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Wu Jiong had never heard of this food before, but that didn't stop him from looking forward to the new food that Jian Mo had mentioned. "Okay, I'll help."

Jian Mo: "I can handle it. We'll braise some meat later and make braised meat buns for dinner."

As she spoke, Jian Mo couldn't wait to wash her hands, then scooped out some flour, kneaded a dough, and then kneaded the small piece of dough in her hand into the kneaded dough.

He found a clean piece of paper to cover the dough, placed it in a corner of the hearth, and waited for it to slowly ferment.

That small piece of dough definitely didn't have much yeast, so it probably took much longer to ferment than regular dough. It should be ready by the afternoon.

Nevertheless, Jian Mo couldn't help but check on the dough every now and then.

The dough gradually becomes white and plump; pressing it with your hand can leave a dent, and at the same time, you can clearly feel that the dough has become more pliable.

Jian Mo didn't go anywhere that day; she just sat in the house doing handicrafts, watching expectantly as the dough gradually fermented.

In the afternoon, he specially prepared the braised meat and set it aside to cool.

Evening finally arrived, and the dough had risen to three times its morning size, looking absolutely perfect.

Jian Mo took a small piece of dough from the dough, added more flour and kneaded it together to form a smooth dough. She placed it in a dry place to let it ferment quietly. This piece of dough became the starter, full of yeast.

After carefully preparing the dough, Jian Mo placed the large dough ball on a clean stone slab and kneaded it to remove some of the air. Then she rolled it into a long strip, pinched off small dough pieces, rolled them into circles, put braised meat inside, and wrapped them into buns.

Jian Mo was in high spirits the whole time, and Wu Jiong didn't need to interfere at all. Wu Jiong just assisted him from the side, watching as he magically conjured up a big, white, plump bun.

Wu Jiong asked, "Is it ready to eat now?"

Jian Mo: "Not yet, it has to be steamed in a pot until it's cooked through before we can eat it."

Wu Jiong: "Then I'll start boiling water."

Steaming buns doesn't require much skill, and Wu Jiong quickly steamed them up.

The first basket of buns contained eight buns, each larger than their fists, plump and white, with the tops permeated by the oil from the braised meat, giving them an enticing dark brown color.

They don't use soy sauce; the sauce actually relies more on caramel coloring and shellfish powder to create a savory flavor.

Although the braised meat wasn't quite authentic, this meticulously prepared dish still looked very tempting.

Ignoring the heat, Jian Mo grabbed one for Wu Jiong and one for herself. "Quick, quick, try this! This is called a steamed bun, a local specialty. Although it's made with flour, it tastes completely different from cake."

As she spoke, Jian Mo gently broke open the meat bun.

Flour was so scarce that he used it sparingly, resulting in buns with exceptionally thin skins and generous fillings. The braised pork inside was half lean and half fatty, with its juices slowly flowing out, glistening with an enticing sheen.

Jian Mo took a big bite.

The soft, slightly sweet dough and the rich, fragrant braised meat combine to create an absolutely unbeatable taste.

He knew that this amazing combination of starch, fat, and protein would definitely taste delicious.

Jian Mo breathed out warm air. "How is it? I didn't lie to you, did I? Isn't this bun especially delicious?"

Wu Jiong: "Hmm, I can taste the pepper powder and garlic powder inside. The meat cooked with these two powders smells so good."

Jian Mo: "Yes! The aroma is brought out perfectly! Come on, eat them while they're hot. We probably won't be able to finish all these buns we made today, so let's steam some and save them for tomorrow. That way, we won't have to go through all that trouble; we can just reheat them and eat them."

Wu Jiong looked at the steamed buns. "Like sausages, they're food that can be stored."

Jian Mo: "Pretty much. In this weather, it can easily last ten days to half a month, but it definitely won't last that long. I can eat three meals a day, so it'll be finished in two days."

Wu Jiong sighed softly, a rare occurrence for him. "Let's get this land cleared quickly, we can't wait any longer."

Jian Mo: "Well, there's nothing we can do about it. We'll have to wait until the weather clears up."

They had never longed for clear skies so much.

After waiting for several days, the rain and snow finally stopped, and most of the snow outside has melted.

Wu Jiong told the people in the tribe, and they decided to take advantage of the good weather to cultivate the land.

The matter of reclaiming land had already been discussed in a meeting.

This year marks the first time the Riverside Tribe has seriously attempted to plant anything. No one knows how the planting will go, so they are not greedy and only plan to cultivate a small piece of land on the opposite bank of the tribe. The remaining river section will be allocated among the villagers on a first-come, first-served basis.

As the clan chief, although Wu Jiong really wanted to cultivate his own land first, he held back and instead cultivated the collective land with everyone else first.

They had experience cultivating land on the mountains before, so they felt that cultivating land along the riverbank wouldn't be too difficult.

The impatient big cats and dogs in the tribe felt that clearing land was not worthwhile.

To cultivate land, you first need to remove the grass and trees on top, and then dig out and discard the tree roots, grass roots, stones, etc. at the bottom.

The soil along the river looked quite fertile, which meant there must be plenty of plants growing on it. Just digging up grass and tree roots alone exhausted everyone.

"I never knew grass roots could grow so lushly; look, these grass roots are even longer than my human form."

"Ugh, I'm exhausted. Before, when I went out to dig up tubers, I could just cut the grass roots when I encountered them. I never thought I'd have to dig them all out now."

"There are so many rocks on the ground. I accidentally hit my hoe on a rock twice, and now the blade is dull."

"Jian Mo, can't I really turn back into my beast form to dig? My claws are definitely much more useful than a hoe."

Jian Mo listened to their conversation, remaining silent at first. When someone called his name, he stood up straight and replied earnestly, "It's best not to use your claws. If they get worn down, they can easily become inflamed, and your claws might hurt for days."