Chapter 55: Crimson Great City's New Firewood
Zhuang Yu looked at the large white ant balls with a diameter of several meters in front of him and asked Ant in his hand, "Where is their home?"
This little guy was still gnawing on his crab leg, savoring it. Then he climbed down from Zhuang Yu's body, stomping his legs on the ground, and the white ant ball in front of him began to move.
This method of communication was indeed quite special.
"They say, take us to their home as guests," Ant said in a childish voice.
Zhuang Yu twitched at the corner of his mouth, then held little Yi's hand and followed the ant ball as it moved.
Not far away, the ant ball began to shrink, clearly drilling underground.
To Zhuang Yu's surprise, there were even more white ants here, undoubtedly an immensely huge white ant colony in the desert.
Why did they come here? Probably because this was an oasis with sweet grass roots to eat, but they dared not come in; the Yellow Sand Tribe was not to be trifled with.
The white ants stayed at the city gate, which was good. The formic acid left by the holes they dug was exactly what Zhuang Yu needed.
Zhuang Yu said, "Let's invite them to eat, but let them move away from here and build a new nest nearby."
Ant said childishly, "Okay, they're hungry. As long as you give them something to eat, they'll do anything."
Zhuang Yu: "..."
Wasn't he exploiting the laboring class?
He'll give them more to eat later.
Ant started stomping its legs again, and its little butt wagged humorously. Groups of ants began to crawl out of the ground in dense masses, forming a large army in the desert, heading towards the side.
Zhuang Yu was stunned. There were so many of them, just like a vast army.
Ant pointed at the dense group of ants. "Brother Yu, those are the ones we brought from Tongshan. They're getting along well with these neighbors now."
Zhuang Yu's eyes were a bit dizzy. These densely packed ants all looked the same. How could Ant distinguish who was who?
After Ant left, Zhuang Yu took the little radish head, who was still gnawing on a crab leg, back to the city, and then immediately found people to dig up the clay in the ant nest. Mixing this clay with sand and water would produce the most natural cement, perfect for making honeycomb coal stoves.
Zhuang Yu thought for a moment, then called the Ghost Willow Tribe. After working for such a long time, their water wheels were almost finished, so he asked them to continue making honeycomb coal stoves to hone their skills.
According to the Stone Skin Tribe's estimation, in more than ten days, they should bring back the coal mines.
He borrowed some shovels for digging trenches from the Green Mulberry Tribe and started digging up the clay in the ant nest.
Then he began mixing it with sand, piling it up high, leaving a pit in the middle, pouring water into the pit, and mixing it slowly. This formed common cement.
Zhuang Yu looked at the cement, his mouth couldn't stop smiling. This was a good thing, not only for making honeycomb coal stoves but also versatile for many other purposes.
"Brother Yu, you're laughing so foolishly," a group of little radishes teased from the side.
"Brother Yu has been laughing foolishly for a long time."
Zhuang Yu: "..."
The people of the Ghost Willow Tribe were also very puzzled. Weren't they just playing with sand? Mixing different sands together, what's the use?
Zhuang Yu said, "What we're making now is called cement, used for making stoves. And the stove is a tool for burning coal mines that the Stone Skin Tribe will bring back soon. The coal mine is our new firewood... Anyway, with these, our Crimson Great City will no longer lack firewood."
The Ghost Willow Tribe didn't quite understand, because they didn't know what stoves and coal mines were, but at least they understood one thing: with these, they would never be afraid of running out of firewood again.
A simple sentence might not mean much to others, but for people who had spent their lives in the desert, its significance was completely different.
They could go to great lengths to find firewood, it was no simpler than hunting in the desert.
But the Prince just said their difficulties were now resolved.
His eyes looked at the mixed mud and sand in front of him, seeming to become somewhat sacred.
Zhuang Yu knew that whatever he said would be unknown to them, so he decided to take advantage of the fact that the cement hadn't dried out in the sun and started working.
One by one, cylindrical mud embryos formed in Zhuang Yu's hands. He had a foundation in pottery, so it wasn't difficult. It was simple to leave a vent under the stove, and it was essential to make the vent before the cement dried out too hard to manipulate.
Zhuang Yu worked while teaching.
