The flower's cultivation time originated from the Xia clan of the forest.
"What? It's almost time for flower cultivation? What is flower cultivation?" Jiang Yunlan asked, her expression blank as she spoke in the unfamiliar orc language.
Does it mean it was born in spring? But spring has been here for quite some time now.
The female beastmen in the habitat had also finished their menstruation due to the arrival of spring. Or perhaps it should be called their annual period? In any case, their once-a-year menstrual cycle had ended.
Seeing Lan's puzzled look, Hui Mi froze, taking a beat to react. Lan didn't understand what Hua Yu meant.
Having spent so much time with Lan, she almost mistook him for an omniscient being. But upon closer reflection, Lan wasn't a beastman from the rocky, forest, or plains regions; as a wise being, Lan couldn't possibly know everything about this place.
Lan is amazing, but she shouldn't treat Lan as an omniscient and omnipotent being. Lan also needs help. She told herself this in her heart.
“Flower nurturing,” Grey Honey said in the orc language, slowly explaining, “is a place where the tribesmen gather during the flower season, a time when orcs conceive their young.”
In the Rocky Region, all orc clan chieftains are Chieftain Mothers. From birth to death, they never bear any offspring.
However, this seems to be the case in the forest and plains areas. In these two places, the orc clans only have chieftains, not chieftain mothers. Those chieftains are orcs who personally raise their young.
After hearing the explanation, Jiang Yunlan became excited, her eyes shining: "Then if we go to participate in the Flower Cultivation, won't we encounter a lot of orc clans? Maybe we can even exchange some good things!"
The opportunity she wanted to open the trading zone had presented itself.
“Hati and the others should know where the flower cultivation site is. I’ll go ask them.” She said, reaching for 022 on the table and placing it on her head before heading towards the inn. Finding other werewolf-orcs was difficult. But finding Hati, who was either sleeping in the inn or eating in the canteen, was particularly easy.
With one foot almost out the door, Jiang Yunlan suddenly remembered something she had forgotten to ask, and turned to look at Grey Honey behind her, "Grey Honey, would you like to participate in this flower cultivation?"
The chieftain mother cannot have her own offspring, but Grey Honey is no longer the chieftain mother, but rather the elder mother.
Grey Honey quickly shook her head, her reaction the kind any beastman who had raised cubs would understand. She had raised far too many cubs. She would continue to care for the rock squirrel beastman cubs in her tribe, but she would not conceive one herself.
Understanding her reaction, Jiang Yunlan looked away and stepped out of the room again.
The hotel, at the door of Hati's room.
Jiang Yunlan knocked on the door. There was no sound from inside, as if no beastman was there.
"Hati. It's me, Lan. I need to talk to you about something." After she finished speaking, she heard a sound coming from inside the house.
The beastmen knew her real name was "Jiang Yunlan," but they always blinked and called her "Lan, Lan, Lan." She got used to it and occasionally referred to herself using a single character. Anyway, it was all her name.
All the orcs liked to call her that, and she gradually started using that word to refer to herself when facing them. It was, after all, her name.
"Click." The door opened, and Hati appeared.
He opened the doorway, sat down on the spot without any regard for appearances, yawned, and said lazily, "Go ahead and say it."
He waited until they finished talking before going back to bed. The hotel bed was very comfortable, and he wouldn't have gotten up at all if Lan hadn't said they had something to discuss.
Jiang Yunlan looked down at the wolf-beastman leaning against the door, wondering how long he slept when he went out hunting, and why he always came back so tired, as if he wanted to sleep for an entire season.
"Where do you take your people when you cultivate the flowers? The time for cultivation is coming soon." She shook off her doubts and asked.
Upon hearing the question, Hati half-closed his eyes and stopped moving.
“You should ask Lupu for that. I don’t participate in flower cultivation. I’ve been sleeping in the tribe during this time of the flower season. Don’t wake me this time either, I’m going to sleep.” He suddenly stood up, gave a location, took two steps back and closed the door.
He may seem to be sleeping the whole time, but he still cares about his people and remembers where they often go.
Helpless, Jiang Yunlan went to find Lupu with 022 on her head.
Lupu didn't know how to explain the route, so he scratched his head and said, "We'll go when the time comes. Lan can bring her people and come with us then."
Upon hearing this, she agreed and went to ask the other members of her tribe for their opinions. If no orcs wanted to go and raise their young, she would take a few orcs with her and see if she could attract some clans to trade with Xia.
"If the tribe has enough resources in the future, we can ask them to come and work for us." Jiang Yunlan pondered this as she walked over to the tribespeople.
"Is it time for the flower breeding? I'll send the eligible orcs in the team over. Um, I'll ask for their opinions first before calling them over. Is Lan asking me? No, I won't. I won't be breeding cubs, and I'd rather spend that time practicing my sword for a few more days." Yan Duoyu said with a smile, holding a sword in one hand.
She has a high affinity with the sword; she used to use a bone sword. Now that she has an iron sword, she has been working on developing a synergy with it and striving to improve her swordsmanship.
When questioned by Lan, Mian Gaoya named the appropriate names of the ibex beastmen from the past, and then said to Lan, "I know I am no longer the chieftain's mother. But I was the chieftain's mother and I will always be the chieftain's mother. I will not conceive or raise cubs."
