The Primitive Adventures of a Chipmunk 4

Chapter 4

He hadn’t gotten a single blueberry or chestnut. Hua Shi’an lay collapsed on the ground,, his eyes glazed over as he rested his head against the cave wall. He was so hungry his stomach felt like it was stuck to his back, and he could barely lift a finger.

The good news was that, except for the mushrooms, the wild vegetables and fruits had been eaten by different tribe members. A whole afternoon had passed, and the absence of any adverse reactions was proof that the plants Hua Shi’an had picked were all non-toxic and edible.

The bad news was that they hadn’t brought back many wild vegetables and fruits, and the poison-testing had finished them all. All that was left in the entire tree hollow was half a bunch of pokeweed, a handful of Jerusalem cherries, some horse chestnuts mixed in with the regular chestnuts, and a few green-headed mushrooms that couldn’t be eaten raw.

The able-bodied beastmen had left again to continue searching for food. Hua Shi’an, who should have gone with them, had been turned into a protected species, staying behind in the tree hollow to act as a strategist…

The sky gradually darkened, and the rain, which had stopped for half a day, began to fall again. The rustling white noise filled the mountain forest.

Hungry and sleepy, Hua Shi’an leaned listlessly against the tree hollow wall, his eyes tightly shut. He was just about to doze off when a clamor of messy footsteps came from outside.

“Are they back?”

“Let’s go, let’s go and see.”

“It’s Yong, they’re back!”

“Wow, they found fruit, so much of it!”

The footsteps grew closer, and the quiet tree hollow instantly became lively. Sub-beastmen and children all ran to the entrance to welcome the returning tribe members.

Hua Shi’an also scrambled up from the ground and walked unsteadily to the entrance.

The rain was falling harder, and a thick mist filled the mountain forest. The beastmen running barefoot in the rain were all soaked through. Their wet hair and messy grass skirts clung to their bodies, and their legs were splattered with mud, making them look both comical and pathetic.

This trip had been very fruitful. Everyone was carrying something in their arms—wild vegetables tied up with vines, and chestnuts wrapped in layers of leaves.

How did he know they were chestnuts? Because more than half of the tribe consisted of the old, weak, sick, and disabled, meaning one person worked to feed two mouths. Delicious and filling chestnuts were the most suitable staple food for now, so Hua Shi’an had specifically told them to look for them.

Yong led a large group of people into the tree hollow. He placed the leaves on the ground, not even bothering to wipe the rain from his face, and hurriedly confirmed with Chief Mu, who was standing at the entrance, “Well, Chief, can we eat that fruit called a chestnut? Did anyone who ate it feel unwell?”

“Yes, we can eat it!” Chief Mu didn’t keep them in suspense and promptly shared the good news with the tribe members who had toiled outside all day. “Three sub-beasts ate the chestnuts, and they ate quite a lot. So far, they haven’t shown any strange reactions, and their bodies feel fine.”

A fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy beside the chief raised his hand. “I, I ate the chestnuts. They’re crispy and sweet, very, very fragrant. They’re the most delicious fruit I’ve ever eaten!”

“I ate the blueberries, and they were delicious too! I like blueberries.”

“I ate the ma… ma vegetable? It was sour and crispy, not very tasty, but it shouldn’t be poisonous. I don’t feel unwell.”

The tribe members who had eaten the wild vegetables and fruits all spoke up. Hearing this, Yong’s last trace of worry vanished completely, and he grinned. “It’s good that we can eat them, it’s good! Come, let’s show everyone our harvest for today.”

As he finished speaking, the beastmen came forward one by one and placed their day’s harvest on the ground.

The wild vegetables were all fresh and tender purslane, piled up in bundles into a small hill half a person’s height. Banana leaves, found from who knows where, served as containers. Tearing open the layers of leaves, chestnut burrs the size of a child’s fist rolled out one after another.

Shelled and unshelled chestnuts were mixed together, and there was quite a lot. The key was that there was more than one bag. After cracking open seven or eight bags of chestnut burrs, plus several bundles of purslane, there was probably enough for two or three meals.

The joy of the harvest filled the tree hollow. The beastmen found stones and rocks and squatted at the entrance to crack the chestnut burrs.

The yellowish-green shells were covered in fine, sharp spikes that could easily prick one’s hand, but a light tap with a stone would shatter the hard shell, revealing smooth, plump chestnuts like cloves of garlic, each one distinct.

The remaining chestnut shells were not to be thrown away. When the sun came out, they could be dried and used as firewood.

Having not eaten for nearly a day and a night, everyone was hungry. But with the food right in front of them, the tribe members seemed to have a compulsion to wait until everything was cracked before eating. At first, Hua Shi’an didn’t understand, until the chestnut burrs had all become chestnuts, the purslane had been washed clean, and Chief Mu stood up to distribute the food to everyone.

He had almost forgotten that the Squirrel Tribe was still a collective, and food was distributed based on contribution.

Now that food was scarce, the old, weak, sick, and disabled who stayed in the tree hollow only received a small amount of food. It might not be enough to fill them up, but they wouldn’t go hungry. The beastmen who had worked hard outside received more food, with beastmen getting the largest share, followed by sub-beastmen.

No one felt the distribution was unfair because they knew that the young people were the hope of the tribe. Only by filling their stomachs would they have the strength to work and lead the tribe out of its predicament.

Having done nothing all afternoon, Hua Shi’an received the same amount of food as a beastman—two handfuls of purslane and two handfuls of chestnuts. It would probably be a bit much for him to eat alone.

