Chapter 199: Let’s Run, Fox (XV)

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Chapter 199: Let’s Run, Fox (XV)

A group of powerful figures raced through the forest, pursuing several Avani who were fleeing in panic.

Shang Ke crouched on a branch and drew his longbow, eyes fixed intently on the fleeing targets ahead. The bowstring snapped. An arrow streaked through the trees, and one Avani cried out before crashing to the ground. Shang Ke did not pause. He nocked another arrow and took aim at the next target.

He deliberately avoided lethal shots. His goal was to capture one or two alive and force them to reveal the source of the crude oil. Even if the lions had no interest in exploiting the resource yet, it was something they needed under their control. The Avani had to replenish their oil frequently to keep raiding other tribes; guarding the source and cutting off their supply would be far more efficient than chasing them blindly through the mountains.

Unfortunately, the lions tended to kill the moment they saw an Avani. After several pursuits, they still had not managed to leave a single one alive for questioning.

“Fox, let’s go home.” Once the remaining Avani were dealt with, Mutu waved up at Shang Ke.

Shang Ke dropped lightly from the branch and walked over to Mutu.

Mutu hooked an arm around his waist, bent down, and gave his ear a playful bite.

The group returned to the settlement with both victory and a full load of prey. The tribe welcomed them enthusiastically, and excited children immediately swarmed around, competing to hear every detail of the fight.

Mutu looked away for one moment and, when he turned back, the two little foxes had already occupied his fox again. The harmonious sight of one large fox with two small ones irritated him more the longer he stared.

Shang Ke bent down and scratched each little fox at the nape. They hunched their shoulders happily and finally released their grip on his legs.

A gleam flashed through Mutu’s eyes. Was the back of a fox’s neck especially sensitive? He would have to test that tonight.

Shang Ke led the two foxes over to the other children and gestured for everyone to get along and take good care of their new companions.

The oldest child immediately thumped his chest to promise they would. The fox children, however, were still wary of strangers. When Shang Ke did not stay with them, they quickly turned and ran back to their mother.

Shang Ke looked toward Kellona nearby and frowned slightly. Before he could move, a pair of large hands pulled him back, and Mutu’s dissatisfied voice sounded beside him. “Don’t get tangled up with her.”

Shang Ke gave him a sideways look. That concern was completely unnecessary.

He had already explained everything the night before, but this jealous idiot had spent the entire night tossing him around instead of listening.

The two went to the storehouse to tally the prey, record each hunter’s contribution, and divide the catch. Two-thirds of each haul was distributed according to labor. Of the remaining third, half went to the chief and half into communal storage. On days when the hunt was poor, food from the storehouse made up the shortfall.

Shang Ke had also begun promoting household livestock raising. Half of the animals each family raised belonged to the community, while the other half remained private property. The arrangement could be adjusted later as animal husbandry developed.

Most lions had little interest in cultivating fruits and vegetables, but livestock required fodder, so they planted large stretches of pasture grass instead. The fresh green fields added a surprising vitality to the settlement.

Shang Ke collected his share of the food and headed home to cook. Halfway there, he encountered Kellona and her children.

“Yanu, could we… come to your house for dinner?” Kellona asked cautiously.

Her hands were empty. She clearly intended to eat at his expense.

Food was precious among beastfolk. Outside of special circumstances, nobody casually gave away their own provisions, and Shang Ke was no exception. Whenever other lions came to eat at his house, they brought ingredients with them. Kellona, an outsider who had only just arrived, certainly had no reason to expect special treatment.

Shang Ke shook his head and stepped around her.

“Yanu.” Kellona hurried to block his path, looking miserable. “You said you would look after us. We haven’t eaten our fill in days. The tribe’s rations aren’t enough, and I can’t bear watching the children go hungry.”

Shang Ke was responsible for distributing food, so he knew exactly how much Kellona received. It was not generous, but it was enough to keep the three of them from going hungry. As a newcomer relying on another tribe’s protection, Kellona needed to understand the limits of what she could expect. She could not keep using the children as an excuse to beg others for handouts.

Shang Ke looked more carefully at the two little foxes, and something struck him as wrong. He had not examined them closely the day before, but now he saw that both children were thin, sallow, and listless—clear signs of long-term malnutrition. Kellona, by contrast, might be injured, but her complexion was healthy, her figure full, and her voice strong. She did not look like someone who had suffered prolonged deprivation. Could such a disparity really exist if she had been putting her children first?

Shang Ke raised his eyes and studied Kellona more critically.

Noticing his scrutiny, Kellona immediately made herself look even more pitiful.

Shang Ke wanted to tell her: Leave the children. The adult can roll along.

The only people Shang Ke was willing to treat preferentially were children and elderly or disabled tribesmen who had contributed to the community. Unfortunately, he could not speak, and explaining all of that through gestures would be troublesome, so for the moment he simply ignored Kellona’s request.

Just then, Mutu finished his work and came over in a relaxed stride. The instant he saw Kellona, his good mood vanished from his face.

“What are you doing here?” When it came to tact, Mutu was truly a lost cause. And this particular female was rumored to have once been involved with his mate, which only made him less patient.

A trace of fear crossed Kellona’s eyes. She greeted Mutu politely, made a quick excuse, and left so hurriedly that she even forgot her own children. The two foxes had to run after her on their own.

