Ye Yaodong smiled as he spoke to his companions, “I’d like to save two or three mackerel to take home. Tomorrow, work on our house is starting, and I need to take care of the workers with food and drink. It’s just right to keep a few to make some mackerel balls. Plus, we can’t finish all these assorted seafood in one meal, so I want to reserve some for tomorrow's dishes. Anyway, we can divide everything equally, and what I keep will be deducted from my share when it’s sold...”
“Aiya, don’t talk about deducting money! We’re all good brothers here; just take however many you want...”
“Exactly! Just take what you need; why bring up money?”
“Seriously, there are hundreds of mackerel! Does it really matter if you take a few more? Since your house is starting work tomorrow, you could keep a few more and cut them up to marinate. It’s hot now, and fresh fish won’t last, but salted fish can be stored for a few days. After all, we caught them ourselves; it didn’t cost us anything, so keeping a few extra is fine!”
Their warm-hearted words made him feel grateful; these friends were indeed worth having.
He shook his head with a smile, “The fish are still worth some money, so taking too many would feel wasteful. I’ll only keep two. My dad goes out to fish daily and brings back some cheap catches; it’s fine to cook them for the workers tomorrow.”
“We can divide these two buckets of seafood too. Let’s keep a little for tonight to pair with our drinks, and everyone can take a bit home to add to their meals.”
“And the mackerel, you all should also save two to take back for your families. Mackerel dumplings or fish balls would be great to make.”
Although he didn’t like mackerel dumplings, he enjoyed fish balls.
Since everyone was unwilling to deduct money from him, it was better to share evenly, with each person bringing something back for their families.
As everyone listened to his arrangements, they felt like he seemed a bit different.
He was even thinking about his family and cared for them.
A Guang patted him on the shoulder, “Dongzi, you seem to have matured a bit suddenly. Is it because you're about to split from your family?”
“Of course! I’ll soon be the head of my own family. Once I don’t live with my parents anymore, I’m sure I’ll become even more mature.”
“Is it because you’re getting less scolding? Hahaha~” A Zheng teased.
“Go away, you’re always trying to break the mood!”
“Then let’s do as A Dong said. Everyone can take two mackerels back, and the little fish and shrimp, just pick whatever you want. The stuff we don’t want, we can take for tonight’s drinks.”
A Guang shook his head, “I don’t need much; it’s just me and my two sisters at home, and we can’t eat much. As long as there’s something for tonight, that’s enough.”
A Zheng added, “All my four sisters are married off, so it’s just me and my parents at home; I don’t need much either. I just want one mackerel and a bowl of little shrimp.”
“Just take what you want; I’ll look through what’s left and pick some more.” Ye Yaodong replied casually.
By the time they reached the dock, the four of them had picked out the seafood to keep, each reserving a couple of mackerels.
The tide was still low, and some people were digging for clams nearby.
The tide was too shallow for the boat to approach, so they had to land on the nearby rocks.
One person stayed on the boat while the others rushed to the acquisition point.
They had never thought they’d catch so many fish and hadn’t prepared anything—not even baskets.
When A Cai at the acquisition point saw them come in like a group of bandits, he didn’t even greet them and just took away all the bamboo baskets stacked up to higher than a person.
“What are you doing? Where are you taking my baskets? That’s too many!”
“We caught a few thousand pounds of mackerel! You should come help us carry them!” Ye Yaodong said while pulling A Cai along to hurry and take the remaining baskets.
“What do you mean a few thousand pounds of mackerel? Where did you catch these? Are you serious? Don’t trick me!” A Cai stumbled a little as Ye Yaodong tugged on him before finally shaking him off.
“Aiyo, stop fussing and hurry. You’ll see when we get there.”
The tide was too shallow now, and there were no boats at the dock.
He was just standing there, so with some suspicion, he followed them onto the boat.
As soon as he stepped on board, he saw the live hold packed to the brim with mackerel.
A Cai’s eyes lit up. “So many mackerel! Did you catch a whole net full?”
A Guang said without looking up, “Not just one net; there are even more in the hold. Hurry and help us pack them up.”
“How much are you purchasing mackerel for?” Ye Yaodong asked concerned.
“Two dimes each.”
“Can’t you give a little more?”
“That’s already high; I’m only making a few cents on top.”
“Yeah right, help take them down first.”
“Ah~ There’s still this much? Where did you run into a small school of mackerel?” A Cai was stunned, seeing the hold overflowing with mackerel.
“Why are you asking so much? Hurry and help!”
Baskets of mackerel were continually brought down from the boat, leaving everyone on the dock in astonishment.
The dock in their village was just a small one, usually only receiving catches from small boats or traps, and a single boat wouldn’t have much.
They had never seen so many mackerel piled in basket after basket, and people began to discuss amongst themselves at the acquisition point.
“Wow! So many mackerel. Whose boat caught them?”
“How did they catch so many? Did a big boat dock here?”
“Definitely not; there’s not even a sight of a big boat.”
“Tsk, tsk, tsk~ Another fortune made! Just a few days ago, Old Ye caught a big haul of yellow croaker, and now someone’s caught a few thousand pounds of mackerel.”
“Whose boat was that again? I think I just saw A Dong and his crew?”
“A Dong? A Guang and those guys...”
“No way? Those guys can actually do proper work?”
...
Baskets of mackerel filled the acquisition point, while those digging for clams at the beach heard that someone had caught a few thousand pounds of mackerel, and that included Ye Yaodong.
The Ye family was shocked; Dongzi caught a few thousand pounds of mackerel? Is this for real? When did he go out to sea?
“Let’s go to the dock and take a look since the tide is almost up.” Ye mother couldn't wait and stood up.
When did her third son become so reliable?
Lin Xiuqing, holding her son, was both surprised and delighted.
She knew her husband had gone out to sea, but wasn’t he supposed to be scavenging on a deserted island? How could he catch a few thousand pounds of mackerel?
The Ye family, filled with doubts, walked over to the acquisition point, seeing basket after basket overflowing with mackerel.
Ye Yaodong and A Guang were coming over carrying a basket, and their mouths dropped in shock.
It was Lin Xiuqing who reacted first.
Once he put the basket down, she tugged on his arm, “A Dong, did you really catch all these mackerel?”
“It wasn’t just me. A Guang, Xiao Xiao, A Zheng, we all helped.”
“Really? You guys caught them?” Ye mother still couldn’t believe it.
Her third son could hardly lift a shoulder, and when had he ever done anything serious?
(End of Chapter)