Chapter 156: Chapter 156: Friendly Exchange

“Changxia, I heard you like chili peppers. Uncle brought you three thousand jin of chili peppers this time—I hope you’ll like them,” Anbian said warmly.

Xifeng, beside him, stared wide-eyed.

What the—!

Anbian was shamelessly trying to win Changxia over!

Thinking quickly, Xifeng jumped in, “Changxia, Uncle also brought you three thousand jin of seaweed. It tastes sweet raw and can be cooked in dishes too.”

Changxia was stunned.

Oh wow...

They had just greeted each other—how did things get competitive so quickly?

But she liked it.

With a smile, Chang Xia stepped forward and took the jar of sugar from Gen’s hands. She said, “Thank you, uncles, for your gifts. Please, uncles and brothers, try some maple sugar from the Heluo tribe. This maple sugar is made from the sap of red maple trees. It has a wonderful flavor, different from the sweetness of honey—truly delicious.”

This jar contained small granules of maple sugar.

The larger chunks were stored in big clay jars; the small jars simply couldn’t fit them.

Each chunk weighed half a jin or a full jin.

There was no way to squeeze them into a small jar unless you broke them up.

“Maple sugar—”

The two men were still trying to outdo each other,

But their attention was suddenly drawn to the clay jar in Chang Xia’s hands.

They watched as Chang Xia opened the jar and took out several caramel-colored pieces of maple sugar. She gave each person two pieces—not too many, not too few—just enough to taste the sweetness.

On this side of the riverbank, things were still relatively calm.

On the other side, Xifeng and the three clansmen behind him were immediately captivated by the maple sugar.

The bear tribe had a notorious sweet tooth—this wasn’t just a rumor.

They loved to dig out honey to eat, and in daily life, they enjoyed chewing on seaweed roots, both of which were sweet. Now, with Chang Xia offering maple sugar...

Just the scent made Xifeng swallow hungrily.

The clansmen behind him were no different.

Taking the maple sugar, Xifeng popped it straight into his mouth. There was so little of it that he couldn’t bear to chew—he held it carefully, afraid he might accidentally swallow it whole and miss out on the flavor.

Very soon, a rich caramel sweetness exploded on his taste buds.

“What a unique sweetness!”

“It’s delicious, so sweet, and completely different from honey.”

In an instant, Xifeng and his three clansmen were gazing eagerly at Chang Xia—though, truthfully, their eyes were mostly on the jar in her hands.

By contrast, the people on this side of the riverbank were much more composed.

They were just as delighted by the maple sugar’s sweetness, but managed to keep their wits about them.

“So, what do you all think of the maple sugar?” Gen sat down, took the piece Chang Xia handed him, and tasted it. He couldn’t help but think to himself that, compared to reed root sugar, the maple sugar’s caramel flavor was a bit too strong and even a little overwhelming.

Xifeng said, “It’s excellent! Gen, can we trade for some?”

As soon as Xifeng spoke, the three bear clansmen behind him looked at Gen with eager anticipation. Clearly, they were very interested in the maple sugar.

“The Sky Lion tribe would also like to trade for some. Whether it’s animal skins, bones, or red chili peppers, the lion tribe can offer them in exchange,” Anbian said straightforwardly.

No beastman could refuse sugar.

“We can trade,” Gen replied without hesitation.

Their tribe already had reed root sugar, so the maple sugar could be used for trade. Besides, next year they could harvest more red maple sap from Red Leaf Ridge. According to Chang Xia, the sap could be collected starting in March, and the flavor would vary depending on when it was harvested.

In fact, Chang Xia still had six barrels of red maple sap stored in her cellar.

Gen was planning to bring up a barrel for Anbian, Xifeng, and the others to try. After thinking it over, he decided to wait until mealtime to mention it.

“The new way of eating ginkgo nuts was discovered by Chang Xia. She’s discussed it with the Heluo tribe and hopes to trade this new method for your red chili peppers and seaweed. In addition to sharing various ways to use ginkgo flour, Chang Xia will also provide different methods for preparing fish,” Su Ye said, tapping the table. The room fell silent as everyone listened intently.

She paused slightly before continuing.

“There’s one condition for Chang Xia sharing her fish recipes: she hopes that, one day, she’ll be allowed to enter your two tribes’ territories to hunt and forage. Don’t worry, this condition applies only to Chang Xia herself and doesn’t involve the Heluo tribe or the Black Panther clan.”

