciated, bearing scattered wounds, and their expressions were filled with terror. The moment Antelope saw them, she was reminded of her former clan and people.

Having spent so much time together, she was prepared for the possibility that more of her tribe's members would become ibex-beastmen.

Mian Gaoya shook his head and said with a smile, "We're going to the Xia clan. Take these things and make sure you survive the snow season."

The surrounding grassland goat-orcs all stopped what they were doing and stared at the argali-orcs. Many grassland goat-orcs who were familiar with the argali-orcs pulled them aside and whispered questions about the details.

The grassland sheep-beastmen who had never been to the Xia clan were worried that they would be taken advantage of, so they tried to dissuade them without making a sound. Ling Yuan, the grassland sheep-beastman who had worked for the Xia clan the longest, sighed and said with emotion, "No need to persuade them, they won't listen. That's the Xia clan."

The grassland sheep-beastman, who had also visited the Xia clan, nodded vigorously.

Looking at the tribesmen who had gained weight since their return, and then at the items piled up in front of her, Ling Xiaocao fell into thought.

"When you go to the Xia Clan, you'll be the only vegetarian beastmen there, so be extra careful. If things get really bad, just run away and leave this grassland." She only said this much before giving no further advice. When Mian Gaoya said he would take all the beastmen except the cubs to the Xia Clan, she had a vague feeling that they would be unable to leave the Xia Clan.

She tried to persuade him then, but failed; it's even less likely she'll succeed this time.

Knowing what she had been through, Mian Gaoya nodded in agreement and couldn't help but speak up to explain for the Xia clan, his words full of trust: "Chief Antelope, you've only met Lan once and don't really understand Xia. If you're willing to get to know Xia and spend time with Lan, you'll understand."

It's difficult to find vegetarian food other than grass roots on the grassland, but Lan wouldn't cook grass roots, which aren't edible in large quantities, for them. Xia has been working hard to find and grow food that they can eat, delicious food.

Even if it's just a casual concern, something as minor as a wheel that's hard to move, Lan will quickly find an orc to resolve it.

Ling Xiaocao didn't understand and silently watched as Mian Gaoya left with his kin and cubs.

"Chieftain, there are mushrooms cultivated by the Xia Clan here! They're delicious, let's eat these." Lingyuan happily held up the gift from the argali beastman.

She looked in the direction of the sound and agreed to her tribesman's request.

She could trust no one but her own people.

...

Silence reigned, an eerie stillness enveloped him. The horse-man could hear nothing around him. He lowered his head, unsure of what he was about to do.

A sound seemed to come from a very distant place, hazy and indistinct.

"...Feng Twelve, Xia Clan...go, work...on a mission." It sounded like the voice of Feng Er, the clan leader.

Feng Shier moved and slowly nodded.

A wheat-colored figure moved forward. Who was that?

“Yes, it’s me, Feng Qi. Feng… Feng Shier, from the Xia clan, with me…”

The chaotic noises continued for a while.

"It's time to set off," the clan chief's voice rang out.

Her feet started moving, following Feng Qi. Feng Twelve felt she could hear the sound of the wind, faint and light, blowing towards her.

Suddenly, many different colors appeared in the blue and green space, and Feng Twelve blinked uncomfortably.

The surrounding sounds disappeared again. He strained to make out who-knows-what and noticed many orcs moving around. What were they doing?

"Feng Twelve, come here."

The foot lifted up, following the voice of its owner.

"Wait here for a moment, Lan will come to find you."

call--

Feng Twelve was listening, but he didn't hear what the orc who had summoned him was saying. He couldn't help but space out again. What was he supposed to be here for?

whoosh—whoosh—

Hearing the sound of the wind, Feng Twelve came to his senses. Many tall figures dispersed, and a small shadow appeared before him.

It was a cub. Realizing this, he instinctively crouched down, leaning his upper body slightly forward.

The cub's mouth opened and closed, not uttering incoherent words. He could recognize what the cub wanted to say. The cub said...

"Wind Twelve".

He stared at the cub before him. The cub before him wasn't a werewolf cub; which orc clan's cub did she belong to?

"Wind Twelve".

He listened intently.

"...tasks, harvest, leaves, autumn vegetables...seedlings,..."

He looked in the direction the cub was pointing and saw a large patch of plants. Not grass, but long, leafy plants that looked like they should grow in a forest or woodland.

That was his mission.

In the farmland, the Xia clan's orcs are demonstrating to the working orcs how to pick and harvest vegetables.

