Chapter 1661: Accident

Ye Ye Chengyang's heart ached; all the money had been earned by his eldest brother.

"Eldest brother is truly cunning and keeps his mouth shut tight; he didn't say a single word, so we had no idea."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi nodded in agreement.

Ye Yaodong said, "He didn't know; he didn't even ask. Who's like you two, just fixated on the wages?"

"Huh? Eldest brother didn't know? Didn't know how much his wages were?"

"Nonsense. Unlike you two, asking about wages before even starting work."

"Isn't that right? It should be."

Ye Ye Xiaoxi nodded straight up. "Of course you have to ask clearly. If I hadn't asked, I'd still be at 40 yuan and would have been ripped off badly. Luckily I asked a few more questions and ended up the same as Ye Ye Erge. Of course you have to ask."

Ye Ye Chengyang turned and looked at her in disbelief. "You were only 40 yuan, and then you got raised to be the same as me?"

"Yeah, why shouldn't we be the same? We do the same work. You didn't do more than me!"

"But you're so small. Why should you be the same as me?"

"Why shouldn't we be the same? Father said we're all child laborers."

"Then Eldest brother is a child laborer too!"

Ye Ye Xiaoxi pouted. "I didn't work with Eldest brother, so I don't care if he is or isn't. I don't care how much he gets. I work with you, so I want to be the same as you."

Ye Ye Chengyang looked at Ye Yaodong, his eyes accusing him that he also wanted to be the same as Ye Chenghu!

"Work honestly and take care of your sister, or I'll deduct your wages."

"Ah..." Ye Ye Chengyang's heart shattered into pieces.

Ye Yaodong walked straight out with his hands behind his back, ignoring his grievance.

What grievance? Others want to work but can't even get the chance.

Ye Chenghu was the last to learn his wages; he stared with wide eyes, somewhat incredulous.

"What! My monthly wage is 180 yuan? Really? How is it so much?"

He had returned with the fishing boat in the afternoon, simply taken a shower, eaten something, and gone back to the dormitory to rest. Only when Ye Ye Chengyang came back from work and told him did he get stunned.

Ye Ye Chengyang grumbled, looking very unhappy. "I heard working at sea is hard. Wages for sea workers are already higher than factory workers, so your wage is set at 80% of the boatmen's rate."

He joyfully jumped off the boat and rushed to Ye Ye Chengyang. "Really? Wow! Father finally showed some conscience, hahaha! My wage is 180 yuan a month! Hahaha..."

Compared to his excitement, Ye Ye Chengyang felt crushed and sat down on a bunk with a very unhappy face.

After Ye Chenghu had enough of being happy, he remembered to ask him, "I get 180 a month. How much do you get a month?"

Ye Ye Chengyang glanced at him and said nothing.

"How much is it? Afraid to say? Looking at how unhappy you are, it must be much less than mine! Hahaha..."

"Hey, how much? Tell me. Come on, what's there to be shy about? If you don't say it now, I can go ask later and find out anyway."

"Is it even half of mine? Hahaha, speak up? If you don't speak, I'll assume you have none?"

"Haha, hey, could it really be none? Really, really none?"

Ye Ye Chengyang glared at him angrily. "You're so noisy. Go away."

"Wow, there really isn't any? Not even half of mine? Speak up. What's there to be shy about?"

"You're so annoying. Fine, I get 80. Is that okay? Just your spare change, is that okay?"

Ye Chenghu's features seemed to fly off his face as he looked at him. "Huh? Just my spare change? Wow, why? Did Father have a change of heart, realize I'm the eldest son? Realize I've grown up? So I can get a higher wage?"

"Nonsense. You really know how to imagine things. Father just treated you as a boatman because you went to sea! So you're a boatman, that's why they gave you a raise."

The smile on Ye Chenghu's face faded. He glared at him in a bad mood, but thinking about it again, he felt very happy.

"Being a boatman is fine. Anyway, I earn 180 a month. You're a worker too, but you only get 80 yuan. Hahaha, you're just my spare change. Hahaha, Father is so wise!"

