Chapter 231 - 240

Jiang Xia and Zhou Chenglei saw the jeep and hurried home.

When they arrived, Zhang Rong was already in the yard, munching on corn on the cob and talking to Zhou's father.

Only Zhang Rong and the driver who had brought the goods had come today.Full novel: After transmigrating into the book, she became wealthy in the 1980s. — read the rest free on N​o⁠v​e⁠l​C⁠o​d⁠e​x⁠.​o⁠r​g⁠

Seeing them return, Zhang Rong smiled and said, "Auntie's corn is so sweet."

Jiang Xia smiled, "My mom is especially good at growing corn, and she always gets up early to pick it and cook it. She says that freshly picked tender corn is especially sweet, but it's not as sweet after being left overnight."

Zhang Rong nodded with a smile, "That's right, Auntie is hardworking and capable; that's why she raised so many outstanding children and grandchildren."

Zhou's mother smiled broadly at their praise.

Jiang Xia said a few more words to him, then went back to her room and took out the dragon balls. "Second brother, didn't you say there was a big auction? Could you please take these to the auction for me too?"

"Cough cough..." Zhang Rong had already eaten the last bite of corn; he glanced at it and choked!

Just how many treasures did this couple find in the sea?

Why don't he just give up selling jewelry and buy a boat to hang out with them?

Their life is so enviable!

Zhang Rong recovered, threw away the corncob he'd finished eating, washed his hands, and then accepted the three dragon balls Jiang Xia handed him.

Jiang Xia explained that they came from the same conch shell.

After examining them closely, Zhang Rong said, "Okay, I understand. I'll do my best to maximize their value."

Jiang Xia smiled, "Thank you, Second Brother."

Zhang Rong then said, "Come with me and take a look, Uncle, do you want to see?"

Zhou's father chuckled and agreed, "Sure!"

Jiang Xia, Zhou Chenglei, and Zhou's father followed him to the jeep.

Zhang Rong opened a box, revealing a well-preserved stone inside. A small piece of the stone's outer layer had been removed, revealing a small patch of emerald green.

Although only a tiny bit was visible, the pure color was enough to make it seem incredibly valuable!

Zhang Rong then opened another box, revealing another stone.

The stone also looked as if a piece of its outer layer had been peeled off, revealing a beautiful, pure, and translucent purple.

Zhou's father's hands trembled slightly: he knew that anything touched by Wangcai's Midas touch would turn to gold.

No, this jade was more valuable than gold!

Zhang Rong showed the stones to the group, giving them a general idea of ​​what the two stones given to him last night were like, then closed and locked the box.

"I think my sister-in-law was right to open it and sell it. This time, we might get even better results."

Gambling on stones is a psychological gamble, but no one can guarantee that a stone will be 100% good.

Therefore, the asking price will inevitably be reserved to ensure no loss. Once

fully opened, its value will be clearer.

After examining it, Zhang Rong was very confident.

Zhou Chenglei: "Thank you for your trouble, Second Brother." Zhang Rong

smiled: "No trouble at all.

My export earnings quota for this year has been exceeded because of you all! I was thinking of keeping one piece to sell next year." Jiang Xia smiled: "That's not impossible."

The faster the economy develops, the more valuable it becomes.

But there are advantages to selling early. The sooner you accumulate initial capital, the sooner you'll prosper.

You know, the coming years are called the golden age!

Zhou's father said with great enthusiasm: "Why keep it? Next year will have better things. Who knows, you might reach the quota before the middle of next year."

With Wangcai around, why worry about not reaching the quota?

Zhang Rong laughed: "Hahaha... Uncle is right."

After looking at the two stones, Zhou Chenglei took him to Zhou Chengxin's house to transport the jade-like giant clam shell away.

Zhou's father had Zhou's mother sit in the yard watching the jeep; he was also going to his eldest son's house.

Zhou Chenglei and the others walked there.

Zhou's father went by motorcycle. He practiced for a whole morning and learned how to ride it around the village.

Only people from that era can understand how prestigious it was to own a motorcycle!

Just like being the first in the village to buy a television—that was a real status symbol.

Zhou Bingqiang's family had the first television in the village, which was quite a show of power, and their house was always packed with people.

However, Zhou's father worked long hours, and his mother was also very active, getting up at four or five in the morning and going to bed at eight or nine at night. They didn't have time to watch TV, so Zhou's father never considered buying one; it wouldn't be very useful.

He was content with a radio.

Zhou's father rode his motorcycle, which everyone called the "Red Rooster," amidst the envious glances of the villagers, to Zhou Chengxin's house.

Last night it was dark, the light was dim, and the jade-like giant clam shell was covered in sand from being unearthed, so Zhang Rong couldn't see it clearly and made a conservative estimate of the price.

Now it was daylight, and the sun was out.

Under the sunlight, the jade-like giant clam shell was translucent and lustrous. Although it hadn't reached the highest level of translucency, it was still completely jade-like, looking just like mutton-fat jade.

Its price was definitely more than five thousand.

"I'll have someone study it properly, polish and carve it. I can't say for sure how much it'll sell for now, but I'll give you five thousand five hundred

first." He only brought a little over five thousand in cash, directly handing the five thousand five hundred from the file bag to Zhou Chenglei.

"Okay." Zhou Chenglei responded, taking it and then handing it to Jiang Xia.

Tian Caihua stared at the file bag, her eyes glued to it: Five thousand yuan was such a big bag!

She had never seen what five thousand yuan looked like in her entire life!

When would she ever find a treasure and earn over five thousand yuan?

After Zhou's father had everyone take a commemorative photo, Zhang Rong transported the jade-like giant clam shell away.

Because it was quite large, it attracted the attention of the neighbors when it was loaded onto the truck.

It was already dark when they brought it back last night, so no one knew.

Everyone was now asking Zhou's father how much they'd made.

Zhou's father chuckled and said, "Not much, just a few thousand."

Everyone: "..."

Only a few thousand?!

After seeing Zhang Rong off, Zhou Chenglei and Jiang Xia went home.

***

On the other side, Wen Wan recovered, tidied herself up, and took the goods out of the crab traps. She didn't bother pulling the remaining traps, waiting for Zhou Guohua to come back.

Zhou Guohua hadn't found the two stones yesterday; she wondered if he'd be able to retrieve them today.

After cleaning up, she took a few fish, shrimp, and crabs home, took a shower, changed into dry clothes, and went to the new house.

Sprinkling water on the newly poured floor slabs every day would help them harden faster and prevent cracking, the foreman who poured the slabs told her yesterday, so she went to water them. As

soon as she stepped outside, she heard the villagers discussing under the big tree that Zhou Chenglei had sold a big treasure and made several thousand yuan.

Wen Wan walked past expressionlessly.

Upon arriving at the new house, Wen Wan saw Zhou Chenglei standing on the floor, holding a rope with a hook at the other end.

Jiang Xia was standing below, the hook attached to a bucket handle.

Three buckets of water were placed near her feet.

Zhou Chenglei used the rope to lower the bucket to the floor, then used a ladle to splash water onto the floor, wetting it.

Wen Wan, who was also there to splash water, glanced at Jiang Xia and said expressionlessly, "Thank you for yesterday."

She wasn't heartless or impolite.

They had saved her; she should thank them.

Jiang Xia only glanced at her and ignored her.

Wen Wan pursed her lips.

She finally understood why she disliked Jiang Xia—it was Jiang Xia's arrogant, haughty attitude, typical of city people!

Oh well, she couldn't be bothered arguing with her!

Wen Wan took the bucket to Pan Daidi's house across the street to borrow water to wet the floor. Afterward, she had to rush back to school.

Since Jiang Xia and Zhou Chenglei had saved her this time, she wouldn't report them.

One thing at a time, that's it.

She doesn't owe Jiang Xia anything.

After lunch, the family got busy.

Since Zhou Chenglei was setting sail on a large ship to the open sea the next day, he borrowed a tractor from the production team and first went to the city to deliver a batch of dried fish to the publishing house and the train station. Then, he returned to town to buy rice, oil, noodles, and other food to take on the ship from the grain station.

Zhou's father pushed a cart to buy eggs, winter melon, pumpkin, taro, and other vegetables from the villagers; although they grew their own, it wasn't enough.

Jiang Xia and Zhou's mother went to the fields to harvest corn, cucumbers, green beans, and other vegetables.

This time, Zhou Chenglei planned to go to sea for half a month, returning just in time for Jiang Xia to attend the Guangzhou Trade Fair.

At dinner time, the corner of the living room was filled with bags and baskets of food.

Zhou's father asked Zhou Chenglei, "Which sea area are you planning to go to this time?"

Zhou Chenglei replied, "The area around Qianli Mountain."

In October, the red snapper would form an autumn catch in that area and then migrate south to overwinter.

Moreover, the coastline around Qianli Mountain is rich in sea cucumbers and abalone, so it would be a good opportunity to go into the water and find more sea cucumbers to nourish Jiangxia's body.

In fact, different fish species in each sea area have their peak seasons in certain months, especially in summer and autumn, when many fish species have their peak season in late autumn.

For example, in October, there is a sea area where the juvenile red snapper is in season.

He had patrolled the sea for many years and knew exactly which fish were in season in many sea areas.

Zhou Chenglei planned to go fishing for red snapper in the first half of the month and then head south to fish for juvenile red snapper in the second half.

