Orc Girl's Tribal Daily Life

Chapter 242 A Strange... Child

Jiang Luoluo stayed with the shaman for several days and didn't have a moment's rest. Every day, she acted as the shaman's little helper, helping to process some simple herbs.

It also revealed that even during the snowy season, the witch's life was never free.

Jiang Luoluo thought that the snow season, except for the latter half when she was terrified and hiding at home listening to the roars of wild animals, was actually just the secluded life of the tribe.

Aside from essential tasks like clearing snow, carrying firewood, and fetching food from the back mountain, they wouldn't leave their homes even for a moment.

That's mostly true, but some members of the tribe have to take on the task of patrolling and guarding the area—otherwise, if everyone stayed at home, how would the wild animals that attack the tribe be discovered in time?

Besides the most important precaution against wild animals, it is also necessary to check the fire status of each household. In rare cases, the fire in some clansmen's homes may suddenly go out, such as when someone has an accident or when no firewood has been added for a long time.

During the snowy season, if you are not prepared in advance, the extinguishing of a fire is basically a matter of life and death.

Therefore, it is essential to patrol and confirm the presence of fire sources in every household.

Orcs are generally not assigned patrol duties; patrol duties can only be undertaken by families with two or more orc warriors capable of fighting.

Otherwise, with a combination like Ge and Jiang Luoluo, if Ge goes on patrol and something happens to Jiang Luoluo at home, no one will notice.

Ke and Mao don't need to patrol this year, but starting next year, Mao will need to join the patrol team on rotation.

In reality, during the snow season, children under ten years old who are old enough to run and jump will wake up every day and run outside in all sorts of ways, defying all superstition.

Especially for younger children, their pain perception is less sensitive—they may feel pain, but they are unaware that the pain is very harmful. In addition, their attention is easily distracted, which can lead to them being injured without realizing it.

Every day, countless people from the clan come to ask for medicine for frostbite on their children.

In the most severe cases, one child even lost a hand due to frostbite.

Hearing this, Jiang Luoluo couldn't help but feel glad that she hadn't tried to challenge Xue Ji's authority. Even when she wanted to go out, she never thought of sneaking away on her own, but instead asked Ge for help.

I can't imagine how bewildered she would be if she took it upon herself to sneak out, thinking she had made all the necessary preparations, only to be met with the cold of the snowy season and get slapped in the face by it.

Of course, frostbite is only one aspect. Other common causes of high fever in children are mostly due to the continuous drop in temperature during the snowy season, but the fire is not expanded in time due to various reasons, resulting in insufficient indoor temperature. Young children then develop a fever due to such temperature difference.

Besides these, Jiang Luoluo also heard some other news.

For example, one of the five tribesmen who died in the wild beast attack left behind an orphan who was about the same age as Jiang Luoluo.

He was supposed to be sent to the Fish Cave.

But... it's hard to say they were lucky; it was the family that lost their own children who chose to adopt him.

Jiang Luoluo did not expect that both Chief Jing and Wu would disagree with the adoption.

What Jiang Luoluo didn't expect was that their opposition to the adoption wasn't because the parents who had lost their child would develop a paranoid and terrifying transference mentality.

It wasn't hatred of wild animals that would lead the parents to raise their child with such hatred... This would be called normal education in the tribe.

After all, even if such a thing didn't happen, wouldn't the tribespeople still hunt wild animals?

The main reason why Chief Jing and Wu opposed the adoption actually lay with the child himself.

When Chief Jing talked about that child, he looked at Jiang Luoluo and sighed, "...If only all children were as well-behaved as Luoluo."

The shaman shook his head. "It's a random event by nature; there are advantages and disadvantages."

“But that child… I know they meant well, but they can’t control him, and they just lost their own child…” Chief Jing sighed deeply.

Despite their hesitation, Chief Jing and the shaman ultimately agreed to the adoption.

Because the shaman asked, "Should we send him to the Fish Cave?"

Chief Jing's expression immediately twisted. He suggested that the two parents who had lost their children adopt them, since they were, after all, adult orc warriors, and the problems that might arise wouldn't be too great.

