Chapter 188: A huge expanse of Watching Tide

In terms of price, Watching Tide is sold per piece; ordinary-sized ones are 5 yuan each, slightly larger ones are 10 yuan each.

Generally, Watching Tide is fairly dispersed; I don't know how this patch of Watching Tide came to be, so many and so concentrated.

This isn't Watching Tide, this is money!

Looking out, it's a huge expanse; Ye Cheng first felt worried, wondering how to finish it all.

"I'll call my brother and have him come over."

Ye Cheng picked up the phone and called Ye Guowei; Ye Guowei was just about to sleep, but as soon as he heard there was Watching Tide, he hurriedly got Jiang Yunxiang and rushed over.

Ye Cheng and Xiao Hu then started picking them up.

One Watching Tide was still sliding on the mud; Ye Cheng went up, grabbed its head, pulled it out, and tossed it into the snakeskin bag.

There were still some on the mud, and some on the rocks; when Ye Cheng pulled them out, it took considerable effort, and their eight legs were still strong.

Moreover, Ye Cheng didn't dare use too much force, because excessive force would break their legs, and if broken they'd have to be sold at a discount.

So when he encountered those stubborn ones, Ye Cheng could only pull their legs off one by one.

The ones Ye Cheng has picked up so far are not big, about two taels each, just right to swallow in one bite.

After about twenty minutes of picking, Ye Guowei arrived with Jiang Yunxiang.

"A Cheng, so much Watching Tide!" Jiang Yunxiang said, her eyes lighting up as she looked at them.

"Sister-in-law, look, there's so much, we can't possibly pick it all; if we don't hurry, the tide will come in and it'll be gone." Ye Cheng said.

"Makes sense; I see the seawater already rising—let's hurry."

Ye Cheng hadn't noticed, but when he looked back he realized the seawater was indeed slowly rising; if it rose, these small Watching Tide would surely be carried back out to sea with the water.

"Brother, let's start picking from the seaside, sister-in-law take the middle." Ye Cheng roughly divided the work and they got started.

With four people together, it went much faster, visibly clearing the area.

"Xiao Hu, bring two more snakeskin bags; this one's getting heavy and I can't drag it." Ye Cheng and Ye Guowei shared one snakeskin bag, which made loading much quicker.

Xiao Hu looked up and said, "Brother, we're out— the ones they brought are gone too."

"Ah, I brought three— are they full too?" Jiang Yunxiang buried herself in work for an hour, never considering these questions.

"Then you take a look." Xiao Hu pointed to the seaside; he had brought two snakeskin bags and two water tanks, and Ye Guowei's group had brought another three.

Now the two water tanks hold Crab Tiger Fish, one snakeskin bag holds yellow clams, and the remaining four are all filled with Watching Tide.

"Full, what now?" Ye Cheng glanced at the tidal flat.

The seawater has risen halfway; many Watching Tide have returned to the sea, but there are still plenty left— not picking them would be a waste.

"Let your sister-in-law go back and get more?" Ye Guowei said.

"No, sister-in-law is tired too." Ye Cheng stopped his older brother; his sister-in-law, if anyone should be tired, let Xiao Hu go—but he had another idea.

"Or I could have Zhang Guafu come over; Xiao Liang needs surgery, her surgery fees are covered, but there will still be many expenses afterward." Ye Cheng made the suggestion.

"Sure, I just don't know if she'll come." Ye Guowei had no objection.

"Okay, let her come pick." Jiang Yunxiang added, "Little Liang is so pitiful— such a young child having to undergo such a major surgery; sigh, just thinking about it breaks my heart." As fellow mothers, Jiang Yunxiang felt even more empathy.

Since Jiang Yunxiang also agreed, Xiao Hu didn't mind; Ye Cheng called, Zhang Guafu had already slept, took half a day to answer the phone, hearing Ye Cheng say he was coming to gather seafood, she immediately agreed, and brought along her four extra snakeskin bags.

Although they were out of snakeskin bags, after the four of them tidied up a bit, they dug a slightly larger pit and gradually placed the caught Watching Tide inside to save time.

By the time Zhang Guafu arrived, panting, the pit was already about seven‑eighths full.

Seeing so many people present, Zhang Guafu was momentarily stunned, but quickly realized they were a family and she was an outsider; being invited to come was already nice.

"Guowei, Yunxiang, A Cheng, Xiao Hu, thank you." Zhang Guafu thanked each of them in turn.

Jiang Yunxiang walked over and said, "Don't thank us— Xiao Liang is about to have surgery, and we also hope he eats well afterward and recovers well."

"Yes, yes, the doctor said postoperative nutrition still needs to be strengthened; this child has a hard life." Zhang Guafu spoke, eyes welling up.

"Oh, sister-in-law, don't worry, everyone will help you— we're all from the same village." Jiang Yunxiang, hating to see someone cry over their child, quickly comforted her.

"Auntie, hurry up and pick— the tide's coming right up." Ye Cheng reminded.

"Okay, okay, I'll join in, thank you, A Cheng." Zhang Guafu dried her tears and began picking along the beach.

Ye Cheng and the others then started loading the Watching Tide from the pit.

The tide began to rise faster; Zhang Guafu watched the Watching Tide on the ground being gradually taken back to the sea, feeling heartbroken and wishing she could sprout eight arms.

Ye Cheng glanced around; the remaining Watching Tide were few, so the four roughly marked out an area and began the final sprint.

After just over half an hour, the seawater had fully flooded in; the five could only drag their belongings ashore.

"Auntie, you all right?" Ye Cheng turned to Zhang Guafu and asked.

Zhang Guafu laughed happily, gripping the mouth of the snakeskin bag tightly, afraid the contents would spill out,

"Quite a lot, A Cheng— this should be enough to supplement Xiao Liang."

Seeing Zhang Guafu's face glowing with a mother's special loving light, Ye Cheng nodded; as they say, maternal love is great, indeed, and it commands respect.

After working all night, everyone was tired; Ye Cheng and the two others sat down, smoked a cigarette, then lifted their loads and headed back.

The load was a bit heavy, lifting it was strenuous, but Ye Guowei, who does manual labor, shouldered two packs and could also lift two water tanks with his hands— indeed impressive.

Jiang Yunxiang and Zhang Guafu each carried a snakeskin bag; Xiao Hu was lifting one bag and one water tank; Ye Cheng could barely manage, only able to shoulder one.

Speaking of which, this system doesn't give any strength, stamina, or agility‑boosting medicine; if it did, Ye Cheng would max it out for himself.

Back in the village, Zhang Guafu took her own bag home; the rest belonged to Ye Cheng and the other three.

Although they were looking after Zhang Guafu, Ye Cheng wouldn't share his own harvest with her.

A grain breeds gratitude, a bushel breeds resentment— the ancients' wisdom must be remembered.

It was late; everyone left their things at Ye Cheng's place and went home; Ye Cheng took a nice hot shower, couldn't be bothered to wash his clothes, and just threw them away.