First thing in the morning, Xi Yao got up and had some meat broth to tide her over.
Then, she got busy building a fence.
She took a hoe from her storage space to dig holes, and Xi Bei and Xi Nan ran over to help.
Wielding the hoe, Xi Yao dug a few shallow pits in the ground to mark the post locations.
“You two can start digging here.
Don’t rush, and be careful not to hurt yourselves.”
The two little ones nodded and started pawing at the dirt, their front paws alternating with force.
Perhaps from being constantly trodden on, the earth here was especially compact and difficult to dig.
At first, their digging was slow and shallow.
They couldn’t quite get the right amount of force, so their paws kept slipping to the side.
But before long, they gradually got the hang of it.
Their digging speed increased, and the small pits grew deeper.
“Mother, how am I doing?” Xi Bei stopped, lifting his little dirt-covered head to look at Xi Yao with an expectant expression.
Xi Yao walked over, wiped the dirt from his head, and gently touched his deer antlers.
“Little Bei, you’re amazing!
You’re digging so fast and well!”
Buoyed by the praise, Xi Bei was filled with renewed vigor and went right back to digging.
Not to be outdone, Xi Nan on the side kept at it, his small body bobbing adorably with each digging motion.
Before long, he had also finished digging a small pit.
Xi Yao would occasionally step in to shovel the excavated dirt to the side.
Seeing he couldn’t be of much help, Xi Mo took the initiative to handle the meat roasting.
It took the whole morning, but Xi Yao finally finished digging the holes for the posts.
She washed her hands and called the two little ones over for some roasted meat.
After they ate, it was back to work.
The logs, over two meters long, were quite heavy.
She was responsible for carrying them and placing them in the holes, while Xi Nan and Xi Bei handled backfilling the dirt to secure them.
Once the posts were secured, the next step was simple.
First, she tied a few long logs horizontally across the posts to brace them, then secured them with nails.
By the time she finished this step, the sun was nearly set.
It was finally starting to look like a real fence.
“Mother, is it done now?”
Xi Bei hopped onto the top of the fence and walked back and forth curiously.
“How is this any different from the barrier outside the tribe?” Xi Nan followed suit, jumping onto the topmost rail of the fence.
“It’s not secure at all.
It can’t even stop me.”
Xi Yao reached out, grabbed his tail, and pulled him down.
“It’s not that simple.
Go play over there for a bit.”
After setting Xi Nan down, she got back to work.
She moved all the remaining logs next to the rails, standing them upright.
“Hey?
Xi Yao, what are you doing?”
Xi Yao looked up at the sound of the voice.
It was Bo Ya, the male who usually delivered their food.
She nodded to him in greeting and answered truthfully, “Nothing much, just trying to fence in the cave.”
Xi Nan took the meat from his hands, carried it into the cave, and thanked him.
“Need a hand?” Bo Ya couldn’t bear to see a female struggling to move logs like that.
‘Compared to the other females, Xi Yao really has it rough.’
“No, it’s okay.
Thanks, but I can manage.”
Bo Ya went over to help anyway.
Beastmen were indeed strong; he could carry four or five logs at a time.
In no time at all, he had helped her move all of them.
When Bo Ya had finished helping with the logs, Xi Yao wiped the sweat from her forehead and looked at him gratefully.
“Thank you so much, Bo Ya.
This would have taken me so much longer without your help.”
Bo Ya smiled and waved his hand.
“It’s nothing.
It can’t be easy for you, raising a few cubs on your own.”
‘It was undeniable that Xi Yao was beautiful—more beautiful than any female he had ever seen.
If she were willing, plenty of males would be happy to help her.’
‘But after that incident, she’d rejected every Beastman who got close.
Over time, the men of the tribe had developed a tacit understanding to keep their distance.’
Xi Yao nodded and threw herself into the next task.
She picked up some rattan vines and began tying the upright logs to the horizontal rails, one by one.
Bo Ya didn’t leave right away.
Seeing her tying the vines, he joined in.
Xi Yao didn’t refuse the help.
With the two of them working together, things went much faster.
By the time they finished, the sky was completely dark.
Xi Nan had already lit a torch.
Its flickering light illuminated the new fence in front of the cave, as well as the sweat- and dust-streaked faces of Xi Yao and Bo Ya.
