Chapter 1117: Peaceful Coexistence

As the people on each fishing boat saw the bald heads in front, they followed suit and took off their hats one after another.

The wind at sea is strong, so even though it was early morning and the sun had just risen, everyone had been wearing hats. In July, the sun is scorching, so they basically never leave their heads without them.

Except for when they took off their hats while rushing onto the boat the evening before yesterday, taking advantage of their bald heads, their large bald heads hadn't been exposed yet. They had originally intended to use them to scare the others at a critical moment.

When the conflict occurred earlier, their side was still fine; they were relatively restrained at first and retreated early later on, so they didn't get caught up in the situation where the two sides were fighting to the death.

"What should we do? Are we really going to fight?"

"We just finished a stable half-day of salvaging..."

Everyone feigned a fierce expression, but they were all a bit nervous inside. They had seen the tragic state of the past two days with their own eyes and heard about it with their own ears. Half of the people among them were still in the Gongan Bureau and hadn't come out yet, so no one would be so hot-headed at this time.

The other side was also whispering there, and they were speaking with their backs to the wind, so some of it drifted into their ears with the wind.

The fishing boats that arrived later were all behind them or to the side. Ye Yaodong's Dong Sheng was the closest to the other side, which could be said to be a target.

It's just that everyone was in a stalemate there now, and no one dared to act rashly; they were all weighing the pros and cons. These locals were probably also afraid, and they likely didn't want any more trouble either.

He thought for a moment, cleared his throat, and then shouted to the other side: "Hello everyone..."

The locals almost couldn't help but break their composure. The expressions on their faces were so shocked they couldn't believe it, and they stared at him with their mouths wide open in surprise.

And the boatmen on their boat also turned their heads to look at him as if they had seen a ghost, their eyes almost popping out.

Is he being this polite?

At a time like this, is saying hello appropriate?

Usually, they open their mouths every day with "f*ck this, f*ck that," as if they couldn't speak without saying "f*ck" in every sentence. Can they still open their mouths to say hello at a time like this?

For the past two days, they had been cursing incessantly, cursing these locals for their lives...

Ye Yaodong stood up straight, put away his gun, and shouted to the opposite side with a grin, "Hello everyone, we don't get to know each other without fighting. Let's talk nicely, shall we? Don't just pull out guns at every turn; it's quite scary."

"You were the one who pulled it out first."

"Wasn't I scared? Who told you to have so many boats and surround us all? My life is important."

The people on the opposite boat were looking at each other, but none of them put down the guns they were holding.

Ye Yaodong smiled again and said: "I know we are outsiders, but we all share the same faith. Under heaven, all Mazu followers are one family. We are all fishermen protected by Goddess Mazu, so we are all one family. We shouldn't distinguish by region."

"Everyone is a fisherman, so you should know the hardships of us fishermen. We are exposed to the wind and sun, and we have to go out to sea to endure natural and man-made disasters. It's not easy for anyone; it's all to make a living. If we had these resources locally, we wouldn't have run so far. It's all to be able to eat a full meal."

"And we are all honest people who love peace, unlike that group of people the other day. We are all reasonable. If we were really unreasonable, we would have opened fire at the beginning, and everyone would have had to fight to the death just like the past two days."

The people on the opposite side were looking at each other at first, feeling that what was said sounded quite pleasant, but when they heard the words "honest people," the expressions on their faces almost cracked.

"You bunch of bald heads, where are you honest..."

"Exactly, you look much worse than that group of people the past two days..."

The other side chattered and seized on the three words "honest people" to output all kinds of things.

Ye Yaodong immediately interrupted them, lest they lose sight of the point.

"Let's not talk about whether we are honest or not. We can't just look at our appearance; we have to speak with facts. The fact is, we haven't done anything, right..."

"Where haven't you done anything? Yesterday, a group of you bullied our few boats and drove us away..."

Ye Yaodong interrupted their discussion, "Did I do it? Was I the boat that bullied you yesterday? It wasn't me, right? My boat is so big and iconic that it's easy to recognize. Everyone should be able to recognize it."

"But today you bullied me, so our back-and-forth can be considered even, right? Yesterday our fishing boat bullied you, and then today you bullied me, so let's just call it even and turn the page, okay?"

Seeing them discussing left and right again, he felt that it wasn't convenient to rely on shouting from a distance, so he added: "Can I move my boat closer to talk? I have no malice; we just want to close the distance to talk. Besides, you have guns in your hands, so you won't be at a disadvantage."