Juvenile red snapper are small fish, and he could catch a boatload to make various kinds of small fish dishes for Jiangxia to sell during the New Year.

When Zhou's father heard that he planned to go to the Qianli Mountain area, he was very interested.

He wanted to go too!

The islands around Qianli Mountain have beautiful scenery, and in summer and autumn, seabirds flock there, their flight darkening the sky.

He had been there when he was young and had the good fortune to witness it; the scene was truly breathtaking!

He was also familiar with the area.

Hearing this, Zhou's mother asked Zhou's father, "Have you been to that area before?"

Zhou's father nodded, "Yes, I've been there a few times. I know that area very well."

Zhou's mother then said to Zhou Chenglei, "Why don't you stay home while your father goes out to sea on the big ship this time?"

Her son stays home for a few days and then goes out to sea for ten or fifteen days. At this rate, when will she ever have a grandchild?

Zhou's father's eyes lit up, "Great! I also know where there are many sea cucumbers in that area. We can catch some while we're at it."

Seeing that his father really wanted to go, Zhou Chenglei said, "Dad can go too. We can hire someone from the village to go out to sea with my older brother on our boat."

Zhou's mother said, "Your father goes, you stay home. We're still building the house; how can we manage without a man at home?"

Zhou's father understood what his mother meant and said, "Yes, you stay home! I can go alone."

Zhou Chenglei thought of his comrade-in-arms, Zhang Jiayang, who was very familiar with that area of ​​water. Knowing that they were all brothers who had risked their lives for him, he was sure they would take good care of his father, so he nodded: "That's fine, but spending so many days at sea will be tough. Can you handle it?"

Zhou's father didn't seem to care much: "Tough? What's so tough about it? I'm used to it! Besides, the big ship doesn't need manpower to haul in the nets. We just sort the fish, what's so tough about that? At home, we have to pull the nets ourselves. Besides, if I don't go out and explore now, I won't be able to when I'm too old to go!"

Zhou Chenglei didn't say anything more.

People should indeed travel while they're still young and able to move around.

So, it was decided that Zhou's father would go to sea on the big ship.

***

The next day, Jiang Yang and the others each brought a lot of things.

Jiang Xia kept a small portion for home to eat, and Zhou Chenglei carried most of it to the big ship.

Before leaving, Zhou's father asked Jiang Xia, "Xia, where's your photo album?"

Jiang Xia had a photo album specifically for the photos taken recently.

Jiang Xia took out the photo album and showed it to Zhou's father with a smile, asking, "Dad, are you planning to take this album with you when you miss home? To look through it when you're homesick?"

Zhou's father replied, "No, I'll only take one photo."

It's only been ten days or half a month away from home; he wouldn't be homesick enough.

Zhou's father flipped through the album, trying to find a photo that looked like it would bring good fortune.

Jiang Xia, hearing that he was only bringing one photo, pointed to a family portrait taken during the Mid-Autumn Festival, with members of both the eldest and second wives present: "This one, please!"

"No!" Zhou's father refused without hesitation.

He didn't want to bring his unlucky eldest daughter-in-law and his spendthrift eldest son onto the ship.

A trip to sea on a large ship was incredibly expensive, with daily fuel and labor costs. What if they lost money by bringing their photos?

He only wanted to bring photos of Wangcai and his youngest son to display on the ship for good fortune!

Just then, Zhou Chenglei called Jiang Xia from outside.

Zhou's father said, "Go ahead and do your work! Don't worry about me. I'll put the album on the cabinet after I've chosen the photos."

"Okay," Jiang Xia replied and went out.

Finally, Zhou's father chose a photo of Zhou Chenglei washing Jiang Xia's feet in the yard.

This photo looked very affectionate; bringing it would definitely bring good fortune.

Then Zhou's father chose a small family portrait, just the two of them, Zhou Chenglei and his wife, and Zhou Zhou.

In the photo, the whole family is all smiles.

Mr. Zhou wanted to take Zhou Zhou's photo out so his son at sea could see him.

After selecting the photos, he put the album back on the cabinet and went out.

All the necessary items were carried to the dock and loaded onto the ship.

The family saw them off at the dock.

The large ship gradually sailed away from the dock, heading towards the open ocean.

Only then did Mr. Zhou take out the two photos, placing the one of Jiang Xia and Zhou Chenglei on the fish finder in the wheelhouse.

The family photo was placed against the wheelhouse window, facing the sea.

Jiang Yang was stunned when he saw the photo!

The eldest brother was actually washing his wife's feet—completely unbelievable!

He immediately shouted, "Brothers, come quick and see! The eldest brother is washing his wife's feet!"

A group of people rushed in upon hearing this.

"What? The eldest brother is washing his wife's feet?"

Jiang Yang pointed at the photo: "Look!"

The others were also shocked; it really was the eldest brother washing his wife's feet!

Completely unimaginable!

Feng Jianjun asked curiously, "Uncle, why did you put this photo here?"

He couldn't understand why Zhou's father would place it in this spot.

Was there some kind of meaning behind it?

Zhou's father replied, "Haven't you heard the saying 'A loving couple brings wealth'? I put it here to attract good fortune!"   The

others were speechless.

Yang Bin exclaimed, "I never expected my eldest brother to wash his wife's feet!" He was even more surprised by his brother's gentleness!

Father Zhou: "What's wrong with that? A loving and affectionate couple is essential for a good life. Your eldest son does so much for his wife; those who cherish their wives prosper! You should all learn from him."

The others, curious about how their usually cold and aloof eldest son could be so loving towards his wife, asked one after another:

"Uncle, how does your eldest son treat his wife? I want to learn too!"

"Yes, I'll learn too!"

So Father Zhou began to impart his secrets to wealth: "Your eldest son not only washes his wife's feet, but also washes her hair, does her clothes..."

Zhou Chenglei had no idea his father was revealing all his secrets. After the large ship departed, he, Jiang Xia, and Zhou Chengxin boarded a small boat and went out to sea.

The sea was calm and still today, its surface as smooth as a blue mirror.

The boat chugged forward, breaking the tranquility.

White spray bloomed at the stern as it continued its journey.

Just as Jiang Xia and his crew set sail, a fishing boat returned from the previous night.

The fishermen on that boat, seeing them preparing to go out to sea, said, "There's not a ripple in the sea today. I've been hauling fish since last night, and I've only caught a few dozen pounds of small fish. I can't even sell them for ten yuan. I've lost money on fuel. I advise you not to go out to sea!"

This is one of the biggest frustrations of fishing at sea: big waves mean more fish, but danger; small waves mean less safety, but also less catch.

Like the charcoal seller, they fear the low price of charcoal and wish for cold weather!

Fishermen, on the other hand, hope for some waves to catch more fish, but not so big as to be fatal and prevent them from going out to sea.

Zhou Chengxin glanced at the fish on the other boat's deck and said sympathetically, "The sea is calm, so there aren't many fish. Looks like we won't catch much today, but we still need to feed them, we can't skip it!"

The man didn't say anything after hearing this. So what's the point of raising fish?

And feeding them?

What a waste of time!

They then encountered a few more boats and said similar things.

Zhou Chengxin replied with similar words .

Jiang Xia saw that the other boats indeed had very few fish.

Zhou Chengxin was driving the boat, and he said as he steered, "Looks like we won't catch much fish today."

It was too calm.

Big waves are dangerous, and no waves mean few fish.

Zhou Chengxin ignored him. After the boat had sailed a distance, he lowered the net and asked Jiang Xia, "Want to fish?"

Jiang Xia nodded, "Sure!"

She had originally planned to look at some information, but she could do that while fishing.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Chengxin immediately shouted, "Fish! You drive the boat, I'll fish!"

He loved fishing with Jiang Xia the most!

Zhou Chenglei glanced at his older brother: "Brother, I'm not asking you, I'm asking my wife."

His tone was respectful, but his words were irritating!

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

Wait, how did he become the one driving the boat?

He had decided last night not to drive the boat today!

He'd been tricked!

No wonder that brat Zhou Chenglei was fiddling around, touching this and that, tidying up things on the boat, pretending to be very busy!

So that's what he was waiting for!

That brat was deliberately not driving the boat!

Then, Zhou Chengxin experienced what his father had experienced at the beginning.

Zhou Chenglei treated him like a kerosene lamp.

Zhou Chenglei baited the hook, and Jiang Xia cast the line.

Not wanting to waste time, she handed the fishing rod to Zhou Chenglei after casting, letting him wait for the fish to bite.

She took out a stack of basic information on various ships from the shipyard and started looking at it. The Guangzhou

Trade Fair was approaching, and she had already looked at this information once.

But she had a habit of looking at all the information three times before going into battle.

Because she could usually remember 90% of the information after looking at it three times.

She had already reviewed all the product information from the factories she had brought back, and now she was preparing to review it a second time. She would review it again a couple of days before the Guangzhou Trade Fair, and that would be her preparation.

The morning sunlight was gentle, but reading in it was still a bit harsh on the eyes.

And because the sunlight was coming at an angle, even with a hat on, half of Jiang Xia's face was still exposed to the sun.

Zhou Chenglei, not content with just shielding her from the sun, held up a straw hat to protect her face as he reviewed the information with her.

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

The two weren't actually doing anything intimate; after all, Zhou Chenglei was holding a hat in one hand and a fishing rod in the other.

