Chapter 1098: Setting an Approximate Time

Ye Yaodong ate a meal at Director Chen's house and sat for a while, chatted a few words, then left so as not to disturb their afternoon nap. After all, he had achieved the purpose of this trip and received the reward.

Ye Fu was overjoyed too. The moment he stepped out, he couldn't help saying, "Your wall already has two flags hanging on it, and now there's a red booklet, plus a fountain pen as a reward. So glorious! Who would've thought just hauling up a bomb would earn a reward."

"Of course, that counts as strategic material, and enemy strategic material at that. Whether it's useful or not, turning it in deserves some recognition—you can't dampen the fishermen's enthusiasm. I heard the fishermen over in the South Sea chase after foreign fishing boats to scoop up treasures and turn them in. Now that's what you call glory. What is this of mine?"

"Really? It was in the newspaper?"

"That's right."

"Who would've thought the sea has everything—there's so much of all kinds of stuff."

"Just think about it. The ocean covers seventy percent of the world's surface, and how much does the land take up? Back in ancient times, how many ships sank into the sea? Of course there are plenty of treasures down there."

A'guang chimed in, "Exactly. Just two years ago, they salvaged quite a lot of porcelain from the sea area near our village."

"Don't you still have that diving thing? You got another set a while back. When are you going to dive down and have a look? You might find something good."

Ye Fu was in high spirits. Having tasted the sweetness, he no longer felt the water was dangerous and was even thinking of having him dive again.

"The waters we trawl now are way too deep—hundreds of meters, who knows how many. I can only go down ten or twenty meters at most."

"Then whenever you spot some uninhabited island or small islet, dive down nearby to have a look. The sea around an island shouldn't be that deep."

"We'll see. It's not coastal waters—the open sea is boundless. Finding an island in the middle of the ocean isn't that easy either."

The three chatted as they walked. When they reached the tractor, A'guang spoke up again, "Head to the market now? Pick up the stuff we left at the shop, then go to the village."

"Mm, let's go. Get things done early and get home before dark."

When they unloaded at the shop in the morning, they had taken the opportunity to leave the gift for the village head of Xinghua Zhong Village at the shop, so they wouldn't have to carry things back and forth, and to keep it from being stolen on the tractor later.

It was still high noon—the time of day when the sun was biggest and hottest. The village committee hadn't started work yet, so Ye Yaodong and his group went straight to the village head's house with the things and roused him from his reclining chair.

The moment the village head saw the items—all in traditional characters with English on them—a smile bloomed across his face, though he still put on a show of politeness.

"How can you be so polite, bringing gifts…"

"It's only right, only right. Last time it was because my sister had just given birth and I came in too much of a rush, didn't prepare anything—how rude of me. Coming by today makes up for it."

Ye Yaodong pushed the things into his arms without giving him a chance to argue. After a round of polite back-and-forth, the village head finally accepted them with a beaming face.

Gifts galore never draw blame. With a meeting gift in hand, everything's easier to talk about.

"Village head, what about the land? Any word? Have you discussed it—any leads?"

"Our village held a special meeting just to talk about this. Normally we don't have anything bigger than a fart happening here—it's all trivial stuff. But you wanting to buy land, and such a large plot at that, is a big deal. Everyone had something to say, but the main concern was just not being at ease about what you'd do with the land. Such a big area—the folks care most about that. They're afraid it'll bring something bad to the village. After all, you're outsiders, not from here."

"Don't worry. Such a big plot—besides building a house and putting up a yard for the elders to live in, I'll also put up a warehouse. The rest of the empty land might end up being used for a workshop or something, not decided yet."

He assured again, "But if I do anything, I'll definitely give our village committee a heads-up first. I absolutely won't do anything harmful to the villagers. My family's elders have lived in the village for a year now. They really like our village, always saying everyone here is warm and human. That's why I thought I'd just buy a plot, build a house, and officially register as a household in our village."

"Think about it—once you're registered in our village, you're one of us, a villager from here on. How could you possibly do anything against the villagers' interests?"

