Orc Girl's Tribal Daily Life

Chapter 236 Attempting to Build a Bed

The general shape of the kang (heated brick bed) resembles a single-path maze with a lid.

The main principle is to leave a flue between the kang (heated brick bed) surface and the ground, connecting the fire opening and the smoke outlet, so that the hot air generated by the combustion in the kang can circulate through it, thus maintaining the temperature.

To save time and firewood, ordinary households would connect their earthen stove and kang (heated brick bed) together, sharing a common flue. This way, cooking would produce the same effect as heating the kang, saving half the time and firewood needed for heating.

This is why Jiang Luoluo asked if there were any materials that could be used to make a new pot; she wanted to achieve the goal of making the earthen stove in one go, thus saving wood.

When Jiang Luoluo said that a kang (heated brick bed) is a place where people can sleep directly on a fire, the surrounding clansmen all showed expressions of disapproval.

Although they all possess the ability to transform into beasts and have some control over fire, allowing them to avoid being burned by flames most of the time and to withstand extremely high temperatures...

But this does not mean that they can sleep directly on the fire for a long time.

One problem is that sleeping on top of the fire is uncomfortable; the uneven firewood inside makes it uncomfortable to lie on.

Secondly, enduring high temperatures also requires physical strength and internal energy. The most obvious consequence of this energy expenditure is that one is prone to hunger.

So compared to other options, it's slightly more resistant to freezing, but it's better to eat less of it.

Only Zao Wenyan seemed to be deep in thought, without objecting to Jiang Luoluo.

Jiang Luoluo had to explain carefully again, saying that it wasn't about letting people sleep directly on the fire, but rather about making a kang (heated brick bed) and then letting people lie on it to sleep.

After thinking for a moment, Jiang Luoluo pointed to the stove and said to the others, "It's like using a kiln made of bricks that looks like a furnace."

These fired bricks and stones can prevent direct combustion by the flames, only transmitting the heat.

One of the tribesmen scratched his head and said, "The temperature of this stove isn't low either. A child like you would be roasted alive in no time if you lay down on it."

A clansman next to him slapped him, saying, "The kang that Luo mentioned doesn't need so much firewood. If you only burn a little, it definitely won't be that hot."

Everyone suddenly realized that there was indeed some merit to this idea.

Ultimately, everyone agreed on the same goal: no amount of talk could be as direct and convincing as a live demonstration.

It's the snow season, so there's not much else to do but plenty of free time. People don't mind doing other things in between their work to distract themselves and make things less boring.

Being stuck in a small place during the snowy season is unbearable not only for children, but also for adults. They are just a little more accustomed to hiding their feelings than children.

Moreover, they were allowed to sleep on the floor near the stove, where there was also a large open space.

Why not build a kang (heated brick bed) here, as Jiang Luoluo suggested? Even if it's not very effective or useful, it can still serve as a temporary stone bed.

They no longer needed to sleep on the ground, so their efforts weren't in vain.

Once the idea was decided, the tribespeople began to take action.

Jiang Luoluo was asked to stay in the cave and watch as the other tribesmen, dressed in their best clothes, walked out of the cave entrance and went to a brick kiln cave some distance away to retrieve the bricks.

You won't know until you go, and you'll be shocked when you do.

Over such a long period of time, the bricks fired in the brick kiln have almost filled the open space outside the brick kiln cave.

The two tribesmen who made the bricks were already wondering where to put them next when they suddenly found them useful. They were very happy and brought the bricks over.

In terms of quantity, these already fired bricks are more than enough to build four or five small brick houses, and based on the standard size of a kang (heated brick bed) for a family of three, they can also build thirty or forty kangs.

Once most of the bricks had been delivered, the group began to build the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove) as Jiang Luoluo had instructed.

These clansmen were all strong, powerful, and efficient workers. In Jiang Luoluo's original impression, it would take a group of people a long time to finish making a kang (a heated brick bed).

The tribesmen finished it in half a day.

Including laying the foundation, Jiang Luoluo completed every single step she could think of, which was quite astonishing.

The most troublesome part of building a kang (heated brick bed) is that many steps require time to set and wait for the bricks and mortar to solidify and dry.

But this is a kiln, and in the very center burns a huge furnace with a temperature of over a thousand degrees. Even if only a portion of the heat leaks out, it is still incredibly dry and stuffy here.

The mud solidified naturally after being left for a while—the downside was that it dried too quickly, leaving many tiny cracks. Although some more mud was applied to fill them, the effect was definitely not as good.

However, the villagers didn't care much, after all, this was just a "test case", and the real purpose was to see if the kang (heated brick bed) would work.

As long as you can persist for a period of time and test its general effects, minor problems are all insignificant.

Of course, although they said it didn't matter, some members of the clan carefully recorded all the problems that occurred, so that when they tried to make it again next time, they would know where there were problems that needed attention and which steps could be improved.

But the final drying and test firing certainly couldn't be completed in just one or two days. Jiang Luoluo was carried back home by Ge, and they agreed to come back to check on the situation in two days.

As for issues like chimneys, that's the least of our worries. Because we've worked in brick kilns and brick-made furnaces before, our people are quite experienced when it comes to ventilation chimneys.

Because it takes time for the kang (heated brick bed) to dry, and there won't be any problems that need to be addressed during that time, Jiang Luoluo hasn't thought about the kang for the past two days.

Instead, they started seriously considering their own plans to go out.

Being constantly wrapped up like a ball and led around by Ge was certainly safe, but Jiang Luoluo didn't like the feeling of not being able to see anything.

So she was researching whether she could wear a windproof mask, at least to allow her to see what was going on.

Just two days ago, I received an apology and compensation from Nan, and those two transparent lenses came in handy.

The main problem is that the transparent lenses Jiang Luoluo has are all pre-made products. She can't very well dismantle her telescope just to find a piece of transparent glass to make a mask.

Besides, even if Jiang Luoluo didn't use the transparent lenses Nan gave her, would she really have to grind them herself? That would be such a waste of time.

Since we have something on hand that we can use, why bother about whether it's ugly or not?