BTSFVI Chapter Thirty Four

 Read/BTSFVI/Chapter Thirty Four

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >

        Chapter 34 How Is It Not Easy to Talk

Warning! Dirty talk ahead, nothing too explicit

Ye Yaodong hurriedly walked towards Ah Guang's house, and from a distance, he could already smell the fragrance of steamed crabs.

As soon as he stepped inside the threshold, everyone exclaimed, "You finally arrived! If you were any later, you would only be left with washing dishes."

"Come, come, sit down! We saved that nine-section shrimp just for you..."

"I came so late, I’ll first punish myself with three cups!"

"Punishment my ass! There's only a little bit of alcohol left. Don't be fooled, he’ll finish it all!"

Everyone was lively and in high spirits, and they finished off all the alcohol brought by Fatty. After devouring the seafood on the table, they dispersed and went their separate ways.

Slightly drunk, Ye Yaodong returned home and noticed that the door was not locked from the inside today. He casually locked it and then entered his own room.

By the moonlight streaming in through the window, he could only see his two children sleeping in a tangled mess. His wife had her back turned to him, and he couldn't tell if she was asleep or not.

He undressed down to his shorts and climbed into bed, embracing his wife and pressing himself against her back. However, he was met with her hand slapping his waist.

"Lie on the other side, can't you see how crowded it is? It's so hot, and you're sticking so close with that alcohol smell all over you. It stinks!" Lin Xiuqing muttered in a low voice.

Ye Yaodong directly turned her around, silencing her incessant chatter by covering her mouth.

"That's enough. It was just yesterday..."

"Yesterday was yesterday, today is today. Just cooperate a bit, wife..."

"Then you continue to come with me to the beach tomorrow!"

Ye Yaodong glared at her, wondering why she was bringing up conditions at this moment!

When did she become so clever?

It’s obvious he will agree in a hurry!

How is it difficult to talk to a man in bed?

Not to mention, he had originally planned to visit the deserted island tomorrow, to overcome the fears within his heart.

"Alright, alright, whatever you want me to do, I'll do it. Let's cooperate and switch positions..."

"Then go take a shower first!"

Ye Yaodong: "..."

The arrow is on the bowstring, women are so troublesome!

Lin Xiuqing continued in a low voice, "You smell of alcohol all over, and your hands have the scent of seafood! It's too overwhelming!"

"So many demands, wanting this and that. I already took a shower in the afternoon..."

“But you've been drinking, and the smell is too strong!"

Damn it, after he muttered in his mind, he remembered something about the bed. With a slightly heated tone, he said, "I can take a shower. Let's move to the floor. The bed creaks and it's annoying."

"On the ground?"

"You don't need to worry about how I toss and turn. Just listen to me, okay?"

Blushing, Lin Xiuqing hesitated a bit. She wondered why they couldn't just stay on the bed instead of suddenly moving to the floor for...

"Do you still want me to go to the sea tomorrow? If you want the bull to run, you have to feed it well, right? Give me some sweet rewards, and I'll do whatever you say."

Seeing her wavering, he continued to persuade her, "Today when I went fishing, I caught a tiger grouper for you and a nest of snow clams. My luck has been great recently, and I'm sure you've made a good profit from it. It's worth several days of your fishing nets. Tomorrow is the first day of the lunar new year, and there will be a big tide. Who knows, maybe my luck will be even better, and I'll catch more valuable things..."

"Alright, you go take a shower. After you're done, I'll listen to you!"

After receiving a positive answer, Ye Yaodong joyfully got up and eagerly went to the back door to take a shower.

Damn it, after decades of abstinence, let's see how he regains his glory!

When he lay on the bed like a dead dog, he didn't want to move at all, while his wife was already dressed and ready to fetch water and clean up.

He's already serving her in every way, and now he even has to work to earn money for her!

"Lie down, let's sleep together!"

“Your legs are already weak, and you're still not satisfied?"

Ye Yaodong: "..."

