Chapter 1296: Accumulation (Supplemented)

The design of the navy-style shirt is simple yet classic; the blue and white stripes symbolize the sea and the sky. This design is not only aesthetically pleasing but also helps improve safety during maritime operations.

For instance, if a soldier accidentally falls into the water, the bright colors help them be discovered and rescued quickly.

Furthermore, the navy-style shirt is also a part of naval culture, representing the spirit and demeanor of the navy. Therefore, for many new recruits, being able to wear such a garment is also a manifestation of a sense of honor.

For new recruits, putting on this blue and white striped navy-style shirt often signifies that they have officially become a member of the big naval family and have begun to accept rigorous military training, handing themselves over to the country.

Ye Yaodong looked at Lin Guangyuan's upright posture and also felt incomparably proud. In his previous life, he had dropped out of school early and later became a mason.

In this life, he had walked a different path and fulfilled the dream in his heart.

He felt that his rebirth was not just about him having a chance to start over, but that it was also influencing everyone around him and changing the fate of every person.

He dared not say that everyone had changed for the better, but at the very least, the people close to him were all changing for the better, becoming better than they were in his previous life.

"I used to hold other people's clothes every day, but now I'm finally wearing a navy-style shirt of my own."

"Hehe, Little Uncle-in-law, why are you here? Didn't you say you were going to Wenzhou to catch jellyfish? Shouldn't you be at home at this time?"

"Money is hard to earn this year, so I ran over here. I've been here for several months already. I didn't expect to run into you when I came out today. If I had known, I would have come out sooner."

"Coming out sooner wouldn't necessarily mean we'd meet. We've been training the whole time; we were only dispatched today to help maintain order at the pier."

"What is this for? Even supply trucks are being pulled over one after another..."

"It seems like they are going to build a warship docking point. We, the navy, are building it ourselves, but it's still far from here. I can't talk anymore, I'm going to fall behind. I have to catch up quickly. Little Uncle-in-law, give me an address where you're staying. I'll see if I can ask for leave to come find you."

Ye Yaodong quickly gave him a string of addresses, but fearing he wouldn't remember, he took a few banknotes out of his pocket and, borrowing a pen from someone nearby, quickly wrote it down for him.

He even emptied his pockets, taking all the money he had on him and giving it to him—it was at least several dozen yuan.

"Take this. I was planning to come out and take a look today anyway, so I didn't bring much money. You take this to spend first. Whenever you have a chance to come out, come find me."

"I don't need this much, I have a salary too..."

"Your salary is only a few yuan. Just take it. I will definitely be here before New Year's Day. If you have a chance, come find me. After New Year's Day, it's hard to say."

"Understood. I don't have time to talk today, I have to go first."

Lin Guangyuan walked away, looking back with reluctance.

Ye Yaodong waved at him, "Go quickly, you'll fall behind."

He nodded repeatedly, turned around, and ran to catch up with the team.

The navy-style shirts among the crowd were also very easy to identify. If it weren't for the fact that there were too many people coming and going at the pier and they couldn't walk fast, they would have fallen behind and lost sight of each other long ago.

Ye Yaodong watched Lin Guangyuan walk into the crowd, feeling a bit emotional. The teenager who had been bitten by a turtle a few years ago and was on the verge of tears had also grown up.

"Ah Yuan is really promising. He actually passed the recruitment and became a navy soldier. This navy uniform looks really spirited on him."

"Yes, he can finally be considered promising."

"Ah Hai went to the shipyard to be an apprentice; otherwise, he should have been sent to join the army too. When one person joins the army, the whole family is honored."

"Everyone has their own fate. Ah Yuan has been thinking about it for several years, and he even went back to school for three years. That navy-style shirt Captain Chen gave him at home was treated like a treasure, and now he's finally wearing one of his own."

"Looking at him makes me want to send Ajiang to join the army too."

Ye Yaodong asked: "He's a year younger than Ah Hai, so he's in his third year of junior high in the second half of the year now, right?"

