A Youth's Foresight
Watching the Jianya -Toothed Fleet and the Binmao and Dabang- Banded Fleet disappear one after another at the end of the river, Yan stood side by side with his father for a while before turning around and slowly walking towards the center of the tribe.
There were few people on the road, only the faint noise from the fields and construction sites in the distance. Taking this opportunity, Yan mentioned some improvement ideas that he had thought of while inspecting the various workshops over the past two days to his father.
"Father, I checked out the shipbuilding workshop. The shipbuilding progress is good. This year's shipbuilding plan should be completed around the autumn harvest. We can use the remaining time to repair some problematic ships or produce some better ships to replace the old ones."
"The pottery workshop can continue to expand production and increase manpower."
"A slight modification to the shuttle shape on the loom might make it faster..."
Yan explained each point one by one, Jianshi listened as he walked, nodding occasionally with an approving look on his face. His son was willing to study and had a good eye; this was a blessing for the tribe.
"Yes, these are all good ideas," Jianshi decided. "Go back and tell the managers of each workshop to give them a try. If they work, stick with them; if not, don't worry, we'll only know after we try."
As they spoke, they arrived at the largest wooden house in the center of the tribe—where Jianshi handled affairs. Now the tribe has a population of over ten thousand, and there are countless matters to attend to every day, making Jianshi much busier than before.
"Father, you go ahead with your work, I'll go check on the Youth Team," Yan said.
"Alright, go ahead. Keep an eye on the Youth Team's affairs as well," Jianshi instructed before striding into the wooden house.
Yan turned and walked towards the training grounds for the Youth Team. A sense of melancholy washed over him. Unbeknownst to him, more than three years had passed since he arrived in this world. He had asked his parents carefully and learned he was born before the autumn harvest; he would be 14 soon. In his original world, he was an orphan, with no ties. Now, here, he had parents, brothers, and so many people who trusted him. He was becoming more and more accustomed to this world. Initially, he only wanted to ensure he and everyone else had enough to eat and wear, and to live a better life. But after his trip to the Valley Tribe, he truly understood that this world was far wider and more cruel than he had imagined. Beyond them lay the Valley Tribe, the Bear Tribe, and further downstream, the Tiger Tribe, with its hundreds of thousands of inhabitants... The law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest, was the unchanging rule of this land.
"If I want to take control of my life and protect those around me, I have to become stronger, much stronger," Yan silently told himself. He shook his head, temporarily suppressing these chaotic thoughts. Life must be taken one step at a time; for now, he needed to focus on doing what needed to be done.
The training ground for the Youth Team is located on a flat, open area on the riverbank. The Fire Tribe has over 1,200 children aged 8 to 15, a dense, dark mass of them, divided into several teams according to age and training program, training under the guidance of their respective coaches. Some are practicing javelin throwing, some are rehearsing simple formations, and others are wrestling; shouts and cheers rise and fall, filled with vibrant energy.
As the founder and nominal captain of the Youth Team, Yan doesn't have much direct management time now. Daily affairs are mainly handled by Dabang's second son, Gubang, with Yan's younger brother, Zhuangchai (11 years old), and Uncle Jianya Fang's son, Daya (11 years old), assisting him. Gubang is about the same age as Yan, Chenwen personality, is serious in his work, and is also good at martial arts, so he is trusted by Yan.
Seeing Yan approach, Gubang, who was supervising a group of teenagers practicing Shimao Thrust, immediately ran over, followed by Zhuangchai and Daya.
"Boss Yan (Yan has started having his close friends call him that)!" The three boys' eyes sparkled with undisguised admiration. Everyone in the tribe knew that Yan was the biggest contributor to the Fire Tribe's success! Moreover, Yan's fighting strength was terrifying; even Yingmu and Shibang, who were already considered skilled by the Hunting Team, couldn't last more than a few rounds against Yan.
"Hmm, I've come to check." Yan nodded, his gaze sweeping across the training ground. "How have you been lately? Nothing unusual, right?"
"Everything's fine, Boss Yan!" Gubang reported. "Training is proceeding as planned, and the new kids are all set. It's just..." He scratched his head, "... that Shizhua is progressing exceptionally fast. He learns everything quickly, and he's stronger than his peers."