"Who am I doing this for, isn’t it to satisfy you..."

"What nonsense!" Lin Xiuqing glared at him angrily.

"Ah... I was talking nonsense... talking nonsense... Come here, let me tell you something," he said, pulling her to lie down next to him before continuing, "I won't go to the beach with you tomorrow..."

"Hey, don't glare at me yet. Listen to me first. Ah Guang will go and try to borrow a boat tomorrow. If he can borrow one, we'll go to the deserted island for a while. There's no one around the small islands, and there must be more fish on the reefs than at the pier."

"Who is he going to ask to borrow from? Will anyone be willing to lend it?"

"He's going to ask his little uncle. Let's see how it goes. If he can't borrow it, then forget about it."

"Okay, it's up to you. If you can borrow it, then go ahead and explore the deserted island. Just be careful."

"Well, now you won't think I'm going back on my word!"

He definitely had to give her a heads-up in advance, otherwise if she didn't see him around tomorrow, she would think he was just teasing her and might not be pleased with him.

It's rare to see him showing some initiative, and Lin Xiuqing is willing to chat with him a bit more. "Now that the family boat is repaired and we've had good harvests these days, don't you think you should take turns going out to sea with Dad like your older brothers?"

Come again! 

Asking him about this again!

Everyone wants him to go out to sea. Ye Yaodong is feeling a bit overwhelmed, but there's no avoiding it. After all, there is a boat at home. Unless he continues to be lazy like in his previous life and rely on his wife to support him.

"I've never been out to sea before, so I don't know if I'll get seasick. If we can borrow a boat tomorrow, I'll go out and take a few rounds to see how it feels."

"Oh."

"Go to sleep."

As a coastal dweller, he cannot be afraid of drifting at sea. He must overcome this challenge.

If he couldn't borrow a boat, he would ask two friends to accompany him and swim from the beach to the pier during high tide, just to give it a try. After all, he had already experienced near-death before, so there was nothing much to fear.

If there is an emergency,  his friends would be there to save him!

The next morning, Lin Xiuqing got up, and upon hearing the movement, he woke up as well. Today, he didn't deliberately linger in bed before getting up.

The family members noticed that he was getting up earlier with each passing day, and while they had some doubts in their minds, they didn't make a big fuss about it. After all, he had indeed been a bit more diligent these past few days.

After finishing breakfast, everyone went about their own activities, and Ye Yaodong also prepared to leave. However, the old lady followed him to the doorway and secretly pulled him aside.

He looked at her in confusion and saw the old lady discreetly take out a boiled egg from her pocket and whispered to him.

"Here, take it. Eat it secretly, don't let your mother know."

He looked at the old lady with surprise, then glanced behind him with a hint of guilt. He whispered, "No wonder my mother mentioned during the meal that there was one less egg laid today. So it turns out you took it."

The old lady, seeing that he didn't reach out to take it, directly stuffed it into his pocket. She smiled, her face full of wrinkles, revealing her toothless gums.

"These past few days, you've been going to the sea every day. You must be exhausted. Before I cooked porridge this morning, I secretly boiled one for you to replenish your energy. Don't let your mother know, or she'll scold you again."

He tried to take out the egg, but the old lady kept pressing his hand, not allowing him to take it out. He felt a bit helpless.

When he was younger, the old lady used to do this kind of thing often, but as he grew up, it became rare. Today, she unexpectedly sneaked a boiled egg to him. He couldn't help but feel touched, unsure whether he should be moved, really moved, or deeply moved...

(end of this chapter)

***

Z's corner:

Awwww, the old lady is precious.

Get advance chapters on Patreon. Read Up to 25 chapters ahead! Schedule update is 6x a week (No Sundays).

You can also support us and sponsor a chapter on Kofi! If you can't support us with money, a good review on NU would be great. Always appreciate the help~♡

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >

NDHSD Chapter 7

Read/NDHSD/Chapter 7

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >

            ◎Happy 7th Day: Next-Day Delivery and Hiking Adventure ◎

The first priority is the large-capacity portable hard drive.

