Chapter 53: Congratulations
Chen Jian never found out how Hua ultimately dealt with that person. The clansmen only discussed it for a few days before they stopped caring. In their view, it was good to be alive, and life kept getting better.
The land needed to be reclaimed, the hemp was almost ready for retting, the doors and windows still hadn't been made, and there were too few bees... Who had time to think about what happened after death?
The death of the five scouts had also significantly changed the clansmen's mentality. Since the enemy could be so easily defeated and their horned deer captured, of course, they were no longer afraid.
While working, some even fantasized about capturing people from that tribe. They imagined forcing them to bend over and hoe the ground while they sat under a tree enjoying the shade, needing only to threaten them with bows and arrows.
The clansmen had more and more work to do, much of which was unheard of just a few months ago. Their lives were changing because of these numerous tasks.
For example, a few bee colonies had now settled in the village, and several small willow trees had been transplanted dozens of paces in front of the hives. The women, unafraid of being stung, would periodically lift the lids to check how much honey was inside.
Another example was the grass shed built to shelter the three-horned deer from the rain, which now required someone to feed them grass from the tribe's reserves.
Everything was changing quietly. The wolf cubs were growing larger, the goslings were beginning to shed their downy fluff and grow gray-white feathers, and in the corners of the village, the gourd vines had dropped their white flowers and were now bearing fruit.
A woman in the clan began to retch, and the members celebrated the beginning of a new life, praying for the protection of their ancestors. Chen Jian opened a jar of vinegar that had been brewing for nearly two months, which helped restore the appetite of the woman who had been feeling sleepy and averse to food.
Soon after, the village welcomed its second batch of visitors. This time, there were more people, and because of the fish, they brought more things to trade. Normally, they would be unwilling to part with seeds at this time of year.
News of what happened to Hua's people spread to nearby groups through this trade. Those closer to Hua's tribe were somewhat alarmed, while those farther away felt less urgency.
Consequently, the items they brought to trade varied. Some offered well-made stone axes, bows and arrows, and various pottery vessels, while others brought pottery rings for supporting pots.
The panicked tribes wanted to leave quickly, but Chen Jian persuaded them to stay for a while longer. He had his people prepare enough fishhooks and then lined them up by the river to demonstrate his new technology to the outsiders.
At first, the visiting tribesmen had no interest in the small objects, wondering if they could really catch fish. But after a while, their jaws dropped. Using grubs and dragonflies as bait, Chen Jian pulled up a large fish weighing seven or eight catties, leaving them gaping in amazement.
This type of hook was designed to catch only large fish; smaller ones with their little mouths would escape.
The tribesmen were amazed to see large fish being caught one after another. The small object they had initially dismissed was now a treasure, and they kept reaching out to touch the hooks, eager to learn how to use them.
Before leaving their own villages, they had gathered various items they thought might be suitable for trade, as they had no idea what to expect but had heard that everything from Chen Jian's tribe was valuable.
Some offered to trade more ears of wheat or pods for the fishhooks, but Chen Jian refused. Instead, he taught all the tribes how to use them.
But there was one condition: in one and a half months, each tribe had to send at least seven or eight of their young men to his village. They wouldn't need to bring food, as Chen Jian would provide for them, and he would send them back within ten days at most.
The tribesmen considered it and agreed it was a good deal. With these fishhooks, their tribes could catch more fish, which was far more valuable than a few baskets of wheat ears and pods. In one and a half months, the acorns would not yet be mature, so sending their men wouldn't interfere with the acorn harvest after they returned.
The old grandmother and Shitou came forward to seal an oath with the representatives of the fourteen tribes. After receiving the fishhooks and learning how to use them, they all promised to come at the appointed time, vowing to send their best hunters and strongest men.
The tribes located farther west were prepared to send even more of their able-bodied men. They guessed that Chen Jian was planning to fight that fearsome tribe.
With seven men from each of the fourteen tribes, that would be at least ninety-eight people. It should be no problem to use them to protect the flanks and handle transportation.
Chen Jian was well aware of his tribe's fighting capabilities and wouldn't become complacent just because forty of his warriors had killed five of the enemy. If they were going to fight, he reasoned, they had to use every advantage. Having more people was always a good thing.
Besides, his own tribe had enough food. There was plenty to eat at the turn of summer and autumn, and they could easily afford to feed more than a hundred extra people.
After the oath was made, the visitors left one after another, eager to bring back all the traded goods to make their own clansmen happy.
Chen Jian and his clanspeople looked at the piles of wheat ears, bean pods, and other bartered goods. Most had been picked before they were fully mature and were now dried and shriveled.
