Chapter 37, "Flicking Wool," has significant emotional value.
There are very few forms of entertainment in the Beast World. The little ones are already tired of the few games they usually play.
The "competition" that Yu Yan mentioned was very new to them.
And there was even "animal milk" to drink, so everyone responded enthusiastically: "We want to play! We want to play! We want to play!"
"Brother Yu Yan, hurry up and divide us into teams!"
"And that door, hurry up and draw it."
Yu Yan stood up: "Coming, coming."
He gestured for the adults to step back, picked up a stick, and drew a rectangle on the other half of the altar square.
Then draw a semicircle at each end of the rectangle.
After finishing the drawing, he walked to the center and beckoned the children over.
The children surrounded him, looking at him with curiosity.
The other adults in the tribe watched with curiosity as they worked.
Yu Yan gestured and said, "This rectangle is your soccer field, and the two semicircles on either side are the goals. If you kick the ball into the goal, that's a goal, and one goal is worth one point!"
There were an even number of kids in front of him, so he divided them into two teams and explained the concepts of "his own goal" and "the opponent's goal" to them.
The kids are just getting to know "soccer," so he hasn't explained the more complex rules yet.
"Now, each of you will choose one person to be the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper is the one who stands at the goal and prevents the opponent from scoring."
As a result, everyone looked at each other, and everyone wanted to play football, not be the goalkeeper.
Yu Yan thought for a moment and said to Sen Bai, who was watching the commotion, "Why don't you be the goalkeeper for Qiu Ze and the others?"
Senbai: "Sure."
Another orc raised his hand and said, "Then I'll be the goalkeeper for Shuoxing and the others. Anyway, there are plenty of people to do the work, and I'm just sitting here doing nothing."
Yu Yan nodded: "Okay, then you go to your respective goals."
He also reminded the children that friendship comes first, competition second, and that they should play football peacefully and not intentionally hurt other players in order to score a goal.
The little ones obediently replied, "Brother Yu Yan, we'll remember!"
After everyone was in position, Yu Yan stood in the center of the field, blew a whistle, and kicked off the game for the kids on both sides.
With quick eyes and feet, Shuoxing was the first to steal the ball and kick it toward the opponent's goal.
His opponents and teammates were all chasing after him, trying to steal the ball.
Yu Yan clapped her hands and shouted, "Shuoxing, when you're blocked, you can pass the ball to your teammates!"
Shuoxing ran back and forth with the ball several times, but couldn't get it out of the encirclement, so he had to pass the ball to his teammate.
As soon as the ball moves, people naturally follow, and the field is filled with children running around.
The rules of football are simple and easy to understand. Even young children can figure out how to play after running around a few times.
They passed the ball and kicked it, each one putting in their best effort, all wanting to kick the ball into the opponent's goal.
Finally, the young player from the Shining Star team, carrying the ball, arrived at the goal guarded by Senbai.
Senber instinctively bent down slightly, opened his arms, and fixed his sharp eyes on the ball.
Qiu Ze and his team were extremely anxious, fearing the ball would be scored.
The adults watching were already engrossed in the game, shouting, "Goal! Goal!"
"Go for it, kid!"
The little one launched a flying kick and shot!
Senpai jumped up and intercepted the ball mid-air!
The boys from the Shining Star team were pounding their chests in frustration: "Oh no, we didn't make it!!"
Akizawa's team, however, were overjoyed: "Great!! They didn't get in!"
"Brother Senbai caught a great ball!"
Senbo let out a soft breath and smiled.
He had only intended to play with the kids for a short while, but when the ball came over, his heart suddenly jumped.
If this ball goes in, how am I supposed to face Qiu Ze and the others?
Thank goodness, we managed to stop it.
The "goalkeeper" position is not simple; he understood why Yu Yan had made this arrangement.
He looked at Yu Yan, and Yu Yan looked at him too: "Pass the ball back! Keep going! The game isn't over yet, there's still hope!"
Senbo experienced the joy of football, and a fire seemed to ignite in his heart. He shouted, "Alright! Kids, catch!"
The ball was returned to the field, and the children chased after it eagerly.
After several rounds of tense and exciting chases, they were all covered in sweat and their faces were flushed.
Xuefei stood outside the field and asked, "Qiu Ze, are you tired? Are you hot? Do you want to rest?"
Qiu Ze didn't hear what he said at all; he was staring at the ball, his little legs moving very fast.
Through his tireless efforts, he actually managed to steal the ball and kicked it towards Shuoxing's goal!