A group of little radishes also helped, getting their hands all muddy.
Even the small mushrooms were puckering their mouths, seriously making a special small stove.
The finished mud embryos were placed under the sun to dry. With such a strong sun, it wouldn't take long for the cement to solidify.
Actually, they could also take them to the lava lake to bake, but there wasn't much clay in the cement, unlike pottery, which was mostly made up of clay. Such cement would easily crack when baked by the lava lake.
Anyway, the sun was strong, and after a day or so of sun exposure, it would completely solidify, so there was no need to bother with moving them around.
Zhuang Yu and the Ghost Willow Tribe continuously made honeycomb coal stoves. Although the Ghost Willow Tribe still didn't quite understand what it was, they were serious about it, as if they were holding something extraordinary.
Zhuang Yu smiled and let them be. Soon enough, they would naturally understand its use.
One by one, the stoves were placed under the sun, and more and more were added.
The Ghost Willow Tribe had quite a few people, so the speed of making stoves was not slow.
"Oh, why did this stove become so hard?" Suddenly, a little radish head exclaimed miraculously.
The little mushroom head ran over and poked with a stick, but it couldn't move it at all! It was sticking to its little hand just now.
The people of the Ghost Willow Tribe were also stunned. How did it become a solid mass? Wasn't it just roughly mixed a few times?
Zhuang Yu said, "Remember how we just mixed the cement, and if the clay in the ant nest runs out, come find me."
Although the ant nest was large, there would eventually be a time when it was used up. By then, he would use food to let the white ants move homes again.
They continued making stoves until night. While Zhuang Yu took a group of little radishes to bathe and wash off the dirty clay, the Ghost Willow Tribe continued to produce stoves tirelessly. With many people, their daily output was quite considerable.
Zhuang Yu washed the little radishes clean. Cement was not easy to wash off hands, so they soaked in the water for a long time.
Zhuang Yu looked at Shao Hao, who seemed to be searching for something on the shore, and asked, "What are you looking for? Hurry up and come down to soak, or else you won't be able to wash it off."
Shao Hao nodded and replied, "I'm seeing if this place is suitable for planting a small forest. There's plenty of water here, so it should be able to support it."
Zhuang Yu: "...Get down here."
This Shao Hao, spring has really come; he's been thinking all day about how to create a small forest.
But Shao Hao didn't come down, instead, he suddenly ran towards the direction of the Crimson Great City.
Zhuang Yu was stunned. What was he doing?
Not long after, Shao Hao came back, and Zhuang Yu looked at him in astonishment. Shao Hao actually brought back several saplings. They must have been brought along unintentionally when the caravan brought back the wood for the waterwheel.
In Zhuang Yu's bewildered eyes, Shao Hao planted several withered saplings with yellowed leaves by the riverbank and then jumped into the river contentedly.
Serious as ever, he looked at Zhuang Yu. "When the small forest grows, we can..."
Zhuang Yu's face turned red, and he quickly covered Shao Hao's mouth. This shameless guy, he's talking so seriously about such things, didn't he see a group of little radishes nearby?
"Brother Yu, what are you guys doing?" Sure enough, a group of little radishes looked over.
Zhuang Yu felt a bit embarrassed, so he reached out and wiped Shao Hao's face. "Your face is dirty, let me wash it for you."
Shao Hao's whole body trembled for a moment. Actually, maybe they didn't need to wait for the small forest to grow. This was the Crimson Great City, not the White Great City; they didn't have to abide by the rules of the White Great City.
Such a dilemma.
Zhuang Yu kept glancing at those few small saplings. How could they survive? With such strong sunlight, their leaves would all burn.
Taking a quick look at Shao Hao, Zhuang Yu really wanted to describe Shao Hao with a phrase from Earth: "Bird... not as good as a beast!"
He began rubbing Shao Hao's face vigorously with his hands. "I'll clean you up."
Shao Hao: "..."
What's going on?
At this moment, the little mushroom suddenly climbed up the riverbank, legs tightly clasped together, trembling all over, pointing his fingers towards the direction of the Crimson Great City. Oh, he's going back; the little mushroom needs to pee.
