Chapter 656: I Want to Be the Boss

After spot-checking a few bags with no issues, they began weighing, recording the weight, and loading the weighed bags straight onto the big Da Jiefang, until they had weighed out 3,000 jin.

The villagers kept going back and forth between the big Da Jiefang and the courtyard, their chatter growing more and more lively.

The children ran and jumped about, as excited as if it were New Year.

"If only we could climb up and sit on it, that would be even better!"

"Yeah, if only we could go up and sit on it, that would be even better."

"We can't, right? If we just climbed up, our mom would get angry and hit us."

"Yeah, we can't climb, we can only look and touch…"

"We can just ask Third Uncle! Ask Third Uncle if we can go up. If Third Uncle says it's okay, then Mom definitely can't hit us!"

"Then… let's ask Third Uncle?"

"Let's go… let's go…"

"Make way… make way…"

The children were acting on every whim that popped into their heads. They had looked enough and touched enough, and now they wanted to climb up and try it out. After a quick discussion, they hurried back toward the courtyard gate, but the crowd gathered at the gate watching the excitement was too thick.

The little ones pushed and shoved their way through the crowd, shouting for people to let them through.

Just as more dried fish was about to be carried out, the villagers automatically opened a gap. A group of children rushed in, only to crash right into Ye Ye Yaopeng, who was helping carry the dried fish.

A whole sack of dried fish nearly slipped off his shoulder, which made the adults instantly furious.

"You're everywhere—get out of here and go play. Stop getting in the way here, or once my hands are free, I'll give every single one of you a beating."

"We didn't do it on purpose…"

Ye Ye Dasao and Ye Ye Ersao, watching from the side, quickly grabbed their own children's clothes and hauled them aside, scolding them as well.

"We weren't causing trouble, we just wanted to ask Third Uncle if we could sit on top of the big Da Jiefang."

"You want to fly up to the sky? Letting you touch it is already plenty good. Don't go acting on every whim here causing trouble and getting in the way. Hurry up and go to school. If you're late again, you'll have to stand as punishment."

Ye Yaodong paid them no attention at all. They deserved the scolding! They deserved the beating!

This wasn't his vehicle—if it were, he'd put them all up there and take them for a spin around.

Ye Ye Ersao also shooed the children outside. "What's it got to do with you? All of you, get out of here, go to school. You've looked, you've touched. If you're late, you'll have to stand as punishment and be laughed at."

The children were still reluctant to leave. After being chased out, they lingered outside, still circling the big Da Jiefang, touching it everywhere.

Seeing them hauling things back and forth, the villagers seized the chance to ask the two brothers Ye Ye Yaopeng and Ye Ye Yaohua, "Are you going to fill up the whole truck? How much is that going to be?"

"Adong's really done well for himself—selling dried fish and they even sent a big Da Jiefang to haul it…"

"Several thousand jin, right?"

Ye Ye Yaopeng, who had also worked up a sweat hauling things, took off his padded cotton jacket and answered in passing, "We're loading 3,000 jin."

"My goodness, that's a lot. No wonder the courtyard's piled up like a little hill. Weighing all that must take ages."

"Yeah, selling 3,000 jin in one go—how much money does that make? Several hundred, right?"

"Getting rich again…"

"Such good fortune…"

"This is way better than fishing…"

The two brothers chuckled sheepishly and walked into the courtyard together without saying more.

The neighbor Zhou brothers also pulled them aside. "Need a hand? We can help you haul it. We're free anyway."

"No need, no need, we can carry it ourselves. My dad's helping too—every man in the family."

"It's nothing, everyone lend a hand. It'll go faster, share the load, easier on everyone. Otherwise we're just standing around watching anyway."

Saying that, they went in on their own to help carry things.

Ye Yaodong's few friends also arrived late, all squeezing in to help. The courtyard was packed with people—more workers than goods.

Even Zhou Laoban couldn't help saying, "You've got pretty good connections, huh? In no time at all, a whole crowd shows up fighting to do your work."

Ye Yaodong laughed. "Doesn't everyone have a few friends? A few good neighbors? That's just how it is in the countryside—everyone's simple and warm-hearted. When something really needs doing, no one has to be asked; everyone comes over to lend a hand."

"That's true enough. How much have you weighed so far? There aren't many bags left. Let me calculate the weight first and see if it's enough…"

"Heh, I checked it all in advance yesterday, weighed it once. That's why it's all piled in the courtyard. What's in the courtyard is exactly 3,000 jin."

"Ah, why didn't you say so earlier? If you'd said so, we wouldn't have had to weigh it—just load everything onto the truck."

That was just polite talk; no one took it seriously. The other party was being courteous—how could he really take it at face value?

Anyone who bought this much stuff and spent a thousand-something yuan would want to inspect it first and check the scales, right?

If you just took whatever the other person said at face value, what if the weight was short?

"How could that work? Inspection is needed, weighing is needed. That way you're at ease, and I'm at ease. We're not doing a one-time deal."

"Alright, then weigh those few bags. Let me calculate the weight—it should be about right."

Ye Yaodong nodded and turned to Lin Lin Xiuqing. "Go inside and bring out that small basket of dried clam meat."