Then, he was stopped by the goalkeeper of the Shuoxing team.
Qiu Ze sighed heavily, saying regretfully, "We didn't make it!"
This time, Yu Yan didn't even need to say anything; Qiu Ze's teammates were already encouraging each other: "It's okay! We'll definitely score the next ball!"
"Some of you stand back a bit, I'm going to pass the ball, everyone follow up!"
"Quick, quick, the ball is coming!!"
Not only were the kids kicking with great enthusiasm, but the adults, starting from who knows who, also began cheering them on loudly.
The small, simple football on the field became the focus of everyone's attention.
Everyone wants to score a goal, everyone wants to win!
"Go, Shuoxing! Run faster!"
"Kick kick kick!"
"That shot was at a tricky angle, there's hope!"
"Senpaku stopped him again! Senpaku, you're something else, you've got some skills!!"
The two orcs guarding the gate weren't just skilled, they were extremely skilled.
They managed to keep the kids from scoring a single goal!
Even though the kids have great stamina, they were all panting heavily after kicking for more than half an hour.
Yu Yan blew her whistle to let everyone take a break.
While panting, Shuoxing called her friends together, and they whispered and discussed something.
A little while later, he came over with his men and said to the adults, "We've decided not to let the orcs be the goalkeepers!"
Senber immediately saw through their thoughts and laughed, "You can't score if we're in goal, right?"
Shuoxing's expression was unnatural: "You are all adults, much stronger than us, you shouldn't be playing with us."
Xin Yu asked, "Then who will be your goalkeeper?"
Qiu Ze raised his hand high: "Let Brother Yu Yan take the role!"
Yu Yan was turning the wool over in the sun. The afternoon sun was scorching, and the washed wool was already half-dry.
Upon hearing this, he chuckled and feigned anger, saying, "What do you little brats mean? You think I'm not strong enough?"
Shuoxing smiled guiltily: "How could that be? We just thought you could get along with us."
Doesn't that mean your strength is about the same as theirs?
Okay, Yu Yan admits that she was quite weak when she first transmigrated.
However, after these days of "training," his physical strength and endurance have greatly improved.
If I didn't have to work, I would definitely show off my skills to these kids.
Qiu Ze looked at Yu Yan with a cute expression and said sweet words, "If Brother Yu Yan guards the goal, we can score a goal!"
The adults burst into laughter.
Looking at his adorable face, Yu Yan's heart melted, and she smiled along with him.
He pointed to the wool hanging out to dry: "I can't leave here, maybe next time, I'll play with you guys."
"Actually, you can choose a goalkeeper from your own team. As you just saw, the goalkeeper position is very important. No matter what fancy moves you make, if the ball doesn't go in, you won't score."
This statement stunned the children.
Recalling the match just now, they truly understood what a strong goalkeeper brings to the team.
Goalkeepers are not at all like they think, just standing at the goal and not participating in the game!
Conversely, the goalkeeper is the team's last line of defense; when the opponent shoots, success or failure is determined by them!
The children's eyes lit up, and they were so excited that their faces turned red and their hearts pounded. They genuinely thought the goalkeeper was so handsome and cool.
Because their perspectives have genuinely changed, they no longer resist being goalkeepers!
Several of the kids even got into a fight over who should be the goalkeeper.
In the end, it was Yu Yan who stepped in to mediate.
“You can take turns being the goalkeeper, and the team can even be reassigned after this game,” he said with a warm smile. “I hope you can all get pure enjoyment from it.”
The children nodded emphatically, filled with anticipation and longing.
After a good rest, they threw themselves back into the intense and exciting competition.
The adults who had witnessed all of this looked at Yu Yan thoughtfully.
People like Xin Yu and Xue Fei know what their kids are like when they get serious.
Yu Yan didn't interfere too much with the kids' reluctance to be goalkeepers. Instead, she encouraged them to find enjoyment in the process and change their minds from the bottom of their hearts.
This is different from their usual educational methods, which are either strict or persuasive.
Even if they don't have the concept of "edutainment," it's clear that Yu Yan's methods for teaching Zai Zai are gentler, more effective, and more sophisticated.
No wonder the kids like to be close to Yu Yan and listen to him.
Actually, it's not just the kids; even the adults are hoping to learn more from Yu Yan, this "good teacher."
The animal fur drying in front of you is the best proof.
In an instant, everyone looked at Yu Yan with even greater gratitude.
