Building a Civilization and Raising Cubs in the Beast World – CH145

Chapter 145

“They said they want to follow their leader,” Bai Qi said, growing more and more frustrated. 

They had originally agreed to take Xiong Liao and the beastmen who had arrived earlier back with them. But instead of leaving, not only were they staying, but they even wanted to bring in more people.

Maybe it was because the misunderstandings had been cleared up the day before, but Xiong Liao’s mood had skyrocketed from rock bottom to soaring in the sky. Since last night, he had been showing off his five cubs to everyone he met, making countless single beastmen envious.

Bai Qi, on the other hand, had been suffering one blow after another. 

Every time he saw Xiong Liao, he got more irritated. When he met the white bear beastmen today, he was overjoyed, thinking he could finally be rid of Xiong Liao. But who could have expected that the beastmen who came to persuade him ended up surrendering to the temptation of a single meal?

It was just one meal! Could they not have a little more self-control?!

Because of Xiong Liao, even though Bai Qi knew that having more white bear beastmen join the tribe would be beneficial, he couldn’t bring himself to be happy about it. He just wanted them to hurry up and take Xiong Liao away.

But things didn’t go as he wished. Frustrated, Bai Qi reported to Bai Tu that the newly arrived white bear beastmen were planning to join the tribe as well.

Bai Tu knew Bai Qi had been irritated by Xiong Liao and considered sending a message to Ying Mian, asking him to rein in Xiong Liao a little.

Everyone could understand his excitement—especially after being stubborn for so long and then suddenly receiving such a huge surprise. It was natural to be happy. But if he kept showing off like this, he might actually get beaten up.

As for these white bear beastmen… Bai Tu sighed helplessly. “Go find the chief and tell him to arrange them the same way as the previous white bear beastmen.” At least they could be assigned to guard duty—since bear tribes had a keen sense of smell, they would be useful when working with other species.

Bai Tu had no particular opinion on whether the white bear beastmen stayed or left. If they wanted to leave, he had no objections. If they wanted to stay, he could arrange work for them. The key was whether they could adapt to life in the Snow Rabbit tribe.

But not all the control was in their hands. If the white bear beastmen didn’t follow the tribe’s rules, they wouldn’t be allowed to stay.

Once Bai Qi left, Bai Tu started considering drafting a proper set of rules for beastmen from other tribes who wanted to join. That way, they wouldn’t have to gather and discuss what to do every time a similar situation occurred.

Right now, it was the end of the rainy season, and there weren’t many tasks in the tribe. Both Bai An and he had time to deal with such matters. If it had been during a busier season, they wouldn’t have had the time to manage the work arrangements for the bear tribe.

Establishing clear regulations would make things easier. Any beastman wanting to join the tribe would have to work according to the rules for a certain period. Afterward, both sides would decide whether they wanted to proceed with full integration.

It was essentially similar to an internship system in modern companies. During this period, the beastmen would earn contribution points, though at a lower rate than official tribe members.

It sounded simple, but when it came time to draft the rules, Bai Tu realized there were many details to consider.

For instance, meals, accommodation, and other basic needs had to be clearly outlined. Different tribes would be assigned different tasks, and the contribution points they earned would also vary.

All these details had to be carefully considered. Bai Tu wasn’t in a rush—after all, the only ones currently seeking to join were these white bear beastmen. His biggest concern was that the document might get too long, making it inconvenient to write on wooden boards.

Just the day before, when Lang Qi was assigning defensive positions, he had tried to minimize modifications. Wooden boards could be scraped with a knife to remove old writing, but there was a limit. If scraped too many times, the board would become unusable.

Bai Tu estimated that the materials he had prepared earlier for making paper should be ready for the next step.

There were many possible raw materials for paper-making, but he was using fast-growing bamboo and straw. These had been soaking in limewater for several months and could now be retrieved for rinsing.

The paper-making process took five to six months, sometimes even longer. Bai Tu set aside a small portion for immediate testing—cleaning, pulping, and experimenting—while leaving the rest to continue being processed by the river.

Bamboo pulp was mixed with the juices of other plants and stirred into a thick slurry. Using bamboo mats, they slowly scooped up the pulp to form sheets. Initially, the paper was uneven in thickness, and some areas even had holes. After a few attempts, the workers gradually got the hang of it.

