Chapter 206: Without Without Xiao Long's Partner Is Actually Quite Pretty

In less than an hour, the fish were mostly sold; the sun had risen, and though the fishy stench from the three basins was overpowering, Li Long no longer noticed it.

"Old Dad, you made eight yuan and six jiao from these fish; the rest probably won't sell. Here!" Li Long handed a stack of banknotes to Li Li Qing Xia, mostly small denominations mixed with some one-yuan bills.

Li Li Qing Xia pushed Li Long's hand away, refusing the money:

"Why give it to me? You keep it."

"Old Dad, don't be so polite; these are fish you caught, so the money should be yours. Even between my big brother and me, close as we are, we settle accounts clearly. Besides, look, I have far more money than you."

Li Li Qing Xia stopped refusing and happily accepted the stack of notes.

More than eight yuan, a day's harvest, earned with just a basin, a piece of gauze, and a morning of hawking.

Was it really this easy?

Holding the money, Li Li Qing Xia could hardly believe it.

Glancing at the other stack of cash in Li Long's hand, he felt reassured again.

His son's ability to earn money was far greater than his own!

The fish Li Long brought today were fewer than usual, less than fifty kilograms; now only a few small crucian carp and one-and-a-half medium-sized silver carp remained unsold, leaving him with over forty yuan in hand.

Less than usual, but still a lot.

Few loaches remained from the mud, less than a kilogram; having been stifled in the water too long, they had all died and turned belly-up.

One or two small crucian carp were still struggling to stay alive, occasionally splashing the water, but they looked half-dead.

"Old Dad, dump them; I'll take you to get breakfast." Seeing the morning market thinning out, Li Long estimated the remainder wouldn't sell.

People were still watching, but Li Long no longer cared much.

"It's a pity to dump them." Li Li Qing Xia was still reluctant; back in their hometown, these could be gutted, pan-fried in oil until delicious, or stewed—the broth soaking cornmeal buns would be an exquisite taste!

"There are plenty of fish in Little Little Haizi's pond; we don't miss this little bit." Understanding his father's thoughts, Li Long smiled and said, "If we don't dump them now, they'll soon rot; with the sun up, it will only get hotter, and we need to head back early."

"Alright, alright, alright." Thinking he could earn such money again tomorrow, Li Li Qing Xia immediately cheered up. "Let's go then; leave these... no need for them."

The two poured all the remaining fish from the basins into the nearby ditch, tidied up, and pushed their cart away.

Before they had even pushed their bicycles far, people quickly rushed into the canal to scoop up the fish; among them were two neighboring stall owners.

Well, snapping up bargains is indeed fast; anything free smells sweet!

Pushing their bicycles, the two felt physically tired but mentally very relaxed.

Li Long pointed out the various county buildings to Li Li Qing Xia as they walked all the way to the large courtyard, set down the basins, scales, and other items, and then headed to Daroushitang.

"Oh, Comrade Xiao Li is here?" Zhong Guo Qiang was at the counter talking to a waiter; spotting Li Long, he came over smiling to greet him:

"Here to sell fish again today? Sold out?"

"Sold out; there were no big carp, so I didn't come to deliver any to you," Li Long said with a smile. "I'll bring some over when I have good fish."

"Good, good, good; if you have two or three kilograms of big carp, be sure to bring them to me," Zhong Guo Qiang said cheerfully. "Our head chef says your fish are authentic, and the customers say the fish are excellent—and who is this?"

"This is my old dad," Li Long introduced. "He just arrived from our hometown. Old Dad, this is Manager Zhong from the canteen, who often looks out for me."

"Hello, hello, Manager Zhong!" Li Li Qing Xia felt a bit constrained; Zhong Guo Qiang wore a Zhongshan suit and looked like a cadre, which gave Li Li Qing Xia, who had little experience dealing with officials, a sense of pressure.

"Hello, hello, Comrade Lao Li!" Zhong Guo Qiang proactively shook Li Li Qing Xia's hand, smiling. "Comrade Xiao Li is too modest; it's not that I look out for him, but rather he has been providing us with high-quality Sheng Shi Cai. Seeing you, Comrade Lao Li, one knows that Xiao Li's excellence must come from good family upbringing..."

Li Li Qing Xia rubbed his hands, unsure what to say.

"Manager Zhong, what you're saying makes me embarrassed," Li Long said with a laugh. "What's good to eat this morning?"

"Porridge, steamed buns, pickled vegetables—the same old three. Shall I have a hot dish stir-fried for you? Since the elder has arrived, it's my treat!"

"No need, no need." Li Long waved his hands hurriedly. "I just brought the elder from the morning market; we have some money from selling fish, so let's just order a stir-fry."

There weren't many good dishes available anyway; the menu board by the window listed chives with eggs, shredded potatoes, vinegar-glazed cabbage, and the like.

