Grouper, yellow croaker, lobster, crab, abalone…
She caught every kind of seafood she recognized or didn’t recognize, specifically targeting the largest ones.
What puzzled her was that the fish and shrimp here didn’t resist at all when she caught them.
So, she happily kept catching them and soon piled up a huge heap.
Except for the large crabs, which she temporarily stored in the storage room without eating, she consumed two types of seafood per meal for a whole week.
She felt her chest seemed to have grown a bit fuller.
Her skin also became more fair, rosy, and dewy, and her facial features even more refined.
Her strength increased significantly too—lifting a hundred pounds with one hand felt as effortless as lifting two pounds.
Her overall mental state was excellent; she felt running ten kilometers would be a breeze.
However, although seafood was delicious, she couldn’t eat it all the time, as she was somewhat worried about the risk of gout.
Moreover, she had run out of oil. Looking at the empty oil bottle she had used up, she truly experienced the hardships of this era.
Two ounces of oil per month—no matter how much she saved, it only lasted her a week.
She planned to go out and acquire some other seeds to diversify the products in her Space, while also looking for rapeseed or soybean seeds.
Seeing the vegetable seedlings in the Space that had grown to a foot tall in just seven days, she felt heartache looking at the vast empty land left unused.
How could she waste such a divine tool?
Just as she reached the courtyard gate, the three boys from next door, Liu Lan’s family, came looking for her.
“Aunt Fang, do you want to go beachcombing with us? There are fish, shrimp, and shellfish in the sea—all meat, lots of meat!”
He Weidang directly tempted Fang Yuan with the lure of meat.
“Beachcombing? Auntie has never been, but Auntie has other things to do now and can’t go beachcombing for the time being.”
As soon as Fang Yuan finished speaking, the three boys’ expressions shifted from anticipation to disappointment, finally drooping dejectedly.
“Alright then, Auntie, go ahead with your business!”
After holding back for so many days, they had finally gotten their mother’s permission to take Fang Yuan beachcombing.
Who knew she had other things to do!
“Wait!”
Fang Yuan called out to the three boys and turned to go into her room.
She took out several pieces of White Rabbit candy and gave two to each, saying:
“We can go beachcombing another time. Auntie has another matter she needs your help with. Can you help Auntie?”
“Of course we can, Auntie! Just tell us—we know everything around here!”
Holding the White Rabbit candy, He Weiguo happily nodded in reply.
No matter what the task was, he could help.
“Do you know where the local villagers’ homes are on the island?”
“Villagers’ homes? I know! There’s a village not far from here. They fish and sell their catch. Our family even bought from them before!” He Weiguo hurriedly replied.
“Then Auntie wants to go to the villagers’ homes to buy some things. Are you willing to show the way? Auntie will pay you for guiding!”
She then pointed to the half-pack of Candy Twist on the table in the room.
It was too sweet for her; she had only eaten a few sticks before putting it aside. Now it was perfect as a reward for these three little ones.
“No problem, Auntie! Just follow me!” He Weiguo patted his chest confidently.
There wasn’t a place around here he didn’t know.
“I’ll go too! I’ll go too! I can also show the way!”
He Weimin, clutching two pieces of White Rabbit milk candy, eagerly chimed in.
His older brothers often didn’t include him in their games.
“Weimin is so young—can he walk all the way there?” Fang Yuan looked at He Weimin and deliberately asked.
“I can, Auntie, I can. It’s not far. Auntie, big brother, don’t leave me behind!”
He Weimin quickly nodded, eager to go out and play as well.
“Got it, won’t forget you. Let’s go!” He Weiguo replied, looking at his younger brother.
His mother always made him take his little brother along, and the kid was clever about it. Whenever He Weiguo didn’t bring him, he’d go back and tattle to their mother, getting He Weiguo scolded. This time, he was just taking his aunt shopping, so bringing the kid along wasn’t a big deal.
“Alright then, let’s go!”
Fang Yuan followed the three boys out of the Family Compound, but Zhang Xiuzhen spotted her. Seeing Fang Yuan’s increasingly beautiful face and her glowing, fair skin deeply stung Zhang Xiuzhen.
Didn’t this woman say she was pregnant? Why wasn’t her belly showing at all, and why was she getting prettier? Could she have been lying to them? And she even threatened to report them, but nothing had happened since they arrived. Zhang Xiuzhen was convinced the woman had just been bluffing. She’d almost been fooled.
Fang Yuan, of course, had no idea about Zhang Xiuzhen’s thoughts, and even if she did, she wouldn’t care. Reporting them was as simple as saying the word—she could do it anytime. This family couldn’t withstand scrutiny anyway; one look and they’d be caught. What was there to rush about?
She followed the three boys excitedly into the village. As soon as she entered, the sight of drying fishing nets and the pervasive smell of the sea hit her, nearly making her nauseous. She was immensely grateful her Space didn’t have such odors.
The three kids took her around, showing her mostly ordinary dried seafood like dried fish, seaweed, shrimp, and prawns. These cost only a few cents per jin and weren’t worth much. However, since she didn’t yet know how to prepare these dried goods, she bought about ten jin of each. They could be stored for a long time, useful for gifting or keeping outside.
Later, when they came across a few households selling sea cucumbers, abalone, and fish maw, she happily bought them all. After purchasing a pile of dried seafood, she also asked for vegetable seeds from various families. Though there were duplicates, her Space was spacious enough to plant them all.
She finally got her hands on the rapeseed and soybean seeds she’d been longing for, and even found corn and wheat. Of course, there were only small handfuls of each, and they didn’t look particularly good, but she had her Space! She also gathered several dozen eggs from various households before preparing to head back.
On her way through the village, she noticed fruit trees at the back. After asking the villagers, she learned that almost all the tropical fruits she’d been eagerly anticipating grew there. How could she resist? She immediately paid the villagers to dig up saplings for her.
Seeing the money in Fang Yuan’s hand and looking at the saplings in the ground, the villagers sprang into action. Mango, rambutan, lychee, mangosteen, dragon fruit, papaya, guava, jackfruit, durian, wampee… even sugarcane, though it was particularly tough. She accepted them all—whatever was available here, she wanted. Even if it was just a sapling the villagers guessed was a certain fruit tree, as long as it hadn’t borne fruit yet and wasn’t too large, she took it.
People in this era were honest. When Fang Yuan asked for saplings, they dug up the best ones. Though they avoided digging up trees that had already borne fruit, they chose saplings that were either portable or about to bear fruit. Rarely did they dig up tiny, newly sprouted seedlings. However, for papaya, jackfruit, and durian, she specifically requested the smallest saplings, as larger ones would be difficult to transport back. The dragon fruit plants, which resembled oversized cacti, she also took two small ones.
Fang Yuan sent the three kids back into the village to continue collecting eggs for her while she waited alone nearby.
These people would deliver the saplings to her as soon as they were dug up. Whenever there were duplicates, she would store the smaller ones in Space.
She stopped only when she had enough, settled the bill, and left.
Looking at the remaining dozen or so saplings on the ground, Fang Yuan hired a local to help carry the bundle of saplings, along with the hoe she had bought, back to her place.
Afterward, she picked up two large bags of dried seafood and seeds, as well as two bags of eggs, and headed home with the three little ones.
The local carried the bundle of soil-covered saplings in front, while Fang Yuan walked ahead with two large bags of dried seafood.
Behind them, three children followed, each holding some seafood.
At the entrance of the camp, they were stopped by the guard.
“Halt! What are you doing here? This is a Military Camp. Unauthorized personnel are not allowed to enter.”