Yu Yan acts on her heart without thinking too much, which is why these people are so confused by her.
"Now that this part of the fur is dried, shall we begin the next step?" he said.
Everyone responded enthusiastically: "Okay!"
The children were playing football in the square, and the adults, following Yu Yan's instructions, broke off willow branches and whipped the dried wool.
Shouts, cheers, and the sound of whipping filled the air... the atmosphere was even more enthusiastic than before.
Yu Yan said, "This step is to remove residual impurities and separate different animal hairs."
Not content with simply whipping it with willow branches, he also took out the prepared animal sinews, tied them to both ends of the branches, and made a simple "slingshot".
You can also separate impurities by flicking the animal tendons onto the wool with your hands, and make the wool fluffier.
If we find cotton in the future, and the method of cotton carding is similar to what we do now, it will be good for the people in the tribe to get used to it first.
With more people working together, the efficiency was high. Before long, the wool was processed and sorted into several categories according to its length and thickness.
Yu Yan handed a bag of fluffy wool to Feng Gui and the others, saying, "Father, mix these animal hairs with kudzu and spin them into thread."
Feng Gui: "Understood."
They sat down in the shade of a tree, took out silk and spindles, and skillfully began to spin thread.
Yu Yan led the others to continue processing the dried wool.
Yin Qing kept working and said with a smile, "I used to find it quite interesting when we worked together, chatting and singing. This time, it's even more fun to watch the kids compete."
Xin Yu agreed, "Yes, playing football is a good game; it's kept Shuoxing from causing trouble for so long."
Xuefei said somewhat embarrassedly, "I saw Qiu Ze kicking so enthusiastically, I wanted to go up and try it myself, haha."
Jinxia: "I kind of want to play too!"
"What do you want to play?" Cangfeng's voice came from the sky. It turned out that the hunting beastmen had returned.
The altar plaza was occupied, and they flapped their wings and landed in the woods ahead.
Many of them carried fresh prey on their shoulders.
Xin Yu smiled and said to Cang Feng, "We were talking about the kids playing football."
The beastmen naturally looked at the cubs in the arena, quickly realizing the fun they were having and watching with great interest.
"It's quite interesting. Adults should be able to play it too, right?" Cangfeng asked.
Yu Yan nodded, "Of course."
Senbo had been the goalkeeper for half the game and hadn't had enough fun yet, so he rubbed his hands together and asked, "Then after the kids are done playing, shall we go up?"
Yu Yan chuckled: "That fluffy ball was kicked away by them, how could it withstand your kicks? If you want to play, let me think about it and make a sturdy soccer ball using some other material."
Not only orcs, but also sub-orcs expressed their desire to play.
Yu Yan: "Okay, I've got it. Come on, anyone who's free, let's get rid of all this animal fur."
Lan Xiu strode over to help.
Yu Yan asked, "Have all the wild animals on the road been cleared away?"
Lan Xiu nodded: "Yes. Cang Feng has also arranged for orcs to patrol this road, so you don't need to worry about encountering danger when you go to collect resources."
Yu Yan: "That's great."
Just as he said, the ball was completely ruined by the kids. They were all tired, so they went to their fathers to rest for a while, cool off, and drink some water.
By the time the adults had finished processing all the wool, Feng Gui had already spun a considerable amount of yarn.
Yu Yan tried it out and found that the yarn was soft, tough, absorbent, and warm.
The others also realized that the yarn was a good thing, and they all exclaimed, "If you weave cloth with this kind of yarn and then make clothes from it, it will definitely look beautiful."
"Yarn should also be easier to dye."
"Let's save some of the animal hair and spin it into pure wool yarn? Make it into warm clothes to wear in the fall and winter."
"Yes, yes, that's what I was just about to say. This is much lighter than animal skin clothing."
"The fur of the sheep is so useful..."
As the sun sets in the west, darkness gradually descends upon the woods.
Yu Yan gave most of the yarn to the other sub-beastmen to weave cloth, and took two spools of yarn back with her.
As he left, he called to the cubs, "Everyone, come back with me to drink animal milk!"
Upon hearing this, the children immediately abandoned their father and ran towards Yu Yan.
"Awooooo, beast milk!"
"Fragrant animal milk!"
"Time to drink animal milk!"
The parents chased after them awkwardly, shouting, "Stop running! Come back!"
"Yu Yan, animal milk is rare. Keep it for yourselves and don't give it to them."
"Yeah yeah."
