Chapter 793: The Green Sparrow Tribe’s New Animals
Three days later, Han Cheng led his people and departed from Copper Mountain Residential Area, beginning the return journey.
During these few days, Han Cheng and those who followed him had ample rest.
While resting, Han Cheng organized the maps he had drawn of the terrain and landforms on the way there.
He also inspected the mining tunnels on Copper Mountain, the extraction of ores, the slting of copper and tin, the cultivation of land, and the planting of crops, together with Third Senior Brother.
While expressing full recognition of the work done at Copper Mountain Residential Area, Han Cheng also offered so guiding suggestions.
Among these, he was most concerned about cutting down more trees to support the mining tunnels.
The tunnels in Copper Mountain were not very deep and fairly solid. So far, there had been no collapses or deaths because of them, but the safer one wants to be, the more caution is necessary.
As the tunnels deepen, the risk increases. Where possible, protective asures must be taken. Otherwise, if a collapse occurs, it would be very distressing.
In later tis, when mining accidents occurred, thanks to advanced equipnt, professional rescue teams, and costly rescue efforts, many people could still be saved.
In the present era, if such an accident happened, it would basically an certain death for those buried, so protective asures must be taken seriously.
During an inspection of the copper mine, Han Cheng saw ng.
ng was the man who, out of dissatisfaction, had tried to flee with so others but was caught and punished by being enslaved to dig for copper in Copper Mountain endlessly.
At this ti, ng looked completely unlike a human: his hair and beard were matted and dirty, his body and face covered in a thick layer of dusty gri, like armor.
His entire being exuded a foul stench, and his expression was dull and vacant.
When Han Cheng, accompanied by Third Senior Brother and others, was about to descend the mountain, ng was carrying a load of excavated ore on his shoulder pole, trembling as he walked.
When he saw Third Senior Brother and the others, he froze for a mont and then involuntarily quickened his pace.
Upon realizing it was ng, Han Cheng suddenly felt a bit troubled.
After all, Han Cheng had received nine years of formal education, and aside from being single and sowhat introverted, his values were sound.
It was normal to feel uneasy seeing ng reduced to such a miserable state under his orders.
When ng tried to escape, the tribe was furious, and so was Han Cheng.
But unlike others, much of Han Cheng’s anger was performative—to show the tribe his stance and build montum for the laws to be enacted.
In truth, Han Cheng secretly admired ng’s attempt to slip away and refuse slavery.
Coming from the future, if anyone dared to enslave him, Han Cheng would have fought desperately; ng’s quiet escape was mild—he might have resorted to poisoning als with toxic plants to sabotage the tribe.
However, admiration aside, Han Cheng couldn’t be lenient in handling ng’s case—his role now was master, not slave, and he must remain strict.
But seeing ng’s current state stirred pity in Han Cheng’s heart.
After careful thought, ng’s attempt was only a failed escape.
Apart from trying to run, he showed no intention to harm people or damage property.
The years of harsh, inhumane mining labor at Copper Mountain roughly offset his wrongdoing and served as a warning to others and a deterrent to wrongdoers.
After pondering, that afternoon, Han Cheng summoned everyone in Copper Mountain Residential Area and had ng brought out from the mine tunnels.
In front of all, Han Cheng reiterated ng’s past mistake and the tribe’s laws.
Just when everyone thought Han Cheng would severely punish ng, Han Cheng instead stated that ng had not shirked work during his mining years and announced an appropriate sentence.
The sentence allowed ng to sleep in the slaves’ courtyard in Copper Mountain Residential Area at night. His food was sowhat worse than that of other slaves, but an improvent over his ti in the mine tunnels.
Han Cheng also reduced ng’s daily workload accordingly.
After understanding Han Cheng’s aning, ng stood stunned for a mont, then imdiately knelt before Han Cheng and collapsed on the ground, wailing loudly.
This scene not only further deepened the Green Sparrow Tribe’s people in Copper Mountain Residential Area’s sense of kindness from their Divine Child, but also made the slaves, seeing ng in such a pitiful state, firmly resolve never to make the sa mistakes as ng.
