In a fleeting moment, Ye Father envisioned the scene of living together with his third son, working tirelessly until his last breath.
He thought it might be better to live alone.
"Father, I am sincere!"
"You expect me to believe that? I might as well work until I'm eighty!"
"If you don’t believe me, you’ll still end up working until eighty! My grandmother is eighty and still tending to her garden!"
Ye Father retorted, "Living with you will shorten my life; it might even kill me before I reach eighty."
"Oh, fine," Ye Yaodong shrugged.
"If that’s the case, I’ll just move out to let you live a long life! You can pick one of the older brothers to live with you and take care of you here!"
Knowing his father built three houses, he intentionally said this with a mischievous grin.
Ye Elder Sister-in-law and Ye Second Sister-in-law immediately frowned, but they didn't dare express their unwillingness openly.
Could Ye Father not see through their thoughts? He just chose to remain silent about it.
Ye Mother was busy feeding the little grandson, listening quietly, though her heart felt a bit cold at this moment.
She asked herself if she had treated the three daughters-in-law unfairly, having taken good care of them during their confinement.
Yet in the end, only the third daughter-in-law was willing to stay with them!
Last night, before going to bed, she discussed with Ye Father about building three houses directly.
Their old home was quite dilapidated, and they were just over fifty.
If they lived for another twenty-plus years, this house would likely become uninhabitable.
After they passed away, the land could simply be sold and shared among the three brothers.
They wouldn’t have to worry about living with any particular son because they could still take care of themselves; they didn’t need to depend on their sons to support them.
They would be happy with their sons respecting them as long as they collected what they earned.
Who would have known that Ye Father’s sudden probing would reveal the hearts of the two daughters-in-law? Fortunately, both of the older sons were good, and the third daughter-in-law was just as admirable.
The children at the table noticed the adults talking but dared not interrupt.
They simply focused on their meals, finishing quickly before heading off to play, ignoring the worries of the grown-ups.
The three daughters-in-law finally sat down, though they lacked an appetite, waiting for Ye Father to speak.
Inside, Ye Father felt quite disgruntled, but he couldn't vent his frustration on his daughters-in-law.
Instead, he glared at his three sons and stated openly, "It's already agreed with the commune that we’re building three houses, one for each of you. Your mother and I won’t require your support; we're still capable of taking care of ourselves.”
Truly, he was making things unnecessarily complicated; he should have just said one house per person right from the start!
As soon as he finished speaking, Ye Elder Sister-in-law and Ye Second Sister-in-law both sighed in relief and smiled openly.
At that moment, Ye Eldest and Ye Second not only saw through their wives' subtle thoughts but also shot them displeased glances.
"Alright, let’s eat quickly! Afterward, the first and second will come with me to hire workers and buy sand."
Ye Mother added, "I’ll go find someone to pick a good day for our construction."
"Okay."
Among the group, only Ye Yaodong and the Old Lady remained unaffected by the atmosphere, as he cheerfully served the Old Lady some fish.
Without teeth, the Old Lady could only eat fish!
“Grandmother, once I start earning money, I’ll buy you some dentures, and then you can eat anything you want!”
“Ah, good, good~” The Old Lady beamed with joy at his words.
In their hearts, everyone wondered, “When will that be?”
Yet, Ye Yaodong's cheerful antics lightened the mood at the table.
After finishing his meal and pushing his bowl aside, he grabbed his chopsticks to reach for some sunflower seeds.
These were better suited as snacks with alcohol rather than a full meal, and he had to shell them one-handed, which was quite a hassle.
He always preferred to save them for later.
Unfortunately, there was no alcohol in the house, and even if there was, he wouldn't be allowed to drink!
So, he had enough self-awareness not to ask, fearing he might get scolded!
However, despite this awareness, he still ended up getting scolded…
Having just eaten a few, he reached out for more when his mother slapped his hand away. “You’ve eaten enough; go down from the table. Can’t you save some to snack on later? Are you planning to eat everything now and then ask what to eat later?”
Suddenly, the feeling of being treated like a grandson hit him hard; the shift was quite jarring!
Ye Yaodong bit the tip of his chopsticks, feeling vexed, “I dug out a whole basket this morning; it would last us until tomorrow. And tomorrow, we can still go to dig in the sea. Is there any worry about having enough?”
“You want to go and dig?”
“I’ll go if I want to. I went this morning, didn’t I?”
Just as Ye Mother was about to say something, the Old Lady interjected with worry, “It’s so sunny right now; be sure to wear a hat tomorrow to shield yourself from the sun. I’ll prepare a jug of tea for you to quench your thirst.”
Ye Father, displeased, chimed in, “It’s just digging in the sea. How much sun can you even get? We’ve spent all day on the boat without complaint, and you’re the only one fretting.”
Ye Yaodong felt utterly wronged… he hadn’t said anything, had he?
“You’re used to working hard, but Dongzi is still tender; how can he compare? He said he would go tomorrow. Can’t you let him eat a bit more now? It won’t cost anything!”
Ye Father felt utterly helpless facing the Old Lady, “You spoil him too much!”
“Being able to eat is a blessing. As long as our child is healthy and safe, that’s enough. Let Dongzi eat; if he enjoys it, let him eat a bit more. We can always dig more again tomorrow.”
“Ah…”
He could only sigh.
Watching his parents stare at him with discontent, he wondered how he had ever managed to act thick-skinned before without noticing.
But now, he felt the pressure; he couldn’t keep going.
After taking a couple of bites, he left the table.
After rinsing his mouth, he tossed the water ladle aside, only to notice two large tubs of sand clams on the stove, their shells gaping open with tentacles reaching out, and a half-bucket of them on the ground, all stretching their tentacles as well.
With many hands, they had gathered quite a bit in just three hours.
However, with so many people in the house, it wouldn’t last long; it seemed there would only be enough for two or three days.
“Mother, did you specially bring seawater back to keep them?”
“Of course!”
He obediently kept his mouth shut!
If he suggested using tap water mixed with salt for keeping them, he would surely get scolded again!
What they were consuming now was coarse salt, already sorted and sold at a decent price.
There’s no way his mother would use salt with water for keeping the sand clams; she would rather take a ten-minute walk to bring back a bucket of seawater to keep them alive.
“Move aside, let me find the cloth.”
Ye Yaodong was tugged by his wife, so he didn’t linger in the house anymore and directly moved the rocking chair to sit under the shade at the door.
Just as he settled down, shaking his legs lightly, he saw his uncles, the first and second, arriving once again.
Unbelievable! Were they still not giving up?
“Ah, what wind brought my uncles back again? This cursed southeast wind! Have you eaten enough?”
Ye Second Uncle’s lips twitched, “We’ve eaten enough with the northwest wind; no need for southeast now!”
Ye Yaohua, rinsing his mouth at the door, immediately choked hearing this, truly... it was remarkable how the conversation could flow like this…
Ye Yaodong was astonished as he looked at his second uncle.
His quick wit was quite impressive to respond so swiftly!
(End of this chapter)