Chapter 201: Extra One

It was summer again.

Jian Mo and Wu Jiong went up the mountain to gather ingredients. They wandered around all day and collected quite a lot, though it was hot.

As soon as they returned home, Jian Mo’s cheeks were flushed, his delicate skin marked with several red streaks from wiping sweat.

Jian Mo put down the things he had gathered and said to Wu Jiong, “Let’s go swimming outside and have a picnic. I don’t feel like cooking.”

Wu Jiong replied, “Alright, I’ll prepare the ingredients.”

Jian Mo suggested, “Let’s make a cold salad—mix the pearl algae with the wild vegetables we gathered today, add some meat, and a little sour fruit on the side.”

Wu Jiong wasn’t very skilled at making cold salads, so he stepped aside: “Do you want to do it? I’ll go pick some fruit from the back mountain.”

Over the years, they had transplanted quite a few fruit trees to their tribe, all planted on the back mountain.

With careful pruning and fertilization, these fruit trees grew much better than wild ones. When the fruits ripened, they were especially sweet and plump, excellent as dessert after meals.

If it weren’t for the little cubs from the tribe and those attending classes, who often patrolled the back mountain to chase away birds and insects, these delicious fruits might never reach their mouths—there were too many little animals eyeing them.

Jian Mo said, “Okay, pick the fruits from the sunniest tops of the trees—they’ll be the sweetest.”

Wu Jiong asked, “Got it. Should I grab some ice from the icehouse while I’m at it?”

In winter, they harvested ice blocks and stored them in a cave, covering them with dry grass.

The ice lasted a long time in the cave, and in summer, they relied on these blocks.

Sometimes Jian Mo would use the ice to make ice cream—not directly, but by putting the ice outside a metal container and slowly stirring milk and fruit jam inside, essentially stir-frying it like yogurt.

The resulting ice cream was delicious, a perfect summer treat.

Hearing this, Jian Mo’s mouth watered, and he immediately agreed: “Sure! Take plenty. We’ll make a big batch of ice cream and bring it out for Zhu Zhu and Ying Ao too.”

Wu Jiong said, “Alright, I’m going.”

Wu Jiong quickly went out to pick fruit and get ice, while Jian Mo prepared the cold salad at home.

Over the years, not only had their fish sauce fermented well, but they also managed to make authentic soy sauce.

All were brewed in large clay jars, genuine farm-style soy sauce, with no additives other than salt—far fresher and more flavorful than the soy sauce Jian Mo had bought before, perfect for cooking.

The cold salad, with soy sauce, chili, clam powder, and some sour fruit, instantly tasted amazing. Jian Mo tossed in a piece of meat and thought it would soak in the flavors more after swimming.

He packed three large metal boxes—one for him and Wu Jiong, one for Zhu Zhu, and one for Ying Ao—just enough.

Both Jian Mo and Wu Jiong worked efficiently. Soon, they were ready and rode their two bird companions to Bai Sha Zhou for swimming.

Bai Sha Zhou was far from both their tribe and the Yi Gu Tribe.

Other than their family, there was no one else around.

Night fell, the sunset was brilliant, and the lake reflected the mountains and evening sky, glowing magnificently.

As soon as Jian Mo got off Zhu Zhu, he removed his clothes and shoes and dashed into the clear water: “Ah! This is what summer’s for—so refreshing to soak in the lake.”

Wu Jiong set down the food and jumped in to swim with Jian Mo.

Zhu Zhu looked at the food on the ground, then at the two swimming, then back at the food, and back at the swimmers—hesitating whether to sneak a bite or join the swim.

Ying Ao was ready to dive in. Seeing Zhu Zhu hesitate, it let out a “Jie!” and ran to push Zhu Zhu into the water as well.

Zhu Zhu: “Chiu—glug glug—!”

Zhu Zhu tumbled in the water several times before resurfacing, glaring at Ying Ao angrily.

Ying Ao calmly spread its wings and swam gently.

Zhu Zhu glared for a long while, then, when Ying Ao looked at it, shyly turned away and swam off in another direction.

Jian Mo watched the interaction and laughed: “Zhu Zhu, why are you afraid of Ying Ao? You’re bigger than it.”

Wu Jiong teased, “Zhu Zhu is fat, Ying Ao is all muscle—you can’t beat it.”

Zhu Zhu: “Jie!!!”

Jian Mo stood in the water, cupping his hands to shout: “Zhu Zhu, I’ve got your back! Go hit Ying Ao so Wu Jiong can see!”

Zhu Zhu looked between Wu Jiong and Ying Ao, then finally charged at Jian Mo.

Its massive body splashed huge waves, submerging Jian Mo underwater.

He struggled a few times before surfacing, wiping the water from his face: “Zhu Zhu, you sly thing—picking on the weak, huh?”

Zhu Zhu: “Chiu!”

Summer nights were long. After swimming, eating dinner, fruit, and ice cream chilled with ice, and showering, it still wasn’t completely dark when they returned to the tribe.

Because of the heat, they didn’t need to dry Zhu Zhu and Ying Ao thoroughly, saving time.

Upon returning, the little cubs ran over, rushing into the yard.

Jian Mo got off Zhu Zhu, patted it, and told it to go play.

Turning to the little cubs, he asked: “What is it? You want to play with Zhu Zhu?”

The cubs said, “No, Jian Mo-gege, we came to find you.”

The cubs continued:

“Jian Mo-gege, another Zhu Zhu just came by.”

“No, it’s not Zhu Zhu. It’s a cub that looks a lot like Zhu Zhu.”

