Chapter 233 - 105: New Member
The rainy season arrived earlier than the pattern summarized by Robinson in the book.
Starting from August 11, the frequency of rainfall increased steadily.
The platform at the doorstep, once wet, never dried again.
According to his plan, Chen Zhou stayed in the cave dwelling, seldom going out unless necessary.
Being a "caveman" wasn't as boring as he had imagined.
In fact, freed from outdoor labor, he found more pleasure in having the time to observe the animals at home.
After all, life isn't lacking in beauty, only the eyes to discover it.
...
On around June 20, Tizi became pregnant, and by August 14, her belly was quite pronounced, and her movements were no longer as agile as before pregnancy.
She became increasingly lethargic, with a decreasing frequency of hunting trips, often lying on her side by the kitchen stove, resting with her eyes half-closed.
In times like these, her unreliable partner, Xiao Huihui, was of no use at all; not only did he fail to help Tizi hunt or bring her food, he couldn't even provide basic companionship.
When it came down to crucial moments, it was Chen Zhou, the "father," who prepared rabbit meatballs for Tizi, helped her make a cat nest, and lined it with rabbit fur.
Perhaps lacking a sense of security as delivery approached, the bigger Tizi's belly grew, the clingier she became, showing symptoms similar to "separation anxiety."
Whenever Chen Zhou went out to check on the condition of the mother goat, added salt for the goats, or went to the sunroom and mountain stream to tend to the plants, spending a long time away from the cave, Tizi would get anxious and meow persistently.
It's worth noting, Tizi was a very quiet cat, barely making a sound even when getting her wounds disinfected after getting trapped in a rabbit snare.
Sometimes, she would even follow Chen Zhou into the drizzle outside.
However, Chen Zhou dared not let Tizi accompany him on long walks and would always pick her up and carry her back to the cave.
Apart from the separation anxiety, during this period, Tizi also grew increasingly fond of burrowing under the covers.
She used to never go up onto the bed.
Every night after dinner, as Chen Zhou went to bed, Tizi would follow him up, then softly meow, urging him to lift the covers and let her in.
The dark, warm, and soft environment provided Tizi ample security, and resting with Chen Zhou, the big, friendly, hunting-proficient "big cat," made her feel at ease.
However, having Tizi under the covers meant Chen Zhou didn't sleep well.
He was a heavy sleeper, and without significant noise or physical contact, it was hard to wake him.
Therefore, he worried about rolling over and crushing Tizi or kicking her belly, causing a miscarriage or premature birth.
Chen Zhou wanted Tizi to sleep in the wooden box he had prepared.
The box was made entirely from boards cut by the Space-Time Cutter, simply sanded with no splinters, with a hole on the side just big enough for Tizi to come in and out.
The bottom of the box was lined with a layer of dry straw, topped with several pieces of tanned rabbit fur.
Worried the rabbit fur was too coarse, Chen Zhou further added a small piece of seal skin on top of the rabbit fur, making the "maternity ward" cozy and comfortable enough.
But Tizi was not swayed at all, and even when Chen Zhou moved the box to the bed's side, she wouldn't stay in it.
Instead, Xiao Huihui, shamelessly, would sneak into the box whenever Chen Zhou wasn't paying attention.
Luckily, ever since being with Tizi, he often ventured outside, losing some weight; otherwise, he'd have gotten stuck at the entrance, unable to move.
...
Besides Tizi, the pregnant female mice's bellies also visibly grew larger.
Chen Zhou wasn't sure how long it took for mice to give birth after pregnancy, but based on his observation and judgment, he speculated that the due dates for these six "big-bellied moms" might be only a few days later than Tizi's.
To avoid the male mice from causing unnecessary trouble during the females' pregnancies and to prepare a place for the future "experimental mice."
Chen Zhou forcibly cleared a space in the storage room to build an "apartment building" for the unborn mice.
...
Caring for Tizi siphoned off much of Chen Zhou's energy, and coupled with the daily chores akin to "daily tasks," it severely reduced his work efficiency.
However, Chen Zhou didn't feel anxious because of this.
On the contrary, he brimmed with anticipation at the upcoming new lives in the home.
While drying the white clay boards, he discovered that once dried, they could serve as a special kind of canvas.
Thus, during these days at home squatting around, he baked numerous clean, flat white clay boards for painting, temporarily solving the problem of lacking paper for drawing.
In the past, Chen Zhou's paintings mainly consisted of landscapes or buildings, or some still life sketches.
This time, he changed his usual themes, earnestly sketching the appearances of the home members and the animals on the island.
Lai Fu, gazing at the forest from a high vantage point;
In the morning, just stepping out of the cave, the shadow of the goat couple cast on the slope;
Gen afar, on the edge of the gravel slope, nibbling at the grass tips, the chinchilla;
Lazy, lying by the kitchen door, exposing her belly, Tizi;
Forepaws clutching tender grass, bit by bit feeding it into the mouth, Little Dragon Cat;
Stretching languidly on the platform, with a sturdy build, Xiao Huihui...
These artworks, drawn with charcoal sticks and purplish-pink pigment, were placed between the bedroom and kitchen, where a newly built low wall stood, about half a meter high.
The hard white clay board paintings leaned against the wall base, resembling a unique row of wall tiles.
Besides relaxing by painting, Chen Zhou didn't forget his real work.
From August 11 to August 20, what troubled him most was how to improve the design of the flintlock gun.