Zhuang Yu was stunned, pointing to the grassy area on the riverbank. "Go over there. It'll fertilize the grass."
The little mushroom shook his head vigorously like a drum. No, no, no. It's going back to fertilize the pear tree.
Zhuang Yu ignored it. It could figure it out on its own if it couldn't hold it.
The little mushroom's legs trembled, and his lips quivered.
Unable to hold it any longer, the little mushroom couldn't wait to go back and fertilize the pear tree. Then, covering its little face, it shyly ran to the newly planted saplings.
Zhuang Yu rubbed Shao Hao's face so hard that it turned red, then led a group of little radishes back to the Crimson Great City.
Shao Hao: "..."
Was his face really that dirty? He was touching cement with his hands, not his face.
But Zhuang Yu's hands were cool and comfortable, and his lips curved up; it was all because of him.
Zhuang Yu arranged a room for Little Pi Mao and Chang Kong Jun. Next, a group of little rascals led by the two almost went crazy with excitement.
Zhuang Yu was almost driven crazy too. Every day, he was busy with cement, rushing to ensure that every household in the Stone Skin Tribe had a stove before the Stone Skin Tribe returned with the coal mines.
Even a group of little radishes were recruited by him, becoming dirty cement workers every day.
As the days went by, more and more stoves were placed on the ground. People from other Tribes came over to watch the excitement when they returned at night, but they couldn't understand it even after watching for a long time.
Until, amidst the endless yellow sand, beasts resembling rhinoceroses, each carrying loads of black stones, appeared on the city wall of the Crimson Great City.
The people of the Stone Skin Tribe had returned.
In an instant, the entire Crimson Great City boiled with excitement because the Prince had said that the Stone Skin Tribe had come to deliver new firewood for them.
Each beast was ridden by a short, rough-looking, dark-skinned man, allowing the knife-like sandstorm to blow against them.
If it were an ordinary person, their body would have been shredded to pieces by now, but these people were unharmed. Tough skin was the unique talent of the Stone Skin Tribe.
When they saw the continuous stream of beasts, the Crimson Great City erupted with excitement. Although they didn't understand what the new firewood was or why they saw only black stones on the beasts, they believed in the Prince since he said it was new firewood, without considering how much the Prince had done for the Crimson Great City.
Zhuang Yu also received the news for the first time and quickly sent a group of little rascals to spread the message, "Tell them not to enter the city and bring the stuff here instead."
It coincided with the distribution of stoves.
"Okay." A group of little radishes ran off quickly.
They were really good bricks, moving wherever needed.
When the beasts brought the coal mines over, Zhuang Yu also asked the Ghost Willow Tribe to stop making stoves for now and help turn the coal mines into honeycomb coal.
He had made quite a few molds for honeycomb coal over the past few days. It was made of cement. As long as the coal mines were crushed, mixed with water, stirred, then the mold was inserted into the mixture, lifted up, and emptied, it would become a perfect honeycomb coal in such weather.
For the Ghost Willow Tribe, crushing coal mines was no problem at all.
A group of little radishes also helped, poking the molds into the mixed coal mines, and then making honeycomb-like objects, feeling incredibly fun.
Zhuang Yu began distributing honeycomb coal and stoves. "Just like before, the leaders of each Tribe will receive goods according to the size of their Tribe, and then distribute them to their own Tribes."
Zhuang Yu began calling people up to receive them.
But the group of people were very confused. What did they receive? Where was the firewood?
Zhuang Yu slapped his forehead. He had forgotten to teach them how to use it.
He said a word to Zhi beside him, and Zhi immediately ran off with a honeycomb coal.
Zhuang Yu directly brought out a stove and placed it in front of everyone. "Now, I'll teach you all how to use the new firewood. Have you all seen this thing in my hand? This is called a stove..."
Then he pointed to the well-made coal balls. "This is called honeycomb coal."
At this moment, Zhi ran back excitedly, holding a "fireball" in his hand.
This thing was too interesting, it burned even better than firewood, even though he clearly saw that it was made of black stones.
Zhuang Yu took the burning "fireball" from Zhi's hand and said, "First, we need to ignite a piece of honeycomb coal, put it into the stove, remember to align the eyes on top, this way it can breathe, and the fire can burn. Then put two more unburned honeycomb coals on top..."
