Penny's Ambition

After breakfast, Li Wei began reinforcing the walls. He had wasted most of his time earlier driving away birds and beasts, and with only seven days left in the month, he needed to complete the Main Quest as soon as possible.

Of course, he had already gathered enough trees to chop down. What he needed to do now was to dig holes along the outer perimeter of the wall with a Shovel, then place sections of Logs into the holes, backfill with soil, and tamp it down.

Next, he would peel bark to make rope, or use vines as a substitute, and secure the existing wall to these Logs using a cross-lashing technique.

Speaking of which, he learned this cross-lashing method from Penny; it was very convenient and efficient.

The downside, of course, was that it could be easily cut with a knife, and the elements would quickly weather and break it, requiring replacement every few months.

But that was a problem for later. The reinforced wall now was to help them survive the winter and prevent large wild beasts from raiding their home.

It would also serve as a defense against bandits and robbers, if there were any.

The day's labor was uneventful, and the sound of forging within the camp had been almost constant throughout the day. Today, even Phila had pitched in to help. With Mixi and Lyon also present, it was a bustling scene, and they were close to gathering enough nails for expanding the house.

And next, Penny seemed to have something big planned.

Could it be steelmaking?

Li Wei mused.

When he returned to the camp's courtyard, Li Wei saw Penny, Mixi, and even Lyon discussing something. Phila was also listening in.

Judging by their expressions, they seemed to have come up with a viable plan.

It really was steelmaking. Penny's ambition was always this grand.

However, after discussing it for a long time, the conversation eventually died down.

This wasn't hard to guess. Currently, engaging in primitive steelmaking wouldn't yield any benefits for the Head of the Family. But if they waited until next month, when Penny was re-elected Head of the Family, and then revealed the primitive steelmaking technique, that would be the most cost-effective approach.

Li Wei even suspected that Penny, Mixi, and Lyon might form an alliance, especially if Mixi had considerable skill and knowledge in this area, as a tailor could also craft armor.

Furthermore, he couldn't help but suspect that Lyon's primary profession might also be a craftsman.

But none of that mattered. Even if Penny succeeded in primitive steelmaking, bringing significant contributions and greater benefits, Li Wei would still gain marginal advantages.

With the family having developed to this extent, Penny, no matter how unwise, couldn't possibly Plot Kill other family members without reason when her own advantages were so far ahead.

Not to mention, in the future, wouldn't logging for charcoal, farming, hunting, and mining require manpower?

And if the family became wealthy and attracted the covetous eyes of bandits and robbers, wouldn't that require preemptive measures and everyone working together to face the threat?

In short, as long as he didn't stir up trouble and maintained his basic position, he could just watch them show off.

As Li Wei expected, there was no further movement on primitive steelmaking. Penny even decided against making a saw, because a saw made of wrought iron wouldn't be as good as an Axe.

Penny, Mixi, and Lyon seemed to have formed a combat team and began a massive expansion of the house, effectively helping Penny complete the Main Quest.

Even Phila's face was beaming with smiles all day, serving them good food and drinks.

For several consecutive days, the house expansion progressed rapidly. By the time Li Wei's wall reinforcement was nearly complete, the house expansion was also nearing its end.

With three days left until the end of the month, their entire family had completed the monthly family Main Quest ahead of schedule. Although there were still three days before the next Head of the Family would be chosen, it meant that everyone could initiate a Plot Kill during these three days.

Overall, except for Lyon, who suffered a significant loss, everyone else had made substantial gains this month.

Li Wei quietly observed his own harvest.

First, he received 15 points for the monthly Main Quest. The farm yielded six units of one-star quality seeds, earning him 6 points. Additionally, the pheasants and rabbits he hunted this month were donated to the family, earning him another 5 points. With the previous month's surplus of 52 points, his total Family Contribution Points for this month reached 78 points.

This was a truly safe number. Although he hadn't caught up to Penny, he should be close to Phila now. She hadn't made any One-star Dishes this month, which wasn't an easy feat. Furthermore, she hadn't donated any personal property.

Secondly, his Farming Experience successfully broke through 300 points, a significant gain from the wheat harvest, which was excellent.

His Hunting Experience also reached 200 points. Although shooting a pheasant only gave 5 experience points, it added up.

Finally, his Logging Experience also broke through 300 points, as he had chopped down the most trees this month. His Axe alone had been sent to Penny for Quenching and sharpening over ten times due to wear and tear.

However, he hadn't obtained a one-star Logging Card. It seemed the conditions for activating a third profession were a bit harsh.

Or perhaps, in his current state, he could only possess two professions at most?

As he was thinking this, a Plot Kill notification flashed before Li Wei's eyes.

[Professional Chef*** initiates Plot Kill, requesting that the youngest son Lyon be stung to death by poisonous bees within twenty-four hours. Do you agree?]

Good heavens, Phila was teaching Lyon a lesson. She might not intend to eliminate him, but she definitely wanted to show him the core of this game: don't trust anyone. What seemed friendly one moment could turn into mutual slaughter the next.

Incidentally, this also meant backstabbing the forming Penny faction.

Lyon hadn't experienced a Plot Kill since he arrived, so this would make him wary of Penny.

Well, that was how Li Wei interpreted it anyway.

He then casually clicked "Abstain," neither agreeing nor disagreeing, letting them handle it.

As expected, Mixi immediately chose to agree. She didn't mind killing off a competitor, as it brought her no harm.

However, Penny immediately chose to object.

With Lyon's objection added, it resulted in one abstention, two votes in favor, and two votes against.

The Plot Kill failed.

A close call.

But visibly, Lyon's face turned pale, and cold sweat dripped down his forehead, giving him a small taste of the shock of a Plot Kill.

The very next second, Penny casually initiated a new Plot Kill, hoping Mixi would get food poisoning, die of dysentery and dehydration within twenty-four hours.

Li Wei decisively agreed, and Lyon also fiercely agreed.

Then Phila agreed, with only Mixi herself objecting.

The Plot Kill was established, but Mixi didn't care at all, using 3 Family Contribution Points to be exempt.

This caused Lyon, who had originally thought the wicked woman Mixi was definitely out, to be slightly shaken once again.

This was because he also hadn't had any contact with Family Contribution Points.

Yes, for the first twenty days of this month, Phila had been taking him fishing. Because it was during Phila's quest period, he only gained Fishing Experience and wasn't eligible to donate. Later, he had busily helped Penny complete the Main Quest, and similarly only received experience. Where was he supposed to get Family Contribution Points?

This month had been Lyon's time to be taken advantage of.