At first, Anbian and Xifeng were delighted by Su Ye’s words.

But then their expressions changed.

When Su Ye finished, their faces relaxed again.

If it was just Chang Xia entering their territories, it wouldn’t affect the lion or bear tribes much. After all, she was just one female and posed no threat to them.

Seeing that the two tribe leaders seemed willing to agree, Su Ye smiled.

“In fact, Chang Xia isn’t making this request just for your two tribes. She wants to travel throughout the entire Misty Forest, searching for new foods.”

At this, the lion and bear tribe leaders realized there was more to her request.

Thinking it over, Anbian and Xifeng looked seriously at Chang Xia.

“Shaman, may we ask why?”

For hunting and foraging, the Heluo tribe’s territory was more than enough to support the Black Panther clan.

So why did Chang Xia want to go to other beast tribes’ lands?

“I love exploring the unknown and searching for new ingredients,” Chang Xia replied. “The Misty Forest is vast and full of resources. But the beast tribes aren’t as prosperous as the bird or fish tribes. I want to find things unique to the Misty Forest—like lightstones, ice crystal grass, and keystones.”

At that, Anbian and Xifeng stared at Chang Xia in shock.

Her dream was so grand that it left them speechless.

The lightstones, ice crystal grass, and keystones Chang Xia mentioned were all rare treasures.

So far, none of these had ever been found in the Misty Forest.

Take the giant boa of the Moonwatch Mountains, for example—it was considered a delicacy. But the boa was revered as a snake spirit by the snake tribe, so beastmen weren’t allowed to hunt it freely.

Besides,

The boa was huge, and even in the Moonwatch Mountains, there weren’t many of them.

“The bear tribe agrees to Chang Xia’s request. The Earth Tribe welcomes her to come and go as she pleases,” Xifeng said cheerfully.

Aside from honey and seaweed, the bear tribe was always generous.

With Xifeng’s agreement, Anbian didn’t hesitate either. “The lion tribe also agrees to Chang Xia’s condition. She’s welcome to visit the Sky Lion tribe’s lands anytime.”

“Thank you, chiefs!” Chang Xia was overjoyed.

She took a deep breath and looked earnestly at the two tribe leaders.

Since they were being so generous, she didn’t want to be stingy either.

“I can teach the bear tribe how to make sugar from seaweed, and I’ll tell the lion tribe about different ways to use chili peppers. Besides eating them raw, chilies can be cooked, dried to make chili flakes or powder, and even made into chili oil…”

As soon as they heard this, both tribes were instantly filled with excitement.

Just one promise had brought them so many benefits—they all understood they were getting the better end of the deal. The shaman had warned them about this beforehand.

The new way to eat ginkgo nuts could change the beast tribe’s diet.

It might even mean the beast tribe would never go hungry again. This was definitely a bargain. From what the shaman said, this method of eating ginkgo nuts would soon spread throughout the entire Twilight Forest.

Clearly,

Ginkgo nuts were no ordinary thing.

“Hmph—” Gen snorted twice, feeling soft-hearted toward Changxia again.

Whether it was making sugar from seaweed or finding new ways to eat chili peppers,

Either of these things alone could change the fate of a whole tribe.

Changxia was just too kind.

By the riverbank, Anbian and Xifeng exchanged a glance, then spoke up and promised directly, “As chief of the Heavenly Lion Tribe, I promise that every year, the Lion Tribe will gift thirty thousand jin of chili peppers to the Heluo Tribe, and we’ll also teach the Black Panther Tribe how to grow them.”

Anbian simply followed Changxia’s lead and called the red fruit “chili pepper.”

The name didn’t matter—as long as the chili peppers still belonged to the Lion Tribe.

Likewise, Xifeng made a promise.

“The Earth Tribe agrees to gift ten thousand jin of seaweed sugar to the Heluo Tribe every year,” Xifeng said generously.

He didn’t actually know how to make sugar from seaweed,

But if there was one thing the Earth Tribe had in abundance, it was seaweed.

Ten thousand jin was nothing to him, so he promised it without hesitation. Compared to the Lion Tribe’s thirty thousand jin of chili peppers, Xifeng’s ten thousand jin of sugar seemed even more sincere.

But Changxia didn’t care about the quantities.

She was just happy with their straightforwardness and generosity. With this kind of give-and-take, their partnership could last a long, long time.