Li Long ordered two bowls of porridge and four steamed buns, and asked for a chives-and-eggs stir-fry; just as he was about to order more, Li Li Qing Xia stopped him.

"Enough, enough; we can't finish too much."

Li Long knew his father's appetite well and knew he could finish it, so he said:

"We've been tired all morning; I'm hungry. If we can't finish, we'll take it home. Let's order another cabbage dish."

With that, he went to pay.

Li Li Qing Xia watched with a pained heart as Li Long handed bill after bill to the waiter; combined with the food coupons, this meal consumed one-third of the money he had earned from selling fish all day!

Waiting at the table for the food, Li Li Qing Xia whispered:

"Without Xiao Long, I knew you could earn money, but I didn't expect you to spend it so quickly too..."

"Then what's the point of earning money?" Li Long said with a smile. "Working from dawn till dusk to earn a living, we shouldn't treat ourselves poorly."

Li Li Qing Xia didn't reply, but in his heart he began to feel his wife Du Chunfang had a point: they needed to find a wife for their youngest son to manage the household, otherwise, spending recklessly like this, when would they ever save any money?

Li Long took Li Li Qing Xia to wash their hands at the entrance, and by the time they returned, the steamed buns had been served; with few people around in the morning, the meals arrived quickly, their aroma wafting over; Li Long, already starving, handed a bun to his father, took a sip of porridge, and then began devouring the buns in large bites.

"These buns really taste fragrant!" Li Li Qing Xia exclaimed after taking a bite.

"Then we'll buy a few more to take back later, so Mother can taste them too!" Li Long said. "We'll return early, so there's no need to cook lunch at home."

"... Alright." Li Li Qing Xia agreed; after all, he couldn't enjoy a delicacy all by himself.

Although Li Li Qing Xia had earlier told Li Long not to order too much, by the time they finished, nothing remained on the table.

"Twenty more steamed buns," Li Long said at the counter. "Pack them to go."

At this time, Daroushitang also offered take-out buns, though the paper bags for packing cost extra.

"So many?" Li Li Qing Xia was very surprised.

"My partner is at the middle school; I'm bringing her a few," Li Long said with a smile. "A few days ago, she even bought me a Dacron shirt."

"Ah?" Li Li Qing Xia hadn't expected Li Long to be telling the truth; did he really have a partner?

He began to worry again.

She was a teacher, eating from the public bowl; would she really take a liking to Li Long?

When Li Long brought Li Li Qing Xia to the township middle school, he saw no one on campus and only then remembered it was the weekend.

"Dad, are you going to wait here, or come with me to take a look?" Li Long asked at the school gate. "She might not be there; it's the weekend, so she might have gone home."

"Then let's go see." Li Li Qing Xia was also curious about what the girl his son was dating looked like.

Although in parents' minds their own children are excellent in every way, no matter how you put it, they still held rural household registration, which in this era was naturally one rank lower than the non-agricultural household registration that came with state-supplied grain rations.

Li Long had originally not wanted Li Li Qing Xia to come, but since they were already here, going was fine; he rode his bicycle into the school—schools in those days didn't have perimeter walls, and the gatekeeper glanced at Li Long, recognized him, and didn't stop him.

Arriving at the female teachers' dormitory, Li Long was somewhat surprised to find Gu Gu Xiaoxia's door open.

Squeezing the handbrake, Li Li Qing Xia felt they had arrived and hurriedly dismounted; Li Long also got off and propped up his bike. Hearing the commotion, Gu Gu Xiaoxia walked out of the room. Seeing Li Long together with an elder man, she immediately realized who it was; her face flushed crimson, and she lowered her head.

Li Long smiled awkwardly and said:

"Gu Xiaoxia, this is my father. We went out selling fish together today; after breakfast, we bought some steamed buns and thought to bring some over for you..."

"Hello, Uncle," Gu Gu Xiaoxia greeted gently, and Li Li Qing Xia hurriedly nodded:

"Ah, ah, good, good."

"Dad, this is Gu Xiaoxia; she used to be from our production team too, and now she's my girlfriend."

While handing the buns to Gu Gu Xiaoxia, Li Long introduced her; Gu Gu Xiaoxia took the buns, lightly punched Li Long, feeling both shy and delighted—did this count as formally meeting the parents?

Seeing the girl's expression, Li Li Qing Xia knew Li Long wasn't lying; he felt quite proud and said with a smile:

"Good, good, so you're Gu Xiaoxia? Our Little Long is mischievous; you'll have to keep him in line later... These buns taste pretty good; eat more, get a bit plumper, haha."

Seeing his father so happy he was becoming incoherent, Li Long said:

"Gu Xiaoxia, why haven't you gone back yet?"

"!."

"Midterm exams are coming up soon; it's my first time teaching a class, so there are some things I need to prepare in advance, which is why I didn't go back."

