As Azheng was about to throw his net again, everyone noticed a group of sea wolf fish leaping out of the water near the distant lonely island, repeatedly splashing about.
"They're over there!"
Ye Yaodong spotted them, rowing straight towards the commotion and instructing Azheng to stay alert, ready to cast his net at the right moment.
Without a doubt, this time the net would surely catch something.
Everyone was excited, as this meant they were going to earn money.
However, Azheng was concerned that if they caught too many fish at once, they wouldn’t be able to haul them up.
So, he adjusted the area he was planning to cast.
After five throws of the net, they found the boat already filled to the brim with sea wolf fish, barely leaving room to stand.
Everyone laughed heartily, their faces glowing with joy.
Ye Yaodong smiled, his eyes narrowing.
"Your little boat finally has some shadow. With all these sea wolf fish and a few dozen jin of pomfret, you should be set."
"Ah, I’d like to invest in your boat, what should I do?" Aguang squatted in the boat, gazing at Ye Yaodong with hopeful eyes.
"Forget it, it's privately owned!"
"Why did you get a boat first? The rest of us wanted to partner with you."
"If I didn’t have this little wooden boat, let’s see how you catch sea wolves and pomfret today."
Xiao Xiao sighed in regret, “We caught sea wolves, but it’s a pity we didn’t catch any sea turtles.”
"Sea turtles are rare. If fate doesn't allow us to catch them, we shouldn't push our luck. If you want to eat turtle, we can let Azheng take us to Yangping Village’s reservoir in a few days for another try," Ye Yaodong suggested.
Azheng’s eyes lit up, "That’s a great idea, it’ll boost the kidneys!"
He couldn’t help but tease, "How weak are your kidneys? You don’t even have a wife!"
"Can’t I prepare in advance? Who knows, I might get married in a couple of months."
"Huh? There’s news?"
Aguang's eyes widened, "No way, if you get married, what will I do?"
"What’s up with you two?" Ye Yaodong and Xiao Xiao exchanged confused looks.
"Shut it! Why are you speaking like that? It’s not like I need to consult you. If I marry, why would it matter to you? Just prepare a red envelope and come to the wedding to help set off some firecrackers."
Azheng was dumbfounded.
"I didn’t mean that! I mean, among us, you’re the youngest, and now even you’re getting married? What about me, then?"
"So what if you’re single? Do I have to stay single just to match you?"
"You might not want to, but my dad expects me to carry on the family name! Sigh, when will I find a girl? Why hasn’t anyone introduced me to one?”
"My mom’s relatives are all worried about me first, don’t you think?”
Seeing their conversation drifting further, Ye Yaodong quickly interjected, “Enough about finding girls. We don’t even have room left in this boat. I’m rowing back now to sell these fish while they’re still fresh, lest they spoil in this hot sun.”
Xiao Xiao patted the empty sack in his pocket, "Will we still head to the lonely island after selling? I brought the sack today, and it hasn’t even been used."
Aguang quickly added, "I left a barrel of sea turtle eggs on the lonely island that I haven’t brought aboard."
"Are you silly?"
"Who knew we would catch so many fish all at once? It was unexpected!”
Ye Yaodong assured, "We’re going, it’s still early, only half of the morning has passed! Today is the fifteenth, we shouldn’t waste the opportunity to fish."
"Then hurry up and row."
"Talking like that doesn’t make it easier. Rowing is tiring, you know?"
“I’ll massage your shoulders later. You tell me where to rub, and I’ll rub there," Aguang said, winking at him deliberately.
Ye Yaodong shivered; after being single for so long, Aguang had gotten strange.
He quickly turned away, wishing to avoid the awkwardness!
Even though it was just morning, the sun was already blazing, reflecting off the water's surface, shimmering with light.
Ye Yaodong felt energized.
Today was indeed the day he would officially test his little boat, and things were looking good.
Even when divided among four people, they were sure to make quite a bit of money.
At that moment, the tide was out, leaving the shore clear of boats.
Only their small one could manage to approach without getting stranded, as they would have to wade a bit.
Otherwise, they’d be stuck when the tide went out, which meant no trip to the lonely island today.
After docking, Ye Yaodong looked at the catch while the others busied themselves with baskets.
He estimated that the sea wolf fish weighed at least eight hundred jin, if not a thousand, but the pomfret was hidden beneath the sea wolves and couldn’t be seen.
The beach was mostly empty aside from those harvesting the sea, and when they began to unload the sea wolf fish, not many took notice.
Aicai’s eyes sparkled with delight, "Where did you catch so many sea wolf fish? I haven’t seen them in a while! Who would’ve thought you’d have so much today?"
"Hurry and help unload, there’s also pomfret, dozens of jin worth."
"Wow, you guys went out again, and managed to bring back so much. You never come back empty-handed!"
"Of course, hurry, let’s get it all down first!"
Aicai, with his round belly, happily waddled to help.
These sea wolf fish were no small catch; each one measured over a meter long, weighing over twenty jin.
Aicai couldn’t stop beaming.
"Let’s agree on a price per jin before anything else."
"Hey, you all have the advantage in numbers, do you think I dare cheat you? Let’s set it straight. Sea wolf fish is four mao five per jin, pomfret above six jin is four mao, and below six jin is two mao five."
Ye Yaodong nodded in satisfaction; at least Aicai was straightforward today, no tricks.
"Alright then, let’s lift them up for weighing."
Aguang took out the sea wolf fish he had in his sack, too, "Let’s weigh it together; it doesn’t hurt to add one more."
Ye Yaodong patted his shoulder, "Good brother!"
"Well, I’m just riding on your coattails! It’s all good if we add it together."
"Let’s weigh them together. So, this basket weighs 101 jin..."
"This one weighs 96 jin..."
...
"I’ll total it up. The sea wolf fish comes to 1010 jin and six taels, the big pomfret is 40 jin and three taels, and the smaller ones are 28 jin and six taels. The small basket of mixed fish and crabs needs sorting before weighing."
The total weight of the sea wolf fish exceeded their expectations, and the pomfret came in lighter.
"We won’t sell these mixed fish and crabs for now; leave them with you. We’ll return to collect them later."
"Hm? You’re going back out to fish again?"
"Yes. It's the fifteenth, so it’s a rare opportunity. You calculate the money, and write the receipt."
Aguang reminded, "We’ll come by your place tomorrow to pick up the cash for the fish. Don't forget to be ready."
The money had to go into their own pockets to feel secure!
"Got it. The total for the sea wolves is 454.77 yuan, and 23.27 yuan for the pomfret. That makes a total of 478.04 yuan."
The four of them were bewildered by the calculations, exchanging uncertain glances.
"Is that right?"
Ye Yaodong thought for a moment, "It should be right. I’ll take the receipt back for my wife to check."
It was inconvenient without a calculator.
How could a barely literate person solve numbers?
He wouldn’t even know how to use an abacus!
He could barely write his own name!
Aicai puffed his chest, "Don’t worry, it’s all good. With so many of you, I’m not afraid you'll flip my table."
"That’s good."
Ye Yaodong waved his hand, "Alright, thanks a lot... Ah, wait a moment! Don’t tell anyone we caught so many sea wolf fish!"
"Why?"
"Just stay low-key!"
They had just changed the land foundation and gotten a boat; it was necessary to keep things downplayed.
"Fine, I understand."
(The end of this chapter)