The village head nodded repeatedly. "Registering a household? That's easy to talk about. I'll have to tell everyone. They're willing to sell the land to you. The wasteland sits empty anyway—can't grow anything on it. Your family's elders have been in the village for a year, everyone's familiar with them. It's just that the area is too big. They say you need to clarify what it's for."

Ye Yaodong's face lit up. Willing to sell—that's all that matters. He's here to make money, definitely not doing anything illegal.

Land really is easiest to buy and sell these days, especially in the countryside.

"Village head, rest assured. Once the land is bought and the house is built, we'll be villagers of this village. Of course, the interests of the villagers come first."

"Then I'll talk it over with the others later. Wait a few days and come back for word."

Ye Yaodong's expression turned a bit awkward. "In a few days I might not be free. I may have to go out of town for a couple of months."

"What for? Aren't you a fisherman?"

"Yes, I'm going out of town to fish for two months. There's a fishing season elsewhere, rushing to make money."

"Your boat isn't small, then—you can run out of town to chase the fishing season?"

"Yes, I have over a dozen boats. My brother-in-law's family has quite a few too. We'll all go together. My sister just gave birth and there's no one to look after her here, so we moved her back to her parents' home a couple of days ago."

The village head's eyes bulged. "Over a dozen boats?"

"That's right. So rest assured, we're honest fishermen through and through, making our living from fishing. Whatever we do won't endanger the village."

A small wooden boat is still a boat—saying over a dozen isn't wrong.

Ye Yaodong thought for a moment, then took out the reward he'd received that morning to show him. "We only do things that benefit the individual and the collective. This is the reward the higher-ups gave me today. If I'm a villager here, that's bringing glory to our village too."

"Also, I'm on very familiar terms with the leaders above. I even chatted with them about buying land this morning. They said my idea was pretty good. After all, I already have a shop in the city. Buying a plot nearby and building a house makes it convenient to dock the fishing boat and sell goods back and forth."

"What leader? There's even a certificate of honor and a fountain pen…"

The village head touched it all over in amazement. Ye Yaodong waited for him to finish looking, then put it away.

"Heh, a leader here in the city. Well, village head, please put in a word for me with the other village cadres. I'll see in a couple of days if I have time to come by. If not, I'll definitely be back during the National Day holiday in October, and I'll come by then to chat in detail. How about that?"

"Alright, I'll put in a good word for you. The issue itself isn't big—it's just that the area is so large, the land price is bound to be quite a sum."

"I know that. We'll follow the proper procedure—complete paperwork, do things by the book."

"Good. Then wait a couple of days, or around National Day. I'll discuss it with the others in the next couple of days. If you weren't an outsider and the area wasn't so large, I could just decide this on the spot."

"No problem. Sorry for the trouble. I'll see if I can come by again in a couple of days…"

"Alright."

He who eats another's food softens his mouth, he who takes another's hand shortens his hand. People are still pretty honest these days. With all that said, there shouldn't be any major issues.

The purpose of buying the land is half achieved. Just wait a couple of days to see if there's time to come by again. Once the area is measured, the contract signed, and the money paid, it'll be locked in tight.

He didn't really want to wait until after the jellyfish harvest to come back during National Day. The gap is too long—anything can happen in the meantime. Strike while the iron is hot. The longer you drag it out, the more variables come up. Who knows if by then they'll jack up the price, or if some other thing or another will pop up.

Once things are settled and there's nothing to worry about back home, he can throw himself into other work better.

Today is only the 2nd. Even if he gets the message to set off, he still needs two days to prepare and notify people, then depart. Should be fine, there's enough time.

After leaving the village head's house, he went to the shop again. It was mid-afternoon, and the market was already scattered with hardly anyone around. This place specializes in the night market and morning market—basically once noon passes, the crowd thins and the market closes. Only their storefront outside the market was still open.

Their opening hours were basically from the early hours of the morning to the afternoon. After all, they sell dry goods, not fresh—different clientele. They still had to stay open during the day.

Ye Yaodong settled the accounts for the city shop over this period, then took out Lin Fu and Lin Mu's wages from it and handed them over. He had raised each of their wages by another 20 yuan, making it 120 per person—240 for the two of them, 3,000 a year!