But the Fish Cave is full of old people and children. Sending that child into the Fish Cave is no different from letting a wolf into a flock of sheep!

But if we don't let that child be adopted, and we don't let him live in Yuerdong... what's the difference between that and forcing him to his death?

The chieftain Jing and the shaman were only worried that the child might do something...not so good, but they didn't want him to die.

Jiang Luoluo was completely confused and didn't understand what Chief Jing and Wudu meant until she personally met the child who was about the same age as her.

At first glance, the child seemed very shy, with a timid, bewildered, and innocent expression, and his eyes conveyed the loneliness and helplessness of being left all alone after his parents' death.

She's the kind of pitiful, well-behaved child who makes your heart melt just by looking at her.

Having lost their two children, the couple looked extremely haggard, with red and swollen eyes. They would often grit their teeth and show hatred and murderous intent on their faces. However, when he pitifully looked up, they couldn't help but pull him into their arms and gently pat his back to comfort him.

But after Chief Jing and the couple had been talking for a while, Jiang Luoluo finished processing the herbs she was working on and looked at the child again, only to find that he seemed like a completely different person.

He coldly observed the couple's retreating figures, his eyes revealing no emotion, his previous timidity gone, and even a wicked smile curling at the corner of his mouth—he didn't look like a good person at all.

Perhaps sensing Jiang Luoluo's gaze, he suddenly turned his head and looked over, startling Jiang Luoluo.

"It's you." He walked closer and arrogantly looked Jiang Luoluo up and down.

"Are you one of my kind? You don't seem to remember anything. You look really stupid."

Jiang Luoluo opened her mouth silently.

what did you say?

—Her throat hasn't fully recovered yet; she's missing the main ingredient, the black-tailed bee. The herbs the shaman gave her only help relieve her pain.

According to the shaman, a herb-gathering team will set off in ten days, and if all goes well, Jiang Luoluo will regain her voice in half a month.

Of course, Jiang Luoluo can still speak if she wants to, but it sounds like a duck quacking and it hurts a lot.

So Jiang Luoluo rediscovered her sign language skills.

"He's a little mute, how boring." The boy turned and left.

Jiang Luoluo stared in astonishment at the boy's drastically different behavior.

Is it dual or multiple personality disorder?

So... Chief Jing and Wu Cai didn't want the couple to adopt him because his dual personality was unstable?

This was the first time Jiang Luoluo had encountered a person with dual personality disorder in real life. In the past, the most she had encountered was someone who had developed bipolar disorder due to depression. After all, many people who like anime and manga do so because of the imperfections in their real lives, and they seek support and comfort in the virtual world.

However, Jiang Luoluo had never encountered a serious illness that could directly divide someone into two people before.

Her first thought was, "Could he have staged this himself?"

Because it's hard for a normal person to understand the feeling of "having two people inside their body".

Then Jiang Luoluo realized that in the tribe, he had no reason to pretend that he was sick. He was only seven years old, and exposing his difference from the other children would only put him in a more helpless situation.

For example, if he were a normal child, he wouldn't need to come here with his adoptive parents for verification; he could be adopted directly.

But Jiang Luoluo quickly remembered that in the conversation between the leader Jing and the witch, it was mentioned that she and this boy were actually in the same state, but her state was benign, beneficial, and harmless.

The boy, on the other hand, is in a malignant, harmful, and detrimental state.

"No way? I have a dual personality too?" Jiang Luoluo looked at herself in disbelief.

After saying that, the boy left Jiang Luoluo's side and went to other places, looking around Wu's wooden house with great interest.

Unlike most children who are filled with awe for the shaman's wooden hut, their attitude was quite natural and casual.

However, it is also clear that he still has a respectful attitude towards witches and does not look down on them.

The boy didn't pay much attention to many things in the cabin; he glanced at most of them and then looked away, somewhat bored.

Finally, his gaze fell on the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove), which piqued the boy's interest. He reached out and touched the warm surface of the kang with great interest, then sat down and lay down to feel the temperature of the kang.

During the daytime, not much firewood was added to the kang (heated brick bed), just a little was left to ensure the fire wouldn't go out immediately. More firewood would be added at night when people went to sleep to make the kang warmer.

