Qi Bai smiled as he took out a bamboo slip from his animal skin bag. “This is what Lang Ze and I drew on the road.”
With so many people in the tribe at once, the first thing that needed to be solved was housing.
There were many stone walls on the Black Mountain, and everyone could live in a cave, but there were too many disadvantages to living in a cave. Not to mention other things, the long winter alone was a big problem even with charcoal for heating.
The most important thing was that the current situation of the Black Mountain Tribe was different from when they first arrived at the Black Mountain. They had kilns that could burn bricks at any time, and they also had experience in building houses. As long as everyone was willing to contribute, they could live in a house with fire walls this time. Everyone could spend a warm winter as long as they used a bit of charcoal.
Yang Luo looked at the neatly arranged small squares on the bamboo slips and remained silent.
Hou Yan frowned. “But houses built on flat ground will be flooded and washed away like tents.”
Qi Bai naturally understood their concerns. It had only been a year and the psychological trauma caused by the flood hadn’t been completely eliminated. Compared to the brick houses that might be more comfortable, Yang Luo and Hou Yan were obviously more concerned about the safety of the houses.
Qi Bai said, “Our tribe lived in the original territory for many years and many old beastmen have never seen such a big flood in their lives. This shows that big floods don’t happen often.”
Qi Bai looked at the two people’s somewhat relaxed expressions and continued, “Besides, we live halfway up the mountain now. Even if there is a big floor, it will flow down the hillside and won’t affect our house.”
Lang Ze said, “The worst that can happen is that we will have to dig the mountain wall again. Our Black Mountain Tribe shouldn’t be afraid to act because of something that hasn’t happened yet.”
Yang Luo took a deep breath. “You said that this house is warmer than the cave, but I don’t feel it.
Qi Bai and Lang Ze looked at each other. Once they heard Yang Luo start to ask about the details of the house, they knew that the matter was basically settled. Qi Bai smiled and said, “The house we are going to build isn’t like a toilet. The walls on all four sides will be blocked so that the heat won’t escape. You will know when the time comes.”
Yang Luo pondered on it for a moment before saying, “Then build two first and let me see them.”
Qi Bai smiled. “Okay.”
Yang Luo glared at him. “Don’t be happy to soon. If the house you build is different from what you said, let everyone dig a cave as soon as possible.”
Qi Bai bumped Lang Ze’s arm. “Grandpa Priest, don’t worry. This house will never let you down.”
Just then, there was a noise outside the cave.
Hou Yan looked outside and said, “It is almost time to eat. What is the commotion outside?”
As if responding to Hou Yan’s question, Niu Yong hurried in from outside the cave. “Grandpa Priest, Grandpa Tribe Chief, they are fighting.”
Yang Luo picked up the bamboo cup on the stone table and took a sip of water. “Who fought with whom?”
The moment Niu Yong saw the calm expressions of the four people in the cave, his originally panicked expression gradually calmed down.
He glanced at Lang Ze and whispered, “It started with Niu Lu and Lang Jin quarreling. Then for some reason, a slave named Lu You was dragged into it and now the three of them are fighting.”
Lang Ze asked, “What was the reason for their argument?”
Niu Yong scratched his head. “It seemed to be due to the toilet. I don’t know the details.”
Yang Luo put down the bamboo cup and only said the word, “Go.” Niu Yong, who was standing behind Qi Bai and Lang Ze, was frightened when he saw Yang Luo’s expression.
The last time he saw Priest Yang Luo making such an expression, Sun Qing and Zhu Ya were exiled from the tribe. Niu Yong’s heart was pounding and he secretly warned himself to be honest and not make any mistakes in the near future.
Once Qi Bai and Lang Ze arrived at the scene, there was already a circle of people surrounding them. In the middle of the crowd, Xiong Feng and Huan Ping each had a kid tucked under their arms.
It wasn’t just the three people mentioned by Niu Yong. Somehow, Zhu Ya also got involved and was being restrained at this time.
But a few kids seemed unwilling to admit defeat. Even though they were held up in the air, their hands and feet didn’t stop. They struggled and tried to grab each other.
AS if he couldn’t see them, Lang Ze said to Xi Zhou and Hu Qiao in a deep voice, “Go and call everyone over.”
The crowd slowly gathered and the noise around them became quieter and quieter. The four young people, who were held under the arms, were frightened by the quiet atmosphere. Their minds, which had been overwhelmed by their passion, finally calmed down.
In particular, Zhu Ya. Once he thought about the last time he was expelled from the tribe due to fighting, he trembled all over and regretted it. This was none of his business. Why did he interfere?
The afterglow of dusk fell on Lang Ze’s brow, casting a light shadow under his eyes and making his gaze even deeper.
Lang Ze looked at the more than one hundred beastmen standing in front of him and said in a deep voice, “The Black Mountain Tribe is a tribe without slaves.”
Hearing Lang Ze’s words, Tu Ruo felt sad. She originally thought they were just called over to watch the tribe punish the beastmen who had fought. She didn’t expect Lang Ze to talk about slaves.
Did Lang Ze want to punish everyone for the fighting between children? Otherwise, she couldn’t understand why the Black Mountain Tribe would bring them back and give them such a good life if they were going to abandon them.
Tu Ruo didn’t dare to question Lang Ze and could only look at Qi Bai with pleading eyes.
Qi Bai walked up to Lang Ze and said, “The Black Mountain Tribe has no slaves, so if you want to stay here, you must pass the Black Mountain Tribe’s test and become one of our tribe members, or you will be expelled from the Black Mountain Tribe’s territory.”
