Chapter 390: Changes in the Ant Tribe
Central Southern Wasteland, Ant Tribe.
"Chief, why are we digging the dirt here? We work so hard all day and only pick up some thatch roots and insects to eat. We might as well go hunting."
In the new territory of the Ant Tribe, a warrior was turning the soil with a bone hoe while complaining to the leader Guli, obviously very dissatisfied with his current life.
In fact, it's not just him. Most of the members of the ant tribe don't understand the significance of land reclamation. Compared with hunting and gathering, land reclamation and farming are much more difficult, and there is no harvest in a short period of time.
Even if the land is reclaimed and crops are planted, one still has to guard against birds, beasts, and various pests and diseases. If extreme weather occurs, one may even end up with nothing after working hard for half a year.
However, even so, the harvest from farming is still much more stable than hunting and gathering, and the food harvested is far more than hunting and gathering.
Because gathering relies on seasonal harvests, hunting is mostly a matter of luck, and one has to face the situation where the prey becomes less and less.
Guli was not an articulate person and could not explain the benefits of farming. He glared at the soldier and scolded him, "Just do what you are told to do. Why are you talking so much? Reclaiming wasteland and farming is a task assigned by the leader of the Teng tribe himself. If you have the ability, go and talk to the leader of the Teng tribe yourself."
Gu Li's loud rebuke made the soldier shrink his neck and lower his head, not daring to say anything. The others also looked away and continued to do their work.
Since arriving in the new territory, most of their food sources have been supplied by the Teng Tribe. In exchange, they need to help the Teng Tribe process various goods and complete the tasks assigned by the Teng Tribe.
It can be said that today's Ant Tribe is almost entirely dependent on the Vine Tribe for survival.
And the leader of the Vine tribe, who is young but possesses the strength of a seven-color warrior and also has a fierce black wind rhinoceros and a ferocious purple giant eagle, is even more awe-inspiring.
They would never dare to go find the leader of the Teng tribe.
Just when everyone was silent, Qie Ye stepped forward in time to persuade them: "Don't think that farming is useless. I have personally visited the Teng tribe and found that their way of farming is completely different from the way we used to do, where we just sowed a handful of seeds and waited for the harvest."
"They have special people responsible for clearing wasteland, sowing seeds, watering, weeding, pest control, and hunting wild animals. The crops they grow grow very well and can produce a lot of food. The food we eat now is grown by the people of the Teng tribe."
"Although it's not that fast to harvest food from farming, I believe that since the people of the Teng tribe can feed their tribesmen by farming and taming wild animals, we can also rely on farming and taming wild animals to get rid of famine and eat our fill through our own efforts in the future!"
Qie Ye's words made everyone in the Ant Tribe look hopeful.
It is difficult for those who have never actually experienced hunger to understand the fatal attraction of escaping famine to tribal people.
Even if there is only a small hope, they are willing to try and even willing to pay some price for it.
Amid the heavy breathing, the people of the Ant Tribe stopped talking. They lowered their heads, focused their gaze on the soil and grass roots beneath their feet, held the tools tightly in their hands, and began to turn the soil seriously.
As everyone in the ant tribe was busy, night gradually fell.
At this time, a newly reclaimed wasteland has appeared in the forest. The black soil formed by the decomposition of plants is intertwined with the yellow soil underground, and there is a unique beauty under the reflection of the setting sun.
The members of the Ant Tribe carried primitive farm tools and walked towards the residential area in groups of three or five, dragging their tired bodies.
Soon, a large amount of smoke rose above the ant tribe’s residential area, and the aroma of various cooked foods filled the air and drifted with the wind.
Today's ant tribe is obviously different from the former red ant tribe.
The most obvious one is their house.
During the Red Ant Tribe period, they lived in a giant ant nest built with the help of red giant ants. Everyone lived in small grids inside the ant nest, strictly abiding by various regulations and leading a very depressing life.
But now, they all live in wooden houses that they built themselves.
The wooden house is not only more spacious and comfortable, but also can be modified according to their own preferences and live the way they like.
For example, something like a fire pit.
During the Red Ant Tribe period, because red ants hate fire, no fire was allowed in the entire giant ant nest, and they could only build a shed in the open space outside to make a fire.
But now, almost every wooden house in the ant tribe has a fire pit, which can be used for cooking food, as well as for lighting, heating, dehumidification and insect repellent.
Another major change is their lifestyle.
Because the forest is more dangerous at night, and the lighting tools are backward and there are not many entertainment activities at night, the tribesmen usually follow a lifestyle of working from sunrise to sunset, and at night they either create humans or sleep.
But now, the ant tribe has to change this lifestyle.
After escaping the control of the Red Ant God, the warriors of the Ant Tribe also lost the power of their totems, and their physical strength and combat effectiveness dropped significantly.
Given their generally weak physical strength and combat capabilities, it would be impossible to feed so many people by hunting and gathering alone.
So, in order to survive, they had to learn how to farm and tame wild animals like the Teng tribe.
But the results of farming and taming wild animals will not be seen immediately; it requires a certain amount of time and a certain process.
During this transitional period, their main source of livelihood was to undertake the rough processing of various materials and handicrafts that the Teng tribe could not finish making in exchange for food and other survival resources.
Therefore, after clearing the land during the day and having dinner at night, they had to continue working around the fire pit by the light of the fire, and could not go to bed when it got dark like before.
The more goods they processed, the more food and other resources they could exchange from the Vine Tribe, and the easier it would be to survive.
Conversely, the fewer goods they process, the less they can exchange for, and the more difficult it is to survive.
In order to survive, the members of the Ant Tribe changed their original way of life in a very short period of time, working hard day and night with only one goal - to survive.
“Crack, crack, crack…”
In a wooden house in the center of the ant tribe's residential area, Qie Ye sat by the fire, holding an animal tooth in his right hand and grinding it back and forth on a flat stone, while he held the stone with his left hand and poured some water on the stone surface from time to time.
This tusk is not big, only as thick as a thumb and half as long as a palm, but due to its hard texture, it is not easy to polish and is extremely time-consuming and laborious.
According to the requirements of the Teng tribe, he had to grind the tusk into a round, smooth, needle-shaped button and drill two small holes in the middle so that it could be sewn onto the animal leather clothes.
While grinding the fangs, Qie Ye said to the chief Gu Li who was also working nearby: "Father, we have processed enough goods during this period. Tomorrow I plan to take people to the Teng tribe to exchange for some salt and food. I also want to exchange for some pottery. We have too few pottery."
Gu Li lowered his head and said, "Don't exchange for red crystal rice and purple corn, they are too expensive. Exchange for cheaper stone eggs and fish scale fruits. You can pick some pottery that is damaged but still usable, the price is low."
"We are living in a difficult situation now. It is enough to have food to eat and pottery to be usable. Don't be greedy for the nice things."
After hearing his father's words, Qie Ye felt a little blocked in his heart. He clenched the fang tightly and nodded heavily, "Father, I'll remember it."
The two men continued to work, neither of them in the mood for conversation. The only sounds in the wooden house were the friction between animal teeth and bones and stones, and the crackling of the burning fire.
They all desperately want to get rid of this living condition and want to lead their people to live a good life sooner, but they also know in their hearts that this is a destined to be a long and painful process, and there is no shortcut except hard work.
During this period, the author went to overcome the tribulation and just came back.
Life is not easy, I have to go, please forgive me, my fellow book friends.
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