"Yes, third year of junior high."

"Better to study hard. If he can get into high school, then get into high school. If he can't, then plan again. Ah Hai isn't that kind of material either."

"Ajiang isn't that kind of material either."

Ye Yaopeng said: "There isn't one who can study. The girls in the family are the same. Fortunately, it doesn't matter for the girls. After helping the family with work for a few years, they can just get married when they reach the age."

"Let's go, let's continue forward and take a look. I don't know where the military port is going to be built."

"It must be at the very edge..."

"The wind and waves are quite big..."

"The garrison really needs to be strengthened here. The floating population is too large and too chaotic. It really needs to be strengthened and rectified."

The three brothers walked around the pier and saw that there were significantly fewer people causing trouble at the pier today than usual.

Even if there were quarrels and conflicts, they were relatively restrained. People nearby would pull them apart a little, throw out some harsh words, and it would pass.

Ye Yaodong thought about making a phone call to tell Lin Xiuqing. After looking at the wind and waves on the sea, he pulled his two brothers and went back early.

Ye's father was also extremely surprised when he heard. He didn't expect it to be such a coincidence that Lin Guangyuan was sent here after passing the recruitment.

It was true, though; this place was a major port, so it definitely needed a large number of naval troops stationed here.

After returning home, Ye Yaodong immediately pedaled his bicycle out to make a phone call. He called home first, as it happened that he hadn't called to report his safety for a few days.

Lin Xiuqing answered his call excitedly.

"I just saw Ah Yuan at the pier!"

"What?" Lin Xiuqing was shocked for a moment, "You saw Ah Yuan?"

"Yes, didn't you know he was assigned to Zhoushan? You didn't mention it to me, and I was busy and forgot to ask you."

"I didn't know. I only heard from my father that he was assigned to Zhejiang Province, but I didn't know where in Zhejiang. How could it be such a coincidence?"

"I also think it's too coincidental. It stunned me just now, so I hurried back from the pier to give you a call."

"That's good, at least you got to see him. I don't know if he can ask for leave to come out."

"That I don't know. It should be very strict, right?"

"As long as you can see him. I heard that military service is four years. If he stays there the whole time, I don't know how many years he'll have to stay."

"We'll see. First, wait for him to finish his military service, and it also depends on his performance during his service."

"I'll call my brother and sister-in-law in a while and tell them you saw Ah Yuan..."

Lin Xiuqing chattered on, asking him about Lin Guangyuan's recent situation and appearance so she could describe it well when she called her brother and sister-in-law later.

After Ye Yaodong finished talking to her about Lin Guangyuan, he also asked about the recent situation at home. In fact, there was nothing much to say.

He had a pile of things to do, but none of them could be brought up, and everything at home was normal.

Lin Xiuqing was also quite busy in the second half of the year. As long as it didn't rain, Ah Cai would send goods over every day, and she would organize the women to kill fish and dry them.

Then, occasionally when sending goods to the city, she would take Dongqing and a few young men out together to check the accounts in the city.

At the same time, she also arranged the filtering work for the fish sauce workshop. This work was now done by women from the neighboring village, which could be considered fulfilling Ye Yaodong's promise at the time.

Ye Yaodong had people harvest and ferment a considerable amount every day at the time, and now filtering also required a lot of female workers.

Before he left, everything at the factory was arranged properly. Wang Guangliang was still responsible for receiving goods at the pier here, and his two aunts were responsible for fermentation and cooking, while also supervising.

As for the finances, Huang Mei kept the accounts, and the money was in the hands of his father-in-law, but Huang Mei kept a record of every transaction.

Wang Guangliang and Chen Jianxing had to follow the procedure every day to receive money and goods, have Huang Mei open a slip, and then go to Lin's father to collect it, which actually seemed much more standardized.

Lin Xiuqing would also come to the city to check the accounts and see the situation whenever she had time, to avoid being fooled, and by the way, she could also collect a portion of the turnover from her father's shop.

