The Infrastructure’s Guide [基建指南] by 岛里天下 Chapter 3

While both were neighbors, the two caves were not adjacent to each other. It was at least a five-minute walk for them. In a sense, they were neighbors because there was no other cave between them.

Meng Sheng was completely drenched when he returned to the cave. His hair, of medium length, was dripping wet. His hair was so long because he used to go on jungle expeditions and didn't have time to shave it.

He had left early in the morning, so the fire in the cave was almost out. He sat down by the fire and threw in two logs. He took off his animal skin clothing and set it aside to dry. He retrieved a veil from the cave, wiped his body dry, and changed back into his old clothes.

Fortunately, his baggage was brought with him as he traversed the worlds. Despite the fact that it was little, it included all the sophisticated equipment of his previous expedition. A pair of binoculars, a small hand ax, a strong machete, and a fine and sharp knife were among them.

For a month he had taken these weapons out to hunt and use. Such advanced weapons were unheard of in the tribe. To avoid needless trouble, he always stayed in less frequented places. He didn't hunt with other people of the tribe.

He was unkempt, like the original owner of this cave, and he avoided people when he encountered them. The members of the tribe paid no attention to him, a "weak" male.

After dressing himself in comfortable clothes, he cut a piece of wild boar hanging in the cave with a knife, stabbed it with a sharpened wooden stick, and roasted it over the rekindled flames.

The ancient world's atmosphere and air were much superior to those on Earth. The forests of the earth were more or less affected by environmental pollution. The ecosystem was poor, and there were few animals and plants. He went out hunting armed with a simple machete. It was easier to capture prey here than it was in the earth's pristine forests.

The cave was still empty and run-down when he first moved in. There was nothing but a stone bed and a few animal skins. After a month in the cave, there were large and small skins on the cave wall next to the fire. A lot of smoked meat was hanged up, including wild boars, pheasants, and other birds, as well as other big creatures he didn't recognize.

The previously plain stone bed was now draped in animal furs, and falling asleep at night was much more comfortable and warm.

The pig had been roasted for a bit, and the oil was sizzling. The boar was strong and had little fat. There was no salt seasoning, but you could detect pure meat fragrance. However, roasted pork without seasoning was still tasteless.

He got lucky a few days ago. Meng Sheng went out and found some cornels. The barbecue tasted spicy, but the cornels ran out fast. Now he had to return to basics without even salt, which brought him to a minor problem. As long as he wanted to eat, he only needed to go out and search.

Therefore, what he needed most right now was salt.

The wild boar he had just hunted had been smoked with fire, but had not been salted, and there were signs of spoilage after a few days. His appetite had been clearly growing. He will now consume about one and a half to two kilograms of meat on his own. Even so, he won't be able to eat a wild boar in a few days before it spoils.

As he was thinking, he glanced at the hare on the ground. It was lying by the fire, and its hair was mostly dry at this moment.

He drew his knife and skinned the hare. The rabbit’s fur was soft, he could make a warm coat for winter if he gathered enough good rabbit furs.

There was plenty of rabbit meat left after skinning. He hanged the hare next to the wild boar with a rope made from rubbing brown leaves.

In truth, he didn’t want to accept sub-female rabbits. Aside from the fact that it was someone else's prey, there was plenty of food in the cave. From the perspective of a caveman, he might also be considered wealthy. Regardless, he will not waste this rabbit's meat and will eat it first thing in the morning.

He rubbed his chin, checked his food, and wondered if he should send something to his neighbor, especially if he could ask him for some salt. After all, he had learned the language of tribal communication.

Speaking of language, he couldn't help but think about "The Infrastructure's Guide". The first thing he did was examine the content inside. It taught how to smelt iron, weave clothes, build houses, grow crops, and so on. It covered a variety of topics and had a lot of materials. He'd been very content before, having traveled to the primitive world with the comforts of modern knowledge. And then today happened, and he was struck by lightning. He had no clue that this thing wasn't flawless and that he needed to be vigilant in the future.

Peacefully, he leaned on his pelts as he ate roasted wild pork...

Rain poured steadily for most of the day, before eventually ceasing as night fell.

***

"Li’l tiger, how come you returned with another male and even gave him your prey? If Kong Jia happened to see it...”

Qiu Juan's mother cleaned up the wound on his son's foot. Luo Cai was moving on in years. On his yellowed face melancholy was deeply etched. In on hand, he was upset about his son’s injury, and on the other, he was worried due to the male who glanced at the cave’s entrance when Qiu Juan returned.

Despite being dirty, the man standing with his son today was actually very attractive. He was not even a half-point behind Kong Jia. Luo wasn't sure if the male stood too far away or if he purposefully kept his breath away, but he couldn't catch even a whiff of the male's distinctive breath’s scent. Therefore, without the breath he had no idea whether he was strong or weak. Males capability and strength was proportional to his breath.

