Night fell.
Chang Xia had helped Chen Rong nourish his body.
Chen Rong brought over a basin filled with hot water for Chang Xia's feet.
"Is it hot?" Chen Rong asked softly.
Chang Xia stood on tiptoe to test the water temperature and nodded. "It's ok. Get another basin and let's soak our feet together. Soak your feet before bed to relieve your fatigue and improve blood circulation."
"Alright, I'll do it too," Chen Rong replied with a smile.
A man sat quietly in front of the den with a wooden basin.
The moon was bright, reflecting the verdant and lush forest of the Twilight Forest as if it were wrapped in a thin veil. It was hazy, dreamy, and charming.
"We'll set up the door and windows tomorrow. The house cave wall and the stove can be built. Next, we'll help Nan Feng and Nuan Chun build their house caves. We'll fill the house cave hole with furniture later." Chang Xia stepped into the water. Her feet were burning red. She squinted in comfort.
Chen Rong nodded. "Sure. The three-hole house cave will be done very quickly. Two days at least. It can be built in three to five days."
With experience, the follow-up would naturally be much faster.
In addition, the doors and windows were made in advance. After that, building the house cave, adding the mud and installing the doors and windows were quick. The beasts were full of energy, and physical labor was easy for them.
"Nuan Chun wants to get it done before the rainy season. She's waiting to give birth." Chang Xia chuckled.
When her clansmen came to see the house cave, she guessed that the tribe would be especially busy recently. The moisture of the loess layer had to be considered when closing the house cave. The rainy season was definitely not suitable for building house caves.
If they did not hurry to build the house caves before the rainy season…
They had to wait until after the rainy season, and the first half of the cold season was hunting season.
The tribe needed to stock up on food for the long and cold winter. With this calculation, unless they were not afraid of the cold winter, they would have to wait another year.
Of course, the house cave could be built in between.
However, one needed to hunt and pick while building the house cave.
That would be especially tiring.
Initially, that was how Chang Xia calculated.
"We can finish installing the doors and windows tomorrow. The heated beds are all built and waiting to dry. What else do we need to clean up the cave?" Chen Rong asked, "When do you plan to expand the cave?"
"The rainy season." Chang Xia shook her head. Everything that needed to be tidied up in the cave had been tidied up. They were just waiting for the air to disperse so that they could move over from the beast lair.
She had to plan the cellar properly.
Therefore, there was no hurry to expand and modify the cave.
"The rainy season would be good," Chen Rong thought, understanding what Chang Xia was planning.
While helping Nuan Chun and Nan Feng, they also needed to spare some time to hunt and gather.
The rainy season was rich in food, but very dangerous.
The rain was relentless and neither picking nor hunting was convenient.
As a result, it was necessary and natural to hoard as much food as possible.
When they moved over, the beast lair on this side would be pushed down and filled in. After tidying it up, Chang Xia planned to use it to plant flowers and trees. The beast lair was close to the cave, and Chang Xia was prepared to circle this side into the cave's courtyard house. Of course, these would take time to tidy up bit by bit.
"Chen Rong, can you make me a flour maker?" Chang Xia hung her feet on the edge of the wooden basin, not in a hurry to wipe them. Instead, she looked at Chen Rong seriously.
These past two days.
Chang Xia busied herself with the trivial matters of the house cave while thinking about the processing of fruit powder.
If she couldn't make a flour maker, she considered trying handmade rice flour. The white fruit was dried. She and Chen Rong grounded it every night, and they were almost halfway through. At home, the clay pots the tribe had sent were almost full.
Tonight, the two of them chose to soak their feet rather than grind white fruit.
As there were no clay pots for fruit powder, the white fruit was easier to store than the fruit powder. After dealing with the house cave, Chang Xia thought about exchanging some things with the tribe.
She wasn't prepared to trade food again.
One time was enough.
When Nan Feng and the others returned to the tribe today, Chang Xia had chatted with Nan Feng.