Just thinking about what ng had endured over these years sent shivers down their spines…
On the way back, Han Cheng and his group did not take the usual path used before when traveling to and from the Green Sparrow Tribe; instead, they walked the area they had explored when they first arrived.
This return trip was not only to clarify the situation in this detoured region, but also to finalize the route of the Bronze Highway, aiming to build about ten to twenty li of road before the autumn harvest.
“Dang dang dang…”
The sound of striking echoed through the sumr forest, startling a few pairs of courting birds.
On the way back, Han Cheng held so sharpened small wooden sticks, carefully observed them, and then stuck them into the ground.
Soone behind him carried a bronze hamr, pulling out the sticks he planted and replacing them with larger tree sticks chopped with a bronze axe, nailing them in the sa spots to serve as more conspicuous markers.
Others, wielding sickles and axes, cleared underbrush alongside the planted sticks, making a path about a ter wide for easier passage and to make the markers more visible.
Thus, the group moved forward, planting, clearing, and gradually approaching the Green Sparrow Tribe.
This was true hard pioneering, braving thorns and rough paths…
Nearly twenty days later, a group of people who looked even more primitive than the average tribesman returned from the west side of the tribe.
If it weren’t for the Green Sparrow flag fluttering in the wind—torn and ragged—and the accompanying deer, dogs, and matching numbers, the tribe mbers eagerly awaiting the Divine Child’s return almost couldn’t believe that these ragged figures were indeed him and his people.
“Son, call your father!”
Han Cheng, scruffy and bearded, laughed loudly at the little Pea whom Bai Xue was leading.
“No, not daddy, ugly…”
The little one said while hiding behind Bai Xue.
It was only after Han Cheng took out two bright red fruits from his bag and three noisy, fluffy little birds that the little Pea, who did not recognize his own father, was coaxed to follow along.
After briefly greeting Shaman, the eldest apprentice brother, and Bai Xue, and hearing that nothing significant had happened while he was away, Han Cheng quickly discarded the things he had brought back.
Then, carrying clean clothes found by Bai Xue and a bathing basket, he hurried downstream to a specially prepared bathing area.
The ground there was covered with fine soft sand; walking barefoot felt ticklish.
They had also dug several shallow pits less than half a ter deep, lying in which, with one’s head above water, was very comfortable for open-air bathing.
At the spot where the bathing area connected to the river, a bamboo fence made from split bamboo woven together and blocked by trees stood.
This was mainly to keep the fish out of the river.
After all, so fish in the river were quite fierce. Small ones were manageable—getting bitten a few tis wasn’t too bad—but the big ones were dangerous. A single bite from one of those would ruin all the fun.
“Comfortable!”
Quickly shaking off the unbearably unpleasant clothes, Han Cheng entered the water and lay back in one of the pits.
The sun-ward water enveloped his whole body, and the feeling of comfort was indescribable.
After a while, Han Cheng held his breath and subrged himself to the bottom, pressing his body close to the sand, staying there for so ti before surfacing.
Exhaling and wiping the water from his face with his hand, he couldn’t help but sigh in admiration.
The only slight regret was that there was no waterlon and no peanut field nearby.
Otherwise, holding a waterlon and throwing it into the water, pulling up so peanuts to toss in as well, soaking for a while, then smashing open the waterlon and eating waterlon and peanuts—what a delightful feeling that would be!
Such thoughts made his mouth water uncontrollably.
Though once, after stealing peanuts from a nearby field with so companions, he had his clothes taken away by a woman while bathing and had to stay in the water for a long ti, turning his lips dark—thinking back, he still felt great nostalgia.
Unfortunately, Han Cheng and his people were not like the seven fairies who descended to the mortal world for water play; their clothes were taken until it was nearly dark, and their won didn’t even have a talking old ox at ho—otherwise, maybe they could create a legend…
Those who had gone with Han Cheng to Copper Mountain Residential Area now all gathered and jumped into the water like dumplings, instantly shouting with joy.