Jiang Muyun has a lot of things she wants to download. If possible, she would love to download all the films and literary works, both ancient and modern, domestic and foreign. This also includes a significant portion of reference books that she believes will be useful in the future.

It is necessary to buy several high-quality portable hard drives.

Another important item is power banks.

Regular power banks won't do. After the apocalypse, electricity becomes precious as well. Jiang Muyun plans to buy a solar-powered one.

Solar power banks, solar-powered lights, and other small items like these can be purchased directly online.

Jiang Muyun has done some research and found that there are no solar panel manufacturers near South City. So solar panels also need to be purchased online.

However, shipping large items like these will take time, and the delivery address needs to be changed to the small warehouse.

There is also extreme cold weather clothing, three-proof windbreakers, and other non-daily wear clothing.

Outdoor tents, sleeping bags, waterproof hiking backpacks, and other outdoor equipment.

Protective suits, and even essential pandemic prevention items like gas masks, are also indispensable.

The quality of these items is crucial, and they are not places to save money.

Jiang Muyun chose a highly reputable outdoor brand and placed individual orders for various items, purchasing a complete set of equipment.

Then she added fifty sets of three-proof windbreakers to her shopping cart, as well as five sets of camping equipment, including tents.

As for extreme cold weather clothing, considering the inventory issue at the brand store, Jiang Muyun specifically located their factory store and found that they had over 5,000 in stock. She added fifty pieces of extreme cold weather clothing to her shopping cart.

Jiang Muyun plans to purchase masks and disposable protective suits in bulk from the factory, but heavy-duty protective suits and gas masks need to be purchased online.

After the apocalypse, there were nuclear leakage incidents happening all around the world.

Although South City doesn't have a nuclear power plant, Jiang Muyun cannot guarantee that she won't have to migrate someday.

There are also self-defense items.

Due to the strict control of firearms in the country, it is nearly impossible to obtain them unless she resorts to illegal means.

Jiang Muyun wants them, but she will have to wait until after the apocalypse.

The same applies to heavily regulated lethal-bladed weapons.

There are not many reliable self-defense weapons on the market currently. One option could be pepper spray.

Pepper spray may not have a high level of lethality and is unlikely to cause death, but it has a low skill threshold and can help create distance between herself and an assailant during a close-range attack.

For a single woman living alone, it is a reasonable precaution to keep several bottles of pepper spray at home.

There are also items like fire axes and chainsaws that can be repurposed for other uses.

Other versatile and practical items include entrenching shovels, ice axes for mountaineering, and crowbars, which can be used for cutting trees, prying open doors, or even digging holes.

Jiang Muyun made two separate purchases for these items.

One part of the purchase was made individually, such as the solar power bank and the few inconspicuous items like the portable hard drives. They will be delivered to her home tomorrow.

It also includes items like a wire saw, paracord, and thermal blankets.

Another part of the purchase required buying in large quantities, and Jiang Muyun mostly placed orders with factory stores.

Like boxes of paracord and pepper spray.

Jiang Muyun directly purchased two large cases of the LifeStraw water filter straw, a miraculous water filtration tool.

Along with the LifeStraw, she also purchased five large cases of water purification tablets and two sets of powerful water purification devices.

After the apocalypse, clean water sources have become priceless treasures.

No matter how much water Jiang Muyun can stockpile at the moment, she always feels it won't be enough.

So water purification products must be sufficient.

Jiang Muyun also bought fifty Mongolian-style mosquito nets. During times of mosquito and insect infestation, if she doesn't want to sleep with her head covered, these nets are the best choice.

There are also items like solar panels, small generators, storage batteries, and heavy-duty protective suits—less common but necessary items.

To prepare for the possibility of heavy floods during the rainy season, Jiang Muyun also purchased two engine-driven assault boats, five commonly seen manual inflatable kayaks, and even ten self-inflating life rafts for emergency use.