This wage was already the ceiling for workers. Usually only special trades could earn that much, or even more.

He was also sincerely grateful to his father-in-law and mother-in-law for sharing his burden. Otherwise his production chain would be stuck right at this point.

Fortunately, the two of them were still quite young, only in their early fifties, and could still work for a while.

Father Ye saw it but said nothing. However, after they stepped outside, Ye Yaodong also said to his father, "When Lin Lin Xiuqing paid you guys the other day, I didn't tell her in advance. I'll just make it up to you next time."

"It's fine, don't tell your mother. Just pay me this month's wages the same as last month's, and give me the extra on the quiet."

The corner of his mouth twitched. "Why are you hiding so much private money? A middle-aged man—what other expenses could you have besides drinking and smoking?"

"Having money in hand keeps the heart at ease. How can I let your mother squeeze me dry? I definitely need a little something for myself. It's not easy getting money from her—am I supposed to watch her face? With money in hand, I don't have to ask her for it, and I won't have to listen to her nagging."

"So you're still giving my mother two hundred?"

"Right. When you think about it, the big money all goes to her anyway. What I take is just the loose change."

Ye Yaodong was at a loss for words. "You mean you want to take the lion's share and let her take the loose change?"

"That's what I'd like, but I can't actually do it. The household expenses and the social calls are all managed by her. We have quite a few relatives too—weddings, funerals, all sorts of things. Social calls are a big expense, all costing money. The good thing is she can save money. It's fine if I take a little less."

"So my mother should thank you for your consideration—just taking a little less?"

Father Ye couldn't help laughing. "How can you think like that? She deserves a beating for that."

"I thought you were still dreaming and hadn't woken up, thinking like that for real."

Ah Guang laughed. "Dad, you're talking about private money way too openly. I'm right here. Aren't you going to give me some hush money?"

"What private money or not? We're talking about wages. It's all hard-earned, distributed according to labor. I'm the one losing out—it's all going to her. I've been working for your mother my whole life."

"It's not quite right to put it that way. Providing for the family—naturally the man of the house has to shoulder most of the responsibility. How about this, Dad? The wages still go to my mother as usual, and I'll give you an extra thirty yuan on top, as a sea-going subsidy. I'll give it to you secretly, without Mother knowing. That way you won't have trouble explaining it."

"Originally your wages here should have been more. Back then you said it wasn't necessary—the boats went to your eldest brother and Ye Ye Erge. I didn't need to give you a separate cut either; just treat me as a regular boat hand. Although I did give you a bit extra, now that eldest brother and Ye Ye Erge have both returned the boats to you, of course I should add a bit more."

Father Ye's old face broke into a smile. Not having to deduct it from his original wages, with the extra counted as a subsidy—that was naturally great. No need to worry about not being able to explain it.

"Good, good, good. Then that's that. Since you've got money, I won't stand on ceremony with you. What your mother and I save up will all be yours when we're old. What you give me, I won't spend much of it. I can save it all up, and when I'm old, I'll just return it to you."

"Forget it. Whatever I give you, just keep it and spend it. You've still got decades before you're old. Am I supposed to keep thinking about that little bit of yours for decades? With that spare mental space, I'd rather think up a few more ideas and earn a bit more—that comes faster."

"Good, good, good. Earn more, and everyone's life gets easier."

"Sit tight. I'm starting up. Stop the chatter."

Ye Yaodong took the crank handle and slowly rotated it. The speed went from slow to fast, and the frequency of the tractor's sound rose along with it.

After starting it up, he flipped up the seat cushion, tossed the crank inside, closed it again, and sat down himself, ready to drive home.

Today was a quick in-and-out job; everything went smoothly. He could almost make it home by dusk.

The moment he got home, he urged Ah Guang to remember to make a call the next day to ask when the jellyfish factory would start work. If it wasn't that soon, he'd have time to make another trip to the city the day after tomorrow to settle the land matter.

Ah Guang knew he was anxious and said he'd keep an eye on it.