From then on, the clansmen had a new task: to thresh the seeds from these wheat ears and pods. In the past, they would have shelled them by hand, but this time Chen Jian made a flail.
They cleared and flattened a patch of ground, packing it down firmly. After piling the bean pods and wheat onto it, they had to shoo away the geese and other large birds that were eyeing the harvest greedily.
He took two sticks, one long and one short, and connected them with a rope, like a nunchaku. By swinging the long handle, the shorter stick would smash down onto the dry pods and wheat ears.
This work, of course, was done by the men. The women used small brooms made of branches and grass to carefully sweep up the beans and wheat grains. Even the few dozen grains that scattered outside the main pile were meticulously gathered.
Yuqian'er was nearly driven mad by this task. The broom could never sweep the ground completely clean, and the green and white beans stood out so conspicuously against the dirt. She would hastily sweep them into a pile, only to see more she had missed.
Chen Jian watched Yuqian'er scurrying about with an amused smile. *Such a perfectionist isn't suited for watching threshing,* he thought to himself. *When we start planting fields, is she going to try and pick up every single grain left behind?*
The tribe watched as the flail effortlessly split open the pods they used to shell one by one, their mouths agape in wonder.
Chen Jian announced there was no need to line up today. He was going to cook dinner for the whole tribe to celebrate the new life that would be born around the time the apricots turned yellow.
The people laughed even more happily. It didn't matter to them whether they lined up; they were used to it. What mattered was that the food Chen Jian cooked was always delicious. In the past, without clay pots or bowls, they could only smash these grains and eat them raw. They wondered how they would taste this time.
Chen Jian wanted to show his people a vision of hope, to let them see the kind of life that the land they watered with their sweat could provide, so their exhaustion would be mixed with joy.
Since it was a celebration, a ram was taken from the sheepfold and slaughtered. This was the first time the clan had killed one of their own penned sheep.
Everyone got busy. Fires were lit, and women sitting by the earthen pot stands portioned out peas, wheat grains, and other seeds. They used stones to lightly crush the tough outer bran, revealing the white kernel inside.
The skin of the wheat was very thick, making it difficult to eat and digest. But without a stone mill or quern, there was no way to make flour.
*"I'll have to make a stone mill when I have time,"* he thought. *"At least then we can eat dumplings in the winter..."*
It was his favorite food and one of his favorite customs. In an era without mills, even after domesticating these plants, people would have to subsist on whole grains for a very long time.
A grain porridge was inevitable tonight, but since this was a celebration, it had to be a little different.
He threw diced mutton and green onions into a clay pot, adding all the seasonings he could find and simmering it into a white broth. Then he added the grains—wheat, peas, and sorghum—and spread a layer of tubers on top.
Soon, several large clay pots were gurgling in unison, releasing a seductive aroma. The clansmen couldn't help but twitch their noses in anticipation. People had already brought their bowls, ready for the meal.
The stew was the main course, but there were side dishes as well. A few large fish were brought out, and several women worked together, using sharp stone knives to cut the flesh into thin slices. This fish didn't need to be cooked; it could be eaten raw.
The mustard greens growing in the garden weren't ripe yet, and yellow mustard wasn't available, but there were substitutes.
He recalled a saying from the *Book of Rites*: "Use scallions in spring and mustard in summer." Even the ancients took precautions against parasites. Another saying went, "If the sauce is not right, do not eat." He knew that ingredients like garlic and onion could help inhibit parasites in raw food.
He prepared a dipping sauce by mixing a spoonful of sour apricot vinegar with crushed green onion and garlic, then adding a little salt and a touch of maple syrup. The result was a sauce that was less spicy and more sweet and sour.
The celebratory dinner began. The children happily chewed on the scorched crust from the bottom of the pot, showing off their strong teeth. The adults savored the porridge, smacking their lips and praising its rich flavor.
"Jian," one of them asked, "do you think we'll be able to eat food like this every day from the land we've cleared?"
The clansmen felt it was possible, but they wanted to hear Chen Jian say it himself to feel more at ease.
"Yes," he replied. "By the time the apricots turn yellow again, we will be able to eat like this every day."
Hearing his affirmative answer, the clansmen all laughed. They touched the calluses on their hands, feeling that all their recent exhaustion had been worth it. After all, wasn't living all about eating better?
Someone pointed to the remaining piles of unthreshed wheat ears and pods. "We could eat them now. This is enough food for several days. I want to eat like this every day."
Chen Jian shook his head. "We can't eat these. They have another purpose."
"What are they for?"
He held up a thin ear of wheat that had only ten grains. "I want to use these to make more seeds grow on each stalk. This one has ten grains. One day, a single ear might have twenty."
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