Chapter 1198: Frustrated

They didn't return late; it was only shortly after lunchtime. There were few people at the dock, but the entrance to the workshop was filled with elderly men and women sitting and basking in the sun.

There was no help for it; the workshop was lively and chaotic every day, and the villagers all loved to come over to their workshop.

As a result, a group of women inside were chatting while gutting fish, a group of old women outside were chatting while basking in the sun, and nearby, a bunch of children were running and jumping; everyone was drawn wherever it was lively.

As soon as their boat returned, they were spotted from afar. Someone shouted, and many people ran out to take a look before going back to continue gutting fish.

When the tractor drove into the workshop, their large group also jogged to the entrance, and immediately a crowd surrounded them, talking all at once.

And those boatmen, in a state of extreme desire to share, were also smiling broadly as they told everyone about it.

Everyone was surprised.

"Everyone gets a reward? So fishing has paid off?"

"Who would say otherwise? Otherwise, how could they say Adong's shipping is strong, protected by Goddess Mazu, making it hard not to get rich? This luck is truly too good; they can catch all sorts of strange things."

"The village has been spreading the word for the past few days that Adong salvaged something extraordinary and turned it over to the state. You are all benefiting from it now."

"This time, it really has paid off."

"Fishing can actually yield rewards..."

A crowd gathered at the entrance, chattering away, which attracted people from inside to come out, and even more people surrounded them to talk.

"I've never seen fishing pay off so well, bringing in such great wealth and such honor. Ye Lao San raised a good son."

"Hey? Where are they?"

"They were just here a moment ago?"

"They went inside?"

Ye Yaodong looked around but didn't see his father, thinking he must have gone inside as well.

At that moment, Ye's father's voice rang out; he shouted from inside, "What are you still saying at the entrance? What words can't be finished? Hurry over and move the cargo; you have no sense of the situation at all."

"Oh, coming..."

After Ye Yaodong responded, he also shouted, "Don't just keep talking; hurry inside to move the cargo and weigh it. There's another batch waiting at the dock to be hauled. Unload this truck, go to the dock, and move the next load. Once all the cargo is unloaded and weighed, everyone can go home and rest."

"Oh, okay, don't just keep talking..."

"Hurry up, be quick..."

Everyone immediately snapped out of their excitement and rushed inside to help.

There were actually enough people inside moving the cargo; not only Ye's father, but the workshop itself also had people to carry and lift things.

Just now, it was only the people from the Dongsheng Hao, along with Ye's father and Ye Ye Yaopeng, who returned with the first truckload of cargo; the workers from the Shunfeng Hao and Ye Ye Yaohua were still waiting at the dock.

There was still a lot of cargo at the dock; it would take several more trips to move it all, so people needed to stay there to watch over the loading.

The two boats had quite a few small miscellaneous fish, including nearly 20,000 jin of cheap fish, some from the Shunfeng Hao and some from the Dongsheng Hao.

The Shunfeng Hao's portion was what Ye Yaodong had specifically asked them to keep back, priced at market rates.

Before selling the goods, he had gone to their boat first to select a batch of cargo he wanted to keep back.

Collecting privately at market prices was good for everyone; after all, if sold through the market, both parties would have to pay a three percent commission on the transaction price, plus another expense for transport to the market.

By letting them keep back the cargo he wanted, they could also save on commissions.

They shifted their focus to moving and weighing the cargo, so the people at the entrance couldn't get in, but the women gutting fish nearby curiously shouted questions at them, asking this and that.

Wang Wang Guangliang had already made a big fuss about it when he returned a few days ago, and today, bringing back news that everyone could receive a reward, further stirred up the villagers' emotions.

Everyone was discussing things enthusiastically, and the work of moving and weighing the cargo was done with high spirits.

Lin Lin Xiuqing handed the recording work to Pei Dongqing, then leaned over to Ye Yaodong to ask about his well-being.

