Day Eighty-Eight: A Scene Ablaze (Part One)

At dawn, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, Brother Qian quietly roused everyone, doing his best to keep his voice low. Although he didn’t come to wake me, their voices nonetheless stirred me from sleep.

I have to admit, Brother Qian is truly a man of action. Still, I was a bit drowsy, and the temperature at that hour was perfectly comfortable, so I dozed off a little longer.

When I awoke again, the sun was fully up, and outside the house, the sounds of hammering and chatter filled the air. It dawned on me that perhaps I had been overthinking things initially; maybe they genuinely had no ill intentions from the start. It was quite possible that Ye Qingchen had stumbled upon me by chance when he first found me.

Stepping outside, I couldn’t help but marvel at the strength in numbers. They had built a treehouse, and in just a few short hours, the frame was already taking shape. Besides using some of the ropes I had given them earlier for securing parts, most of the joints were connected using traditional mortise and tenon techniques.

What surprised me even more was their plan to lay flooring on the lowest level of the treehouse. They had split small tree trunks and intended to use them as floorboards. Brother Qian told me that he had spent a long time the previous day designing the treehouse and had finalized the entire blueprint the night before.

In addition to flooring the bottom level, he planned to build a stove on the right side of the house, made from stone and clay. He told me that in the future, we could cook inside their treehouse—it would be larger, better equipped, and most importantly, their stove would have a chimney.

All of this felt like a dream to me, someone who had no prior knowledge of such things. I had never even considered it. Brother Qian also mentioned that once the treehouse was completed, he would craft a small bed for each of us from tree trunks so we could sleep off the ground. Adding the grass mats made by “One-Thirty” would make resting comfortably possible.

He also remarked that my treehouse was infested with snakes. They had caught two in the early morning and had since cleaned and dried them outside. Once they finished their treehouse, they would help renovate mine as well.

They planned to build two more treehouses because one alone would feel cramped. With three treehouses—including mine—the living space would be ample and comfortable. This prospect was genuinely exciting.

The kiln we had fired yesterday had completely cooled by now. Had it been successful? I was anxious. When they saw me approach the earthen kiln in the workshop to retrieve the tiles, they all glanced over.

Anxiety was of no use. The answer to success was already inside the kiln and wouldn't change based on anyone’s expectations. I stopped in front of the kiln, and though I didn’t believe in spirits or omens, I silently wished for a good outcome.

The lid was lifted, and everyone paused their work, especially Brother Qian and Ye Qingchen, who were closest to me—they moved closer.

“Brother Luo, how is it? Did it work?” Brother Qian’s voice was filled with eager anticipation.

I took out the first tile, but unfortunately, it was shattered; all I held was a broken corner. Yet the texture of this shard already suggested the firing had been successful, just this piece had broken. Anxious, I leaned in to inspect the other tiles inside.

What I saw erased all my worries in an instant. Out of eight tiles, at most two were broken; the majority were intact.

With trembling hands, I pulled out another tile. Its surface glowed faintly red. I supported it with one hand and gently tapped it with the other. The tile emitted a crisp, clear “clang” sound.

“It worked!” I shouted, overwhelmed by a surge of indescribable joy and an unparalleled sense of accomplishment.

“No way, it really worked!” Brother Qian snatched the tile from my hands, flipping it over excitedly. Everyone gathered around, barely able to believe the result.

Soon, they were all clamoring to see the tiles—one piece simply wasn’t enough to satisfy their curiosity. I was thrilled to see their enthusiasm and promptly removed all the tiles from the kiln.

Six whole tiles, all intact, including a tiny, delicate water jar that had survived perfectly. These items were passed from hand to hand, especially the little jar, which many handled with great admiration. They all began praising me, saying that having these tiles made them feel the presence of civilization.

“Although these tiles aren’t the strongest, they’re good enough for us, Brother Luo! You really did it!” After examining the tiles for a long while, Brother Qian beamed and said to me.

“By the way, do you think we could use the same method to fire bricks? If so, our future houses would be even sturdier...” I asked excitedly.

“Brother Luo, that’s not so certain. Bricks require higher temperatures and longer firing times than tiles, and their strength might not meet our needs. We should focus on producing enough tiles first,” Brother Qian advised.

I understood his meaning well—he probably feared that I might get carried away by this small success and neglect the tile production to pursue the more challenging bricks. After all, his caution made sense; success was not guaranteed.

“Don’t worry. I’ll work on firing more tiles in the next few days. Once you finish the initial construction, we can use tiles for the roofs,” I said with a smile.

“Well, thanks, Brother Luo. No rush—the tile firing can be a gradual process. It gets really hot in there. Hey, Ye Qingchen, why don’t you help Brother Luo out?” Brother Qian suggested.

“No need. It’s easier to do this alone. There’s barely room for two people in that pit,” I declined. Although firing tiles was hot work, two people wouldn’t help much.

“Alright then. Brother Luo, we’ll get back to work. Looking at the weather, I’m worried it might rain again soon,” said Brother Qian. After I nodded, he led the others to continue their tasks. With Brother Qian directing and the others assisting, they could have the framework of their house up in two days. I, on the other hand, would likely need more time unless I could enlarge the kiln.

The sea salt had been drying for several days; I planned to check on it tomorrow—hopefully, it would be ready. I prayed there wouldn’t be rain tonight. The soil from the termite nest we had dug out was just enough to make a dozen or so more tile blanks.

But that would still be far from enough. I had to gather more soil now, so I could produce and dry more tile blanks.