He was numb with hunger. After washing his hands with rainwater at the entrance of the tree hollow, Hua Shi’an took his share of food and found an empty spot to sit down. He peeled a chestnut, tore off the outer skin, and popped the pale yellow, fragrant nut into his mouth. His whole being, along with his taste buds, came back to life.

As the tribe members had said, raw chestnuts were delicious. They were crisp and tender, making a crunching sound when chewed, and had a light, sweet fragrance, completely different from the mealy, soft texture of cooked chestnuts. They were a bit like crisp persimmons or raw sweet potatoes.

His first meal since transmigrating! It hadn’t been easy. Hua Shi’an’s hands didn’t stop, popping one after another into his mouth so quickly that he didn’t even notice someone had sat down beside him.

“Don’t eat too fast. You should eat slowly after being hungry for so long. I have more here if you don’t have enough.”

A deep male voice brushed past his ear. Hua Shi’an, his cheeks puffed out, looked up to see that the beastman Shan had sat down beside him at some point. He was slowly eating purslane, his gentle gaze on him.

A muscular man eating more gracefully than him. Hua Shi’an smiled awkwardly and slowed his chewing. “Hehe, it’s mainly because I’m too hungry. I have enough to eat, more than enough. If you don’t have enough, take some. Don’t be polite with me.”

His bright, friendly smile was like a flower blooming in a thicket. Shan was slightly taken aback and lowered his eyes, avoiding his gaze. “N-No need, I have enough too.”

This amount of food might be a bit much for a sub-beastman, but for a tall, sturdy beastman, it was probably just right. Having no way to repay his life-saving kindness, Hua Shi’an assumed he was just being shy and took the initiative to place a large handful of purslane in front of Shan.

“Eat. You’ve been tired all day, so eat more. I can’t finish it all anyway.”

“That won’t do. If you can’t finish it, you can save it for tomorrow.” Shan grabbed the purslane and was about to give it back to him. But just as he was about to place it in front of Hua Shi’an, he suddenly froze. He then put the purslane back in front of himself and grabbed a large handful of chestnuts. “How about, I trade my chestnuts for it.”

“Why do you want to trade with me?” Hua Shi’an asked casually.

The handsome beastman pursed his lips, his smile pure and shy. “I saw you’ve been eating chestnuts the whole time. I guess you, you probably don’t like wild vegetables.”

Hua Shi’an raised an eyebrow in surprise, the smile in his eyes deepening. “You figured that out. Cooked purslane is better. Raw, it has an earthy taste that I’m not used to.”

Of course, he wouldn’t waste it. To fill his stomach, he had to eat it even if he didn’t like it; he just saved it for last.

“It’s been raining all the time, so we can’t help it. The branches are all wet, making it hard to start a fire. Besides, we didn’t bring our stone pots, so there’s nothing to cook the vegetables in,” Shan sighed softly.

That reminded Hua Shi’an. In their rush to escape, they hadn’t brought any belongings. They needed not only food but also various tools. It seemed he would have to talk to the chief tomorrow. Pots, bowls, ladles, stone knives, and stone axes—they needed to find the raw materials and start grinding them as soon as possible.

His silence was interpreted as disappointment by the beastman. Shan placed the chestnuts in his hand into Hua Shi’an’s pile and comforted him softly, “Don’t worry, things will get better. You eat the chestnuts. It just so happens that I like wild vegetables, so I’ll trade with you.”

Hua Shi’an didn’t refuse this time, because diagonally across from them, a skinny little boy was staring intently at him—no, at the food in his hands.

Caught off guard, the little boy seemed startled. He turned and threw himself into a woman’s arms, whining, “Mother, Mother, I want more chestnuts.”

“There are no more,” the woman said, patting the boy’s back and comforting him in a low voice. “Be good. Go to sleep, and when you wake up, there will be chestnuts to eat.”

“But I’m still a little hungry.”

“Just bear with it. Close your eyes, and you’ll fall asleep in a moment.”

The mother and son’s voices weren’t quiet, and many of the beastmen around them heard, but no one made a move. Hua Shi’an stared blankly at the two of them. Just then, Shan, who was sitting beside him, stood up and walked toward the boy with a few chestnuts.

Generously sharing food, with the tribe members being extremely grateful—it should have been a scene of unity and warmth. But just as Shan handed the chestnuts to the woman and turned to walk back, a man next to her leaned over and whispered a few words, and the woman’s smiling face instantly changed.

Gazing at Shan’s back, the woman’s grateful eyes gradually turned to fear, with a hint of disgust. The kindly shared chestnuts had become a hot potato, which she was reluctant to throw away but didn’t dare to approach him to return.

The stark contrast in her attitude left Hua Shi’an completely bewildered.

In a primitive society where the strong were respected, beastmen held a very high status in the tribe. Especially after this disaster, the old, weak, sick, and disabled could only survive by depending on the beastmen. They wouldn’t have time to curry favor, so how could they treat one with such coldness?

So, what exactly did that man say?

You can’t take a beastman’s food? No, that wasn’t it. The woman’s eyes held a mixture of fear and disgust, clearly directed at Shan.

Unaware that he was being scorned, Shan went back to eating his purslane. His clear eyes, like stones reflecting the night, shimmered with a faint smile, as if he were still basking in the afterglow of his good deed.

Why would such an honest, simple, and kind-hearted beastman be disliked by his own tribe?

Hua Shi’an was a little curious.