Chapter 654: The Great Liberation Has Come

The next morning, Ye Yaodong got up and, without bothering to brush his teeth, went straight to the door to check the pile of dried fish covered by the nylon sack.

During the night he had heard his family's dog bark several times and gotten up many times, but when he opened the door and went out he saw nothing—just a pack of dogs barking wildly at one side of the outer wall.

One time they were barking at the wall of his brothers' place, another time at the neighbor's wall on the other side.

He shushed them several times before the dogs reluctantly walked to his feet, looking back every few steps, then barked loudly twice more, as if filing a complaint.

Night was the best cover. He had walked along the outer wall twice that time and seen nothing, so he gave up and went back inside.

As his reputation gradually spread, everyone in the village knew his dried fish sold well—not just the whole village, but probably the surrounding villages too.

At night his family's dogs barked more and more frequently, especially from New Year through the period after it; several nights the dogs barked fiercely.

As long as he wasn't out at sea, he often had to get up in the middle of the night to check.

So as soon as he woke up that morning, his first move was to go into the yard and check those dried fish.

Ye Ye Ersao, who had gotten up early next door to start work, saw him shifting the nylon sacks in the yard from the doorstep and said, "Last night the dogs barked pretty loud. Your Ye Erge was afraid something might happen to all those dried fish piled in the yard, so he got up uneasily to take a look. Better pile them inside the house from now on—it's safer. Leaving them out here isn't secure."

Ye Yaodong turned his head and answered, "It isn't safe. Luckily I wrapped them up tight in the nylon sacks last night. There's water all over the top of the sacks—who knows which scoundrel did it."

"You're making big money now, but your heart's too small. There are plenty of jealous people."

"Mm, I'll be more careful next time. Even if it takes some effort, I'll move them inside the house, so I can sleep soundly at night."

Last night, hearing the dogs bark in the yard, he had also been uneasy, dozing in and out of sleep on alert, afraid to fall into deep sleep in case the dogs let him down.

Luckily, several of them did their job well. Keeping a few more dogs has its perks!

Lin Lin Xiuqing heard the talking and came out of the house too, helping him gather up the nylon sacks and shaking off the pooled water on top. "There's really quite a lot of water. It's not spring yet, so there couldn't be that heavy a dew."

"One look and you can tell—some scoundrel splashed it on."

"Put them aside to dry. Don't pile things directly in the yard next time. We weigh out dried fish every two or three days, and everyone pushes over a whole cartload at a time—the neighbors can all see it. It's hard to guarantee no one gets jealous."

Ye Ye Ersao called out over the wall, "Didn't you say someone was coming to pick them up today? What time are they coming? 3,000 jin—that'll take several trips, right?"

"Not sure what time they're coming. We'll see in a bit. Anyway, everything's ready."

"Yours really does sell well. There must be quite a few people coming and going, right? Have any of the shops in the city been rented out these past two days? Have you heard anything?" Ye Ye Ersao was itching to know.

"Haven't heard anything. It's only been a few days—not even anyone asking yet."

Ye Ye Ersao replied with disappointment, then got ready to shuck oysters. These past few days it had been one thing after another—killing fish and drying them, digging shellfish and drying all kinds of shellfish meat. They were all so busy their feet barely touched the ground.

The children at home didn't have time to play after school either; they were all drafted in. Even her parents from her maiden home had been called over to help with the work.

Just like that, the seven or eight burlap sacks brought back yesterday hadn't even been sorted out yet. Right now the house still had several baskets of pickled vegetables cooked last night, plus the sea snails that hadn't been picked out and dried.

It was only because the wind had picked up these past two days and they couldn't go out to sea that they could catch their breath. Otherwise they wouldn't have dared keep going out to dig—they simply couldn't keep up. They hadn't been willing to hire help either, but luckily in this cold weather things wouldn't spoil if left for a day or two.

She thought again about what her husband had said last night: listening to A-Dong is never wrong. Whatever he's been doing these past year or two has looked pretty proper. Our family has followed him, and we've never suffered a loss—we've all made money. Even these shellfish meats nobody wanted before, we can still sell to him. We're way better off than the rest of the village.

That shop in the city must be right too. It's probably just a matter of time. The market just moved—no way it's that fast. Let's just wait slowly.

She set her heart at ease again, for the time being.

Ye Ye Ersao, busy at work, shouted toward the house, "Hurry up and eat your food, wash your bowl, and get to school. Dawdling around—useless at everything. If you really don't want to study, then don't go. Stay home and help with the work. There's a pile of jobs with no one to do them anyway."

"Really?" Ye Ye Chengjiang jumped out of the house with an army-green canvas satchel on his back, thrilled.

Ye Ye Ersao instantly flared up, snatched a stick from the pile of straw nearby and swung it at him. Luckily Ye Ye Chengjiang dodged fast…

"Ah! First thing in the morning… Ma, what are you doing…"

"What do you think I'm doing? Beat you, you useless thing. The moment you hear you don't have to study, you get that happy. Your mother works herself to the bone to put you through school, and this is how you repay me? Better to beat you to death—what's the use of giving birth to you…"

"To carry on the family line… I'm my father's only son, I have to carry on the family line…" Ye Ye Chengjiang shouted as he ran farther away.