Once formed, the sheets were stacked to squeeze out excess water, then laid onto clean, smooth wooden boards and dried over a fire.

Once the paper had dried completely, Bai Tu carefully peeled it off. It turned out even better than he had expected—at least it wouldn’t tear with a single poke. The beastman following Bai Tu looked puzzled. “Tu, what is this?”

Since the quantity was still small, no dedicated team had been assigned yet. Instead, the beastmen from the woodworking team were asked to try making it first.

The woodworking team had been dealing with wood since last year and assumed this was just another material for making tools. However, once they finished crafting it, they found it didn’t quite fit—too soft, and it would break easily if used for tools.

“It’s paper, for writing,” Bai Tu explained. He hadn’t mentioned its purpose earlier, fearing that if they failed, it would be a disappointment. Now that they had succeeded, he had no such worries. He placed the paper on the table beside him. “Look.”

Beastmen were always fascinated by new things. They had refrained from touching the paper earlier, but once Bai Tu gave them permission, they eagerly reached out to feel it.

“It’s smoother than wooden boards,” one of them exclaimed in surprise.

After all, wood was naturally rough, and since all their tools were handcrafted, cut wooden boards often had burrs that needed to be sanded down. Though this paper wasn’t as smooth as machine-made ones, its softness made any rough edges unnoticeable, which amazed them.

“This is the first batch of prototypes. In two months, we can produce in large quantities. We also need more bamboo and straw to soak in limewater,” Bai Tu instructed. 

They had already soaked a few batches before, but in small amounts. Now that they had usable products, they could expand production and eventually replace wooden boards and bamboo slips with paper entirely. Bai Tu examined the sheets, setting aside the smoother ones suitable for writing and letting the rest be passed around.

“You can look, but don’t throw them away. These are the first samples,” he reminded them. 

He had already collected all the usable sheets; he said this to prevent them from carelessly discarding the rest. Even if they were imperfect, they were the result of everyone’s hard work. Hearing Bai Tu’s words, the group became even more cautious.

Seeing that they wouldn’t waste the paper, Bai Tu returned home to continue drafting regulations—the Guide for Outsider Beastmen Joining the Settlement.

The first priority was determining eligibility. Only beastmen with no criminal history would be considered. Beastmen from places like the Black Forest Tribe and the Red Eagle Tribe wouldn’t be accepted outright; instead, they would undergo additional screening. Only those who had been coerced or were unaware of wrongdoing could join. Those who had committed heinous acts, like Wu Jiu and his underlings, would never be allowed in.

Beastmen without a criminal record could intern in the settlement first, and after the probation period, both sides could decide on the next step.

Next was the issue of work assignments. Each species had different body sizes and natural talents—for instance, bear and lion clans were large, while rabbit and deer clans were smaller; monkey clans excelled at crafting tools, and so on. Bai Tu classified jobs based on size and agility:

Large but slow-reacting beastmen were assigned tasks that required strength but little thinking. Large and agile beastmen handled work that demanded both quick reflexes and physical strength. These weren’t rigid rules, just general guidelines. Assignments would be adjusted based on individual abilities.

The general principle was:

Physically demanding jobs earned higher points and had a shorter internship period. Easier jobs earned fewer points and had a longer internship period.

Then came food and accommodation. Since there was no guarantee that every intern would stay permanently, assigning individual houses would be impractical. Moving people around and updating residency records would be a hassle. Bai Tu decided to stick with communal dormitories.

Communal dorms were larger than individual houses. Each row of buildings had six rooms, and each room contained two bunk beds, housing four people per room—24 people per row. Unlike individual houses, the dorms didn’t have private kitchens; instead, beastmen had to eat in the communal dining hall. However, judging by the bear clan’s enthusiasm for the dining hall, they didn’t mind the lack of a kitchen at all.

Other amenities were mostly prepared—each dorm had a private bathroom, though they had to fetch their own water.

Finally, the decision of whether a beastman could stay in the settlement depended on more than just their willingness. The settlement would evaluate them based on their work ethic and accumulated points during the internship.

Those who slacked off or caused trouble would be immediately rejected. Hardworking beastmen with good performance could stay.

Regarding benefits for new arrivals, the settlement wouldn’t exploit them like the Black Forest Tribe did. However, they also wouldn’t receive the same benefits as long-term members. After all, the settlement was built through the hard work of its existing members—it wouldn’t be fair to ignore their contributions.

