In September, four longships from the Kingdom continued their journey from the camp at South Port, bidding farewell to the newly established camp of thatched huts, and to fifty crew mbers from the Kingdom on the shore, along with a dozen newly joined tribal won.
"We ca from the North... They go northward... We reached the river, that’s where the tribes parted!... In the black forests, on the white beaches, in the autumn and winter cold winds, such partings are just like those of our ancestors!..."
The Elder of the Kus people, Wokey, led over a hundred tribespeople, singing farewell songs to friends and family. The guttural tone filled with plosive, fricative, and nasal sounds carried a deep and desolate flavor. The language of the Kus people is a unique Coosan branch, unlike the surrounding tribes. These ancient songs seem to hide so unique secrets, the origins of ancient tribes... but they have dissipated over generations, becoming difficult to hear again.
The fleet continued north, encountering long white sand dunes stretching over a hundred miles. In the early autumn sunlight, they were soft and beautiful, like the long feathers left by the Divine Bird Egret from tribal mythology, spreading and extending along the coast.
In later years, this stretch of dunes beca known as Umpqua Beach. The wide Umpqua River flows from the upper reaches of the beach, three to four hundred miles inland. The na "Umpqua" refers to the Indian tribes hunting in the upstream forests, the Umpqua people. This term also belongs to the Penutian linguistic branch, the self-designation of the Umpqua people, "people of the land and ho."
The fleet sailed past the white "holand" beach without seeing traces of the Umpqua people. These mountain hunters excel at hiding, only gazing from the forest in the East, never rashly appearing at the seashore in their canoes. And soon, on the white coast, those appearing with their canoes belong to the Siuslaw people, who speak coastal Penutian, also part of the Penutian branch.
The language of the Siuslaw people could be roughly communicated with the fleet through two translations done by tribal huntsn Le Tian and Tuowu. And the translation book of the Cedar Shaman also recorded simple vocabulary. Coastal tribes revered the Sun, establishing villages large and small in the quiet coastal valleys of the North. These villages belonged to the sa Siuslaw Great Tribe, called the "Chao Yang Tribe."
Scholar Mikki never imagined that north of the scattered Kus Bay tribes, each at most one or two hundred people, within just two hundred miles in the river valleys, there would be a tribe of more than two thousand people! And when he t with the Sun Shaman of the Chao Yang Tribe, this unexpected feeling grew even stronger.
"Which tribes are you from? Where did you co from? Where are you going?"
"We are the tribe from the lake, coming from the distant South, heading to the distant North!"
"Why are you heading north? You must know, in the North, there’s nothing but barren white and brown. We ca from the distant North to this place..."
"Hmm... To us, the North holds the prophecy of the Prophet, a great bay... it’s the guidance of the Sun!..."
"Oh! The guidance of Chinook, the tribe’s Prophet..."
Upon hearing this, the Shaman Chinook of the Chao Yang Great Tribe smiled. The Siuslaw people revered the Sun, and every shaman in the Chao Yang Tribe was nad after the Sun, called "Chinook." He stroked his chin and said aningfully.
"The great Sun Chinook rises and sets again, and where He watches is our Chao Yang Great Tribe. Hundreds of years ago, the Great Shaman Chinook received the guidance of the Sun, leading the tribes from the far north land to here. He led the tribes to plant fields on the sunlit white beaches and coasts, blessed with enlightennt, gaining stable food..."
"And hundreds of years later, you follow the guidance of the Sun to the cold far north land... It seems our Sun is not the sa..."
"Chief Divine bless! Honored Shaman Chinook, how can one see the full scope of the Sun? The Sun rises and sets continuously, appearing in different positions in the sky. Perhaps our Sun, despite having different guidance, is the sa!..."
"Oh? The sa changing Sun? Perhaps! The offspring of the Sun never refuse the future guided by the Sun... so long as He is truly filled with light, filled with warmth..."
After a series of aningful exchanges, the aged Shaman Chinook smiled again and gestured.
"Tribespeople arriving by longship, we thank you for the cloth and tal weapons you have gifted us! You can rest in the Chao Yang Tribe, and fairly trade for so food. It is now harvest season, the tribe’s food is fairly abundant... what we eat cos from the Great Shaman Chinook’s enlightennt, which is actually found in other tribes as well, just not as plentiful as here..."
"Hmm? Harvest season? Shaman’s enlightennt?... The Northern Land tribes here don’t have potatoes. The temperature is so low, the coastal land is salty... What are the Siuslaw people harvesting?"