It was absolutely true that women could hold up half the sky, but she also hoped every day that Ye Yaodong could return soon.

After all, he was the true head of the family, the core of the family, and the pillar of the family.

After hanging up the phone, Ye Yaodong also let out a breath. He also wanted to go home a little; this trip out had really been too long.

He hadn't expected to be out for so long himself; it was an accident, and plans couldn't keep up with changes.

Inside the rented house, everyone was also discussing Lin Guangyuan joining the army. Most people didn't know Lin Guangyuan, but a few did, after all, Lin Guangyuan had been to Ye Yaodong's house many times.

"Next year, I'm going to send my kid to join the army too..."

"We also ran to the pier to see earlier. That navy uniform really looks good, unlike our dusty ones..."

Seeing Ye Yaodong return, Ye's father asked hurriedly: "Did you call back to notify them?"

"I only called Ah Qing. She will tell her brother and sister-in-law about the rest. The military should allow phone calls, and Ah Yuan should also tell his parents."

"It doesn't matter if it's inconvenient to come out. At least knowing they are in the same place is not bad."

"Hmm."

Ye Yaodong called Lin's father the next day. He wanted to notify Lin's father to pay attention to receiving Zhang Ren's one ton of dried shrimp in a few days.

Lin's father also knew yesterday that he had seen Lin Guangyuan, and he was also very happy.

"I only knew he was a navy soldier in Zhejiang Province, but I didn't understand which city specifically. His parents remembered, but I didn't expect you two to be in the same place and even meet. This is good..."

"I didn't remember it earlier. If I had remembered it earlier, maybe we could have met sooner."

Ye Yaodong also said with a smile: "That's not necessarily true. New recruits have a training period. Only after completing the initial training will they be allowed to communicate with their families. If we had known, we might not have met."

"Hey, good, good... Whenever you meet again, you must give me a call."

"Okay, definitely."

He also asked about the current sales situation of Lin's father's goods. The variety of dried seafood could be supplied at home, and there was no problem. Although he wasn't there, everything was in good order.

Previously, when he was catching jellyfish in Wenzhou, he asked Fang Jingfu to pre-order 50,000 lighters. Later, he went to Zhoushan in a hurry, and he had also told Fang Jingfu.

The 50,000 lighters were still reserved for him. He didn't know how long he would be in Zhoushan, but anyway, if he came back, he would definitely pass through Wenzhou and bring the goods with him.

Later, who knew that this stay would last for more than three months, and he would have to stay until the end of the year.

For those 50,000 lighters, he only paid a deposit of 25,000, and 50,000 yuan had not been paid yet.

The month before last, in September, he also called Fang Jingfu and said he might have to stay until the end of the year. Fang Jingfu said he had let Lin Jishang bring the 50,000 lighters back for him.

After all, Lin Jishang was brought over by him at the time.

When Fang Jingfu asked Lin Jishang to bring them back at the time, he also called Lin Xiuqing to ask. After obtaining her consent, he let her talk to Lin Jishang, chatted about the delivery address, and then handed the goods to Lin Jishang to bring back together.

As for the 50,000 yuan payment, it was just put on his tab first, and when the dividends were distributed at the end of the year, it would be deducted directly from his dividends.

This made him, who only found out afterwards, overjoyed. He had originally been worried that those tens of thousands of lighters would be stuck there and couldn't be brought back.

Unexpectedly, it just so happened that Lin Jishang went to Fang Jingfu to get goods, and the few of them put their heads together and solved the goods for him, and even sent them to the city.

He also called Lin's father afterwards to confirm, and all 50,000 lighters had been delivered, which made him feel relieved.

Speaking of which, except for the fact that Lin Jishang did things that were a bit dangerous and his private life was a bit unrefined, he was quite reliable in other things and was also righteous.