Ye Ye Chengyang regretted telling him. Seeing his arrogant, triumphant look, he wished he hadn't said anything. He should have kept it quiet for a month and let him know only when the wages were paid.

"Hey, I get 180, you get 80. What about Little Nine?"

He didn't want to speak.

Ye Chenghu's eyes were full of surprise. Huh, something's up.

"Could hers be higher than yours?"

"Nonsense. No way. She's the same as me."

"Oh, the same. Then why that expression? Isn't that normal? I thought hers was more than yours, looking at your unbalanced expression."

"Hmph. Father is the most biased. He accommodates her in everything. She was originally only 40 yuan, but she kept acting spoiled and begging Father, so Father let her be the same as me. Damn it!"

"Then you act spoiled with Father and ask him to arrange the same wage for you as mine."

"Father doesn't care about me. He doesn't even give me a chance to speak and just walks away."

"Then go find Father now and act spoiled with him while he's still here. Otherwise, once it gets dark, he'll definitely go out drinking."

"I can't act spoiled!"

"Learn from Little Nine. Watch how she usually acts spoiled, and you do the same."

After finishing his words, Ye Chenghu demonstrated, pulling on Ye Ye Chengyang's sleeve, acting coy and swaying back and forth.

"Brother, please? I want to eat. Buy it for me~ Buy it for me, okay? Go~ Please, please~ Buy it for me~ I like Second Brother the most~"

Ye Ye Chengyang shivered in disgust, his goosebumps falling all over the floor.

"Eldest brother, you're so disgusting!"

"I'm teaching you, giving you advice!"

"Father would kick me to death with one kick."

"Then I don't care about you anymore."

Ye Chenghu happily climbed back to his own bunk, silently calculating in his mind: in two months he could earn 360!

Wow, a huge sum! For so many years, the money he saved never exceeded 100 yuan. Now, in just one month, he could earn enough to match years of accumulation!

This is way too awesome!

I should have urged them to come up a few days ago; I wasted several days.

Ye Ye Chengyang pulled himself together, picked up his own washbasin, grabbed Mao Jin and his clothes, and went to take a bath.

Anyway, it's done; he can't resist it. Whatever Dad says goes; having something is better than nothing, and his older brother is indeed a few years older than him.

It's not much; once he grows up a bit more, he'll be able to earn as much as his older brother.

Comforting himself works better than others comforting him.

The next day, he happily carried Ye Ye Xiaoxi to work.

After his father returned, Ye Yaodong handed the work back to his father; he planned to go out for two days to chase payments, collect receivables, entertain for two more days, and then head out to sea for a look.

It's been so long since he went to sea; he can't just leave it unattended; he must go out and check on everyone's situation.

It's almost July now; the coming period sees frequent typhoons, and things are a bit unstable. He must go out, check, give several more reminders, explain the response measures to everyone, and tell them to return immediately if conditions worsen or if the broadcast receives typhoon information.

Ye Chenghu knew his father was going to the deep sea in a few days; he was itching to go along. Thinking this, he did exactly that, going straight to his father to speak.

Ye Yaodong slapped him across the face. "Your wings have hardened? You've only been at sea for a few days and dare to run to the deep sea with me? You're incredibly bold! Stay put and obediently follow the fresh-fish collection boat, leaving early and returning late."

Ye Chenghu covered the back of his head where the slap had stung, too depressed to make a sound.

"Go do your work, train hard, get familiar with things while you're on summer break. In a few days when we go to Magic Capital, I'll take you and Yangyang out to see the world."

Ye Chenghu instantly perked up, a smile appearing on his face. "Okay, Dad. Tell me in advance when you're going."

"Mm."

"I'll go tell Yangyang..."

"Tell him a bit later. If you tell him now and your sister hears it in a moment, it'll be a disaster; she'll start clamoring to come along again."

"Oh, understood. This time she won't be coming!"

"Mm."

It's too sunny; in this scorching heat, it's more comfortable staying in the factory with the electric fan on. There's no need to run around outside with him, drenched in sweat.

