I am a Primitive Man

Chapter 337: Tree trunks have rings. What about humans?

Finding the crux of the problem made things much easier.

Han Cheng rekindled the iron forge, removed the wooden handle from the back of the iron saw, and then placed it back into the forge to heat it again.

Once it was glowing red, he removed it, placed it vertically between two stones with the saw teeth facing up, and clamped it tightly. Then, he used an iron chisel to tilt the irregular, small saw teeth to the left and right.

The best way to sharpen the saw teeth wasn't to grind them on a grinding stone as before but to first see a shallow groove on a round log or a stool-like object. Then, remove the saw, turn it over with the teeth facing up, and fit it into the gap sawed out earlier. Afterward, start sharpening each small sawtooth with an iron gouge.

However, because the Green Sparrow Tribe had too little iron, and each piece of iron needed to be used to its maximum potential, it wasn't possible to specially make an iron gouge for sharpening. So, they could only temporarily use a grinding stone.

"Sizzle, sizzle~"

With the iron saw handle in Lame's hand, he pushed and pulled it back and forth. Fine wood chips ran out of the saw teeth with his movements, scattered on the ground, and formed a small pile of sawdust.

After the modification, the saw no longer got stuck and became highly smooth to use for sawing wood.

Lame, the first carpenter of the tribe, was like a child with a new toy, unable to stop sawing wood.

It is said that the saw was invented by the legendary carpenter Lu Ban after he was cut by a thatched grass in the mountains while cutting firewood.

Now that there was a transmigrator like himself, Lame, who was gradually further in the carpentry industry, had no chance to be cut by thatch grass and came up with the idea of inventing a saw.

"Click~"

The tough wood finally couldn't withstand the severe torture of the saw and was cut into two pieces in one go.

The cut surface was very flat, and it still felt a little warm to the touch.

The friction of the saw caused this.

Lame squatted on the ground, looking at the highly flat-cut surface of the wood with admiration and emotion on his face.

He had never imagined such a flat cut before.

The progress speed, much faster than using fire to burn, also astonished him.

Iron tools were so handy!

This was his heartfelt admiration.

With one hand holding the saw and the other holding the axe, Lame looked at the wood on the ground and became highly confident. With these tools, he could produce even more valuable and beautiful things!

"Brother Cheng, what's this?"

Bai Xue, squatting beside him, curiously pointed to the cut surface of the wood.

Lame, wielding the axe, also slowed down, wanting to hear what the Divine Child had to say.

They had only recently discovered that there were rings inside the wood.

When cutting wood, they would break the smaller pieces by hand and burn the thicker ones with fire. The cut surfaces were never flat, so they had never noticed the tree rings inside the wood.

"These are tree rings," Han Cheng said with a smile.

"Tree rings?"

"Yes, tree rings represent the age of the tree. Each year, a tree trunk will grow one ring."

Bai Xue tilted her head for a while, then understood what Han Cheng meant and began to count the rings on the ground excitedly.

"One year, two years... eight years! Brother Cheng, this tree is eight years old!"

After counting the rings clearly, Bai Xue shouted excitedly at Han Cheng.

The young girl, who had discovered something new and exciting, was thrilled. She skipped around, counting the tree stumps cut by Lame.

"Brother Cheng, this tree is ten years old... this one is nine years old..."

The cheerful counting voices kept ringing out, surrounding Han Cheng.

Shi Tou, who had dreams of flying, and the members of the Original Bone Tribe, who had learned Mandarin after learning a few characters, also came over to watch Lame use the iron tools to make utensils.

It wasn't just them; other members of the Green Sparrow Tribe also liked to gather here when they had nothing else to do.

Many of them were hoping that Lame, who was busy working, would take a break soon so they could have a chance to touch the iron tools themselves.

As for the teaching in the Original Bone Tribe, it had started to differentiate.

Just like Han Cheng had taught the members of the Green Sparrow Tribe before, after adults had learned a few characters, they started letting them choose whether they wanted to continue learning. Learning Mandarin was no longer a mandatory requirement.

However, there was no compromise regarding the promotion and popularization of Mandarin.

These measures were aimed at adults. Unfledged individuals who didn't need to work all day still had to study for nearly three hours daily.

Bai Xue didn't study with them. As Han Cheng's chosen future bride, she had always enjoyed special treatment from him.

Perhaps due to the possessiveness of men, Han Cheng didn't want Bai Xue to have too much contact with other males, especially those around her age.

Living and eating together with the shaman, even though Han Cheng had never explicitly stated anything to the tribe members, gradually, their attitudes toward Bai Xue differed.

At first, when a few people around her age, like Xing, Xiao Mei, and Xiao Li, who wanted to sleep with Han Cheng, were somewhat dissatisfied, but now they had gotten used to it.

For primitive people, things like love, which were still in a state of ignorance, didn't occupy too much space in their lives, especially for tribes that worked hard every day for food.

Teenage love was like a summer storm, coming quickly and going quickly. After some unpleasant experiences, Xing, Xiao Mei, Xiao Li, and others had stopped thinking about sleeping with Han Cheng.

Shi Tou squatted on the ground, touching the flat-cut surface of the wood cut by Lame, his thoughts flying wildly. There was some sudden enlightenment and excitement in his eyes.

With a strong interest in astronomy and calendar systems, he had always been puzzled about his age.

Because when he was born, the calendar system hadn't been developed yet, so there was no way to know his exact age.

This was also one of the main reasons most tribes determined adulthood based on height.

He had been pondering his age for a long time without finding a solution. Still, now, suddenly, he had a moment of enlightenment.

After a tree was cut with a saw, its age could be determined by the rings inside. Could humans also be determined in the same way?

But wouldn't that be too painful?

Thinking like this, he suddenly felt regretful.

It would have been so much better if they had cut open the legs of those who came to attack their tribe and were killed instead of burning them immediately to see if there were any rings on their legs...

"Shi Tou, what are you thinking about?"

Han Cheng saw Shi Tou squatting there without saying a word and asked aloud.

Shi Tou was stunned for a moment, then told Han Cheng about his thoughts just now.

After hearing it, Han Cheng's mind was full of circles, and he had an urge to retreat.

With the witch doctor resembling a rabbit and now Shi Tou wanting to cut off people's legs to determine their age... was it too crazy?