"You must be tired; I can see dark circles under your eyes. Go back and eat something first."

"Mm, I haven't slept in a day and a night, only dozed off for a short while on the boat during the return. When did the Fengshou Hao return? Has the cargo on that boat been calculated?"

"The accounts were just finished a short while ago when you returned again," Lin Lin Xiuqing nodded towards the corner inside, "Look over there; it's all the Fengshou Hao's cargo, piled up like a small mountain. They have already started sorting it there."

The small miscellaneous fish brought back varied in size; the larger ones could be sorted out for drying, while the smaller ones would be taken for fermentation.

There were truly many people in the workshop at the moment; people were coming and going everywhere, either sorting fish, moving cargo, or gutting fish; there were dozens of them.

Ye Yaodong looked around and thought that with this scale, if moved to the city, wouldn't it be a disaster?

It was better to stay low in the village for now; the land plot in the city that had been fenced off could be left for the time being, with perhaps some preparations made in advance, or it could be used to ferment fish sauce ahead of time.

Fermenting fish sauce didn't require many hands, and the fermentation time was long; it could serve as advance stockpiling and material reserves, as the two sites in the village were indeed very limited.

For now, they could only wait for the policies to loosen a bit, and then gradually move everything over.

With the current scale of several dozen people, they still had to operate in the village and rely on the protection of the village committee.

"After the accounts are done, send the money to them a bit later. There's also the share for Big Brother and Second Brother; their cargo is still at the dock, and one or two trucks simply can't haul it all."

"I know; I've already handed the accounting over to Dongqing. However, since I'm free at this moment, I'm recording alongside her. I'll weigh the cargo and report the figures to her for recording, and when I'm busy, I'll hand everything over to her to handle."

The two stood aside talking. Seeing that the cargo on the tractor had been completely unloaded and it was about to drive out to the dock to pick up more, they quickly moved to the side.

"Go back and eat first. The Fengshou Hao returned a bit earlier than us. I thought you might make it back in time for lunch, so I saved some food for you in advance."

"Mm, let me take a look first."

"Is it true that everyone can get a reward?"

"Yes. We waited there on purpose for a while. We didn't return with the Fengshou Hao specifically to make a phone call and ask. Originally, I thought we could go get the rewards together and bring them back directly. But since they said photos are required, we definitely need to go home and tidy up first."

Lin Lin Xiuqing looked at his scruffy face, smiled, and reached out to poke him.

"On such an honorable occasion, you really do need to look a bit better and wear nicer clothes."

"Mm."

"Make way... make way..."

An old woman behind them, holding two bowls in her hands, shouted for the people in front to move aside.

The people blocking the way moved to the side. The couple both looked over at the same time, then each extended a hand and quickly took the food and dishes from the old woman's hands.

"I saw you were surrounded by people, talking so happily, and hadn't gone home to eat for a long time, so I heated up your food and brought it out for you."

"I know you all love to hear nice words and hate to go inside, but you can't starve—just sit here and eat; you get to bask in the sun and hear everyone praise you, hehe."

"Hurry and eat while it's hot—it's cold now, and the food cools down the moment it's set out."

Ye Yaodong gave the old lady a thumbs-up. "Highly skilled—you didn't even need me to go inside and fetch my meal; you brought it out yourself, making me look passive, forced to accept everyone's praise."

"Hehe, why so many tricks? Just eat your food. I'll go get you two stools."

Lin Lin Xiuqing quickly stopped the old lady and handed her plate to Ye Yaodong. "I'll get the stools—the ground here is wet, don't wander around; your cotton shoes slip easily."

"Alright, alright, I'll just watch here," she said, taking the plate from Yaodong's hands. "I'll hold the dishes for you—eat first."

"Fine."

Since everything was right in front of him, almost fed to his mouth, he might as well eat some hot food first.

People kept coming and going, hauling cargo, weighing it, then carrying it inside to place beside the goods brought back by the Fengshou Hao.

