Chapter 252: Imitate as You Please

After Baifeng wandered for a few days, he realized that this matter should not be decided by him alone, but rather that he should seek the opinions of his tribesmen. Furthermore, because they were going out—much like breaking new ground—and would be leaving the protection of the tribal city walls, the subsidies and assistance provided to the tribesmen had to be sufficient. Additionally, this policy could appropriately be extended to Free Persons and Slaves, though the quantity and proportions had to be strictly determined; otherwise, those who were split off might not necessarily belong to the Baifeng Tribe anymore.

Moreover, the location Baifeng had planned was only a little over an hour's journey from the Urban Area, so there would be absolutely no problem with management. The purpose of splitting them off was to allow the tribe to develop more reasonably; having too many people in one place was not a good thing, and Baifeng also believed that their tribe's radiating influence would certainly be able to drive the development of the surrounding areas as well.

They had already arrived at the trading point, and Xuanyuan was still the one who arrived early, as they were closer to the trading point after all. When the scouting Boat returned, besides saying that they had already seen the people of the Xuanyuan Clan, they were also hesitant, as if something were stuck in their throats, wanting to speak but unable to get the words out.

Baifeng told them not to be concerned and that they could just say whatever was on their minds.

Only after observing Baifeng's expression did that tribesman say: "Tribal Chief, we did see the people of the Xuanyuan Clan, but... they didn't come on foot; they, they also came by Boat."

By Boat? Baifeng asked curiously: "What kind of Boat are they sitting in? Not a single one of our tribe's Boats has circulated out; where could they have gotten a Boat to sit in?"

That Soldier stated his own guess: "Tribal Chief, I think their Boat might have been made by themselves, because it is indeed very rotten; even our tribe's Boats from several years ago were better than that."

Baifeng was a bit curious now, gave a soft laugh, and asked: "Rotten? In what way is it rotten? How big is their Boat? It must be bigger than your Boat, right!"

That Soldier looked at his own Boat: "Tribal Chief, I estimate the size is about the same, but looking at the craftsmanship and appearance, it is indeed far inferior to ours; I just don't know if their Boat leaks water."

After the two Soldiers finished speaking, they couldn't help but snicker.

Seeing the two of them like this, Baifeng knew that Xuanyuan's Boat couldn't be any better. They had started making Boats from scratch and only managed to produce the current ones; Xuanyuan had merely looked at their tribe's Boats. He couldn't see the part underwater, so he probably just looked at the part exposed above the water and started tinkering on his own.

However, they had so many people, along with supplies for exchange and swarms of Slaves; such small Boats probably couldn't hold them all.

He asked the Soldiers again, and the Soldiers said that although the Xuanyuan Clan's Boats were very small, there were many of them; there were about ten or so Boats docked at the shore.

But the Soldier thought to himself, those dozen or so Boats couldn't do much; with Boats as big as those, they couldn't even hold many people—even if it were twenty, it wouldn't equal one of their sailboats.

They also didn't understand the point of Xuanyuan doing this, so they stopped thinking about it. Before arriving at the destination, Baifeng also had the Soldiers take down the sails; this really couldn't be let Xuanyuan see. Actually, it wouldn't matter if he did see it—this thing couldn't be imitated just by looking at it once. Baifeng doing this was mainly to hide the item so others wouldn't know he possessed such good things, which would serve as a trump card when the time came.

After the scouts from both sides made contact, they stopped and set up camp at a distance from each other. After all, it was getting late, and the principle both sides upheld was that it didn't matter if the trade happened a bit late, but they must ensure their own safety.

Now when going out, the Dry Rations Baifeng and his group carried were finally no longer Salted Fish. Their increased cooking utensils, oil, and seasonings allowed them to make better-tasting food; even River fish could be made delicious after being caught, rather than just being boiled or roasted directly.

A net of river shrimp, and they were quite large, a full half the size of Baifeng's little finger; they looked quite plump. After washing them clean, Baifeng poured oil directly over them, turned the heat up high to stir-fry them, and took them out of the pan when they turned red.

Tribesmen were actually unwilling to eat shrimp, these kinds of bugs in the water. Even when they were starving in the past, only a few types of bugs were in their diet. It wasn't that they were picky eaters, but that they were afraid to eat them.

This was also an avoidance mechanism given to them by Nature. There were many poisonous bugs, and most of them carried many bacteria; humans would instinctively reject eating bugs, which could minimize the probability of poisoning and bacterial infection.

Someone abroad once conducted an experiment: they placed a person's favorite drink in front of them, then took a thoroughly disinfected, very clean cockroach and dropped it into the drink, swirling it twice. That person would then be unwilling to drink the beverage no matter what. Even if it were explicitly stated that the cockroach had been disinfected, the person would still frown and cover their mouth—this expression was also a defense mechanism.

However, under Baifeng's leadership, everyone grew to like this thing that carried a "fresh" taste. They originally didn't know what "fresh" was, nor did they know what sweet was, but Baifeng brought them honey and Maltose, letting them know the taste of sweetness and experiencing happiness, and then let them taste "freshness."

Fish also had a fresh taste, but the fishy smell of River fish completely masked the freshness. Now with various cooking methods, the taste of fish became delicious in their eyes as well.

White rice, stir-fried bamboo shoots with cured meat, and stir-fried river shrimp made the tribesmen's appetites soar. Now these foods were the daily fare for the tribesmen; for everyone, they were not rare. It was just that things like Beef were still relatively scarce, as they were farmed and few in number, and had other uses, so they were rarely slaughtered; only those caught through hunting allowed them to eat some occasionally, while river delicacies were available in abundance.

After the meal, a bowl of apricot skin water boiled with dried apricots and honey or Maltose was exceptionally comfortable to drink. The Soldiers who had to stand guard at night took advantage of the fact that it was still light to get some good rest. They brought out the tea table, a small brazier, and placed a small pot on top. Inside, they put Tea Leaves, dates roasted until charred to bring out the fragrance, and some almonds, brewing the tea steadily. Each person had a small Glass teacup in front of them, and they shared the tea once it was brewed.

This way of drinking was also something Baifeng had come up with—the classic Xizang pot-brewed tea. It was most suitable for brewing this kind of unfermented bitter Tea Leaves. Those few Soldiers were the first to learn it; now, whenever they had to stand guard at night, they would brew some Tea Leaves to drink, which kept them energetic throughout the night. If they weren't on guard duty, they would drink it in the morning with some white flour cakes, which made for a very comfortable morning.