A standard fire stove was displayed in front of everyone.
Zhuang Yu continued, "If you want the fire to burn stronger, you can fan it with this wind tunnel below."
Without Zhuang Yu's reminder, a group of little radishes had already rolled up their beach pants and were fanning into the wind tunnel.
The fire quickly grew stronger. Flames rose from the holes of the stove.
Quiet, quiet.
They had clearly seen that what was pulled back were stones, but now that those stones were crushed and made into strange objects with holes, they actually ignited like this...
Could crushed stones really burn? Even if they were dumb, they knew it was impossible, but now they saw it with their own eyes.
Shao Hao also looked at Zhuang Yu in astonishment. What kind of strange fire magic was this? The stones burned like firewood, the fire was still strong, and... it had been burning for so long and was still burning.
The sunset hung on the horizon, the firelight reflected on everyone's faces, their mouths slightly open, expressing their incredulity.
Quiet, quiet.
Then came a collective gasp, "Hiss..."
"It really caught fire." It sounded like they were talking in their sleep.
Then everyone woke up, and the quiet was broken.
Exclamations arose, "Can you feel it? It's the heat of the fire."
"Our new firewood is actually made of stones. Oh my god, it's so miraculous, no one will believe it if we tell them."
Looking at the pile of stones on the beasts, everyone's faces were excited. "We... we have enough firewood."
Their voices were a bit choked up. To other factions, firewood was everywhere, but to them, it was as rare as finding prey in the desert.
In Crimson Great City, originally consisting of eighteen Tribes, half of the people were working hard every day to find firewood, wasting a lot of manpower. But what could they do?
Without firewood, could they still live like civilized people? That was something only savages would do; Crimson Great City would never sink to the level of savages.
Now, seeing those black stones, who would dare to say that Crimson Great City didn't even have firewood?
The flames in the stove burned higher and higher.
Then everyone noticed that this thing called honeycomb coal could burn too well. If it were firewood, it would have burned out long ago.
However, Zhuang Yu frowned. According to reason, honeycomb coal should burn longer. It was probably because of the hot weather and the dryness of the honeycomb coal.
Zhuang Yu said, "Before burning, you can pour some water on the honeycomb coal, so it can burn longer."
Even... burn longer?
Pour water on firewood?
Just listening was so magical.
The people of Crimson Great City clenched their fists. This was their firewood.
Zhuang Yu continued, "Secondly, this fire cannot be used for roasting meat."
Even if he didn't say it, these people would try to roast meat with coal fire, but the meat would be charred and taste strange, and they wouldn't be able to eat it.
Zhuang Yu continued, "Secondly, and most importantly, all leaders must make it clear when distributing stoves and honeycomb coal to their people that when using this stove to keep warm in cold weather, they must not completely close the doors and windows, because this fire will produce toxic gas after burning, and inhaling too much can be fatal."
The crowd was stunned, some looked at the flames burning in the stove with surprise. As the most skilled in fire magic, the people of Crimson Great City knew that burning fire in a closed space could be deadly, but they didn't expect it to be even more powerful, actually releasing toxic gas directly.
Some people's eyes flickered. Was this toxic gas powerful? Maybe they could learn another fire technique.
After Zhuang Yu finished his instructions, he continued to distribute stoves and honeycomb coal.
And the people who received the goods didn't leave either. They just watched the burning stove, wanting to see how long it would burn.
Every moment they watched, they couldn't help but marvel. It was too amazing that it hadn't gone out yet. What excellent firewood.
They calculated that just burning one piece of honeycomb coal, if burned slowly, would be enough for them to use for a long time.
The nights in the desert were also very cold. Now they were all imagining the scene of a family gathering around a stove to keep warm.
In the past, firewood was used for roasting meat. How could they have such thoughts?
However, Shao Hao had said to be careful of the toxic gas, and they all remembered Shao Hao's words very clearly.
Zhuang Yu and the people of the Ghost Willow Tribe continued to distribute the goods. This busyness continued until the sun set in the west, and it became quiet late at night.
And the fire in the stove was still burning.