Soon after, the tractor pulled in another load, and more people came to unload.

Ye's father was rolling up his sleeves to help when he saw the old lady holding a plate for Ye Yaodong, standing nearby watching him eat—making it easy for him to pick up food—and instantly flew into a rage.

"What are you doing? Everyone's still working, and you're already eating? And someone has to wait on you?"

The old lady shot back immediately. "Did you swallow gunpowder? Can't you even let someone eat? I brought the food to him—there are so many people here, why yell at him? He's the boss; why should he do the work himself?"

Ye's father cursed a few filthy words. "You've spoiled him rotten—you're old enough to know better, yet you stand beside him holding his dishes—is that proper?"

"I just happened to pick it up—how else is he supposed to eat?"

"Why not eat at home?"

"Where's he supposed to feel at ease? This whole truckload hasn't even been unloaded yet—he has to watch over it. When will it all be done? He's just eating a bite of hot food, and you've got so many complaints."

Ye's father nearly exploded, but luckily Lin Lin Xiuqing ran over with two stools.

He could only mutter a few more complaints, swallowing his resentment.

Ye Yaodong stayed silent.

If he spoke up, his father would drop dead from rage.

Everyone on the ship got rewards, everyone had their moment in the spotlight—except him. That alone was depressing enough.

Then, when he started working and heard everyone around him whispering with envy and jealousy… it'd only make him angrier…

Seeing him eat while the old lady waited on him like a servant—suddenly the fuse lit, and he got even angrier…

Just earlier, when he scolded Ye Ye Erge on the ship, he'd praised him.

The old lady placed the dishes on the stool, then laid the other stool flat to make it easier for him to sit and eat.

"Don't mind your father—just eat. He's just jealous. Later, let him go home to eat—he's not being asked to work. With so many people here, do you think we can't handle it? Why doesn't he just go home first? We left him food too—really."

"Do you expect me, an old woman, to carry food to him and serve him? How old is he? Are you comparing him to you? Does he even have any shame left? Can he even face himself?"

Lin Lin Xiuqing shook her head, said nothing, and walked off to help.

The old lady was pleased seeing him eat heartily. "Eat more—finish all the dishes."

Ye Yaodong nodded.

The old lady stood beside him, chattering on with more caring words; he nodded and occasionally murmured a few replies.

As Ye's father kept hauling cargo, his mood grew darker. Finally, he stopped hauling altogether and just stood aside watching. When someone came to chat, he forced a smile and muttered a few words.

When the last truck arrived and Ye Ye Yaopeng and Ye Ye Yaohua came over, the work slowed down, and he headed outside.

As he walked out, he couldn't resist shooting the old lady a glare.

The old lady caught his look and jabbed her cane twice against the floor. "What's that look for? Glaring at me like that? What did I do to him? Eyes aren't eyes, nose isn't nose."

Ye Yaodong stayed silent again.

His father's mood was sour—just endure it.

Lin Lin Xiuqing asked Ye Ye Yaohua, "Any more coming?"

"No, that's all of it."

"Then once all this is weighed, we'll tally up the total value of what we brought back and settle your payments."

Ye Ye Yaohua smiled. "No rush—we can take our time. Leaving it for now is fine."

"Better to settle each account individually—it's clearer. If we pile them up, it gets too messy."

She had plenty of money on hand—she didn't need to delay. Clear accounts one by one meant the month-end settlement would be clean and obvious.

"Alright, do as you see fit."

Lin Lin Xiuqing waited until all the cargo was weighed before taking the ledger and leaving with Ye Yaodong.

The rest of the work was routine by now—no need for her to instruct anyone. The piled goods would naturally be sorted: those needing processing were processed, those needing selection were selected, and the leftovers would be carried off to ferment on their own.

At first, someone had to direct every task—but now everyone knew what to do, and they acted with full self-discipline.

