The wild ducks chose to build their nests in the forest near the tribe because they had accepted the environment and adapted to it. Perhaps it was the efforts of the fat duck as well. No matter what, this was not a bad thing for the tribe.
Now, the patrol team had expanded their patrol area to the forest near the tribe. In the past, they would still patrol these areas, but not for long. Sometimes they would only patrol once every one or two days. Now, however, the patrol team would go for a stroll in the forest every day.
Now, the patrol team had a new hobby – looking for eggs.
When they found the nests of the wild ducks, they would pick up the broken eggs or the eggs that had fallen from the trees. If they could be eaten, they would eat them. If not, they would use them as fertilizer for the Thousand Grain Gold. Even if these broken eggs were left in the nest, it would be difficult for the ducks to hatch a second generation.
Shao Xuan wanted to see if these eggs were all seeds. Unfortunately, even if he faced Yang Guang, he could not see anything inside the eggs. The eggshells were not transparent at all. Shao Xuan could only give up on this idea and only let the men bring back the broken eggs.
When the patrol team walked in the forest, they would be careful not to disturb the ducks in their nests. They would only look at them when they left. Otherwise, they would not go near them.
These wild ducks were very clever. They built their nests in the grass, and when they left, they used the grass to cover the eggs in the nests. At first glance, no one would notice that there was a duck nest there. There were a few times when the patrolling soldiers quietly followed the ducks and watched them remove the grass to discover the duck nest.
Compared to the hard work of the female ducks, the fat green duck that Shao Xuan brought back was very relaxed. Of course, it would also patrol the forest. If there were wild rats or other small creatures that it could handle, it would go into defensive mode and transform into a fighting duck. But if it encountered a human that it could not defeat, it would cry out loudly. When the patrol team heard its cry, they would immediately rush to its rescue.
The people in the tribe were always very enthusiastic about new and useful things. They had nothing to do anyway. Some of the children would catch insects and throw them to the ducks when they had nothing to do.
The female ducks probably felt that this place was safer than other places, so they felt more at ease.
So one day, there were some new sounds in the forest near the tribe.
Grey, yellow, and flowery balls of hair were active in the woods.
Although there were patrols in the forest, they could not be everywhere at all times. The fat duck could not be there all the time. When these ducklings were born, they would attract some predators, so it was inevitable that the ducklings would be taken away. Even the mother ducklings were taken away.
Shao Xuan ordered his men to bring the ducklings that had lost their mothers back to the tribe to be reared. The fat duck continued to turn a blind eye to this. In fact, after the second generation ducklings were born, it did not show much interest in them. Although it continued to patrol the forest, it did not stop for the ducklings.
The people in the tribe were very enthusiastic about these second generation ducks. A large duck pen was specially built at the foot of the mountain. Shao Xuan also brought some people to build a duck shed. Every day, people would take turns to look after the ducks.
Then one day, Shao Xuan received a report from the people at the foot of the mountain that the fat duck had moved in by itself. It did not even let the ducklings near it.
Seeing how stubborn the duck was, Shao Xuan had no choice but to get someone to build a small shed next to the duck shed and lay some hay on it. Only then did he let the duck move over.
Shao Xuan had discovered that the duck eggs he brought back had antidote properties, so he paid more attention to the ducks reared by the tribe. As for the ducks in the forest outside the tribe, Shao Xuan did not let his men catch all of them. It was the first time the tribesmen tried to feed ducks, so it was good to have a comparison. Plus, there were too many ducklings for the inexperienced tribesmen to take care of. It was better to let the older ducks take care of them.
Other than the ducks, the craftsmen in the tribe also made great progress in forging. They melted down the large bronze cauldron Shao Xuan brought back and made other bronze wares. There were obvious improvements in weapon forging, but there was not enough ore for them to experiment with.
What made Shao Xuan even happier was that the thousand-grain gold in his backyard was about to ripen. The grains were starting to turn yellow. When they all turned gold, it would be almost ready. With his experience, Shao Xuan told everyone to pay attention to the changes that occurred when the grains ripened, such as rats and other things.
According to Ji Ju and the others' estimates, the thousand-grain gold harvest should be just in time for the tribe's first trip to Anba City this year. They had already accumulated animal skins for half a year. It was time to go out and trade them. Otherwise, they could not just leave them at home. Plus, for the Taihe tribesmen who were good at planting, harvest time was approaching. After they harvested, they would have to go out and trade. The Yanjiao people would naturally try their best to go with them and take care of them.
However, at the end of last year, they had a small conflict with the people of Anba City. This year, they had to be more careful. Although they could take the sign directly to Black Bear's people, it was always better to be careful.
The shamaness, chief Zheng Luo, Duo Kang, Guang Yi, Shao Xuan and a few other people of status in the tribe gathered in Zheng Luo's house to discuss the trip to Anba City. Shao Xuan, the youngest, sat among them, so no one dared to look down on him.