Even though they had already been amazed, they still couldn't help but show expressions of incredulity.
They had never seen firewood burn so well before.
Although it was late, the atmosphere here was extremely lively.
To make it a bit brighter, Zhuang Yu lit a few more stoves.
The fire flickered, and they didn't know which Tribe started it, but the people of each Tribe began to dance their unique dances of Crimson Great City and sing their happiest songs, "Oh, youth..."
Other Tribes also joined in.
Zhuang Yu was a bit stunned.
Someone laughed and said, "Shao Jun is back, and we haven't welcomed him together yet."
"Let's use this time today to welcome Shao Jun home."
The singing echoed far and wide, entering everyone's hearts.
Zhuang Yu felt a bit embarrassed because they were singing about him. Only those heroes whose voices resounded throughout the land would be sung about by others.
Zhuang Yu thought that if Crimson Great City hadn't been separated by sandstorms and the outside world, he might have already become famous.
A group of little radishes also imitated the adults' voices and began to sing, holding hands and even dancing.
The people here were really nice; they all liked Brother Yu, just like them.
So, they also liked the people here and enjoyed being with them.
Little Pi Mao and Chang Kong Jun opened their mouths in surprise. Yu was actually made into a song and sung about. This was an honor only for those remarkable heroes and great figures.
But thinking about that huge dam, they had heard the people of Crimson Great City talk about it in the past few days. That miraculous dam, which was built under Yu's leadership.
And the water wheels in the river, the magnificent salt fields on the dam, now with these black stones added, perhaps Yu really deserved to be sung about like this, at least for the people of Crimson Great City.
Little Pi Mao and Chang Kong Jun also joined the chorus, laughing and singing along.
If White City saw them like this now, they would probably be beaten to death.
Zhuang Yu thought to himself, unexpectedly, he didn't miss out on this welcoming party. Although he arrived a bit late, the atmosphere was still lively and enthusiastic.
In the midst of the desert, on the earth, the flickering of firelight created a joyous atmosphere in this ancient city.
It wasn't until the weather became too cold and the fire in the first stove gradually extinguished that the people of Crimson Great City began to leave.
Before leaving, Zhuang Yu reminded them, "As the weather gets colder, when roasting by the fire, remember not to completely close the doors and windows. It's best to place the stove under an open window."
Only then did the group of people leave in high spirits.
In everyone's eyes, this new firewood called honeycomb coal was really good, the only downside was that it couldn't roast meat, which was a waste.
And Zhuang Yu was thinking of solving this problem for them. The fire produced by coal couldn't roast meat, but it could cook it.
He might be able to introduce other ways of eating besides roasting meat to Crimson Great City.
Now, the salt fields were set up, the water wheels were slowly irrigating the fields, more cattle and sheep were being raised, and firewood was available.
They just lacked a pot.
Zhuang Yu thought about it. He could continue to let the ants build nests and bring out clay, and then burn a batch of pottery pots for Crimson Great City.
Just think about it, stewing a pot of meat soup on the stove every day, when it's cold at night, the whole family gathering around the stove, taking a sip of warm meat soup, how comfortable.
Just thinking about it, Zhuang Yu's mouth watered.
Now, Zhuang Yu was curled up into a ball, feeling very cold. He didn't know if it was an illusion, but the temperature difference between day and night in the desert was even greater.
Next to him, a group of little radishes were also crowded together, feeling very cold.
Originally, Feng Wen, Little Pi Mao, and Chang Kong Jun had their own rooms, but they also ran over and squeezed together with a group of children, feeling very cold.
Even Shao Hao felt like hibernating, just like his bear-like kin.
Zhuang Yu actually wanted to set up a kang (a traditional Chinese heated bed), but the people didn't even have pots now. How could he bear to think about enjoying such things at a time like this?
Zhuang Yu curled up into a ball, and a little mushroom even burrowed into his neck.
Zhuang Yu thought that when the pots were ready for the people, he would have to set up kangs for them. Of course, he couldn't just set up one for himself like before; he had to teach everyone in Crimson Great City how to set up kangs.
After all, despite repeatedly emphasizing the toxicity of burning coal, there was still a risk involved, and having kangs would eliminate the need to put stoves inside the houses.