Zhou Chengxin felt the two were unusually intimate and affectionate, making him hesitant to look at them for fear of disturbing them.

Jiang Xia read quickly, especially since this was her second time reading, which made it even faster.

In about ten minutes, Jiang Xia finished reviewing the information on the three types of ships. At that moment, Zhou Chenglei's fishing rod also caught a fish.

The side of the boat had a slot to hold the rod, but it wasn't as satisfying as holding it by hand.

Zhou Chenglei reminded her, "A fish has taken the bait."

He began carefully reeling in the line.

Jiang Xia quickly put the information away and picked up a landing net to help.

As the line shortened and drew closer, Jiang Xia saw a large, blackish-red fish swimming in the water.

Jiang Xia's eyes widened: "Is that a moonfish?"

Zhou Chenglei glanced at Jiang Xia, surprised she knew: "Yes."

Moonfish are not native to Chinese waters, so they are rarely encountered.

However, the ocean is interconnected, and it's not unusual to encounter one or two occasionally.

This moonfish was probably blown here by a typhoon or chased by prey and lost its way home, swimming all the way here.

Jiang Xia knew this because moonfish are very famous in Japan and are delicious as sashimi; she had eaten them once in her past life.

Zhou Chengxin had never heard of them before and asked curiously, "What kind of fish is a moonfish?"

The fish was huge, and Zhou Chenglei, afraid the fishing rod would break, used his wristband to hold the line, playing with the fish up and down to tire it out.

Zhou Chenglei replied, "A big fish."

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

Zhou Chenglei and Jiang Xia worked together to scoop the fish up with a large net.

It really was a big fish!

It weighed forty pounds!

Zhou Chengxin asked with a smile, "Is this fish expensive?"

Zhou Chenglei: "Yes! It's from the open sea."

Zhou Chengxin's eyes lit up. Weren't there any fish in the calm sea?

Yet they caught a big fish from the open sea!

Just as his father said, the fish Xia caught with her fishing rod were all different!

"Ah Lei, you drive the boat, let me fish."

Zhou Chenglei selectively ignored him again.

He took the fish off the hook, baited it again, and handed the fishing rod to Jiang Xia.

Jiang Xia ignored the two brothers, took the rod, cast the bait, and returned it to Zhou Chenglei before continuing to read her documents.

A fishing boat was operating nearby; the villagers, seeing their catch, brought their boat closer and couldn't help but complain, "Xin, Lei, you've got your hold full of fish again? I came out at four o'clock, hauled in two nets, and it was all for nothing! Only a dozen or so pounds of fish! Damn, the net is heavier than the fish!"

Zhou Chengxin modestly replied, "Uncle Dong, we haven't even hauled in the net yet! We've been out for half a day and only caught one fish; there really aren't any today!"

Zhou Chengxin felt sorry for him; Uncle Dong's fishing business was notoriously bad! Even worse than his!

Others could make thirty or forty yuan a day, while he only made a dozen or a few yuan.

Uncle Dong glanced at their boat; indeed, there wasn't a single fish. The moonfish had been put into the live hold by Zhou Chenglei; the entire deck was empty.

He sighed, "Looks like there really aren't any fish today. I'll cast the net one more time, then head back!"

Zhou Chenglei, known for his excellent fishing skills, hadn't caught a fish; his fishing was the worst in the village. He'd better turn back to avoid losing money on fuel!

No sooner had he spoken than a fish took the bait.

It bit the hook swiftly.

Zhou Chenglei gripped the fishing rod, pulled the line, and began a new round of wits and courage with the fish.

Jiang Xia quickly put down his documents and grabbed his landing net, ready for anything.

Judging by the setup, it was a big fish! Zhou Chengxin's heart jumped: "Chenglei, what kind of fish is it?"

Uncle Dong exclaimed, "Damn! You even caught this!"

"What fish? What fish?" Zhou Chengxin became even more excited upon hearing Uncle Dong's words!

"Yellowfin tuna! It's a yellowfin tuna! Be careful, don't let it get away!"

"Wait a minute, don't pull it up yet! Don't pull it up yet, wait until it's exhausted!" Uncle Dong was jumping up and down excitedly giving instructions from the fishing boat next door.

"Damn! This fish must weigh fifty or sixty pounds! Lei, don't pull it up yet! Don't pull it up!... Yes, let it run around for a bit, wait until it's exhausted!"

"Yes, your net is big enough, try to catch it!"

His son, Zhou Guodong, who was steering the boat, couldn't help but say, "Dad, you take the helm, I'll go check it out, I'll help Chenglei pull the fish up."

Upon hearing this, Uncle Dong immediately said, "Move the boat over there!"

Zhou Guodong hurriedly moved the boat over, thinking that his father's order meant he would help.

The sea was calm. As the two boats approached, they rocked slightly, but not too much. Uncle Dong, being bold, jumped directly onto Zhou Chenglei's boat!

Zhou Guodong, waiting for his father to take over the helm, was speechless

. At this moment, Zhou Chenglei also brought the fish aboard.

It was a yellowfin tuna,

weighing about sixty pounds.

Zhou Chengxin looked at the sturdy-looking fish on the deck and laughed!

Haha, although the sea was calm today, and he only caught two fish after fishing for half a day, these two fish together would probably sell for over a hundred yuan, maybe more.

Zhou Chenglei opened the hatch and put the yellowfin tuna in. Uncle Dong then saw a huge moonfish lying inside!

Uncle Dong

was speechless! Damn!

This was only one fish caught after half a day at sea!

It was indeed one fish, but that one was worth much more than the fish he caught with his trawl net for half a day.

This kind of fish was rare; Uncle Dong had only seen one once in his decades-long life.

Zhou Chenglei caught this? His luck was truly indescribable!

Uncle Dong was about the same age as Zhou's father and had seen moonfish once before.

Zhou Chenglei baited his hook again, handed the fishing rod to Jiang Xia, and then asked Uncle Dong, "Uncle Dong, do you want to fish?"

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

This is my younger brother!

Uncle Dong's eyes lit up: "Fish!"

Then he said to his son, "I'll fish here with A-Lei. You can trawle the net yourself! I'll go back to the boat after I haul in the net."

Zhou Guodong: "..."

Good father!

Zhou Chenglei found a fishing rod for Uncle Dong.

Uncle Dong happily took it, baited it, and cast it out.

Estimating that it would take a while before he caught anything, he held the fishing rod between his legs, took out a pack of cigarettes, and planned to have a smoke while waiting.

He took out one and handed it to Zhou Chenglei: "Have a smoke."

"No, I'm fishing, I don't have time to smoke."

Zhou Chenglei only smoked cigarettes given to him by his comrades to stay awake when he was on a mission and had to work all night. He didn't smoke normally and wasn't addicted to cigarettes.

"How could I not have time to smoke? It's lucky if a fish bites after I finish a cigarette!"

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Xia exclaimed, "A fish has taken the bait!"

Uncle Dong: "Are you kidding me? You must be mistaken!"

Zhou Chenglei grabbed the fishing rod and started reeling in the line.

Uncle Dong stopped smoking and was about to put the cigarette back in to see if a fish had really taken the bait.

But the fishing rod he was holding between his legs was almost pulled off and fell into the sea!

He was so startled that he quickly gripped it tightly, throwing the cigarette directly onto the deck.

"Wait, a fish really took the bait? Mine took the bait too? A fish took the bait so quickly?"

He gripped the fishing rod tightly, unable to resist glancing at what fish Jiang Xia had caught. He was excited when he saw it, "A grouper! It's a grouper! Lei's wife, what kind of luck do you have?"

Groupers aren't large fish, and Zhou Chenglei caught it easily.

The boat was lonely, and Zhou Chengxin's attention was all on them. He urged, "Uncle Dong, didn't you have a fish on your hook? Your fish is about to get away! Quickly check what kind of fish you caught?"

Upon hearing this, Uncle Dong quickly pulled in his fish.

Uncle Dong had caught a mackerel, weighing over twenty pounds!

Zhou Chenglei helped scoop it up with a net!

Uncle Dong grinned from ear to ear: "I've forgotten how long it's been since I caught such a big fish!"

Jiang Xia laughed: "Uncle Dong, keep going, who knows, the next one might be even bigger!"

Uncle Dong laughed: "Haha, yes! The next one will be even bigger! Keep going, keep going!"

Uncle Dong quickly removed the fish and threw it into the live tank to continue fishing for the next one.

Then it was like a switch had been flipped.

Jiang Xia once again entered a fishing mode where he caught a fish every few minutes, and then another every six or seven minutes.

Uncle Dong was about the same, a little slower than Jiang Xia, but he also had a fish on the hook in less than ten minutes!

And the fish he caught were all good!

Either very large or very valuable!

He was dumbfounded; if this speed continued, fishing would be more profitable than trawls!

More than an hour passed quickly, and it was time to haul in the net.

Uncle Dong caught three mackerel, the largest weighing thirty jin (approximately 15 kg), the three together weighing fifty or sixty jin (approximately 25-30 kg), along with two sea bass, one yellow croaker, one large squid, and one grouper.

Jiangxia also caught four mackerel, the largest also weighing over thirty jin (approximately 15 kg), the others around ten or twenty jin (approximately 5-6 kg), one red snapper weighing over ten jin (approximately 5 kg), one black sea bream, one rainbow sea bream, one large yellow croaker, and two sea bass.

