7 Chapter 7
◎The School, the Fox of Silvermoon Valley◎
The tent was spacious, with bright daylight streaming in from the open windows. Soft animal skins were spread on the floor, making it convenient for the children to sit on it at will.
Naren, holding the booklet given to her by Li Hengqing, carefully poked her head in through the doorway, and happened to meet the eyes of the Black Hawk tribe kid who had fought with her before. Her brows suddenly furrowed and she looked away.
Behind her, her father Agula, whose face was as black as coal, patted her shoulder and said in a rough voice, "Go, don't learn bad things from those people."
Agulaben strongly opposed Naren coming to the new camp's school, not because he was so feudal as to not want his daughter to study. Ever since Tuge came to power, the Black Eagle Tribe and the Gray Wolf Tribe had a deep grudge, and coupled with the fight, he had many doubts in his heart.
It was only that pamphlet that changed his mind.
She controlled her expression and replied to Agula, "Okay, Dad."
When she caught sight of the boy, her expression subconsciously cooled again, and she tiptoed over to Qiqige, who was casually flipping through a book on her lap. Qiqige was the elder sister of the Great Shaman, but unlike the aloof Great Shaman, she always managed to get along well with the children.
When Qiqige saw her, she put one of her long braids behind her back with a smile and said, "Our little Naren is here too."
Naren looked at the book on Qiqige's lap curiously. It was indeed similar to the one she had received from Li Hengqing before. The paper was tough and yellowed, but the patterns had changed from various simple machines to common flowers and plants.
But the little girl's delicate self-esteem wouldn't allow her to be overly close to Qiqige at this moment. She blinked, suppressing her curiosity for the moment.
The children of the Black Hawk Tribe gradually arrived at the new camp. The elderly and women who had brought the children there had been somewhat concerned, but they breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the friendly Qiqige. Two elderly women sat in a corner, presumably safer than letting the children run around, and they didn't have to worry about them when they went to work in the tent.
The production work assigned to them was not difficult and the intensity was appropriate. They could have enough food and clothing and did not feel like they were dependent on others.
Even the children's attitudes had softened, though a few still looked wary. Qiqige glanced at them with a smile, not taking it too seriously. She set up a slate and, with a few strokes of charcoal, sketched a lifelike pattern of flowers and plants. "Young eagles and wolf cubs, does anyone recognize her?"
The children of the Gray Wolf Tribe were sent here voluntarily. There were only two or three of them, but they were seated in distinct groups, all working hard. Soon, someone shouted, "I know! This is foxtail grass!" The Black Hawk Tribe took the lead.
“It’s for feeding sheep!”
Qiqige nodded in satisfaction and picked out another kind of grass with small flowers: "What about this one?"
Most of the children from the Black Hawk tribe hesitated, and Naren seized the opportunity to speak quickly: "It was the alfalfa that Khatun asked us to plant in the spring!"
Qiqige rewarded her with a smiling eye contact. Like a magic trick, she took out two dried flowers from the same plant and gently touched their stamens together. "Yes. When spring comes, the wind, insects, and birds will carry pollen from the boy-like flower to the girl-like flower. In this way, the girl-like flower will bear seeds for us during the fruiting season."
"If different flowers get different pollen, they'll produce different seeds," she said. "For example..."
"For example, in the spring, Khatun taught us to pair the strongest rams with the ewes that produce the most milk." Naren couldn't wait to whisper, her emerald eyes full of eager anticipation.
…
The simple lesson ended quickly, and the children's competitive spirit was easily aroused, so much so that Qiqige had to ask them to raise their hands to speak.
Although Li Hengqing had given her a number of bound books and a draft of the phonetic notation system, as one of the most learned members of the tribe, she needed some time to digest it carefully. Paper and charcoal pencils weren't readily available, so using small slates wouldn't be a problem. However, considering these guys had a history of violent fights, it was best not to let them have such weapons.
She was not in charge of the small free time, so Qiqige stretched herself, carried the basket filled with pineapple buns, and prepared to return to her tent.
He hadn't walked far when he suddenly stopped.
"Hey, isn't this our Master Qiqige?" a sarcastic voice approached with a playful laugh. "Why aren't you with Great Shaman Wu Rigen? Instead, you're showing mercy to your enemy's children?"
She turned around and saw a shaman disciple staring at her in a frivolous manner, pursing his lips and whistling, the provocation obvious.
"The merciful sky protects every one of its people." Qiqige smiled back, her attitude sincere. "Since you've chosen reconciliation, you can't simply treat us as enemies."
"I thought Master Qiqige had been bribed by the Central Plains people's flour snacks." A malicious gaze fell on Qiqige's basket. "...Or is it that the Great Shaman Wu Rigen refused to teach you his true skills, so you sought comfort with a bunch of brats?"
Qiqi paused, then lifted the cloth covering the basket and pulled out a plump, golden pineapple bun. The bun was still warm from the oven, its sweet aroma and rich milky fragrance wafting freely through the air.
The shaman disciple stretched out his hand: "Since..."
