Beans
Summer arrived, and food became more abundant. A morning’s work was usually enough for a gatherer to collect enough food for the day.
With less time spent working outdoors, personal time suddenly increased.
That afternoon, Bai Wu, carrying a basket on his back, went to the site where he planned to build a house to check the soil conditions. He was preparing to assess the foundation plan.
Upon arriving at the site, he had just squatted down and started working when his vision suddenly darkened. He assumed the weather had changed from sunny to cloudy.
Looking up again, he realized it wasn’t cloudy at all, but rather a giant bird carrying a bloodied beast flying overhead, blocking the sunlight and casting a shadow directly on him.
Bai Wu looked up at this spectacular sight.
The giant bird flapped its wings, creating a gust of wind. Its dark feathers reflected the sunlight, and it quickly disappeared into the mountains.
It was Nan Yao.
Nan Yao never flew from this direction before; this was the first time Bai Wu had seen him in his beast form, carrying prey, and soaring through the mountains.
Bai Wu stared at the mountain for a while, his face full of envy.
If only he could be reincarnated as a beastman.
Bai Wu lowered his head and continued clearing the rocks.
A moment later, he heard another strange noise.
Looking up, he saw a giant bird flapping its wings and swooping down from the mountain directly towards Bai Wu.
Bai Wu was startled and took several steps back. “Priest?”
The giant bird tossed the pottery jar on its claws upwards, and abruptly transformed back into human form. It leaped from mid-air to the ground with the jar in hand. “Why are you hiding?”
“Priest, what brings you down here?”
Nan Yao handed him the jar. “Weren’t you collecting seeds? Here.”
“What seeds?” Bai Wu took the jar. He looked down to see it filled with round, pale yellow seeds. “Are they edible?”
Bai Wu grabbed a handful of seeds. The seeds were about the size of his little finger, quite hard, with a thick outer seed coat. They felt a bit like beans when rubbed between his fingers.
He picked up a bean and bit into it. The thin seed coat revealed a white hard and crunchy kernel with a slightly bitter taste.
Bai Wu curiously looked down at the half-eaten bean in his hand, about to try it again.
Nan Yao reached out and grabbed his wrist, staring at the half-eaten bean in his hand. “You have to cook it thoroughly, otherwise it’s poisonous.”
“Thank you, High Priest.” Bai Wu stepped back, gently pulling his hand away. “I really like this.”
“Good that you like it. Thank you for the food.”
Nan Yao then transformed into a giant bird and flew away.
Bai Wu quickly followed, “High Priest, may I ask where this seed grows?”
“It’s very far from here; sub-beastmen can’t fly there.”
Nan Yao glanced at Bai Wu. “If you like it, I’ll bring you some more next time.”
“Could you please tell me the location? I still want to know.”
Nan Yao frowned.
Bai Wu glanced at the stone at his feet, picked up a clod of mud, squatted down, and quickly drew a simple map on the stone’s surface. Looking up, he said, “Our tribe is here. This is the direction the sun rises. High Priest, could you tell me roughly which direction the beans are?”
Nan Yao stared at the well-made map. “You know quite a bit about the tribe?”
“I walk around every day, so I roughly know where things are,” Bai Wu said in his light voice. “I didn’t deliberately memorize anything.”
Nan Yao didn’t ask further. He squatted down and drew a small circle on a corner of the stone. “This direction. At your sub-beastman speed, it would take you a day and a half to fly there.”
“Are there any special landmarks here?”
“There’s a snow-capped mountain. This plant grows on the side of the mountain facing the morning sun. Look for it from the foot of the mountain upwards; it’s easy to find.”
“About what season does it bear fruit?”
“Now.”
Bai Wu was about to ask another question when Nan Yao glanced at him twice, then truly transformed into a giant bird and flew away, disappearing into the mountains in the blink of an eye.
Bai Wu stood there, touching his rapidly pounding heart.
This priest’s aura was truly intimidating.
Bai Wu received a jar of beans. He hastily arranged the stones, unable to suppress his chaotic thoughts.
He carefully placed the beans in his basket, closed the lid, and then transformed into a white bird and flew away.
When he returned to the tribe, his family was chatting around the hearth.
Upon seeing Bai Wu, An waved cheerfully, “I fed the sheep beast for you this afternoon, and even shoveled its droppings aside.”
Before Bai Wu could speak, Chuan lightly patted An’s back, scolding, “What do you mean you fed the sheep beast for him? You always drink the most milk from it! Are you tired, Wu? Come sit down for a while.”
Bai Wu plopped down on a wooden stump, pulling his basket forward. “Father, let me show you something good.”
An peeked out, “More good food?”
“Maybe, not really.” Bai Wu reached into the jar and grabbed a handful of beans. “Father, Dad, have you ever seen these before?”
Chuan held Bai Wu’s hand, examining it closely. “I saw them when I was little. Where did they come from?”
“The High Priest gave them to me. Dad, do you know where to find them? I want to go and collect some.”
“I don’t remember anymore. Didn’t you ask the High Priest?”
Bai Wu pointed. “The High Priest said it’s roughly in that direction. At my flying speed, it takes a day and a half to see a snow-capped mountain. At the foot of the mountain facing the morning sun, you can see a patch of these beans. “
Mo interjected, “Isn’t that the edge of our territory?!”