She told Nan Feng that the tribe did not have to send anything over in the future. She was also a member of the tribe, so it was only right for her to give some food to the tribe. Besides, she had already helped a lot by building the house cave this time.
Chang Xia didn't want to be insatiable.
She wanted to change the Heluo tribe bit by bit so that her people would not have to go out hunting and collecting all day.
At the same time, she knew that this could not be changed overnight.
There was plenty of time. Chang Xia was confident she could do it.
"A flour maker. You mean turning fruit powder into rice flour?" Chen Rong hesitated and asked.
"Yes." Chang Xia nodded happily and explained the principle of the flour-making machine to Chen Rong. If he couldn't make the flour-making machine, it would be good if could make a press.
Thinking about it, Chang Xia told him about the press again.
At the mention of the press, she instantly thought of raw rice flour. It was much simpler than making dry rice flour with a flour maker.
Immediately, Chang Xia wanted to abandon the complicated flour maker.
"Chen Rong, let's not make a flour machine but a press. With presses, we can eat raw pressed rice flour. It's easy to make presses, and the tribe can learn faster."
Chen Rong did not say anything and secretly remembered what Chang Xia had just said.
After soaking their feet, they prepared for bed.
Before going to bed, Chen Rong said, "Chang Xia, why don't… I go help Nan Feng and Nuan Chun build their house caves and you stay at home and figure out the fruit powder? The rainy season is coming. The tribe is picking white fruits recently. From what Nan Feng said, the tribe has reserved your share and mine."
He knew Chang Xia well. The tribe would feel embarrassed to send her anything directly.
But if rice noodles were exchanged with the tribe…
Everyone would be fine with this.
The tribesmen did not have to go out hunting and picking during the rainy season. He and Chang Xia could also exchange enough white fruits.
"That's not an option." Chang Xia shook her head.
When she built the house cave, Shan Kun and Nuan Chun came to help. Nan Feng was even busier from beginning to end. She even contributed the wood and stone for building her nest.
It was their turn to build a house cave, and Chang Xia was duty-bound. How could she find an excuse to decline?
"Take a nap. It's enough with me and Ya Dong and Shan Kun. Stay in the beast lair and study the fruit powder. Nuan Chun has been getting more and more sleepy recently. Help Shan Kun watch over Nuan Chun. I think Shan Kun will be very happy," Chen Rong explained.
As he spoke, his gaze fell on Chang Xia's hands on the hide bedding.
He still remembered their first meeting at the Normandy market. Chang Xia was fair and petite. The hands that handed him the fish balls were well-defined and had no calluses. Looking at them made him want to hold them in his palms and knead them.
However, he had been busy recently.
Chang Xia's hands were covered in fine scars, and Chen Rong blamed himself.
However, he did not know what to say.
Chang Xia was strong and liked to do things herself.
She looked very delicate and soft, but she was actually very stubborn.
After several fruitless attempts, Chen Rong could only join forces with Ya Dong and Shan Kun and persuade Chang Xia to rest more. Even training had a gradual process, right?
Chen Rong talked about Nuan Chun's body.
Chang Xia did hesitate.
Chen Rong was right. Nuan Chun had been in a worrying state recently.
She'd fallen asleep several times today as she delivered the stones. If she and Nan Feng hadn't been quick, she'd have fallen flat several times.
At that time, she and Nan Feng were almost scared silly.
"But you'll save more time with us helping transport the soil," Chang Xia said.
Chen Rong said bluntly, "When the clan leader sees our cave, I think there will be more clansmen in the tribe who want to build a house cave. When the time comes, let the other clansmen help."
Besides, Ya Dong and Shan Kun and the others had their own friends.
It was easy to invite them to help for a day or two.
At the same time, he believed that his clansmen would be happy to help. He heard from Nan Feng that if not for the restrictions, the tribe would have long wanted to come over and investigate the situation of the house cave.