Qiqige looked at him calmly, then put the pineapple bun into her mouth and said objectively, "It is indeed very delicious. I hope you will have the opportunity to taste this gift from the heavens."
Then he left without looking back.
The shaman disciple was stunned and gnashed his teeth: This freak is just like the evil witch from the Central Plains who brought bad luck, and likes to go to ominous places!
*
At the same time, Li Hengqing, who was at the edge of Silver Moon Valley, sneezed.
Lang Yue beside her hurriedly asked with concern: "Princess, have you caught a cold?"
Li Hengqing turned his gaze towards the overgrown weeds in the distance and said soothingly, "How can you catch a cold in this hot summer?"
The former "Mother's Embrace" before us has become a symbol of an ominous place. Clearly a man-made disaster, not a natural one, yet it evokes such a fear that one should stay away from it.
Black thyme is more raging than wildfires that are reignited by the spring breeze. It covers the ground densely and even attempts to cross the artificial isolation belts and continue to take root.
She knew that the hastily laid isolation zone was not airtight, otherwise how could Tug bring disaster upon himself and be killed by the Black Thyme she had set up?
The previous treatment wasn't a permanent solution, and we couldn't let the once fertile land become barren. The black thyme season was approaching, and Li Hengqing had come for this very reason. She narrowed her gaze and mentally asked the system, "Is there any way to deal with black thyme?"
The system quickly responded: [Specialized natural enemy bee species, eliminated within six months, price: 5 points.]
It was exactly equal to her balance, and she wouldn't stop until her pockets were empty. Li Hengqing glanced at the short progress bar of the educational task and tried to bargain with it. "Isn't there a cheaper option? I definitely need to save some points for emergencies. It's also good for the system if the host has a certain level of risk tolerance."
The system was silent for a moment, then replied: [Rhizobium strain, price: 2 points, requires manual sowing, growth cycle: 60 to 90 days.]
Only then did Li Hengqing nod.
This is just a little troublesome, but if we can establish a settlement near Silvermoon Valley and obtain a batch of black thyme as raw material for papermaking... it will also be a business that is sure to make money.
She continued reading and discovered that the rhizobium strains provided by the system could be synthesized with other crop seeds. Not only could they change the original plant's growth cycle - sixty to ninety days was undoubtedly not long, and being able to grow year-round in grasslands unsuitable for agriculture was a huge advantage - but they could also use the special nodule structure to absorb the nutrients of the black thyme itself, turning the poisonous weed into raw materials.
Planting was a bit of a hassle. While the tent was light and convenient, it could only be used in sheltered areas, making it unsuitable for the sometimes windy Silver Moon Valley. A different solution would be needed for the settlement of the pioneers. The juicy leaves of black thyme were also toxic, requiring appropriate isolation measures and convincing people to come and reclaim the land.
Her mind turned and she thought of the Black Hawk Tribe, which had also suffered from the disaster of Black Thyme.
But Lang Yue muttered to herself, "My mother once taught me how to weave straw baskets with dried black thyme... Why wasn't there so much black thyme back then?"
Li Hengqing's eyelids twitched, and he asked, "Langyue, where are you from?"
The tribe undoubtedly had no habit of using black thyme. With Wu Rigen's prestige growing, and the tribe's people often placing their faith in authority, anyone of lower birth who touched such an ominous object would surely be labeled a heretic. She couldn't have been unaware of this.
"My mother married here from the Sand Fox Tribe further north," Lang Yue replied nonchalantly, oblivious. "The new lord withdrew from the alliance, and the people below lived in fear every day. So my mother took me and fled here. It's too dry and cold there, it's not easy. Even Black Thyme has a hard time serving her there."
Li Hengqing's eyes darkened slightly. Langyue had been reassigned to her by Helian Xiao after the Great White Disaster. Whether she was trustworthy was another matter, but at least her background was impeccable. She had decided to return and investigate further, but the grass at the edge of her sight shifted slightly, and a stone rolled to her feet in the wind.
She looked in the direction she came from, but the place she came from was empty, nothing at all. She suspected that she was too nervous, so she turned and whispered to Langyue, "I seem to be a little tired. Let's go back first."
Lang Yue was very worried about her possible illness, so he quickly and carefully supported her and shouted to his guards, "Prepare the car and return!"
Li Hengqing let her move, holding her loosely with his hands. He accidentally touched her fingertips and found that there were indeed thick calluses there.
The grass behind him moved again almost imperceptibly, but no one noticed.
The handsome young man from another race looked over the thick green grass, and his originally narrow and charming fox eyes widened. Only after the guard reminded him did he quickly lower his voice and watch the seemingly fragile figure leave. He was obviously absent-minded.
"Ominous..." Li Hengqing and his group completely left. He muttered to himself, suddenly looking uninterested. "That's all for today, let's go."
The guard behind him hesitated: "But..."
Without turning around, the young man interrupted coldly, saying, "Tell the leader I'm determined to get him, but I need the right time. Interesting prey... naturally requires a heavy bait."
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