Lords of the Heavens

Chapter 54 Inventory Check
“Okay, Mom. Winter is dangerous, so we need to make sure we have enough food stored.” Li Wei sat back down and smiled slightly.

Fila glanced at him, sighed softly, and could only report the truth, "Currently, the food at home is roughly these few kinds: about 900 catties of wheat, 20 catties of dried wolf meat, 20 catties of dried venison, and no pheasant or rabbit meat left, which are basically used to make mushroom soup. There is a lot of dried fish, because we have been fishing for the past three months, about 50 catties."

"In addition, there are 30 catties of dried bracken and 50 catties of dried mushrooms. One-star quality mushrooms are the main ingredient for making mushroom meat soup. Currently, there is only one catty of dried mushrooms left, which is enough for 20 meals. However, if there is one-star quality meat, then ordinary dried mushrooms can also be used to make mushroom meat soup. All 20 catties of dried venison are one-star quality. If we use venison to make mushroom meat soup, we can guarantee the supply for this month, but we cannot guarantee the supply for next month."

"And then there are chestnuts. I estimate that I can harvest at least 800 jin (400 catties). I plan to grind them into flour and mix them with wheat flour to make gray bread."

"There's still a lot of oil left, about fifteen catties including what you brought back. In addition, there's the salt you brought back, and ten catties of dried fruit. I've also collected the bones from the wolves, deer, pheasants, and fish we killed before and made them into bone meal, which can be added to the flour."

"Finally, I also collected 20 jin of pine needles, which we can use to make tea when the mountains are snowbound. That's all. If there are six of us and we eat sparingly, we can make it until spring. Besides, we can continue fishing next month..."

Fila reluctantly made the list.

With this list, a quick inspection of the warehouse will reveal her hidden goods.

Having personal items is fine, of course; they're personal property, and no one will steal or rob them. But the problem is that she's the only one in the family who has a habit of storing personal items.

So far, Li Wei, Penny and the others have seen and know that Fila's private goods include as many as three large jars of fruit wine, one jar of honey wine, at least fifty catties of dried fish, twenty catties of dried rats, and no less than fifty catties of dried wild vegetables and mushrooms.

By calculating the quantity and value of these personal items, we can roughly estimate that if Fila chooses to donate them all, she will receive at least 50 to 80 contribution points.

Oh, by the end of this month, Fila's family contribution should be close to 100. So if she donates the whole amount, she will become a big shot with at least 150 family contribution points!

If Li Wei hadn't received such a strong boost from Penny this month...

Next, he did some mental calculations, and although they weren't very accurate, it seemed that six people would be enough.

However, we must consider the increased food consumption in winter, so—

"Alright, Lyon, you'll be in charge of fishing next month."

Li Wei ultimately agreed to Leon's request. Although he could have done what Penny did and sabotage Leon, he felt that at this stage of the family's development, minor sabotage was no longer very meaningful. As the head of the family, increasing the family's wealth, upgrading the camp, and obtaining a better completion rating were the most important things.

Currently, Lyon clearly believes that his primary profession, craftsman, cannot compete with Penny for the time being, so he might as well catch more one-star quality fish to increase his family contribution.

The sika deer that Li Wei hunted earlier earned him 20 contribution points, which definitely motivated him.

So why not increase your contribution level and one day take over the position of head of the family and experience it for yourself?
At this point, of the four family members, only Li Wei's monthly main quest remains undetermined. Fila, Penny, and Leon are all watching him; this is an unavoidable step, and theoretically, everyone has the right to know.

After thinking for a moment, Li Wei looked at Penny again, "Sister, I think your previous idea was correct. We do need foreign trade. Although we have many options, we can't give up on ironware. You have a lot of experience in this area, can you give me some advice?"

Indeed, after careful consideration, Li Wei felt that as the head of the family, he could not act impulsively like Penny, nor could he be self-serving like Fila, nor could he be arrogant like Missy. He had to consider the overall situation. In particular, his current family contribution level was as high as 221 points. As long as he worked hard, earning 30 points a month would not be a problem.

This means that he will remain the head of the household for the rest of the winter, and possibly into spring, unless those two seasoned players manage to seize his position through some special means. Therefore, foreign trade is an important economic growth point that he cannot ignore in developing his family.

As of now, the pillar industry of mining, iron smelting, and forging cannot be allowed to come to a standstill just because Penny is injured, Missy dies tragically, and Lyon retreats.

At the very least, if the small blast furnace is to be built and restarted to quench steel next spring, there will need to be enough iron ore and charcoal to support it.

"George, are you sure you want to listen to my opinion?"

Penny spoke weakly, surprised, since she had already started to give up at this point.

"Yes, sister."

Li Wei spoke very seriously, saying that everyone has their own expertise and that it's impossible to deny that.

Penny glanced at him a few times. "If you ask me, it was the right thing to do to give up iron smelting in the cold winter. Firstly, iron ore and charcoal cannot be supplied effectively, and after the heavy snow closes the mountains, what was originally a simple matter will become extremely troublesome."

"Secondly, the low winter temperatures pose a fatal flaw in maintaining the furnace temperature of small blast furnaces; if not handled properly, it could easily lead to fatalities."

"Therefore, it would be better to wait until spring when the flowers bloom before rebuilding the small blast furnace. At that time, I will try to fire better quality refractory bricks. Of course, this does not mean that we cannot do some preparatory work next month. The weather will not be too cold next month. Before the first snow falls, we can still continue to mine iron ore, cut timber and burn charcoal. With this month's reserves, it will be much easier to start the furnace and smelt iron next spring."

"Of course, this is just my suggestion; the decision is yours."

Li Wei nodded at this point. Penny's statement was reasonable and well-founded, and it was indeed true.

"Alright, it's decided then. We'll leave the iron smelting to next spring. I'll be in charge of mining and logging next month. It's always a good thing to stockpile more."

Now, as Li Wei confirmed in his mind that 3 points of family contribution had been consumed, the monthly main quest for the next month was released.

[Monthly Main Quest]

[Mother Fila needs to gather all the chestnuts, and is also responsible for three meals a day, tending the fire (daytime only), looking after the old cow, and ensuring a daily serving of mushroom and meat soup (materials have been confirmed and are plentiful this month). She will gain 8 family contribution points for this, but due to the special nature of her main quest, she can freely assign other tasks after she finishes gathering the chestnuts.]

[Penny, the older sister, needs to recover her health this month; she will receive 1 point of family contribution.]

[Leon, the younger brother, needs to catch 300 jin of fish this month. He will receive 10 family contribution points. If he catches fish of one-star quality, he will receive additional contribution points. Specifically, every five jin is considered one unit, and each unit will earn him 1 additional contribution point.]

This month you need to mine and transport 10 units of iron ore, and cut down and break down 5 units of oak. You will gain 15 family contribution points.

(End of this chapter)