Pineapple Strawberry

The grass used by the tribesmen to make grass skirts was a kind of remarkably soft yet tough grass discovered by Mutong. Garments woven from this grass were not only soft but also durable. Even when dried, they merely changed from green to yellowish-brown without losing their softness, making them extremely comfortable and cool to wear.

The men's messy, long hair had all been cut into crew cuts or short, layered styles similar to those of the two brothers, Ayu; the women's disheveled long hair had also been tied up. Some were tied into ponytails, some braided into twin braids, and others pinned up into simple buns at the back of the neck using wooden or stone hairpins.

The women's hairstyles had all originated from Mutong. The hair ties varied; some were ropes woven from grass, some were made from elastic animal tendons, and others were simple hairpins carved from wood or stone.

Seeing that the people in the tribe no longer went completely naked brought genuine joy to Mutong. She no longer had to face the nudity of men and women, young and old, the moment she stepped out of her door; she no longer had to worry about developing styes in her eyes or experiencing aesthetic fatigue.

Mutong lay on a newly crafted, large stone bed, covered by a thin, cool quilt. A meticulously crafted, premium oxhide sleeping mat was spread smoothly across the flat stone bed.

This was an authentic water buffalo hide sleeping mat, tanned personally by Mutong using certain artifact-refining techniques, making it exceptionally eco-friendly and healthy.

The reason she produced the oxhide mat was because there were hides very similar to it here. In Ayu's thatched cottage, there were already several such pelts. Mutong had quietly put those pelts away and brought out two oxhide mats, claiming they were made from those very hides.

As for the air mattress and other bedding, Mutong had long since stowed them away into her ring. Naturally, the two brothers never asked where those items had gone.

Ayu looked at the oxhide mat in puzzlement for a long time. Although he recognized that this hide bore a strong resemblance to the aquatic beast pelt he had previously hunted, he was certain that this was absolutely not the skin of an aquatic beast. Nonetheless, despite his doubts, he kept them to himself. In short, since it was brought out by A-Tong, he would not speak of his suspicions to outsiders.

Besides, those aquatic beasts were exceedingly difficult to hunt. Back then, it was only through a fortuitous coincidence and after exerting an immense amount of effort that he had managed to secure those few pelts. Quite a few tribesmen cast envious eyes upon them, and the one who desired them the most was the chieftain's daughter, Baima.

At the thought of Baima, a frown furrowed Ayu's brow: Baima and Abu had led a team of tribesmen to the Black Water Tribe to trade for salt, and by the calendar, they should be returning soon. Judging by Baima's temperament, she would likely come pestering him again upon her return. What if Baima's harassment caused A-Tong to grow disgusted with him...

Ayu clenched his fists: No one must become an obstacle between A-Tong and me! If that Baima dared to come and disrupt the affection between A-Tong and me, I would not hesitate to teach her a lesson!

Compared to Ayu's meticulous nature, Duoji harbored no suspicions whatsoever. Happily taking the oxhide sleeping mat given by Mutong, he spread it over his own reed mat. The covering over him was also the summer quilt given by Mutong. Sleeping on this oxhide mat was truly comfortable! And the soft, breathable quilt felt marvelous draped over his body, too!

Duoji fetched a large basin of water from the water vat, carried it outside the courtyard, and gave himself a thorough wash: "Sister-in-law said that washing up clean every night before going to sleep brings sweet dreams."

Ayu also washed himself clean, secured the courtyard gate, bolted the front door, and lowered the grass curtain of the bedroom. Lying down on the bed, Ayu closed his eyes and opened them again, transforming back into Shen Kai.

"Wife!" Shen Kai climbed onto Mutong's soft body and kissed the sweet lips he had yearned for so long...

Early in the morning, after finishing breakfast, Ayu picked up his stone spear and small knife, hoisted his back basket, and set off to hunt. After tidying up the house and locking the doors, Mutong and Duoji also headed up the mountain to forage.

The lock hanging on the door was a stone lock crafted by Mutong out of granite, modeled after ancient locks. Its mechanism and style referenced the 'horizontal lock' design, simply substituting the ancient iron and bronze with hard granite.

Though the stone lock was not large, it was no easy feat for anyone in the tribe to wrench it open barehanded or chisel it apart with a stone spear. In truth, virtually no one in the tribe would casually break into another person's home. Even back when every household merely hung a grass curtain, instances of theft were exceedingly rare.

Except for a very small minority of wrongdoers. Once discovered, such individuals would invariably face punishment. If they repeated the offense after being punished, they would be cast out of the tribe. Naturally, there were also those who broke into others' homes without permission; for instance, the chieftain's daughter, Baima, frequently intruded uninvited simply to relentlessly pester the man she had set her sights on.

Having locked their door securely, Mutong and Duoji followed the footsteps of the foraging party toward the mountain designated for gathering.

Today's foraging location was somewhat farther than in previous days. There was no help for it; the nearby woods had already been foraged almost clean, leaving behind only unripe vegetation.

The Chisu Tribe lived off the forest and felt profound gratitude for the bounty of nature. When gathering, they never looted recklessly; they consistently protected the plants and seedlings to ensure a good harvest in the coming year.

This forest was also densely wooded. Not long after the group entered, they discovered pineapples the size of basketballs among the bushes at the edge of the forest.

Mutong had verified them with Xiaoqiang; they were indeed pineapples. Their taste, exterior, and composition were identical, except for their massive size. Furthermore, this was a fruit the Chisu Tribe recognized and had eaten before. These pineapples resembled Taiwanese pineapples—they had no prickles, could be eaten as soon as peeled, and required no soaking in saltwater.

There was also a kind of blue strawberry. Aside from its blue color, everything else about it was identical to the strawberries on Earth. These blue strawberries were also large, each the size of an adult's fist. A single bite sent blue juices flowing freely, and their sweet-and-sour flavor was wonderfully appetizing.

The people of the Chisu Tribe simply called both of these fruits wild berries. Now that Mutong had arrived, she directly named them pineapples and strawberries.

This expanse of bushes was vast, and neither of these two fruits was in short supply. The men, women, and children of the foraging party spread out in formation and began gathering them separately.

Mutong was also quite interested in these two pleasant-tasting fruits, and she and Duoji harvested a considerable amount. Naturally, the vast majority of this 'considerable amount' went straight into the storage ring. Their back baskets contained only half. The remaining half had to be reserved for gathering other wild vegetables.

Contemplating the abundant harvest, Mutong fell into a brief, contemplative silence: She had heard that species were abundant here during spring, summer, and autumn, with no shortage of food. However, the winter was bitter and long; if enough food was not stored away during the autumn, surviving the winter safely would prove immensely difficult.

She possessed ample storage equipment, so getting three people through the winter would pose no problem. But what about the rest of the people in the Chisu Tribe? In this region of the Twilight Forest, spring, summer, and autumn each lasted four months, while winter lasted for eight months. In other words, a single year here spanned twenty months. All the food required for the long winter had to be fully stored away during the autumn.