I am a Primitive Man

Chapter 344: Green Sparrow Tribe Beyond the Golden Age

Beyond the Golden Age

This year, the Green Sparrow Tribe has constructed twelve new houses, but they haven't all been occupied yet. Six of them remain empty.

Han Cheng didn't allocate the six vacant houses for families. Currently, four of them serve as granaries, storing various grains in large pots and small jars. Han Cheng realizes it's time to make more grain storage containers, especially considering that the production scale will expand next year, posing a potential storage challenge.

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Han Cheng looks at the grains stored in the pots and spread out on the ground, contemplating. The so-called "Xue Zi" is a long strip woven from the hard skin of sorghum stalks. It's about thirty centimeters wide, and there are no specific requirements for length. This item is used explicitly for storing grains. When not used, it's rolled up and tied with a rope, taking up minimal space in the corner. When needed, the rolled-up "Xue Zi" is laid out on the ground, preferably on a dry surface, and then unrolled in a spiral to form a circle for storing grains. With enough "Xue Zi," it's not difficult to create a cylindrical storage space with a diameter of two to three meters and a height of two to three meters.

This is essentially a primitive granary. However, with technological advancement, rubber or alloy products have gradually replaced these hand-woven granaries. Han Cheng doesn't expect rubber or alloy grain containers; sorghum skin "Xue Zi" is fine. But even this seems like a luxury, considering he hasn't even found any sorghum yet.

Nevertheless, he can find alternatives; sorghum stalks and some tougher grasses can serve the purpose, although they aren't as effective as those made from sorghum skin. Han Cheng now deeply appreciates the importance of carpenters and weavers. He plans to select a few talented individuals from the tribe and teach them these skills to ensure the continuity of these techniques.

With skilled artisans, Han Cheng can delegate some responsibilities and focus on creating more advanced items. Currently, the items made by the tribe are already quite advanced. Two of the six vacant houses are used for storing miscellaneous items, and one serves as a "carpenter's room."

The carpenter, Lame, sits in this room on a small tree stump, holding a chisel in one hand and an axe in the other, diligently cutting a wooden board. Nearby lies a more complex structure—a plow— which Han Cheng explained in detail and which Lame has been working on for over a month.

The plow consists of a tall bucket for seed storage, three slightly forward-leaning, hollow wooden legs, and two wooden shafts extending forward. At the end of these shafts is a wide leather strip that connects them. At the back is a handle raised above the wooden bucket used to control the plow. This is the general structure of the plow.

The wooden board Lame is currently working on will be attached under the wooden bucket. The holes drilled into the wooden bucket aren't quite suitable for controlling the flow of seeds. After several unsuccessful experiments and modifications, Lame makes a new one.

Lame's axe skills are good, and he chops the surface of the wooden board quite smoothly. However, it lacks the flatness achieved by a plane. When Han Cheng gets some iron again, he'll make a plane so Lame can have a complete set of tools. It's not that Han Cheng is biased; it's just that carpenters are crucial for the Green Sparrow Tribe.

After hearing Han Cheng's explanation about the plane, Lame walks joyfully, his limp less noticeable. He thought using an axe and sawing with iron was good enough, but he didn't expect the Divine Child to know about this even more efficient tool. He works with more vigor afterward.

Three days later, the weather finally cleared up. As soon as the ground dries, the Green Sparrow Tribe eagerly brings out the stored grains from their houses. These grains haven't been properly dried and are starting to heat up. It might even mold if it stays cloudy for a few more days.

The threshed grains are spread out on the ground, ready for a second beating. Watching these grains drying in the yard, Shaman and other Green Sparrow Tribe members can't stop smiling, occasionally picking up a handful and examining it closely. They've never seen so much grain before!

However, Han Cheng isn't as happy as Shaman and the others. It's not that he doesn't enjoy the joy of harvest; it's just that the grain yield is a bit low. He deliberately chose an area with strong growth to start harvesting and measured out one acre, resulting in less than one hundred catties of grain. This yield is too little for Han Cheng, who knows that a small household with only a few acres of land can easily produce over five hundred catties in modern times.

Calculating based on one hundred catties per acre, the Green Sparrow Tribe's thirty acres of land can only yield three thousand catties of grain. Assuming each person consumes one catty of grain daily, this grain would only last the tribe for thirty days. And that's not even accounting for seed retention.

After six months of hard work, the harvest is less than a month's worth of food, which is disappointing. However, Han Cheng shakes his head and smiles lightly. This is just the beginning. The total grain yield will increase when they plant grains on a larger scale next year. If the yield per acre is low, they can plant more acres. After all, they have plenty of land now.

Even if they practice extensive farming with low yields per acre, they can still increase the total production. Moreover, not everyone in the Green Sparrow Tribe relies solely on grains for food; they have other food sources. In reality, the living standards of the Green Sparrow Tribe are incomparable to modern times. Still, they seem to have surpassed the prosperity of feudal dynasties.

In the context of those times, prosperity meant having some spare grain, a few pieces of clothing, and enough food to eat. Indeed, this is a golden age.