Chapter 537: Relying on A-Guang?

The couple lingered on the deserted island until two in the afternoon. Only when the tide slowly began to rise did they stop and pause. Four large sacks of various shellfish were piled up on the beach nearby.

Lin Xiuqing looked at the patches of barnacles and shellfish on the reef wall, still wanting more. "Even if we came every day, we couldn't dig them all."

"Yeah, they're all things nobody wants. Who has the time to waste every day digging here? Only the large conchs and oysters can sell for some money; the others can't be sold. It's not worth it to specially sail a boat out for a trip. It's alright to come occasionally to get some to take back as a side dish for rice."

"Then let's go back. We've been out for so long, I don't know how the children at home are. I don't know if my daughter will cry looking for me."

Thinking about it, she felt guilty in her heart. She had been thinking about the children at home all day today, but since they had come, they couldn't return empty-handed, or go back after doing half the work without filling many things. The boat fuel cost money for the round trip.

"Yeah, you go up first. I'll carry these and step through the water to get over."

"I'll help you..."

"No need. The reef is uneven, and some parts are easy to slip on. You just go ahead and get on the boat first. A few sacks are a bit heavy, I'll just carry them a few times, and leave those buckets for me."

"Can you do it alone? Won't it be too heavy?"

"It won't be, it's fine. You didn't fill them very full, I'll just carry them a few times."

"Then I'll watch here."

"You go to the boat first, you can help me receive the goods later."

"Alright, then I'll walk over now."

Ye Yaodong said a few words to persuade her before she got on the boat first.

Looking at the few sacks nearby, he frowned and winced, touching his shoulder. He felt the pain before he even lifted them; he was in for it.

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These shelled things were heavy and prickly. Carrying them all onto the boat, his shoulders would definitely be red.

After thinking about it, he decided to start with the lighter ones. He carried the buckets onto the boat first, and then he would carry these 4 sacks.

Lin Xiuqing watched him carry them onto the boat one by one with difficulty, thinking that if she had known, she wouldn't have dug so many. The couple dug so tiredly and carried them so laboriously, and when they got back, they would have to share some with the neighbors. She felt sorry for her man.

"It's too heavy, it's really hard to move. If I had known, I would have called Dad to come along. Are your shoulders red? Let me see."

"It's fine, it's fine now that they're moved up. We'll see when we get back. You sit and rest for a while, I'll go drive the boat."

"Alright."

Ye Yaodong shrugged his shoulders while driving the boat. After returning to the shore, he would have to carry them onto the handcart.

Fortunately, there were quite a few people on the shore. Calling a few uncles he knew to help lift them was just a matter of lending a hand, and everyone was very willing.

"Did you two go to the island to dig these shellfish when you went out to sea this morning? These aren't worth any money. It's so much effort to bring so many back. If you want to eat them, you can dig a few anytime."

"That's right. They're heavy as hell. After prying out the meat, there's only a little bit, and it's a struggle to dig them. Even my wife only goes to dig some oysters when she's free. I'm too lazy to dig for other things."

"Who says it isn't? Just let the women at home do it. Why did you go too? With this effort, you could earn quite a bit just by doing some work."

Ye Yaodong explained: "We're just looking for convenience. Everyone at home is very busy now and doesn't have time to dig on the rock walls around here every few days. It's just that there's no cargo at sea these two days, and I'm free, so I went out to get some back."

"Oh... there are quite a few fish in this bucket!"

"Did you pick these up? Oh my~ and so many dogfish?"

"They must be from the ground cage harvest, right? There's also a basket of fish, shrimp, and crabs there. These dogfish can live for over ten hours without water, so they're all still alive."

"Your ground cage harvest is quite good today. You actually caught so many dogfish?"

"Hey? There's a grouper here, a tiger grouper?"

"Damn, there's a sesame grouper in this bucket..."

"You're so lucky!"

"Holy crap, today's harvest is not bad! You don't seem to have many ground cages, do you? So many good things, you must have hit a few nets."

When Ye Yaodong returned, he had collected a few ground cages along the way. He didn't expect these people to mistake the fish in his bucket for ground cage cargo. It was a perfect misunderstanding, and he didn't explain.