If he takes them out, he'd have to trouble himself arranging more people to accompany and look after them; taking only his two sons saves a lot of trouble.

Ye Chenghu ran off excitedly, planning to wait until Ye Ye Chengyang was alone to secretly tell him, and then have him keep it from Ye Ye Xiaoxi.

Ye Yaodong's last trip to sea was last month; counting from start to finish, it's been almost a month since he went to sea.

After finishing his current tasks and handing everything over to his father, he followed Dongyu No. 1.

Just as a faint gray-white appeared on the horizon, the sea breeze was already pushing the tide, wetly surging forward.

The fishing boats moored at the shore started their engines; the "tut-tut" sound broke the silence, while several seagulls chased the waves churned up by the stern.

As usual, quite a few fishing boats set out at dawn. He followed the instructions from the Port Vessel Management Center in the broadcast, then slowly steered out of the channel.

"Dongzi, you were doing just fine on shore; why suddenly think of going out to sea to take a look?"

"Isn't it because I'm worried? The coming period is the typhoon season; I'm going to check and give a few more instructions."

"I see, that's indeed true. But the weather forecast will also remind us; just pay extra attention while you're at sea, and it should be fine."

"We must treat this seriously; typhoons are no joke."

The captain smiled and offered no rebuttal.

The fleet left the harbor. Along the coast, yellow, turbid seawater accompanied the fishing boats on both sides. As time passed, they sailed farther and farther away; the seawater turned light green, then gradually deepened until it settled into a vast, deep blue.

On this trip to sea, Ye Yaodong took charge of nothing; he was only responsible for occasionally holding a telescope and gazing from the deck. The fishing boats were still under the control of the captain or the first and second mates.

Anyway, they were all seasoned veterans. The route was still the one he had originally planned for them; they made a round trip in a few days. Now, each of them was so skilled they could sail with their eyes closed.

He felt they were probably just a few more net-lowering and fishing operations away from graduating; last month they only fished for two days before this boat was requisitioned as a fresh-fish collection vessel.

When they docked and returned in a few days, he still had to make a trip to Magic Capital to urge them in person; phone calls wouldn't work.

As they arrived at the destination and made contact with fishing boat after fishing boat, everyone saw Ye Yaodong. Some curiously asked a few more questions, since it had been a month since they saw him at sea; his sudden reappearance was quite unexpected.

Ye Yaodong also gave a brief explanation.

"If you notice the waves getting bigger, or if the broadcast reminds you that a typhoon eye is forming, just discuss it among yourselves and head straight back."

"You've been working continuously for two months now. Taking advantage of the coming period that might be affected by typhoon weather, everyone can return and rest for a few days."

"Otherwise, in the second half of the year, you'll be working continuously again, having to work until the New Year. Only during these three months—August, September, and October—will there occasionally be a chance to rest."

Everyone replied in turn, "Received!"

"Go do what you need to do. Won't the No. 1 boat be hauling in its nets soon for the next trip? Since we're done here, go wait near the No. 1 boat."

"Received. The No. 1 boat is currently hauling in its nets."

"Go ahead."

As Ye Yaodong moved closer, he pondered that he could stay a couple more days; when the next boat arrived to collect the catch, he could return with it.

Thinking this, he also instructed the captain accordingly. When they pulled alongside the No. 1 boat, he climbed over and instructed the cousin in charge of the No. 1 boat.

"After the cargo is collected a bit later and the Dongyu boat returns, I'll stay on this boat for two days."

The cousin was delighted. "Great! Then you can command this boat for two days; I can take a lazy break."

"Dream on. I'm here to take a look, not to work."

Although he said that, the other man stood up and yielded the helm position to him. He still sat down there and only handed over the work after nightfall, then went to sleep.

Life at sea is dull and boring, with no other activities; it's nothing but work, work, work. Only he in the bridge could listen to the radio broadcast.

Just as dawn broke, the sea breeze carrying a salty, fishy smell poured into the bridge of "Ocean No. 1." Ye Yaodong got up early, wrapped himself in a work uniform stained with dirt, held half a "Chengfeng" cigarette in his mouth, and stood on the deck with a telescope.