Jiang Muyun spent a considerable amount of money on all these items.

The reason for not preparing more water-related items is that South City is located near a river, and there are already many fishing enthusiasts and various water activity equipment.

Jiang Muyun is preparing in advance, just in case of unexpected situations.

If given the choice, Jiang Muyun would prefer to take a bit of a risk and wait until the order completely collapses to go for a zero-cost purchase of these items that have low usage rates and are not considered scarce in the southern city.

In order to roughly prepare the items she will need for the rest of her life with less than three million in funds, Jiang Muyun must make some trade-offs and prioritize her purchases.

Jiang Muyun can only prioritize buying essential items and scarce goods that will be hard to find after the apocalypse. For the rest, she can rely on zero-cost purchases, especially for certain prohibited items.

Jiang Muyun put all of them in her shopping cart, delaying the purchase and order placement by one day. She filled in the address as the suburban warehouse and the recipient's name as Manager Chen from her second warehouse.

South City is located on the dividing line between the north and south of the country. Although winters are cold and there is no central heating, the speed of delivery services is exceptional.

The next morning, before Jiang Muyun even woke up, she received a call from the delivery courier.

Her portable hard drives had arrived.

Yawning, Jiang Muyun signed for the delivery, and while tearing open the package, she realized that the shipment had actually originated from within South City.

Given the speed of the delivery, Jiang Muyun suspected that the store might have arranged for an employee to personally deliver the package to her.

Jiang Muyun tumbled back into bed and continued sleeping, but not long after, the door installation technician also arrived.

Jiang Muyun was perplexed.

Don't you guys have to sleep?

Are we starting so early?

Little did she know, when she checked her phone, she realized it was already past 10 a.m.

After a brief self-reflection, Jiang Muyun decided to celebrate her leisure morning by cooking some dumplings. She saw it as a way to mark her sleeping in until noon and embracing a relaxed day ahead.

After Jiang Muyun finished her brunch, the various packages she had ordered started arriving one by one.

Since the items Jiang Muyun purchased were not cheap, she opted for the platform's own logistics service, which meant that the delivery personnel arrived with a cart to deliver the goods to her doorstep.

To facilitate the installation of the iron door by the professionals, Jiang Muyun kept her front door open.

Jiang Muyun didn't want to make a mess inside her house, so she decided to sit on a small stool at the doorway and open the packages right there to sort them out.

She was preparing to assemble a BOB for herself.

BOB, short for Bug-Out Bag, refers to the type of backpack that you can grab and go with in the event of a disaster.

Inside a Bug-Out Bag (BOB), it is typically recommended to include at least three days' worth of food and water for one person, essential medications, as well as outdoor survival items such as a folding shovel, fire-starting devices, and a thermal blanket.

These types of backpacks are common overseas, and there are also many survival enthusiasts in China who would prepare one. In areas prone to earthquakes or flooding, having an emergency evacuation backpack is quite common and not considered unusual.

With this backpack as a disguise, she can live well during the early stages of the apocalypse, when city residents are gathering in shelters.

Having finished tidying up her belongings, Jiang Muyun had some free time and decided to take out the sharpening stone she had purchased.

The noise from the installation of the door was quite loud, making it difficult for Jiang Muyun to have a conversation with the installer. So she decided to use the sharpening stone to sharpen the blade of her entrenching shovel instead.

Most of the entrenching shovels available on the market come without a sharpened blade. The higher the quality and hardness of the shovel, the less likely it is to come with a pre-sharpened edge.

Jiang Muyun had no choice but to buy a sharpening stone and manually sharpen the blade of the entrenching shovel herself.

Fortunately, Jiang Muyun has always maintained a regular exercise routine and has strength comparable to that of an adult male. Otherwise, it would have been quite challenging to sharpen the entrenching shovel for an extended period of time.

While she was huffing and puffing, manually sharpening the entrenching shovel, two young people arrived on the elevator.