"Oh, alright then; we'll head back first. I'll come see you when I have time."

"Mm, goodbye, Uncle!"

After leaving the school, Li Li Qing Xia was smiling at first, but later stopped smiling.

"Little Long, you said this Gu Xiaoxia used to be from our production team?"

"Yes, her father and my eldest brother are very close," Li Long said. "Early this year, I got news that the school would be hiring through an exam, so I told her in advance; she studied and passed."

"Mm."

"She made shoes for me and bought me clothes; she treats me really well," Li Long said proudly.

But Li Li Qing Xia still felt a vague worry.

After all, Gu Gu Xiaoxia received state-supplied grain rations and was quite beautiful; while her relationship with Li Long was good now, what about later? With their respective statuses standing between them, could this relationship last?

Li Long didn't know his father was thinking so much; he pedaled his bicycle furiously, hoping to get home before the buns cooled down so the family could eat them.

After all, meat buns are most fragrant fresh out of the steamer; reheating them changes the flavor entirely.

When they rushed home, Li Long saw Li Qiang still playing by the hand-pump well in the courtyard; Li Juan was not there.

Seeing Li Long and the others return, Li Qiang threw down the mud in his hands and ran over, shouting loudly:

"Uncle!"

"Hey," Li Long dismounted and said to Li Qiang:

"Go wash your hands; I bought meat buns, so wash your hands clean before eating. By the way, where's your sister?"

"My sister went to the fields to work with my dad and mom." Li Qiang turned and went straight to the hand-pump well. After pumping some water, he used the basin that was always kept by the well for washing hands.

Du Chunfang sat at the doorway watching Li Qiang play; seeing Li Long and the others return, she smiled and asked Li Li Qing Xia:

"How did it go? Did you sell the fish you caught?"

"Sold them! Made over eight yuan!" Li Li Qing Xia said proudly. "So many people wanted them! They kept saying how good the fish were..."

"That much money?" Du Chunfang was also startled. "Are fish worth that much?"

"Mm," Li Li Qing Xia said proudly, "Today I went fishing with Little Long, and tomorrow we'll go sell again. We'll give half the money to Eldest Brother; we can't just eat off him alone."

"That works." Du Chunfang had no objections.

"I just saw Little Long's girlfriend," Li Li Qing Xia whispered to her. "That girl is incredibly beautiful; she teaches at the middle school, and she seems to treat Little Long really well."

"Really?" Du Chunfang found it hard to believe. "Someone with state-supplied grain rations would take a liking to Little Long?"

"Little Long said she's from this production team too; early this year, Little Long gave her the tip-off that helped her pass the teacher exam, and her father gets along extremely well with Eldest Brother." Although Li Li Qing Xia was worried himself, he tried his best to speak words favorable to both sides.

Du Chunfang had been thinking of introducing one of her own relatives to Li Long, but now it seemed that path was blocked.

"Mother, come, eat a bun. These buns haven't cooled much yet; they taste great!"

"Good, good, good; I'll eat half... I just finished breakfast, so I'm not very hungry..." Du Chunfang spoke words of half-refusal while accepting the bun; she broke off half and handed the remaining half directly to Li Li Qing Xia.

Li Li Qing Xia took it and began eating immediately.

Li Qiang was also there, devouring the meat bun in big bites, his face full of smiles.

"Qiangqiang, has Uncle Daqiang come by?" Li Long asked.

"Uncle Daqiang came by, fixed up the nets, and left again," Li Qiang said while eating his bun. "He said he'd come back this afternoon."

Li Long hadn't expected Tao Daqiang to move so quickly today; usually, at this time, the six nets would still be in the process of being mended.

"Grandma helped mend them," Li Qiang added. "She said the nets were easy to fix today."

So that's how it was.

Li Long understood.

The wind was coming; Li Long looked up, then turned to look northwest, sighed, and said to Li Li Qing Xia:

"Dad, we can't go fishing today."

"Why?" Li Li Qing Xia had just finished half a bun and was still somewhat confused.

"A yellow dust storm is coming today; we can't go. Even if we cast the nets, we won't catch anything; today we all have to stay home."

Upon hearing about the impending yellow dust storm, Li Qiang immediately ran outside the courtyard; a minute later, he ran back and shouted loudly to Li Long:

"Little Uncle, Little Uncle! The yellow wind is coming! I can already see a black line in the far west!"

Li Li Qing Xia and Du Chunfang still did not quite understand what the yellow wind was.

"This yellow wind is just blowing sand!" Li Long explained to them simply. "The sky fills with dust and sand; you can't see anything... It happens several times a year."

Yes, a sandstorm was coming!

Li Qing hurriedly gathered up the items in the courtyard and weighed down those that needed securing, lest the strong wind blow them away. Once truly blown away, who knew where they would drift; they would never be found again.

(End of Chapter)