Live Strong in the Wilderness-Chapter 171: Beginning Papermaking

"Xu Yi, do you think it’s going to snow soon? Should we hurry and move?" Lu Ke asked while tending to the fire. It’s definitely troublesome to move the camp once it snows.

"Step by step. If it really does snow, there’s nothing we can do." Although Xu Yi was worried about the snow before, now that it might actually happen, he’s still a bit concerned.

Their jerky, along with potatoes and yams, would at most last two months.

If this winter lasts several months, that would be extremely worrying.

Would moving to Su Yan and Yun Qing’s camp be a better decision?

It seems to be a bit better than here.

Even if that lake gets frozen, we can still figure out a way to fish, which might be easier than hunting.

"I hope the snow doesn’t come so soon and gives us more time to prepare." Lu Ke rubbed his hands together and then went to boil some water.

Xu Yi looked out at the situation and rubbed his nose.

The changes this night have been quite significant, giving Xu Yi a bit of a headache.

"Forget it. No matter what the weather is, let’s adapt. Thinking too much now is pointless." Xu Yi muttered to himself and then went to practice the Eighteen Forms of Body Strengthening.

"Xu Yi, the clay jar doesn’t leak. Can we start making paper today?" Lu Ke asked as she saw Xu Yi come over to wash up after practicing.

"Yeah, I’ll go get some stones in a bit and build a stone stove. Then we can put the flax mixture in to cook." Xu Yi said as he started brushing his teeth. He hadn’t brushed properly for the past two days outside.

When there’s time, we can make a toothbrush. Using fingers isn’t quite ideal.

After brushing their teeth, the two sat down at the table to have breakfast.

On the ground, there were grapes prepared for drying.

Lu Yao and Wang Jin had gathered them the day it rained, or else they would have been ruined.

"I wonder if these raisins can still be dried properly." Lu Ke said worriedly. After all, she and Xu Yi had spent a long time picking those grapes, and it would be a shame if they couldn’t be dried.

"They should be fine. The temperature has risen now, and it likely won’t snow anytime soon." As the sun rose, Xu Yi’s worries eased a bit.

"Yeah." Lu Ke nodded, indeed feeling the temperature rising.

After breakfast, Xu Yi and Lu Ke went to move stones.

The two spent half an hour building a stone stove and placed the clay jar on top of it.

Next, they used baskets to scoop the flax mixture that had been soaking in the pool for days into the clay jar and added a certain amount of water.

The firewood in the stone stove was burning fiercely.

"We need to occasionally stir the clay jar to soften the fibers inside, resulting in a more uniform flax mixture," Xu Yi said to Lu Ke. The flax mixture, after soaking for so many days, had softened quite a bit. By steaming and boiling it, it would become even better, leading to finer, softer paper.

"So early in the morning, what are Xu Yi and Loli Ke cooking in that big jar?"

"They’re probably preparing to make paper. I remember the slurry needs to be steamed and boiled."

"After talking about it for so long, are they finally going to make paper?"

"Is it really that long? Xu Yi and Lu Ke have only been on the planet for a short while."

"Today marks exactly forty days."

"Then go see other teams. Are there any preparing to make paper, or have succeeded in doing so?"

"Actually, no. Xu Yi and Lu Ke’s group are the first to prepare to make paper. You could say they really pursue quality of life."

"A pack of paper costs 10 points. I saw one group try to exchange for it, but then they ended up arguing and didn’t go through with it."

"That’s so steep! 10 points for a pack of paper?"

"You’d have to hunt two wild boars for one pack of paper. Who would do that?"

"I’m really looking forward to them making paper. I wonder how good it’ll be."

"I don’t think it’ll be that good. It might be so stiff that it breaks with one wipe. With all this time, wouldn’t it be better to get more food?"

"Continuous attempts and improvements will lead to better paper. If humans were like you, refusing to invent and create, would our lives be this convenient now?"

"I also support Xu Yi and Lu Ke making paper. If they know how, why not realize it?"

"Making paper isn’t as important as making weapons. Shouldn’t they be more worried about those Fierce Beasts? If encountered, would they just give up?"

"Weapons need to be made, and life quality should be improved. Both should be pursued!"

Xu Yi handed over the paper pulp task to Lu Ke, then headed out with the Hunting Bow and machete.

First, he checked the two snare traps and found neither had captured any prey.

Then, Xu Yi checked the pit trap he had dug for wild boars, also without any results, and it’s filled with water. However, Xu Yi didn’t bother to clean it.

So many days have passed, and there hasn’t been a single wild boar, indicating they are no longer active in this area.

Perhaps they’ve been hunted by other animals.

After checking the traps, Xu Yi went to cut flax.

Today, he’s going to cut all the flax and carry it back.

Since there isn’t much left, he should be able to cut all of it within the morning and carry a small portion back.

After cutting a large bundle, Xu Yi tied it up, then continued cutting.

It was past 11 o’clock when Xu Yi finished cutting all the flax.

"This weather is simply bizarre. It must be thirty-five or thirty-six degrees now?" Xu Yi said somewhat speechlessly, sweating profusely as he glanced at the sky.

Frost in the morning, then the hot summer as the sun rises. The temperature difference is reminiscent of the plateau regions.

The problem is, this place isn’t a plateau at all.

After resting for a while, Xu Yi picked up a bundle of flax and headed back to the camp.

"Lu Ke, I’m back," Xu Yi called out.

Lu Ke then ran over and opened the door wide.

Due to needing to constantly stir the paper pulp in the clay jar, Lu Ke wore only a tank top.

Even so, her tank top was soaked through.

"Xu Yi, today’s weather is so abnormal, it’s as hot as when we first arrived," Lu Ke said, even feeling the heat without standing next to the stone stove.

The problem is, the temperature at noon a few days ago was only 27 or 28 degrees—quite comfortable.

"I’m really worried something might happen," Xu Yi said, glancing at the sky with some unease.

After all, this is an alien planet; who knows what strange things might occur?

"Hopefully not, maybe the weather here is just always like this," Lu Ke consoled herself. She didn’t want any uncontrollable incidents to arise.