"No."

"Don't move..."

"Alright, then let's talk like this." He responded helplessly, wondering why they looked even more scared than him.

"Look, there are more and more jellyfish floating up on the sea surface now, and there will only be more in the next few days. If we fight until our heads are broken and bleeding, we will all be caught and thrown into the police station together, and then it will be others who benefit."

"Think about it, although it benefits you locals, if it doesn't fall into your hands, it's still a loss, right? Let's just coexist peacefully, okay? You salvage yours, we salvage ours, and we won't have any conflicts."

"Anyway, there's so much quantity that no one can finish salvaging it. If that's the case, you benefit and we benefit, and no one needs to have their brains beaten out."

"If we fight to the death, it will benefit others. If it benefits others, you won't get any good, but if it benefits us, you can get some good. Let's all coexist peacefully and make money."

"Who isn't making money? At least when we make money, you can also get a share of the benefits. If we both suffer, no one gets anything good, and the good others get has nothing to do with you."

"Whether it's us or other locals, to you people, they are all others. What falls into your own pocket is your own, don't you agree?"

"Under heaven, all Mazu followers are one family, and all fishermen under heaven share the same hardships. In the end, we don't have any deep hatred! There are still locals you dislike and hate. Benefiting others is no good for you."

"Now everyone is evenly matched. You have a dozen boats, and we have a dozen boats too. Let's coexist peacefully and salvage. Anyway, you really can't finish it, look."

Ye Yaodong pointed to the sea surface again. The quantity floating in the early morning wasn't much, but in the short while they were in a stalemate without salvaging, they were all bubbling up, looking colorful and extremely beautiful.

Compared to the vast, deep blue sea in the distance, it was a stark contrast.

One was vast, boundless, and scattered; the other was crowded and dense.

The scales in the other side's hearts also tilted. They all whispered to each other again, and then the other side's boats turned to convey the meaning to the other fishing boats behind them that couldn't hear the dynamics.

None of them are stupid; they all know how to weigh the pros and cons to see what is good.

The events of the past two days also left a warning bell in their hearts, so the stalemate just now, besides being wary, was also out of concern. They were worried that if they really opened fire, it would become a big deal, and no one would get anything good; they would all have to be executed.

Plus, some of them participated the day before yesterday and knew that their side had retreated early that day and hadn't participated.

Ye Yaodong pulling Mazu's banner to talk just now couldn't convince them; it could only slightly lower the anger, but when interests were involved, the relationship was huge.

After both sides suffer, it benefits others, and no one is willing to accept that. Coexisting peacefully, on the contrary, can benefit everyone together.

Ye Yaodong felt that he had to buy a loudspeaker when he went back to make it easier to shout. Although shouting wouldn't work if the distance was too far, having a loudspeaker at this time could save a lot of trouble.

If there was a loudspeaker, the meaning conveyed could be wider and heard more clearly.

Seeing them conveying the meaning back and forth, and their guns weren't held as steadily, Ye Yaodong also turned his head to signal them to put down their guns, and then shouted to the other side.

"Let's put down our guns first. We didn't have any deep hatred to begin with. The sea area is so vast, and the sea doesn't belong to any one person. The jellyfish fishing season is a gift from the sea to us fishermen. As long as everyone participating can benefit, wouldn't everyone be happy?"

"Anyway, with such a large quantity, no one can dominate it. We have all put down our guns, you put down your guns too, let's coexist peacefully, and each salvage our own."

"The great leader said, make money together to achieve common prosperity. You don't want to end up with nothing and lose your life, right? The group of people in the gunfight the day before yesterday will probably all be executed. Even if they aren't executed, they will probably have to sit in prison until they die. By the time they are released, they will probably be half in the grave."

"Money is important, but life is more important. Now we can save our lives and make big money by coexisting peacefully."

The other side kept whispering to each other, and there was no backbone to speak there; they all listened to Ye Yaodong blabbering there.

However, the effect was also very significant. His glib tongue had loosened the other side, which is why they were running back and forth to tell each other just now.

Hearing him say this, the guns were all put away one after another, and then someone started to speak.

It should be the boat boss of the boat closest to him, who also used broken Mandarin to say to him: "We think what you said makes sense. Letting your fishing boats salvage is no different from letting other local fishing boats salvage. It looks like it can't be finished here anyway."

