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Qing Kuo stared at Jian Mo: "Before you went to the Rain Rising Tribe, you had already aired out your four-piece bedding set once. If you didn't have a new quilt, you probably wouldn't air it out a second time anytime soon."

Zhou Fu glanced to the side and, seeing that Wu Jiong wasn't there, whispered, "It's also possible that the blankets got wet, which is why they're airing out the bedding."

Qing Kuo slapped him. "You think it's you guys? Given Jian Mo and the clan leader's habits, they shouldn't have gotten the bedding wet."

As expected, people with partners don't care about anything. Jian Mo made a stop gesture. "Stop, stop, stop, this is getting more and more outrageous."

Qing Kuo: "Quickly show us your new quilts."

Jian Mo reluctantly led them back to their room. "You can look, but don't tell anyone. I promised the Long Years Tribe I'd keep it a secret."

Qing Kuo: "You did keep it a secret, but we were sharp-eyed and found out ourselves. It's not your fault."

Jian Mo showed them the cotton quilts. "These are the kinds of quilts. Cotton quilts are lighter and warmer, unlike animal hide quilts which can be suffocating."

Qing Kuo kneaded the bedding. "It smells nice too."

Jian Mo: "Yes, it's more breathable. The natural smell of plants is also better than the natural smell of animal hides."

Even though the tanning techniques used in the tribe are quite advanced, it's still difficult to remove the natural smell of leather.

Especially with animals that have a strong odor, the hides used to make products can really absorb the flavor of the person after a while.

If there were a way, people wouldn't actually want to use those kinds of bedding.

Qing Kuo and the others held the quilt in their hands, turning it over and over to examine it. "It's really nice."

Jian Mo thought it was a good idea, "It's a pity that the cotton boll trees our tribe planted didn't survive. If they had, our tribe would have been able to produce cotton quilts and blankets ourselves in a few years."

Qing Kuo was relatively optimistic. "It's not necessarily true that they didn't survive. It's just that they missed the germination period this year. They'll sprout next spring."

The person with more experience with Ye Luo on plants said, "It could also be the dormancy period you mentioned. It will only sprout after the dormancy period is over."

Jian Mo: "That makes sense. If all else fails, we can go to the Long Years Tribe next year and transplant the cotton boll seedlings here. We can plant more; surely some will survive."

The climate of the Long Years Tribe is relatively warm, but not by much.

They are all tribes in the same area. If they can grow cotton bolls there, the Riverside Tribe should be able to grow them too, just not as well.

After looking at the quilts, everyone stayed at Jian Mo to chat.

Jian Mo and the others had been busy visiting the Rain Rising Tribe a few days ago, and they hadn't gotten tired of talking about their trip to exchange chili peppers, so now they could continue the conversation.

Life in the tribe is so boring. Every day is the same. When something new happens, everyone will talk about it over and over again.

Jian Mo understand the boredom and didn't mind chatting with everyone a little longer.

Anyway, you can chat while you work, and everyone can help each other out.

They harvested a lot of nuts this year.

There are several kinds of nuts that are covered with a layer of flesh. You have to use a knife to remove the flesh before you can dry and roast them.

Everyone helped Jian Mo remove the shells from the nuts.

Because everyone had helped with the work, Jian Mo invited them to stay for dinner at her home in the evening.

No one stood on ceremony with Jian Mo.

Zhou Fu asked, "Jian Mo, can you cook something with chili peppers today? The chili pepper dishes you cooked last time were delicious; we can't seem to recreate that flavor when we try to make them at home."

Ye Luo agreed, "I don't know why our chili dishes are always so spicy and pungent, not as mild and delicious as yours."

Jian Mo: "Did you put in too much chili?"

Zhou Fu: "Probably not. We don't dare eat anything too spicy, we only add a couple of spices."

Jian Mo: "Then I'll cook it for you guys to see."

Despite not being in the tribe for several days and not going out to hunt or gather, Jian Mo still had no shortage of meat.

He cut off several strips of dried meat and prepared side dishes such as Tendon Grass, intending to cook several dishes.

Everyone crowded into the kitchen to watch him cook.

Jian Mo first heats the oil in a wok, then throws in the chili peppers and frys them briefly to remove the raw spiciness.

First, everyone immediately realized, "So the chili peppers need to be fried first?"

Jian Mo: "It's okay if it's not fried, but it won't smell as good if it's not fried."

Zhou Fu: "Understood, we'll bomb them from now on too."

Jian Mo: "Be careful when frying them. If you overcook them, the chili peppers won't be fragrant and will even taste bitter."

Qing Kuo: "How far should it be blown up?"

Jian Mo lifted the chilies up to show them. "Fry them until they turn a slightly darker color, but not black. That's it."

While Jian Mo was cooking, Wu Jiong returned. Seeing the large kitchen full of people, he didn't say anything, but simply went to the vegetable garden to pick some cool leaves and made cool leaf drinks for everyone.

Dishes with a lot of chili peppers like these must be paired with a refreshing herbal drink, otherwise people might not be able to eat them.

It was unusual for Jian Mo to cook so many dishes, so he invited everyone to bring their partners and children to eat together.

The beastmen were too embarrassed to come over, but the little ones didn't care at all and ran over excitedly.

The little cub Qiu Li from Zhou Fu specially pulled Banjiu over to greet Jian Mo and Wu Jiong, and was very polite.

The kids are more tolerant of chili peppers than the adults; they'll spit out spicy food at the dinner table but still want to eat it.

Seeing that the two kids' lips were red from the spiciness, Jian Mo had an idea. "Where I'm from, there's a special snack called spicy strips. They're pretty delicious, and I think you'll like them. I'll make some when I have time."

Jian Mo rarely comments on whether a food is good or bad; if she says it's delicious, then it must truly be delicious.

Banjiu: "Jian Mo, are spicy strips made of chili peppers?"

Jian Mo: "They're strips made with chili oil, but they're pretty much the same; the point is the spicy and fragrant flavor."

Qiu Li looked up and asked expectantly, "Jian Mo, which day is 'free'?"