Daily work would still be rewarded with points, and equal work earned equal points. However, welfare items like blankets or cotton quilts—things that were in limited supply—would be priced differently. Settlement members could redeem these items at a discounted rate, typically half the market price, ensuring that they weren’t paying the same price as outsiders in the trade markets.

New members of the settlement would not receive any discounts in their first year. In their second year, they would get half the discount of the original residents. In the third year, they would receive three-quarters of the original residents’ discount, and by the fourth year, their discount would be the same as all other members.

This policy was also put in place to prevent reselling. In the future, the settlement would inevitably begin selling salt externally. If new members were given the same benefits as long-term residents from the start, Bai Tu suspected that some beastmen might join just to resell salt for profit.

Bai Tu disliked reselling. If it were just a small amount for personal labor, that would be one thing. But some people would never be satisfied with just a minor profit. Many would buy out the stock of fairly priced goods, create an artificial shortage, then sell their hoarded supplies at an inflated price. This kind of exploitation had to be strictly prevented. By enforcing the no discount policy for new members, orcs who planned to join just for reselling would find it pointless.

After making several additions and deletions, Bai Tu ended up writing two full pages. He stretched his hands and glanced at the brush in his grip. Since the writing surface had changed (from bamboo slips and wooden boards to paper), should the writing tool also be adjusted?

Suddenly, Bai Tu thought of feather quills. Previously, feather quills weren’t practical because they didn’t work well on bamboo slips and wooden boards—the brush was more suitable. But now that paper was available, a quill pen could be a great alternative.

With that thought, Bai Tu went straight to the storage room for a look, but he couldn’t find any large feathers.

“The down quilts only use small feathers. We didn’t keep the big ones,” explained the beastman in charge of inventory.

Last year, Bai Tu had taught everyone how to make down quilts using feathers from feather clans and ducks. Since only the softest down was needed, they had discarded the larger feathers. Otherwise, given how often the tribe ate chickens, ducks, and geese, there would already be a mountain of feathers piling up.

Bai Tu nodded. “I’ll check the dining hall.”

If this side didn’t have feathers, the kitchen definitely would. The settlement raised thousands of chickens, and every day, the kitchen processed countless poultry-based dishes, meaning feathers were never in short supply. However, since Bai Tu had never mentioned that feathers were useful, everyone had simply thrown them away.

Even after living in the settlement for so long, Bai Tu still wasn’t used to the strong smell of blood in the kitchen. Instead of heading directly to the butchering area, he sought out Tu Mu and asked for help.

“I need longer feathers, preferably tail feathers,” Bai Tu specified. Thin feathers were difficult to grip, so tail or wing feathers would work better.

“I’ll get them,” Tu Mu responded immediately, not even asking why.

Before Bai Tu could say anything else, Tu Mu had already disappeared into another room at lightning speed, leaving Bai Tu’s “Four or five is enough” hanging in the air.

Bai Tu: “…”

Forget it. If he got too many, he could just make extra.

A short while later, Tu Mu returned. Bai Tu relaxed when he saw no large leather bags in Tu Mu’s hands, thinking that at least he hadn’t brought too many. However, he had clearly underestimated Tu Mu’s enthusiasm.

“Tu, just head home. I’ve arranged for someone to deliver them to your place,” Tu Mu said cheerfully.

Bai Tu: “???”

With a sinking feeling, Bai Tu slowly asked, “How many… did you take?”

“Not a lot, just a bundle,” Tu Mu waved his hand dismissively. “Next time, if you need more, just tell someone. No need to come in person.”

“It’s fine, it’s not that far,” Bai Tu replied, deciding not to argue.

Since he was already at the dining hall, he also grabbed some snacks. Yesterday, he had planned to get some but forgot. He’d considered asking Lang Qi to fetch them, but when he saw Lang Qi playing with the young wolf cubs, he decided not to interrupt.

During the rainy season, many beastmen preferred to cook at home, so the kitchen staff had a lighter workload. As a result, they had been making various snacks lately.

Bai Tu picked up five servings of honey milk steamed buns—a treat made by mixing milk, honey, and eggs into dough, letting it rise, then shaping small buns slightly larger than a finger before steaming them. The final product had a rich milk aroma with a hint of honey sweetness, making it incredibly enticing.