Scholar Mikki, filled with questions, left the Chieftain’s longhouse. He stood at the edge of the dunes and scrub forest, gazing at the rare wooden longhouses before him, silent.
According to the fleet’s experience along the way, the ergence of such longhouses indicates the tribe has grown to a certain scale, and has one or several chieftains or shamans of high status. Likewise, it signifies that the tribes here do not need to migrate, primarily farming, having a stable food supply, and thus lots of "fields."
"Siuslaw people’s fields?..."
Scholar Mikki pondered for a long ti, until Exploration Captain Zuwaro called out with a look of surprise and excitent.
"Miki! Miki! Co here, over here!"
Hearing the call, Miki the Sage looked over and saw Zuwaro standing on a grass-covered barren hill, waving him over from afar. He walked over in confusion, only to find Zuwaro crouching on the ground, digging up a long, more than one ter high "weed." Then, he watched in disbelief as Zuwaro broke off a piece of the pale yellow root, put it in his mouth, and chewed.
"Huh?! Zuwaro! Eating random roots? Do you have a death wish?!"
"Haha! Witnessed by the Chief Divine! Miki, this ti, it seems you know less than I do."
Exploration Captain Zuwaro gave a proud smile and lifted his head. As he chewed the sweet root, he surprisingly detected the taste of raw sweet potato.
"This patch of weeds is actually the ’fields’ planted by the tribe called the East! This over-one-ter-tall weed is what they call ’Sun Beans.’ Yes, it should be so kind of wild pea. Both the root and the fruit are edible, and they’re sweet!"
Zuwaro carefully searched around and plucked a bunch of pods. Then he opened the pods, poured the beans into his mouth, and chewed them, finding sweetness again.
"Here! Try so. I asked the local tribespeople, and after so gesturing, they told that everything planted on this barren hill is edible!... Oh, and I also saw them foraging for ferns here..."
With that, Exploration Captain Zuwaro searched again and found two types of ferns around the wild peas. One had curled leaves, resembling bear paws, and looked fresh and tender. Zuwaro plucked a few tender leaves, chewed them, and his eyes lit up.
"Hmm? It’s a bit astringent but incredibly delicious!"
Hearing this, Miki the Sage pondered for a while and cautiously tried so. This fern tasted excellent; it was the Bear Paw Fern intentionally cultivated by the East. Like wild peas, it was salt-tolerant and suited to the coastal wilderness as a vegetable crop. Of course, the roots of wild peas contained a lot of starch, so with extensive planting, they could barely serve as a staple food.
"Well, what is this final one?"
Miki the Sage lowered his head, examining the last one, a triangular-leaved Thistle Fern, and couldn’t resist trying it, again and again.
"It’s a bit bitter... has a grassy taste... hmm, not as good as the Bear Paw Fern!..."
As Miki the Sage was pondering in confusion, he heard Zuwaro calling him again. At so point, the other had moved to the coast, carefully observing sothing.
"Miki! Look! These are still the Siuslaw people’s fields, but they’re ocean fields! You see, this should be so kind of kelp and clusters of seaweed! ...Interesting! Truly an intriguing tribe!"
Miki the Sage approached the coast and lowered his head, carefully observing the Siuslaw people’s ocean fields. Called ocean fields, they were actually small circular sea ponds slightly dug out in the shallows and surrounded by wooden stakes. Around the small circle were crudely made but practical fish traps. Inside the tidal sea ponds were densely planted seaweed and kelp. Under the clear autumn sunlight, these crops floated quietly in the water, growing peacefully, awaiting the tribespeople’s harvest and collection.
"Hmm... really interesting! On land, they plant wild peas, Bear Paw Fern, and Thistle Fern. In the ocean, they cultivate seaweed and kelp while conveniently fishing... The East’s heritage is indeed extraordinary!"
"May the Chief Divine bless! The tribe guided by the sun also possesses the wisdom of the sun... Cedar Shaman Chinook..."
As they conversed, Miki the Sage suddenly swayed.
"Zuwaro... have you noticed, the sun suddenly seems to be moving?"
"Huh? Miki, what did you say?"
"I said the sun is moving... Urgh! ... It’s setting!... Ah?..."
With that, Miki the Sage exclaid in shock and then "thud" fainted onto the beach. The warm sunlight shone on him, as if shining on a salted fish foaming at the mouth...
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