Feng Shier understood. That was what he was about to do. He lowered his head, his emotionless eyes fixed on the cub before him.

"The task for this farm is to harvest chrysanthemum leaves, autumn vegetables, and thin out ramie seedlings. Can you do it?" Jiang Yunlan asked patiently, looking at the new horse-beastman.

He looked at the farmland without speaking, then quickly looked down at her again.

Jiang Yunlan had interacted with Feng Qi and the others before, and knew that the horse-beastmen were just a little slow to react. If she called their names a few more times, they would respond and answer her questions.

"Wind Twelve".

The cub is calling me again. For the first time in a long time, Feng Twelve felt a strange mix of emotions. Why is the cub calling me again?

"Wind Twelve".

"I'm here," he said, a hint of helplessness in his voice.

The cub opened its mouth, as if to speak. He wanted to hear what the cub said, so he listened intently.

"Can you do it?" the cub in front of him asked.

Feng Shier asked in confusion, "What do you mean, 'can't'?"

"Task: ■■Leaves, autumn vegetables, harvest... Can you handle it?"

He heard the cub asking him incessantly, as if it would keep asking if he didn't respond. He was even more exasperated and could only reply, "I can."

The whistling wind weakened, and Feng Twelve heard the cub laughing—a very happy laugh.

The muffled voice became clearer for some reason, and he heard her laughing as she said to him, "If you really can't do it, you can switch to another task."

He almost laughed at those words. Aren't missions always either completed or ending in death? There's no room for changing them.

"Lan, your name. Call me, I'll change your mission."

The sound became clearer. Feng Twelve remembered that Feng Seven had mentioned Lan. Lan, the patriarch of the Xia clan, a noisy but kind young cub.

He unconsciously curled the corners of his mouth into a smile. It was really noisy.

Seeing him nod, Jiang Yunlan knew he understood, so she moved on to the next horse-beastman. Feng Twelve wasn't the first new horse-beastman she spoke to, and certainly wouldn't be the last.

The horse-orcs were a bit of a special case, and she wasn't too comfortable with them, so she always spoke to them herself.

022 sat quietly on Jiang Yunlan's shoulder, recording everything it saw.

The horse-orcs who came last time reacted more strongly. These horse-orcs should be the same; if they interact more with the other orcs, the situation will improve.

The last thing the orcs need right now is "commands," which would only worsen their situation. 022 noted this down, watching as Lan methodically arranged each orc, her round eyes curving into arches.

A being that can see the suffering of others cannot ignore the pain of others.

After arranging the beastmen, Jiang Yunlan put 022 aside and rushed into the ground.

Just kidding, this is the time to harvest, and delaying even a minute is disrespectful to the food.

Jiang Yunlan's technique for pinching chrysanthemum leaves is the same as that for pinching rapeseed flowers: pinch the tender but not too tender ones, and leave the smaller leaves to continue growing.

After plucking the tender leaves from the outer ring, she abandoned the leaves from the inner ring and coldly headed towards the autumn vegetables.

Autumn lettuce is a crop that looks very autumnal, with the entire plant displaying an irregular orange-yellow hue. Unlike daisies, this vegetable needs to be pulled up as a whole, because the tubers at the bottom are what we eat.

Its advantage lies in its vigorous vitality; the tubers and seeds can sprout and grow new plants in just two or three days after being placed in the ground. The disadvantage is that the sprouted tubers are inedible. Growing in the ground, they are extremely sensitive to both cold and heat; if the temperature is not right, they will die. Therefore, they are best stored during the summer and winter seasons.

It is a food that is only suitable for planting in spring and autumn.

Before all the crops in the field had been harvested, the stems and tubers of the autumn vegetables in the soil had already sprouted. So, the sprouted autumn vegetables were separated and planted in the ground.

But the work in the field wasn't over yet, because the ramie seedlings hadn't been thinned out. The ramie in the Beast World is different from that on Earth; it only needs thinning once before it's ready for harvest.

While Jiang Yunlan was working herself to the bone, she heard the news that the timber-gathering team had returned. The team had encountered no accidents and returned within the timeframe she had predicted.

Several orcs were injured, but fortunately no orcs died this time.

They did not encounter any wild animals.

After confirming the casualties, Jiang Yunlan looked at the logging team's bountiful harvest and smiled brightly.

"Let's have a party after the ramie thinning is finished. Let's celebrate the harvest together!"