Sa Lei was given strict orders by Qin Fei to recuperate because of the injury in his arm. The tribe also escaped from another food crisis because Qin Fei found taro, this kind of food.
The females took advantage of the early morning to gather branches and vines to make some baskets for the purpose of collecting food from far away places. Once everything was ready, they set off in high spirits.
The hunting males led by Mocha and Benert left the tribe cheerfully. The sabres Sa Lei had extorted from Qin Fei were taken away by the shameless and thick-skinned Mocha. The other people who had been staying and working in the tribe were also busy picking taro from the nearby hills.
Ruma did not want to disturb Qin Fei and Sa Lei. He led the men early in the morning to collect the herbs Qin Fei had taught him yesterday. Only Sa Lei was bored and lying in his tent, allowing the Great Master Qin to poke the silver needles on him.
“The tribe that has been lively all morning suddenly quiets down, I am really not used to it!” Sa Lei couldn’t help but mutter in a small voice.
Qin Fei laughed and said, “I think you’re the one who’s not used to being idle!”
Sa Lei smiled broadly as he looked at Qin Fei, “Not to mention the fact that I’ve been going hunting early in the morning every day and coming back late in the evening. It’s really hard to be idle all of a sudden.”
When Qin Fei heard this, he couldn’t help but feel distressed. It was not easy to be the head of the tribe. Just to feed the tribe in such primitive times was already hard enough. Besides that, Ruma also said that the patriarch often fought with other tribe leaders to get better hunting territory. Most of the old scars on Sa Lei’s body were the result of dueling. However, the duel between the tribe leaders prevented some of the tribes from fighting each other on a large scale, thus preserving the other males in the tribe and allowing the warriors of the tribes to survive and prosper on the continent without having to kill each other and so they could concentrate their energy more on hunting.
Sa Lei looked fascinated at Qin Fei who had withdrawn the silver needles ; at this moment Qin Fei was carefully stroking those preserved for a long time and old scars of his.
“It’s no longer hurt, no need to be so careful.” Although he didn’t want to interrupt his gentle touch, seeing his distressed expression, Sa Lei still couldn’t bear to see it.
Hlc Mfl rlutfv, “Tbe tjnf ubcf atgbeut j iba jcv la kjr tjgv gluta?!”
Vj Ofl rtbbx tlr tfjv, “Dfobgf P wfa sbe, P kjr pera uglaalcu ws affat jcv tbivlcu bc, yea rlcmf P uba erfv ab la, P vlvc’a offi la kjr tjgv. Coafg P wfa sbe, jr ibcu jr P mjc rff sbe, P vbc’a offi la kjr tjgv jcswbgf.”
Qin Fei was attracted by those brilliant stars in Sa Lei’s eyes and stared blankly at him. Sa Lei slowly approached Qin Fei but when he was finally in contact with those soft and touched lips, Qin Fei gently pushed him away.
Sa Lei had a grimace on his face but he saw Qin Fei rubbing his face, “I thought you didn’t grow a beard, it’s pricking me.”
Sa Lei quickly touched his face, “Oh, I forgot to shave it.” With that, he hurriedly got up and touched it several times in the slit of the tent close to the door. He felt something the size of his thumb and turned around to go out.
Qin Fei hurriedly stopped Sa Lei, “What are you doing in such a hurry?”
Sa Lei was a little embarrassed, “To, to get this thing off.” Then he muttered in a low voice, “Mother was right, the females don’t like the sticking thing. I’ve been secretly shaving it every day. Only this one day I didn’t shave it and you can’t stand it.”
Qin Fei was so furious that he gave Sa Lei a light hit, “I’m a male and I also grow a beard.”
Sa Lei was a bit amazed and reached out to touch Qin Fei’s chin, “Your skin is smoother than a female. How could it be possible that you grow something that sticks out like that? Besides, I’ve never seen you with one before!”
Qin Fei was so angry that he was going to explode, but then he thought that he had rarely shaved before. Since he arrived here, he had never shaved even once too. He couldn’t help but touch his own chin. It was so smooth that he couldn’t even feel a single fine hair.
Seeing that Qin Fei was frowning, Sa Lei said softly, “Don’t worry, you’re already a different kind of male.”
Listening to this, Qin Fei got angry again, grunted in an unpleasant tone, “Yes, I’m a different kind of male. Who knew that one day I might even give birth to a cub for you one day!”
Although Sa Lei heard the way he talked was unpleasant, he was still attracted by the words ‘maybe I’ll even give birth to a cub for you one day’. Happily, he put his arm around Qin Fei and said, “Qin Fei, let us really have a baby, ba!”
As soon as Qin Fei heard this, “Fuck, even if I don’t grow a beard, I’m still a male. Just wait, wait until Lao Zi gives birth to a fart for you!”
Sa Lei’s face fell and he wandered out of the tent, wilting as he went to the river alone to shave his beard. His steps were in a mess.
Qin Fei’s heart was also in turmoil. Within half a cigarette’s time, he left the tent too and followed him to the river.
Under the sunlight, Qin Fei could see clearly that the thumb-sized object that Sa Lei was holding was a short shell knife. The knife had been sharpened but it was too small for Sa Lei’s large hands to make it work smoothly.
Qin Fei stepped forward, took the shell knife from Sa Lei’s hand and carefully helped him shave his beard. Sa Lei’s chin was already applied with the juice of the cleanser herb, producing a lot of tiny green bubbles that were slippery to the touch.
The cleanser grass was not something new to Qin Fei. It was a common plant shaped like a cactus.People here use it to cleanse their bodies. It was also used to brush pots, pans and wash the animal skins. The effect was comparable to that of shower gel and cleansers, but more environmentally friendly and non-toxic.
Sa Lei narrowed his eyes and enjoyed the touch of Qin Fei’s fingers, secretly saying that it was better to be injured than to be tough. In the future, he must be ‘wounded’ more so that Qin Fei will take the initiative and come to him.
After shaving, Qin Fei and Sa Lei were once again silent as they looked at each other. Sa Lei suggested going for a walk in the hills so that they could pick up some food. Qin Fei didn’t want to stay here and do nothing, but thinking of Sa Lei’s injury, Qin Fei insisted on taking only one basket, and Sa Lei was not allowed to carry something heavy.
Under the pressure of Qin Fei’s abuse of power, Sa Lei approved it with both of his hands. Both of them went up to the mountain happily with one backpack basket. Qin Fei couldn’t help but wonder if this was their first date. The more he thought about it, the more he felt like a mother-in-law. What was good about two old men to go on a date? Besides, they had been ‘sleeping’ together for almost a month, so what was the point of a date?
Sa Lei was in an extremely good mood, talking non-stop on the way, and even dragging Qin Fei upstream towards the river that ran through the tribe. According to him, over the mountain near the tribe, there was a small mudflat (low-lying beachland) where if they were lucky, they could collect a few bird eggs.
Qin Fei was a little excited and also a little confused as he asked why the females didn’t go there to get some eggs. But Sa Lei warned him that although there were no big and wild beasts there, it was very dangerous. The soft mud could swallow life. While on the other hand, the birds would mostly lay their eggs on the deeper place, so they were just taking this chance to try their luck. Look for places where there were no mud puddles and consider it as a gift from God if there were any, but didn’t force or insist on it if there weren’t any.