Chapter 199: Knocking a Woman Out and Taking Her Away

Axi's words made Ying frown slightly; he sat on a stone and looked at Axi. Indeed this matter was quite troublesome—Axi was the one he had rescued from the forest years ago, she had always stayed by A Mu's side, and she had no relatives.

What should one do without relatives? Nan Qinghuan hurried to her feet, stared blankly at Axi, "Axi, I'll ask you again: are you willing to marry Dashan?"

"Dashan?"

Axi heard this and became quite shy; her dark face was tinged with pink. Unexpectedly, the Dashan who had rushed over immediately came forward, "Om, I am willing to marry Axi."

Ying gave him a glance, "Qinghuan didn't ask you, why the rush?"

Dashan: "…"

Axi's cheeks were rosy, her eyes glittered, but she hung her head and said nothing, only smiling. Nan Qinghuan, seeing this, naturally understood that the savages were very open, casual about gender relations, and must have already been together in private.

They had already been physically intimate.

"Then double happiness arrives; Dashan, why haven't you come to propose and let Axi marry you?"

She wanted to see if this tribe's proposal was like modern ones; hearing this, Dashan was, of course, very pleased, stepped forward and lightly tapped Axi's neck, and instantly Axi was knocked unconscious.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

Axi was held in Dashan's arms; he grinned as if very happy, "Om, then I'll take her home."

"Ah, why did you…"

So this is a proposal? Knocking a woman out and taking her away—this custom is really… never seen before.

A Mu, seeing her try to intervene, hurried forward, "Qinghuan, what's wrong with you? This is our tribe's marriage custom; doesn't your tribe have one?"

"Marriage custom?"

She suddenly understood: ancient people married like this—marriage, knocking out? Dear heavens, is this how marriage works? She stared in shock at A Mu, then at the mischievous Ying; Ying stepped forward, grabbed her waist, kissed her forehead, "Qinghuan, this is how I brought you back, do you remember?"

Hearing this, she suddenly didn't know what to say; the mother and son, seeing her stunned expression, both smiled. Nan Qinghuan instantly understood: the marriage custom, yes, this is the primitive people's marriage custom; she had read about it in books before.

But she hadn't expected it to be real; indeed they actually knocked the woman out and took her away.

It's simply too brutal.

A Mu saw she still hadn't replied, only her small face flushed pink, she smiled, "Qinghuan is shy, Qinghuan, don't your Ape Tribe have this custom?"

"Ape-man?"

She blinked at A Mu, "I'm not some Ape Tribe, I am…" "A Mu, don't ask her, there is no Ape Tribe; from the first day Qinghuan and I returned, she has been my person, for all lifetimes."

Ying said this to A Mu, but it was also to Nan Qinghuan; in this life he would only love that one female.

"Alright, no Ape Tribe, none, never again."

A Mu knew Ying disliked mentioning the Ape Tribe, because he feared Nan Qinghuan might abandon him again; deep down his son was still insecure.

"A Mu, go check our new house, prepare for tomorrow's move; the Rainy Season is approaching, these days will be a bit hard."

Ying's words made A Mu's expression grow increasingly worried; it seemed that hearing the Rainy Season was coming made her very concerned.

Nan Qinghuan naturally also saw it; although the house was built and needed to be moved into, the tribe's climate conditions were poor, making Ancient People's survival difficult—on rainy days they couldn't go out for food nor plant crops.

How long will this Rainy Season last? If it's too long, they'll have to stockpile food.

"Ying, A Mu, how long will the Rainy Season last?"

She asked Yao, but Yao said it was uncertain, so that was troublesome.

A Mu, seeing she didn't know, found it odd, "Qinghuan, doesn't the Ape Tribe have a Rainy Season?"

"Yes, but it ends quickly. A Mu, how long will it be for us?"

Ying's expression also wasn't very good, "Qinghuan, at least three months."

"Three months?"

That long? She suddenly thought the house was built, but they still needed to prepare food; otherwise how to endure three months? With rain every day, crops wouldn't grow, no wonder A Mu was so worried. No, they had to find a way to get food even during the Rainy Season.

Ying seemed to know what she worried about; he simply reached out and gently stroked her head, affectionately saying, "Don't worry, I won't let you go hungry; I can support you."

She wasn't actually worried about that; she was concerned… "Ying, come quickly, they're fighting over houses."

"What?"

Ying and A Mu went to see what was happening; Nan Qinghuan didn't want to get involved in these petty matters, so she stayed behind to clean up the aftermath.

"Goddess"

She turned her head and saw Youchao Xuan; Youchao Xuan was wearing the Hemp Robe she had made, looking very spirited.

"It's you,"

"That outfit suits you; why are you here? Shouldn't you be going to choose a house? I have prepared a house for you and ChaoJi, why haven't you gone to see?"

Youchao Xuan is the tribe's benefactor and also her capable assistant; she hopes he can also settle here peacefully.

Youchao Xuan looked at her deeply, his eyes full of reluctance, "Goddess, I am leaving this place."

"Leaving?"

Her dish‑washing motion stiffened; ever since she brought him back from the Otherworld, Youchao Xuan had witnessed everything between her and Ying, and also the tribe's development—from eating Salt to making spicy sauce, from eating meat to farming, from the Cave to living in Tulou; he could be said to have witnessed every detail of their progress.

He was leaving? At that moment she felt deeply disappointed; Youchao Xuan was an intimate companion to her, even a friend.

Youchao Xuan saw her reluctance, forced out a faint smile, "When I first came here I knew the Goddess could realize the dream of unifying the tribe; I also resolved to follow you forever, but…"

"Right, you said you'd follow me; is it because something's happening in your tribe that you need to rush back? It's fine, go handle it and come back; you know, I want more than Tulou, I also want better wooden houses, but the conditions aren't right yet, so I haven't achieved that."

She selfishly wanted to keep Youchao Xuan, because the Tulou here wasn't her ultimate goal; she still wanted to build the ancient style houses with separate courtyards.

With flowers and trees, she needed Youchao Xuan's help.

A flash of brilliance crossed Youchao Xuan's eyes; he seemed hesitant, "Goddess, I…"

"Youchao Xuan, what else can't you say? We helped them, they should help us too."

As soon as that was said, ChaoJi came forward from behind, still holding a corn cake in her hand, looking very intoxicated.

Seeing Youchao Xuan didn't want to speak, ChaoJi spoke, "Goddess, actually we want…"

"Shut up, stop babbling, Goddess, I will leave with the tribe tomorrow; rest assured, after I settle the tribe's affairs I will come find you again."

Youchao Xuan was reluctant to leave, but the news brought by the tribe forced him to go; following Nan Qinghuan was his life's pursuit, so he would return, but for now he had to leave.

Seeing the two of them acting odd, Nan Qinghuan realized that something must be wrong; Youchao Xuan never shows such a strange side unless something truly happened, but he doesn't want to trouble himself, and it looks like this matter is quite thorny.

She smiled, pretending to be relaxed, "This time our Tulou could be completed thanks to your help; Ying and I have prepared some gifts you must take with you. By the way, Youchao Xuan, could you go check Jingang's place, see what it lacks, and tell me so I can prepare?"

She deliberately sent Youchao Xuan away, then set the bowl down and looked at ChaoJi, "ChaoJi, tell me, what has happened in your Tribe?"