At so places downstream, the won from the tribe also joyfully entered the water.
Under Han Cheng’s subtle influence, the tribe had learned about gender distinctions and was gradually reflecting that in their behavior.
For example, in the hot sumr, no adult won went bare-chested anymore.
Even won who might undo buttons for coolness in public were no longer seen.
When the outdoor sumr bathing pools were built, and Han Cheng directly constructed two of them, no one was puzzled.
After all, the tribe’s latrines and winter bathing pools were also separated by gender.
Between the two outdoor pools grew a dense patch of hemp plants, effectively blocking the view between them.
However, when the won’s pool beca noisy with laughter and play downstream, no one said anything, and the once lively n’s pool quickly fell silent…
n of this era and n of later tis were surprisingly similar in this regard…
A short separation makes the heart grow fonder.
Han Cheng had been away from the tribe for over a month, and naturally, there was a tender reunion with his little child bride Bai Xue; no need to elaborate.
The next day, after shaving his beard and cutting his long hair with bronze scissors that had a serrated edge, Han Cheng looked much more spirited, no longer as shabby as when he returned.
After getting up, he took little Pea to the fields around the tribe, caught so grasshoppers, and ca back to feed the little birds Han Cheng had found by the creek.
These three little creatures were still sowhat fearful of humans and would hide at the edges when people approached.
But no matter how scared they were, they couldn’t resist the lure of good food.
When Han Cheng and little Pea took the grasshoppers they had caught—strung on a stalk of foxtail grass—one by one, and dropped them onto the plates in the cage, the little birds cautiously ca closer.
They stretched their necks and used their tender, yellow baby-bird beaks to grab a dead grasshopper and quickly ran back to a corner.
Only after getting there would they tilt their heads back and swallow the grasshopper whole.
After eating, they cocked their heads to look at the two hairless monkeys squatting on the ground watching them, then cautiously went back to eat more grasshoppers.
After repeating this two or three tis, the birds’ courage grew significantly; they no longer grabbed one grasshopper and ran away but stood by the plate, steadily swallowing grasshoppers one after another.
Though small in size, their eating speed was not slow; they quickly ate up more than half of the grasshoppers on the strings.
After these grasshoppers were eaten, the little birds grew bolder. One of them even reached out its beak to peck at a grasshopper resting in Little Pea’s open palm.
The bird’s soft, flat beak touched the tender palm, tickling it, making Little Pea giggle happily.
Startled by Little Pea’s laughter, the bird, still holding the grasshopper, flapped its tiny wings and quickly flew away.
These three little creatures, covered in gray down, with flat beaks and similarly gray webbed feet, were ducklings of a wild duck species.
When they passed by the narrow creek, many wild ducks and similar birds had been frightened into flight. The Green Sparrow Tribe mbers caught these three while they were driving in wooden stakes and clearing the surrounding brush.
Initially, there had been at least ten ducklings in the nest.
But these little ones were speedy. Though not yet fully grown, they darted through the grass with great speed.
After much scrambling, the group only managed to catch these three.
With experience raising deer, donkeys, geese, and chickens, the people accompanying Han Cheng naturally understood the Divine Child’s intent in capturing waterfowl like these.
It was very likely that, just like chickens and geese, these ducks would be dosticated and either raised for eggs or eventually for at.
However, although they understood Han Cheng’s intentions, Mao and others were not very enthusiastic about this.
The tribe already had chickens and geese, both egg-laying dosticated birds.
One laid eggs frequently, the other laid huge eggs, and the two complented each other well. Thus, there was no urgent need for other fowl.
Han Cheng, however, completely disagreed with this view.
Coming from a later era, he had a deep obsession with having the “big three” of poultry: chickens, ducks, and geese.
Moreover, ducks, when appropriately raised, had a decisive advantage in egg production.
Not only were their eggs much larger than chicken eggs, but with good feeding, they could sotis lay two eggs a day.
One at dusk, another at dawn.
Also, salted duck eggs—brined until they exuded red oil—were a very delicious delicacy, especially the yolks, which were extrely satisfying to eat.
