OEM? What OEM? It comes from the Xia Clan of the Forest...
It did not appear, and the depressions on the ground did not increase.
Jiang Yunlan had spent most of the night in the animal enclosure, and was so tired that she was half-asleep when she was taken back to her room to rest. She clung to Yan Duoyu, vaguely recounting her day's work, and then curled up and fell asleep.
It was early morning. There were no cubs in the house, only 022 leaning against Lan's hand with its eyes closed.
Seeing that Lan was naturally guarding him, Yan Duoyu quietly drew the animal skin curtains, closed the wooden door, and left the house. Lan was still a cub and should have slept more.
She closed the door, turned around, and met the gaze of Maple Syrup standing in the doorway.
"Is Lan asleep?" Maple Syrup asked softly.
“She’s asleep,” Yan Duoyu said softly as she walked away, gesturing for her to leave. “Lan has been too busy lately and hasn’t been sleeping much. She stayed up all night again yesterday. Let Lan get a good night’s sleep today. You, Hui Mi, and I will handle the clan matters together and won’t disturb Lan.”
Maple Syrup nodded in agreement and said slowly as she walked, "The gathering team didn't find any new forests this time. We need to arrange for people to collect wood from the outskirts of the forest and stockpile timber for the snow season. Lan said we can't cut down all the trees in the forest."
Her leg rehabilitation was very successful; as long as she didn't walk too fast, almost no orc could tell she was lame.
"There's also vegetarian food. With the increase in sheep-beastmen coming to work, there won't be enough vegetarian food. Meat is easy to obtain, though. There's plenty of prey nearby, and hunting teams can return from a hunt every two or three days," Yan Duoyu added.
Hearing this, she mentally scanned the places where supplies could be obtained, and said in a deep voice, "Then let Feng Hong take the orcs to the forest today. After they have gathered all the fruits and wild vegetables in the forest, they can set off for the outer edge of the forest. Lan said that the first batch of plants in the field will be ready for harvest in about ten days."
"During this period, adjust the ratio of meat to plant food, and let the omnivorous orcs eat meat with you."
Iwata had no objection, and the matter was settled. However, the decision to go to the outskirts of the forest to collect timber still required Arashi's approval.
Without being disturbed by the orcs, Jiang Yunlan slept soundly. When she opened her eyes and saw the dark house, she thought for a moment that she had slept until night.
Seeing that she was awake, 022 said, "Lan, it's almost afternoon now."
Touching her rumbling stomach, she responded, got up, grabbed 022 beside her, and hugged it tightly. Pushing open the door, she went outside and saw Maple Sugar sitting there, clearly having been there for a long time.
"I told them there are no classes today. Lan, why don't you eat something and then take a nap?" Maple Sugar said, looking at Lan blinking repeatedly and looking sleepy, and advised her with heartache.
Lan slept for six or seven hours, just in time to miss lunch and also missed giving the beastmen their lesson.
She shook her head, declining Maple Syrup's suggestion, but also decided against going to guard the animal enclosure that night. The aftereffects of staying up all night were too unpleasant; she was still a cub, so it was better to go to bed early and get up early.
"I'm awake. I'm going to the kitchen now. Has Maple Sugar eaten?" she asked. Maple Sugar had been waiting outside the door for her to come out.
Maple Syrup and Rock Rain took turns guarding the door, and went to eat when they had time.
Knowing that she had already eaten lunch, Jiang Yunlan only took 022 to the fire pit and didn't let Maple Sugar go with her.
The tiny squirrel-like orc carried the transparent slime as she walked along the path trodden by other orcs. Whenever she bumped into a passing orc, she could see them greeting her.
"Lan! Where is Lan going?"
"I'm hungry, I need to go get something to eat."
“Lan! I caught a really big worm from the ground, it’s huge!” The orc held up two fingers. “I accidentally crushed it, so I can’t show it to Lan.”
"...Actually, it's okay if I didn't see it."
Jiang Yunlan answered questions all the way, and it took her even longer to reach the fire pit area.
A kitchen with open sides was built in the hearth area where many pots were kept, and meals were prepared in there on rainy days.
Mo Rong sat outside the kitchen, guarding the pot, writing on the ground with a twig. The turf had long been removed, leaving only dirt, perfect for writing and drawing with a twig.
"Mo Rong, I'm hungry." Jiang Yunlan approached the lemming beastman cub on the ground and looked at him expectantly.
Hearing Lan say she was hungry, he immediately dropped the twig he was holding, ran to the earthenware jar to wash his hands, grabbed a handful of Lan's favorite fruit, washed it, and gave it to her. He took out the tinderbox Lan had made, lit a fire, and threw the food Lan liked that he had prepared earlier into the pot. He said irritably, "You never come to eat on time, of course you're going to be hungry."
"Honestly, if you don't eat on time again, don't come here anymore. I'll have Gray Feather and the others bring your food over and make sure you eat."
Jiang Yunlan, who often didn't eat on time, didn't dare to speak and nodded like a chick pecking at rice.
Seeing that she nodded obediently as if reflecting, Mo Rong softened her tone and handed over the cooked food: "Eat."
The chicks stopped pecking at the rice and started eating meat and vegetables heartily.
Jiang Yunlan quickly finished her lunch, then slipped away to the washing area with her empty dishes. Since Mo Rong took charge of the food, he had inexplicably developed a powerful aura, making Jiang Yunlan's scalp tingle whenever she missed a meal.
Isn't it normal to forget to eat when you're busy?
She didn't dare say it aloud, so she could only shout it in her heart.