“Do you know this place?”
“How could you not know that there are mountains, rivers and plains in our territory. Only this direction is bounded by a snow-capped mountain, and over there is the territory of the other beastmen.”
“Is it very far?”
“Of course it’s far away. Our territory is quite large. Except for the priest who often flies there for inspections, we generally don’t fly there.”
Mo asked: “Wu, where do you want to go?”
“I want to go. I want to pick some of these seeds. Maybe it will become a very important food.”
“We are not short of food now.”
“I can eat enough, but I have to store some food for emergencies.”
“It’s quite far. Sub-beastmen have to fly for a long time.”
“Have you been there?”
“I’ve been there once.” Mo replied awkwardly, “Only once when I was an adult.”
Bai Wu sighed.
Chuan comforted him, saying, “Next year, some of the tribe’s sub-beastmen will come of age and patrol the border. You can go with them.”
Bai Wu murmured, “I don’t want to wait that long.”
Chuan patted his hand.
After dinner, the family went back to their nests to sleep.
The moonlight outside was bright.
Bai Wu usually slept well, but this time he couldn’t fall asleep.
He tossed and turned in his nest until the moon was almost overhead, while the breathing of those on the shore was already even.
Finally, Bai Wu couldn’t resist any longer. He sat up abruptly, quietly took the earthenware jar from beside his den, and scooped out a handful of round seeds, examining them repeatedly by the moonlight.
He wondered how much these seeds would yield. If the yield was high, they would be excellent food, enough to make oil and fill their stomachs.
Right now, their tribe didn’t have a proper staple food. It would be a real shame not to get some this year.
Bai Wu stayed up late under the moonlight until finally drowsiness settled in. He lay down in bed, his brow furrowed even in his sleep, looking preoccupied.
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, Bai Wu got up with huge dark circles under his eyes.
He tiptoed to his basket to go outside to cut grass.
Chuan poked his head out of the neighboring nest and called to him, “Wu.”
Startled by his Dad’s voice, Bai Wu turned and approached his nest, greeting him in a low voice, “Dad, Father, why are you up so early too?”
“We heard the noise from your side. Where are you going so early?”
“To cut some grass to feed the sheep. Dad, can I have Ta come with me to the border?”
“You still remember those seeds at the border?”
“I can’t sleep without going to see them.”
“Otherwise, you can wait a few more days. Next month will be the Eagle Clan’s turn to sacrifice to the High Priest. At that time, your father won’t have to go hunting with the tribe. He can accompany you on a trip to the border.”
“That’s almost ten days. I can’t wait. Dad, I’ll get Ta to go with me; he seems quite reliable.”
“He might not want to go.”
“It’s alright, I’ll go ask him first. If he doesn’t want to, I’ll think of another way. Dad, you two sleep a little longer; I’m going out to cut grass.”
Bai Wu finished speaking and, without waiting for his dad’s reaction, slung his basket over his shoulder and ran off to cut grass to feed the sheep.
After breakfast, Bai Wu took some specially made scallion-smoked grilled fish to find Ta.
Ta’s house was a little down below.
When Bai Wu arrived, Ta was eating breakfast alone by the fire pit.
Upon seeing Bai Wu, Ta said, “If you had come any later, I would have already left.”
Bai Wu handed him a grilled fish wrapped in leaves. “Are you going hunting or collecting hay for the roof?”
“The hay for the roof needs to be collected in the fall, otherwise it’s too tender and will rot after a rain. Today I want to get some resin to glue the stones.”
“Didn’t you do that before?”
“I’m waiting for it to drip. I need to check it out today.”
The beastmen use a special resin as an adhesive when building houses. The process of collecting the resin is similar to collecting pine resin; a small incision is made in the bark, and large leaves are placed underneath to allow the resin to flow onto the leaves.
When needed, the resin is boiled in a clay pot to melt.
Bai Wu sat down next to Ta. “Collecting resin isn’t urgent; it can’t be done in a day or two. Can you come with me to the border of the tribe? The border near the snow mountain?”
Ta put down his chopsticks and asked, “What are you going to that place for? It’s so far.”
“There are beans there that look like a particularly good grain. I want to go and see them. Father and the others are going hunting with the tribe and don’t have time, so I wanted to ask you.”
“Why don’t you wait a few days?”
Bai Wu sighed, “If I don’t go and see them, I won’t be able to sleep at night. The main problem is that many plants only have a ten-day or eight-day fruiting period. If I go too late, the fruit will have fallen or been eaten by other animals, and I’ll probably have to wait until next year.”
“That’s true.” Ta nodded knowingly.
“Why don’t you come with me? I’ll share half the beans with you after we get them, and I’ll even teach you a special way to eat them. You can bring some back for your partner to try.”
“Hiss, it’ll take a long time to fly to the border, especially with a little sub-beastman like you.”
“Sub-beastmen can fly fast too,” Bai Wu said. “My father is busy, and I don’t know any beastmen well, so I can only ask you for help. I think the High Priest can fly back and forth in a day, so I should be able to fly alone. Two or three days should be enough.”
“Is the High Priest an ordinary beastman?”
Bai Wu smiled. “I’m not an ordinary sub-beastman either. I may fly a little slower, but I won’t give up halfway.”