These 50,000 lighters were now slowly being sold, and there was no worry about not having goods to sell. The shop in the city was now selling goods stably every day.

Ye Yaodong only went back after chatting with Lin's father.

He had already called Lin Xiuqing the day before to report his safety, so he didn't need to call today.

For the next two consecutive days, it was windy, not suitable for going out to sea. Whenever he was free, he would go to the pier to walk around, look at the tide and wind, and by the way, look at the land that had been circled and was being organized.

He also went to the end of the pier to see those in blue and white stripes working, but he didn't see Lin Guangyuan, and he didn't know if they were working in shifts.

In the cold weather, they all took off their coats and only wore short sleeves to work.

He went every day, anyway, he was free, and it was on the way. It wasn't until the wind and waves were not so big and the fishing boats went out to sea again that he didn't run to the pier anymore.

He heard from Lin Guangyuan again at the end of the month.

He didn't see Lin Guangyuan in person, but Lin Guangyuan's comrade-in-arms helped deliver a letter.

It turned out that new recruits couldn't ask for leave to go out at will, not even for two hours, and the application couldn't be approved, so he wrote a letter and asked an old soldier who had asked for leave to help deliver it.

Ye Yaodong immediately asked the old soldier to sit down and drink tea, and handed him two packs of cigarettes, asking him to wait a moment, and he would write a reply immediately after reading the letter.

By the way, when he returned to the room, he also tucked a few "Big Unity" banknotes into the letter. After all, there was a middleman to deliver the letter, so he didn't dare to put too much, and he was also worried about it being too thick.

Anyway, it should be enough for Lin Guangyuan to spend for several months. He had given him several dozen yuan a while ago.

He also used rice to rub a circle on the seal, and then wiped it with saliva again, sticking it tightly.

When he sent the person out the door, he gave him two more packs of cigarettes, making the person go back happily.

It wasn't that he couldn't give money directly, but it would always be a bit lacking. It was always not very good to receive money, but receiving a few packs of good cigarettes had no burden and could make people happy.

Lin Guangyuan didn't write anything in the letter, just saying that he couldn't ask for leave, and new recruits wouldn't be approved unless there was a major emergency.

Then he asked about him and asked about his recent situation here.

Ye Yaodong also wrote in his reply when he came, how long he had been staying, roughly when he would go back, and told him to be a good soldier, perform well, and strive to take the exam for military academies in two years.

He also mentioned that he called home yesterday to notify his family that he had seen him, and also helped him report his safety to his family.

By the way, he also mentioned that he put 50 yuan in the envelope for him to spend slowly, and he would put some more for him next time when someone delivered a letter.

If he went back in two months, the next time he came, it might be the second half of the year. He could only take advantage of the current communication to leave more money for Lin Guangyuan.

When out and about, having money in your pocket makes you feel at ease, and having money makes everything convenient.

He had to calculate the accounts again this month, and he had earned a lot this month, so he was generous. He could take a handful and give it to Lin Guangyuan easily, it was just that he couldn't come out and it was inconvenient to take it.

Otherwise, he would have to give Lin Guangyuan several hundred yuan to spend slowly. He wasn't a child anymore, so it was fine to have more money in his hands.

However, now he could only put it in little by little through the envelope and then send it to his hands.

Although it was windy every few days this month, if the wind and waves weren't big, the fishing boats wouldn't come back on purpose. The only ones affected were those small trawlers.

Unless a few large ships hadn't gone out to sea yet, if there were wind and waves, they would wait for the sake of safety.

So this month, they had gone out to sea for about 20 days, more or less. Those small boats probably hadn't even had half a month, but it was probably enough to earn money.

And he had already calculated the accounts for this month in advance, earning a net profit of more than 106,000.

Every time they came back to shore, their few boats, including the shrimp-catching boats, were all sold by themselves. He earned a little less on this, but it didn't matter, he earned the bulk of it.

There were also the accounts for those dozen or so trawlers, and he planned to go over one by one to calculate the accounts and get the money in the next two nights.