As they were talking, someone came to report that someone was looking for Shao Xuan at the foot of the mountain.
"Does this person have a name?" Zheng Luo asked the warrior who came in.
The warrior thought for a moment. "He said his name is' Heng '."
Zheng Luo and the rest's eyelids twitched and they immediately stood up. "Quick, invite him in!"
Then he remembered that this person was looking for Shao Xuan, so he had to ask for Shao Xuan's opinion. He stopped the warrior who was about to leave and looked at Shao Xuan. "What do you think?"
Shao Xuan stood up. "I'll go down and take a look first."
Many people would not easily enter an unfamiliar tribe. If something happened, they would not be able to escape. At this thought, Zheng Luo understood. However, he did not continue to sit in the house. Instead, he followed Shao Xuan down the mountain. As someone who was interested in blacksmithing, the Xia people had always been mysterious. If one wanted to find a Xia person in the city to forge a weapon, one would not be able to get the person to help unless they had enough items in exchange. Furthermore, the more skilled a Xia person was, the less likely they would help others.
And every Xia person from Gongjia Mountain was a master. Although they were not very famous now, to these people, it was only a matter of time before they became famous. Once they became famous, it would be difficult to meet them again. This was a rare opportunity, of course Zheng Luo would not miss it.
When Shao Xuan arrived at the foot of the mountain, Gongjia Heng was sitting on the grass near the river, looking at the ducks of different colours in the river.
After living in the tribe for a long time, the ducks had lowered their guard against the tribesmen. They would even snatch the food after the tribesmen had spilled it.
"You have so many birds in your tribe? Aren't you afraid they'll fly away? "Heng pointed at the ducks of all sizes in the river.
Shao Xuan smiled. "They flew here of their own accord. They can fly away if they want."
"Who are you trying to fool?" Heng did not believe him. However, he did not come here to look at the ducks. He was just asking out of curiosity. He was not interested in whether the Yanjiao people raised them or how they raised them.
"I had to ask a few tribesmen before I found this place." When Gongjia Heng arrived, he saw a Flaming Horn warrior dragging a freshly hunted wild boar. He tossed it like a sandbag to his comrade a hundred metres away. At that moment, Heng thought, 'Shao Xuan wasn't lying, people in this tribe are generally strong.'
"Let's talk inside. I'm sure you're tired. Rest here for a few days before we depart," Shao Xuan said.
Gongjia Heng did not stand on ceremony. Ever since he came here, other than resting for two days at the place where he had lived for almost twenty years, he had not had a good rest. There were many fearsome beasts in the forest too. He had been tense the entire time, avoiding the dangerous beasts. He was exhausted, he really needed a good rest. Although this was his first time in the Yanjiao tribe and he was unfamiliar with the place, he trusted Shao Xuan.
After Shao Xuan introduced Heng to Zheng Luo and the rest, he brought Heng up the mountain to his house.
Heng had brought a huge bag with him. Once he entered the house, he placed the bag on the stone table. There was a clatter of hard objects hitting the table.
"These are for you!" Heng's face was solemn as he said to Shao Xuan, "I haven't thanked you properly. These are part of the fruits of my labor at Gongjia Mountain. It's also a thank you gift."
Shao Xuan looked at the contents of the bag. There were ten weapons, swords, axes, spears and so on. Just by looking at them, he could feel a sharp aura. The blades glinted coldly and each weapon had a cloud symbol on it. It was Heng's own inscription. One of the golden swords had dark cloud symbols on it. It was Shao Xuan's name.
Heng's eyes shone with pride and confidence. "This is the sword I'm most proud of, other than the one I gave to Gongjia Mountain. It can break rocks easily!" As he spoke, he scanned the room and saw a few fist-sized rocks in the corner. He strode over and picked one up. "Look!"
Zheng Luo, Duo Kang, and the others who squeezed into the room craned their necks and stared without blinking, afraid to miss this exciting scene. They had long heard that among the weapons made by the Xia people, there were many that could easily break rocks and split them in half. However, they had to pay a hefty price to make these weapons. Plus, they had no way to find the Xia people to make them. Those masters usually didn't see outsiders.
Now, they finally had the chance to witness this. How could they not be excited? They were so excited they couldn't even breathe!
Heng held the golden sword in one hand and tossed the rock into the air with the other.
The moment the rock was in the air, Heng raised his arm and swung his sword, pointing it at the rock in the air.
When the sword slashed down, the golden light flashed with a sense of holiness. It was like a bolt of lightning in the dark night, as if it wanted to tear the sky apart.
The people watching felt chills run down their spines. They almost shivered.
Clang!
Metal and rock collided with a crisp sound that pierced their eardrums.
Rock powder flew everywhere.
Slap — Gurgle gurgle —
The rock rolled to the ground.
The blade was intact. There was no dent.
There was a small dent in the rock.
Shao Xuan: "…"
Heng: "…"
Zheng Luo, Duo Kang and the rest: "…" Was this considered breaking the rock?
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