Open-pit Iron Ore

Next, Li Wei carried the Sika Deer and transported it back to the camp. As expected, Phila was already waiting there, looking at him with loving eyes and showering him with praise, as this was also a huge benefit for her.

If it weren't for this, she wouldn't have strongly advocated for focusing the family's development on hunting and gathering when she was the Head of the Family before, because it was very beneficial for the development of her Chef Card and Butcher professions.

It was a win-win situation.

"George, my good child, Mother loves you. Don't get too tired while chopping wood. Here, have some Honey Water first."

Phila was very happy. If Li Wei could hunt a few One-star quality prey each month, it would be wonderful for her.

Unfortunately, this time she could only focus on skinning and tanning. Her Chef Card couldn't possibly cook the Venison into a One-star Dish; at most, it could be used to make Mushroom Meat Soup.

This was because many conditions were not met. It wasn't as simple as casually donating a Stir-fried Venison Recipe to the family. The family's infrastructure had to reach a standard where large quantities could be produced regularly.

For example, sufficient Seasoning, sufficient Grease, and so on.

The family was almost out of Salt now; even if they had all 108 recipes for the Manchu Han Imperial Feast, they would be useless.

Li Wei remained calm because he knew that hunting a deer was just an interlude, a stroke of luck, and such luck was rare.

This month, he needed to chop five units of Oak, meaning at least five trees. After processing them, even with a Steel Axe, it would take at least ten days.

If only he had a Steel Saw.

However, this Steel Axe was also good. Li Wei swung it with great force. His technique, experience, Stamina, and Strength were all excellent. It took him about an hour to chop down a tree, trim its branches, and then have the Old Ox drag the Log back. The next step was to process it.

Previously, this entire process took him three days. Back then, his Axe wasn't powerful enough, and he couldn't utilize his strength effectively.

Now, with this sharp Steel Axe, two days would be enough.

When he returned with the Ox dragging a Log, he found Penny and the other two preparing to forge a second Steel Axe for repair and polishing.

"Why not forge a Steel Saw?" Li Wei asked.

"It's a bit difficult for now. Maybe next month," Penny shook her head. Her gray-white hair made her look older, and her slightly furrowed brow showed the immense pressure she was under.

Li Wei didn't understand and didn't speak up.

However, he could guess that Penny and the other two, or mainly Penny and Mixi, planned to forge some weapons, armor, and some Steel Tools for trade.

Trade was the most important Main Quest this month.

If anything went wrong, not only would Penny, the Head of the Family, be in trouble, but the entire family might suffer a severe blow.

For a moment, Li Wei felt a bit worried, as when the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact.

Unfortunately, he couldn't find any Salt mines in the nearby mountains and forests.

In the following days, busyness and exhaustion became the theme of the family.

Li Wei chopped Oak at a rate of one unit every two days and split it into Firewood. During this time, he also took two days to plant Winter Wheat.

While gathering, Phila brought back a few fish every day. Besides that, she seemed to be trying to make wine from Wild Fruit. After all, it was autumn now, and there were so many Wild Fruits on the mountain. After drying some, making fruit wine seemed like a good option.

In short, her harvest this month would be unprecedented.

As for the Penny trio, after several days of clanging and forging, they produced two Steel Axes, one Steel Shovel, two Pickaxes, and two Steel Daggers.

Then, Lyon took charge of the Small Blast Furnace, while Penny and Mixi began to mine Iron Ore.

Everyone was running around like a headless chicken.

Thus, after eleven days, Li Wei completed the chopping and splitting of five units of Oak. This Firewood could be burned into Charcoal after drying. However, as agreed, he wouldn't be involved in this step; it would basically be handled by Lyon for the burning process.

After that, he would join Penny and Mixi to mine and transport Iron Ore.

It's worth mentioning that during these days, he gained a total of 150 Logging Experience, 50 Farming Experience, and 110 Hunting Experience. His total experience in each category reached 450, 360, and 310 points, respectively.

As for food expenses, they were no longer an issue. With a Head of the Family and a Main Quest, even newcomers didn't need to pay.

However, it was a pity that

he still hadn't triggered the One-star Logging Card. But he couldn't force it. Fortunately, this experience was genuine and valuable, especially the Farming Experience and Hunting Experience, which were important conditions for upgrading to the Three-star Farmer Card and Three-star Hunter Card in the future.

"George, we're going mining. You don't need to bring your Bow and Arrow, right?"

When it was the twelfth day of the month, after breakfast, Penny and Mixi were ready. Li Wei also packed his belongings. Besides a Steel Pickaxe, an Iron Spear, a Wooden Spear, and a Steel Dagger, he also carried a Basket for carrying ore, a Hunting Bow, five Feathered Arrows, and some Dry Rations and Clean Water.

"It's okay, just in case. If we encounter any prey, we can improve our meals."

Li Wei smiled. However, all these items combined were indeed quite heavy. In contrast, Penny and Mixi's load was much simpler, carrying only Daggers, Iron Spears, and their Baskets with Dry Rations.

Their Pickaxes were left at the mine and buried.

Penny no longer tried to persuade him. She led the way, Mixi in the middle, and Li Wei followed at the end. The three of them left the camp and headed upstream along the Mountain Stream. Penny had traveled this route many times before, even forging a Path.

Thinking about Penny's efforts last month, waking up early and working late to mine and transport ore, Li Wei admired her. She was a tough woman.

"Why not use the stream water to transport the ore? Making a Wooden Raft shouldn't be difficult,"

Li Wei asked casually. He didn't think Penny and Mixi hadn't considered this.

"The water is too shallow, and there are too many stones in the Riverbed that need to be cleared. It's difficult to implement in a short time. However, when we have enough time, we can build a Dam downstream of the camp to raise the water level. We can also build a Waterwheel, which would be much better for grinding flour or forging iron than manual labor. In the future, relying on this Dam, we can cultivate the land to the east and build a Castle."

Penny spoke with great enthusiasm and confidence. This wasn't just idle talk; she was certain she would continue to be the Head of the Family. She was essentially saying this for Li Wei and Mixi to hear.

If nothing unexpected happens in the future, no one will be able to stop Penny from taking the lead. She will continue to be re-elected as the Head of the Family. From her perspective, there should be no pointless competition within the family, nor any messy Plot Kills. As long as everyone is willing to support her, she will appropriately share enough benefits.

Because there is enough space and a stage for them to perform.

For example, Mixi and Lyon are now tied together because of Penny's Small Blast Furnace, Primitive Steelmaking, and future foreign trade.

Only interests can end competition.

In fact, even Li Wei wouldn't refuse such a situation. He was still waiting for Penny to make him a Recurve Bow, and even a Compound Bow.