Although they were called “buns,” both their size and flavor were completely different from regular steamed buns. However, they were labor-intensive to make, so they cost more points.

Since beastmen had large appetites, a full meal of these would require several days’ worth of points, so most only exchanged a few just to taste. Many who had cubs prioritized exchanging them for the young ones.

Bai Tu had plenty of points, and with Lang Qi’s share—and even Lang Ya occasionally transferring some points to Lang Sui and Lang Ying—the wolf cubs and the two adults didn’t have many other expenses, but they never ran out of snacks.

After exchanging for five servings of small buns, Bai Tu had them packed in a food container by the kitchen staff before heading home.

To make it easier for everyone to take food home, the dining hall had plenty of specially made wooden food boxes, allowing people to carry meals conveniently when they had a lot of food instead of making multiple trips. They just needed to return the containers and utensils afterward.

“Tu, the wolf cubs’ appetites have grown again,” Tu Mu remarked.

Bai Tu’s household had several young cubs, but most of them were still very small—only two had turned three years old, while the other three were born this past spring. 

Typically, cubs this young wouldn’t eat much. Other beastmen shared a single portion of small steamed buns between two or three cubs, whereas Bai Tu had prepared one portion per cub—and each portion contained ten buns. Even though they were small, it was still quite a lot.

Tu Mu knew Bai Tu well—he definitely wouldn’t just give the cubs one type of food. That meant, in addition to the buns, the cubs would also be eating other things. When he thought about it this way, each cub’s food intake was almost as much as two or three other cubs combined.

Bai Tu glanced at him and nodded. “Yeah, they’ve definitely grown.”

After chatting for a bit longer, Bai Tu finally left with the buns. Though they looked like a lot, they weren’t actually that heavy—the only extra weight came from the food box itself, which Bai Tu had no trouble carrying.

When he arrived home, Lang Qi was in the hallway corner with the cubs, examining a beast-hide bag.

“The honey milk steamed buns are here,” Bai Tu announced as he stepped inside.

The wolf cubs might not speak much, but they definitely understood when it came to food. As soon as they heard him, the cubs, who had been cautiously pawing at the beast-hide bag, immediately retracted their claws and raced toward Bai Tu.

The cubs loved running and jumping around, and Bai Tu let them roam freely. Because of this, the entire house, including the hallway, was kept spotless so they could run barefoot without any worries. The only downside was that adults had to be careful where they stepped.

Noticing the cubs’ eagerness, Bai Tu handed the food box to Lang Qi and bent down to pick up the cubs one by one.

Lang Qi carried the food box to the living room, while Bai Tu followed behind, setting each cub on a bench and wiping their feet.

Since the house was kept so clean, and both he and Lang Qi changed shoes before entering, the cubs’ feet weren’t really dirty—just a quick wipe made them spotless.

Lang Qi had already prepared smaller tableware for the cubs—much smaller than what the adults used. The plates were arranged in descending order by size:

The first three plates had three buns each; The last two plates had five buns each; Since each portion contained ten buns, the five cubs shared two full portions.

As for the remaining buns… Bai Tu dumped them all into a large plate.

Lang Qi casually picked up one and handed it to Bai Tu first.

Bai Tu wasn’t particularly hungry and only ate two buns before stopping. Meanwhile, Lang Qi sat down and started eating the extra-large portion in front of the cubs.

The cubs looked at their three to five lonely little buns and then at their father’s massive pile. They might not know how to count, but they definitely sensed something was unfair.

“Kids get small portions, adults get big portions,” Bai Tu explained matter-of-factly.

The cubs glanced at Lang Qi, hoping for support, but their father completely ignored them and continued eating.

Bai Tu didn’t plan to let them eat too much—even though the buns tasted great, they were still just a snack. Eating a few was fine, but eating only snacks wasn’t healthy. So no matter how pitifully the cubs whined and begged, he refused to give them more.

After a few sad whimpers, the cubs realized that their portions weren’t increasing—meanwhile, their father’s portion was almost gone. Panicking, they hurriedly devoured their own buns, afraid they’d be stolen.

Lang Qi glanced at them but didn’t say a word. He didn’t care at all that the cubs were being so wary of him—because if he really wanted to take their food, no amount of vigilance would stop him.