Each person was tall and strong, with buzz-cut hair and well-defined muscles. The taller one even had a scar on his face.

The shorter man, upon seeing the entrenching tool in Jiang Muyun's hands, exclaimed, "Wow! Girl, you shouldn't play around with that thing. Be careful not to hurt yourself."

Jiang Muyun looked up and realized that she didn't recognize either of the two men—they were complete strangers to her.

The tall man with the scar looked a bit helpless and pulled the shorter man aside. He apologized to Jiang Muyun, "I'm sorry about him; he tends to be a bit too familiar with strangers. Please don't mind; he just speaks his mind."

Zhao Jiahao, realizing his mistake, quickly said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to curse you or anything. I just noticed that you seem quite professional with that tool..."

The cardboard boxes next to Jiang Muyun were torn open and placed on the ground. They mostly contained items she had prepared for her bug-out bag.

She spent a large sum of money to buy the best items available on the market, and at first glance, they did appear quite impressive.

Jiang Muyun wiped the sweat off her forehead and said, "It's okay, you meant well. I enjoy hiking, and these things were just bought for casual fun."

Zhao Jiahao saw that Jiang Muyun wasn't angry and immediately smiled, saying, "Well, it seems like our interests are quite similar. I live in 1503, and my name is Zhao Jiahao. This person is my comrade-in-arms, called Li Anxuan. We both work at the city fire brigade and are currently sharing an apartment together."

After saying that, he looked at Jiang Muyun with an expectant expression, waiting for her response.

In Jiang Muyun's residential complex, there are two elevators and four households per floor. When Jiang Muyun went to school, only her apartment, 1501, and the Qin family's apartment, 1502, were occupied on the fifteenth floor.

The owner of apartment 1504 hasn't been seen, but Jiang Muyun is familiar with the owner of apartment 1503.

That person used to be a soldier under Grandpa Jiang's command and later worked at the Fire Department after retiring from the military.

During the urban reform, they moved to their children's residential area and never returned afterward.

Yesterday, she heard Qin Shiwen say that apartment 1503 was rented to new interns in his team, and now it seems like it's them.

No wonder Qin Shiwen, who has always been very busy with work, could quickly get to know the new neighbors. Li Anxuan's words are accurate, this Zhao Jiahao does indeed seem very friendly.

These people, whether before or after the apocalypse, are risking their lives to save people, and Jiang Buyun has always had a favorable impression towards them.

Feeling a bit tired, she decided to set aside what she was doing and stand up, shaking hands with the two of them. "Jiang Muyun, I live in 1501, and still a student."

Li Anxuan also follows her way, "Li Anxuan, we just moved here. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Jiang Muyun noticed that although his face looked youthful, his demeanor didn't reflect inexperience. Li Anxuan didn't treat her as a child either.

Zhao Jiahao looked at Jiang Muyun's collection of equipment with envy and said, "That's great ah. Back when I just started university, I always wanted to get a set of hiking equipment. But then I ended up enlisting and joining the Fire Department after my military service. We had hiking drills, but actual hiking trips were just a dream. Any free time I had, I ended up sleeping instead."

Jiang Muyun nodded with a sense of understanding. "Indeed, regular people often don't have the time and energy for it."

Zhao Jiahao seemed to have found a kindred spirit and said, "Exactly! It not only requires a lot of energy but also carries risks. There is also a significant amount of preparation involved in the early stages. I was always preparing but never actually setting off. Later, I improved my physical fitness and survival skills, but time slipped away."

Jiang Muyun echoed with a sigh, "You're absolutely right. My previous hiking trips were hasty, and I almost starved myself on the road. That's why this time I want to upgrade my equipment and make more detailed preparations!"

Zhao Jiahao raised his thumb and said, "You're really brave! If I had your enthusiasm back then, I wouldn't have any regrets now."

Li Anxuan, seeing that the two of them were about to get into a deep conversation, immediately interrupted, pulling Zhao Jiahao aside and said, "It's good to be serious about preparations, but don't go encouraging others to take unnecessary risks."