Li’l tiger’s body was distinctly imbued with Kong Jia’s powerful males breath and yet the other male still approached his son unscrupulously. He had no idea what were the male’s intentions. He was afraid that Qiu Juan was so simplistic and inexperienced, and that he would be deceived to make the wrong choices.

With much deliberation, he finally asked his heart's doubts.

Unexpectedly, Qiu Juan was visibly agitated.

He cut him off. "Mother, don't say Kong Jia's name again!"

Luo was startled. "What's the matter?" he asked, urgently grasping his son's hand.

"I'm not going to be his lifelong partner any more."

"Could it be...because of that male today?"

Qiu Juan rose to his feet. “What are you saying, mum! How could I do that sort of thing! Since my foot was injured, he generously helped me get back. No, because of Kong Jia, I don’t have a partner anymore. Today, I ran into him with Tang Tong…”

Qiu Juan was about to say something more yet he stopped himself. He couldn't say anything nasty about Kong Jia.

Luo Cai understood the severity of the situation after seeing his son's jealousy. He knew his son would not lie, and the shock in his eyes couldn't be hidden for a while.

While he had no idea what kind of female Tang Tong was. It's no wonder that she had feelings for the handsome and capable Kong Jia. After all, Kong Jia was the finest of the younger male generation. It's just that he didn't expect Kong Jia, who was gentle and calm, couldn’t resist another female's allure.

Kong Jia was aware of Qiu Juan’s opposition of sharing a male and knew he wouldn’t agree to it. What had happened now was a complete disaster, and Luo had to be worried for her son's future.

“Li’l tiger is there any misunderstanding here?” Luo inquired cautiously, hoping for a room where to maneuver.

Qiu Juan's tone was unequivocal: "What else was there to misunderstand, Mum? This is what I saw with my own two eyes. They were mingling inside an uninhabited cave!"

"But, Li’l tiger, you must tread cautiously in this matter. Kong Jia possesses a strong breath. It will be difficult to expel it from your body. I can count on my hands the number of males with more powerful breaths than him. I’m afraid that if you truly separated from him… Than in the future….”

Qiu Juan understood his mother's concern because he had witnessed how sub-females were treated as if they were dogs because of another male's breath.

"Then I won't have a partner for the rest of my life!"

Then he approached his elderly mother and shook his hands, saying, "Mother, I will definitely do my utmost to support you. I will work harder even if I am just a sub-female, even if I am just one person.”

Luo couldn't help but cry as he heard his son's words.

When he first saw Kong Jia, he thought he had a good character and a strong breath. He reasoned that if his son followed a powerful man, he wouldn't have to work as hard, that is way he didn't deter them from being together or let alone oppose them.

Unobstructed, unscrupulous Kong Jia left his breath on Li’l tiger and afterwards maliciously tossed him away.

And now, this resolute attitude was the same as Luo’s when Qiu Juan’s father had taken in someone else, he also resolutely took her son and left. He had a deep understanding of the hardships that had occurred over the years. He had to go out hunting on his own while raising his child alone. This harsh life age him a lot quicker than other sub-female and left his body frail.

“Li’l tiger, blame me for being an incompetent mother and caused you to suffer!”

Qiu Juan embraced the weeping person, while grieving himself, but had to hold back his bitterness in order to comfort: “How can I blame my mother? Kong Jia was to blame because his disguise was too good and fooled us!"

"Your foot is hurt, so don't go out hunting for a while now," Luo said as he wiped away his tears and helped Qiu Juan sit back on the stone bench.

Luo went to divide the butchered hare into two halves and gave most of the viscera to Qiu Juan.

Qiu Juan shook his head as he looked at the food on the leaves: "I'm afraid I won't be able to stomach it. Mother is not in good health. Eat more."

He limped over to the fire, added some wood, and said softly, "I'd like to go to bed first."

Luo remained silent. He was aware that Li’l tiger had been wounded. He could only dry his tears quietly as he watched his son's retreating back illuminated by the campfires flames.

***

After the heavy rain, the forest was rejuvenated. The birds in the forest twittered and shrieked incessantly, rousing Meng Sheng from his sleep.

He picked up the animal skins that had been drying by the fire all night. They were pleasantly dry with a hint of warmth. He was pleased. He changed his clothes and went out to fetch water, holding the shaved bamboo bucket in his hand.

On the way, a couple of huge birds with flower-tailed birds soaring and circled above his head, and they wouldn't stop crying. The bird flew low and the sound of the cry irritated his ears.

He lifted his head and yelled twice, "Do you want to poop on my head? Believe it or not, I beat you down to make soup!"

Big Bird was puzzled by what he meant. The gurgling became more audible.

Picking a rock from the ground and throwing it over, the huge bird cried in fear and flew backwards.

Meng Sheng snorted coldly and clapped his hands.

He went to the small river and drank a clean water after scooping a few bamboo tubes. He was thirsty after having a barbecue last night.

As he walked back, he couldn't help but feel nervous, but it was worthless to feel anxious.

After roasting his breakfast rabbit, he took two fat legs of pork and went to his neighbor's cave.

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