Mao Xiaoshu spotted his sister from a long way off and called out to her loudly. When Mao Xiaohe saw Qin Ziheng turn to look at her, her breath caught at once.
This beast really was fair enough to gleam, and very good-looking too, he had to be an exceptional demi-beast, not a male beast. Mao Xiaohe’s feelings turned complicated in an instant, both relieved and disappointed, but…
This beast was not of the tribe!
Mao Xiaohe went to help Mao Xiaoshu carry the firewood, but Mao Xiaoshu twisted his body and dodged away.
“Sister, Xiaoshu carries it himself.”
“It’s too heavy, let me.” In Mao Xiaohe’s mind, Mao Xiaoshu was still the little brother of years past who needed her care.
Mao Xiaoshu looked up at Qin Ziheng, and Qin Ziheng said to Mao Xiaohe, “Let him carry it. He can manage.”
Mao Xiaoshu looked scrawny, without an ounce of flesh, standing there like a utility pole, but he was very strong, a green bamboo at least a dozen meters tall and thick as a thigh he could lift with one hand, effortlessly, while Qin Ziheng needed both.
At Qin Ziheng’s words, Mao Xiaohe blankly withdrew her hand.
Back in the cave, Mao Xiaohe seemed to come to herself, and asked Qin Ziheng where he’d come from, he didn’t seem to be a beast of their tribe, and why he didn’t go back.
She asked not to drive him off, but out of unease.
Qin Ziheng told what he could. He told Mao Xiaohe he’d come from a very far place and couldn’t go back.
Many tribes were far from the Fluffy Tribe, a dozen mountains to cross, and the mountains were dangerous, for a lone beast to try to return was indeed difficult, as good as impossible.
As for how Qin Ziheng had come to be at Bear Slope, Qin Ziheng didn’t say, but Mao Xiaohe guessed: probably this demi-beast, out gathering, had wandered farther and farther looking for food and unwittingly reached Bear Slope. After all, beasts getting lost outside had happened in their Fluffy Tribe too.
Many beasts, chasing prey or looking for wild fruit, wandered off without realizing.
Mao Xiaohe nodded to show she understood, then swept her eyes over Qin Ziheng once more and suddenly said, “You’re a demi-beast?”
Qin Ziheng didn’t understand what a demi-beast was. He only knew the people here called people “beastmen”, what the devil was a demi-beast?
He didn’t dare ask, though. Some instinct told him this was a question any beast should understand, and if it was something all beasts understood, then his asking would mark him as “off.” Mao Xiaohe clearly cared about Mao Xiaoshu, if she labeled him as “off,” might he be driven out?
Qin Ziheng glanced at Mao Xiaoshu and nodded. “Mm.”
“You really are good-looking. Do you have a mate?” Mao Xiaohe asked.
Qin Ziheng answered, “No.”
Mao Xiaohe went on, “What beasts did you have at home before?”
Qin Ziheng fell silent. Mao Xiaohe looked to be in her thirties, somewhat like Mao Xiaoshu but not very, Mao Guoguo resembled Mao Xiaoshu more than she did. She dressed rather scantily, her chest bound in beast hide with one shoulder bare, and below she wore only a hip-hugging hide skirt.
Qin Ziheng kept his gaze lowered, not sweeping it over her. Mao Xiaohe sat at the foot of the bed, he and Mao Xiaoshu sat at the head. When she asked her questions, he looked only at her face as he answered. Seeing how Mao Xiaohe was dressed, he secretly breathed a sigh of relief, he’d rather feared the tribe’s females might go bare-chested.
In African documentaries some tribeswomen wore no clothes.
If the Fluffy Tribe were the same, he felt he’d have a hard time adjusting.
Thank goodness.
Mao Xiaohe’s questioning was rather long-winded, Qin Ziheng was interrogated for nearly a full hour before she scooted over, patted his shoulder, and said, “You don’t even know where your tribe is, so it must be very far, which is why you can’t remember the way. And you’re a demi-beast with no strength, you can’t even shoulder two bamboos, had to drag them back, so running off outside on your own really is dangerous.”
Qin Ziheng: “…”
There was no need to put it quite so bluntly.
Besides, it wasn’t that he couldn’t shoulder them, dragging just saved effort, he simply hadn’t wanted to waste the strength.
Mao Xiaohe continued, “This cave only has Xiaoshu living in it, so you two can squeeze in together for now. But my little brother…” She paused. In the short while she’d been talking, Mao Xiaoshu had grown restless, his eyes rolling about. He wouldn’t sit still, now toying with Qin Ziheng’s knuckly fingers, now flopping onto his legs to pick at his belt and buttons.
Mao Xiaohe said helplessly, “My little brother is rather clingy, and doesn’t know any better. You… if you get annoyed, don’t scold him. If he clings too much, just ignore him.”
Mao Xiaoshu wasn’t happy to hear this. He pressed his lips tight, hooked Qin Ziheng’s arm again, and looked at Mao Xiaohe indignantly. He thought Mao Xiaohe was wrong, he did too know better, he’d been good, and when eating meat he’d picked out the tasty, meaty bits for Qin Ziheng.