"It's alright! The harvest today is okay. I haven't been out to sea for many days, and I was almost going to drink the northwest wind. With these goods today, at least I can support myself for a while."

"You're exaggerating. Even if anyone drinks the northwest wind, it won't be your turn."

"You've earned so much money, and you still say things like that."

"Sigh, didn't I just buy a shop in the city a while ago? I have to pay for it soon. Once the money is paid, how much will be left? The whole family is counting on me to earn money. It's winter now, the harvest is really poor, and it's windy every day."

"Living off the weather is like this. Going out to sea is freezing to death. If it gets colder and you catch a cold, you might just earn enough to buy medicine."

"That's unlucky..."

Seeing that everything had been moved onto the handcart, Ye Yaodong let Aqing watch it while he went to weigh the goods that could be sold.

Seeing his harvest, A-Cai teased him, "Today, among the ground cage nets and Korean nets that came back, yours has the most cargo. The remaining trawlers haven't come back yet, but I guess there won't be much."

"Just barely enough to make a living."

"You're being humble saying that. By the way, when the shop in the city needs payment, let's go together? It's company for everyone, and we're all going to the same place anyway."

"Sure, no problem."

Ye Yaodong chatted for a few sentences. After selling the goods and getting the slip, he turned around and handed it to Aqing for her to keep. He grabbed the two handles of the handcart, ready to push.

But just then, he saw A-Guang coming out, and he was followed by Haozi?

Following A-Guang again?

They saw him too and walked straight toward him.

"Dongzi, did you go out to sea today?"

"I just took your sister-in-law out to dig some shellfish. Taking advantage of the good weather these two days, I got some back to dig out and dry, so I don't have to worry about the cold wind and not having cargo when I don't go out to sea. Why are you out to pick up cargo so early? Haozi is here too!"

"I thought it was about to get windy, and I didn't know what time they would be back, so I came out early to wait, so I wouldn't come out too late and find the boat had already docked."

Haozi also said, "Hehe, I haven't been working these two days, so I went to A-Guang's place to visit. It just so happened he was out to pick up cargo, so I followed him out to help."

Ye Yaodong's mouth twitched when he heard this.

He had thought Haozi would rely on him, but he didn't expect him to choose A-Guang. Did he think A-Guang's family was richer than his, or what?

He had been going to A-Guang's house often these two days?

It was very obvious that his intentions were not good.

He aimed his eyes at A-Guang, only to see A-Guang looking helpless, but he couldn't help either; he couldn't sacrifice himself to save his friend.

"After I go back and sort out the goods inside, I'll have my mother send some over to you."

"I'll go to your place to get it after I finish picking up the cargo later. No need to have our mother make a trip. Anyway, I'm free at home except for holding the baby."

"Whatever, you handle it. Haozi, did you bring anything to carry it? I'll fill a basket for you to take back."

Haozi laughed quickly, "No need, no need. I'll go home and get a basket later and then go to your place to fill some."

"Yeah, that's fine. You guys handle it yourselves. Take your time picking up the cargo, I'll go back first."

He pushed the cart and greeted them before leaving first.

Lin Xiuqing also just smiled and greeted A-Guang, asked a few questions about Huimei and the children, and then they passed each other and left.

After there was no one around, Lin Xiuqing said, "Could it be that your friend called Haozi has been going to A-Guang's place every day these past few days?"

"Hard to say. Maybe it's because A-Guang's family has two boats, and his father earned a large sum of money back, so on the surface, their conditions are definitely better than ours. Also, he's thinking about being the boat captain for A-Guang's other boat to get some benefits, so he might be visiting more often."

"Sigh, they were good friends. If they hadn't had any conflicts, maybe he would have bought a boat too. He wouldn't have to work so hard."

"Every family has its own difficulties. His wife's family is not very good. No matter how much others help, they can't fill the bottomless pit. This matter has to be stood up by himself. I don't know how he's doing after I reminded him the day before yesterday?"

"What's wrong with his wife's family?"

Seeing her confusion, Ye Yaodong explained what happened when they met them yesterday.

"Yeah, I don't know if A-Guang agreed to let him drive the boat for a few months."

"He should have agreed, right? Otherwise, why would he go to his house again today? We'll know when A-Guang comes over later and we ask him." ===== CHAPTER 538 =====