“I really owe you for today, Bo Ya.
It’s gotten so late, why don’t you stay for a bite to eat?”
Bo Ya refused without a second thought.
‘She barely has enough food for herself; how could I possibly stay?’
Xi Yao didn’t press him.
She just offered a reminder as he was leaving, “I know a bit about medicine.
If you ever need help, you can come find me.”
‘I remember the original book mentioning that Bo Ya gets seriously injured on a hunt.
The witch doctor declares he won’t live long, and he’s driven out of the tribe.’
‘Since he helped me, I’m willing to save his life.’
Bo Ya was stunned for a moment, then nodded.
‘He’d had a slightly selfish motive for helping.
After all, the entire tribe knew that Xi Yao had saved Ni Duo.’
‘She had saved Ni Duo when even the witch doctor couldn’t.’
‘That meant her medical skills were no worse than the witch doctor’s.
Their Hunting Team was always getting injured; they would definitely need her help someday.’
After Bo Ya left, Xi Yao turned and entered the cave.
Xi Nan and Xi Bei were waiting for her with eager eyes.
The cave was filled with the aroma of roasted meat; Xi Mo had already finished cooking and arranged the pieces neatly on clean leaves.
“Mother, you’ve been busy all day.
Come and try the meat I roasted.” Xi Mo said with a smile, handing her a piece.
The aroma was intoxicating—crispy on the outside and tender on the inside.
Xi Yao took the meat, took a bite, and praised him, “It’s delicious.”
Hearing her praise, Xi Mo’s tail gave a proud flick.
After dinner, under the cover of darkness, Xi Yao prepared to finish the remaining work before resting.
Seeing she was going back to work, Xi Nan followed her.
‘She really is different now.
It’s like she’s a whole new person.’
“I’ll help you.”
“Okay.”
Xi Yao handed him the box of nails.
Xi Nan was very bright; he took it and immediately started handing her nails as she worked.
Xi Bei also wanted to help, but was stopped by Xi Yao.
Xi Bei watched from the sidelines, his face etched with disappointment.
“Mother, why can’t I help?
I want to help you with Big Brother, too.”
“Be good.
Go inside and keep your brother company.
Xi Nan is all the help I need out here.”
Xi Bei wasn’t happy about it, but he nodded and went into the cave.
Under the moonlight, Xi Yao and Xi Nan continued their work.
By the time they had hammered in the last nail, the night had grown deep.
Sweaty and sticky, Xi Yao grabbed some clothes and prepared to go to the river to wash up.
This time, Xi Nan and Xi Bei offered to go with her.
It wasn’t safe for a female to be out alone so late at night.
Xi Yao was pleasantly surprised.
After spending these past few days together, it seemed the Zaizai were starting to accept her.
By the light of the moon, Xi Yao led Xi Nan and Xi Bei toward the river.
Along the way, Xi Nan and Xi Bei acted like two little guards, sticking close to Xi Yao’s left and right sides.
Their small frames radiated vigilance as their eyes continuously scanned the surroundings.
Xi Yao told the two children to wait a short distance from the water’s edge while she waded into the shallows.
The cool river water flowed over her, washing away the day’s fatigue and dust.
Xi Nan and Xi Bei sat on a rock on the bank, their backs to Xi Yao, their bodies tense as they scanned the surroundings.
Xi Yao washed quickly this time, mainly because the river was too cold.
‘Right now, I miss my climate-controlled bathroom and my automatic massage bathtub more than anything.’
She washed her clothes and packed them up.
Then she began giving the two little ones a quick wash.
She was completely unaware that while they were away, a dark figure had appeared outside the fence, carefully examining her new creation.
Chongming ran his hand over the nearly invisible black nails.
He pressed his palm against the surface, and a moment later, a nail appeared in his palm.
‘It was just…
he had never seen anything like it before.’
…
When Xi Yao and the children returned to the cave, it was late at night.
Their home was in a rather remote spot, making the surroundings feel exceptionally quiet.
When they returned, Xi Mo was already asleep.
Xi Yao yawned, her drowsiness growing.
Xi Bei and Xi Nan rubbed their tired eyes.
She locked up and they went straight to bed.
…
Xi Yao felt as if several large rocks were pressing down on her, making it hard to breathe.
She tried to turn over but found she couldn’t move at all.