That Mao Xiaoshu was clingy, Qin Ziheng had long known. In the short two days from yesterday to today, Mao Xiaoshu had gone from his initial testing to, once he knew Qin Ziheng didn’t mind his closeness, following him step for step. But Qin Ziheng didn’t find it tiresome, because Mao Xiaoshu was obedient enough, and seemed to know his limits too.
He pinched Mao Xiaoshu’s mouth, tugging it into a duckbill, and said with a smile, “I won’t. He’s very well-behaved.”
Feeling that Qin Ziheng was praising him, Mao Xiaoshu burrowed against Qin Ziheng’s stomach and secretly smiled with his eyes.
Seeing that Qin Ziheng didn’t mind, even patted Mao Xiaoshu’s back lightly, Mao Xiaohe left, reassured.
Mao Xiaoshu was clingy, true, and slow and a bit foolish, also true. But his heart saw clearly, he only clung to beasts he felt were good to him.
So without further asking, Mao Xiaohe knew Qin Ziheng must have treated her brother well these two days, otherwise Mao Xiaoshu would long since have been hiding from him.
The Cluck-Cluck Beasts must have been caught by Qin Ziheng too. That Qin Ziheng would feed them to her brother and even send some over meant this demi-beast couldn’t be half bad.
After seeing Mao Xiaohe off, Mao Xiaoshu wanted to go cut fluff-grass, but there was only one bone knife, and Qin Ziheng needed it. With no work to do and unwilling to nap, Mao Xiaoshu wandered around the cave like an idler. Qin Ziheng told him to go find some dry bamboo in the grove.
The twigs were small and really didn’t burn long. There was no heating here, no beast hide at home, let alone quilts, to avoid freezing to death in the snow season, they could only prepare more firewood.
As for food… it was noon now, too late to go into the woods and scout, so first make the bowls, one thing at a time.
Mao Xiaoshu went off busy, and Qin Ziheng didn’t idle either. The Beast World’s bamboo was all very large, a bit like modern giant dragon bamboo, the thickest base could be nearly forty centimeters across.
More than enough for plates, for bowls it was rather too big. Qin Ziheng planned to make three soup platters, six stir-fry plates, six bowls, and two small soup ladles, otherwise having to hoist the pot every time to drink soup was really inconvenient, with a ladle, scooping soup or anything hot would be easy later.
The soup platters had to be made deep so they’d hold more. Soup platters were a must, they couldn’t eat straight from the pot every time.
He busied himself making bowls and whittling chopsticks, while Mao Xiaoshu found dry bamboo in the woods, when he found one he kicked it over, then, imitating what Qin Ziheng had done yesterday, bound it with grass vine and dragged it home.
In one afternoon he dragged home a dozen-odd bamboos, all dried out, each a dozen meters long. Sweating profusely, seeing his dry bamboo stacked so high, he felt a great sense of accomplishment, and even called Qin Ziheng out to look, then gazed at him with sparkling eyes.
Qin Ziheng praised him for working well, and he smiled with his eyes, looking obedient and sweet. Qin Ziheng couldn’t help ruffling his sweat-damp little curls and told him to rest a while.
Mao Xiaoshu shook his head. “Xiaoshu isn’t tired, can still work.” He even felt he could run three laps around the tribe right now.
Qin Ziheng taught him to snap the dry bamboo into two- or three-meter lengths and pile them by the stone wall, unbroken, the bamboo was simply too long, and inconvenient to burn.
Mao Xiaoshu wasn’t lazy, with work to do he was actually happy, and willing to learn what he didn’t know. This task was very simple, Mao Xiaoshu watched a couple of times and declared he had it. Afraid he still didn’t understand, Qin Ziheng wanted to teach him more, but Mao Xiaoshu pressed both hands against Qin Ziheng’s back and shoved him toward the cave, saying he already knew how.
Qin Ziheng asked with a smile, “You really know it all?”
Mao Xiaoshu nodded hard. “Mm.”
“Xiaoshu’s so clever?”
Mao Xiaoshu giggled, not the least modest, and nodded hard again. “Mm, Xiaoshu is the cleverest, tip-top.”
Bowls and chopsticks were easy to make, just cut down a bamboo tube, sand the burrs off the rim, and level the bottom.
Qin Ziheng hadn’t done such work in years, but he’d done plenty as a child. He was a bit slow at first, but after making one he found the feel of it again, and his hands sped up.
By the time he’d finished, he glanced outside, about four-thirty, he guessed. Summer days were long and nights short. Mao Xiaoshu, being strong, had long since stacked up all the firewood he’d hauled back.
Qin Ziheng asked whether he was hungry. If not, he’d take him to find the chief first.
Mao Xiaoshu immediately pulled at him. “Go find the chief, then come back and cook Cluck-Cluck Beast.”
When Mao Xiaohe left at noon, she’d told Qin Ziheng to go find the chief when he had time, since he was from another tribe, whether he could stay depended on the chief’s wishes.
