We made you the chief, and now you've become the world's chief?

Chapter 63 The Tribes on the Other Side of the River
Taro is easy to domesticate and easy to cultivate agriculturally, and its yield is quite considerable, earning it the title of "the fifth major root crop".

I remember this was mentioned in the Records of the Grand Historian. It said that the Shu region attracted a large number of immigrants because of its abundant taro production. After the Zhuo family moved to Shu, they accumulated wealth by cultivating taro.

Xia Minghao had been worried about food before, especially after being forced to settle in Yanquan.

Under normal circumstances, it would be difficult to support a large tribe of a hundred people by relying solely on gathering and hunting.

Although he had fish traps and snares, and Xia Minghao planned to make fishing nets for large-scale fishing operations, he was at a loss when the rainy season came.

Not to mention that a large number of people were diverted to construction work instead of obtaining food.

Xia Minghao originally planned to conduct large-scale exploration after initial stability was achieved. In addition to malachite and other tribes, crops were also an important target.

I never expected Taro to suddenly jump out of my face!
Seeing that the yellow-skinned, black-eyed man really liked taro, Daka suddenly remembered the advice he had received from the "wise man".

If you encounter people from other tribes while salt mining, you can tell them that the Da tribe has an abundance of food and take them back to the Da tribe.

"Our tribe is on the other side of the river."

“There’s so much food, more than we can eat. Come to the Da tribe, let’s eat together.”

Xia Minghao, who was looking at the taro, showed a hint of surprise in his eyes when he heard what Daka said.

Across the river, an endless supply of taro?

I've seen it before; there's a swamp on the other side of the river.

Could it be that these primitive people living near the swamp have figured out how to cultivate taro?

"How come you have so many taro that you can't finish them all?"

Seeing Xia Minghao's expression, Daka thought he didn't believe him and was questioning him.

He immediately spoke up, but this time, his voice carried a clear sense of pride.

“Our tribe has wise men who told us to throw taro into the soil by the swamp, and we will have an endless supply of taro.”

Upon hearing this, Xia Minghao was certain that this tribe had indeed developed primitive agriculture.

It turned out to be a tribe that had mastered rudimentary agriculture.

Xia Minghao looked at the group of people, a sharp glint in his eyes.

I originally thought it was just a small tribe, posing no threat whatsoever.

After dealing with the human-faced bear, they plan to settle in Salt Spring and then consider integrating it into their tribe.

But now it's clear that we can't underestimate this group.

There's agriculture, so it's fine if we know how to grow taro.

The real danger is that the emergence of agriculture could lead to a large population in this tribe.

In primitive times, population was key. If you encountered a large tribe of a thousand people, your hundred or so people, without bronze weapons, would be no match for them and would have no choice but to admit defeat.

Once the human-faced bear dies, his attempt to seize the salt spring will inevitably lead to a conflict of interest with the tribe.

We must understand the specific circumstances of this tribe, analyze specific problems in detail, and then formulate a practical strategy for the next step.

Knowing about this tribe is a hundred times more important than knowing about the human-faced bear and the terrain of the mountains!
It seems we need to deepen our communication.

After a moment's thought, a plan immediately formed in his mind: to have Daka stay in his tribe for one night.

Leaving this group behind gives them enough time to create the conditions for communication.

Actually, Xia Minghao had another idea: if he learned from these people that the number of people in their tribe on the other side of the river did not pose a threat to him, then it would be fine.

Moreover, it can create a win-win situation with the other tribe.

Of course, this win-win situation means winning twice.

But what if there's a threat!

Then let's leave this group of people here forever, or rather, "leave them here"!
In short, we absolutely cannot let them return alive, otherwise the existence of our tribe will be exposed to a powerful enemy, putting our side in a passive position.

The entire tribe may also be facing a critical moment of survival.

After a moment's thought, Xia Minghao's cold expression vanished, and he looked at Daka again with a kind smile.

“The other side of the riverbank is far away. Come to my tribe, we’ll leave tomorrow.” As he spoke, Xia Minghao pointed to the sky.

"Your tribe?"

Daka looked up at the sky, then at Xia Minghao, who had a kind face, and thought of the piece of meat that had just been given to him.

"The old forest is dangerous, but going to their tribe is safe."

At that moment, someone behind him whispered to Daka.

Daka originally wanted to reject Xia Minghao, but these words made him somewhat tempted.

After hesitating for a long time, Daka finally nodded.

Xia Minghao was overjoyed to see Daka nod.

After leading Daka and the others for a long time, they finally arrived at the location of the main force.

At this time, under Hima's arrangement, the tribesmen had dug out a kiln, lit a campfire, and gathered a large number of tree branches.

Seeing that this tribe had such a large group of people, Daka was startled again.

When I first saw Xia Minghao with a group of women, and these women were carrying weapons, I thought there weren't many of them, and there weren't any other able-bodied men.

Seeing this, Daka and the others wanted to leave because they felt a deep sense of insecurity.

"We are not here."

"Not here?"

How can it be done if it's not here? How am I supposed to make arrangements for your tribe then?

Seeing Daka's uneasy look, Xia Minghao thought for a moment and decided to use the most valuable bargaining chip from the primitive era—food.

"Friends, stay, there's meat here, you can eat too."

Then Xia Minghao pointed to the meat rack in the distance.

So much meat!

Guided by Xia Minghao, Daka finally discovered the wolf jerky.

This was baked by working overtime, enough for a full ten giant wolves!

The members of the Da tribe's gathering team were already drooling profusely, and they could only stop it by constantly swallowing.

The prey near the tribe is scarce, and they now mostly eat taro and rarely get to eat meat.

That's why Daka didn't eat the meat Xia Minghao gave him before, but instead saved it to bring to his mother and sister.

Daka, still reeling from the shock of the mountain of flesh, failed to notice the coldness on Xia Minghao's face.

"You can eat meat too, how about it?"

He coughed twice, interrupting the shocked group, and then spoke again.

Finally, the thought of leaving was dispelled once again upon seeing Xia Minghao's friendly smile and the image of the mountain of flesh that still lingered in her mind.

Seeing everyone's reaction, Xia Minghao felt relieved, thinking to himself that he had finally managed to calm the group down.

Seeing that the group was still staring blankly at the meat rack, he took the opportunity to whisper something in Shifa's ear.

A hint of surprise flashed in Shifa's eyes, but she quickly regained her composure.

After watching Shifa relay his orders to everyone in the hunting team, they all silently walked behind Daka and the others, spreading out in a fan shape.

After thinking for a while and preparing his answer, Xia Minghao was ready to ask the tribe on the other side of the river for specific information.

"How many people from your tribe are equal to those from our tribe?"

Upon hearing this, Daka looked at Xia Minghao, a thoughtful expression in his eyes.

They had no idea that the answer they were about to give would determine the life or death of more than a dozen of them.

(End of this chapter)