The cubs didn’t understand this, but Bai Tu definitely caught the mischievous glint in Lang Qi’s eyes. He sighed. “Are you a kid or their father?”

As if Bai Tu’s words didn’t apply to him, Lang Qi quickly pulled Bai Tu closer and stuffed the last honey bun into his mouth. Then, still holding onto Bai Tu, he asked, “What do you want for lunch? I’ll cook.”

He asked the question, but he didn’t let go. Bai Tu had been out since early morning and had only just returned, so Lang Qi clearly wanted him to stay close for a while.

Bai Tu wasn’t too hungry—mostly because the hot weather had reduced his appetite. After thinking for a moment, he said, “How about cold noodles?” Something cooler would be more refreshing in this heat.

“Cold noodles?” Lang Qi could guess what it was from the name, but since he had never heard of it before, he didn’t know how to prepare it.

“You cook the noodles and meat first, and blanch some vegetables. I’ll handle the rest,” Bai Tu instructed. He figured both Lang Qi and the cubs would like it, since everyone was feeling the heat.

“Alright.” Lang Qi nodded and went to prepare the noodles.

Bai Tu washed his hands and started making the sauce—since the flavor of the sauce determined how good the cold noodles would be.

Thanks to recent trading and exchanges, the settlement now had a greater variety of seasonings than before. Bai Tu mixed soy sauce, vinegar, and chili oil in precise proportions, creating a rich, flavorful dressing.

He also prepared a mild version without chili for the cubs, diluting it slightly with cool boiled water.

Since the weather was hot, Bai Tu always kept several kettles of boiled water at home to ensure the wolf cubs had water to drink at any time. With that much water, it was more than enough even if two more people came over.

He poured the remaining cooled boiled water into a large bowl, ready to use it for cooling the freshly cooked noodles as soon as they were done.

Technically, this step could have been done with cold water, but Bai Tu had a habit of using boiled and cooled water, especially now that there were young cubs—raw water was never an option for drinking.

Since there was plenty of cooled boiled water at home, Bai Tu dipped all the noodles into it to cool them down, then shredded the cooked meat and added it in. Finally, he poured in the sauce he had just prepared.

The cubs’ portions were made without chili and the portions for him and Lang Qi were spicy.

Because of the heat, the wolf cubs always took their time eating—usually waiting until the food had cooled down before starting.

Today, after setting the food in front of them, Bai Tu had them try a bite first.

The two older cubs could eat by themselves, for the three younger ones, Bai Tu cut the noodles into shorter pieces and fed them with a spoon.

At first, the cubs weren’t too enthusiastic, but after one bite, they realized the food was cold. Their eyes widened in surprise, and they stared at their bowls before impatiently urging Bai Tu to feed them another bite.

Seeing how much they liked it, Bai Tu quickly continued feeding them. After just two rounds, Lang Qi walked over and took the bowl from Bai Tu’s hands.

“I’ll feed them. You eat first,” he said.

“This food won’t spoil even if it sits for a while,” Bai Tu explained. 

Normally, with hot noodles, everyone had to eat immediately, because if left too long, the noodles would absorb the soup and become soggy.

But cold noodles, after being rinsed in water and mixed with sauce, wouldn’t clump together and could be eaten at any time.

Lang Qi ignored his reasoning and insisted, “Go eat.”

Since Bai Tu still had work to do after lunch, and since they never needed to be overly polite with each other, he didn’t hesitate—he handed the bowl to Lang Qi and went to eat his own meal.

Bai Tu ate a little slower, so by the time he was halfway through, the cubs had already finished eating.

Lang Qi wiped their faces with a towel, then carried them to bed before finally sitting down to eat his own meal.

Even though he started eating late, they still finished around the same time.

After eating, the cubs would play for a bit, then take their afternoon nap. This meant that from noon until the afternoon, Bai Tu and Lang Qi had free time to focus on their own work.

Technically, there was an official workspace in the center of the residential area for both of them, but they preferred working at home to stay with the cubs. Unless they had to go out for work, they handled everything at home.

Lang Qi had spent the entire morning with the cubs, but in the afternoon, he needed to check on the wolf clan’s work site, so he had to leave.

Before leaving, he lingered around Bai Tu for a long time, refusing to go until Bai Tu finally urged him.

