C9 Different from Others

When Jason caught sight of the bow and arrow in Yuan Ge's hands, he initially suspected some sort of shortcut or trickery at play. However, witnessing the weapon's speed and power left him utterly bewildered. Jiekui, who stood behind him, was so astonished that his mouth hung open. They had been raised to believe that the stone spear was the sole weapon of a warrior, a skill bequeathed by their ancestors and honed by each successive generation.

But now, their convictions were wavering as the tangible results of the new weapon challenged everything they knew.

Amidst their rapt attention, a stern voice suddenly boomed from behind, "What are you dawdling for? Why aren't you training?"

They all spun around to find Jie'ao glaring at them with an unblinking, steely gaze, his expression warning that he would trample them like wild beasts if they didn't resume their training.

"Come on, let's get back to spear-throwing practice before Captain Jie'ao gives us a thrashing!" Jason called out, picking up a stone spear and leading the way into the grassland. The rest of the children trailed after him, though their gazes remained fixed on Yuan Ge, particularly the crescent-shaped weapon in his grasp. But with Jie'ao's intense stare pinning them down, they reluctantly turned their attention to rabbit hunting.

Jie'ao marched straight up to Yuan Ge, but before he could utter a word, Yuan Ge coolly ignored him, striding over to the straw man bristling with arrows. He retrieved the arrows, stowing them in his beast skin bag, and departed the grassland without a backward glance.

Yuan Ge was indifferent to Jie'ao's status; his dismissal left Jie'ao seething. How could the tribe's traditional skills be disregarded? He felt compelled to put a stop to such behavior, lest the tribe descend into disorder.

Yuan Ge sauntered off the grassland, heading nonchalantly toward Jiemen's home, unconcerned with Jie'ao's thoughts.

Upon reaching Jiemen's doorstep, Yuan Ge called out, "Uncle Jiemen, I've come for my pottery!"

At the sound of Yuan Ge's voice, Jiemen, who had been tending to the stove, rushed out and got straight to the point, "Ge, are you the one who made those pottery pieces?"

Yuan Ge, puzzled by Jiemen's anxious demeanor, replied, "What's the matter? Aren't they finished yet?" Jiemen's expression hinted that there was more to the story of the pottery pieces.

Jie Tu flashed a sycophantic smile and continued, "Well, I did manage to fire them, but the High Priest took them all!"

Yuan Ge was startled. Why would the High Priest take his pottery?

Jie Tu provided the answer: "When the pottery came out of the kiln today, the High Priest happened to see it. Everyone was singing the praises of your work, so the High Priest commanded me to deliver all your pottery to him!"

"It all makes sense now!" Yuan Ge realized with sudden clarity.

In the tribe, the roles of the tribe leader and the High Priest were distinctly defined. The tribe leader was in charge of hunting, warfare, and the tribe's safety. On the other hand, the High Priest oversaw the tribe's daily life, cultural affairs, and spiritual matters. Given this, it was completely reasonable for the High Priest to take such an interest in the pottery, especially since it was an invention that could transform the tribe's way of life. Naturally, the High Priest would be intrigued.

Jie Tu, however, failed to grasp these nuances. He only noticed the High Priest's keen interest in the pottery, something he had never seen the High Priest get so excited about before.

With this in mind, Jie Tu pulled a piece of dried meat from his beast skin bag and offered it to Yuan Ge, saying, "Ge, you're at the age where you're growing fast. Take this piece of dried meat!"

There's an old saying that if someone offers unsolicited favors, they're either up to no good or after something. Clearly, the old man's intentions were transparent; he was after the pottery-making technique. But he was playing his cards a bit too well. Alright, if he's going to treat me like a child, I might as well play along.

Since it was already offered, there was no reason to refuse. Yuan Ge accepted the jerky, expressed his thanks, and stashed it in his beast skin bag.

Jie Tu's face nearly split with joy as Yuan Ge pocketed the jerky, marking a successful step toward his goal. Now was the moment to broach the real subject, and so Jie Tu said with a smile, "Ge, there's something I'd like to discuss with you!"

"What might that be?" Yuan Ge feigned ignorance. A single piece of jerky was hardly enough to win him over.

But before Jie Tu could elaborate, a voice from outside interrupted, "Grandpa, I'm back. Got anything to eat? I'm absolutely famished!"

Yuan Ge glanced towards the door to see a child roughly his own age, yet weighing at least twice as much, shouting as he tossed stone spears from his back onto the ground. This boy was Jiemen's grandson, Jiemeng. With his plump, tiger-like appearance, it was easy to see why he was so endearing.

Yuan Ge, eager for an excuse to leave, seized the opportunity and stood up, saying, "Uncle Jiemen, Ah Hu, I've got some things to take care of, so I'll be heading out now!"

Without waiting for a response, Yuan Ge was already on his feet and out the door.

He moved swiftly, and before Jiemen could even attempt to persuade him to stay, Yuan Ge was gone without a trace. This infuriated Jiemen, who, without a word, yanked Jiemeng close and delivered a hefty slap to the boy's face. He had intended to inquire about pottery, but with Yuan Ge's departure, there was nothing left to ask.

Surely there had to be a reason for striking someone. Jiemeng, having received a slap out of the blue, felt unjustly treated. Anyone else might have retaliated, but Jiemen was his grandfather, and not even with a million guts would he dare to fight back. Instead, he could only hold his swollen cheek and ask in a subdued tone, "Grandpa, why did you hit me?"

Jiemen, fuming with rage, pushed Ah Hu to the ground, bellowing, "Why did I hit you? You choose neither to come back earlier nor later, but precisely when you did, ruining everything. If you weren't my grandson, I'd thrash you to death!"

Jiemeng was filled with a sense of injustice. Since when did he need to schedule his return home? Was this even his home anymore? Was this man still his grandfather?

After the slap and the scolding, Jiemen's anger subsided somewhat, and with a heavy sigh, he said, "Ah Hu, go find Yuan Ge for me..."