Adding it all up, his income this month could also be around 120,000.

This was simply unimaginable.

At the end of last month, he spent 20,000 to buy land, and after deducting the money returned to Ah Guang, he still had more than 20,000 left as capital for collecting dried shrimp. This month, it rolled like a snowball, and it could actually accumulate to more than 140,000.

This was still after he took out 100,000 to buy a cargo ship, and sent 50,000 back intermittently when he was in Wenzhou and just arrived in Zhoushan.

He calculated the income from the past few months casually, and he couldn't imagine it himself. He had already earned more than 300,000, and it was only the end of November. Next, there was December, early January...

He could continue to accumulate wealth...

In the past, he wouldn't even dare to think about this. Not only for others, but for him, this number was also an unreachable dream.

The family fortune accumulated over 4 years, several workshops, several shops, and more than a dozen boats, all added together, actually couldn't even barely match what he had earned in half a year.

After mastering the channels and means of production, he understood what it meant to have money beget money.

But it also required the slow accumulation of the previous few years to have his rapid realization in these six months.

If there weren't so many fishing boats, he couldn't have run here to make a fortune.

If there wasn't the proof from the fishery associations of the two provinces, he couldn't have gained the trust of so many people, and the goods wouldn't have been sold so vigorously.

Ye Yaodong flipped through the account books for this month in the room to check them, and by the way, calculated how much money he expected to earn before going back, with about 40 days left.

This was also his usual nature.

Calculate the money not yet earned in advance, and put all the money that could be earned later into his pocket first.

After calculating again, he estimated that he could earn another 170,000 or 180,000, plus the dividends from a few small boats, and if he was lucky, he might earn another 200,000.

This almost made his saliva flow out with joy.

Calculating this way, he could earn more than 500,000 in half a year. He didn't know until he counted, and he was startled by the count.

Even after deducting what was spent and what had been sent home in advance.

He could still have 350,000 or 360,000 or 370,000 yuan left.

At that time, the briefcase would definitely not be able to hold it...

Ye Yaodong held the account book, his mouth almost crooked with a smile.

When he comes over in the second half of next year, after getting the few ships reserved by the shipyard, his assets will definitely be able to double again.

After eating dinner in the evening, he actively went door-to-door. As long as someone was at home, he started to reconcile accounts and collect money. If they weren't at home, he would put it behind.

He finished reconciling the accounts of all the boat captains who were at home, and then went to find the boat captains who had just returned, and went through it again for the second time.

It wasn't until 10 o'clock at night that he collected all the accounts for this month.

And as he expected, after the weather turned cold, the wind and waves at the port here were big, which also affected the going out to sea of small boats, and the income plummeted even more.

Last month, each boat could still be divided into more than 1,000, but this month, there were fewer boats that could be divided into 1,000. Many were around 700 or 800, and only a few had 900 or 1,000.

Adding it all up, he only got a share from it, which was not a small amount, but who told him to have many fishing boats.

Ye Yaodong calculated all the accounts, collected all the money, went back and calculated it himself, and now he really had more than 140,000 in his hands again.

By the time it accumulates until before going home, he didn't believe that after going home, they could still nag about him taking a loan of 200,000 to buy a boat, and spending 100,000 to buy a boat.

It is estimated that seeing a sack of money, they won't even have time to laugh, and his mother could blow the cow to the sky.

If they really nag again, he will directly carry 200,000 to Zhoushan Bank to pay it off, and see if he is anxious, or if they are more anxious.

After all, one has to pay money by oneself, and the other doesn't have to pay money by oneself. He doesn't believe that when he takes money to pay it back like this, they won't be anxious.

It is estimated that they will try their best to stop him.

Since it has been loaned out, it must be earned, and wait until the deadline to pay it back.

At that time, he will have to see the situation on the return trip, whether to pass through Wenzhou first, calculate the accounts with Fang Jingfu, make his sack fuller, and go back to shock the few women in his family.

