We made you the chief, and now you've become the world's chief?

Chapter 49 "The First Person to Eat Crab"

Another bolt of lightning streaked across the gloomy sky, as dazzling as daytime fireworks.

A clap of thunder followed, startling the woman so much that she dropped the berries she had just picked up.

He quickly squatted down again and groped around in the muddy soil.

Finally, the muddy berries were found again, and the woman popped them into her mouth without hesitation.

But after chewing it only twice, he immediately spat it out.

It wasn't that they disliked the mud they ate; when there was absolutely nothing else to eat, the women of the Wu tribe also survived by eating mud.

It's not that these berries taste different.

It wasn't the kind they usually ate, but a poisonous fruit that had killed members of their tribe.

The fruit had darkened in color due to absorbing water, and the rainwater gushing down from her eyelashes obscured her vision, preventing her from recognizing it.

"Go under that big rock."

Suddenly, a voice came from behind, calling out to the woman.

Without hesitation, the woman walked over immediately.

The eight young women from the Wu tribe huddled together under the large rock, seeking warmth.

This is to prevent the wet body from losing temperature too quickly.

But even staying in the caves was the same. The caves of the Wu tribe were located in low-lying areas, and rainwater poured in, extinguishing the fire pits in the tribe.

Since there were no warm caves left and food was scarce, the young women of the Wu tribe decided to go out and find food instead of staying in the caves and suffering from hunger.

As they were plucking leeches off each other, a woman's voice quietly rang out amidst the noisy rain.

"Has the fire in the Xi tribe been extinguished?"

The sound was as faint as a mosquito's buzz compared to the sound of rain, yet it reached every woman's ears.

Everyone looked over.

They were all women who had been to the Xi tribe together. Apart from those who were expelled, they were the people in the Wu tribe who knew the Xi tribe best.

"The Xi tribe has powerful men, their chieftain. The fire will not go out."

At that moment, another voice came, but it was noticeably louder.

If only we could warm ourselves by a fire right now...

The rain quickly drained their body heat, and the cold had seeped into their bones.

In this state of hunger and cold, everyone thought of the Xi tribe they had once seen.

The Xi tribe must be warming themselves by the fire right now, eating the meat that Usa brought back, cooked in one of those earthenware pots that Usa brought back from the Xi tribe.

The taste of the mixed soup from their memories flooded their taste buds again, and in the women's imaginations, it became even more delicious than when they actually drank it.

But since Usa was expelled, that delicious meat has been gone, and it's unlikely to ever be available again.

Then I remembered that I had the opportunity to join the Xi tribe, but they refused...

This stirred a sense of regret in the hearts of the women of the Wu tribe, who were currently facing a survival crisis.

As time passed and the rain intensified, an idea quickly emerged in the women's minds and began to grow stronger.

Like mushrooms sprouting from the ground on a rainy day...

……

……

……

Inside the cave, a clay pot sat on the campfire, its lid rattling and clanging from the boiling steam.

Xia Minghao managed to roughly seal the cramped cave entrance with a waterproof cloth that came with his bag, which provided decent protection against rain and insulation.

The cave was warm and cozy, filled with the delicious aroma of boiled crab.

I never expected that this kind of food resource would refresh during a heavy rain...

Presumably, the low-lying areas were severely flooded, so these crabs started looking for a way to survive, only to find themselves in their own pot.

Yesterday, after learning that the women of the Wu tribe had only experienced stomach aches after eating crabs, Xia Minghao finally felt relieved.

This means it is non-toxic and fully edible.

Moreover, it looks quite familiar; it's the same kind of river crab that Xia Minghao has seen before. You can't say it's exactly the same, but you can say it's very similar.

After cleaning the crabs and cooking them thoroughly in an earthenware pot, the taste is absolutely amazing!

One word: Fresh!

In this primitive era, Xia Minghao felt that the rainy day river crabs could be ranked number one on the food list for the time being.

The women of the Wu tribe were all gazing at the earthenware pot, reminiscing about the delicious food of yesterday.

They couldn't understand how the chief knew this thing was edible, and tasted so good. It was like those red berries.

As Usa looked at the earthenware pot, he recalled Una's account of her experiences in the Xi tribe.

