Chapter 55 Wheat Yogurt Fruit Bowl
As Yu Yan led them into the thatched hut, she voiced the question that had been bothering her.
Jiang Kuo replied excitedly, "Just last night! We came over as soon as we finished! Luckily we arrived before you left."
As he spoke, Lin Ye, Zhong Hai, and the others couldn't wait to take out the forged ironware.
Yu Yan took a look and exclaimed, "Good heavens! There are over a dozen hammers, over a dozen iron rods, a pile of iron sheets, and five iron knives, including two sickles..."
"So many? You guys didn't sleep at all last night, did you?"
Lin Ye laughed heartily: "I didn't sleep! I was too excited to fall asleep at all."
Jiang Kuo shrugged: "I told them to go to sleep, but none of them went."
What he didn't say was that it wasn't just the working orcs who refused to sleep last night, but also the sub-orcs and cubs.
Unlike anything they'd ever traded with in the peninsula tribes before, these were metal tools! And they were even crafted by the tribes themselves! It would be strange not to miss out.
Some of the cubs couldn't stay awake and eventually fell asleep in their father's arms.
Yu Yan guessed they hadn't eaten either, and was about to ask when Jiang Kuo pushed him, urging, "Take a look at the ironware we've forged! Isn't it just as good as the Deep Lake Tribe's? We even have more people in our tribe!"
Lin Ye rubbed his hands together: "Yu Yan, forging iron feels so different from forging aluminum. Every strike feels solid and satisfying. If you think it's good, could you let us forge more ironware?"
Yu Yan smiled and shook her head. "You guys sit down and rest first, let me take a look."
He stepped forward.
The iron ore sent by the Highland Tribe was of high purity, and after being smelted and forged by the Mingyuan Tribe, it has been transformed into high-quality ironware.
Yu Yan picked up the hammer and tried it out; it was heavy and easy to use.
The knife was not yet sharpened, so he had someone bring his whetstone, and together with Jiang Kuo and Cang Feng, he sharpened it.
After he finished sharpening the blade, he clapped instinctively, and to his surprise, the others followed suit, making the whole scene very ceremonial.
As for that pile of iron sheets... their quality is only passable.
Yu Yan first praised them: "The hammers and knives are both very well made. You have many people and you made them quickly. We will have all our hammers made by you from now on."
The people of the Mingyuan tribe were inspired by Yu Yan and couldn't stop laughing.
Yu Yan changed the subject: "There is still a lot of room for improvement in the forging of iron sheets. We will continue to work hard in the future!"
"Okay!!" everyone responded loudly.
Yu Yan set aside a hammer, a machete, a sickle, and half a piece of sheet metal, and said to Jiang Kuo and the others, "This is your reward for this trip."
Yu Yan had explained the word "reward" to them, and they understood what it meant.
Jiang Kuo's eyes widened slightly, and he said in surprise, "This... this much for us?"
Lin Ye and the others also said, "Yes, Yu Yan, the charcoal and iron ore are all yours. We only contributed a little, but you gave too much."
Yu Yan shook her head and explained seriously, "You even provided the venue, and these tools are what you'll use for forging ironware later."
"The Peninsula Tribe will not treat any friend unfairly, so please accept this gift. Let's work together to make the tribe better and better."
Yu Yan's words moved not only the people of the highland tribes, but also the people of the peninsula tribes.
Jiang Kuo, representing the tribe, accepted the hammer from Yu Yan with both hands. Gazing into her dark eyes, he solemnly said, "Alright, let's work together to make the tribe better."
After talking for a while, Xin Yu came over and said to Yu Yan, "Let me take Chief Jiang Kuo and the others to get some water and something to eat."
The implication is that you should go and attend to your own affairs.
Jiang Kuo and the others immediately said, "Yes, we'll just have some water and go back. You don't need to worry about us."
Zhong Hai: "We can let Chief Cangfeng and Senbai tell us what kind of ironware we need to forge next."
Since everyone was already so familiar with each other, Yu Yan didn't stand on ceremony with them anymore: "Okay, send me a message if you need anything."
Feng Gui is going to stay home today to make clothes and weave straw sandals, Lan Xiu is going hunting, Yu Yan thought for a moment, took a sickle, and took a long stride out the door.
As the lambs and ducks grow, they need more and more hay. In addition to the hay that the villagers cut casually, the three family members also have to take turns going out to cut hay.
When she's not busy, Yu Yan will go to the beach to collect seafood for the ducks to eat, trying to fatten them up.
Now that they have a sickle, Yu Yan is eager to try it out.