“What did she want from you?” Mutu caught hold of Shang Ke’s big tail and immediately began interrogating him.

Shang Ke pointed at the ingredients in his hands, then at his mouth.

Mutu instantly interpreted the gesture in his own way. He leaned over and kissed Shang Ke squarely on the mouth, then pulled back with a lofty expression. “Don’t think you can use good food and your looks to make me forget that you were attracting other people.”

Shang Ke: …Sometimes they genuinely could not communicate. Their thoughts were operating on entirely different frequencies.

That evening, after feeding the lion, Shang Ke used the sand tray and gestures to explain yet again that he had absolutely no relationship with Kellona—and Mutu was not allowed to use her as an excuse for any more “physical punishment.”

A certain lion, however, seemed to suffer from selective stupidity. He clung to Shang Ke’s tail, insisted that the fox was unfaithful, and proceeded to toss him around in bed every which way. He even irrationally demanded that Shang Ke give him a litter of lion cubs, threatening to hang bells on him every day otherwise.

Eventually Shang Ke lost his temper and stuffed a piece of primitive-era bitter coptis into Mutu’s mouth. The overwhelming bitterness killed both the lion’s raging desire and his arrogance on the spot.

The next day, Mutu led the others out hunting and continued tracking the Avani along the way. Shang Ke was too exhausted to keep up with the main group, so he stayed behind and joined the others doing handicrafts.

The outsiders taken in by the tribe were assigned work as well. From then on, material rewards would be distributed according to the labor each person contributed.

Shang Ke had lived through many worlds and accumulated an enormous range of knowledge and skills, but he never introduced anything wildly beyond this era. Instead, he improved existing materials and techniques step by step, gradually raising the beastfolk’s standard of living.

The beastfolk’s body of knowledge was still extremely rudimentary, and many habits or concepts could not be transformed overnight. They were excellent imitators, but had little practice applying abstract reasoning. What Shang Ke wanted to teach them was not a finished piece of advanced technology, but the way of thinking and experimentation that allowed people to create such technology themselves.

Another busy day passed before anyone noticed. Mutu and the hunting party returned with a full load and several more displaced beastfolk. Shang Ke entered the newcomers into the outsider register, then tallied and distributed the day’s supplies.

When everything was finished, Kellona approached with the children, looking aggrieved. “Yanu, why did I receive less food today than yesterday?”

Shang Ke turned and gestured for her to follow him.

The tribe had a pottery kiln capable of firing dozens, sometimes nearly a hundred, pieces a day. Each finished vessel was marked on the bottom with its maker’s name.

Beastfolk had not traditionally marked their work, but under Shang Ke’s influence the practice gradually became common. Mutu even established a monthly selection of especially fine pottery, granting the makers extra rewards and recognition. After that, people became even more enthusiastic about leaving personal marks on what they produced.

Shang Ke walked to one corner, where several misshapen pieces of pottery stood out sharply among the neat, rounded vessels around them.

Those malformed pieces were Kellona’s work. Pottery was a basic craft most beastfolk could learn, yet Kellona worked slowly and produced shapes so irregular that nearly everything she made was useless.

His point was obvious: if the work was poor, the reward would naturally be smaller.

Kellona looked wronged. “My injuries haven’t healed yet, and my fingers are stiff. Of course my work is a little worse.”

Shang Ke remained unmoved. If you were bad at it, then practice and learn.

Even the beastfolk least skilled at pottery could manage simple bowls and jars. Kellona, by contrast, seemed as though she had never done manual work in her life; she could not even shape a basic bowl properly.

The tribe did have a few people who were effectively “specialists” and exempt from heavy labor, but they possessed valuable expertise in other areas—like the former shaman-healer. Kellona clearly did not belong to that category.

“You said you would look after us,” Kellona repeated.

Once or twice, Shang Ke could have overlooked it. Repeating the same argument constantly, however, only became irritating. He was too well-mannered to quarrel with her, but in his mind she had already been downgraded to an irrelevant passerby.

When Shang Ke had agreed to “look after” them, he had meant ensuring they had shelter, basic necessities, and protection from abuse. He had never promised Kellona could live without working, eat for free, and enjoy special treatment. Even Mutu, the Lion King himself, did not receive food without contributing.

After making the situation clear, Shang Ke ignored Kellona’s complaints and wounded expression and walked away.

Kellona glared at his retreating back and stamped her foot in frustration.

That evening, Shang Ke made extra snacks and planned to have Mutu help deliver them to the two little foxes.

“I’m not going.” Mutu refused without a second thought. Deliver food to the children of his partner’s rumored former lover? Was he insane?

Shang Ke naturally did not force him. Instead, he gathered several children and used a game as an excuse to bring the two little foxes an extra meal. He knew the rations given to Kellona were enough only for three people to eat modestly. Given Kellona’s laziness, the two children would probably continue going hungry for quite some time.

The group arrived at the small earthen house assigned to Kellona.

A fire burned inside, but the house was completely silent, as though nobody were home.

Before Shang Ke could knock, one bold child pushed the door open. Several startled cries immediately sounded from inside.

Shang Ke looked inside. Kellona was nowhere to be seen. The two little foxes were curled together in a corner, staring at the unexpected visitors in terror. They relaxed slightly when they recognized Shang Ke, but still did not move.

Strange. Where had Kellona gone?

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