Many children, many blessings: Leading classmates' mothers to establish a community

"Jiang Che, are there enough wooden stakes?" Wang Yan asked, panting heavily as she pushed the stakes into the deep pit.

"Not enough, make them denser! The barricades must be angled outwards at a 45-degree angle, and the intersections must be tightly bound with vines!" Jiang Che didn't even look up, continuing to frantically sharpen another log.

Meanwhile, Lin Wan and Shen Hua's "mud team" also went into a frenzy. They jumped into the mud pits by the stream without regard for their image, frantically digging out the stickiest yellow mud with their bare hands, mixing it with bits of grass and stones, and carrying it back to camp time and time again.

Guided by Jiang Che's [Basic Furnace] blueprints, a half-person-high earthen kiln was rapidly taking shape inside the cave entrance. This was not only for firing pottery, but also Jiang Che's second line of defense—if the barricades outside couldn't hold them off, this furnace, burning with raging flames, would be the last barrier to repel the wild beasts.

All afternoon, the only sounds in the camp were heavy breathing, the cracking of wood, and the thud of dirt.

As the last rays of the setting sun were mercilessly swallowed by the ancient tree canopy, and night fell like a giant black curtain, Jiang Che finally threw down his dulled stone axe and shouted, panting heavily, "Stop! Everyone, retreat to the cave!"

The women, as if granted a pardon, dropped their work and scrambled back into the depths of the cave.

The camp had undergone tremendous changes.

The once open, semi-open stone cave was now completely sealed off by a wall of sharp wooden spikes, over ten meters long and two meters high. These spikes were deeply embedded in the ground, crisscrossing each other, their tips pointing straight at the jungle, like a hedgehog baring its most deadly fangs. Behind the wooden wall, a roaring fire had already been lit in the newly built earthen kiln, illuminating the entire cave as bright as day.

"boom--"

Jiang Che lifted a boulder weighing several hundred kilograms and slammed it into the only narrow entrance left in the barricade wall, completely cutting off the passage to the outside world.

After doing all this, Jiang Che felt a wave of exhaustion. Even with his enhanced physique, this high-intensity, non-stop work had pushed him to his limit. He leaned against the boulder and slid down the rough stone wall to sit down.

Inside the cave, twenty women lay sprawled haphazardly on the straw mats. Their fingers were blistered and bleeding from digging in the mud and tying vines, and the meager amount of cloth covering them was a mushy mess of sweat and mud, reeking of a strong, musty odor. But now, looking at the menacing barricades at the cave entrance and the warm firelight, their eyes shone with the relief of surviving a calamity.

"Water...I want to drink water..." someone called out weakly.

Shen Hua forced herself to stand up despite her aching body, scooped out warm water from the earthenware pot, and served it to Jiang Che first.

"Jiang Che, you drink first." Shen Hua's eyes were so tender they were almost dripping with tears. Looking at the man in front of her who had done everything he could to protect them, the unwavering love in her heart had completely taken root. Ignoring the mud on her hands, she carefully held the wooden bowl and brought it to Jiang Che's chapped lips.

Jiang Che didn't stand on ceremony and drank it all in one gulp from Shen Hua's hand.

"Roast the smoked mutton and the wild boar we hunted today. Everyone must eat their fill." Jiang Che regained some strength and ordered in a deep voice, "No one is allowed to sleep soundly tonight. That beast could come at any time."

Upon hearing this, the atmosphere that had just relaxed became tense again.

Lin Wan and Yu tide quickly dragged their tired bodies to grill the meat. Soon, the rich aroma of meat filled the enclosed stone cave.

After extreme fear and intense labor, heat is the best thing to stabilize morale.

Jiang Che took the largest piece of pork chop with the bone and tore into it. He looked up, his gaze searching through the crowd, finally landing on Su Qing and Wang Yan.

The two women had shown remarkable obedience in the jungle today, and upon returning to camp, they worked even harder. Jiang Che was a man of clear rewards and punishments; in this primitive society, the chief's favor was the greatest motivation.

"Su Qing, Wang Yan, come sit here." Jiang Che patted the spot next to him that was covered with a thick sheepskin, his tone domineering and leaving no room for refusal.

The two women shuddered. Jiang Che's words from the jungle during the day, "Tonight you'll thank me," instantly flashed through their minds.

Under the envious, jealous, and even somewhat envious gazes of the other eighteen women, Su Qing and Wang Yan blushed, lowered their heads, and obediently moved to Jiang Che's left and right sides.

"You two did a good job today." Jiang Che used the dripping grease on the tip of his knife to pick up two of the tenderest pieces of roasted pork tenderloin and held them to their mouths. "Open your mouths."

Su Qing was flattered. She opened her cherry-like mouth and bit into the piece of meat. Whether by accident or design, her warm, smooth tongue brushed against Jiang Che's fingers again.

Wang Yan was even bolder. Not only did she eat the meat, but she also took the opportunity to hug Jiang Che's arm, pressing her proud chest tightly against it, and looking at Jiang Che with a sly gaze: "Chief, as long as I can stay by your side, I'm willing to do anything."

"Is that so?" Jiang Che chuckled, then suddenly reached out and grabbed Wang Yan's supple waist, giving it a firm squeeze.

"Ah..." Wang Yan was caught off guard and let out a soft cry, collapsing into Jiang Che's arms.

This scene made Shen Hua and Yu Xi on the other side grit their teeth. Although they knew that in the tribe, Jiang Che could not belong to only one person, seeing other women vying for favor in front of them still aroused their territorial consciousness as mature women.

"Jiang Che... I dug in the mud today, and my hands are all blistered and hurt so much." Yu Xi was not to be outdone. She immediately dragged her still not fully healed leg over and lay directly on Jiang Che's thigh, raising her reddened palm and pleading with him with teary eyes.

Shen Hua was even more direct. She walked behind Jiang Che and, without saying a word, stretched out her long, slender, fair hands (although they were now a little dusty) and gently pressed Jiang Che's temples and shoulders, demonstrating her status as the empress through her actions.

In an instant, the oppressive atmosphere that was originally filled with the shadow of death in the stone cave was diluted by the extremely intense jealousy and ambiguous atmosphere.

This was exactly the effect Jiang Che wanted. By giving them hope in their despair and filling their minds with desire amidst their fear, he could make them completely forget the civilized rules of modern society and willingly become the cornerstone of his tribe and the breeding ground for his offspring.

However, this beautiful scene did not last long.

The night grew deeper and deeper.

When the midnight wind blew through the gaps in the barricades, the fire swayed.

"Waaah—"

A deep, hoarse roar, as if it came from the deepest hell, suddenly rang out in the jungle outside the stone cave!

The roar carried an extremely terrifying penetrating force, causing dust to fall from the top of the cave.

"ah!!!"

The twenty women screamed in terror. The little thoughts they had just had about vying for the emperor's favor vanished in an instant in the face of the absolute threat of death.

Like a flock of frightened quails, they shrank desperately into the deepest part of the cave, covering their ears tightly and trembling like leaves.