The wicked female is extremely fierce, but she's pampered by her seven beast husbands.

Chapter 288 The human heart is sinister
Bai Qingyu set off early the next morning, just as dawn was breaking.

He only brought one flying orc with him.

Standing on the city wall, Ling Chengen watched the two figures disappear into the distance. He suddenly felt that the Beast City should indeed be supplemented with some flying orcs. This would make the transmission of messages, the transportation of supplies, and the reconnaissance of enemy positions much more convenient.

Ling Chengen wasn't entirely sure if Bai Qingyu could persuade his father and clansmen, so she had to prepare for both possibilities.

Before the problem in Hanshan is solved, we need to recruit a group of avian orcs.

She touched the bricks of the city wall with her fingertips and felt the cold wind blowing from behind her.

The wind felt like a bone-scraping knife, making her shiver involuntarily.

The sky in the north was overcast, with thick, low-hanging clouds.

She brought up the system panel, glanced at the weather, and frowned, saying, "The forecast changed?"

The system said somewhat guiltily, "I detected some minor bugs in some applications a few days ago, so I upgraded them last night. The weather forecast is now more accurate than before, and it can pinpoint the situation in specific areas."

Ling Chengen frowned and asked, "Is it raining and snowing today?"

System: "Yes, it was just updated this morning. There will be freezing rain in the central Mulan Plain area. It will start raining around 10 a.m., turn into sleet in the afternoon, and then snow heavily in the evening."

"Lowest temperature: minus seven degrees Celsius."

"Although the weather won't freeze you to death, you'd better plan ahead, because it will snow for the next seven days and the temperature will continue to drop, with the lowest temperature around minus 15 degrees Celsius. The temperature will slowly rise in the following week, but the daytime high will only be five degrees Celsius, and the nighttime temperature will still be below zero."

Ling Chengen sighed: "It's only mid-October, and it's already this cold?"

"You should be glad this isn't the far north. The average temperature in the far north is minus ten degrees Celsius every day, and it can even drop to minus thirty degrees Celsius at night."

Ling Chengen: "...Even the Ice Age couldn't have been this bad, could it?"

The system shook its head and said, "Then you underestimate the Ice Age. The situation in the Beast World is not that severe."

"However, the situation in the Beast World is definitely more serious than during the Little Ice Age, but the cold resistance of ordinary people is incomparable to that of beastmen, so you don't need to worry so much."

Ling Chengen sighed. Her concern wasn't about the cold resistance, but rather that the drop in temperature would affect crop growth and harvest.

She plans to clear the land next year and officially lead the orcs to grow food.

If you start with a difficult challenge, put in a lot of effort, but get only mediocre results, it will definitely cause your subordinates to completely lose confidence.

Ling Chengen turned and walked down the city wall. After stepping into the street, she looked at the giant trees that blocked out the sky above the street and couldn't help but feel a headache.

Yuheng had told her about the purpose of the giant tree.

But it's about to start snowing. After seven days of rain and snow, these tree branches will definitely break under the weight of the snow, which will affect the buildings below.

Especially the windows... Although not all of them are glass windows, and most are wooden windows, it is still very dangerous.

But cutting off the branches... it seems impossible to explain to Yuheng, after all, he was the one who worked so hard to make them grow.

Moreover, sawing off tree branches is quite time-consuming and laborious.

Ling Chengen went straight back to the house to discuss the matter with Yuheng.

After explaining the situation, he remained calm, leaning back in his wicker chair with one leg crossed, and said slowly, "You can decide that yourself. Why are you asking me about such a trivial matter? Just cut off those branches if you want; it won't affect me at all."

"Now that the hunting party members have all returned, anyone who dares to try to seize the city will have to think twice about their own strength. So there's no need for those giant trees to help conceal the situation inside the city anymore."

"Besides, you only sawed off branches, you didn't cut the tree down."

"If I need the giant tree barrier again next time, I can just accelerate its growth on this basis, which will save a lot of effort."

Yuheng explained to her, "Actually, the part that consumes the most supernatural power to grow trees is the trunk itself. It's like a tree that grows naturally; how thick the trunk is depends on how many rings it grows over time. But the branches of a tree, if pruned every year, will sprout and grow again every spring."

"That's the same principle."

"After those branches are cut down, we can find someone to dry them, and then we'll have firewood for heating, right?"

Yuheng clasped his hands together and laughed, "It's killing two birds with one stone, and these branches aren't wasted."

Ling Chengen nodded slightly and said, "Since there are no problems on your end, I will make the arrangements."

Yuheng put both feet on the ground, stood up from the chair, and straightened his slightly disheveled clothes: "I'll stay with you. If we stay in the house, that fox might try to drag me to work again soon."