Ye Yaodong swung the money pouch in his hand, striding briskly toward the house. But just as he reached the door, a little meatball of a child rushed over and hugged his leg, eager to show off.

"Daddy, look at my watch…"

"What watch? Where did you get a watch?" Ye Yaodong stopped walking and asked curiously.

"Doodle-drawed…"

"Big brother drew it?"

Ye Ye Xiaoxi happily raised her hand high for him to see. On her wrist was a watch face and strap drawn with a ballpoint pen, even with the number markings included.

He went along with it cooperatively, smiling and nodding, and patted her head. "Mm, it's pretty."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi smiled, showing a row of tiny teeth. She held her hand up high, delighted no matter how she looked at it, then hopped and skipped off to play with the group of children nearby.

Lin Lin Xiuqing came out to meet them, saw it, and said, "It'll be hard to wash off later. You won't be able to scrub it off."

"Drawing one makes her happy. No need to wash it. If you wash it off, she'll just draw another one tomorrow."

Ye Yaodong watched the child hopping and skipping happily, and he felt happy too.

Unexpectedly, by bedtime that night, he too got to receive a watch.

Ye Ye Xiaoxi had gotten a ballpoint pen from somewhere, and after her bath she insisted on drawing one for him.

"I already have one. No need to draw…"

"Mine is pretty. Stretch out your hand. Be good…"

"I really have one."

"That one isn't pretty. The one I draw is pretty. Daddy, be obedient."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi had already poked his palm and the back of his hand several times with the pen, leaving blue ink everywhere. Her own palm was also covered in blue streaks.

"Where did you get a ballpoint pen?"

"Big brother's."

"Brother Brother Ahai's?"

Ye Ye Xiaoxi nodded, and finally managed to turn her father's hand over, revealing the back of it.

She excitedly held the pen and drew circles back and forth on the back of his hand. She was so excited her mouth kept stretching into a grin, and she couldn't hold back her drool—it kept dripping down. The speed of her slurping couldn't keep up with the dripping.

Before one watch was even finished, the back of Ye Yaodong's hand was already covered in drool. She very seriously used the back of her own hand to wipe it, smearing it across half his forearm.

He resignedly held out his hand for his precious daughter to draw on, and watched Lin Lin Xiuqing count money and do the accounts.

"Take the fountain pen I got as a reward and use it. We've got ink at home anyway."

"No need. Such a good fountain pen—put it away. Using it for accounts would be a waste. The old fountain pen at home is fine for writing."

"Don't you always say the old fountain pen's ink flows too fast, and every now and then it doesn't work?"

"As long as it works, that's fine. This one is a reward. Let's keep it as a memento."

"Then buy yourself a ballpoint pen someday too. This ballpoint pen writes well, doesn't need constant refilling, and doesn't skip."

"I'll look into it later. This seems to be something just coming in. I don't think I've seen this kind of pen before. I wonder where Brother Brother Ahai bought it."

"Did the factory go smoothly?"

Lin Lin Xiuqing smiled. "Nonsense."

"It's not nonsense. Could he really have gone out to buy a pen? The factory has them right there. Swiping one is so convenient, isn't it?"

"Then this one is on your daughter's hand now, so it belongs to us?"

"Hey, right! No need to buy, isn't there a ready-made one right here? You're the smart one, the educated folk steal things more naturally than anyone."

"Nonsense," Lin Lin Xiuqing shot him a look. "Don't bother me, I haven't finished tallying the accounts."

Ye Yaodong looked down at Ye Ye Xiaoxi again. After such a long time, she had only drawn one circle—and it wasn't just one circle, but a messy pile of lines. Yet that brush kept brushing back and forth on the back of his hand, and it tickled terribly.

He reached out to scratch, but Ye Ye Xiaoxi slapped his hand hard and shouted at him in a fierce-yet-cute voice: "Don't move! I'll hit you!"

"Being this fierce, who does she take after?"

"Grandma~"

"Hahaha, not wrong at all, a child's eyes really are sharp."

Lin Lin Xiuqing turned her head at that and laughed out loud.