"Okay."

Lin Lin Xiuqing moved quickly, going and returning in no time, and handed a basket of dried clam meat to Zhou Laoban, smiling as she said, "This is sun-dried by our family. Once the clams are cooked and open, we dig the meat out and dry it—it's easier to preserve that way. Zhou Laoban, take it back and try it. Whether you make soup or stir-fry it with celery, it's quite fragrant."

"Grab a handful and toss it in when cooking noodles—also good, very fresh. We're coastal people, we don't have much else, but we've got plenty of all kinds of shellfish and fish, all very fresh," Ye Yaodong added.

"Adong said to thank you. Otherwise, if we sold it retail, 3,000 jin wouldn't have sold that fast. We don't have much to offer—just a little dried goods we made ourselves."

"You're too kind, too kind," Zhou Laoban said with a smile, taking the basket. "The inland areas don't have seafood, so having these dried goods is nice. I'll try them first. If they're good, I'll ask you to sell me some more later."

There are no fools in business—everyone's sharp and quick on the uptake.

Ye Yaodong also smiled and agreed. "Whether you buy or not doesn't matter—let's just be friends. There isn't much of this clam meat either; it takes several hundred jin to sun-dry out that little bit. If you want a large quantity, we don't have it."

"Heh, we'll see, we'll see."

Many hands make light work—every one of them a strong laborer, and 3,000 jin of dried fish wasn't even enough for them to carry.

The only slow part was the weighing; otherwise, everything would have been loaded onto the truck long ago.

After Zhou Laoban and everyone else finished weighing and double-checked, the total was 3,000 jin, not a single jin less, so he very straightforwardly settled the account immediately.

The villagers at the gate watched him pull out a large stack of "Great Unity" banknotes from his leather briefcase, their eyes going straight.

"My goodness, he really is a big boss..."

"Just casually pulling out a pile of Great Unity notes..."

"Tsk tsk tsk, anyone who can afford a Great Liberation truck must be a big boss; even thinking with your butt tells you that."

"How much is that big handful of money? Probably a thousand or so yuan?"

"3,000 jin, Adong's capital must be quite substantial too?"

"He has his own trawl nets too, so he must be able to earn even more..."

Ye Yaodong took the large stack of Great Unity notes, didn't even blink, dipped his thumb in saliva, and started counting them one by one with a rustling sound.

After confirming there were no issues, he even tapped his palm.

"Thank you, Zhou Laoban. Meeting a benefactor like you is also my good fortune."

"Oh no, oh no, we all share the profits. Is the amount correct?"

"No problem, everything matches."

"Alright then, since I'm in a hurry, I'll be off first."

"Good, good, good. Seeing you in such a rush, I won't delay your money-making. Come back next time you have a chance, and I'll keep you for a meal at my house."

"Alright."

The two walked out while talking, and the large group in the courtyard followed behind them in a grand procession.

The villagers at the gate who had been stretching their necks to watch the spectacle saw them coming out and automatically made way, clearing a path.

Zhou Laoban walked to the rear of the truck first to check how the cargo was stacked; a truck driver was up there directing the stacking, and the dried fish were piled quite neatly.

Ye Yaodong saw that inside there were sacks of dried fish plus other goods, and there was still a little empty space outside; not knowing if they were going to pick up more cargo, he tentatively asked a question.

"Zhou Laoban, I see there's still space on the truck. Do you want to weigh a bit more and load it? Since you're making the trip anyway, and it costs so much in fuel and labor, loading a bit more until it's completely full is more cost-effective."

"No, we have to go to other places to pick up cargo in a while."

"Oh, is that so? Then forget it. I was just worried about the empty space being wasted."

Zhou Laoban nodded, then signaled the driver to cover it well with the oilcloth and tie it down tightly.

Ye Chenghu quietly walked up beside Ye Yaodong. "Dad, is the Great Liberation leaving?"

"Yes, the cargo is loaded, and we're leaving."

"Then when will it come back next time?"

"I don't know that. You kids go to school quickly; you're going to be late."

Ye Chenghu looked at the big truck with longing, reluctant to part. "I'll wait until the truck leaves before I go to school."

The children watching the spectacle nearby also gathered around, all very reluctant.

"Leaving so soon?"

"I haven't even had enough of looking..."

"When I grow up, I want to drive a Great Liberation!"

"I want to too, I want to too..."

"I want to too, it's so impressive."

"I don't want to, I want to be a boss! A boss is even more impressive!" Ye Ye Chengyang shouted in his baby voice.

His baby voice mixed in with a pile of childish chatter, sounding particularly funny.

Ye Yaodong laughed heartily, patting his youngest son's head. "Good boy, you have a future!"

Zhou Laoban also laughed and said, "Haha, indeed, this little one of yours is the smartest."

Hearing the praise and seeing everyone looking at him, Ye Ye Chengyang suddenly became shy; his face turned red, and he buried his head directly into Lin Lin Xiuqing's legs.

Lin Lin Xiuqing also chuckled and patted his small head. "You even know what a boss is?"

Ye Ye Chengyang was too shy to make a sound and hugged her thigh tightly.