Even so, the boy's eyes showed a hint of surprise.

He thought for a moment, then jumped off the heated kang and returned to Jiang Luoluo's side. "Your name is Luo, right? Did you make that thing called a kang? How did you make it? Who came up with it?"

Jiang Luoluo looked at the boy with great surprise. Just now, he seemed to be ignoring her because she was a "little mute," but after learning that the heated kang bed was related to her, he immediately came over, completely unaware that his behavior was annoying.

Jiang Luoluo is no pushover. She can forgive and treat those who have offended her kindly, even if the other party is just a seven-year-old child.

"She's seven years old too!" Jiang Luoluo said confidently.

After glancing at the boy, she waved her hand dismissively, indicating "I don't know anything," and then lowered her head to continue processing the herbs, ignoring the boy.

Of course, part of the reason is that using sign language is too cumbersome, and the other person may not be able to understand it or know what it means.

Jiang Luoluo doesn't have a self-destructive habit; she wouldn't go to such lengths for an annoying little boy.

The boy tried to strike up a conversation with Jiang Luoluo a few more times, but was met with a dismissive attitude each time.

After a moment's thought, he quickly realized something and muttered, "Why are you so vengeful?"

Jiang Luoluo rolled her eyes. If you don't want me to hold a grudge, then don't be so annoying.

When she turned her head, she saw that the boy had reverted to his previous shy and timid demeanor.

Jiang Luoluo: ?

"Um..." the boy said softly, his voice lacking confidence, his eyes brimming with tears, as if he were speaking while suppressing a great deal of shame.

"Luo, can you tell me about that heated kang bed?"

Huh? Jiang Luoluo was shocked.

She quickly racked her brains and realized that the boy probably felt that one of his personalities was speaking rudely, which upset her, but he really wanted to know about the heated brick bed.

So they switched out the other personality that "had never offended Jiang Luoluo".

Wait, you guys with dual personalities can do this?

But to be fair, this tactic was surprisingly effective against Jiang Luoluo.

After all, the boy across from her looked so pitiful, and you could feel the vulnerability in him, the loneliness, helplessness, and destitution that came with the loss of his parents.

Jiang Luoluo recently recalled her parents' image and often felt inexplicably sad and heartbroken. Seeing the boy's state, she couldn't help but empathize and couldn't bring herself to treat the little boy with the same attitude.

"What do you want to know?" Jiang Luoluo gestured.

The boy hesitated, not answering directly, but closing his eyes. After a long while, he finally spoke, "Um, how is a kang (heated brick bed) made?"

Jiang Luoluo also closed her eyes.

No, you two with dual personalities are communicating like this right in front of me, do you think I can't tell?

But when she opened her eyes, she saw the boy's fragile and pitiful gaze, and Jiang Luoluo pursed her lips.

Forget it, bear with it.

Do you want to know how the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove) was built, or do you want to know why the heated kang can produce such an effect?

The boy's eyes, pure and untainted by knowledge, shone with innocence. He asked instinctively, "Yes, what's the difference?"

Jiang Luoluo pointed to the couple who were still talking to Chief Jing and the shaman, "They just want to know how to build a heated kang. Go ask them, and they'll know how."

“I want to know the other one,” the boy said impatiently, as if he had been urged.

Jiang Luoluo pretended not to notice and pointed to the fire used for heating not far away, gesturing to indicate it.

"Fire, when it burns, produces a warm gas that is invisible to the eye, but it truly exists."

"Turn off the fire so that the warm air can't escape, and then you can use it for heating."

It may seem like a perfunctory answer, but the principle behind it isn't that difficult.

The boy was also stunned. It seemed that the other personality had said something, so he spoke up somewhat urgently.

"Then, how did you come up with this idea?"

"It's not what I thought, I just saw it." Jiang Luoluo gestured frankly.

The boy on the other side suddenly switched over again.

"I see."

Jiang Luoluo was also caught off guard; she found the scene very strange no matter how many times she looked at it.

"My name is Python. I'll come to see you more often in the future." The boy smiled slightly at Jiang Luoluo, but the smile didn't look very friendly.