Ye Ye Xiaoxi was drawing the watch with utmost seriousness, occasionally comparing it to the one on her own hand.

Ye Yaodong lay there bored—his wife and daughter each had their own things to do, only he was idle. Watching Ye Ye Xiaoxi stick her butt up, his hand itched and he couldn't resist pinching her little bottom; it was soft and felt great.

"I'll fart in your face."

"You let one out then." Ye Yaodong smiled and deliberately placed his hand on her bottom.

"Giggle giggle~ Not right now~"

"Hahaha..."

Even though there was no fart, Ye Ye Xiaoxi refused to back down. She sat right on the bed and pressed her bottom hard against his hand.

"Ouch ouch ouch... move your butt away..."

"No no no..." she shook her head, her bottom wiggling along with it.

"The watch isn't finished yet."

"Oh right~"

She immediately realized the job wasn't done, only then shifted her bottom, and continued lying there with her butt up to draw the watch on his hand.

After ages, Lin Lin Xiuqing had finished the accounts and climbed onto the bed, yet she was still lying there with her butt up, drawing.

"Done!"

Ye Yaodong raised his hand and looked at the watch-like drawing on it. If not for all the messy lines around the edges, it really did look almost the same as the one on her own hand.

He held the child and kissed her. "You drew it really well, exactly the same as the one on your hand. Tomorrow I'll get one for your mom too."

"Yay yay."

Getting affirmation, Ye Ye Xiaoxi was overjoyed. She turned and said to Lin Lin Xiuqing: "Mommy, I'll draw one for you tomorrow, one each..."

"Alright, time to sleep."

"Want neinei."

"Brew some malted milk?"

"Want neinei..."

"Fine..." she could only helplessly unbutton her clothes and coax her to sleep.

Ye Yaodong watched the mother and daughter lie down, then poked his head over. "I want neinei too..."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi, with the nipple in her mouth, stretched out her five fingers and pushed his head back, mumbling: "Go away..."

"Don't love me anymore? You just drew me a watch."

"Go away," this time it was Lin Lin Xiuqing who said it. "Turn off the light."

"Fine then, you two are one faction, I'm one faction all alone. When I sleep till the middle of the night, don't come crowding over, don't touch me."

"Shameless, who'd want to touch you."

"Whoever answers is the one preparing to touch me."

Lin Lin Xiuqing reached over and slapped him. "Shut up."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi also followed up with an unclear shout: "Shut up."

"Hmph~"

The next day, Ye Yaodong slept until the sun was high in the sky before waking. He heard from Lin Lin Xiuqing that Aguang had come by this morning.

He could only hastily eat breakfast and head to Aguang's house to find him. Of course, he brought along Ye Ye Xiaoxi, the little tagalong.

"Looking for me this morning?"

"Yeah, no leads on that side yet, but the factory says they estimate about a week or so, more or less. It won't be much later, it's basically that time every year—sometimes earlier, sometimes later. Getting prepared in advance is right."

"That's not bad then. Get everything that needs preparing ready in advance, call to confirm again in a couple of days, and we can arrange to set off from our side."

"Right, that's what I mean too. When are you moving the small boat onto the big ship? You've got the most going on over here."

"I'll go move it when the tide ebbs to its lowest around 12 o'clock later. My dad has already arranged over a dozen boatmen. We'll head to the dock after lunch at noon."

"Then I'll come out around 12 to give a hand too."

Ye Yaodong nodded, then changed the subject. "Let me see the baby, see if there's any big change."

"Auntie Ma said we're about to go out and make big money, so don't go into the confinement room—it's not proper. I'll have her bring the baby out."

"Alright."

The two tiny little meat buns had indeed opened up quite a bit, but they were still as dark as ever. Looks like it'll be hard for them to get fair-skinned later, though their features were quite nice.

"Good thing it's a boy."

"Doesn't matter, your son is also very dark, no difference between natural and sun-tanned."

"True, being dark is healthy."

Ye Yaodong played with the baby for a while, then beckoned to Ye Ye Xiaoxi. "Want to hold your little brother?"

"No, so ugly."

