Finally getting to the beach, Lin Suyu could temporarily forget about the Wang family.
Early the next morning, she packed a small bag and went to the alley entrance to wait. Liang Hui had arranged to meet her here yesterday.
“Suyu, have you been waiting long? Come, this is my second brother Liang Zhaohui, and these two are his classmates, Liu Haibo and Cheng Xiao.”
“Hello, Brother Liang, Brother Liang, Brother Liu, Brother Cheng. I’m Lin Suyu, Liang Hui’s classmate.”
“Actually, Suyu is kind of like our cousin, so you don’t need to be so formal. Suyu, you ride with our third brother. Third brother, take it easy—our cousin looks a bit fragile.”
Lin Suyu nodded politely but inwardly disliked being called “cousin.” She had no interest in getting involved with Lin Xinyao.
Compared to the sunny, goofy third brother, the second brother seemed trickier—handsome but with fox-like eyes, probably just as cunning.
“Third brother, you must take good care of Suyu, or I’ll be annoyed with you.”
Liang Hui said this playful threat before happily climbing onto the second brother’s bike. The group then set off.
When they arrived at the beach, most villagers had already gathered the remaining seafood left after the early tide. Along the kilometer-long shoreline, only a few women and their children were still digging for anything left behind.
Liang Zhaohui hung a small, folded basket on his bike and handed one to each person.
“Wow! Suyu’s net bag looks way more convenient!” Liang Hui noticed. The finely woven net was easy to carry and roomy. Suddenly, her own brother seemed less smart than Lin Suyu.
“Do you want one? I brought a few—enough for everyone.”
Lin Suyu kept one for herself and handed the rest to Liang Hui to distribute. With her personal space, she didn’t care how much the net could hold.
“Third brother, come quick! Over there are a lot of people; there should be plenty of shells. Let’s go check it out!”
At the spot, Liang Hui became excited and pulled Lin Suyu toward the busy area, ignoring Liang Zhaohui and the others unloading their bikes.
“These clams are freshly dug, and here’s a grouper. You can pay a bit more!”
A woman selling seafood held a fish while gesturing to the buyer, trying to get more money.
Lin Suyu, sharp as ever, overheard their conversation from afar. With private sales banned, she didn’t want to get involved, so she pulled Liang Hui aside.
“Liang Hui, they’re collecting seafood ahead. Let’s not go there.”
Her words dampened Liang Hui’s enthusiasm, but it piqued the curiosity of the third brother. Only factory or supply-and-marketing cooperative buyers could boldly collect seafood in the village—he wanted to find out which.
“小 Hui, you and Suyu dig clams over there and wait. I’ll go check it out. If possible, we might also buy some seafood from the villagers.”
The third brother often visited black markets for extra cash, so he had to investigate. With luck, he might even secure a channel for seafood.
Seeing him leave, Liang Hui pulled Lin Suyu further along the beach. This stretch was clean because villagers often hunted seafood here.
Lin Suyu picked up a stick and began poking at sand holes. Occasionally, she would unearth clams or small crabs.
Liang Hui imitated her, but found nothing.
“Why is it so easy for you, Suyu, but I can’t find anything? Is my luck worse than yours?”
Even though she had no luck, Liang Hui still had fun. Eventually, Lin Suyu couldn’t resist and taught her how to locate seafood, and soon Liang Hui had some success.
Before long, Liang Zhaohui and the others returned. Seeing Lin Suyu already half-filled a basket with clams, they joined the search.
During these lean times, food rations were small, so any effort to get seafood at the beach was worthwhile.
With her mental power, Lin Suyu scanned within ten meters like a treasure detector, seeing buried items clearly.
After a while, she ran to the rocky area and discovered stranded fish, shrimp, and various seashells hidden under stones.
Seeing no one watching, she quietly tossed some live fish and shrimp into her space. The large vats brought from the Lin residence instantly became fish ponds.
Being able to sustain life in her space was a huge advantage. Delighted, Lin Suyu continued scanning for other species, filling her haul quickly.
Nearby, a stretch of exposed rocks after the tide was densely covered with goose-neck barnacles—a sight that would spook anyone with trypophobia.
She had eaten plenty of these in her previous life. Now, harvesting them was effortless. She even called Liang Hui over.
“Liang Hui, come here—there’s something good!”
Her hands moved fast, sneaking seafood into her space without anyone noticing. She thought it best not to leave the treasures outside; today, she planned to harvest the entire rock patch.
“What is this? Can we eat such ugly things?”
Goose-neck barnacles weren’t commonly eaten now, which made it easy for her to find a large patch.
“They’re good to eat—and delicious. These must be newly attached to the rocks, so you can just pull them off. Hold the head and tug like this.”
Lin Suyu demonstrated, quickly filling the basket. She emptied it into the net and continued harvesting.
By noon, the third brother returned, smiling broadly—he must have had a good haul.
“Second brother, let’s have lunch at a nearby villager’s place. I’ve arranged for all of us to eat together.”
He had organized their lunch in advance. Lin Suyu silently appreciated his efficiency, and then he continued:
“Brother Cheng, Brother Liu, do you want to trade for some dried seafood? I’ve arranged it with the fishermen; we can exchange some before we leave.”
The third brother had accomplished a lot that morning: organizing lunch, arranging dried seafood trades, and securing a cart for transporting seafood back to the city.
“Suyu, do you want to trade some too?”
Of course Lin Suyu wouldn’t miss out. After all, life was about eating well, dressing well, and having fun.
“Yes, thank you, Third Brother. I brought enough money to see how much seafood I can get.”
Cheng Xiao and Liu Haibo also eagerly agreed. They had come to Jinmen City partly for work, but also to explore ways to get extra food for their families.
Seafood could fill their stomachs, and they weren’t about to miss this opportunity.