Shizhua is Yan's second younger brother, nine years old this year, and just joined the Youth Team at the beginning of the year. Upon hearing this, Yan smiled slightly; he was naturally happy that his younger brother was so promising.
"Zhuangchai, Daya, you two assist Gubang, you also need to study hard." Yan looked at his younger brother and cousin.
"Got it, bro (Brother Yan)!" the two boys puffed out their chests and answered loudly.
"The Youth Team is the future of the tribe, the preparation for the Hunting Team and the warriors." Yan's tone became serious. "Training must not be relaxed. The training every three days must be taken seriously. We must not only train strength and skills, but also discipline, courage, and teamwork!"
"Yes! We understand!" the three members of the Gubang answered in unison, their expressions serious.
Yan gave them a few more instructions and a few words of encouragement before leaving the training ground. He knew that the specific management was fine to leave to Gubang and the others; he only needed to keep the direction in mind and check in occasionally to boost morale.
Leaving the noisy training ground, Yan went to the stable and led out Chasing Wind and Treading Clouds. He mounted the horses and led his two beloved steeds back to the quiet meadow outside the valley. He loosened the Jiangsheng, letting the two horses leisurely graze on the tender grass, while he found a flat Shitou to sit on and Yuantiao at the entire Fire Tribe Valley.
The setting sun cast its golden rays upon the winding Fire Creek and the cultivated fields on its banks. His gaze slowly moved along the Fire Creek, silently calculating in his mind.
The Fire Creek flows out of the valley and into the Fish River. The terrain along this riverbank is relatively flat and the water source is abundant. He roughly estimated that if the entire area along the Fire Creek Valley were developed, at least 20,000 mu of high-quality paddy fields and nearly 200,000 mu of dry land and vegetable fields could be reclaimed.
Now, the tribe has sharp bronze tools, making them extremely efficient at felling trees and clearing wasteland. The Forest Wood and shrubs on these 200,000 mu of land have already been basically cleared. What remains is to use wooden plows and manpower to deeply till the land, level it, and build field ridges and ditches. At the current pace, this land will be completely transformed by the end of next year at the latest.
"This valley alone could easily support 20,000 people..." Yan muttered to himself. If one looked further ahead, the vast area along the lower reaches of the Fire Creek, all the way to where it flows into the Fish River, could also be gradually developed, and supporting hundreds of thousands of people would be no problem at all.
The land is available, and the potential is enormous.
But all of this depends on having sufficient tools.
Yan's gaze deepened. The fundamental reason why the Fire Tribe was able to develop this valley to such an extent in just a few years was the application of bronze tools. Without those sharp bronze tools, relying solely on stone and bone tools to cultivate tens of thousands of acres of fertile land in the dense primeval forest and shrubs would have been a pipe dream, requiring countless generations of time and lives.
"However, the production of bronze artifacts is still too low..." Yan frowned.
Mining in the Deer Tribe area is progressing steadily, but the smelting and casting processes are complex, time-consuming, and labor-intensive. Currently, the bronze workshop's output can barely meet the tribe's own needs for tool upgrades and weapon reserves, leaving almost no surplus for large-scale "waste" on land reclamation. This is why, although the reclamation speed is much faster than in the Stone Age, it still falls short of Yan's ideal of "efficiency."
"We must find a way to increase production..." Yan clenched his fist. Increasing production boils down to a few directions: finding more and easier-to-mine copper and tin mines; improving smelting technology, increasing furnace temperature, and reducing losses; optimizing casting processes to improve yield; or... expanding production scale and increasing the number of craftsmen.
These are not problems that can be solved overnight; they require continuous investment and exploration.
As the sun gradually set, Chasing Wind and Treading Clouds, having finished grazing, strolled over to Yan and gently touched him with their noses, as if urging him to go back.
Yan stood up, brushed the grass clippings off his clothes, and took one last look at the tribal valley, which appeared peaceful and full of life in the twilight.
"Take it one step at a time," he told himself, pulling on the Jiangsheng and mounting his horse. "First, settle the three thousand new tribesmen who are about to arrive in the Fire Tribe, establish the Small Gathering Valley Outpost, and cultivate the Fire Tribe's land. As for bronze production... we'll figure something out later."
He gave a soft shout, spurred his horse, and trotted off towards the Fire Tribe.