Ling Chengen turned and walked out of the courtyard, unable to suppress a smile, and said, "Anyway, you're just sitting around doing nothing. Helping him with some chores shouldn't cause such a big grudge, right?"

Yuheng tightened his loosened collar, then took the animal skin hat hanging by the door and put it directly on his head.

The hat was designed by Ling Chengen, who also gave him two pieces of leather that he had exchanged from the north, and told him to find someone to make it himself.

The hat was the same style as the dog-skin hat from Northeast China in my previous life.

It has a wide brim, foldable ear flaps on both sides, and is lined with fire crystal cotton.

Once you put it on, your head will feel warm, which is perfect for a Southern Plains beastman like Yuheng who is extremely afraid of the cold.

Although it looks rather thuggish, it doesn't quite match Yuheng's overall demeanor.

But what's the point of being so particular during the cold season in Kitahara? As long as it's warm, that's all that matters.

When Yuheng first saw the finished product, he was somewhat disgusted. Although he was not a particularly vain male orc, to be honest, he did have some sense of aesthetics.

But as the weather got colder, he really liked it after wearing it a few times.

Ling Chengen looked at the animal skin coat he was wearing. The fur collar covered his entire face, making his skin appear even whiter and his face look exceptionally small.

She scratched the back of her head and asked, "If you're so afraid of the cold, how did you manage to get through the cold season in the Northern Plains all by yourself in previous years?"

Yuheng put his hands in the pockets at his waist, looking like a person on the verge of death, and replied weakly, "Sleep, find a warm place to sleep."

"Then we prepared a lot of firewood and kept a fire going."

He doesn't care whether he eats or not, as long as he has water.

So in previous years, we would find a place near geothermal activity, dig a deep hole, move in, and sleep soundly with a bonfire burning brightly around us.

The fire was kept under Jiaojiao's control, so he didn't have to worry about anything else.

Now that he has a partner, people are starting to worry about how he will get through the winter, and have even prepared a lot of winter essentials for him, things he didn't know before.

Last year, he prepared a few animal skin coats that he had exchanged with the northern tribes, but because he wore very thin clothes underneath, it was still very cold when he went out. So he basically stayed indoors and was unaware of the situation outside. It wasn't until the snow melted in the spring of the following year that he crawled out of his cave.

Ling Chengen shook his head speechlessly: "I got you extra leather, you didn't just make a hat, did you? Did you prepare the scarf and the jumpsuit gloves too?"

Yuheng nodded: "We've done it all, but we haven't used it yet. I'm afraid that if we use it now, it will get even colder later and I won't know what to do."

Ling Chengen: "Do you still need leather? We can make a few more leather coats. For the inner clothes, we usually use cloud-patterned clothing or fire crystal cotton fabric as a base layer, and then wear a wool sweater. That should be enough."

Yu Heng: "There's no wool in the tribe, right?" Ling Chengen tapped his forehead, suddenly stopped, and exclaimed in surprise: "I almost forgot, I exchanged some back and put them in a corner of my space and forgot about them."

The wool was obtained from a stall of the Snow Sheep Tribe. They are orcs from the far north and have their own ways of keeping warm. Their tribe raises many long-haired sheep. Every year when the rainy season and the dry season change, they shear the wool, dry it, and store it. In winter, the wool is used to stuff into their clothes.

Sometimes they would peel off the skin whole and make sheepskin coats.

The sheepskin coats and woolen jackets at the Snow Sheep tribe's stall were very expensive, but the wool was much cheaper, so she bought all the remaining wool from the Snow Sheep tribe's stall.

However, the wool was untreated, so it still had a strong smell.

Moreover, to make a wool sweater, you first need to wash the wool, spin it into yarn, and then knit it into a sweater...

The process is a bit complicated.

I don't know if it will be too late to start now.

Yuheng asked, "Could you save one of those wool garments for me too? Did you exchange it with tribe resources, or with your own resources?"

Ling Chengen turned his head and said, "I traded my own supplies for it."

There is no precedent for Shilin to exchange wool with other tribes, so exchanging collective resources will definitely cause controversy.

So she used the prey that she and Bai Qingyu had shared to exchange for it.

The Stone Forest Tribe has rules for the distribution of prey. Eighty percent of the prey hunted by a group will be handed over to the tribe, while the remaining 20% ​​will be distributed among the hunting teams themselves. Although 20% may not sound like much, the efficiency of group hunting is definitely higher than that of individual hunting. Therefore, many beastmen are willing to hunt in groups, as it is safe and secure, and individuals can also receive their share of the supplies.

As Ling Chengen and he walked out, Ling Chengen said, "We've exchanged too much wool. We definitely can't use it all ourselves. If you're free lately, could you help me with that?"

