By the time he returned home with the bucket, everyone had already gathered at the table, ready for dinner.
Lin Xiuqing came over and saw the bucket full of eels, her face blooming with joy.
"So you went to catch eels? I asked you before, and you said you didn't know. It's perfect for tonight; we can have a hearty meal before we have to work again tomorrow."
Ye Fù glanced at him with disdain.
"You only like to do these silly things all day. When I ask you to go out to help harvest the rice, you slack off."
His father seldom looked at him kindly except when it was about earning money.
Ye Yaodong chuckled nonchalantly, "Isn't this a way to improve our meals? Eels are nutritious too!"
"After a few decades, you won't even be able to catch them. You'll be forced to buy farmed ones," his father shot back.
"Grandma, that's a good idea! I haven't had eels in a while. Working is as tough as fishing at sea. I was thinking of slaughtering a chicken for you all in a few days, but having eels tonight is just right. We can save the chicken for the Mid-Autumn Festival. Dongzi, hurry up and wash your hands. I'll cook the eels."
"Okay."
Ye Yaodong looked at his father, "You just returned from the safe harbor. Is the sea still rough? Can we go out tonight?"
"It's fine to go. Your second brother went a few days ago. I'll take you out tonight; just line up in order."
"Oh!"
He had prepared himself mentally for tonight; it would be a chance to see how lucky he was.
After dinner, he first took the receipts and went with Lin Xiuqing to Ah Cai's house to collect today's fish sales money.
On the way back, they stopped at Xiao Xiao's place to get two big grass carps weighing about three jin each, along with three crucian carp, to keep in the bucket for tomorrow's lunch for the workers.
It had been several days since they went out to sea, and with so many people at home, the salted fish stored earlier had run low.
Lin Xiuqing saw him finish washing up, bare-chested without a shirt, coming and going.
These days, she noticed he had darkened a lot from the sun and couldn't help but say, "I'll find time tomorrow to buy you some cloth and make you a set of clothes!"
"Huh? Why all of a sudden do you want to make me clothes? Just make yourself a few sets; I'm not doing anything. Why would I need new clothes?"
"Have you forgotten you've been helping out lately? You have to wash your clothes twice a day. Two pieces are not enough for you. Let me make you another set."
"Oh, you can do whatever you want."
Indeed, two pieces weren't enough.
A couple of days ago during the typhoon, he had no clothes to change into when his laundry didn’t dry, so he just wore shorts at home.
Before, he used to come and go at odd hours, and Lin Xiuqing didn't bother with whether he had clothes to change into.
But now it was different; he was either working at the house or out at sea, and she had to make sure he had something to wear.
Ye Yaodong actually didn't care much about what he wore.
She had always taken care of that, and anyway, he wouldn’t end up without even a couple of changing clothes.
"You should make yourself a couple of outfits too; you've made a bit of money recently."
"Why make new clothes when it’s not a holiday? It’s a waste of money. I have three pieces that are enough for me. Grandma has already stewed the eels; come and eat while it’s hot."
"Oh."
The table was filled with bowls and chopsticks, with each person having a piece of eel.
Only his bowl contained two: one large and one smaller.
Grandma was beside him, urging him to hurry and eat.
He nodded and picked up the smaller one, starting from the head, peeling off the skin and taking out the organs, pouring the blood into Grandma's bowl and placing the meat into Lin Xiuqing's bowl.
"Eat, I still have a bigger one in my bowl!"
"You eat; we all have our share."
"I have more than you. Come on, eat up. After this, I’ll go catch more in a few days; there are plenty in the fields."
Grandma accepted it with a smile, and Lin Xiuqing quickly took a piece to feed the child.
It wasn't a rare thing, so there was no need to pass it around.
The others at the table watched quietly and continued eating without saying a word.
The blood of the eels was the essence and very nutritious.
However, the children didn’t like eating it, yet they were forced to, as who wouldn't eat an eel and refuse the blood?
