Chapter 110: Preparations Before the Harvest

Xiong told Baifeng that while scouting, they discovered a large forest, not the kind of small grove with trees scattered here and there, but a true Peach Forest and apricot forest.

A vast expanse covering half a mountain was full of peach and apricot trees, especially the apricot trees, because once apricot pits hit the ground, they sprout very easily; even if they are planted trees, you might cut down an old, unproductive apricot tree, and the next year you would find a small apricot tree growing in that very spot.

Because the forest is very large, the peach and apricot trees are intermingled, and there are also a small number of willow trees inside; the peaches and apricots ripen almost at the same time, and their sweet scent attracts various animals and insects, mostly wasps and butterflies. I don't know why they actually eat apricots, and tribespeople who aren't on guard easily get stung by the wasps.

Likewise, there are a large number of other animals participating in this fruit carnival, like monkeys, wild boars, deer, and so on. This time, because Xiong felt the importance of the Peach Forest was higher than these animals, he didn't think about hunting, but instead brought these fruits to see what Baifeng's opinion was.

Baifeng believes that only children make choices, and adults definitely want both; they must pick the peaches and apricots, and the prey cannot be let go either. This matter could completely be carried out simultaneously, but Xiong said that the ground is covered in fallen, rotten fruit, not to mention it being sticky, the main thing is that it is very slippery, making it very easy to fall, making it completely impossible to launch an attack, and one also has to guard against falling and landing on various bees.

After saying this, he lifted his foot to let Baifeng see the sole of his shoe. Baifeng was a bit speechless and quickly pulled away some distance. Then Xiong turned around to let Baifeng see the fruit mash stuck to his back after falling; it had already dried out, stuck to the fur and wouldn't come off, hard as a rock.

Baifeng frowned: "You didn't sit on a wasp and get stung, did you?"

Xiong nodded blankly, and then was about to lift his Leather Skirt to show Baifeng his buttocks. How could Baifeng endure this? He quickly pushed Xiong away and stated, let your wife look at your buttocks; Baifeng is firmly not looking, afraid of having nightmares if he does.

After driving Xiong away, Baifeng and Sui enjoyed these fruits, which are also rare in this era. Although there are many wild fruits, those that haven't undergone selective breeding really cannot compare to later generations. Take these peaches and apricots for example; although the size is about the same, the pits are larger, the peach skin is thicker, and the sweetness is not as sufficient.

Once this season passes, don't even think about eating fruit again. In Winter, there is no logistics to transport fruit from the warm south to the north, nor are there greenhouses to grow out-of-season fruit.

Vegetables are easier to talk about; like these primitive cabbages that are grown, even if they aren't pickled after harvesting, they can be stored for a very long time. Other vegetables can only be pickled with salt. The source of vitamins in Winter relies entirely on these pickled vegetables, so that one can see some green vegetables to eat in the rice bowl during Winter.

However, the shelf life of these fruits is really too short. Once fully ripe, they show signs of rot after being picked for a day or two. As for those peaches and apricots in later generations that stay very fresh for one or two weeks, they are taken off the tree before they are fully ripe and then artificially ripened, so they are much worse in terms of taste, and people always say there is no "peach flavor" when they buy them.

Now the peaches and apricots are just ripe, and there are many animals inside scrambling to eat them. However, according to Xiong's account, the rotten fruit all over the ground leaves them with no combat effectiveness, so the matter of hunting is put aside for now, but this fruit must be obtained, otherwise such a large forest would be a waste.

However, how to preserve them after picking is also a troublesome matter. Otherwise, once picked, you can't finish eating them, and you can't keep them; isn't that like a eunuch in a brothel—tears in vain?

Baifeng thought of making canned goods, but sealing is also a difficult task. They don't have Glass bottles. The potters' progress on Glass is currently considered okay; they are now pondering the issue of purity. Recently they have been quite busy, and Baifeng hasn't had time to pay attention to that. Originally, Baifeng even thought about replacing the Windows with Glass.

For the bottles, let's use pottery; use Pottery Jars directly, and they must be equipped with relatively tight lids. As for the matter of sealing, beeswax must be used; it is idle anyway, and it can be reused after being taken off.

It's just that the Pottery Jars used have to be remade. Fortunately, the potter also discovered a glaze, a kind of Black Glaze. Baifeng had told them about this thing called glaze, just letting them go find and explore it themselves; he didn't expect they would actually find it.

If the Pottery Jars use Black Glaze, the tightness will be better, and those pores will not be a cause for concern. The only bad thing is that you can't see the situation inside, and there is no way to judge whether it has spoiled.

The harvest period for peaches is at least half a month; the peaches will gradually ripen, and the apricots will last even longer. And even for apricot trees in the same location, their ripening dates and taste are different. According to Xiong, they still have about a week to pick the peaches; if they go later, there might be none left, and even if there are, the quality won't be good.

Apricots are not too urgent; there is still at least ten days of time. So now Baifeng went to find Gao, telling them not to worry about firing Bricks for now, but to rush to make a batch of Pottery Jars, which must be glazed and equipped with lids.

Baifeng drew the general shape for him, and then Gao confirmed he understood and nodded. Baifeng told him to make at least two hundred, the more the better, and they must be made within six days.

Originally, upon hearing two hundred, Gao nodded and said it was no problem, but when he heard it was only six days, he could only widen his eyes, confirming whether Baifeng had made a mistake. Two hundred in six days—even if he were a spider spirit, he couldn't make them.

Although the current large kiln can fire one hundred at a time, and two kilns firing simultaneously can finish in three days, the main thing is how to make the greenware. Counting the air-drying, they only have a little over a day to make these two hundred jars.

Baifeng looked at Gao's expression and felt that what he said seemed a bit excessive, so he changed his words: "Then one hundred will do, right? Six days, you first make one hundred, and you can make the rest slowly, okay?"

"Also, I will assign more people to you. There are quite a few people with experience in making pottery greenware, and they don't need to be very beautiful, as long as they are qualified and durable. Is that okay?"

Only then did Gao sigh and agree. They would have to work overtime at night. Hearing Gao's plan to rush the work at night, Baifeng immediately prepared one hundred large candles for them to provide lighting, so they wouldn't have to suffer the smoke and fire of Torches.

Gao also has his plan. The most troublesome part is making the pottery greenware. Firing doesn't require much manpower; it's just throwing coal and wood into the kiln and pulling the bellows. This kind of work can be done by any tribesperson, it just needs to be continuous day and night, just take turns in a Squad, and it doesn't require too many people.

While firing, the next kiln can start making greenware, but Baifeng wanting them done in six days is really too hard on him; ten days would be about right.