Lin Xiuqing embraced the large sum of money in her arms and returned home first.
After earning money, she thought it was only right to celebrate with friends.
She was not a small-minded person.
By the time she got home, everyone from the Ye family had already come back from the homestead.
"Ah Qing, I heard that Yaodong had a great haul on the island today. How much did he sell for?" Ye Dajie asked curiously.
Ye Erjie also looked at her with eager eyes.
Lin Xiuqing smiled, "Not much, mostly shellfish. I have a big pile in the backyard. I’ll need you and Erjie to help me shuck the oysters later; we’ll add some dishes for tomorrow."
After saying this, she turned and went into the house.
She was not one to flaunt her wealth, especially since Ye Erjie had been complaining of unfairness just yesterday.
Ye Erjie pouted, not speaking further.
Lin Xiuqing placed the cash on the bed, counted it again to ensure everything was correct, then took out the money she had just earned from selling shellfish.
Aside from the small abalones which had some value, the snails and pen shells were quite cheap.
However, the large quantity made up for it, and weighing it altogether, she earned over eight yuan.
Adding this to the money her mother had given her from A Dong’s sales earlier, she had earned more than 400 yuan today.
For their family, it was a substantial amount, even more than what she made in a year of weaving nets.
In addition, she had sold six or seven yuan from the beachcombing a few days earlier.
Holding onto the money tightly, Lin Xiuqing felt a renewed sense of hope for the future, and she could not help but feel more optimistic about Ye Yaodong.
He seemed to have been improving a bit these last few days.
After securing the money, she went out to help shuck the oysters and sort the other shellfish to prepare for cooking the next day.
The next morning, Ye Yaodong woke up late after drinking too much the night before.
By the time he got up, the house was empty, with only the old lady watering the vegetable garden in the backyard.
"Grandma, did they all go to the house to help out?"
The old lady smiled, her face wrinkling with joy, "Yes, there's congee and dried fish cooking in the pot. You should hurry and eat. Did you wear yourself out yesterday? You’re looking quite tanned."
“It’s fine; a bit of tan is healthy. Grandma, I've earned some money these past days. Today is Saturday, so on Monday, I’ll take you to the county hospital to get you a set of dentures."
“Ah? No, no!” The old lady quickly waved her hands, “At my age, it’d be a waste of money! I’m fine with eating fish; I don’t want to eat meat! I’m not going!”
“But just the other day, you were all for it. You should listen to me.”
“I’m not going, not going! You earned a few bucks; keep it for yourself. Don’t spend it on me.”
“I heard they’re quite cheap, not expensive…”
“Then I still won’t go! Hurry and eat your meal!” The old lady pushed him along.
Ye Yaodong chuckled; he would just wait until Monday to take her along.
After a simple breakfast, he headed straight to the homestead.
Before he arrived, he saw workers carrying stones, loading pebbles, and hauling soil back and forth.
His mother had said they'd hired a dozen workers.
Once he reached the homestead, he noticed his second brother was lifting stones with the workers and placing them into the deep pit they had dug.
Nearby, an older craftsman was carving rocks.
The large pit was probably dug yesterday.
Here in the countryside, houses were generally built without piles; they simply dug a pit about thirty to forty centimeters deep and filled it with stones for a foundation.
As luck would have it, his mother came over carrying a load of stones and spotted him.
She quickly said, “You didn’t go beachcombing today, so you're to stay put and help. Otherwise, I’ll tell your father when he gets back.”
Ye Yaodong looked at his mother helplessly; he had come to help!
“Got it.”
“The gloves are over by the rocks.”
“Oh, where's Ah Qing and the kids?”
“She’s up on the mountain helping to shovel soil; that work is a bit easier. The kids are playing by the creek, helping to pick up pebbles.”
Nodding to his mother’s watchful gaze, he went to join his second brother in lifting stones.
His mother watched for a while, satisfied, then went back to gather more pebbles with her bamboo basket.
As for his group of friends, they started showing up one by one to help with the lifting after he had been at it for a while.
The workers were from the village, all on the older side.
Seeing these young lads being so diligent and coming to lend a hand, they couldn’t help but praise them for having matured.
This unexpected compliment left them feeling a bit shy!
A Zheng whispered, “Damn, we’ve always been considered a bother, now they praise us, and it feels like we’ve suddenly come into some luck…”
Xiao Xiao nodded in agreement, “Right? I brought home a bag of shellfish yesterday, and my wife was all smiles! After I shared my earnings, she was so sweet to me.”
“My mom was the same; she praised me so much and said she wanted to catch a chicken next time if she felt like it!”
"Must be nice for you guys... here I am, alone and unloved, with no one to praise me. Just have to hold onto my money…"
Hearing this, everyone switched their gaze to A Guang, “How about a few rounds tonight?”
After they handed in their earnings, their pockets became empty again.
Not to mention, Fatty and Chen Wei hadn’t gotten their share yet.
If A Guang didn't let them win a few rounds, it just wouldn’t be right!
A Guang glared and instinctively clutched his pocket, “No playing; I’m quitting gambling!”
“You have the nerve to say that after how fierce you usually shout when losing!”
“Starting today!”
Everyone rolled their eyes together!
What started as a dull and laborious task now brought a little joy with this group of friends joining in.
By evening, as they finished for the day, Ye Mother quietly asked Ye Yaodong, “Should we calculate half a day's wages for your friends?”
“No need, just feed them,” he answered. “They won’t be able to work many days, and they won’t come every day.”
“Well then, I won’t hold it against them.”
After working a few days, Ye Yaodong didn't go on Monday, so his friends didn’t go either.
The night before, he had discussed with Lin Xiuqing to take the old lady to the county hospital for her dentures on Monday, so he asked her to inform his mother.
Lin Xiuqing gritted her teeth, unlocked the drawer, and counted out 50 yuan for him. “Take it; that should be enough, right?”
It was money he had earned recently, and she only felt a bit of reluctance.
Plus, the old lady really cared for him.
Ye Yaodong hugged her and kissed her cheek.
He knew his wife was sensible and wouldn't mind spending the money to show respect for the old lady.
“No need for that much. I’ll return you the leftovers.”
“Okay.”
On Monday morning, the old lady positively refused to go.
She kept insisting that she wouldn’t be around for much longer and didn’t want to waste any money.
Ye Yaodong stood his ground, “If you don’t go with me, I’ll just get one for myself. What if it doesn’t fit? I’ll end up paying more to adjust it!”
The old lady grew angry and slapped him several times before helplessly agreeing to go out with him.
She was worried about spending too much.
(The End of this Chapter)