Building a Bamboo House

Building a house was a relatively large project, especially when it came to building a stone or log house. Just moving rocks or cutting trees would require a lot of time.

Jiang Xuan did not plan to spend so much time. Given the situation, he planned to build a bamboo house.

Bamboo usually grew tall and straight. It was lightweight, sturdy, and well suited for building a house.

The only problem was how to cut it down.

Bamboo was extremely hard. Without iron, it would not be easy to fell a bamboo tree.

However, this was not a problem for Jiang Xuan. He had seen someone burning bamboo with fire before. This method would save time and effort.

Jiang Xuan said to Hook Vine, "Pile the scattered bamboo leaves and branches around the vicinity over the roots of the bamboo trees, then burn them. But be careful not to set the entire bamboo forest on fire."

Hook Vine nodded. "Don't worry. We'll be careful."

"Alright, let's get started. Everyone is in charge of one fire."

Jiang Xuan chose a larger piece of flat ground in the bamboo forest and gathered thick piles of bamboo leaves and withered bamboo sticks on the ground at the base of a bamboo tree.

Chi Shao took a burning bamboo from the fire in the bamboo shed and lit the bamboo leaves and withered bamboo that Jiang Xuan had piled up.

"Pi pa pi pa…"

The flames quickly burned. Under the high temperature, the bamboo bark oozed a large amount of oil and water vapor quickly, making sizzling sounds.

Chi Shao squatted beside Jiang Xuan who was also collecting dried bamboo and bamboo leaves to burn. She looked at Jiang Xuan from time to time.

She realized that her younger brother seemed to be different from before. He could always think of some strange methods.

Perhaps the destruction of the tribe had stimulated him and made him grow up.

Chi Shao did not think too much about it. It was a good thing that Jiang Xuan had grown up.

Bamboo was hollow and flammable. Live bamboo could burn quickly.

After Jiang Xuan burned two bamboo trees, he moved to the bamboo roots at the side and continued burning.

"Sha sha sha…"

Jiang Xuan struggled to pull the broken bamboo trees down.

The bamboo forest was very dense. Between the bamboo trees, the leaves were intertwined. It would take a lot of strength to pull down a tree.

"Let me do it."

Chi Shao walked over and grabbed the bamboo tree from Jiang Xuan's arms. She forcefully pulled down the two bamboo trees and dragged them to the open space outside the bamboo forest.

Jiang Xuan sighed again. The women of the primitive tribes are so violent.

With their combined effort, it took the five of them half a day to burn down dozens of neighboring bamboo trees and create a clearing in the bamboo forest.

The clearing was rectangular, about six or seven meters long and four or five meters wide. Bamboo grew thickly around it.

In the middle of the open space, Jiang Xuan deliberately left three rows of bamboo trees in a straight line. These would be used as pillars for the bamboo house.

If he relied on himself to dig pits and erect pillars, not only would it take time and effort, but he might not even be able to stabilize them.

Living bamboo trees did not have these problems. They were deeply rooted and quite stable.

After the bamboo house was built, he only needed to burn the outer skin of the living bamboo roots, and the trees would naturally die.

There were still many bamboo stumps protruding from the ground. Jiang Xuan asked everyone to continue burning until all the bamboo stumps were burned. Then the ground became flat.

Next, they had to start building the bamboo house.

Jiang Xuan's idea was very simple. They would leave the live bamboo trees as pillars in the middle and around the bamboo house.

Then all they had to do was remove the fallen bamboos and burn them to the required length.

Using these live bamboo as pillars, they needed to use vines to tie them to the beams needed to support the roof.

Then they would use the burned bamboo to make a triangular roof for easy drainage.

After the roof was built, it was necessary to climb to the roof and use stones to cut off excess living bamboo with stone knives or axes. The root epidermis would be burned off.

Finally, they would cover the roof with bark, baled hay, and so on. They would then finish the four walls and the door.

Not only would this method ensure a sturdy house, but it could also save them a lot of time and effort.

The construction of the bamboo house began immediately after the clearing was completed.

During the construction of the bamboo house, Chi Shao would take some time every day to wander deep into the bamboo forest or set up some hunting traps in the forest on the left and right of the stone mountain.

No one had probably come to this place before. There was a lot of prey, and Chi Shao caught some prey every day, such as lice, river deer, pheasants, bamboo partridges, mountain rats, and so on.

With sufficient meat, the five of them were full of energy. They spent 10 days building the bamboo house!

"It's finally built!"

Jiang Xuan stood in the bamboo house that they had personally built. For some reason, he felt like crying.

A house was not just a place to eat and sleep. It could also make people feel settled. Without a house, they would never know where they were going the next day. They would be like rootless duckweeds.

"From now on, this is our home!" Jiang Xuan pointed at the bamboo house and announced this to everyone.

Chi Shao, Hook Vine, and the others were equally excited. With a house, they could sleep peacefully at night and not have to keep watch and be afraid.

However, the bamboo house was empty and needed to be filled with furniture.

First of all, they had to create a few beds. Jiang Xuan did not want to sleep on the cold and damp ground forever.

The material used to make the bed was still bamboo, of course.

Jiang Xuan led the others to burn down dozens of bamboo trees in front of the bamboo house again. Not only could they clear a space in front of the door, but they could also use the fallen bamboo to make all kinds of furniture.

He burned the bamboo into similar lengths and tied them into bamboo rows with rattan strips. This was a simple bed board.

Then Jiang Xuan specially found a few thick bamboo stakes and tied them horizontally under the bed board. This way, the bed board could be suspended in the air, away from the cold and damp ground.

The five of them pitched in and made five such beds. Each of them could have one.

This made them very happy, especially Chi Shao. She was a girl after all. Other than Jiang Xuan, she did not want to sleep next to anyone else.

After so many days, a large amount of wood ash and bamboo charcoal had been burned. Jiang Xuan sprinkled a large amount of wood ash and bamboo charcoal on the place where the bed was to be placed in the bamboo house. This would keep insects away and remove humidity.

Then he moved the five single beds into the bamboo house.

Because the space in the bamboo house was limited, the bamboo beds that the four boys slept on were placed side by side on the left side of the bamboo house. Chi Shao's bed was placed by itself on the right side of the bamboo house.

Jiang Xuan and the others found a large amount of hay and laid it on the bed. There was a thick layer of bamboo leaves on the hay, and a layer of soft moss on the bamboo leaves. This way, it would not sting and would be much more comfortable to sleep on.

Finally, Jiang Xuan used a large amount of bamboo as a screen to create a partitioned single room for Chi Shao so that she could have a separate room to sleep in.

That made Chi Shao happy. Who wouldn't want a standalone space?

After making the bed, Jiang Xuan and the others moved a pile of relatively flat stones from the stream and formed a fire pit in the middle of the house. After lighting the fire pit, this brand new bamboo house became lively.

As for the other furniture, including pots and pans, he would slowly add them in the future.

After all this was done, everyone finally heaved a sigh of relief.

At night, Jiang Xuan lay on the bamboo bed and looked at the closed door and the flames burning in the fire pit. For the first time, he felt at ease.

It would definitely get better in the future. With this thought in mind, Jiang Xuan smiled and fell asleep.