He strapped the knife to his back, spread his wings, and flew in the sky.
Summer is a season of vibrant life, with the earth adorned by forests, lakes, and mountains, resembling a richly colored painting.
The view from above was superb. Yu Yan flapped its wings and looked around, searching for a place to cut grass.
Suddenly, a patch of golden grass growing on the edge of a hillside forest caught his attention.
Does the grass turn yellow this season?
He controlled his speed and slowly descended.
When he was about a hundred meters above the ground, he saw what the grass looked like and his spirits lifted.
Are those ears of wheat?!
He immediately quickened his pace, and before he could even stand properly, he lunged at the nearest ear of grass.
After plucking a single ear of grain, I immediately sensed something was wrong.
It was so light, and smaller than modern wheat.
It's important to know that the plants and animals in the animal world generally grow to be very large.
He frowned slightly, plucked a seed, and without peeling it, popped it directly into his mouth.
Chewing off the outer skin, he immediately tasted the bitterness of the grass seeds, not the raw flour.
"Sigh, looks like it's not wheat. That makes sense, if it were such a good thing growing in such large areas, how come no one noticed?" Yu Yan muttered.
It's not suitable for human consumption, but it's good for feeding sheep and ducks.
Undeterred, Yu Yan grabbed a sickle and began to bend down and cut grass.
A newly sharpened knife is so much easier to use; it makes cutting much less strenuous.
In no time, Yu Yan had cut five large bundles of grass.
He tied the grass tightly to his back with rope, spread his wings, and flew into the sky.
There was too much grass, and it was heavy. At first, he lost his balance and wobbled, almost falling.
Fortunately, he got used to it after flying for a short while.
He flew back to the tribe in one breath, and along the way he saw orcs collecting bluestone in the wild, all in preparation for building houses.
In the fields, some of the tribe's older members are weeding.
Yu Yan greeted them loudly, and they looked up, smiled, and waved back at her.
Shuoxing and a group of friends were playing football behind the altar square.
They never got tired of this game.
Upon noticing Yu Yan, they jumped up and down, shouting, "Brother Yu Yan!"
"Brother Yu Yan is back!"
Yu Yan remembered that there was still a lot of yogurt left at home, so she called out to them, "Everyone, come with me! I'll give you some goodies!"
The children became even more excited: "Thank you, Brother Yu Yan!!"
The orc cubs transformed into their beast forms, carried the sub-orc cubs on their backs, and ran towards the ginkgo tree.
Before Yu Yan even landed, Feng Gui came to greet her.
"You cut down so much grass?"
Unexpectedly, the kids were even more enthusiastic. As soon as Yu Yan stopped, they hurriedly took the grass from her, leaving none for Feng Guisheng.
The two children carried a bundle of grass together, holding it high, and happily walked towards the haystack.
Some of the sub-beastman cubs haven't even reverted to their beast form yet; their fluffy ears and tails are still swaying back and forth.
"Heave-ho, heave-ho!" The little ones put down the grass and then skipped and hopped back to Yu Yan's side.
They didn't speak, but looked at Yu Yan with bright, sparkling eyes.
Yu Yan was amused by them: "Wait a moment while I wash my hands."
Feng Gui: "I'll fetch you some water."
Yu Yan went into the thatched shed and brought out a large bowl of plums.
The plums are especially sweet at this time of year, but it's a pity that many have been damaged by insects.
Yu Yan washed the plums clean, cut them in half with a knife, removed the worm-eaten parts and seeds, then cut the flesh into small pieces and put three spoonfuls into each ceramic bowl.
He worked quickly and finished in no time.
Then, he poured yogurt into the bowl, took a spoon, and called to the children, "You can eat now! Remember to stir it before you eat."
"Okay, I understand!"
The kids had eaten yogurt before and knew it tasted good with honey. But this was the first time they'd ever had yogurt mixed with sweet fruit.
Yu Yan handed a bowl to Feng Guiye, kept one for herself, and left one for Lan Xiu.
Feng Gui smiled and said, "Ever since I started using yogurt as a starter, I've been able to successfully ferment it every time."
Yu Yan took a bite of the fruit-flavored yogurt. "Yes, this is very easy to make."
Before the novelty of the yogurt had worn off, Yu Yan had already turned all the goat milk she had recently milked into yogurt.
The babies have already started eating, all shouting that it's delicious.
Wow! It's sweet and sour! I love it!
"Smack smack smack".
Qiu Ze, that little glutton, can't keep his mouth open when he's eating. When he can't scrape the yogurt off the bowl, he holds the bowl and licks it with his tongue.