This alone would earn him over seventy yuan.

Uncle Dong truly believed this time that Jiangxia's sea fishing was good, not just Zhou's father's boasting.

In his decades of life, he had never enjoyed sea fishing so much! He earned about fifty yuan in just one hour of fishing.

More than he usually earned in a whole day of trawls!

Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin hauled in their nets, and it was time for Uncle Dong's own fishing boat to do the same, but he wasn't in a hurry; he wanted to see what kind of fish they had caught first.

A large bag of fish, shrimp, and crabs gradually emerged from the water!

Uncle Dong: "..."

This haul felt like more fish than he had caught in ten days of fishing!

Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin were struggling to pull the net, and Uncle Dong quickly came to help.

The three of them laboriously hauled a large bag of fish onto the boat.

Untying the net, the fish spilled out.

Lots of shrimp!

Almost all of them were white shrimp!

There were also quite a few lively silver pomfret and several large yellow croakers, and of course, other miscellaneous fish.

Jiang Xia even spotted a red jellyfish.

Jiang Xia quickly picked up the silver pomfret and the large yellow croaker and put them in the live hold.

Uncle Dong looked at the deck full of fish, shrimp, and crabs and didn't know what to say!

What about the calm seas and lack of fish?

What about catching two back currents, two half-tide tides, and even the 3/7 tide—these are the golden times for trawling.

Bullshit about golden times!

Needing to time things is just bad luck!

If you're lucky enough, the fish will just walk into your bag! Who cares about the tide?

Just then, Zhou Guodong brought his fishing boat closer and shouted to Uncle Dong, "Dad! It's time to haul in the nets!"

Uncle Dong had to go back to his own boat to haul in the nets. He said reluctantly, "Ah Lei, Xia, I'm going back to haul in the nets now. We'll fish together again next time!"

What's the point of hauling in the nets of his own boat? But one can't be without boundaries.

Fishing together for a while is enough.

He can't spend the whole day on someone else's boat.

After hauling in the nets, Zhou Chengxin rubbed his hands together, "Zhou Chenglei, you go steer the boat! I'll set the nets!"

Finally, it was his turn to fish!

Zhou Chenglei nodded, "Okay, then let's divide the fish, brother!"

Dividing the fish, how can there be time to fish?

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

Zhou Chengxin glared at Zhou Chenglei and said irritably, "I'll drive the boat!"

Distributing fish is never as easy as driving a boat!

Let Zhou Chenglei distribute the fish!

He turned and went to drive the boat.

Zhou Chenglei's lips curled slightly, and he said expressionlessly, "Fine!"

Then he went over, picked up the water bottle, unscrewed it, and handed it to Jiang Xia: "Drink some water first."

She hadn't had a drop of water for over two hours.

Seeing this, Zhou Chengxin remembered that he had been driving the boat all morning without a drop of water, and said, "A-Lei, give me my water bottle."

Zhou Chenglei directly picked up his older brother's water bottle and threw it at him: "Catch."

Zhou Chengxin didn't react in time, and the water bottle hit him before he caught it.

Zhou Chengxin: "..."

What a brother!

He even unscrewed the cap of the water bottle for his wife, but for his, he just threw it at him!

He really forgot about his brother after getting married!

Jiang Xia took the water bottle, drinking water while looking at the fishing boat next door.

On the fishing boat next to them, Uncle Dong and his son were pulling in their nets.

Since they usually pulled the nets up easily, they weren't putting in much effort this time either.

But they couldn't budge it!

The father and son exchanged a glance and increased their strength a little more.

Still nothing!

Their hearts raced, and they began to increase their strength, testing the waters little by little!

The more effort they put in, the faster their hearts beat!

Finally, the father and son used all their strength to pull up a large bag of fish.

Seeing their struggle, Jiang Xia said, "It seems Uncle Dong and his family have had a good catch."

She handed a water bottle to Zhou Chenglei.

Zhou Chenglei took it and drank.

Fish poured out of the net, the deck overflowing with fish, shrimp, and crabs, mostly silver pomfret and white shrimp. Uncle Dong was so moved he almost cried!

He had forgotten how long it had been since he'd caught so many fish.

Shrimp always fetched a higher price than ordinary fish, and silver pomfret was also quite valuable; this net of fish could definitely sell for over a hundred.

Uncle Dong chuckled and said, "Your Uncle Yongfu is right, Lei's wife is a lucky charm!"

Whoever gets involved with her will prosper!

Zhou Guodong was also extremely surprised looking at the pile of fish: "Should we continue to follow Brother Lei's boat and trawle?"

"Let me ask them if it's convenient! We can't always follow others."

One should have some boundaries.

So Uncle Dong loudly asked Zhou Chenglei, "Lei, are you going to feed the fish?"

Zhou Chenglei, being the kind of person he was, guessed what Uncle Dong was implying as soon as he asked. He said, "We'll trawle one more net before we go."

Uncle Dong then said, "Then my boat will trawle one more net with yours, you don't mind, do you?"

Zhou Chenglei replied, "Not at all, let's go together!"

So Uncle Dong happily steered his boat, sailing parallel to Zhou Chenglei's fishing boat at a distance.

Zhou Chenglei went to set the net.

Jiang Xia took out gloves, preparing to put them on and divide the fish.

Seeing this, Zhou Chenglei stopped her, saying, "Eat first, then you can divide the fish."

Once Jiang Xia started dividing the fish, she wouldn't eat until she finished.

It was almost midnight, and by the time they finished dividing the fish it would be past 1 a.m.

Jiang Xia thought about it and decided that eating first and then working was fine, so she went to get her lunchbox and asked Zhou Chengxin, "Big brother, do you want to eat first?" Zhou Chenglei replied

, "The net was just lowered, and big brother has to set sail. It's only 11:30 now, and big brother is used to eating at midnight! I'll finish eating in a bit and then set sail, so big brother can eat."

Zhou Chengxin

was speechless. Damn it!

He'd fallen for Zhou Chenglei's trick again!

What a good brother!

So Zhou Chenglei pulled Jiang Xia down to eat.

Today's meal included scrambled eggs with chives and dried fish. Although Jiang Xia wasn't a picky eater, Zhou Chenglei had already noticed her love for scrambled eggs with chives, so he gave her all the scrambled eggs with chives from his lunchbox. "I don't like this,"

Jiang Xia said, glancing at him. She knew he actually liked it, but she didn't call him out on it. She took half back and gave him half of the dried fish from her own bowl.

Jiang Xia didn't really like dried fish, so she decided to buy some fermented black beans and learn how to make fermented black bean dace. She would make this into a mixed fish dish with fermented black beans and store it in a jar. When she was at sea or too busy to cook much, she could take some out to eat—it would be fragrant and delicious with rice!

Zhou Chengxin was alone on the boat, watching the couple eat and share their food.

Zhou Chenglei would even brush away the strands of hair that were occasionally ruffled by the sea breeze.   They were completely oblivious

to everyone else, displaying their affectionate relationship. Zhou Chengxin felt utterly wronged.

How could his father have tolerated this when they went out to sea together before?

Zhou Chengxin felt like this couple didn't treat him like a human being at all!

He hadn't felt it when his father was around, but now that only this couple was present, the feeling was very obvious!

He felt like a scarecrow who could only steer the boat!

The two ate quickly, and after finishing, Zhou Chenglei went to start the boat so Zhou Chengxin could eat.

Jiang Xia also went to divide the fish.

When the fish, shrimp, and crabs on the deck were almost all divided, it was time to haul in the net.

This net was extremely difficult for the two brothers to pull!

Jiang Xia even came forward to help!

Upon opening it, they found almost entirely red-lipped croaker.

There were probably over a hundred, each weighing about ten pounds, which meant over a thousand pounds. Red-lipped

croaker is most famous for its maw, the red-lipped croaker maw.

Red-lipped croaker maw ranks second among the four major types of fish maw, second only to golden threadfin maw.

It is also a type of fish maw that is relatively beneficial for postpartum women.

Zhou Chenglei saw this deck full of red-lipped croaker and decided not to sell it, intending to give the money to his older brother later.

Although he and Jiang Xia didn't plan to have children so early, this fish was truly rare, and selling it now meant they might not be able to catch it again.

Moreover, the efficacy of this type of fish maw improves with age.

Uncle Dong's boat next door also had a haul of fish maw, probably three or four hundred catties, but their catch consisted mostly of silver pomfret and mackerel, with only a few red-lipped croaker.

Their catch should also be worth two or three hundred catties.

Zhou Chenglei steered his boat closer to their fishing boat and called out, "Uncle Dong, we're going to feed the fish."

Uncle Dong, being very perceptive, chuckled and said, "Alright, you go ahead! Don't worry about us, we're heading back too."

His fishing boat wasn't as big as Zhou Chenglei's, and couldn't hold that many fish, so they planned to haul in one more net before heading back. They hauled

in the net while simultaneously steering their boat back.

Zhou Chengxin saw Uncle Dong's deck full of fish and laughed, "Uncle Dong, a good catch today!"

Uncle Dong smiled and said, "I'm just riding on your good fortune! Ah Lei's wife, do you buy dried silver pomfret? If so, I'll take some home, dry it, and bring it to you."