"The conflict in the past few days was also because there were too many boats on your side, and you grabbed too much, so everyone was unhappy and started fighting. In the end, these jellyfish are in our sea area, and you are outsiders."

Ye Yaodong breathed a sigh of relief after waiting for his response, "At that time, there were more monks than porridge, so we could only plunder. Now it's different. Now the whole sea surface is full, so let's just salvage our own."

"Otherwise, we won't get anything good, and you won't get anything good either. Our fishing boats are equivalent, and our weapons are equivalent. If we fight, a few people will die no matter what. I don't want to die, and you shouldn't want to die either. I don't want to go to jail, and you don't want to go to jail either."

A group of people on the opposite side frowned.

Ye Yaodong said with a grin: "So let's coexist peacefully. We can all make money together, and everyone is happy. There's no need to fight to the death, suffer losses ourselves, and benefit others."

"However, let's not tell others. Let's just have these boats of ours salvage. Anyway, the number of boats on both sides is about the same now. If more boats join, then our benefits will be less."

"If you agree, then let's salvage our own now, without interfering with each other. Let's make money together, and everyone will be happy."

The expressions on everyone's faces were relaxed; no one wanted trouble.

"Okay, we just told the other boats too. As long as you don't grab from us, we will each salvage our own. There is enough cargo for everyone to salvage. As long as you don't come over to grab ours, we won't go to grab yours, and you are not allowed to call other boats over."

"We don't have any other boats; they are all here. The others were detained by the Gongan Bureau. Now that the matter hasn't been resolved, how could there be other boats? You don't need to pull a bunch of boats over; it's harmful to others and yourself. After all, making a lot of money for others isn't beneficial to you, and it will only cause disputes again."

"Good, then it's settled. You go over there, and we stay here. Everyone does their own thing."

Ye Yaodong snapped his fingers, done.

He tilted his head slightly, but his eyes were still fixed on them to prevent them from ruining the smoke bomb, and then he said to the boatmen beside him to let the fishing boats behind move to the side, each salvage their own, don't cause trouble, we don't provoke them, and they won't provoke us.

The boatmen also breathed a sigh of relief and went to convey the meaning of peaceful coexistence one after another.

They were also worried about fighting. They came here to make money, not to lose their lives. There were still dozens of people in prison who hadn't come out, and they didn't want to lose themselves again.

The risk was too high. If they had known earlier that they would be thrown into prison, they would definitely have weighed it and not come to do this job.

They weren't boat bosses who could make big money. Having to take such a big risk just to earn a wage was not worth it.

Ye Yaodong watched the other side's boats slowly retreating to the side, and the boats beside and behind him also retreated to the back, each resuming salvaging. It's just that everyone was highly focused, staring at the other side's boats, all guarding against them, and couldn't completely relax.

He was the same.

He let others drive the boats to the side first, while he still stood on the deck staring at the other side.

It wasn't until the distance opened up that everyone's tense nerves relaxed.

After Ye Yaodong breathed a sigh of relief, he turned his head to look at everyone who had started to get busy.

"Finally, we can salvage with peace of mind for a while. We have to gather together like this, open the skylight to speak clearly, and reach a consensus so we don't have any worries. Otherwise, we have to worry about our lives at all times."

"Yeah, yeah, just now I thought we were really going to fight, and I was sweating in my heart."

"I thought we were going to fight again, and I was panicking. I was thinking if we were going to fight, should I jump into the sea first? And then I was thinking, what if I get stung to death by a jellyfish? I was hesitating whether to be shot to death or stung to death by a jellyfish..."

"Haha, it's good like this now. With such a large quantity, no one can finish salvaging it. Why do we have to fight to the death? Just do our own thing."

"At first, it was because there were too many boats on our two sides, and the locals suffered losses and couldn't get over it. Now it's good, everyone is about the same, so they can listen to me say a few words."

Ye Yaodong clapped his hands again, "Alright, anyway, we've reached a consensus. Hurry up and work. Take advantage of the peaceful coexistence and salvage more. It won't be in vain for this trip out to take risks."

And it won't be in vain for those people squatting in prison.

"Yes, yes, yes, we have a whole day today, everyone work more and salvage more."

"We could sell for several hundred even when we came out so late yesterday. Today we have a whole day, we can definitely earn a lot..."