"What big truth are you spouting? Xiaoyu, is your little brother good-looking?"

Pei Yu shook his head as well.

Ah Guang rolled his eyes. "You're doing it on purpose, aren't you? Jealous that I have twins."

"Pfft~ Take them back, I'm going home."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi immediately shouted, "No… no…"

"Then you stay here, I'm going home."

"Mm-hmm."

Unwilling to go back, Ye Yaodong didn't force her and left on his own. Later, when Ah Guang went over to help him move the boat, he would naturally carry the child over.

When Ye Yaodong went back for lunch at noon, he also mentioned it to his father. At most, they'd be setting off in about a week.

Father Ye nodded and only said that moving the small boat onto the Dong Sheng Hao today would be just right, and to get everything that needed doing prepared in advance so they wouldn't be in a rush when the time came.

Then in the afternoon, when the boatmen came over to move the boat, they also told everyone — they'd be setting off in about a week or so.

"In a day or two when I have time, I'll call the barber over. You all come to my house, I'll have someone shave everyone bald. Saves you the trouble of not being able to keep up with personal hygiene when we're out there."

"Huh? We have to shave our heads? What would that look like?"

"Right, this… only people released from prison shave their heads…"

"It wouldn't look right for us to shave our heads…"

Seeing that everyone was quite resistant and unwilling, Ye Yaodong quickly explained, "This is for everyone's good. If every one of us shaves our heads, it won't be that special. It's not like only one person is shaving — we all look the same, we have company."

"In this hot weather, you're drenched in sweat every day. After a day's work your hair gets sour and stinks, and you feel miserable too. Once you shave your heads, none of that trouble. Anyway, after we finish gathering the jellyfish and come back, the hair will have grown back."

"The most important point is, if all of us — dozens, even over a hundred people — go over there bald together, we can scare the locals half to death. When the locals see us, they'll have to think twice. Like you all said, they'll think we're just released from prison, and naturally they'll keep their distance from us. The ones looking for trouble will be fewer too — probably cut down on some unnecessary hassle."

"We're not locals anyway, so we don't care what they think of us. As long as the folks back in our village know we're all decent citizens, that's fine. We're not staying long either, just two months out there, then we'll be back, and by then our hair will have grown back."

"It kills several birds with one stone. You don't even have to pay for the shave — I'll cover it for you. How cool and how much less hassle is a bald head?"

"Look at my bald head — do you think I look like someone just released from prison? We're all neighbors here, who doesn't know who? When we're actually working, we all wear hats anyway. It's just that once shaved, it's more comfortable, washing your head is simpler, and when you're out doing things, everything's inconvenient — saving a bit of trouble is good."

Hearing him say that, everyone felt it made sense.

Besides, it wasn't just one person shaving — they were all shaving together, so they had company, no one could laugh at anyone. And it really was less hassle. Walking around under the sun for a bit, they were already drenched in sweat, their hair nearly dripping. Shaving it off really was more convenient.

"Well, that works then. How about we shave the day before we set off? Otherwise it's kind of embarrassing — only old men and kids shave their heads. Us shaving our heads would be pretty strange."

"Yeah, it'd be awkward if people we know saw us."

"Sure, if you're afraid of it being awkward, just put your hat on after shaving."

"If we all shave together, that's actually fine. We're not locals anyway, hahaha — we'll scare them half to death, and when they see us they'll have to keep their distance."

"Right, normally we wear hats when we work. If things really get serious, we all take our hats off together — we can scare people…"

"Hahahaha…"

"Stop laughing, hurry up and move the boat, the tide's almost gone all the way out…"

"Let's go, let's go, getting the real work done is what matters. We'll talk about shaving later. We still need to get the others to shave too — can't just be us. More people is better, then it's not awkward."

"When the time comes, we'll get everyone to shave together. Anyone who dares not to — beat him up…"

Just a few words, and everyone accepted it so easily. Ye Yaodong also breathed a sigh of relief. Even if they hadn't accepted it, it wouldn't have mattered — if it came to blows, they'd still have to fight. It's just that a whole big gang of bald guys really would look intimidating.