After washing and setting out the bowls and chopsticks, Jiang Yunlan, wearing 022 on her head, went to the mushroom house to check on the growth of the mushrooms.
In the tribe today, Grey Honey is in charge of assigning tasks and allocating manpower, Rock Rain is in charge of combat and defense, Maple Red is in charge of planting, and Maple Sugar is in charge of checking and counting the whereabouts and sources of supplies every day...
The burden on her shoulders gradually lessened, and the weight was shifted to the shoulders of her people, yet she remained incredibly busy.
"It looks like we can harvest a batch of mushrooms before the first crop," Jiang Yunlan said, stepping out of the mushroom house, feeling much more relaxed. If the crops and mushrooms grow well, the beastmen will have less pressure to go out and gather resources.
"It's a pity we couldn't find soybeans or mung beans before, otherwise we could have grown some bean sprouts."
Hearing Lan's rather regretful voice, 022 reached out and gently patted her forehead, comforting her, "Lan, don't worry, a solution to the food problem will appear."
She smiled, and out of the corner of her eye, she saw Maple Syrup, who should have been in the storage area, walking over with the wolf-orc Lup and a strange orc.
She gave Maple Syrup a questioning look.
Maple Syrup looked at Lup: "You explain the OEM issue to Lan."
When Lup saw the squirrel-beastman cub's dark eyes, she instantly recalled the cub's calm tone and threatening manner, and felt a tickle run down her spine.
She instinctively scratched her arm, her gaze wandering, and forced herself to speak: "I'm going to take my people back. Starting tomorrow, the horse-beastmen will replace us wolf-beastmen in working for the Xia clan."
"What happened? Why are you suddenly calling all the clansmen back?" Jiang Yunlan looked at her with concern.
The wolf-orcs are very proactive in everything they do for their daily breakfast, lunch, and dinner; it's impossible for them to suggest going back without a reason.
Lupus choked up, almost bursting into tears. She longed to return and eat the Xia clan's food. After enjoying all sorts of delicious stews, roasts, pan-fries, and stir-fries, who would want to eat awful, undercooked, burnt meat!
“We’re going hunting…the whole tribe has to go, it’s the chief’s requirement,” she said resentfully.
She couldn't eat the Xia clan's food, but neither could her other clansmen. Thinking of this, her mood improved, and she complained, "Before, all the adult clansmen had to go, but this time, for some reason, the clan leader said that even the semi-adults have to come."
This was rather strange. Jiang Yunlan couldn't guess the reason and kept her doubts to herself.
“If the horse-beastmen agree, that's fine. But if they ever decide they don't want to do the work for you anymore, don't force them to continue. If you want something, you can exchange it for other items,” Jiang Yunlan said. She knew the horse-beastmen were vassals of the wolf-beastmen, with the wolf-beastmen as their leaders.
Lup's eyes suddenly lit up, and she asked excitedly, "Then we'll trade our raw meat for the meat dishes you make!"
She tried to count the number of prey she had brought back, but couldn't quite make it out, so she simply used her hands to gesture the pile of prey she remembered.
"I'll trade this much for food," she said with a smile. She knew the clan chief and the others would definitely agree to trade raw meat for the Xia clan's food; everyone missed Xia's food.
Jiang Yunlan stared wide-eyed at the small mountain she was gesturing with. The Hati clan must have provoked the beast tribes; how did they manage to bring back so much prey?
"How about this, we'll prepare this meat for you, and you pay us some food in return."
Hearing this, Lup laughed, tossed the horse-orc chieftain to her, and ran out while saying, "Wait a minute, I'll go back and tell the chieftain, and then bring the food over!"
In the blink of an eye, Lupu had run off, leaving Jiang Yunlan and the reserved horse-orc chieftain staring at each other in bewilderment.
The horse-orc was even taller than the grassland wolf-orc, standing over two meters tall even when hunched over, making him the tallest orc Jiang Yunlan had ever seen.
She had looked up at so many orcs who were a head taller than her that she was no longer afraid of tall orcs. The horse-orc, however, naturally bent his knees and sat on the ground, as if he was used to lowering his height when facing his cubs.
She had assumed that horse-orcs were not talkative.
But during their conversation, she noticed that the horse-orc was silent because he was daydreaming and lost in thought. The horse-orc didn't care about many things, and when he heard that the work details wouldn't be arranged until they arrived the next day, he simply let his mind wander.
"Go back now, and bring your clansmen over tomorrow," Jiang Yunlan said helplessly.
She worried that the tribe's vegetarian food supply wouldn't be enough, so she only asked the horse-beastmen to send two beastmen over first. The horse-beastmen obediently agreed, showing no curiosity or asking any questions, and slowly got up and left the Xia clan without the slightest hesitation.
Maple Syrup didn't understand why Lan was staring at the horse-man's back for so long without reacting, and asked in confusion, "What is Lan looking at?"
“It’s nothing,” she said, turning her gaze back to Maple Syrup, her brows furrowing slightly. “It’s too quiet; I’m a little worried.”
Hati had told her that this entire grassland was his territory. The grassland clans paid tribute to him, and he provided protection to the grassland clans. The only orc clan that depended on him for survival was the horse-orc clan.
Seeing that Maple Syrup didn't understand, Jiang Yunlan just smiled.
"Lan, the gathering team hasn't found a new forest. Should we send orcs to the outskirts of the forest to gather timber and food first?" Maple Syrup asked. Lan rarely asked questions she didn't want answered.
“Perfect timing, I was just thinking of bringing this up tonight. I discussed it with Mian Gaoya, and the argali beastmen will go with our people. Once Feng Hong and the others return from the forest and finalize the list of beastmen to depart, we can set off.”
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