Yu Yan laughed heartily: "Is it that delicious?"
Qiu Ze put down his bowl, licked his lips, and chuckled, "It's super delicious. Brother Yu Yan, when are we going to eat that grass?"
Yu Yan looked in the direction he was pointing... Wasn't that the grass he had cut to feed the sheep?
Could it also be on the menu of rabbit-type sub-beastmen?
"You like to eat this grass?"
Qiu Ze nodded: "It's delicious, the more you chew, the sweeter it gets."
Sweet? I clearly only tasted bitterness.
Before Yu Yan could speak, Feng Gui, who was not far away, said with a smile, "Qiu Ze, you can't eat yellow tassel grass, are you sure you're not mistaken?"
Akizawa: "No..."
Shuoxing and the others didn't believe it either, "Yellow ear grass isn't sweet at all, it's clearly very bitter!"
"Exactly, I've tried it, it's absolutely awful!"
You must have remembered it wrong!
Qiu Ze's rebellious streak kicked in, and he shouted, "If I remember correctly, it was sweet!! I just ate it a few days ago!"
Seeing that the children were about to start arguing, Yu Yan calmed them down, saying, "Wait for me a moment."
He went over and picked a yellow grass, squatted down in front of Qiu Ze and asked him, "The grass you ate really looks like this?"
Qiu Ze looked at it carefully for a while, then nodded: "Yes!"
Where did you find this grass?
"Hmm...it's around the tribe."
Yu Yan guessed that the adults didn't allow them to run far.
How much did you eat?
"Just one. This grass is prickly to eat, so I didn't eat any more."
Seeing that Yu Yan was asking such detailed questions, the other children asked incredulously, "Brother Yu Yan, you don't really believe what he said, do you? We've all eaten this grass, and it doesn't taste good!"
"Yeah yeah!"
"Akizawa, you're lying!"
"I didn't lie!"
The friends who were just playing soccer and eating yogurt together are now about to fight.
Yu Yan quickly stepped in to break up the fight.
They angrily went to him to reason with him.
"Brother Yu Yan, who do you believe?"
Yu Yan said gently, "I believe you all."
"ah??"
Yu Yan wasn't trying to smooth things over; he'd known the kids for so long and knew their personalities well enough that they wouldn't lie to him about something like this, and there was no need for it.
He is more inclined to believe that there are factors he has overlooked.
Yu Yan looked at Qiu Ze with her bright black eyes; the little boy's face was puffed up like a steamed bun.
"Qiu Ze, I'll carry you on my back, and we'll fly around the tribe. See if you can remember where you picked the grass, okay?"
Qiu Ze was also eager to prove himself, and said in a tender voice, "Okay!!"
Yu Yan: "Come on."
Shuoxing and the others: "We want to go too!"
Feng Gui, still worried, followed along.
Yu Yan carried Qiu Ze on her back, flapped her wings, and flew slowly in mid-air.
Qiu Ze's new brain works very well. After flying half a circle, he pointed down and said, "Brother Yu Yan, over there!"
Yu Yan looked over and saw that it was the edge of a depression, overgrown with weeds, including yellow spike grass.
"Okay, hold on tight, I'm getting off."
"Uh-huh."
The two landed, and since there were patrols here every day, they didn't have to worry about encountering danger.
Yu Yan held Qiu Ze's hand and walked ahead.
He picked a seed of the yellow grass, put it in his mouth, and tasted the familiar bitterness.
Qiu Ze imitated him and ate, his delicate features instantly scrunching up.
"Why is it so bitter?! It tasted so sweet before!!"
Shuoxing and the others also tried it, and they're spitting it out now.
"Qiu Ze, you call this sweet?"
"It tastes awful!"
Qiu Ze blushed instantly and looked at Yu Yan guiltily.
Yu Yan ruffled his short hair: "Don't rush, let me try more."
He tasted each one carefully, one by one, and Feng Gui, seeing his determination, started tasting from another direction.
Yu Yan had originally told the children to stay where they were and wait for him, but they followed him instead.
Shuoxing said awkwardly, "Maybe there really is some very sweet grass. Let's look for it together."
Akizawa looked at them with emotion: "Yes! Together!"
Two adults and a bunch of kids tasted it for more than ten minutes, but came up empty-handed.
Yu Yan felt her mouth was so bitter that she lost all feeling. When she considered whether to take a break and look for it again, the tassel she picked up had a different kind of weight.
"Hmm?" He was afraid he was mistaken, so he weighed it in his hand. It really was heavy! Unlike other yellow grasses!
If you look closely, you can see that there are also very subtle differences in the ears of grain.
