Chapter 2476: My Wife Is a Pirate 06

Jin Chen swam to the area with the disturbance, still thinking it was some rare sea product. He never expected it to be two large sea turtles fighting.

However, sea turtles must not be killed, and then he saw something buried in the sand; upon prying it open, he found it was a fairly large river pearl.

Not bad either.

Jin Chen stopped Ling Gun Gun from biting into it, then dug out those few plump river pearls and stuffed them into the already nearly overflowing net bag, its mouth almost unable to be tied.

In the water, Jin Chen was as comfortable as a fish, swimming leisurely.

But the people on the ship began to worry.

Seeing the men who had gone down together each reach their breath-holding limit, they one after another panted back onto the ship; when counting heads, they discovered only Jin Chen was missing.

Where's Chenzi? Why hasn't he surfaced yet?

Liu Ping'an wiped seawater from his face and anxiously looked around.

Yeah, he's good at holding his breath, but this is too long, right?" Someone nearby chimed in, their tone uneasy.

It's almost... could it be...

Liu Shushu frowned, estimating the time in his mind, also feeling something was off, but still steadied the crowd.

Wait a bit longer; maybe that kid found something good.

However, half an hour of tense waiting flew by.

Still no sign of Jin Chen surfacing.

The hearts of everyone on the ship sank, the atmosphere grew solemn, even somewhat sorrowful.

Some had already begun to sigh and lament, even reddening their eyes.

On this vast sea, everyone knew what it meant to be unable to surface after holding one's breath too long.

Chenzi... sigh...

What a fine young man.

A pall of gloom and misery.

At the stern's water surface, Jin Chen's head emerged.

He caught his breath, looking puzzled at the dejected, sighing people on the ship, not understanding what had happened.

【What's wrong with them?】 Jin Chen asked.

Having eaten his fill, Ling Gun Gun spat out a mouthful of water, swimming leisurely.

【I don't know~】

Jin Chen grabbed the gunwale, nimbly leapt aboard, sending up a spray, and asked, bewildered.

What are you doing? What's wrong? Did something happen to the net?

Just then, a man facing him suddenly met his gaze and let out a startled yell.

Ahhhh!

Jin Chen was startled: "???"

Liu Ping'an was both shocked and delighted, rushing over to grab his arm.

Chenzi! You... you're still alive?!

Jin Chen was even more bewildered, touching his face and chest.

Otherwise, should I have died?

Only then did the people recover from their shock, realizing they'd made a big mistake; they burst into laughter and tears, crowding around him, both relieved and frightened as they punched him.

Liu Shushu knocked him with his pipe: "You little brat! Staying underwater that long without a move scared us to death!"

We thought you were... never mind, don't bring bad luck.

Your swimming skills are too frightening! You're practically a reincarnation of the Sea Dragon King!

Jin Chen then realized the issue, secretly thinking he should take it easy from now on.

Otherwise, next time you come out of the sea, people will have already prepared your spirit altar.

Soon, everyone's attention was quickly drawn to Jin Chen's net bag, stuffed to the brim.

When he poured out the harvest with a clatter, everyone was dumbfounded.

My goodness...

Are we really in the same sea?

Liu Ping'an clicked his tongue in amazement: "Chenzi, you've practically brought the Dragon King's stove over here!"

—

Meanwhile, Bu Changji avoided people's eyes and met with Hai San, who had quietly come down from the stone building to rendezvous.

The two exchanged information in a hidden spot behind the reef.

Bu Changji compared the crude map Hai San brought with the terrain he had observed that day in his mind, confirming several possible areas.

The thing is roughly within this range; the exact entrance still needs to be surveyed.

Bu Changji lowered his voice, tapping the map with his fingertip: "I'll temporarily hide in that fisherman's family's home, which is actually the least likely to raise suspicion. You stay put; without my signal, you must not act rashly."

Hai San nodded respectfully: "Yes, boss."

Bu Changji pondered a moment, then added: "As for Fang Yunyao's side... he seems cooperative, but being the Heir Apparent of the Prince's Manor, his motives are hard to fathom."

Have someone keep a close watch on him, don't let him play any tricks or suddenly change his mind and ruin things.

Understood, boss, you can relax." Hai San replied.

As they spoke, Bu Changji's ears twitched, hearing faint clamor and voices from the distant shore, as if the fishing boats that had gone out were returning.

He immediately signaled Hai San: "Someone's coming back; hurry back and don't let anyone see you.

Hai San nodded, his agile form slipping back into the reef's shadow and quickly disappearing.

Bu Changji should have immediately turned back to Jin Chen's cottage to avoid drawing attention.

He hesitated for a moment, but still walked toward the shore that was gradually becoming lively.

Some fishermen's families had already gathered on the shore.

Liu Xiu spotted Bu Changji walking over at a glance; seeing his pale yet still striking face, she instantly felt displeasure and frowned unhappily.

The fishing boat gently drew alongside the shore, and the men on board called out to each other, beginning to tidy the catch and prepare to disembark.

Liu Xiu gathered her spirits, tightly gripping the water bag in her hand.

Just as Jin Chen stepped off the boat, Liu Xiu rushed forward, thrusting the water bag at him with a sweet, soft voice.

"Jin Dage, you must be exhausted from a hard day at sea—hurry and drink some water to refresh yourself…"

Before he finished speaking, Jin Chen casually took the water bag, didn't even look at it, and directly handed it to Liu Ping'an, who had just disembarked behind him.

"Ping'an, here, your younger brother brought you water."

Liu Xiu: "……"

His smile froze, staring at his empty hand, a breath caught in his chest.

He hurriedly said, "Jin Dage! I prepared this especially for you—my older brother drinks the same at home."

"This is made by boiling sour plum and cooling it—it's the best for quenching thirst and relieving heat."

Jin Chen was bending to lift the heavy net bag; hearing this, he casually waved his hand, his tone ordinary.

"No trouble, we also have fresh water at home—drinking it there is the same."

He completely missed Liu Xiu's little thought.

Or, even if he understood, he didn't care.

Having said that, Jin Chen's gaze swept over the shore and quickly spotted a figure standing at the edge of the crowd.

Jin Chen's face instantly lit up with a bright smile; he strode over, set down his heavy harvest on the ground, and stood before Bu Changji.

"How did you come here? Did you come specially to meet me?"

Bu Changji wanted to shake his head and deny it; he had come merely on a sudden impulse, plus a habit of scouting the terrain.

But being asked so directly by Jin Chen, if he denied it, it would seem strange, and he couldn't find a suitable reason to explain why he appeared on this busy shore.

Bu Changji could only nod slightly stiffly, his ears warming, his voice soft: "... Yes."

Jin Chen was obviously very pleased with that answer, his smile deepening as he habitually reached out to ruffle Bu Changji's hair, cooled by the sea breeze.

"Come on, let's go home and cook—tonight we'll have the freshest seafood, more than enough."