“I don’t have anything else to do this afternoon, so I’ll be home the whole time. Go early, finish your work, and come back soon,” Bai Tu said.

Even though Bai Tu thought a morning apart was nothing, Lang Qi and the cubs clearly didn’t feel the same.

After seeing Lang Qi off, Bai Tu turned and patted the small white wolf cub, who was pretending to be asleep. Among all the cubs, this one was the smartest.

“Daddy’s staying home,” Bai Tu reassured softly, before muttering under his breath, “You’re just like Lang Qi…”

He had only gone out to handle a few things, it wasn’t like he wasn’t coming back—but from the way Lang Qi and the cubs acted, you’d think he had done something terrible.

Hearing that Bai Tu wasn’t leaving, the little white wolf finally closed its eyes and fell asleep.

Wolf cubs needed far more sleep than adults—once asleep, they could easily sleep for several hours.

Once all the cubs were sound asleep, Bai Tu finally left the house to collect the feathers Tu Mu had sent over.

Originally curious about where the package had been placed, Bai Tu’s expression stiffened when he saw the massive bundle of animal hides in the corridor. He suddenly had a bad feeling. Could this be the feathers that Tu Mu had sent over? Did he really need this many?

As it turned out, his guess was entirely correct. The package that Tu Mu had sent was over half the height of an adult human, packed with what was likely dozens of pounds of feathers.

Bai Tu: “…”

Although the quantity was a bit excessive, it was a well-intentioned gift. Bai Tu opened the bundle to take a look.

Since Tu Mu knew he disliked the smell of blood, all the feathers had been carefully cleaned. 

Bai Tu picked out a few sturdy ones and headed to the kitchen to process them. First, he boiled the feathers in water to remove the grease, thoroughly cleaning them. Once dried, he roasted them over a fire before moving to the next step. He found a pot that wasn’t used for cooking, filled it with sand, and heated it over a flame. Once the sand was hot enough, he placed the cleaned feathers into it with the quills facing downward. The treated quills turned white. Using scissors, he trimmed the lower ends of the quills to form the nibs. After carefully carving an ink reservoir into each tip, a simple set of quill pens was complete.

In total, Bai Tu managed to make five quills, though one broke due to excessive force during trimming. The remaining four were successful.

The advantage of quill pens was that they required fewer dips in ink compared to brush pens. However, they also had their downsides—if not properly trimmed, they would drag on the paper while writing.

Bai Tu didn’t plan on using them for extensive writing anyway—mainly just for jotting down thoughts. He went through his previous notes and rewrote the unfinished regulations and guidelines.

Since papermaking technology was still in its early stages and the quill pens were hastily made, the final writing results were inconsistent—some parts were so saturated with ink that they blurred together, while others were too faint to read without close inspection.

The former was difficult to correct, while for the latter, Bai Tu had to go over the writing again. In the end, he had to admit the reality—quill pens had quite a few drawbacks.

Ultimately, it was likely an issue with his technique, or maybe his handwriting style just wasn’t suited for quills. Weighing his options between keeping the paper or the pens, Bai Tu decided to keep the paper. Next time, he would try making a few pencils using charcoal.

For now, he had finished writing everything he needed. Though the results weren’t perfectly uniform, they were at least legible. Besides, other than the White Bear Tribe, no other tribes had shown interest in joining yet, so there was still time to revise or rewrite everything later.

As for the quill pens—one had broken during use, leaving him with three. He cleaned out the remaining ink, wiped them dry, and stored them away.

With the quill pen experiment deemed a failure, Bai Tu washed his hands and returned to the courtyard, staring at the remaining pile of feathers in deep thought.

Although the delivery had been quick, these feathers were clearly not just random scraps—they had been carefully selected. Bai Tu didn’t want to waste Tu Mu’s goodwill. Even if the leftover feathers couldn’t be made into quill pens, there had to be another use for them.

Rummaging through the storage room, he found a bundle of hemp rope and a few wooden sticks. He dumped out the feathers, washed a small portion, and laid them out under the sun to dry.

Now that the rainy season had passed, the sun was just as intense as before. After spending too much time outside, stepping indoors felt noticeably dimmer. Bai Tu sat under the corridor, waiting for the feathers to dry before sorting them by color.