At this moment Ye Ye Dasao was also hurrying her children to eat quickly and go to school. "Next door has only one son. I have two sons here. Beat one to death, and there's still one left!"

Ye Ye Chenghai and Ye Chenghe both lowered their heads and ate even faster…

Ye Yaodong and Lin Lin Xiuqing heard the ruckus next door but didn't even bat an eyelid. This kind of thing happened every few days—each of those kids' skins itched for a beating.

After they gathered up the nylon sacks and folded them into a corner, Ye Yaodong casually pulled open a few bags to check. All was fine, so he tied them up again with relief.

"Should be fine. We covered them all with the nylon sacks—water definitely couldn't get in. You go eat first."

"Even so, I can only feel at ease after checking. I don't know what time the truck is coming. There's no…" No mobile phone—truly inconvenient.

He swallowed that last sentence back hard.

"I'll go eat first. It probably isn't that early yet."

"Mm, the porridge isn't burning hot anymore."

"Ye Chenghu, hurry up and eat! Your older brothers and sisters are about to leave—only you are left."

"Then brother doesn't have to go…" Ye Ye Chengyang said in a childish voice nearby.

"Fine. If you skip class, the 100-point reward is canceled. From now on, even if you score 110, it won't count."

Ye Chenghu bullied the weak and feared the strong. He didn't dare shout at his father, so he just pointed his spear at the younger one. "Shut up! Even eating can't stop your mouth!"

"Where did you learn to talk like that? Copying everything adults say all day. Stop bullying your little brother. Eat fast, or in a bit you won't be able to keep up with them and will have to go alone…"

"Third Uncle~ Third Uncle~"

Before Ye Yaodong could finish speaking, he heard shouting from outside the house, and a half-grown boy burst the door open with a bang. "Third Uncle~"

"What's with the rush? What's the hurry? Did you just forget the beating your mother almost gave you? If you break my door, I'll beat you!"

"No, Third Uncle!" Ye Ye Chengjiang ran over panting, his cheeks flushed, but his eyes were sparkling. "Someone's looking for you. There's a big Da Jiefang truck at the village entrance looking for you!"

"Ah!"

Ye Yaodong joyfully put down his bowl and stood up at once. At the same time he heard the dogs barking nonstop outside the yard.

He hurried outside and saw Zhou Laoban standing at his yard gate, while a row of dogs stood facing him, barking wildly at the man at the gate.

"Whoosh~ whoosh~ No more barking—he's a guest." Ye Yaodong jogged to the yard gate.

Ye Chenghu and Ye Ye Chengyang, hearing that a big Da Jiefang truck was looking for their father, had no mind to keep eating and hurried out after him. The three boys all stared curiously at the man at the gate.

Zhou Laoban stroked the hair on one side of his chin and said with a smile, "Your village really isn't easy to find. I set out last night and arrived at the town just as it was getting light, then asked my way back the whole way. Only just now did I find the village."

"Sorry about that. I didn't think it through yesterday—otherwise I could've waited in the city, and you could've picked me up on your way back at night. That way I could've led the way. Come, let's go inside and sit for a bit, have some tea… Have you eaten breakfast? There's still porridge in the pot…"

"No need, no need. It's just dawn; we already ate when we arrived in town. When I asked for directions at the village entrance, I ran into your nephew, learned your family lives here, so I called for the Great Liberation to come over."

"That's fine. I weighed and moved out the dried fish yesterday; it's in the courtyard. Once the vehicle arrives, you can unpack and inspect it, we'll weigh it again, and then load it directly onto the truck."

"Alright, alright, then I'll go call for the Great Liberation to come in!"

Ye Chenghu excitedly grabbed Ye Ye Chengjiang. "Brother Ajiang, is it really the Great Liberation looking for my dad? That's so cool. Did you see what the Great Liberation looks like? Is it just like the one we saw by the roadside before? Huge and super cool?"

"Yes, yes. That Great Liberation is huge; it's way more imposing than a tractor. Compared to it, a tractor is like a bowl next to a washbasin."

"Really?"

"Of course. I just touched it. That big truck is so imposing. When I grow up, I want to drive a big truck too!"

Ye Yaodong: "..."

What a grand ambition?

"Why aren't you going to school yet? Still chatting here?"

Ye Ye Ersao, sitting at the doorway, overheard Ye Yaodong's conversation with Zhou Laoban, and both she and Ye Ye Dasao walked over.

"Mom, let me see the Great Liberation first before I go to school. The vehicle is about to drive in; it's about to pull up right in front of our house."

Ye Ye Chengjiang, extremely excited, stretched his neck and ran to the courtyard gate to look out.

Meanwhile, Ye Chenghu hurriedly ran next door. "I'm going to call Brother Brother Ahai and the others out to see the Great Liberation, and Stone and the others next door..."

"Brother Brother Ahai... come out quickly. A Great Liberation has come to our house to find my dad..."

"What? A Great Liberation?"

"Someone drove a Great Liberation to find my Third Uncle? Third Uncle is so amazing..."

"Third Uncle is too amazing. Where is the Great Liberation?"

A swarm of children rushed out of the house; some had slung on army-green satchels, others were still clutching books they hadn't stuffed inside yet, and they ran out in a hurry.