When Ye Yaodong returned home, his father was already gone—only the bowls and chopsticks on the table proved he'd eaten and left first.

"I feel like Dad seemed upset," Lin Lin Xiuqing said after sitting down. "In the past, even though the trip was exhausting, he never wore such a sour face."

Ye Yaodong sighed helplessly. "I'll ask you—whose ship did Dad sail on this trip?"

"Didn't you say? He helped Big Brother and Second Brother for a while, to guide them?"

"Right. So? Why is he so upset?"

Lin Lin Xiuqing paused, then realized. "Oh—everyone got a reward, so he didn't get one?"

Ye Yaodong nodded. "Exactly. Second Brother earlier went over and stupidly brought up the rewards right beside him—and got shut down hard."

"That really does sound unlucky… He always sailed with you—this time was the first he didn't."

He got a share in the punishment but none in the glory—really, that's just… awful.

"Now I get why he looked at me like his eyes weren't eyes and his nose wasn't a nose—he was just bitter and took it out on me. Really."

"Don't mention it to him tonight. But by evening, he'll probably calm down. Today was sudden—he only just found out he was left out, hasn't had time to adjust. He's just stewing inside."

Lin Lin Xiuqing nodded. "I understand now why Dad's upset."

After saying that, she immediately caught herself. "Eh? What if we bring Dad along to receive the award too? Should be fine, right? Did you tell the leaders how many people were on the boat?"

"No, but he wasn't there at the time, so how could I bring him? Wouldn't that be claiming an award under false pretenses?"

"One more person shouldn't matter, right? He was always on the boat before anyway, just not this one trip. The leaders should know Dad has always been with you."

Ye Yaodong shook his head. "That's not right. We have to be factual. How can we play at false awards? Even if I went, I'd feel guilty—unworthy of the name. And with so many boat workers, who wouldn't know?"

"If Dad went to receive the award too, everyone would keep quiet to his face and even help cover for him, but behind his back they'd definitely gossip. With so many mouths, once it spreads through the village, would he still want any face?"

"Anyone who didn't actually go on the boat deliberately claiming a share of the credit—he couldn't afford to lose face like that either."

Lin Lin Xiuqing figured he had a point. If he really went to bask in the glory, the village would surely gossip, and he'd lose both face and substance.

"I was wrong to think that. He really shouldn't go."

The older he gets, the more he cares about face. Plus, these past two years the three brothers had kept him proud—when he went out, his back was straight. How could he afford to lose face?

Although this award didn't include him, he was still Ye Yaodong's father, so the glory came with him naturally. No need.

"Mm."

However, Lin Lin Xiuqing didn't bring it up again, but at dinner Ye's mother brought it up once more. She'd gotten a crooked idea, wanting him to go along for the other reward—after all, the leaders wouldn't know he hadn't gone.

This time, before Ye Yaodong could say anything, Ye's father cursed her down first.

"What kind of rotten idea is that? What's in that pig brain of yours? You think I care? Something I didn't do, and you want me to claim the credit and make a fool of myself?"

"How would it make a fool of me? How many people would even know? The gossip outside is always half true, half false anyway. What's there to fear?"

"You don't want face, but I do."

"You're the one without face. Your face is like old tree bark, and you keep going on about face, face, face. Everyone else got a share."

"Everyone else went with Dongzi. I didn't go with Dongzi. What would I be falsely claiming? Stop coming up with rotten ideas. When I behave myself properly, who doesn't praise me a couple of times? When I walk out now, everyone has to look up to me. Do I still need to claim credit for that 50 yuan?"

Ye's mother muttered, "Well, that's true too. It's not like we're short of that little bit."

Ye's father glared at her once more before falling silent.

Ye's mother looked at Ye Yaodong again. "This time it's another 50 yuan reward? That's so little? Didn't they say that thing was some foreign JD equipment? Sounds so fancy, and it's only 50 yuan?"