This looks like wheat!
The thought flashed through her mind, and Yu Yan stared intently at the tassel in her palm, as if afraid it would run away.
His heart was pounding, and he plucked a seed and peeled it open.
It doesn't contain the seeds of yellow grass! It contains wheat grains!
Put it in your mouth again, chew it gently, and the raw noodle flavor immediately spreads throughout your mouth.
Yu Yan's mind went blank for a moment, and she couldn't help but clench her fist and make a cheering gesture.
That's great! That's great!!
This drastically different reaction naturally caught the attention of others.
Feng Gui asked, "Found it?"
Yu Yan nodded emphatically, "Father, please have a taste."
Feng Gui immediately noticed the difference after just one bite, exclaiming in surprise, "It tastes amazing!! It could be eaten!"
The children swarmed around, "Brother Yu Yan, let me have some too!"
Yu Yan fulfilled their wish, and they exclaimed excitedly, "It really is! It gets sweet as you chew it!"
"Oh dear, these grass seeds are so small, they're all gone before I've even eaten much of them."
"Akizawa is right... It's so delicious!"
Yu Yan's expression remained relatively calm, but she was inwardly ecstatic.
Wheat, flour... these are staple foods!!!
God knows how long it's been since he's had a decent main course.
With flour, he can steam buns, make dumplings, roll out noodles, and bake pancakes...
At this moment, Yu Yan really wanted to do what everyone else did and shout: Thank you, Beast God!
"Yu Yan, what are you doing?" Xin Yu returned from the charcoal kiln, received the news, and came looking for them.
Yu Yan happily told him about finding wheat.
"There is wheat in the yellow grass, and it looks like it has been ripe for a while. Sigh, if only we had discovered it sooner."
Wheat needs to be harvested quickly; if it's harvested late, the grains will fall off, which will definitely affect the yield.
However, finding it was already a great achievement, and Yu Yan was very content.
Xin Yu's eyes lit up: "Isn't wheat especially delicious?"
"Yes!! And it's very useful!!"
"So what do we do next?"
"Go to the tribe and call some people to come and cut down these yellow-eared grasses. We can pick them out slowly when we get back. I also found a large patch over Tiger Head Mountain, and I cut that down too!"
"good!!"
Xin Yu quickly called for help, and they were all very excited to hear that they had found new food.
Yu Yan used a sickle, while the others used aluminum knives. Those who didn't have metal knives used shell knives or bone knives.
They were so skilled at cutting grass that they could spin yarn and weave cloth.
By the afternoon, a large amount of yellow grass had been cut and brought back to the tribe, where it was placed on the altar square.
Yu Yan took out the wheat ears he had found at the beginning and let everyone taste them. Then they began to identify the yellow wheat ears.
The gatherers and hunters also returned and joined the group.
With many hands making light work, more and more ears of wheat were separated.
"I have one here!"
"This one too!"
"Wheat ears and yellow grass look so alike, and there are so few of them. Who was the first to discover the wheat ears?"
Yu Yan said, "Qiu Ze discovered it."
Xuefei and Moye exclaimed in surprise, "Really?!"
Yu Yan: "Yes, it's probably because he's young and doesn't know that this yellow ear grass is inedible. He was also very lucky to be able to eat the wheat ears."
"And when everyone said he was wrong, he was able to stick to his own ideas. He's such a smart and brave little guy."
Qiu Ze was so pleased with the praise that he picked up the wheat with great enthusiasm.
Xuefei and Moye exchanged a smile, feeling immensely proud.
Although the proportion of wheat was small, by evening they still managed to pick out a full ten bundles.
Yu Yan kept some as seeds.
"It's summer now. We'll plant the wheat seeds in the fall, and we can harvest them again next summer."
Xin Yu nodded: "When I take people out to collect, I will also pay more attention to the yellow spike grass."
Cangfeng: "I also sent messages to several surrounding tribes, asking them to help with the search."
Yin Qing asked, "Yu Yan, what about the rest of the wheat? We have to remove the husks before we can eat it, right?"
Yu Yan: "Yes."
Xuefei: "This shell is not easy to remove; the seeds are too small."
Jinxia: "Should we get more people to peel it?"
Lan Xiu: "Yu Yan should be able to make the tool."
Yu Yan gave Lan Xiu a knowing look: "A stone mill will do, or a stone roller or a stone mortar. But before hulling, you have to sift out the impurities from the wheat, sprinkle some water on the grains, and wait until midnight to soften the outer skin."
Feng Gui looked up and said, "The sun is about to set, so we need to hurry. I'm going back to get the sieve."
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