Jiang Xia smiled and said, "Yes, I do. Just like I taught Aunt Dong before, cut it into small pieces, but don't cut it completely, just leave them connected to dry."

"Okay, I know, I'll make sure it dries well! We're off then!"

Then the two fishing boats sailed away separately.

Zhou Chenglei steered his boat to Pearl Island, stopping at the location of the net cages.

The two brothers chopped up the small, inexpensive, and unpalatable fish and shrimp they had sorted out, put them in a cloth bag, and then went into the water.

They poured the fish meat from the bag into the net cages.

A group of fish in the cages scrambled to eat.

Not only that, because they fed the fish almost every day, the shrimp and crabs around the net cages had multiplied. They

were just there to freeload.

Zhou Chenglei even spotted two small blue lobsters and several large blue crabs.

The two brothers quickly went to catch them!

After feeding the fish, they checked on the pearl oysters and found that the nets used to raise them were covered in mud and seaweed. The two brothers removed them all and took them back to the boat to clean them.

Jiang Xia had said that the pearl nets needed to be cleaned when they got dirty to avoid affecting the growth of the pearl oysters.

The net cages also needed to be cleaned if they were too dirty, but the net cages weren't too dirty now.

The three of them worked hard on the boat to clean the pearl nets.

After that, they put the pearl oysters back into their compartments, and then the two brothers took them back to the sea and hung them all up.

Jiang Xia was dividing the fish on the boat when she suddenly looked up and saw many seabirds flying over the beach of the island, seemingly scrambling for something.

There were also many more seabirds flying in that direction from the sky.

Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin were just swimming up from the sea.

Jiang Xia quickly said, "Look over at the island!"

Zhou Chenglei glanced back and quickly climbed onto the boat.

Zhou Chengxin also quickly climbed onto the boat.

The two brothers quickly took off their diving equipment.

Zhou Chenglei went to start the boat.

Jiang Xia took out her camera and captured the scene.

Zhou Chenglei found a pneumatic drill and fired a feint shot at the beach.

Some seabirds, hearing the "bang," were frightened and flew away.

Zhou Chenglei fired two more shots, both feints, not actually hitting the seabirds, but many were still scared away.

As the boat approached the island, Jiang Xia saw many small sea turtles crawling into the sea on the beach.

The presence of many small sea turtles on the beach attracted so many seabirds to hunt them.

Seabirds are one of the natural enemies of sea turtles.

This is why, despite their prolific reproduction rate—laying hundreds of eggs at a time, and even hundreds—and their long lifespan, sea turtles are few in number and have become protected animals.

Because very few sea turtles actually grow to adulthood!

Shortly after hatching ,

they're eaten by seabirds before they even have a chance to crawl into the sea. Even if they manage to reach the sea, they're still vulnerable to octopuses and sharks before they can fully mature.

Once they grow up, their shells harden, making them think they're invincible and untouchable!

But then they encounter barnacles!

Once they're attached, their short limbs and arms make it impossible for them to shake them off.

And then there's their biggest natural enemy: humans.

So, sea turtles are protected animals, and that's for sure.

The three of them didn't disembark, but simply watched from the boat as the baby sea turtles struggled one by one towards the sea.

Jiang Xia had never seen anything like it before!

The sight of thousands of baby sea turtles struggling to crawl was breathtaking!

She raised her camera, wanting to capture the scene.

Zhou Chenglei asked her, "Do you want to get off the boat and take pictures?"

Jiang Xia thought for a moment and nodded, "Okay!"

Zhou Chenglei jumped off the boat first, then carried her off.

Zhou Chengxin followed.

Jiang Xia crouched down and took a close-up shot of a baby sea turtle struggling to run.

As seabirds flew closer in the distance, Zhou Chenglei feigned an attack to help the adorable little creatures.

Jiang Xia even managed to capture footage

of a sea turtle hatching from its shell, and a seabird catching a baby turtle in its beak.

The three of them wanted to stop the seabirds and give the turtles a better chance of survival,

but the beach was so vast and there were so many seabirds that it was impossible to drive them all away! They

couldn't possibly stop them all; it was already a miracle if they managed to scare some of them away.

The three of them unknowingly stayed for over an hour. All the seabirds on the beach had flown away, with only a few still circling in the air.

When the baby turtles were no longer visible on the beach, the three of them climbed back onto the boat and sailed away.

They had unknowingly missed the time for another haul-in, but none of them felt it was a pity.

Seeing such a sight was worthwhile.

Jiang Xia laughed, "This Pearl Island we rented is truly a treasure island."

Zhou Chengxin agreed with Jiang Xia!

Zhou Chenglei steered the boat, deliberately taking a longer route to haul in another net

before heading back. They didn't haul in the net until they were almost at the dock.

There were probably few fish in the sea today, so everyone returned rather late.

It was already six o'clock, and a few fishing boats were scattered across the sea returning to port.

Usually, four or five o'clock is when most fishing boats return.

When Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin were hauling in their nets, a fishing boat passed by and took a closer look.

Then they saw the huge bag of fish and the baskets full of fish on the boat,

and they were green with envy! They had gone out to sea in the middle of the night and returned in the evening, fishing all day, and their catch wasn't even enough for one net.

Jiang Xia and his crew's last net was mostly filled with yellow croaker, a type of fish similar to the yellow croaker, but smaller and less valuable.

It's a relatively common fish; usually, they could catch dozens of kilograms in a trawl. However, this was the first time Jiang Xia had encountered such a large school of fish, and this time they probably hauled in five or six hundred kilograms.

This fish wasn't expensive, only four or five mao per kilogram, but the quantity was huge.

This one net could sell for over two hundred yuan!

Many fishing boats at the dock had little catch today, only a hundred or so kilograms each.

Most could only sell for a dozen yuan.

Even Zhou Bingqiang's three boats, which usually had good sea transport, didn't have much fish.

Zhou Bingqiang and Zhou Guohua only sold their catch for 12.5 yuan! That

's unprecedented!

The two fishing boats belonging to Uncle Dong and Zhou Chenglei at the dock were particularly eye-catching

with their overflowing catch! Zhou Chenglei was one thing; lately, they seemed to be blessed with good fortune!

They were making a fortune every day, picking up thousands of yuan off the beach without even leaving the water.

But Uncle Dong, the notoriously unlucky guy, only sold his catch for 300 yuan, which was very unusual.

Someone couldn't help but ask Uncle Dong, "Old Dong, which area did you fish in today? How come you have so much fish?"

"Dongzi, you're like someone who doesn't fish for a year but lives off their catch for three!"

Uncle Dong, of course, wouldn't admit that he got his catch by taking advantage of Zhou Chenglei's good fortune. He chuckled and said, "Just that same area of ​​the sea! I guess the fish realized there weren't many fish there, so they all went there to claim their territory today! I'm usually the unluckiest person in the village, so God must have taken pity on me! He's showing me some mercy!"

Everyone: I don't believe you!

However, everyone knew that Uncle Dong's luck was truly terrible. As the saying goes, things reach their extremes and then reverse; a stroke of good luck is normal.

Uncle Dong and his group returned early, sold their fish, and left.

Zhou Chenglei and his group had just returned. Seeing that they had left, Zhou Chenglei planned to help him sell the fish he had caught later and then give him the money.

Tian Caihua's crow's feet were still visible from her smile.

She and Zhou's mother, who was also beaming, ran onto their boat and began dividing the fish.

Zhou's mother's eyes lit up when she saw basket after basket of red-lipped croaker and she said directly, "Keep these red-lipped croakers, don't sell them!"

Zhou Chengxin was just picking up a load of fish to get off the boat when he heard this and nodded, "Okay, then we'll keep them all for drying fish maw and fish jerky. I'm also thinking of not selling them."

Tian Caihua knew why Zhou's mother wanted to keep the red-lipped croakers—wasn't it to keep them for Jiang Xia to eat during her postpartum confinement?

Her lips moved, but she didn't say anything.

Today, fish supplies are scarce, and the price of all fish has gone up, ranging from five to two or three cents per pound for each type.

Some rarer species have increased by fifty cents per pound.

These red-lipped croakers are quite rare, and the price is estimated to rise by fifty cents per pound. There are probably over a thousand pounds of them here, which would bring in more than five hundred yuan more than usual!

She had originally thought that Jiang Xia didn't know when she would have a child.

Besides, they had already dried a lot of golden croaker maw last time, so they could let go of these red-lipped croakers

. Or they could wait until the next catch to keep them; the key was to sell them while the price was high.

But seeing that Zhou Chengxin had agreed and Jiang Xia and her husband hadn't said anything, she decided to let it go.

Let them stay!

Anyway, they weren't going out to sea with Lao Si and his wife, and they wouldn't be earning this much money recently.

Thinking this way, Tian Caihua felt a little better. She still felt the pinch, but not as much.

When she did feel the pinch, she remembered what Zhou Chengxin had said: if she had even a single objection, the two families would split up and not partner up!

She no longer feels sorry for him!

Or rather, she doesn't dare to feel sorry for him anymore!

Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin carried loads of fish to the purchasing station.

The fish their family had lined up looked more than what the station had received so far.

Zhou Bingqiang had already sold his fish but hadn't left, standing to the side to see how much the two brothers had made that day.

Watching the brothers carry load after load of fish, he could imagine how smug Zhou Yongfu would be if he were here!

Although Zhou Yongfu wasn't there, and no one was showing off in front of him, Zhou Bingqiang felt even more aggrieved and upset.