This is the teaching the orcs of the Rocky District have received, so even if Lan agrees to let him go, he won't. Orcs who cannot accept not bearing cubs will not be chosen as chieftains in the first place.
Jiang Yunlan understood, and without saying a word, got up to find the other clansmen.
As she asked around, she eventually found out about maple syrup.
"Flower Nurturing? No way. Pregnancy is too much trouble; I won't be able to handle clan affairs then," Maple Sugar resolutely refused. Her eyes were only on Lan, Maple Red, and the clan.
Jiang Yunlan walked away slowly, hands behind her back. It's clear that a beastman in the prime of their career wouldn't want cubs.
Just then, she saw a horse-beastman named Feng Er walking by not far away. She ran over in three steps and looked up to ask about Hua Yu.
“We will go,” Feng Er said.
The wolf-beastmen would bring them along every flower season, and they had gotten used to going there during the flower season.
Having prepared a cartload of supplies and taken along the beastmen participating in the Flower Cultivation, Jiang Yunlan set off. Not long after, she encountered a grassland sheep beastman and a fox beastman also going to participate in the Flower Cultivation, and they traveled together.
Lup said the round trip took about eight sunsets.
After mentally calculating the time needed for the stay, Jiang Yunlan felt relieved. She had been away from Xia for much longer when she went to find the ore, but this time it was only a little over ten days. She believed that Maple Sugar and the others would be able to handle the clan's affairs well.
By the time she returned, groups of two or three grassland sheep-beastmen and fox-beastmen would already be working in their tribes.
Jiang Yunlan and her group traveled upstream along the grassland, turning left at a fork in the river. After walking for a long time, hunting a group of wild beasts that passed by, Jiang Yunlan saw a group of familiar beastmen approaching from the direction of the mountains. They were winged beastmen from the Salt Clan.
They also came to participate in flower cultivation.
Both the Green-Winged Crow and the Blue-Branched Crow were of marriageable age and had come to Flower Nurturing with their clan. They were quite surprised to see Jiang Yunlan in the Xia Clan's group.
"Chief Xia."
"Lan".
The two winged beastmen spoke in unison, then glanced at each other, silently determining the order of their actions.
The Green-Winged Crow, who spoke first, turned its gaze to the squirrel-beastman cub sitting in the carriage. "Chief Xia has come to the Flower Nurturing Place specifically because there is something you wish to do."
He spoke with complete understanding. Lan was a cub and was often busy with clan affairs; she wouldn't come here unless it was something important.
"Let's see if there are any orc clans willing to make a trade with Xia." Jiang Yunlan patted the basket on the cart, a smile playing on her lips.
"I wonder if Xia would be willing to exchange other items for our clan's salt? It wouldn't matter if the exchange was for fewer items. With Xia's sea salt, I imagine other clans wouldn't want to make any trades with us." Green-Winged Crow sighed, without a trace of resentment rising in its heart.
They also like the items from the Xia clan, and even if they had other options, the winged beastmen would still choose to trade with the Xia clan.
No orc can refuse Xia; they simply cannot.
Jiang Yunlan blinked and said in a light tone, "Our clan's trade items this time don't include sea salt. You can trade with other clans first. If there's any salt left, Xia will trade some with you."
The tribe had used up a lot of sea salt, and there wasn't much left, only enough to last until next year. She heard from Lup that the winged beastmen would also participate in the flower cultivation, so she didn't take out the sea salt.
Hearing Lan's words, Green-Winged Crow was surprised. He didn't struggle much, and said with slight disappointment, "Okay."
Sensing the disappointment in his tone, Jiang Yunlan was somewhat puzzled. Wasn't it a good thing Xia didn't bring sea salt? Then they wouldn't have any competitors for their goods.
She continued walking with a puzzled look in her mind, and soon arrived at the place where the flowers grew.
A crescent-shaped lake, shrouded in greenery, appeared before Jiang Yunlan's eyes. Just then, the setting sun cast its light upon the emerald green water.
She saw a fish leap. Water droplets fell into the water like specks of light, creating ripples.
"A previously unrecorded species has been discovered. Lan, 022, go there." The transparent slime said, and flew over suddenly, as if afraid that the fish it had just seen would disappear.
"Okay, be careful." Jiang Yunlan responded, snapping out of her reverie of the beautiful scenery and quickly scanning the orc clan gathered around her.
There were orc clans from other places, such as sheep-beastmen, wolf-beastmen, and feather-beastmen, as well as orc clans she had never seen before.
"Have the wolf-orcs from other places arrived yet?" Lup was surprised for a moment, but quickly calmed down and said apologetically, "I'm sorry, Lan. We agreed to come early, but I still brought you a little late. Some clans may have already left."
She remembered that the wolf-beastmen, like them, would arrive here when the flower cultivation was halfway through.
Lupu looked around and just then saw a clan leading their people away.
Jiang Yunlan finished counting the number of clans present just as she heard the apology. She shook her head and said gently, "It's not your fault. It was because we had to farm that we were delayed, and then we encountered some wild beasts on the way. It's alright, there are still many orc clans here."
After saying that, she smiled at Lup.
The flower's lifespan is quite long; she might even see other clans before she leaves.
Now is the time to promote Xia. She wants all the clans she visits to remember the Xia clan, so that she can prepare to recruit more members in the future.
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