I've been transported to the orc continent.

Chapter 336 Hemp Thread

The central tribe has a pottery workshop that specializes in firing pottery. Bai Ling found the orc in charge of managing the pottery workshop and asked him to help fire a batch of pottery spindle whorls.

The clay spinning wheel is simple to make and is best suited for the current situation. Once the tribe has a carpentry workshop, they can use spinning wheels to spin thread.

The orc who managed the pottery workshop readily agreed to Bai Ling's request: "Ling, the spinning wheel you mentioned is easy to fire. The mold can be made by noon, and the small pottery blanks will dry quickly, so they can be fired tomorrow."

Bai Ling thanked him, and when she returned, she had several more exquisite ceramic bowls in her hands.

*

After the ramie was dried, Bai Ling led the beastmen to begin spinning it.

He placed the dried ramie in a basin of clean water, soaked it for a while, then took out a ramie and split it into thin strands.

The beastmen sat together in a large basket in the middle. They threw fine hemp fibers into the basket. It was their first time doing this kind of work, and they were not very skilled.

At first, none of the orcs spoke; they were all focused on splitting hemp fibers. But as they gradually became more skilled, they started chatting and laughing.

Around noon, the Grand Elder arrived.

It's harvest time now, and even the Grand Elder has to work every day. This morning, after he finished harvesting cassava from a plot of land, he passed by the square on his way back and saw Bai Ling leading his clansmen in their work, so he came over to take a look.

The elder looked at the hemp fibers in the basket and his eyes lit up: "Ling, this is hemp fiber?"

The elder had seen how cloth was woven. The silk used for weaving was silkworm silk, which, like hemp silk, was a long and thin thread. Since silkworm silk could be woven into beautiful silk fabric, could this fine hemp silk also be woven into cloth?

Bai Ling nodded: "Yes, this is hemp fiber. To weave cloth, you need to twist several strands of hemp fiber into thread."

The elder then said, "After the autumn harvest, Ling, you should lead the tribe to make a loom so that we can weave cloth."

There are too many things to do in the tribe right now: the autumn harvest, iron smelting, charcoal making, house construction... There simply aren't enough people to do carpentry work. They've all agreed that they'll start the carpentry work once the houses are finished.

The elder said a few more words, then left with his basket on his back. The beastmen who had been working also went home. Bai Ling and the other three were also going back. Xiao was holding Yue's arm, looking somewhat dejected: "This is even more troublesome than silk reeling."

Yue also felt that doing this was quite troublesome, as the movements were repetitive and monotonous. However, hemp fibers could be used to weave cloth, and this was a skill that Ling had taught him. He had to give Ling enough face and couldn't complain about the trouble.

“Xiao, if you’re tired, you don’t need to go this afternoon,” Yue’s voice softened. “Chen can go instead.”

Xiao's face flushed red: "I'm not tired, I was just saying a few words casually."

*

The hemp fibers need to be spun into tassels using a ceramic spinning wheel. This is a very simple operation. Bai Ling demonstrated it first. He wrapped the hemp fibers around the spinning wheel, and gently turned the ceramic spinning wheel with his fingers holding the hemp fibers. The spinning wheel slowly started to rotate, and as the spinning wheel rotated, the hemp fibers were also wrapped around the hammer rod.

The beastmen learned quickly, and once all the hemp fibers had been made into tassels, Bai Ling had them start twisting the threads.

This is also very simple. Just twist a few strands of hemp together, wrap them around a ceramic spinning wheel, and gently turn the spinning wheel by hand. The hemp strands will then become intertwined and turned into hemp thread that can be woven into cloth.

The orcs who were learning from Bai Ling were very excited. They had created something that had never been done before: something that could be woven into linen, and linen could be made into beautiful clothes. They all looked forward to the day when linen could be woven.

*

Bai Ling doesn't have a fixed job in the central tribe; he goes wherever he's needed to help. Recently, the glass kiln needed people, so Bai Ling and Yue came to help. The two of them leave early and return late every day, only able to rest for a while after lunch.

After finishing their meal, Yue sat down to rest on a rock. Bai Ling handed her a clean piece of animal hide, saying, "Yue, wipe your hands."

Yue didn't speak. He took the animal skin and carefully wiped his hands. Actually, Yue's hands weren't dirty. He had washed them clean while eating.

After wiping her hands clean, Bai Ling opened the small ceramic jar in her hand and handed it over.

Autumn weather is dry, and they have to work outside all day. Sometimes when the wind blows, their hands feel like they are being pricked by fine needles. Bai Ling made some hand cream and told Yue to apply it several times a day.

Yue applied a layer of hand cream to his hands, then rubbed them back and forth. Soon, his hands were shiny with oil, and the dryness of his hands was greatly reduced.

"Ling, you should apply some too," Yue said to Bai Ling.

Bai Ling agreed, wiped his hands clean with the animal hide, and then, using Yue's hand as a guide, scooped out a dollop of hand cream and applied it evenly to his hands.

Xiao and Chen were sitting not far away, whispering to each other. Xiao patted Chen on the back after Chen said something, and Chen's smile widened. He leaned closer and said a few more words to Xiao, who patted him on the back again. Then they both laughed.

Further away, several orcs from the central tribes were talking about something, their faces beaming with simple smiles, clearly discussing something that made them happy.

*

The caravans of the Central Tribe were helping Bai Ling collect seeds, especially cotton and rice seeds. Bai Ling said these seeds were very precious. The Central Tribe sent fifteen orcs specifically to help Bai Ling collect these two kinds of seeds. The tribes that possessed these two kinds of seeds were not in the same direction. These sky orcs set off in the spring and returned to the Central Tribe in the autumn.

Their original plan was to rest for two days in their own tribe before setting off again to deliver the seeds to Bai Ling in the Gaoshu tribe, but they never expected that Bai Ling would be in their own tribe.

This time they brought a lot of seeds: more than seventy baskets of cotton seeds, more than fifty baskets of rice seeds, and more than ten baskets of gold ore.

The leading Sky Beastman said, "Ling, we brought these seeds. We know you really like these yellow stones, so we took a detour on the way to exchange them for these stones."

Bai Ling was surprised that the beastmen had collected a lot of gold ore for him, which moved him deeply. He repeatedly thanked the beastmen who had been working hard outside for more than half a year.

The leading orc shook his head repeatedly: "Ling, don't say that. You've taught us so many skills; we should be the ones thanking you."

Several elders from the central tribe were also present and joined the discussion. Bai Ling explained the uses of cotton and rice to them.

"Cotton can be spun and used to make clothes and bedding. Rice seeds, after being hulled, become rice, which is a very delicious food."