He also saw that some people didn't have high spirits. He thought about it and added: "You guys work hard. If we make a lot of money on this trip, when we go back, we will pack bigger red envelopes, just to calm everyone down."

"Also, I will definitely try my best to get everyone who was caught on our boat back. Even if it costs a lot of money, I have to get everyone out. We are making more money now, so when we redeem people, we will have more confidence."

"We came out together, so of course we have to go back together."

Everyone was energized upon hearing this and nodded to each other.

"Yes, make more money and let Adong find a way to get everyone back."

"Alright, don't think too much, hurry up and work."

Now, everyone felt at ease. Many people came out to work with their families, or they were all familiar with each other. The thing they feared most was that their relatives and friends couldn't go back. Now that they were comforted, their confidence increased by a few points, and their work became more agile.

Ye Yaodong also participated in the salvaging, while keeping an eye on the movements of other fishing boats on the sea from time to time.

After a brief negotiation, the following period was a burst of calm. It was indeed that there were too many jellyfish floating on the sea, and everyone couldn't salvage them all, so how could they care about others?

And in the mid-morning, at 9 o'clock, the capacity of the other small boats was full. Everyone rowed the small boats over one after another and lifted the separated jellyfish onto the Dong Sheng.

And the No. 2 fishing boat also drove over after the small boats approached one after another, moving all the cargo on the full boat to the Dong Sheng, and by the way, taking some empty baskets or large buckets padded with nylon bags, exchanging full ones for empty ones, and continuing to salvage.

The quantity was too large. Just this wave in the morning was larger than the harvest yesterday evening, and the fish hold was filled. He also took the opportunity to instruct the No. 2 boat that he wanted to go back to sell the cargo, and by the way, move the rice cooked in advance on the boat to the other boat, letting them solve it themselves in a while.

Although the Dong Sheng was a bit faster, it took less than two hours to go there, but it took three hours to go back and forth. By the time he went back and forth once, he would probably have to transport another batch of cargo back.

If the quantity was small, they could still use alum and salt to pickle it. If the quantity was large when going back once, where would they get so many materials? It must be transported back to sell while it was fresh.

And when he was on his way back, he also connected with the Feng Shou and talked about it.

Knowing that Pei Fu didn't intend to drive the Feng Shou back, but only intended to let his stepson Lin Jianqiang's new boat transport the cargo back, anyway, the one receiving the cargo on the shore was A Guang, and that boat just needed to send the cargo back.

And they only had two boats salvaging. Just the boat on Lin Jianqiang's side was enough to transport the cargo, so there was no need to send the Feng Shou.

Ye Yaodong entrusted him to look after his small boats, and then he left first. As for the others, he didn't care about them; they could return to sell the cargo whenever they wanted.

However, when everyone saw his iconic Dong Sheng driving back, they also followed back one after another. Even some local fishing boats saw that the quantity was about the same and had to go back to sell once.

The fishing boats on the sea surface were also reduced by more than half at this time.

He didn't take everyone on the Dong Sheng away, only taking 4 people, and leaving half to go to the other fishing boat to help.

The harvest this morning was indeed very good. 12 boats worked in both directions, and the manpower was nearly half more than yesterday, and even the harvest of the small boats had improved a lot.

Not to mention the jellyfish blood dried last night, just the jellyfish this morning had been salvaged to a total of over jin, and his cargo alone had to be transported away by a truck.

The jellyfish head had just started this year, so their group had the most cargo, and the price was a bit higher, which could be 6 cents, and the jellyfish skin was also 4 cents 5. After a while, when the quantity was large, the price would probably start to drop, but this wave in the morning also sold for over 800.

The jellyfish blood last night hadn't been dried enough to sell in just this morning, so it could only continue to be dried until evening.

When Ye Yaodong was selling the cargo, he also chatted with A Guang about the situation in the morning. Knowing that they were salvaging after peaceful coexistence, A Guang also breathed a sigh of relief.

After selling the cargo, he immediately drove the boat back again.

And the fishing boats that originally followed him back only arrived at the shore late, just passing him by. Those people were so envious, all saying that his boat was big and fast, and even selling the cargo could be one step ahead of others to return to continue salvaging, and the timeliness was high.

Taking advantage of the return journey, they also solved their lunch, and everyone had room to breathe. When they came, everyone had to separate the jellyfish on the road, but when they went, they didn't have to do anything.