Because Zhou Yongfu was out on a large ocean-going vessel, that's why he wasn't there!

Ocean fishing on a large ship was his dream, something he had always longed for but never achieved.

He originally thought that with his three ships, he could order a large ship by the end of next year at the latest.

But now, the shipping industry was so bad it was terrifying!

He didn't know when he would be able to buy an ocean-going vessel.

Thinking of this, Zhou Bingqiang couldn't help but instruct Zhou Guohua, "Starting tomorrow, no more digging for those two stones. Making money through hauling nets is the right path."

Anything that foresees the future, or dreams of other people's fortunes, is all false.

What's meant to be yours can't be taken away; focusing on your own work is the right way.

Zhou Guohua nodded, "Okay."

He felt that the two stones in Wen Wan's dream were probably the jade-like giant clam shell.

Although one and two pieces are slightly different, it's a dream! A slight difference is normal.

Since Zhou Chenglei had already found it, he didn't want to waste his efforts.

They had just finished laying the floor slab yesterday; the steel bars, cement, sand, stones, and labor costs had exceeded a thousand yuan. The money from the family division was all spent. If they didn't make money through hauling nets, they could forget about building the second floor.

Under the envious gazes of the entire village, Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin sold their fish and shrimp.

The price of fish was indeed much higher today.

The moonfish that Jiangxia caught was a rare sight, only seen once in decades. The purchasing center paid 3.9 yuan per jin (500 grams), making it 156 yuan.

Yellowfin tuna is also a rare catch, though not as valuable as bluefin tuna, it's still a very prized fish.

And this fish was huge, weighing 60 jin (30 kilograms). At 3 yuan per jin, it sold for 180 yuan.

Someone couldn't help but exclaim enviously, "Ah Lei, you guys are so lucky! You caught both moonfish and yellowfin tuna. The money from those two fish is more than Uncle earns in half a year!"

Then Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin replied in unison, "My wife/sister-in-law caught them."

Their tone was identical, even reminiscent of their father.

The person was speechless.

Someone else chimed in, "Not only those two big guys, but the white shrimp and red-lipped croaker that Ah Lei caught today are also rare fish."

White shrimp aren't even the most common type of shrimp in their area, yet Zhou Chenglei and his team caught over 300 jin—unprecedented!

Their luck is incredible!

Red-lipped croaker is another famous fish from this sea area, and they occasionally encounter a few here.

But hundreds at once? Anyone who didn't know better would think they were fishing in other seas!

While everyone else's harvest is meager, they're catching a bunch of expensive fish that are rarely seen. How can anyone not be envious?

Today, white shrimp sold for 1.5 yuan per jin (500 grams), totaling 375.6 yuan. There were

556 jin of yellow croaker; normally, larger ones sell for 0.4 yuan per jin, and smaller ones for only 0.3 or 0.2 yuan.

Zhou Chenglei and his team just pulled up their net of yellow croaker; they were very fresh, and the purchasing center was offering 0.45 yuan per jin today, totaling 250.2 yuan.

They made a small fortune.

Other miscellaneous fish, including the mackerel caught in Jiangxia, sold for a total of 76.66 yuan.

Uncle Dong's fish sold for 65.30 yuan.

All their fish totaled 1038.46 yuan!

This doesn't even include the more than 100 red-lipped croakers. Those croakers were quite large, each weighing at least ten jin (5 kg), totaling over 1000 jin.

Today, red-lipped croakers over ten jin were sold for 2.80 yuan per jin.

Because ten jin of fish yields one jin of fish maw, the price difference between fish over ten jin and those under ten jin is quite significant.

After all, fish maw is priced according to size; different sizes have different prices.

Zhou Chenglei weighed the red-lipped croakers.

A total of 1306 jin, which would sell for 3656.80 yuan.

The villagers silently calculated in their minds how much the Zhou brothers had earned today!

They found it was over 4600 yuan, almost 5000 yuan.

What a life-or-death situation!

Another five thousand yuan.

Adding that jade-like giant clam shell, they'd be ten thousand yuan in just two days.

Zhou Chenglei was making a fortune every day, and in a way that was completely unclear.

The Zhou brothers were earning in a single day what everyone felt they couldn't earn in a lifetime. It

was truly a case of the rich getting richer and the poor getting richer!

Their mother pushed the cart over, smiling as she urged the two brothers to carry the red-lipped croakers home.

Zhou Chenglei and Zhou Chengxin then loaded the fish onto the cart.

Several women huddled together in the distance, whispering:

"Is Lei's wife pregnant?"

"It's normal, they've been married for so long! I got pregnant in my second month of marriage!"

"I got pregnant with my son Wen in my third month of marriage."

"Even if she's not pregnant, she's probably trying to conceive. I just saw Jiang Xia bring home two lobsters, two pounds of white shrimp, and several large blue crabs. Who would eat like that if they weren't trying to conceive? A meal costs ten or twenty yuan! I also heard Jiang Xia eats a sea cucumber every day."

"The Zhou family is really generous to their daughter-in-law!"

"How could they not be? What kind of status does she have? Besides, Zhou Chenglei is so old, he wants to have a son soon, so naturally he has to take good care of his wife."

"Jiang Xia looks blessed, and her figure looks like she's fertile. She'll probably conceive easily, and there won't be a problem with not having enough milk to feed the child."

Zhou Bingqiang's wife pursed her lips. Jiang Xia looked blessed, but her figure clearly indicated she wouldn't be able to have a son—prosperous but not likely to have many children!

"She has a good figure, but her build is very similar to my sister-in-law's when she was young—the kind of figure that's good at having daughters. Zhou Chenglei also looks like a father-in-law. I reckon they'll have to have several daughters before they can have a son. It's getting stricter and stricter now; they'll have to line up to get fined!"

The group glanced at Zhou Bingqiang's wife, knowing she was jealous of how much money Zhou Chenglei had made, but saying she couldn't have a son was too cruel!

They didn't respond to her comment and changed the subject: "By the way, how much is the fine for having an extra child now?"

"It varies from commune to commune! In our town, it's not much, I think it's a few hundred yuan. People in the city are fined more! The city is stricter."

"So it's good to have a daughter as the first child, and then have a son as the second, then you have both a son and a daughter and don't have to pay the fine."

"That's great, of course! The problem is, you can't just have whatever children you want..."

Zhou Chenglei's family transported all the fish back to their old house.

Jiang Xia took 2,400 yuan from her room, rounding it up, and asked Zhou Chenglei to give it to Zhou Chengxin.

This money included the cost of the red-lipped croaker and the money she brought home to dry and make three kinds of small fish.

Zhou Chenglei took it, handed it to Zhou Chengxin without counting it, knowing Jiang Xia wouldn't shortchange him.

Tian Caihua's eyes lit up at the thick stack of money.

Jiang Xia had included the red-lipped croaker at the purchase price?

Zhou Chengxin exclaimed in surprise, "How come there's so much? Weren't those red-lipped croaker for our own consumption? No need to include them."

He counted out the extra money.

Tian Caihua: "..."

Oh well, even without including it, they'd still earn over 500 yuan today!

No worries!

No worries!

If they hadn't gone out to sea with Lao Si and his wife, and instead went out alone, they probably wouldn't have earned even 50 yuan, let alone 500.

Tian Caihua kept mentally reassuring herself, like chanting a mantra.

Zhou Chenglei said, "Take it. We agreed to

split it in half." Jiang Xia also laughed, "We'll still sell those red-lipped croakers after we dry them. We can't possibly eat so many ourselves."

The dried red-lipped croakers would be sold directly, but the fish maw could be stored for a few years until the price went up, or sold when they needed money.

Jiang Xia hadn't intended to keep them for herself; she just wanted to let them appreciate in value. Since

they weren't short of money now, there was no rush to sell them.

Zhou Chengxin knew refusing was useless, so he put them away, planning to repay Jiang Xia with a large red envelope after she gave birth.

Tian Caihua happily helped kill the fish and extract the maw.

Even when Zhou Chenglei brought Jiang Xia two buckets of hot water to wash her hair and shower first, preventing her from killing the fish, Tian Caihua didn't feel the slightest bit resentful.

Earning hundreds or even thousands of yuan a day—life was truly something to look forward to!

Her joy completely overshadowed her grievances and resentment.

After carrying two buckets of water into the shower room for Jiang Xia, Zhou Chenglei carried two more buckets to water the floorboards, planning to return the money to Uncle Dong afterward.

However, just as he stepped out of the courtyard gate, he saw Uncle Dong carrying two red-lipped croakers towards him.

Zhou Chenglei pulled out the sixty-odd yuan from his pocket: "Uncle Dong, I'll sell the fish you caught today for you, here's the money."

Uncle Dong smiled and took it: "Thank you, these two red-lipped croakers are for you. Take out the fish maw, dry it, and keep it for your wife to eat later."

Zhou Chenglei took it: "Let me calculate the money for you, wait a moment."

"No need! It's for you, no need to calculate the money for me! If it weren't for you today, I wouldn't have earned this much money. Don't be so polite, it's just two fish! Caught in the sea, not bought with money." Uncle Dong waved his hand and quickly ran off.

Zhou Chenglei had no choice but to take the fish into the yard and have his mother kill them.

