I am a Primitive Man

Chapter 312: Reseller

In the mountains and forests, a group of people is walking.

The members of the Green Sparrow Tribe carry weapons like vine shields, spears, and bows and arrows, while the members of the Donkey Tribe also have some weapons, but more of them are carrying numerous pelts.

These pelts will be traded with the Green Sparrow Tribe for pottery, salted fish, and other goods.

As the Eldest Senior Brother walks, he scratches his head in puzzlement. He can't understand where the Donkey Tribe got so many pelts.

Since the beginning of spring, they've exchanged goods at least four times, yet they can still produce so many pelts.

The Donkey Tribe doesn't seem particularly formidable either. During a previous festival, Eldest Senior Brother and the Donkey Tribe's leader had set their sights on a woman from the Green Tribe. Eldest Senior Brother easily defeated the Donkey Tribe's leader.

With such limited combat strength, how could they have hunted so much game and acquired many pelts?

Seeing Eldest Senior Brother's puzzled expression, the Donkey Tribe's leader couldn't help but feel secretly pleased.

It used to be their tribe that surprised yours, but now it's our turn to surprise you.

It happened earlier this year when the snow and ice hadn't completely melted.

A group of people who had come out to hunt because their food stores were running low nearly froze to death in the cold weather.

The Donkey Tribe's people found them, recognizing them as members of a neighboring tribe.

Although the Donkey Tribe's leader wasn't exceptionally skilled in hunting, he had a kind heart.

He brought those people back to their tribe and gave them hot water in pottery jars and some fruit.

After drinking the warm soup, those who almost froze to death regained their strength. Realizing the benefits of pottery jars, they requested them from the Donkey Tribe.

The Donkey Tribe only had two pottery jars, obtained through scrimping and saving by trading with the Green Sparrow Tribe, so the leader cherished them like precious eggs and refused to give them away.

Seeing how neighboring tribes coveted the pottery jars after experiencing their benefits, the Donkey Tribe wanted one, too, no matter what.

Amidst the ongoing dispute, the Donkey Tribe's leader suddenly had an idea.

He knew of another tribe nearby whose hunting skills surpassed theirs, and they must have accumulated plenty of pelts. The two pottery jars were obtained by trading pelts with the Green Sparrow Tribe, so if there were enough pelts, he could trade with the wealthy tribe for more pottery jars.

Since that was the case, why couldn't he let them trade pelts with him?

This sudden flash of insight opened a new door for the Donkey Tribe's leader, leading them onto the path of prosperity.

At first, the Donkey Tribe's leader only traded with this tribe, focusing on exchanging for pottery. Later, he also introduced salt, an unparalleled delicacy.

You can't shear a sheep that's not yours.

Once they had squeezed almost all the pelts out of that tribe, the Donkey Tribe's leader, who had already tasted success, naturally refused to return to their former way of life.

After much contemplation, another idea came to mind.

Apart from this tribe, they could also trade with other tribes!

So the Donkey Tribe's leader brought pottery, salt, and food, and the tribe members set off toward nearby tribes.

Following the same method Han Cheng had used initially when they arrived at other tribes, they cooked food in pottery jars with added salt, offering it to nearby tribes that had never seen pottery or salt before.

The method proved remarkably effective, and those tribes readily accepted the pottery and salt...

Of course, they didn't visit the Sheep Tribe, which was closer to theirs...

Many times, events are a combination of chance and inevitability.

For example, the sudden emergence of the Donkey Tribe as a secondary trader.

While the Donkey Tribe basked in their newfound glory, the Eldest Senior Brother and his companions continued to approach the Green Sparrow Tribe.

Also nearing were the Sheep Tribe and the Green Tribe, both having completed their tally marks on clay tablets.

...

In front of the courtyard gate of the Green Sparrow Tribe, a clear space had been completely cleared, and a platform of about four square meters had been built and could accommodate people.

In the eyes of the elders of the Green Sparrow Tribe, this wasn't just a platform; it was a heated bed!

As a result, speculation about the upcoming festival and the selection of outstanding individuals for certain activities became even more widespread.

The first to arrive were the Donkey Tribe, along with the Eldest Senior Brother and his companions who had returned with them.

Upon seeing the arrangement in front of the Green Sparrow Tribe's gate, the leader of the Donkey Tribe seemed somewhat bewildered, clearly not understanding why this prosperous neighboring tribe was engaging in such useless activities.

However, this thought lasted only a short time before disappearing.

Compared to these thoughts, he was more concerned about the upcoming exchange.

The leader of the Donkey Tribe, solely focused on trade, failed to notice the significant differences in the Green Sparrow Tribe.

Little did he expect the people of the Donkey Tribe would be pretty clever and start acting as secondary traders.

No wonder they suddenly became more prosperous after the New Year. No wonder they treated salt like rice. It turns out it all stemmed from here.

Upon hearing Eldest Senior Brother's account of what he had seen and heard in the Donkey Tribe, Han Cheng lightly slapped his forehead.

How could he forget about this?

This matter might have been difficult for the Eldest Senior Brother to figure out. Still, for Han Cheng, who came from the future and experienced the era of economic supremacy, it wasn't difficult to guess.

He told Eldest Senior Brother and Shaman about the Donkey Tribe's actions as secondary traders.

After pondering for a while, both of them showed realization.

After the realization, Eldest Senior Brother suddenly became somewhat displeased.

Not only him, but Shaman also felt the same way.

"Divine Child, don't give them salt and pottery..."

Eldest Senior Brother voiced his thoughts.

When Han Cheng inquired about the reason, Eldest Senior Brother mentioned how the Donkey Tribe was profiting from their belongings...

Shaman's opinion was similar, feeling that the Donkey Tribe's actions were disadvantageous to them.

After understanding their thoughts, Han Cheng couldn't help but smile. It wasn't surprising that Shaman and Eldest Senior Brother had such thoughts.

After all, the benefits gained by the Donkey Tribe were apparent.

However, they only saw the benefits gained by the Donkey Tribe and overlooked the gains their tribe made in this trade.

The neighboring tribes directly engaged in trade with the Green Sparrow Tribe were not significant in scale and had low levels of development, making it difficult for them to have much surplus.

After several trades, they were squeezed dry by the Green Sparrow Tribe.

If the Green Sparrow Tribe wanted to continue gaining things through trade, they needed to develop new tribes.

Traveling between tribes was time-consuming and laborious, and there was also the risk of danger.

Moreover, they couldn't afford to be short of manpower.

The Green Sparrow Tribe still had many things to do, so they couldn't spare manpower to do this task. In that case, why not let the people of the Donkey Tribe continue to act as secondary traders?

This was a beneficial thing for them.

As for the profits gained by the Donkey Tribe, it was inevitable. If there were no profits to be made, the Donkey Tribe wouldn't engage in such activities.