Yuheng reached out and tapped his cheek, saying proudly, "Give me a kiss, and I'll grant your every wish."

Ling Chengen glanced at him a few times, then turned his head and said, "Never mind, I'll just ask Yu Shaochen for help later."

Yuheng: "He's busy helping you research the seeds, how could he have time to mess around with these animal hairs?"

“And then there’s Chongzhen and Su Weihua.” Ling Chengen rolled his eyes. “I have more than one beast husband. You’re haggling with me over every little thing.”

Yuheng lowered his head and kissed her cheek, then chuckled and said, "Fine, if the mountain won't come to me, I'll just go down the mountain."

"Leave the wool business to me."

"Just a cleaning?"

"It still needs to be dried," Ling Chengen said.

"Yes, we'll need to find someone to help us twist the yarn. I'll teach you briefly later. You'll need to find someone to help you later, as one person definitely can't handle it all. Female beastmen and elderly people in the city are fine. Find them some work to do, and they can earn more money, which will make the cold season easier."

Yuheng tilted his head, looked at her serious face, and sighed, "You really do have to worry about everyone."

"Hasn't the tribe's logistics always been managed by Chongzhen's father?"

"I'll ask him to make the arrangements. Since I'm enjoying the resources provided by the tribe, I should naturally contribute some effort as well."

Ling Chengen frowned and said, "Public matters are public matters, and private matters are private matters; they must be kept separate."

“The wool is our own property. Because we have a lot of it, I want to trade the finished wool garments. This will create a series of problems…”

Yuheng raised his hand and patted her head, saying perfunctorily, "I know, I'll give you a reward."

Anyway, there was no shortage of food at home. Although he didn't go hunting much, he still had plenty of game. Giving some away as payment wouldn't be a big deal.

"However, I want two wool sweaters."

Ling Chengen shoved his slightly cold right hand into the pocket on his waist and said with a smile, "If you get things done, I'll give you five items."

Yuheng's face instantly lit up with a smile. He grabbed the hand in his pocket, looking smug, and said, trying to suppress his smile, "Alright, approved."

Who can blame him when this person in front of him is the partner he chose himself!
Even without deep affection, he is still a responsible and dependable male orc.

Ling Chengen went to find Su Weihua. Although they had eaten dinner at the same table last night after the hunting team returned, Su Weihua was a quiet person who was usually very reserved, so they didn't talk much last night.

Ling Chengen went to Su Weihua's courtyard and found no one there.

As I was leaving, I ran into Chongzhen at the door.

Chongzhen first glanced at the two of them, his eyes fixed on their hands.

He slightly raised his chin, his tone a little strange, and said, "You two are really in high spirits. While I'm being treated like a slave, you two can leisurely go out for a stroll..."

Ling Chengen withdrew his hand and said speechlessly, "I need to see Su Weihua about something. It's going to snow today, so we need to make arrangements early."

Chongzhen looked at Yuheng with a meaningful gaze: "And what about him?"

"..." Ling Chengen paused for a few seconds, then took the lead in walking down the steps, waving to the two of them, "You two chat, I have something to do, I'll take my leave first."

Yu Heng, who had been sold out on the spot, twitched his lips twice and glared at the back of her head: "..."

Chongzhen crossed his arms in front of him and chuckled, "Let's chat."

"We don't have much to talk about. If you have something to say, go find Bai Qingyu."

Yu Heng turned and walked into the house. Chong Zhen immediately caught up with him and stopped him, saying, "Bai Qingyu has left the city to find Shi Panxing and the others. You're the only one with nothing to do..."

"Everyone's busy as a spinning top, and you're the only one lying down to sleep. How can you possibly get any sleep?"

Yu Heng, with his hands in his pockets and a calm expression, said, "Thank you for your concern, but I sleep very well."

He could stay in his room and sleep all winter.

Seeing that he was unmoved by her words, Chongzhen took a deep breath: "After you're done, order whatever you want to eat!"

"Three days."

Yu Heng stopped in his tracks, turned around to look at the raised finger, stroked his chin and thought for a few seconds, then raised his own hand and said unhurriedly, "One month, or forget it."

Chongzhen's expression was about to crumble.

Don't exploit people like this!

Yuheng made a move to leave, and Chongzhen immediately agreed, gritting his teeth and saying, "Fine, one month it is."

Yuheng turned around and walked out instantly, waving at him: "Then what are we waiting for?"

"Hurry up, it's too cold for me to go out."

Chongzhen slowly clenched his fists, then laughed in exasperation.

Fine, he'll definitely show this shameless guy what the wickedness of the human heart is!
(End of this chapter)