Ye Yaodong shrugged. "I don't know. They didn't say. I don't know if the reward is money or something else. We'll find out when we go tomorrow."

"The boat is yours, so you should get more than the others, right?"

"I already told you, I don't know. They just told us to tidy up and go over tomorrow."

"Alright then, go fix that bird's nest on your head in a bit."

Ye Yaodong ruffled his hair twice. He did have a lot of hair—a thick, dense handful, each strand stiff.

Lin Lin Xiuqing looked at his hair too. "If you get it cut now, you can get it cut again just before the new year."

"This time the reward was handed out pretty promptly, huh? Like a couple years ago when we hauled up that big cauldron—they kept nagging and pushing, dragged it out for a month and still couldn't bear to give it, then gave 50 yuan in the end. Laughable." Ye's mother curled her lip in disdain.

"Different departments, probably. That one was the museum; this time it's Haiyang Bureau, and it was approved directly by the city. Direct approval is faster."

"Hope it's not 50 yuan."

Ye Yaodong said earnestly, "Mom, you can't just look at the money. Would I be short of this bit of reward money? We have to look at the glory. Look at the banners hanging on my wall, and I still have two commendation letters in my drawer. These might be passed down in the family someday."

"Passed down in the family? Do you need a separate page in the genealogy too?"

"If it really came to that, I wouldn't refuse."

"Bah, give you a ladder and you climb right up, always gilding your own face."

"Hehe, we have a sense of honor. Salvaging something from our own country versus salvaging foreign JD equipment they dropped—that's not the same meaning at all, right? It's a whole level higher, you know? That foreign stuff was spying on our country—they're our enemy."

"Fine, fine, fine, I can't out-talk you. Whatever you say goes. You're not short of money anyway. It's the other boat workers who got lucky—didn't expect them to get to share in this glory too."

"You can't put it that way either. It took everyone working together to haul it up. Distribution according to contribution is only right."

"In the end it's the city leaders being more generous—able to give everyone a share."

"That is true."

He hadn't expected it either—everyone getting a share.

After dinner, he got on his motorcycle and headed to East Mountain Village to find the barber for a haircut.

Their village didn't have a barber. In the past, barbers would go from village to village every few days, calling out to cut hair.

If you ran into them, you'd get a trim. If not, you'd just grab some scissors and hack at it yourself, and wait until you ran into them next time.

He was going to the city tomorrow for photos and to receive the award, so of course he had to look sharp.

Too bad the barber didn't have any hair gel, otherwise he'd have shown off a bit.

By the time he got there it was already dark. He got a simple buzz cut and hurried back.

"With shorter hair it doesn't keep warm either. The scalp's freezing from the wind."

"Why didn't you wear a hat?"

"It's all short stubble, what hat would I wear? Is there any hot water? I want to wash my head."

"I already boiled it in advance."

Ye Yaodong saw the three kids sitting in a row over there, watching TV intently. He walked over, squatted in front of them, and blocked the TV.

"Look at my new haircut. Is your old man handsome or not?"

"Old!"

"Handsome!"

"Who says I'm old!?"

Ye Chenghu snickered. "You said it yourself, old man!"

Ye Yaodong walked over and grabbed him by the back of the neck, watching him shrink up like a quail. "Say it again. Am I handsome or not!"

"Old!"

"You little brat, all my love for nothing."

Lin Lin Xiuqing watched him playing with the kids, so she drew his bathwater for him, then urged him along.

"Stop messing with them, hurry up and go wash. I've mixed the water for you."

"Heartless. You remember this—next month is New Year, your New Year's money is cut in half."

"Daddy, you're so handsome… you're the most handsome daddy…"

"Too late."

Ye Yaodong knocked him on the head before going to fetch water to wash his hair.

Ye Ye Chengyang gloated, "My New Year's money is one yuan, yours is five jiao."

"You're full of it…"

Ye Ye Xiaoxi snickered, stood up, walked behind Ye Chenghu, pointed her bottom at his back, and let out a loud fart.