These two red-lipped croakers weighed about twenty-three or twenty-four jin (approximately 11.5-12 kg) together, worth over fifty yuan. He wouldn't accept payment, but would only help out in other places later.

Zhou Guohua, who was watering the floor, overheard the entire conversation.

No wonder Uncle Dong was so lucky today.

It turned out he had gone out to sea with Zhou Chenglei's fishing boat.

Perhaps he should go fishing in their area tomorrow too?

Lately, it seems there aren't many fish in their usual fishing area.

Their income is consistently low!

The next

morning, Jiang Xia couldn't go out to sea because she was on her period.

Zhou Chenglei got up and cooked her some brown sugar eggs before rushing off.

When Zhou's mother found out, she wouldn't let Jiang Xia get wet or do housework. She stayed in her room, looking at product information and translating for a magazine.

In the afternoon, she and He Xinghuan made over 200 jin of small fish in three different flavors. After finishing, she went home, boiled water, and washed her hair. Zhou's mother saw Jiang Xia sitting under the grape trellis, drying her hair and knitting. She was startled: "Xia, you washed your hair?"

Jiang Xia replied, "I just finished making the small fish, and I smelled of oil and smoke all over, including my hair, so I washed it."

"Washing your hair during your period is bad for your health. It'll cause headaches when you get older. Don't wash it next time! Don't take your health for granted just because you're young; it'll be troublesome if you develop health problems later," Zhou's mother cautioned, regretting that she had forgotten to tell her this before.

Jiang Xia smiled and agreed.

Jiang Xia always listened to the advice of her elders, so Zhou's mother didn't say anything more and went to wash the rice and cook.

Jiang Xia touched her hair, which was almost dry, and said, "Mom, I'm going to the dock to see if Lei and the others are back, and I'll call my brother while I'm at it."

"Okay. I'll be there after I've prepared the food," Zhou's mother replied.

After Jiang Xia went back to her room and combed her hair, she pushed her cart directly to the dock.

She first went to the production team to call Jiang Dong to see if he had received the letter, and also to see if Ye Xian had contacted him.

When she arrived at the production team, she saw Zhou Li coming out of the office to empty her cigarette ash.

Zhou Li felt a slight embarrassment when she saw Jiang Xia, but it didn't show on her face. She greeted Jiang Xia with a smile, "Xia

, are you making a call?" Jiang Xia nodded in response.

Zhou Li came to Jiang Xia's side and explained, "I'm so sorry about the fish fry boss's call last time. I heard that my brother wanted to order fish fry but couldn't find a place, so when I paid the phone bill, I checked the phone records and copied down the number for him. I didn't expect to cause you and Lei any trouble!"

This person is really thick-skinned and knows how to smooth things over.

She admitted her mistake and didn't shift the blame onto anyone else. She insisted it was all her fault, explaining that it was because she wanted to help her older brother, and that their sibling bond was strong. No one thought she was being unreasonable.

After all, it was just a phone number!

Jiang Xia: "It's okay. I'll go make the call!"

Jiang Xia replied coolly, letting the other person know she didn't want to get close to her, but wasn't truly indifferent, making the other person feel awkward about continuing to try and get closer!

Jiang Xia then went inside.

Zhou Li wanted to slap Wen Wan twice more!

She smiled and greeted Aunt Hong, saying she was going to make a call.

Aunt Hong, understanding the situation, smiled and walked away.

Jiang Xia dialed the number for Jiang Dong's research institute, asking someone to find Jiang Dong to answer the phone, then hung up and waited five minutes before calling back.

In Beijing,

Jiang Dong had just hung up on his father, returned to his research lab to change clothes, and went out to have dinner with his father. He had just finished changing and was about to leave when he ran into someone in his office who said they had his sister's number. He went back to his office and dialed back directly.

After the call connected, Jiang Dong heard his sister say "Hello."

He chuckled, "Sis, what's up? Did you find out Dad's in Beijing and want him to help you buy something?"

He wanted to buy a camera too, but he couldn't bear to spend the money himself, and he was broke! All his money had gone into the things his sister had asked him to develop.

He had no choice but to ask his dad to pay for it!

Jiang Xia was taken aback: "Dad's in Beijing?"

"Yes! He just called and asked me to go out for dinner. He said he's in Beijing for a meeting and will be back in a few days. If you need anything, just tell him and let Dad buy it! He won't be back for a few days, and he'll definitely find time to go shopping in Beijing while he's in the city."

He said his dad might not buy what his sister wanted, but if his sister wanted something, his dad would definitely buy it!

Jiang Xia knew Jiang Dong was trying to trick their father after hearing his words, and asked directly, "What do you want to buy?"

Jiang Dong: "I want to buy a camera. Sometimes I need to take pictures of the things I design to keep a record."

Jiang Xia: "Do you have a favorite brand and model?"

The two siblings had always tricked their father like this since they were little. Jiang Dong didn't think much of it and laughed, "Any brand is fine, as long as it can take pictures. I just need it to take pictures to record the design progress and data, so it just needs to be cheap."

"Okay, I understand." Jiang Xia understood. She would be going to the Guangzhou Trade Fair in a few days to see if there were any good ones there.

"Sis, is there something you need?"

"Nothing much. I sent you a letter, remember to pick it up. Also, can you design and improve the ship's hatch? I have an idea, could you ask your professor for me? I'll write the idea down in a letter and tell you in a couple of days."

Jiang Dong: "..."

This is nothing much?

No way!

How come his sister has so many ideas?

She hasn't talked for a few days, and she already has a new idea.

He couldn't keep up with her speed even if he rode a rocket!

The professor said he was aiming too high, wanting to move on to the next thing before even finishing this one.

If it weren't for the fact that his sister's idea was actually feasible, the professor probably would have chased him away with a broom!

"Sis, why don't you apply for my major in college too!"

Jiang Xia decisively refused: "I can't, I don't have the brains."

Jiang Dong: "I think you're pretty good, even better than me."

The professor didn't know it was his sister who made him do it, and even praised him for his talent!

"No, my head is full of money, I can't do this."

Jiang Dong: "..."

Jiang Xia asked again: "Have you been in the lab lately? Haven't you gone out to play or go on dates? What are your plans for National Day?"

"With so much to do, I don't even have 48 hours a day, what's the point of playing? I dream about that vacuum pump all the time! Besides, I don't have a date! Ye Xian and I have already broken up, you know that."

Recently, he has been completely immersed in that machine. Fortunately, the vacuum pump has been completed and is in the testing phase. After multiple tests without problems, it can be put into use.

He won't tell his sister yet, he'll surprise her later.

Jiang Xia was relieved: "Alright! Remember to apply for a patent for the vacuum machine once it's made, both domestic and international. Don't forget!"

That way, he could live comfortably off the patent profits.

"I know, I'm already looking into how to apply."

"Then I won't bother you anymore. Go have dinner with Dad and relax! Let him order some good food to help you get some mental nourishment. I'm all set, talk to you next time, goodbye."

"Okay, talk to you next time. I still need to pick up Sister Xiaoyan. Dad told me to invite her to dinner too. He said she traveled a long way to help last time, and I haven't properly thanked her yet."

"Okay, go ahead! Be careful on the road."

The two said goodbye and hung up.

Jiang Xia happily left the production team, pushed his cart to the dock to wait for someone.

Jiang Dong hung up the phone and hurriedly rode his bicycle to find Zhang Fuyan.

Zhang Fuyan had just returned home from school and declined when she heard that Jiang's father wanted to invite her to dinner.

She and Jiang Xia were good friends, and she figured that since Jiang's father could raise such upright children as Jiang Dong and Jiang Xia, he must be of good character himself, which was why she thought she could help. Children

are often a reflection of their parents.

But she couldn't help at all; the other person had managed to turn the situation around by being upright, so how could she possibly go to dinner with him?

Jiang Dong pulled her along: "Come on! If you don't go, my dad will lecture me! It'll be indigestion if it's just the two of us eating. You'll keep me company. Besides, my sister just called, and I told her you'd be eating with us..." "

Xia Xia has something to say to me?"

"Get on the bike first, then I'll tell you." Jiang Dong avoided the real issue.

And so, Zhang Fuyan was tricked into going to the dinner by Jiang Dong.

Jiang Dong rode his bicycle with Zhang Fuyan to the fancy restaurant.

On the way, they passed the school gate. Ye Xian and several classmates were out eating noodles—her roommates, her classmates, and her roommates' friends—and they happened to see Jiang Dong riding his bicycle with Zhang Fuyan.

Ye Xian's roommate, Yang Min, recognized Jiang Dong and immediately pulled Ye Xian aside: "Ye Xian, look, Jiang Dong and Zhang Fuyan! Are they dating?"

Ye Xian glanced over and saw the two chatting and laughing. Jealousy flashed in her eyes, and she lowered her head, whispering, "Probably! I don't know. Jiang Dong broke up with me a few days ago. It's normal for him to date Zhang. Zhang is pretty and comes from a good family; she and Jiang Dong are a good match."

Ye Xian's classmate, Zhu Qingqing, was furious: "He's already dating someone new just days after breaking up with you? I never thought Jiang Dong was this kind of person!"

Yang Min: "They were already hooking up before he broke up with Xiao Xian!! Xiao Xian and I saw it once! And I also heard that Jiang Dong brings Zhang Fuyan food every day, trying to win her over!..."