But Mao Xiaohe wasn’t worried the chief would refuse, because one more stray demi-beast in the tribe was no great matter, the more beasts a tribe had, the better, more beasts meant a stronger tribe.
And the chief’s family had some ties to Mao Xiaoshu’s, distant, but ties all the same, so if Mao Xiaoshu brought the person over, the chief surely wouldn’t object. “Xiaoshu knows where the chief’s stone house is. Just have him take you over.”
Mao Xiaoshu clearly remembered this, and was now even more eager than Qin Ziheng.
The chief lived within the tribe, not off in an out-of-the-way spot like Mao Xiaoshu’s cave. On the way over they met quite a few female beasts just back from gathering, all cradling tree leaves that must have something wrapped inside.
Qin Ziheng glanced once and drew his gaze back.
He guessed the leaves held wild fruit.
Female beasts’ hide garments weren’t long enough to make pockets, so they wrapped wild fruit in a lotus-like big leaf and tied it tight with grass vine. Each carried several “bundles”, seemed the outing had gone fairly well. This gathering party numbered a dozen or so, but not all were female, Qin Ziheng also noticed a few of smaller stature among them, youths about Mao Xiaoshu’s age.
The gathering party saw Mao Xiaoshu bounding along hooked onto Qin Ziheng’s arm, looking very happy. As he bounced, Mao Xiaoshu asked Qin Ziheng why his face had gone so long when he ate the Cluck-Cluck Beast’s tail at noon, was it because he was too happy?
Qin Ziheng’s expression turned complicated.
It wasn’t because he was too happy. Hungry as he was, his belly didn’t lack for grease, how could he stomach a chicken tail? When he’d tried to toss one, Mao Xiaoshu had cried out “ah,” then, looking heartbroken, picked it up, dusted it off carefully, and asked why he was throwing it away. Qin Ziheng said he wouldn’t eat it, and Mao Xiaoshu had stuffed it straight into his own mouth, downed all four in one go, leaving Qin Ziheng dumbfounded.
Everyone stopped in their tracks, staring at Qin Ziheng in blank puzzlement, a little wary, a little startled, a little curious too.
They all knew Mao Xiaoshu, but Qin Ziheng was a new face.
One who was closer with Mao Xiaoshu asked, “Xiaoshu, who’s this?”
Mao Xiaoshu said, “It’s Qin Ziheng!”
That wasn’t what the gathering party wanted to ask. Qin Ziheng gave a small laugh and nodded slightly at them. “Hello.”
The beasts didn’t know what that nod meant, but instinctively nodded back.
Qin Ziheng said, “I’ve come from another tribe.”
Someone immediately pointed in a direction and asked, “Did you come from that tribe over there?”
Qin Ziheng’s brow lifted slightly. Since these beasts knew there was a tribe beyond the mountains, that tribe couldn’t be far from the Fluffy Tribe.
He shook his head. “No, I come from farther away.” Because it was too far, he’d forgotten the way, and alone he couldn’t return, so he wanted to stay in the Fluffy Tribe.
The gathering party understood, and, finding Qin Ziheng terribly pitiful, kindly said he could go gathering with them in future. To them there was no reason to lie about such a thing, so Qin Ziheng had only said a couple of words and everyone took it for truth. One more demi-beast in the tribe was no trouble anyway, and since he wouldn’t be living with them, that was even less of a problem, so long as the chief agreed.
Qin Ziheng smilingly assented.
Mao Xiaoshu, though, wasn’t pleased. After they parted from the gathering party, he stopped bouncing and started pouting. Qin Ziheng went to pinch his mouth. “What is it? Why isn’t our Xiaoshu happy?”
Mao Xiaoshu sniffled and hugged Qin Ziheng’s arm more tightly, but said nothing.
Qin Ziheng could guess the tribe’s rules of survival. They should be no different from ancient times, probably men outside, women within, since male beasts were strong and fast, so they hunted, while female beasts gathered, finding wild fruit or other things to supplement the “household.”
Although gathering was done in the safe zone, the safe zone wasn’t absolutely safe, now and then a large wild beast strayed in, so gathering parties always went out in groups. But in two days here, Qin Ziheng hadn’t seen any beast come looking for Mao Xiaoshu, much less invite him gathering, no doubt because they thought him a bit foolish, likely to wander off and make trouble for the party.
Everyone has a possessive streak. Mao Xiaoshu feared he’d mix with the other beasts and then stop paying him any mind.
Qin Ziheng lightly tugged the ear on his head, bent down slightly, and, leaning close to his ear as if telling a secret, said softly, “I was lying to them. I won’t go with them, I’ll only go with you, all right?”
Mao Xiaoshu jerked his head up to look at him. “Really?”
“Mm, I’m not lying to you.”
It was as though a little dappled deer had taken up residence in Mao Xiaoshu’s heart, he started bouncing again, smiling so wide his gums flashed.
Anyone simple-minded is easy to coax, and beasts were no exception, Qin Ziheng thought.