Taking Stock and Looking Ahead

Jianya has been back from transporting grain to the Valley Tribe for several days now. In these few days, Jianya himself has finally been able to take a breather. He wanders around the tribe, checking on the new tribespeople, visiting the newly built wooden houses, occasionally checking on the workshops, and chatting with old friends. But his ships have been busy every single day.

One hundred and forty ships weighing five thousand catties each and twenty-one ships weighing ten thousand catties each—this enormous fleet was dispatched again the day after its return.

Targets: Water River, Forest River, Stone River.

Task: Transport all the supplies that the newly joined Fire Tribe members couldn't carry back in time. With the addition of these ships, the transportation speed has more than doubled. The grain, tools, animal hides, and coarse pottery piled up at the mouth of the Fish River tributary are being transported Fire Tribe ship by ship. Those who stayed behind no longer need to wait anxiously. As soon as the supplies arrive, they can be loaded onto the ships, and once the ships are full, they can set off.

About ten days later, the last batch of supplies arrived at Fire Creek Wharf smoothly. By then, all the belongings of the more than 7,500 new tribesmen from the Water River, Forest River, and Stone River had been safely transported to the Fire Tribe. At the wharf, the mountain of supplies was being sorted, registered, and stored. The leaders in charge of counting were so busy that their feet barely touched the ground, but they all had smiles on their faces.

"That's good," one of the leaders said, wiping his sweat. "Everything has arrived, and the new brothers can finally relax."

Another leader nodded. "Yes, with this food and tools, they can settle down as soon as possible."

Amidst the bustling crowd at the dock, laughter and greetings could be heard from time to time. The newly arrived young people helped carry supplies from their own tribe, their faces filled with curiosity and excitement. The elders of the Fire Tribe stood by, pointing out where things should be put and what rules should be followed. It was a scene of lively activity.

After all the supplies were inventoried and stored, Jianshi had someone notify the high-ranking members of the Fire Tribe to hold a meeting. The largest wooden house in the valley at the Fire Tribe headquarters was quickly filled with people. Jianshi sat in the main seat, with Qingye on his left and Yan on his right. Below him sat Jianya, Da Dabang, Dali, Dazhuang, and other leaders who had come from various branches, such as Zongmao, Jijiao, Wenshi, and Lu Ming.

Jianshi looked around and, seeing that everyone had arrived, slowly began to speak.

"Fellow leaders, you've all worked hard these past few days." His voice Chenwen and strong. "I've called you all here today to hear about the progress of your respective tasks. Speak one by one, so everyone has a clear understanding."

He looked at Yan: "Yan, you go first."

Yan stood up. He had grown taller and more sturdy in the past year or so, and now he looked every bit the part of a young leader.

"Father, esteemed leaders," Yan began, his voice clear, "During this time, Uncle Dali and I have made two trips to the upper reaches of the Fish River."

He paused for a moment, then began to give a detailed report.

"The first time, we went to the White River, Clear River, and Wood River, and brought back more than 2,500 people."

"The second time, they went to the Water River, Forest River, and Stone River, and brought back about five thousand people."

"In total, about 7,500 people in both instances."

A murmur rippled through the council chamber. Although everyone already knew about it, hearing the number with their own ears still left them in awe.

Yan continued, "All of these people's supplies have recently been transported back—food, tools, and belongings—nothing was left behind."

He glanced at the record in his hand, then looked up. "Currently, the registered population of our Fire Tribe is 48,500."

Someone couldn't help but applaud. Forty-eight thousand five hundred people! How many people did the Fire Tribe have at this time just a few years ago?

After everyone quieted down a bit, Yan added, "But that's not all."

He looked at everyone, a smile in his eyes, "In recent years, our food supply has become more abundant, medical conditions have improved, life expectancy has increased, and there are many more newborns."

He held up the wooden board in his hand. "We have carefully compiled statistics on the number of deaths and new births in recent years. In the last two years, we have seen a net increase of about 5,500 people."

The council chamber fell silent for a moment, then erupted in even louder cheers.

"Five thousand five hundred people! That's the net increase in population for our Fire Tribe!"

"Great! Our Fire Tribe is thriving!"

There will be more in the future!

Jianshi smiled and raised his hand to signal everyone to be quiet.

Yan continued, "With these 5,500 people, the actual population of our Fire Tribe has reached 54,000."

Fifty-four thousand people!

This number was like a Jushi thrown into a calm lake, stirring up huge waves. Some people slapped their thighs in excitement, some shook hands with the people next to them, and some even stood up and cheered. Fifty-four thousand people! What does that mean? The Fish Tribe only has a little over four thousand people, the Horse Tribe has less than four thousand people, and the Fire Tribe's population is already more than ten times that of them!

Once everyone had calmed down a bit, Yan dropped an even more shocking bombshell.

"There's also news from the Pottery Salt Tribe."

All eyes were on him.

Yan said, "Chief Jia Li has been contacting the Hundred Crafts Tribe, the Beast Taming Tribe, and the Marsh Tribe, and they have all agreed to join our Fire Tribe after the autumn harvest."

He paused, then explained, "They admire the strength of our Fire Tribe and approve of our usual practices. They all feel that life will only get better if they follow our Fire Tribe. Moreover, the threat of the Wolf Tribe still exists. They worry that after the autumn harvest, the Wolf Tribe will come out to raid and will target weaker tribes like theirs first. By joining us, they won't have to be afraid."

Jianya couldn't help but ask, "How many people are there in all these tribes combined?"

Yan held up five fingers. "More than five thousand people."

Another gasp rippled through the council chamber.

"More than five thousand people! With them, we'll have over sixty thousand!"