Chicken eggs could also be salted, of course, but compared to salted duck eggs, they always lacked in flavor.
Aside from salted duck eggs, roast duck was another delicious dish that must be ntioned.
Han Cheng had never tried the famous Beijing Quanjude roast duck. Still, he had sampled ordinary street roast ducks for eighteen yuan each, and more expensive ones, priced at thirty-plus yuan, were supposedly charcoal-roasted with fruitwood.
The golden-brown skin, dusted with cumin and chili powder, tasted especially flavorful…
Those little ducks, now whole from eating grasshoppers and occasionally stretching their legs or wings, had no idea that the hairless, big monkey in front of them was already drooling and eyeing them and their future offspring as food.
If they knew, they might not be as calm as they were now…
The Bronze Highway was a matter of deep concern to everyone and needed to be urgently put on the agenda.
Before leaving, Han Cheng had instructed the stone carver Mutou, the second elder apprentice who also served as a coppersmith, and others remaining in the tribe to craft more tools needed for road construction during this period.
Now, with tools ready and the route confird by Han Cheng, construction could begin.
The day after returning from Copper Mountain Residential Area, Han Cheng began discussing road construction with Shaman, the eldest apprentice brother, the second apprentice brother, and Shang, after catching so grasshoppers with Little Pea to feed the ducklings and finishing breakfast.
Then, while ensuring other tribe affairs proceeded normally, he began arranging and mobilizing manpower in preparation for the roadwork.
More than half of those assigned to the roadwork were slaves of the Green Sparrow Tribe.
Such hard labor naturally could not avoid their involvent…
“Dang dang dang…”
At the Green Sparrow Tribe’s quarry, people were busy knocking loose slabs of shale and loading them onto a two-wheeled donkey cart parked nearby.
“Ha!”
With a shout from the driver, the donkey pulling the cart and the deer assisting from the passenger side started hauling the load of stone slabs.
Following the previously laid stone slab path, after two turns, they rumbled toward the western edge of the Green Sparrow Tribe’s farmland.
Stone slab roads had already been built earlier in the farmland around the Green Sparrow Tribe, including a main road leading west.
This previously built main road was now directly used by Han Cheng as the eastern starting point of the Bronze Highway.
However, when the old road was built, the tribe only had wheelbarrows, not two-wheeled carts.
So even though it was a main road, its width was only about two ters.
It would need widening later.
But because the crops on both sides were still unripe, starting to widen the road now would destroy many crops.
Therefore, the new construction of the Bronze Highway extended westward from this main road.
The widening of the old road could only happen after the crops were harvested.
At the end of this old road, many people were scattered around.
They carried various tools and were busy clearing the bush according to assigned tasks.
So held sickles, axes, and saws, continuing to clear and widen the path along the wooden stakes Han Cheng’s group had planted and the roughly cleared path.
Those more skilled, like La, Shi Tou, and Yuan, under Han Cheng’s guidance, used rope, asuring tapes, long cords, and stakes to straighten the path roughly based on the stakes planted earlier.
They also marked the exact road position and width with li powder.
Then another group, holding bronze shovels and mattocks, leveled the land along the li-marked path.
Behind them, so used tamping tools to compact the loose soil and smooth the surface.
On this preliminarily leveled land, others laid stone slabs brought from the quarry.
Stone slab roads were more durable than ordinary dirt roads, and paving them ant the soil didn’t need to be tamped as firmly.
Han Cheng ultimately decided to pave a section with stone slabs.
This decision was also made because the quarry was not too far away.
If the road extended five or six li farther and the paving location was too distant from the quarry, they would have to switch to building pure dirt roads.
Of course, if a large amount of shale was found along the way, the situation might change.
Actually, even stone slab roads didn’t compare to concrete roads.
But currently, the tribe could only make quickli, and the nearest known listone deposit was far from the Green Sparrow Tribe.
Even if they could make cent, given the tribe’s manpower and resources, building such a long cent road was still unrealistic…
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