"Pfft…"

"Ah!!! Ye Ye Xiaoxi!"

Ye Ye Xiaoxi took off running toward Ye Yaodong, "Help, help…"

"You farted!"

"You told me to!"

"I'll beat you to death!"

"You told me to!"

Ye Yaodong was still holding a basin of water, but the two kids were running circles around him, splashing water all over him.

"Get lost, or I'll beat you both."

"You can't catch me, you can't catch me…"

Ye Chenghu went crazy with rage, rushed over, grabbed Ye Ye Xiaoxi, and was about to hit her.

After she was grabbed by the clothes, she still clung to Ye Yaodong's thigh, trying to burrow between his legs.

Ye Yaodong was forced to spread his legs; he wanted to protect his vital parts, but his hands were holding a basin of water. Afraid the two kids would hurt him down there, he could only stand on tiptoe.

He was already having trouble keeping steady. The two kids were tugging and pulling, and the water in his basin was spilling out.

His face was as black as the bottom of a wok. He roared, "Ye Ye Xiaoxi! Get out here!"

"Lin Lin Xiuqing, look at your daughter, look at your son!"

Lin Lin Xiuqing held back her laughter, hurried over to pull the kids apart, "You two, move aside."

"No, big brother's going to hit me."

"If you don't move aside right now, wait till I free my hands, I'll beat your bottom till it swells up." Ye Yaodong said angrily.

"You love me, you can't hit me."

"I love you so much my heart and liver are swelling up. Now get out of my way."

Ye Chenghu had long since let go of her clothes when Ye Yaodong started yelling, and obediently stood to one side.

Only Ye Ye Xiaoxi was still clinging to his leg, burrowed between his legs, keeping him from moving.

Lin Lin Xiuqing grabbed her clothes, quickly pulled her out from between his legs, took a switch and fiercely smacked her legs twice.

"Who told you to fart at your brother?"

"Daddy farts at me like that too!"

She didn't feel a thing—in winter the padded jacket was thick, and she had several layers of clothes on, so the hits didn't register at all, and she could still talk back.

Lin Lin Xiuqing was rendered speechless, glared at Ye Yaodong who had turned to look, and smacked her twice more.

"If the upper beam is crooked, the lower beam will be crooked too."

Ye Chenghu egged her on from the side, "Mom, hitting like that doesn't hurt. Take her pants off and hit her."

"I'll hit you first."

With that, Lin Lin Xiuqing let go of Ye Ye Xiaoxi's clothes and turned to grab Ye Chenghu.

"Why? I didn't do anything! She was the one who farted at me first."

"You're the big brother, why bicker with her like that."

"You're the mom, why bicker with me like that?"

"You answer back to everything I say!"

"I'll answer back, I'll answer back."

Lin Lin Xiuqing hadn't originally intended to get serious, but after being talked back to twice she got angry too. She grabbed his clothes, pulled down his pants, and smacked him twice.

Ye Chenghu was thick-skinned too. He howled twice, then quickly pulled his pants up and scurried off.

"That's not fair. You didn't take her pants off when you hit her, but you took mine off."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi was excitedly making faces over there, but her joy turned to sorrow—she turned her head and got grabbed by the clothes too, and now her pants were taken off for a beating.

She tried to pull up her pants, but she bent over and stuck her bottom out, making it even easier to hit. A few red marks were stamped right onto her fair, tender bottom.

She let out a wail and shot out like a cannonball.

Ye Yaodong was washing his hair at the door, still keeping an ear on the commotion inside. "Serves you right. Both of you deserve a beating."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi ran out and heard it, and smacked his bottom twice.

"Hitting you."

"Your skin is really thick."

"Yours is thick."

"You didn't even cry after getting hit."

"Hmph. Tonight I'm not sleeping with her, and not with you either."

"Great, go sleep in the doghouse."