“There’s a cub that looks just like Zhu Zhu—they said they came to see you.”

Jian Mo listened patiently, then smiled: “Where’s the guest?”

Jiang Xing replied, “We said you weren’t here, and the guest said they’d come back tomorrow.”

Jian Mo was surprised: “Qing Kuo and the others didn’t invite the guest to stay?”

Jiang Xing: “There wasn’t time; they left too quickly.”

Since the guest wasn’t there, Jian Mo didn’t worry: “Alright, see them tomorrow then.”

Thanks to the cubs’ report, seeing a small cub resembling a red panda and its father the next day didn’t surprise Jian Mo.

The other cubs whispered excitedly: “Jian Mo-gege, that cub looks just like Zhu Zhu!”

Jian Mo examined the cub: “Not that similar. The fur is different.”

The visiting cub was plump, with reddish-brown fur, indeed resembling a red panda Jian Mo had seen on Earth, and Zhu Zhu.

Jian Mo greeted the guests: “Hello!”

The cub’s father said, “Doctor Jian Mo, we’re from near the Mi Lin Tribe. I’m Lu Wei. I heard you have many new things here, so I brought my cub to see them.”

The red panda cub couldn’t transform yet, staring at Jian Mo with round eyes, shyly avoiding eye contact when looked at.

This little one was young, chubby, with a round belly, soft, fluffy fur, and thick ears—Jian Mo couldn’t resist wanting to hug and squeeze it.

Since the tribe’s Ban Zhu could transform, there were no untransformable little cubs left in the riverside tribe. Other cubs, though fluffy, lacked this “baby fat” and soft fur, making them less cute.

Jian Mo invited the father and cub inside: “You came a long way; the journey must have been difficult.”

Lu Wei replied earnestly: “Not really. People from Bai Zhi Tribe often trade near us. I knew the route, and the journey was straightforward. Other tribes along the way were fine for food and lodging.”

Jian Mo smiled: “So you just wanted to see this place and broaden your horizons?”

Lu Wei said, “Not really. If convenient, I’d like to take some supplies back and maybe trade a little.”

Jian Mo asked, “What supplies?”

Lu Wei: “Soap, medicines, and other portable items. If you can trade some glass with us, I’d exchange that too.”

Jian Mo: “Medicine is fine; I’ll exchange some topical medicines. For other items, talk to Qing Kuo—they manage material exchanges.”

Lu Wei: “Alright, we’ll visit later.”

After business, Jian Mo scratched the cub’s chin: “Why did you bring the little one out too?”

Lu Wei laughed, patting his cub’s head: “I heard it’s very different here. I brought the cub to see for themselves.”

The cub nodded, in a tiny voice: “The journey was fun.”

After a moment, blinking, it added: “Your tribe is fun too.”

Jian Mo smiled: “Then stay a couple more days and play with our cubs.”

Lu Wei: “Do your cubs have classes?”

Jian Mo: “Only two hours in the evening, not too bad.”

Jian Mo had introduced the concept of time here, though they couldn’t make clocks—they made hourglasses instead.

Now, in the tribe’s open space, there were hourglasses—small ones that took an hour to run, large ones that took a day.

When making them, several people counted seconds together, and combined with simple sundials, the time was fairly accurate.

Lu Wei saw many things he had never seen, and after Jian Mo’s explanations, exclaimed at how eye-opening it was.

After a few rounds of tea, Jian Mo led them to see Qing Kuo.

Outside, the cubs were playing on the open ground. Zhu Zhu was also there, playing “Eagle catches the chick”—Zhu Zhu as the eagle.

The cubs’ high-pitched laughter rang out, clearly having fun.

The little red panda cub stopped, staring enviously.

Jian Mo looked at Lu Wei: “Can our cubs play with your little one?”

Lu Wei nodded.

Jian Mo gently patted the cub’s head and ears: “Do you want to play with our cubs?”

The cub nodded vigorously.

Jian Mo called, “Ban Zhu, come over and bring a little friend to play with you.”

Ban Zhu in human form looked like a six or seven-year-old child, fair-skinned, large round greyish eyes. Hearing Jian Mo, he wiped sweat from his forehead, ran over with short legs, grinning with small, even teeth: “Jian Mo-gege.”

Jian Mo patted Ban Zhu’s back gently: “Ban Zhu, please take care of this little friend.”

Ban Zhu nodded earnestly, held the cub’s tiny paw: “Let’s play.”

The red panda cub ran with Ban Zhu into the group of cubs.

The cubs made way, letting them join in.

Under their protection, the red panda cub played happily with the others.

Lu Wei watched for a while, seeing his cub adapt well, and said: “The atmosphere here is really nice.”

Jian Mo: “Yes, our tribe is very loving.”

As they spoke, the sound of flapping wings approached.

Lu Wei looked up and saw a large winged beast followed by several smaller ones flying in formation from the mountain behind—Ying Ao training the young winged beasts.

The Tian Ning Tribe had bred many young winged beasts, and the riverside tribe had also acquired a few.

When the young ones were delivered, everyone requested Ying Ao to train them, with the tribe paying for the service.

Ying Ao’s ability was impressive; everyone wanted it.

After communicating with Ying Ao, Jian Mo agreed.

Now Ying Ao was the instructor for the young winged beasts, training them expertly, even better than humans could.

Seeing Lu Wei staring at them, Jian Mo briefly explained.

Lu Wei’s jaw dropped: “Even your winged beasts are extraordinary?”

Jian Mo smiled: “Yes.”