Not only did the two of them work a long night shift yesterday, but they also had to attend to unexpected duties in the morning. At this moment, Li Anxuan felt like he could fall asleep even while standing, and he couldn't fathom where Zhao Jiahao found his energy.

Zhao Jiahao felt wronged upon hearing that. Where was he encouraging Jiang Muyun to take risks?

Seeing the dusty appearance of both of them, Jiang Muyun could tell that they had just finished their work. Coincidentally, she also had a pile of deliveries waiting for her. Jiang Muyun took the opportunity to say, "Let me tidy up my things first, and we can continue our talk later."

Zhao Jiahao nodded vigorously, "Sure, sure! Later, you can tell me more about your hiking experiences. It sounds really exciting."

Jiang Muyun watched as the two of them went back to their homes and then swiftly tore open the package in her hands with a rustling sound.

It's not an exaggeration. Her hiking experiences were indeed incredibly thrilling—so thrilling that she feared no one would believe her even if she shared them.

***

Z's corner:

More friends for Yunyun! And firefighters at that ( ͝סּ ͜ʖ͡סּ)

Get advance chapters on Patreon. Read Up to 5 chapters ahead! Update Schedule is 3x per week (Mon, Wed, Fri).

You can also support us and sponsor a chapter on Kofi! If you can't support us with money, a good review on NU would be great. Always appreciate the help~♡

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >

BTSFVI Chapter Thirty Three

 Read/BTSFVI/Chapter Thirty Three

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >

        Chapter 33 Go to the Pier to Unload Goods

After chatting with everyone for a while, it was almost four o'clock when Ye Yaodong finally patted his butt and stood up.

 "I'm going to the pier to help unload the goods. You guys can handle the seafood. Once I'm done sorting the goods, I'll come over."

Amazed, Ah Guang looked at him and said, “Are you really being sensible?"

“Roll!"

He quickened his pace, taking large strides as he headed towards the pier. By this time, the tide had risen along the shore, and the fishing boats were likely approaching the dock.

When he arrived at the pier, there were already quite a few villagers waiting by the shore. They were all family members of those who had gone out to sea, waiting for the boats to return so they could help with sorting the catch.

Mother Ye was also waiting at the pier, and she looked satisfied when she saw Ye Yaodong approaching.

Just a moment ago, she waited for a long time and didn't see him. She thought that this stubborn kid had gone astray again. If he listens and takes it to heart, it shows that there is still hope. He seems to have made some progress these past few days.

Ye Yaodong also spotted his mother and walked towards her, smiling and jokingly saying, "Mom, why are you here too?"

"Isn't it because I'm worried about you? What if you don't listen or forget? Your father and older brother can't handle everything alone, can they?"

"Why don't you believe in me?"

"Are you trustworthy?"

The villagers nearby also chuckled and said, "Is Ah Dong here to help today?"

"That's how it should be. When there's work to be done at home, one should lend a hand. Young people should be diligent and discerning."

He absentmindedly nodded along, his eyes fixed on the boats at sea. There weren't many families in their village with boats, and most of them had already set sail. The boat coming back towards them must be his father's, right?

“Yaodong, is that your father's boat?"

"Right? Let's wait and see. It'll dock in a moment."

The small boat gradually slowed down as it approached, and they could see the blue paint on the hull, confirming that it was indeed their family's boat.

Ye Yaodong and his mother quickly walked down the stone steps, getting ready to receive the goods in a moment.

Father Ye on the boat also noticed that his third son had surprisingly come to the dock to help. However, he didn't say anything. After docking the boat, he and Ye Yaopeng started moving the cargo to them, asking them to carry it ashore first.

The first to be carried off the boat were baskets of swimming crabs, followed by a basket of mantis shrimp, and then there were a few jin of loose items.