The feathers weren’t just from wild pheasants—they also included duck and goose feathers in a variety of colors: white, black, red, and gray. Bai Tu grouped them in sets of five, tied them together with hemp rope, and fastened them to the wooden sticks. Just like that, a simple toy was complete.

This task was far easier than making quill pens. The five quills had taken him over two hours to make, but he finished more than a dozen toys in just half an hour.

Still, something felt missing. Bai Tu shook one of the toys, then realized—it needed a bell.

Even though the blacksmithing team could make a variety of tools, crafting small bells was still a challenge. Besides, making bells just for toys felt excessive. Instead, Bai Tu found a few small, crisp-sounding stones and planned to have Lang Qi drill holes in them later.

He took the finished toys inside, leaving two on the young cubs’ bed while storing the rest away. Stretching lazily, he glanced at the remaining feathers and decided to leave them for others to handle tomorrow.

The wolf tribe likely had a lot to deal with—after all, Lang Qi hadn’t visited them in several days. Checking the time, Bai Tu felt it was getting late and decided to prepare some food first.

By evening, the wolf cubs began waking up one by one. Not seeing their beloved father right away, they were just about to call out for him when something caught their eyes.

The gray-furred cub was the first to pounce. Upon closer inspection, although it was an unfamiliar object, it carried their father’s scent. Without hesitation, the little wolf grabbed it in its mouth and proudly trotted away.

The larger gray wolf cub quickly followed suit, pouncing on the other toy and dragging it over. The wolf cubs circled around the two toys, sniffing and nudging them, unsure of how to play with them.

When Bai Tu returned after adding water to the pot, this was the scene he saw. He chuckled, rubbing the little ones’ heads. It seemed these toys weren’t very suitable for young wolf cubs.

“I’ll make you new ones tomorrow,” Bai Tu said. He recalled seeing a few bundles of cotton while looking for hemp rope earlier. Instead of letting them sit unused, he might as well use them to make toys for the cubs.

The cub being petted let out a pleased hum, thoroughly enjoying the affection from its father. Then, with a single kick, it sent the toy rolling away—completely uninterested in it.

Seeing that none of them liked the toys, Bai Tu set them aside. After dinner, he asked Lang Qi to help string the small stones together.

Lang Qi wasn’t sure what he was trying to make, but he followed Bai Tu’s instructions anyway.

Looking at the two now-finished toys, Bai Tu decided to take them to Tu Cai’s place tomorrow to see how the other young ones would react.

However, the next morning, before he could even set out, he heard Bai Qi knocking at the door.

Bai Tu and Lang Qi exchanged glances. They had just finished breakfast and hadn’t even had time to open the door yet. Why was Bai Qi here at this hour?

Whenever Bai Qi came looking for him, it was usually because something unusual had happened during patrol. The last few times, it had been the beastmen from the White Bear Tribe showing up. Could it be them again?

“The big kids again?” Bai Tu asked casually as he opened the door.

“What kids?” Bai Qi looked utterly confused.

Realizing he had accidentally voiced his inner thoughts, Bai Tu waved a hand dismissively and changed the subject. “What’s the rush?”

Only then did Bai Qi remember why he had come. “Someone’s here looking for the young ones from their tribe.”

“Which tribe?” Bai Tu frowned. 

There were still quite a few cubs in the settlement, but it had already been over six months since they rescued them from the Black Eagle Tribe. For someone to come looking for them now—wasn’t that a bit too negligent?

The Black Eagle Tribe had notified the tribes that had lost cubs back in the winter. Even if some tribes were far away, they’d had a good three to four months between the end of winter and the start of the rainy season to make the journey. Why were they only showing up now?

“The White Cat Tribe,” Bai Qi answered. “They don’t usually interact with other tribes.”

“The White Cat Tribe?” Bai Tu’s tone softened slightly.

Bai Qi nodded. “About half of the beastmen in their tribe have white fur.” He knew Bai Tu had a particular fondness for white-furred beast forms.

“How many came? Are they still outside? I don’t think we have many cat cubs left in the settlement.” As he spoke, Bai Tu walked back inside to retrieve the bamboo scroll that recorded the number of cubs. The back section contained individual records of the cubs, while the front listed the numbers for each species.

There had originally been nine feline cubs. Before the rainy season, three had already been reclaimed by their families, leaving six still in the settlement.