Perhaps they never thought that a tribe would accept them, or perhaps they never dared to hope to become ordinary beastmen again.
After Qi Bai finished speaking, everyone’s expressions were dull. They stared blankly at Qi Bai and Lang Ze. Then they turned their gazes to the Black Mountain people around them, not daring to believe what they heard.
Quan Lu finally came to his senses from this great surprise. “Test… What test? Do you want us to bring back the prey?”
Qi Bai shook his head. “The test of the Black Mountain Tribe definitely isn’t a simple hunt.”
“Starting tomorrow, everyone in the tribe will be assigned fixed tasks which everyone must complete. In addition, there are additional tasks in the tribe. Everyone can choose as they please as long as they have the spare energy.”
“But no matter which one it is, one point will be recorded as long as it is completed successfully. Your points can also be used for more food from the tribe.”
“There is one more thing. Starting tomorrow, everyone must complete the work to get food. Your points can also be used to exchange for more food from the tribe.”
The current composition of beastmen in the tribe was very confusing, which was different from when the Black Mountain Tribe was first established. At this time, no one knew each other but they were able to work together.
Now if they wanted to quickly integrate these slaves, especially the wolf-tempered Silver Moon people, they had to quickly come up with some solution.
Qi Bai’s idea was very simple. Instead of dealing with this nonsense, they should first gather the people together to engage in production.
The easiest way to get everyone to identify with the Black Mountain Tribe was to get them to contribute to the construction of the tribe. On the other hand, they couldn’t let them think it was the tribe’s duty to provide them with food and shelter. They had to connect everyone’s lives with their own efforts.
As long as people accepted this, everyone would work hard for tomorrow’s life and no one would have time to think about other ideas.
Then a slave whispered, “But we don’t know how to count. How do we know our points?”
Quan Nan said, “There is nothing to worry about. We in the Black Mountain Tribe all know how to count. We won’t lie to you.”
Qi Bai smiled. “That’s right. In addition, we will teach you arithmetic every afternoon from now on. If you don’t believe us, you can come and learn it by yourself. You will learn it quickly.”
“This.. This is real.”
“We can really become ordinary beastmen!”
People’s eyes changed from disbelief to surprise, and then to ecstasy. The tears that had been welling up in their eyes finally fell, but this time they were tears of joy instead of tears of fear.
But in such an atmosphere, four people felt as if they had fallen into an ice cellar.
Lang Ze said in a deep voice, “Put them down.”’
Lang Ze’s words made everyone fall quiet. It was only then that they remembered there was still an issue that hadn’t been resolved.
Xiong Feng and Huan Ping didn’t hesitate and threw the four people to the ground. The children got up and no longer dared to pull each other.
Lang Ze asked, “Tell me what happened.”
The young people who had been shouting loudly at first became like quails in front of Lang Ze. They stood straight as if they were being punished, and no one dared to speak first.
Ma Shu walked out from the crowd and said, “Lang Jin and the others weren’t used to using the toilet, and Niu Lu’s tone wasn’t good. The two of them had a conflict, but it wasn’t a big deal.”
Niu Lu heard Ma Shu’s words and snorted, “He soiled our tribe. I have every right to hit him.”
Lu You, Lang Jin, Niu Yu and Zhu Ya were about the same age. All of them looked to be teenagers of around 12 or 13 years old, but they were both slaves before so their actual age might be older than they looked.
Lang Jin’s face flushed and he shook his head. “I didn’t. I don’t want to dirty the tribe.”
Lu You was so scared that he almost cried. He didn’t want to be kicked out of the tribe at this time. He wanted to stay here.
Lang Ze looked at Zhu Ya. “What about you?”
Zhu Ya said timidly, “The two of them teamed up to attack Niu Lu. I am a member of Niu Lu’s tribe, and I wanted to help my people.”
He looked at Hou Yan in the distance. This time, he really didn’t miss the Pig Tribe any longer. He was helping the Black Mountain Tribe. Wasn’t this okay?
Lang Ze looked at them coldly. “You want to fight then challenge like a real warrior. Do you want to challenge now?”
A challenge between beastmen didn’t care if they lived or died, only success or failure. Once the challenge was launched, the losing party must fulfill the agreed promise.
Niu Lu stuck his neck out. Just as he was about to step forward, he was pulled back by Zhu Ya. Zhu Ya also wanted to cry and ask them to stop. He was scared and didn’t want to be kicked out again.
Qi Bai said, “The original intention of building toilets in the tribe is to make it convenient for the tribe members and to collect fertilizer. It isn’t an excuse for you to fight.”
Hearing Qi Bai’s words, Zhu Ya nodded desperately. “We were wrong. We will never fight again. Just let us go this time.”
Qi Bai said, “I can’t let you go. Then other tribe members will be able to fight freely in the tribe in the future. Each of you four will have one point deducted. If you do it again next time, the punishment will be doubled.”
The tribe members had just gathered together, so conflicts were inevitable. Fortunately, today it was just a small conflict between children. Qi Bai certainly wouldn’t drive them out. He just wanted to teach them a lesson so that they would remember it.
At this time, Zhu Ya and the other three didn’t know the meaning of deducting points. They were secretly glad in their hearts when they heard that Qi Bai would let them go.
It wasn’t until the next morning when the four people were kicked out by the food distribution team led by Hu Xue and squatted in a corner with empty stomachs that Zhu Ya and Niu Lu truly realized that Qi Bai was serious. It wasn’t just the newly joined beastmen. Even the original members of the Black Mountain Tribe had no food to eat if they had no points.
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