In his ears, the sound of the engine mixed with the waves, and inside the cabin, the radio crackled and hissed, playing "Asian Might," the signal intermittent and broken.

This theme song of the Asian Games, which exploded in popularity last year, has continued until now. It's the hit song of the moment, playing everywhere; even they could hear it out at sea.

"What the heck is that?"

Dongzi put down his telescope, squinted and looked toward the distance, then put the telescope back on, pointed toward the reef-island sea area in the northeast, and shouted to the bridge.

"Come out, cousin, take a look at what that is!"

"What is it? What situation have you spotted?" The captain emerged from the bridge, puzzled, and took the telescope from his hand.

Ye Yaodong's hands were empty; the naked eye couldn't see clearly, so he grabbed the old military telescope hanging on the cabin wall.

This was the earliest telescope he had used, already due for retirement; the lens was a bit scratched, and he had to strain to adjust the focus.

He saw only a few blurry ship silhouettes sneaking through the gaps in the reefs; they were far away, their hulls a dull grey, the ship flags indistinct, and no engine sounds could be heard.

"Doesn't look like one of our ships," the captain said, equally puzzled.

Ye Yaodong extinguished his cigarette butt, his brows knitted into a knot. "Damn, running with the lights off, acting like thieves. Go to the broadcast and tell the nearby fishing boats to take a look."

"Understood."

His cousin swapped the two telescopes with him, then returned to the cabin, grabbed the high-frequency radio microphone, and shouted into the channel.

"Whose boat is that, relatively close to the saddle-shaped reef east of DYD? Check what's going on over there? Seems we've detected a group of fishing boats. Latitude 25°45'30"N, Longitude 123°28'15"E, check it out."

"Received."

Someone responded with "Received," and immediately after, other boat captains' replies poured in from the radio, a chaotic chorus: "Saw them! There are fishing boats, but can't see clearly!"

After all, in this era, technical conditions were limited; equipment was still quite rudimentary, incapable of high-definition detection.

"How does it look... not like our ship type, looks like... foreign?"

Ye Yaodong's mouth dropped open into an 'O'. "Could it be a mistake?"

"Shouldn't be; foreign fishing boats differ greatly in style from ours."

"Who cares where they're from, as long as they don't come to steal our fishing grounds!"

"Looks like... looks like a Japanese boat?"

Someone hesitantly guessed.

In 1991, information was far less developed than later; everyone identified foreign vessels mostly by experience or hearsay.

So although it looked very similar, no one dared to be certain.

At that time, most Japanese fishing boats were the old CL type, with grey-blue hulls featuring orange stripes.

Ye Yaodong was startled; before he could even process it, he saw two grey-white Japanese patrol boats cutting high-speed into the fishing grounds, the wave walls they split at the bow charging straight at the two nearest fishing boats.

A Japanese warning burst from the loudspeakers, sharp and grating, mixed with the humming buildup of water cannons.

The two nearby fishing boats in the distance were forced to turn their rudders repeatedly, their nets still half-soaked in the water, looking like sheep chased by wolves, unable to run fast.

"Woo—Woo—Woo—!"

The piercing whistle tore through the morning silence without warning; it wasn't a single blast, but a continuous, long wail with a strong warning intent!

"Damn it."

Ye Yaodong cursed; everyone on the fishing boats currently on the sea surface suddenly turned their heads to look!

He saw two medium-sized vessels painted in grey-white with hard lines, charging straight in from the open sea at high speed!

The hulls were painted with prominent Japanese characters and numbers, the bows raised high, splitting the waves, full of ferocious momentum! That whistle sound was coming from them!"

"Holy crap! It really is Japanese patrol boats!"

The radio instantly exploded into chaos!

"Quick! Quick, haul in the nets! Forget the fish in the nets! Everyone stay alert." Ye Yaodong shouted into the radio and himself lunged violently toward the helm wheel.

PS: I've been preparing lessons these past two days; Qidian invited me to open a period class, and I've been busy revising for two days. I'll make up for one chapter tomorrow during the day.