“Thirteen,” Bai Qi reported. “They said this is just the first group—more are on the way.”

Bai Tu’s mood improved slightly. The number of people a tribe sent to retrieve their lost cubs was a good indicator of how much they valued their young. Tribes that didn’t care much would send just one or two people, while those that did might send half their tribe. Part of it was because this was their first time coming to this settlement, and part of it was to ensure the cubs’ safety on the journey back. The more people they brought, the safer the trip home would be.

Of course, this judgment applied mainly to tribes from farther away. For nearby tribes, the situation was different. They didn’t have to worry as much about the dangers of the journey, but bringing too many people could make others wary.

In those cases, the key detail was who they sent. For instance, when Shi Su personally led the lion tribe members to retrieve their lost cubs, it showed how much he valued them—after all, a tribe’s leader wouldn’t lightly take the risk of entering another tribe’s territory.

Then there were tribes like the Flower Bear Tribe, whose approach was completely different—they simply brought the entire tribe along.

Bai Tu didn’t know how large the White Cat Tribe was, but judging by the number of people they sent, they seemed to care about their cubs. At least they weren’t one of those tribes that just handed out a bit of food and sent the cubs’ parents off alone, disregarding the dangers they might face on the road.

“Should I bring them in?” Bai Qi asked.

Bai Tu nodded. “Take Ze with you.” Feline beastmen were known for their agility, and Bai Tu wasn’t entirely at ease with Bai Qi leading them in alone. It would be better to have Lang Ze accompany him.

“Got it,” Bai Qi agreed and immediately went next door to find Lang Ze.

“You’ll watch the wolf cubs?” Bai Tu asked Lang Qi. He needed to verify whether these feline beastmen were actually the relatives of the cubs from their tribe, which meant he wouldn’t be able to stay with the wolf cubs this morning.

Lang Qi nodded. “I’ve got things covered here. Go ahead.”

Bai Tu nodded in response. Just as he was about to step out, he suddenly stopped, turned back, and grabbed the toys he had finished making yesterday, deciding to bring them along.

“Have Cai find someone to move the feathers later,” Bai Tu added. 

There were simply too many of them. The weight wasn’t an issue, but the bag was too large—it would be best to have two beastmen carry it.

Bai Tu wasn’t as fast as Bai Qi. By the time he arrived, Bai Qi had already led the feline beastmen inside. As he approached, he realized Bai Qi’s description had been somewhat incomplete. To be precise, there were ten adult beastmen and three young cubs.

Seeing the children, Bai Tu realized he had worried for nothing. If he had known they had cubs with them, he wouldn’t have been concerned about safety—beastmen might raid other tribes, but it was highly unlikely for them to bring young cubs along on such an attack.

Before Bai Tu could say anything, one of the feline beastmen spotted him and asked excitedly, “Is this the healer?”

“This is Bai Tu from our tribe. Just call him Tu. If a wolf cub isn’t feeling well, tell him,” Tu Cai reassured them.

Something felt off about the conversation. Bai Tu stepped closer and asked, “What’s going on?”

“Their tribe has a sick cub,” Tu Cai explained. In his rush earlier, Bai Qi had forgotten to mention something important.

The White Cat Tribe lived in complete isolation from other tribes, so they had been unaware that the rescued cubs even existed. They hadn’t come here specifically to find their lost young; instead, they had been traveling because one of their own cubs had fallen ill. It was only when they asked for directions along the way that they learned the Snow Rabbit Tribe had taken in many orphaned cubs.

The visitors had actually told Bai Qi two things, but Bai Qi, upon hearing that they had come regarding young cubs, had immediately run off to find Bai Tu—missing the second part of their explanation entirely.

“Next time, make sure to listen carefully.” This kind of impatience among beastmen was nothing new. Bai Tu gave his usual reminder before turning to ask, “Which cub is sick?”

Just as he spoke, he felt something tugging at his leg. Being quite familiar with the sensation of cubs pouncing on him, Bai Tu instinctively looked down. Two small white kittens were clinging to his leg, trying to climb up and reach the toys in his hand.

The feline beastmen across from him hesitated for a moment before one of them spoke, somewhat uncertainly, “It’s just… um, not very lively…”

However, their voice grew quieter and quieter as they stared at the cubs clambering up Bai Tu.