Or go back directly first. After all, the whole village is following him, and it is not easy for him to take everyone to dock in Wenzhou.

If they feel that the voyage is too far, it is okay to dock at Wenzhou Port for a day first, which is also convenient for him.

But this will have to be said at that time.

Ye Yaodong put the money back into the briefcase, locked it all up, hid it, and found a clean sack for backup.

More than 100,000, with change, with banknotes, with coins, had already filled a whole briefcase, and it was not so convenient to continue stuffing it in. He prepared the sack in advance.

Tomorrow, he still has to find some clean straw to put inside to cushion it.

In the middle of the night, after Ye Yaodong returned to his room, he kept tossing and turning, either counting money or counting banknotes with a rustle, or shaking the nylon bag with a rustle.

The sound insulation of this kind of old house is poor, and he could hear the neighbors scolding who was not sleeping in the middle of the night, and what were they doing there...

After he finished his work, he hurried to bed.

In the cold weather, if he wasn't counting money, could he be so busy? He must have been wrapped in the quilt early.

It was about to enter December, and the wind at the port here was bigger than at their door, and even the house was leaking wind.

Ye Yaodong was frozen awake the next day by the cold wind blowing in from the edge of the window. The warmth of this old house was also extremely poor.

If it weren't for the fact that the cotton quilt and mattress were newly made, he felt he wouldn't be able to survive the winter, but he was still frozen awake early.

"Why so early, Boss..."

"No one to warm the quilt, it's too cold. Get up and find some newspapers to paste the window again, it's all leaking wind."

"Hahaha, we just said you should find a wife here and settle down. With your appearance and your ability to earn money, there are plenty of big girls and little widows for you to choose from."

"Stop talking nonsense. You are a group of wolves. Can I find another one and mix it among you? Stop teasing. Where did you put the previous newspapers?"

"Used for fire."

"Ah?"

"I thought you had read them all and they were useless. A stack was piled there, so I took them to start a fire to cook."

"Your grandfather... you prodigal son."

"There's nothing to start a fire, no straw, no wood shavings, so I just thought of taking those newspapers to start a fire..."

Ye Yaodong scolded a few more words before going out, planning to get some newspapers from others to paste the window.

Just as he stepped out of the house, he saw that the vegetables his father planted in the wooden box were covered with a thick layer of frost, a white expanse.

"It's frosted. Could it snow?"

"No way, will it snow here?"

"It's only December, and it's already frosted. If it gets colder, won't it snow?"

"Snow is good. I don't know what snow looks like in this life..."

"Snow can freeze you to death."

Ye Yaodong put on his scarf. This was what Ah Qing specifically asked a common person to bring him last time, which just happened to keep him warm.

He opened his mouth to speak, and white smoke came out.

After going out, he exhaled while walking, and then crossed his hands and inserted them into his sleeves.

After asking around, he got a stack of newspapers and asked the landlord for a bowl of rice paste, and then he pasted the window with newspapers.

It didn't feel this cold a few days ago, but now the temperature is dropping extremely fast.

However, when the sun came out, the temperature rose again, and there was a pile of people sitting at the door, eating breakfast while basking in the sun.

The landlady also waved at him and gave him a hot red potato, which just happened to be an extra meal for his breakfast.

He said thank you with a smile and ate it with the skin. It was soft, glutinous, and hot, just right to go with porridge, sweet.

"Boss, are we going out to sea tonight or tomorrow morning? It looks like the wind is quite strong."

"Let's go out to sea in the early morning. It's too cold at night. Let's sleep well in the quilt. Tomorrow we'll work all day, go back and forth three times, just in time to come back at night and sleep well."

"Adong, Adong, hurry, hurry, come out quickly, that little beauty is looking for you again."

Hearing the shouting at the door, Ye Yaodong looked up and saw a red figure appearing at the door, stretching her head to look into the house.

"Shen Ming'e?"