There were some large mantis shrimps, estimated to weigh only about two or three jin, and some smaller mantis shrimps, which weren't worth much but amounted to around ten jin. There were also two jin of small squid, and various sizes of water grain fish that needed to be sorted, totaling around ten jin as well. Additionally, there were four or five jin of small yellow croakers, and the rest consisted of less valuable miscellaneous fish.

Today there weren't any large catches, but the overall harvest still looks quite good!

After unloading the goods from the boat, Father Ye maneuvered the boat to a different spot, clearing the area for other boats to dock. There were more boats scheduled to arrive later.

Ye Yaodong and the others began moving the goods to the acquisition point. The sizes of the swimming crabs varied, and so did their prices. They needed to pour them out and sort them, also using rubber bands to tie the crab legs together.

While Father Ye and Ye Yaopeng were on the boat, they had already managed to tie up most of the crabs during their spare time. However, there was still a portion that remained untied.

When the crabs were poured out, their legs were trembling and they were lively, jumping around. They looked exceptionally fresh.

He randomly grabbed a few crabs, and their backs were quite hard. "They're quite plump, even the smaller ones are firm and meaty."

"Crabs have been quite plump lately, and the shrimps are also fat. Their meat is full and some even have roe."

The three of them deftly tied up the crab legs and sorted them by size.

As they watched Ye Yaodong's swift movements, both Mother Ye and Eldest Brother Ye were very surprised.

When did he ever do this kind of work before? He could tie the knots so neatly and swiftly, and his speed is not slower than theirs!

"Little Third, you're quite fast! I didn't expect that!"

"Psh, what's the big deal? Just because you haven't seen it doesn't mean I can't do it!"

"You lazy brat! You don't do the household chores but you're willing to help others, huh? You're so unreliable day after day..."

Listening to his mother's nagging, he didn't argue back. Sighing, he knew it was something he had to endure.

After sorting the crabs, they poured out a small basket of mantis shrimp. Sorting the mantis shrimp was relatively simple; they just needed to separate them by size. The same applied to the prawns and water grain fish—they had to be sorted based on their size as well.

The larger ones can fetch a higher price, while the smaller ones are not worth much.

They separately collected the low-value small fish and shrimp in a water bucket, along with some small eels and miscellaneous fish, and packed them to take back home. They also planned to dry them into fish jerky while they were at it.

After weighing all the goods, Father Ye went over to settle the accounts while they took the fish and seafood back home first.

"Mom, how much money can we make from selling these goods today? We have over 30 jin of crabs of various sizes, more than 20 jin of shrimp, a few kilograms of prawns, and some other fish. It looks quite good."

"Today's harvest is quite good. We can sell the larger crabs for 30 cents each and the smaller ones for 20 cents. As for the shrimp, the larger ones are priced at 35 cents, while the smaller ones are 26 cents. Prawns are a bit more expensive at 50 cents. Considering the other miscellaneous items, we should be able to make around 30 yuan. However, we also have to deduct about 2 yuan for diesel fuel expenses and consider the cost of the equipment, which can easily break and requires frequent repairs."

"That's great! We can save quite a bit in a month!"

"Don't get too carried away. It's not like we can go every day and have such a bountiful catch every time. We rely on the weather for our livelihood, and the sea is unpredictable. Some folks only made a little over a dozen yuan yesterday."

"That's better than odd jobs."

Ye Yaopeng sincerely extends another invitation, "How about you join us in taking turns to go out to sea, little brother? We rely on the sea for our livelihood, so we should learn from our father."

"Huh? You and Second Brother can learn first. Once you both have learned, then I'll join in!"

Listening to his excuses, Mother Ye wanted to scold him, but she held back. They were at the dock, and considering his relatively diligent performance today, she decided to tolerate it for now.

After the separation, it would be necessary for him to join in the fishing activities. The money earned now can still be counted in the family account and be used to build houses.

After the separation, if the eldest and second brother join in the fishing activities, would they share their earnings? While the third brother remains idle all day, he can only wait to starve or rely on the support of the elderly. What kind of situation is this?