"No way? That's so wicked!" "

Neither of them are good people! One is a gold digger, and the other is stealing someone else's boyfriend! They're utterly morally corrupt!"

"Shameless! Jiang Dong is acting like a hooligan! We should report him to the academic affairs office!"

Ye Xian seemed reluctant to discuss it further. "Forget it, Jiang Dong and I have already broken up. His parents and sister don't like me. They all like Zhang Fuyan, and Jiang Dong listens to his sister a lot. I can't say a word to her. Zhang Fuyan is his sister's friend, and his sister is helping Zhang Fuyan's classmate's aunt with translation work to earn money. I heard the fees are quite high. Isn't this great? Everyone's happy."

Several classmates became even more indignant upon hearing this: "So the whole family is just looking down on people! " "He's a rich man. Xiaoxian, you were right to break up with him, otherwise you'd be in big trouble if you married him! Now's the time to escape this hellhole!"

Zhu Qingqing said, "Although that's true! But it's wrong for them to be involved like this. A few years ago, this would have been grounds for criticism and education. Now, although it's not necessary, we can't let these kinds of people get away with it. At least we need to let everyone know and condemn them! Why is Xiaoxian suffering so much while they're living so happily?" Ye

Xian quickly waved her hand, "Forget it, forget it, we've already broken up, I don't care anymore."

Ye Xian sneered inwardly, "Let it spread, let it spread! Let everyone know!

Zhang Fuyan's family has connections, many professors at the school know her, and her grandmother is an old professor at Tsinghua University.

Jiang Dong ruined Zhang Fuyan's reputation, and she didn't believe that Zhang Fuyan's family would allow them to be together.

Although she looked down on Jiang Dong, she didn't want to see them together!

"You're just too soft-hearted, kindness is taken advantage of! ..."

...

Jiang Dong and Zhang Fuyan were completely unaware of these words, and they didn't know that because of this, they were gradually becoming famous at school.

After having a meal with Jiang's father and brother, one went home and the other returned to the research institute.

Jiang's father said he would invite the two of them to dinner again before they went back in a few days.

When Jiang Xia arrived at the dock after hanging up the phone, only a few fishing boats were returning.

It was another calm day.

Jiang Xia noticed that the returning boats didn't have much fish, mostly cheap fish like flounder, mackerel, sand bream, and mudskippers. The most valuable fish were probably sea bass and some tiger prawns.

Jiang Xia sat quietly on the cart, watching the sea and sky merge, watching the birds soar, watching the villagers busily waiting for their own fishing boats to return.

About fifteen minutes later, Zhou's mother arrived on her motorcycle.

A motorcycle could carry more fish than a bicycle, and it was faster and less troublesome.

Last night, they brought home a lot of fish, and Zhou Chenglei said that next time they would drive to the dock, they could use the motorcycle to bring some fish home.

Jiang Xia pushed the cart, and she drove the motorcycle over.

She had learned to ride a motorcycle when Zhou's father was learning.

It wasn't difficult, just a bit more troublesome than a bicycle—you had to start the engine, press the accelerator, and pedal here and there, but it was definitely faster and easier than a bicycle.

Zhou's mother arrived on her motorcycle, attracting the attention of everyone at the dock. Her face was beaming.

She parked the motorcycle beside Jiang Xia. "The boat hasn't returned yet?"

Jiang Xia had already spotted the familiar fishing boat, though it was still quite far away, just a tiny black dot in the sea, like a leaf floating on the water. "It's back! I see it! Over there!"

Jiang Xia pointed.

Even though it was just a tiny dot, even though their boat looked exactly like everyone else's, Jiang Xia and Zhou's mother could recognize it at a glance.

They could even recognize their boat from the "putt-putt-putt" sound of the engine.

As the boat drew closer, Jiang Xia stood up and ran towards it.

Zhou's mother smiled at her impatient back.

Such eagerness proved their loving relationship!

Newlyweds, what young bride didn't long for her husband's return from sea?

Zhou's mother had been there; she had been through it herself.

Jiang Xia ran down the beach.

The boat docked, and she approached, then saw Zhou Chenglei covered in blood.

Zhou Chenglei's shirt was stained crimson.

A large patch of bright red on his white shirt was a shocking sight!

Jiang Xia also noticed a gaping wound on his shoulder, blood still gushing out.

She quickened her pace and ran towards him.

Seeing Jiang Xia approaching, Zhou Chenglei jumped off the boat, ran to her, and caught her: "Don't run, I'm fine, just a superficial wound. I got stung by a sailfish, it's nothing, just a minor injury."

Up close, Jiang Xia saw a large hole in his shirt below the shoulder, the flesh turned inside out!

The wound was like a bottomless pit of blood—and he called this nothing?

She grabbed his wrist: "Go to the hospital!"

"No need, I'll just put some medicine on it at home, it's really nothing." Zhou Chenglei pulled her along.

Blood had stained his entire shirt crimson, and his pants were also stained with blood, a large dark patch. Why weren't they going to the hospital?

Jiang Xia glanced at him but didn't say anything.

Zhou Chenglei: "...Go! Go to the hospital."

Zhou Chengxin, having just stopped the boat, also said, "We have to go to the hospital! That sailfish bone is really deep. I'll take A-Lei there!"

"I'll take him there on my motorcycle." Jiang Xia took out a handkerchief and gave it to Zhou Chenglei, gesturing for him to cover the wound to stop the bleeding.

The villagers nearby saw this and expressed their concern, saying, "Oh dear, how did he get hurt so badly? Quickly take him to the clinic for treatment!"

"Go to the clinic right away! Remember to get a tetanus shot; the wound is quite deep!"

"I'll take him there right now!" Jiang Xia responded to the villagers and pulled Zhou Chenglei along, striding towards the road.

Fortunately, Zhou's mother had brought the motorcycle over.

She got off and, seeing Zhou Chenglei covered in blood, her legs went weak with fright: "What happened? How did you get hurt?"

Zhou Chenglei replied, "It's nothing, I was stung by a sailfish."

Jiang Xia said, "Mom, I'll take A-Lei to the clinic to get it bandaged."

"Okay! Do you have any money? I brought some." Zhou's mother quickly pulled out some money from her pocket, but she only had a little over ten yuan.

She gave the money along with the motorcycle keys to Jiang Xia.

Zhou Chengxin said, "Go to the hospital first. If you don't have enough money, I'll bring it to you by bicycle later."

"I brought some, it should be enough." Jiang Xia had a hundred yuan on her, but she still accepted the money and keys.

Jiang Xia pulled Zhou Chenglei quickly to the motorcycle.

Zhou Chenglei held out his hand: "Give me the keys, I'll drive it."

Jiang Xia didn't say anything, too lazy to even acknowledge him!

She inserted the key into the ignition, got on the motorcycle, gripped the clutch, and slammed on the starter. Whoosh…

the motorcycle roared to life!

Jiang Xia turned his head, intending to give Zhou Chenglei a death stare, but before they could meet, Zhou Chenglei wisely lifted his long leg and sat on the back seat.

"Sit tight!" Jiang Xia stepped on the pedal, shifted gears, revved the engine, released the handbrake, and the motorcycle started moving!

Although it hadn't rained recently, the road out of the village was already riddled with potholes from the numerous trips tractors made to transport fish every day.

So even without rain, the road was full of potholes, uneven and bumpy, with not an inch of smooth ground!

Plus, it was evening now, and tractors and trucks had already hauled the fish out, some of the fish-raising water dripping from the trucks onto the mud, being crushed by the wheels of passing vehicles, making the entire road muddy.

Muddy roads are inherently slippery, so Jiang Xia kept the motorcycle on the very edge of the road to avoid slipping.

There was some grass by the roadside, which the tractors and trucks that usually transport fish wouldn't run over, so there was a flat, non-slip section about ten centimeters wide.

Zhou Chenglei sat on the back seat, his heart trembling, afraid that Jiang Xia might accidentally ride the motorcycle into the ditch.

Even on the battlefield, with shells falling around him, he had never been this worried!

He dared not move or make a sound, afraid of distracting Jiang Xia.

On both sides of the road were fields.

For irrigation, there were shallow ditches dug by hand on both sides of the road.

If they went down into them, even with him protecting her, Jiang Xia would be injured.

Jiang Xia didn't care whether the person behind her was afraid or not, and drove the motorcycle at maximum speed.

She was practically trying to scare the person behind her to death.

At this moment, Zhou Chenglei deeply felt: this motorcycle was a mistake!

He shouldn't have bought such a dangerous means of transportation!

Only when the motorcycle trailer drove out of the village road and onto the main road to the town did his heart relax a little.

It usually took ten minutes to ride a bicycle to the town's health center, but Jiang Xia arrived in less than five minutes by motorcycle.

For at least three out of those five minutes, Zhou Chenglei held his breath, barely daring to breathe.

Jiang Xia rushed into the emergency room: "Doctor!"

***

At the dock,

Jiang Xia had just left the dock with Zhou Chenglei on his motorcycle when Zhou Bingqiang returned in his fishing boat.

Before the boat had even fully docked, he shouted at his eldest son's fishing boat: "Guoguang, quickly go to the production team to borrow a tractor! Guohua has been stung by a sailfish! Quickly borrow a tractor and take him to the clinic!"

On the boat, Zhou Guohua lay on the deck, covered in blood, with several bloody holes in his body.