He was worried about the local fishing boats on the sea, and entrusting his small boats to others to look after didn't make him feel at ease. After selling the cargo for the first time, he rushed back quickly.

Halfway, he also happened to run into a few local fishing boats returning. The small town was closer, so they went back later than him, and their speed was slower than him, but they could come out one step ahead.

When he quickly reached the sea trench again, it was already 1:00 PM. Seeing that the fishing boats busy on the sea surface didn't have any disputes, he was relieved, and then he drove the boat to approach the small boats one by one, first collecting the cargo from their small boats.

After collecting all the cargo again, another hour had passed. Their boat didn't have time to salvage a few before it had to return again.

The money sold on this trip was not as much as the first trip. After all, the Dong Sheng didn't participate much in the salvaging and was on the road transporting and selling cargo back and forth.

This was also something that couldn't be helped. If it wasn't transported back early, the jellyfish would turn into water, and the loss would be even greater.

However, this trip also sold for 600. The boats on the sea were all sweating and salvaging non-stop. When he was receiving the cargo, he also heard that when everyone was eating in turns, they all knew what he said in the morning.

They were also very serious and worked hard, intending to help him earn more money, so that he would have money to redeem other familiar people, so that everyone could go back happily together, and by the way, get a big red envelope, so everyone worked very hard.

One day was equivalent to going back and forth three times. When returning in the evening, the sky was completely dark.

Everyone was a bit greedy for the dark. As long as there was quantity on the sea, they were reluctant to leave. After all, there were not only them on the sea, but also others.

And their round-trip distance was even further now, which meant the salvaging time was shorter. When it wasn't dark, they were even more reluctant to go back. These fishing boats were like last year, cooperating in pairs, one salvaging and one transporting cargo, returning in turns, and sharing the benefits equally.

On the return journey, the locals had also finished their work. Today was a rare peaceful coexistence, and everyone had a very good harvest, and everyone had a smile on their face.

When walking back, Ye Yaodong stood on the steering tower and waved to the nearby fishing boats to say hello.

After the opposite side was stunned for a moment, they also waved back to say hello. After all, they really didn't have any deep hatred, and today could be considered a good start. As long as both sides kept their promises and didn't interfere with each other, they could tolerate each other.

When finally returning, the sky was already completely dark. When arriving, it was already past 7 o'clock. This was because the Feng Shou and Dong Sheng were fast and arrived one step ahead. The other fishing boats were still behind and would probably arrive at the shore at 8 o'clock.

Those who arrived first sold the cargo first. On the last trip, the Dong Sheng participated in the salvaging for a short time, and the harvest was a bit more than the trip at noon, selling for 720 yuan.

He also took the opportunity to sell the jellyfish blood accumulated yesterday together. Yesterday, 30-something jin of jellyfish blood was accumulated. This year, the price of jellyfish blood had also risen, and one jin could be 12 yuan, which was one yuan more than last year, and it also sold for 365 yuan.

The total earned today was 2500!

Ye Yaodong took the cargo list and calculated it in his heart. After that, the smile on his face was also bright. This money was also after the commission.

Taking advantage of the darkness, there was no one on the shore, so he also calculated the accounts from A Guang, and then took it to the boat and locked it under the bed board.

With more boats, the harvest was large. Last year, he only had two boats salvaging there, and the harvest for one day, including jellyfish blood, was only around 1000 yuan.

This was also why he was reluctant to let the Dong Sheng go out to trawl. Driving out to trawl those fish, when the luck wasn't particularly prosperous, one net would only earn a hundred yuan, and one day would only sell for six or seven hundred yuan, and half of the fuel and ice expenses had to be deducted.

Going for a week, under normal luck, it would only sell for three or four thousand, and half of the expenses had to be deducted.

Staying here could support him, and the earnings were faster. When it was close to the end, just let the small wooden boats and that fishing boat earn money here. At that time, send the Dong Sheng out to trawl again, but the premise was that his father had returned, so he could be at ease.

And the Feng Shou, he also heard when he put the money away, that today, plus yesterday's jellyfish blood, sold for over 900.

However, today the Feng Shou stayed on the sea surface and didn't return, continuously fishing, relying on their new boat to transport cargo back. It was also according to the old rules of last year, deducting 100 yuan of transportation fee per day.

After all, the Feng Shou was a partnership, and their fishing boats were individually owned, so everything had to be calculated clearly. ===== CHAPTER 1118 =====