After they finished eating, everyone except Ye Fù who needed to go out to sea went to cool off at the door.
Ye Yaodong lay in the house for a while but couldn't sleep, so he went out to join them.
Upon stepping outside, he immediately heard a group of women chatting.
"How much did you sell the big fish for this afternoon? Was it around one hundred jin?"
"Probably dozens of dollars, right?"
"I heard from Ah Cai’s wife that they sold that fish for 40 dollars!"
"My goodness, that’s quite a sum!"
At this moment, the countrywomen had no idea about keeping wealth hidden; they gathered to gossip and compare.
Ye Mother couldn’t help but cheerfully exclaim, "It wasn’t that much; it was just over thirty bucks, and I sold some other goods at the same time, that’s why the total is high."
"Dongzi has been doing well lately, catching mackerel and grouper, and now picked up that big Du something… he’s really struck it rich."
"It's a Dusky grouper! It’s the first time we’ve seen such a big fish on our beach. Dongzi is so lucky…"
Ye Yaodong leaned back in his chair, lightly rocking, and said lazily, "It wasn't my luck; it was Ah Qing's luck. She found it; I just helped carry it. All the money went into her pocket; I'm just a worker."
The neighbor lady next door laughed heartily, "You say it like that; isn’t what’s yours also hers?"
"Exactly! Why are you calling it working for Ah Qing?"
"Alas~"
Ye Yaodong sighed, then stood up, pulling out a pack of friendship cigarettes from his pocket and tossing it onto the chair.
He turned both pockets inside out, jingling a five-cent coin and a two-cent coin in his hand.
"Do you see it? My pockets are empty, with only seven cents. The money from selling fish is all hers. I’m just her worker."
Lin Xiuqing shot him an amused glance, "You have the nerve to show that off…"
Ye Mother couldn’t help but scold with a laugh, "As long as you’ve got cigarettes, what do you need money for? You don't want to waste it. The family’s money should be managed by your wife. A few cents for pocket money is enough; those friendship cigarettes are only four or five cents a pack, enough for you for a few days."
"Alas, when I was young, my mother managed things; now that I’m married, my wife manages. When I grow old, I might still have to see my son and daughter-in-law’s expressions. Such is life~"
He sat back down and started rocking in the chair again!
His words gained the agreement of some nearby uncles.
"Makes sense; aren’t we always being managed? Even when we drink a bit, we’ll get nagged."
"Exactly! And having to hear it… it’s not just the smell of smoke, it’s about how I snore all night. It's infuriating…"
"You old smoker, coughing every day, and still want to smoke…"
Before long, the air was filled with the shouts of aunties…
Successfully changing the topic, Ye Yaodong began rocking leisurely again.
He wasn't fond of people prying into his family matters or how much money he’d recently made.
Just as he was enjoying himself rocking, some mischievous kid came up and pulled his chair back, causing him to tumble to the ground!
"Ah, damn it! Who did that…"
"Ha ha ha ha~"
Fuming, Ye Yaodong scrambled up and glared at the group of boys laughing not far away.
Some were from his family, and some were neighbors.
What little devils!!!
"Third Uncle, it’s Ye Chenghu. He lost a bet with us…"
"You little rascal, don’t you run away!"
"Ah, Dad~ it’s them! They said you wouldn’t be mad. Brother Ah Hai also said you usually play with them like this. It was just a joke! You won’t really hit me…"
"Ah… I was wrong! Mom~ Mom~ help! Dad's going to kill me~"
The National Day holiday was particularly busy, with days stretching until midnight before he could catch a breath, then typing until two in the morning.
He was too tired to stay up, only having time to peek at the backend before bed, discovering many reader gifts.
A heartfelt thank you to everyone for your support!
Every vote, every gift, I read through one by one.
You can read the novel in the morning; staying up late is not good.
The author also has to get up at six in the morning, working to jot down a bit during the day.
(End of this chapter)