In other families, children are raised to provide support in old age, but in their case, they have given birth to an ancestor!

Unaware of his mother's inner thoughts, Ye Yaodong quickly slipped away as soon as they reached the doorstep, leaving behind a remark that he wouldn't be eating at home tonight. After all, he felt that he had already helped with the tasks that needed to be done for the day.

Mother Ye felt both helpless and at the same time, she considered it more normal for Ye Yaodong to behave this way. Today he had been to the homestead, then went to the sea, and now helping at the dock. He was so diligent that she was starting to feel unfamiliar with him.

Second Sister-in-law Ye pursed her lips and said, "Just when he seemed a bit reliable, he's gone again!"

"Let him go. It's already good enough that he helps with the work. Pick a bowl of fish and shrimp to send to your families, and prepare the rest for cooking. Braise the larger ones and sun-dry the smaller ones. As for the small shrimp, boil a bowl of them and sun-dry the peeled shrimp meat. We can't afford to wait until tomorrow in this weather."

All three daughters-in-law agreed, but Lin Xiuqing's family was relatively far away, so she didn't have the opportunity to send fish to her family. She could only watch the other two sisters-in-law take the fish back to their maternal homes while she stayed behind to prepare the fish.

After the two of them had walked far away, Mother Ye said to Lin Xiuqing, "When do you plan to go back to your family? I'll save some good seafood for you to take with you in advance."

"Okay, mother. There's no rush. I'll wait until the Mid-Autumn Festival to go back."

…

…

With three sons, Mother Ye always tries to maintain a fair and balanced relationship.

(end of this chapter)

***

Author's note:

Insert Price Description:

In the 1980s, seafood prices were relatively stable according to my father, who has firsthand knowledge of the industry. My grandparents were involved in seafood wholesale during that time, and my father, who was around eighteen or nineteen years old at the time, often accompanied them to nearby ports to purchase seafood. The prices during that period did not fluctuate significantly.

The only exception was yellow croaker, which was not as valuable back then. According to my father, wild yellow croaker weighing around one or two jin would sell for only 60 cents per jin.

Back then, the daily wage for skilled workers was a little over 2 yuan, while laborers doing rough work would earn just over 1 yuan per day. Even at these prices, yellow croaker was not affordable for the average person, and it was mainly consumed by the wealthy.

Back then, seafood was also priced at a few cents per jin, but the average person couldn't afford it. After all, their daily wages were only about one or two yuan. During that time, for example, the dragon head fish (also known as tofu fish) was priced at only 6 cents per jin.

The initial description of the prices for the yellow croaker in this book is slightly higher than reality, but it is done to set the stage for the plot. Readers should take it as part of the story and not compare it to the actual prices of that time. Only the price of the yellow croaker has been exaggerated.

This book will continue to maintain the inflated prices of yellow croaker as previously mentioned. This is a deliberate choice made for the narrative.

The price of shrimp in the previous section has also been revised. In the future, I will make sure to inquire about the prices before describing them.

This is somewhat of a digression, but I would like to inform everyone about the actual situation. The prices of other seafood mentioned in the story are generally in line with the prevailing prices at that time..

My family members are unaware that I'm writing a novel, and I feel quite embarrassed about it. I had to gather the courage to ask my father about the prices. Now, I'm constantly being asked by my family members about my humble literary work, which is rather awkward…

Here, I'd also like to make a request for your support by collecting and following my work. If you could consider contributing or leaving a tip, that would be even better. After all, during the early stages of a new book, there won't be any royalties until it's officially published. It's purely driven by passion and love!

Thank you for your support! bow!

***

Z's corner:

That was one long author’s note. But, yea, don’t forget to support the author for this amazing work!

Get advance chapters on Patreon. Read Up to 25 chapters ahead! Schedule update is 6x a week (No Sundays).

You can also support us and sponsor a chapter on Kofi! If you can't support us with money, a good review on NU would be great. Always appreciate the help~♡

< Previous Chapter

Table of Contents

Next Chapter >