"Very good!"

When will they come? After the autumn harvest?

Yan nodded. "Yes, after the autumn harvest, once they've finished harvesting this year's grain, they'll come over together."

He paused, then added, "In addition, some small tribes on the western tributary of the upper reaches of the Fish River have also sent word that they want to join us. If all of these come to fruition, the population of our Fire Tribe could reach around 65,000."

Even Jianshi couldn't help but gasp this time. Sixty-five thousand people—this number is unique in the entire upper and middle reaches of the Fish River.

Once the commotion subsided slightly, Jianshi looked at Dabang.

"Dabang, what about you over there?"

Dabang stood up. He was the head of the Fire Tribe workshops, in charge of all the workshops, including shipbuilding, pottery making, metallurgy, and textiles.

"Chief, gentlemen," Dabang's voice boomed, "The workshop's production has reached another level recently."

He counted on his fingers. "The output of the pottery and bronze workshops has doubled. The textile workshops have also increased the production of linen and ramie cloth by 50%."

"Most importantly, it's the shipbuilding workshop," Dabang said with pride. "During this period, we successfully launched nine more ships, each weighing 10,000 jin (5,000 kg)."

A round of applause erupted in the council hall. Nine massive ships, each weighing ten thousand catties! Adding to the previous ones, that makes forty!

Dabang continued, "Now, the situation of our Fire Tribe's fleet is like this—"

He cleared his throat and began counting. "Two hundred small Muzhou five hundred catties each, two hundred large Muzhou two thousand catties each, one hundred and eighty large boats weighing five thousand catties each, and forty large boats weighing ten thousand catties each!"

After reciting the figures, he looked at the crowd and said, "How much cargo can all these ships carry at once? I don't need to tell you, you can all calculate it."

Jianya was the first to react, slapping his thigh. "Great! With these ships, next time I go to the Valley Tribe, I'll ask them for a little assistance; transporting two million catties of grain at a time won't be a problem!"

Everyone nodded, their faces filled with excitement. The Fire Tribe's water-based strength had taken another big step forward. Jianshi was also very satisfied, but he didn't let this excitement last long.

"What about food?" he asked. "Is there enough food to eat?"

The council chamber quieted down a bit after this question was raised. Yes, there were more people and more ships, but what about food? Without food, everything was just empty talk.

Jianshi looked at everyone and slowly said, "I've done some calculations, let's hear them."

He held up one finger. "First, in a little over a month, we'll be harvesting soybeans. This time, we expect to get around three million catties."

Two fingers. "Secondly, our 20,000 mu of paddy fields in the valley will yield 4 million jin of rice this time."

Three fingers. "Thirdly, the Small Gathering Valley Outpost, the Deer Tribe's residential area, the Green Sheep Tribe Outpost, the White Pig Tribe Outpost, and the Bison Tribe Outpost, combined, can yield 2.8 million catties of rice."

He paused, then held up his fourth finger. "Fourth, the Valley Tribe can still transport 3.5 million catties of grain back."

He lowered his hand and looked at everyone. "If you add all of these together, how much is it?"

Everyone silently calculated.

Three million plus four million equals seven million, plus two million eight hundred thousand equals nine million eight hundred thousand. Then add three million five hundred thousand...

"13.3 million jin!" someone blurted out.

Jianshi nodded. "Yes, 13.3 million jin."

He paused, then said, "Yes."

He looked at the crowd and said, "So, even if we take in another 20,000 people this year, our food supply will barely be enough."

A collective sigh of relief filled the council chamber.

"Barely enough" may sound like a tight budget, but in this day and age, being able to say "barely enough" is already a great skill.

Just a few years ago at this time, the Fire Tribe was struggling to feed two hundred people. After everyone had processed the news, Jianshi and the others changed the subject to other topics.

"How are the construction progressing at the Fire Creek Mouth Outpost, the Stone Creek Mouth Outpost, and the Middle Fire Creek Outpost between Fire Creek Mouth and the Main Valley?"

Dazhuang, who was in charge of this matter, stood up.

"Chief," Dazhuang said, "The wooden houses in these outposts are basically finished, and the first group of people who migrated there have already moved in."

He continued, "The weeding and tree-cutting work in the vegetable gardens and fields is almost finished. After the autumn harvest, we can officially begin cultivating them."

"Other work, such as road repairs, canal digging, and warehouse construction, is progressing normally, and we believe we will see significant results before this winter."

Jianshi nodded in satisfaction. With these strongholds established, the Fire Tribe could gradually cultivate the land along the Fire Creek River. In the future, the entire Fire Creek River basin would belong to the Fire Tribe. The meeting had reached this point, and everything that needed to be reported had been reported, and everything that needed to be heard had been heard.

Jianshi finally looked at Yan and Dali.

"Yan, Dali," he said, "You two will have to make another trip."

Yan and Dali stood up at the same time.

Jianshi said, "Two days later, you will take the fleet to the Valley Tribe again and bring back another batch of grain."

He paused, then added, "We have a large population now, so the more grain the better. We should transport as much as we can."

"Yes!" the two replied in unison.

Jianshi then looked at Jianya: "Jianya, you've only been back a short time, get some rest. Wait until Yan and the others return before you lead the team."

Jianya nodded. "Understood."

The meeting also discussed other matters—the resettlement of new tribesmen, the training of Youth Team, the allocation of strength among various outposts, and liaison with other tribes. By the time all matters were discussed, it was already dark.

Jianshi concluded, "Alright, that's all for today. Everyone go back and get some rest; we have a lot to do tomorrow."

Everyone got up and left to attend to their own business.