Yu Yan said seriously, "How can that be? I've already promised them, and I have to keep my promise."
"And don't worry, my two female animals can produce milk two to three times a day, which is enough for them to drink."
Everyone was amazed: "They were able to squeeze out so much milk..."
Now, many people are seriously considering whether they should follow Yu Yan's example and raise a few milk-producing female animals...
Yu Yan led the children back to the ginkgo tree.
He took out the goat milk he had boiled at noon from the shade, tasted it, and found it was still very fresh.
“Here, you all drink first, I’ll go squeeze some more,” Yu Yan said. “Father, could you please get them some bowls for me?”
"Okay, go ahead."
Feng Gui poured half a bowl of goat milk for each of the cubs, and soon the straw shed was filled with the sound of them slurping and drinking milk.
Some of the little ones even had a "drunk on milk" expression, which was incredibly cute.
After drinking the milk, Yu Yan still hadn't returned, so the children got together and all ran to watch him milk the cows.
They had never done this before, and their eyes were full of curiosity. They asked, "Brother Yu Yan, can we try it too?"
Unfortunately, Yu Yan refused them: "No, these two female beasts have bad tempers. You should stand back so you don't get hurt."
Qiu Ze immediately said worriedly, "Brother Yu Yan, you have to be careful too!"
Yu Yan smiled and said, "I'm fine, they're afraid of me."
"Wow..." Qiu Ze's eyes sparkled. "They're so big and fierce, yet they're afraid of you, Brother Yu Yan. You're so amazing."
Before Yu Yan could even utter a few words of modesty, the other kids started chattering away:
"Of course Brother Yu Yan is amazing! He hunted all those sheep beasts!"
"He's the most powerful sub-orc in our tribe!"
"No, no, Brother Yu Yan is the most powerful sub-beastman in the entire Beast World!"
Yu Yan: "..." If you keep praising me, I'll get too cocky.
The babies provided plenty of emotional value, and Yu Yan worked incredibly hard at milking them.
After milking the goats, Lan Xiu had already started a fire. He boiled the goat milk thoroughly and then poured half a bowl for each of the goats, earning a chorus of "Thank you, Brother Yu Yan" in return.
Yu Yan smiled and gently patted the soft little heads of the two children beside her.
After the babies had finished drinking their milk, Yu Yan asked Lan Xiu to take them back.
He and Feng Gui prepared dinner.
Tonight's meal was as plentiful as ever. They grilled the fish they caught that morning, stir-fried the bird eggs that Feng Gui brought back at noon, and also stir-fried fresh game meat.
Everyone ate to their heart's content.
After the meal, everyone went their separate ways to wash the dishes, feed the sheep, and tidy up their belongings.
Yu Yan also put bait in the shrimp trap and had Lan Xiu take it to the spot from yesterday and put it in the water.
By the time we finished the work, it was almost completely dark.
Yu Yan took out a piece of burlap and measured it against the campfire.
Feng Gui: "What do you want to make?"
"Yes, I want to sew a pair of gloves to wear while working." He described what the gloves would look like.
Feng Guiliaoran said, "Many plants in the wild have thorns. Although we're not afraid of getting pricked, it's definitely easier to collect them while wearing gloves. You can leave the cloth there; I'll sew it up in a bit."
Yu Yan smiled and said, "Thank you, Father-in-law. Did you come to see me for something?"
Feng Gui nodded: "Yes, leafy greens don't keep well. I noticed the leaves are starting to wilt, so I came to ask if you wanted to replace some."
Yu Yan thought for a moment and said, "I won't change it. I'm going to pickle the leftovers."
Feng Gui was slightly taken aback: "What do you mean by 'pickled'...?"
"A way to preserve food!" Yu Yan said, and immediately went to check on the condition of the mustard greens.
To extend the shelf life of pickled vegetables, you need to use mustard greens that have been dried and wilted in the sun.
The amount in the basket is clearly insufficient.
It's already dark today, so Yu Yan plans to wait until tomorrow when the sun comes out before dealing with it.
Since we're going to pickle vegetables, let's pickle some radishes, cucumbers, and garlic as well. They'll be sour, salty, and crunchy—it's been a while since I've had any, and I'm really craving them.
The next day, Yu Yan got up to wash, feed the sheep, milk them, and tidy up the shrimp traps... she was so busy she barely had time to breathe.
Just after they finished breakfast, Cangfeng and the others came looking for them.
"Yu Yan, the charcoal kiln has completely cooled down; we can open it now!"
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