Chapter 1466: Arriving at Port

At least it wasn't sent for nothing—before heading back, he got the envelope, even though it only arrived two days early.

That was already pretty good. He'd originally thought he'd miss it and send it for nothing. Luckily, he'd also prepared gifts for the three kids, so at least he didn't break his promise.

Ye Yaodong collected the newspapers from everyone else's hands, folded them, and put them into the envelope.

The only pity was that his father hadn't kept a few copies.

This letter, he'd have to bring it back and then take it up again—only after half a month could the others see it.

A-Guang watched enviously as he folded the newspaper again and again. "Dongzi, shouldn't you burn a few extra copies of this newspaper for your ancestors to have a look?"

"Sure, I'll buy a few more copies at the newsstand when the time comes. But by the time I get back, this one will already be a month past its date. I don't know if I'll still be able to find it."

"Go ask the post office in town if they have that issue's date. You should still be able to find it. Otherwise, just burn the one you have on hand."

"Mm."

"You're really something now. The whole city, even the whole province, probably knows you. You've brought honor to your ancestors."

Before Ye Yaodong could speak, A-Zheng chimed in with a grin, "Dongzi, I think you should burn a TV down there too, let the old ancestor see you on television."

"Haha, that makes sense." The others quickly chimed in in agreement.

Ye Yaodong said irritably, "Burning a TV down there is no problem, but who's going to plug in the power cord and tune the channel for him? Are you guys going down to install it for him?"

"Pfft, talking nonsense."

"Damn it, he's not my ancestor anyway."

"Say something sensible!"

Ye Yaodong didn't want to keep bantering with them. Although the sea breeze was nice and cool, the sun was also scorching.

"Look at you lot, so free. Let's play cards—watch me sweep them all…"

"Come on, come on… who's killing who is still uncertain…"

The few of them tossed out bold words, sat right down on the deck, and rolled up their sleeves, ready to take on three opponents at once.

Quite a few people were also standing on the deck in twos and threes, leaning against the ship's rail chatting. On a summer day, sitting on the deck with the sea breeze was far more comfortable than staying in the stuffy, hot cabin.

Even at night, the fishing boats' lights on the deck provided enough illumination for them to play.

Only when they couldn't hold on anymore and kept yawning did they call it a day and had to go back to the cabin to lie down and sleep.

There weren't that many spots in total, and they'd all bought tickets in advance and claimed them. Others could only squeeze together in the tiny space, at most sitting, clutching their luggage tightly, barely able to move.

And inside the cabin, besides the stuffy heat, there was also a strong stench of sweat and feet.

So most people just slept sitting on the deck—cool and comfortable, a hundred times better than the cabin.

Anyway, going to sleep early at night and waking at sunrise didn't affect anything.

But spots on the deck were also in high demand. You might get up to use the toilet, and the next second your spot would be gone. Mainly because once everyone slept and spread out a bit, there were no spots left.

And the deck itself was piled full of cargo, with limited space. Those without spots could only go back to the cabin and tough it out.

Although Ye Yaodong and his group also found the cabin stuffy, at least they could lie down, which was more comfortable than sleeping sitting up. Their cabin door was left open, and the sea breeze blowing in wasn't that unbearable.

This trip back was much faster than his last one.

Lin Ji also wanted to try to make it home before the Dragon Boat Festival, so the cargo and passengers he'd taken on didn't get off midway. After all, it was only the first trip, taking on a little to test the waters, and the consignors were also more satisfied with efficient delivery.

However, this was the first time on this route, so he had a bit less experience and couldn't calculate the timing so precisely. By the time they reached town, it was already ten o'clock the next evening.

Ye Yaodong figured the original departure time was 9:30–10:00, so when he called, he only said he'd be back in the next two or three days, but he didn't know exactly which day he'd arrive—it all depended on how fast the ship sailed.

So after arriving in town, he asked A-Guang and the others to help unload the cargo while he prepared to go find Hong Hong Wenle and borrow his phone to call home and notify A-Qing.

Lin Lin Xiuqing was already asleep when she suddenly heard the phone ring in the main room. She got a big fright. She quickly sat up, then got out of bed quietly.

Knowing it was Ye Yaodong who had come back, and that he was at the town dock, she was overjoyed.

As soon as she heard that a tractor needed to be arranged to go to the dock to haul cargo, she immediately handed the phone to the old lady, who had also gotten up. She went back to her room first to put on another layer of clothes, then went to the workshop and told the two people on duty to hurry and drive the tractor to town.

She figured if she ran back and forth quickly, got things arranged, she could still come back and pick up the phone to say a few more words.

Unexpectedly, by the time she finished arranging things and ran back to the main room, the phone had already been hung up. Only the old lady was still rummaging around for things.

"Hung up?"

The old lady beamed. "Hung up. He said the cargo on the ship hasn't been unloaded yet. He's having friends help unload it now, and he needs to go back early to lend a hand."

"In the middle of the night, where would you find people to help unload cargo? Still, it's good that he has friends who came back with him."

"It's good that he's back."

"What are you looking for?"

"I'm looking for the vermicelli and shiitake mushrooms. I happened to be thinking that today is the Dragon Boat Festival, and Dongzi should be back in the next day or two, so I started stewing the chicken in advance. What a coincidence—the chicken soup is ready. I'll blanch some noodles too, in case he's not full enough."

"Then I'll start the fire."

"First heat up the chicken soup. Later, the vermicelli can be blanched quickly and dropped right in, so it won't be scalding hot when eaten."

The old lady happily bustled about rummaging everywhere.

Earlier she had been sighing and listless, craning her neck at the door during the day. Now at night she was suddenly full of vigor, as if she had boundless energy and was in great spirits.

"Amitabha, at least he made it home by the Dragon Boat Festival. Tomorrow I'll slaughter a duck for him…"

Lin Lin Xiuqing: "…"

Chanting a Buddhist prayer, and then following it up with talk of slaughtering a duck?

If the old lady didn't know how to sing, Lin Lin Xiuqing would have thought the old lady was humming a tune instead of reciting Amitabha at that moment.

After finishing the phone call, Ye Yaodong didn't have time to chat with anyone. He only said there was a whole ship's worth of cargo to unload, and hurried back to the dock.

During the day, there were plenty of day laborers at the dock to haul cargo, and quite a few ships stopped at their port to resupply and unload—ships that carried goods out would also transport some building materials like sand and cement back.

But once night fell, there were basically no people around—they'd all knocked off and gone to rest.

Lin Ji also planned to dock at the town's pier for the night, then set off the next day to unload cargo in the city, and then go to the provincial capital.

After getting home, the cargo ship's subsequent itinerary would involve more unloading stops.

Back at the dock, Ye Yaodong saw that his friends had worked up a sweat unloading but barely made a dent, while the others on the deck were still chatting idly. He got an idea.

Short on movers — aren't there ready-made ones right here?

He called out once, and one after another they all rolled up their sleeves, hurriedly raising their hands to say they could serve as his movers and earn a little extra on the side.

?? Too tired, too sleepy, I'll write a little first, everyone make it up tomorrow, I'll post a chapter red packet of 100

? (End of chapter)