Chapter 24: Epoch 24
Epoch 24: Sow, grow, harvest, repeat.
After Tang Tang had eaten, together with Xue and Hou, they leisurely walked towards the forest, each of them carrying a basket with a small wooden shovel tied to it.
The small wooden shovel was a last-minute preparation. He only remembered it while eating. It is a good thing that Xue can clearly visualize his description, and at the same time, Hou's talent in carving has improved a lot.
Last night, they had already decided where to go. They didn't plan to go too far or wander around; they just needed to go to the place where Tang Tang could get some saplings to transplant.
During his free time, Tang Tang always read the encyclopedia of vegetables and fruits. This is to familiarize himself with the edible plants in Gaia without the need to check the system all the time. It also helps him to know what plants can easily be transplanted.
Onion, potatoes, ginger, and red root (sweet potatoes)—these four vegetables can easily be found near the tribe. At the same time, they don't need a special environment; as long as the soil is fertile enough, they will successfully grow.
In less than four hours, the three returned to the tribe.
The quest only required him to successfully transplant five saplings, but Tang Tang gathered a total of 20 saplings, five each of the four root crops. They also made sure that the roots were completely intact. But still, he has some uncertainty about completing this quest; after all, he doesn't have any experience in planting and is just doing everything based on his understanding of the word 'transplant'.
[Quest:
Successfully transplant 5 saplings.
Time limit: 1 week
Reward: System Shop + 50 points
Failure: Paralyzed for 24 hours.]
When they returned, Tang Tang started preparing to cook lunch, then he let Hou rest first since even though the beast said he was already fine, he noticed that his strength had not fully recovered yet, while he asked Xue to get permission from the tribe leader for their plan this afternoon.
Tang Tang was thinking about where he could transplant the saplings when he saw the other side of the stream this morning. As per Xue, that part of the tribe is at the edge of the valley; there is nothing there other than some trees, bushes, and weeds. To ensure the safety of sub-beasts and females using the stream, the monsters residing there were all hunted.
Tang Tang believed that the location was ideal for farming. First, the land is flat and wide; he estimated that it is around 500 square meters. Second, the land looks fertile based on the lush bushes and trees that are growing there. Third, it is near a water source. After discussing it with Xue and Hou, the twins also believe that land is ideal to use as a farm. That's why Xue went to the tribe leader and clan witch to ask permission if they could modify the place a little.
The stream is a place for the sub-beasts, females, and elderly because it is near and part of the tribe. While the beasts needed to go to the nearby river, it was more than a kilometer walk, and they might even encounter some monsters on the way.
Tang Tang is already done cooking, and Hou is helping him arrange the foods on a big, chopped tree trunk that they were using as a table when Xue returned.
"Let's eat now. All the dishes were meat," he said as he gestured for Xue to come.
They were already eating when Tang Tang asked Xue. "How was it?"
"They agreed. Mother and Father also told me that you don't have to ask permission next time; you can do anything you want." Xue answered without even looking.
"No, if we want to do something for the tribe, we should always ask or seek permission from them. It is a way to respect their authority as the leaders of the tribe," Tang Tang said.
Hou looked at Tang Tang, puzzled. "Why? You are the Beast God's Messenger."
Xue also stopped eating and looked at Tang Tang, waiting for his answer.
"But I am also part of the tribe." When Tang Tang saw that the twins were still confused, he explained. "Even with a special status, one should always abide by the rules and respect the leader of the tribe. The other tribesmen didn't know I am God's Messenger, so what do you think they will think if they see me doing anything I want without the tribe leader's permission? Some will think that it is fine since I am doing something good for the tribe, but others may not. They might think that I am ignoring the tribe leader and clan witch and may start questioning their credibility and authority. This may cause a rift in the tribe."
Xue paused; after a while, he nodded and said. "I understand now."
Tang Tang smiled and added. "Of course, a good leader also gives others the respect that they want to be given to themselves. Respect begets respect."
"To earn it, one must also know how to give it. A leader should know the value of fairness, treating everyone equally, no matter what their status," Xue said as he started eating again.
While Hou was looking at the two in a daze, he didn't understand some of the words Tang Tang and Xue used. He scratched his head as he continued eating.
'I should learn more from Tang Tang so I can join in their conversation next time.' Hou thought.
After eating, they rested first and talked about some trivial things before going to the edge of the valley near the stream to start working.
Xue and Hou were tasked with cutting down trees, while Tang Tang will pull out the weeds.
"Let's clear this area up to here," Tang Tang said as he put a mark on the ground using a twig. Since the land is very vast and the three of them cannot clear it in a single day, he made the decision to clear a 100-meter area first so he could start his quest as soon as possible since he only has a week-long time limit.
There are only a few females washing dirty monsters' skins on the stream when they start, but because of the loud sound of falling trees, a lot of curious people started to gather.
Tang Tang didn't mind them as he continued pulling weeds slowly. The weeds in Gaia are tall and sturdy. He only pulled a few, but his hand is already full of cuts and already bleeding.
When the twins noticed it, they immediately stopped him. Hou made him sit on a rock and gave him water, while Xue took out a small wooden tube with medicinal paste and put it on his cuts. Tang Tang felt guilty; he wanted to protest and continue his task when he saw someone waving at him. It is Qiu, with Tei and two respected elders.
Tang Tang came and greeted them. "Elder Khu, Elder Zen."
"Child, what are you doing?" Elder Khu, an elderly sub-beast, asked.
Without hesitation, Tang Tang explained what they were doing. He already planned to teach the whole tribe about agriculture and farming in the future. They are asking now, which is a great opportunity to do it in advance.
In just a few seconds, Tang Tang was already surrounded; they were attentively listening to him.
"Tsk. This child is doing something great and yet hiding it from us," Elder Zen angrily said after his explanation, but his face was full of anticipation.
"That's not it. We just want to try it first to see if it will succeed before telling it to everyone. It is embarrassing to let everyone know it, and in the end, it will fail," Tang Tang helplessly explained again.
Elder Khu laughs. "I don't think that this plan of yours will fail. In any way, this will greatly help the females and sub-beasts, especially the elders like us, who are already a burden to the tribe."
"What do you mean, burden? No one thought of you like that. You already devoted yourself enough for the tribe." Qiu retorted that a lot of bystanders agreed on.
Elder Zen and Elder Khu were both more than 350 years old, but they only look 50 years old from an Earth perspective. Elder Khu was the previous clan witch before Lia, and Elder Zen was once known as a great warrior of the tribe before his left arm was cut off from saving a cub from a three-horned monster. Both devoted their lives to the tribe; that's why they were respected, and no one would dare call them a burden.
"Child, let us help," Elder Zen said.
"Me too," Qiu and Tei said at the same time. Followed by the other beasts and females listening.
"Thank you. We will really need a helping hand," Tang Tang accepted their offer and thanked them sincerely.
Elder Zen asked someone to call the beasts that were not busy to help Xue and Hou, while Elder Khu called all the available elders, sub-beasts, and females. Tang Tang divided them into two groups: one for pulling weeds, and the other for gathering some saplings of root crops.
With everyone's help, the whole vast land was cleared before the sun set, which makes Tang Tang happy, but the thing that truly made him delighted was that half of the field was already planted with hundreds of root crop saplings. He plans to plant other leafy vegetables and fruits on the other half.
"Sow, grow, harvest, repeat," Tang Tang said, standing on a tall rock and looking over the whole place.
He then thanked everyone who helped and let them go back early to rest. The cut trees were distributed to be used as firewood, and the weeds were burned. The smile on Tang Tang's face never faded, even when they returned to their tent.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
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