Chieftain Election (Seeking Recommendations and Favorites)

Luo Chong was weaving baskets, with several women from the Gathering Team helping beside him. They were conducting a trade.

When they returned at dusk, Luo Chong had noticed that these women were actually using animal hides to hold fruit. How could he possibly stand for that? Don't forget, he still had only a pair of snakeskin shorts. They had animal hides—couldn't they give him something to wear? This was simply a monstrous waste of Heaven's gifts.

So Luo Chong took a basket used for scooping fish, added two grass ropes to turn it into a Back Basket, and began peddling his handicraft to them.

He traded Back Baskets for animal hides and taught them how to weave baskets. The women quickly agreed.

Animal hides could not hold much fruit, and they were inconvenient to carry. A Back Basket could hold far more, and carrying it on the back freed both hands.

Previously, when gathering fruit, they had to first lay the animal hide aside, then place the fruit onto it one by one. If they picked too much at once, they could not hold it all in their hands; if they threw it beneath the tree, they feared the fruit would be smashed. The efficiency was terribly low. While moving through the jungle, if they encountered a wild beast, they had to set the fruit aside before finding weapons to defend themselves.

But with Back Baskets, things were different. Not only could they improve gathering efficiency, they also freed both hands. With a Back Basket on their backs, they could hold a wooden club as a weapon. As they walked, they could use it to beat the grass and startle the snake; if they encountered a wild beast, they could react at once to protect themselves. It greatly increased their chances of surviving in the jungle—the benefits were simply too numerous to count.

He had originally planned to weave three baskets, but this time he only finished two. Since they were meant for fruit, he had woven them very tightly, tight enough that even chestnuts would not fall through.

The grass-rope straps had also been widened, so carrying heavy loads would not cut into their shoulders. The women fell in love with them at first sight and took turns trying them on.

They selected two deerskins from the Gathering Team and gave them to Luo Chong. They also agreed that tomorrow they would go look for vines, then return in the evening for Luo Chong to continue teaching them how to weave their own, so everyone could have one. The women who had not received a Back Basket were all green with envy, and their favor toward Luo Chong rose greatly.

The Gathering Team received Back Baskets, while Luo Chong received deerskins, becoming the first child to wear animal hide. His little companions were envious as well.

Luo Chong was not stingy either. The deerskins were large, and he could not use them all himself. He kept one and gave one to the children, asking the mothers of those two- and three-year-olds to make clothes for them.

There would be many things to do in the future, and he would need their help then. Now was precisely the time to build goodwill; he absolutely could not be miserly.

Their mothers were also delighted. Who would not cherish the children they had borne? If they had spare animal hides, they too wanted their children not to suffer from the cold. Thus, they were deeply grateful to Luo Chong.

In the entire tribe, aside from adult men, children died the most often. Children had poor resistance, and in this era with no medical knowledge whatsoever, even a minor cold or fever could take a child's life. Calling one animal hide one human life would not be an exaggeration.

Primitive people were not fools. They could tell who treated them well. If Luo Chong needed their help in the future, they would not bite the hand that fed them. Winning people's hearts worked in any era.

Late at night, after a full day of labor, everyone had gone to sleep. Only the firewood in the Fire Pit still crackled in the cave. Luo Chong lay in the hay, holding two little brats in his arms, covered with deerskin and grass, and slowly drifted into dreamland.

The night passed without incident. Having been busy all day, Luo Chong slept soundly. With the cave sheltering him, he could finally relax completely, but the biological clock he had built over decades was not so easily erased.

Just as dawn began to break, Luo Chong naturally opened his eyes again, just as he had every morning in his previous life. This was the morning exercise routine he had never interrupted for over twenty years.

There was no need to mention his time as a soldier in his previous life. In this primitive age, where wild beasts ran rampant, an individual's physical fitness was especially important. Without a strong body, yesterday's dead Chieftain was the finest cautionary tale. Of course, the godlike law of "if you court death, death will come calling" had also been displayed by the Chieftain in all its glory.

Luo Chong's morning exercise was not complicated. One set of Military Boxing, which everyone in the army knew, was enough to train his muscles and bones. More intense physical training was clearly more than his child's body could bear. After all, endurance-draining exercises such as long-distance running and push-ups consumed enormous amounts of salt, and Luo Chong had yet to find salt anywhere in the tribe.

After finishing the set of punches, Luo Chong had actually sweated all over in the autumn morning. He was thirsty again. Every time he wanted a drink, he had to run to the riverbank. At night, he could not even go near the river; everyone could only drink from the water in a single Stone Basin.

Heh heh, he really could not bring himself to drink it. He had not yet been driven to the point of drinking urine. If he could practice a little hygiene, then he would. Still, he needed to figure out containers for storing water. Otherwise, once winter arrived, they could only stay cooped up in the cave. Besides, who could stand eating barbecue every day? It looked like he needed to fire some Clay Pots or something. If he could have a bowl of hot soup in winter... mm, that would be bliss. Luo Chong thought over his next plans.

When the sky was fully bright, the tribespeople came out chattering. Seeing Luo Chong outside the cave, they were momentarily stunned. Under normal circumstances, cave dwellers like them rarely left the cave alone, especially since they were deeply terrified of the night.

The tribespeople were not in a hurry to hunt today. Instead, the Elder wearing Sheep Horns gathered the adult men in the clearing at the cave entrance. He carried the green Feather Crown that belonged to the Chieftain in his hand. It seemed they were about to choose a new Chieftain.

Luo Chong had not intended to pay them any attention. He truly had no interest in that green feather hat. Besides, he was not an adult and had no right to participate in this democratic election.

But the tree might wish to stand still, while the wind refused to cease. Luo Chong was just about to head to Small River to wash up and have a drink or something when One-Ear came charging after him in a whirlwind, carrying a Bone Fork.

Fuck, are you trying to start something? Why are you running at me with that lousy fork? I'm not your prey.

One-Ear waved the Bone Fork and howled at Luo Chong. In just a few strides, he reached him, grabbed him, and dragged him toward the Elder.

What's this for? What use do you have for me? I'm still just a child, Luo Chong shamelessly thought.

After joining eight adults, Luo Chong saw the Elder glance at him before beginning to speak. The Elder uttered the tribe's few remaining words, gesturing as he explained.

From what the Elder meant, they had truly called Luo Chong over to let him participate in the Chieftain election. The reason was simple: they had no other choice. They had been forced into it.

Every adult man in the tribe had to go out hunting, but only eight remained now. Among them were an old man, a cripple, and Six-Finger, who was dumb as a stump. The remaining five mainstays had to support the entire tribe of more than fifty people. If the Hunting Team did not gain fresh blood, they would find it difficult to survive the coming harsh winter.

Although Luo Chong was underage, his strength in hunting the Terror Bird alone yesterday had already been acknowledged by the tribe. That had been the largest prey captured in the tribe's recorded history.

In this age, when humanity was still so tiny and struggled for food every day, a tribe of fifty-odd people was not worth a fart. They might find a flock of sheep anywhere that outnumbered this tribe. Any Wolf Pack was stronger in battle than this tribe, not to mention the trials nature itself would bring.

For an instant, Luo Chong felt responsibility and pressure settle upon him—to lead these fellow humans and survive.