A thought flashed through my mind: Could this chief of the Xi tribe be omniscient and omnipotent?!
Just then, a pair of hands touched Usa's arm, and when he turned around, he saw a tribesman with a surprised expression.

When the tribesmen saw Usa looking over, they immediately pointed to the rainproof cloth covered by the magical "animal skin".

Usa looked over, and when his gaze met those eyes peeking through the gap in the tarpaulin, his blank expression immediately turned to the same astonishment as his tribesmen.

They are other members of the Wu tribe!
Suppressing his shock, Usa quickly regained his composure and immediately signaled to the countless tribesmen outside the cave not to enter.

She knew, of course, that the Xi tribe was running out of food, and there was nothing they could do about it.

Naturally, they worried that their people would become a burden on the current Xi tribe and thus not be accepted.

It is even possible that members of the Xi tribe who join the tribe will be driven away as a result.

But this was his own blood relative, sharing the same blood in his veins; how could Usa bear to do that...?

The other women from the Wu tribe also noticed the pairs of eyes outside the cave, their eyes revealing a hint of bewilderment and even some panic.

Everyone looked to Usa, waiting for their former matriarch to make a decision.

Outside the cave, the women of the Wu tribe, knowing what Wusa meant, did not rush in.

Although they couldn't go inside, they could still smell the aroma of crab soup and the warmth flowing from the cave.

The hungry and cold women all crowded at the cave entrance, their tiny, twitching noses filling the gaps in the tarpaulin.

Even though their bodies were still being drenched by the cold rain, the warmth they smelled made them feel like Usa and the others, right there in the cave.

Eight women huddled together, getting closer and closer, until one of them suddenly slipped...

"Ouch!"

The women suddenly burst in, startling Wangcai, who was sleeping by the tent, so much that he tucked his tail between his legs and howled incessantly.

The women in the cave, who were all very sleepy, were all startled awake by this sudden scene.

Hiphat never let go of the spear in his hand, because during the previous rainy season, wild animals had come and raided the cave.

The sudden turn of events made her immediately raise her spear, subconsciously about to throw it.

At that moment, Usa rushed to Shifa's side and stopped him.

Xia Minghao, who was looking at the mushroom trellis, quickly turned around and was stunned for a few seconds upon seeing the scene before him.

Just as they came to their senses, they saw that Usa and all the other women from the U tribe had knelt on the ground, muttering incantations.

It sounds like she's begging for her own forgiveness or something.

Indeed, this is true. The women of the U tribe are now saying similar things when they used to pray for forgiveness from their "god" in the tribe.

Sensing the moisture blowing in from outside the cave, Xia Minghao looked at the eight women at the cave entrance and roughly understood what was going on.

It seems to be another woman from the Wu tribe who wants to join the Xi tribe.

It's unclear whether they were expelled or came here voluntarily.

Without continuing to speculate, Xia Minghao spoke to Usa and the eight new women.

"I don't blame you; we welcome you."

Upon hearing this, the eight women immediately began to kowtow repeatedly, their eyes filled with gratitude.

After getting a general idea, Xia Minghao didn't bother with it anymore and started hanging up the waterproof tarpaulin again.

But he didn't feel the joy he had when he accepted Usa and the others.

Having new labor is certainly a good thing.

Although obtaining food has become a problem, it is ultimately a temporary and minor issue.

The real long-term problem lies in the labor force.

Xia Minghao was still worried about the issue of tribal cohesion that he had realized the day before yesterday.

It was obvious that the women of the Wu tribe had already discovered their people outside, but they hadn't told her.

They clearly consider themselves outsiders.

But how can we improve team cohesion?
He sat back down in front of the earthenware pot, rubbed the head of Wangcai, a dog that had gathered around him, and looked at the flames, which were noticeably less intense due to the steam that had blown in earlier.

He casually added a handful of dry firewood, and as the fire blazed up again, an idea suddenly popped into his mind.

He had previously established his leadership by telling this group of primitive people "where to go".

Now we might as well tell these primitive people, "Where did we come from?"

In this way, everyone shares the same identity, and thus becomes "fellow villagers"...

(End of this chapter)