Chapter 182: Even at night, there's no rest

After finishing the meal, the family sat under the arbor drinking tea and eating fruit, then chatted a while about household matters.

Elder brother Wu Ping was grading students' homework, while his sister-in-law was applying a face mask in front of the mirror, and she also put one on Father.

Wu An didn't escape either.

He felt this was probably happiness.

Simple and stable.

After applying the face mask, Wu An saw it was getting late; actually, after saying hello, he returned to the old house.

The old house was pitch dark.

From the nearby beach came the sound of waves washing ashore; a crescent moon hung high in the sky, this scenery wasn't particularly beautiful, rather it felt somewhat desolate.

Wu An wasn't that sentimental, but he also felt a bit lonely.

But he also didn't want to stay at home.

On the one hand, having moved out to live, for some reason he didn't really want to move back.

On the other hand.

The old house at home wasn't very soundproof.

It was better to stay at the old house.

Living alone, aside from being a little lonely, was also quiet, and it was convenient to do whatever he wanted.

A creak.

He opened the door.

He turned on the light.

First thing catching his eye was a plate of cactus on the table; the cactus wasn't big, it was a piece cut from Gu Anran's home.

It had grown quite well now.

It looked like several fingers stuck in the soil, and one of the larger ones had even bloomed.

Small flowers dotted the stem tops, extremely cute.

Wu An looked at it, suddenly cracked a smile, sat down to look at the cactus flower, and didn't feel lonely anymore.

After looking at the little flower for a while, he washed up, lay down, and began planning tomorrow's affairs.

Yesterday he earned over ten thousand at the water-pumping pit; adding the money he already had, it totaled twenty thousand. He ate at Qin Zong's restaurant, plus the membership card fees, and today's purchases and camera equipment, now he doesn't even have ten thousand left.

Outside, the Chen Family owed 40,000 in compensation; that sum is definitely to be reclaimed.

But in the short term, it's probably difficult.

He temporarily doesn't have time to wrangle with the Chen Family; he needs to go out to sea by boat, quickly get familiar, so that after heading out to sea he won't be flustered.

And Lin Hu...

Now this debt has been transferred to him; he also needs to consider how much money would be appropriate.

Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated in a hundred battles.

Then he needs to know how much money Lin Hu has.

But there's no rush.

Anyway, the initiative is in his hands.

He plans to go farther tomorrow, as far as possible while still able to make a round trip in a day, mainly to familiarize himself with the sea area.

His knowledge of the sea can't be said to be nonexistent, but it's pitifully little.

Wu An pondered, feeling drowsy.

He hurriedly set the alarm, turned over, and fell into a deep sleep.

……

Wu An slept soundly.

But someone just couldn't fall asleep no matter what.

That night, Wu An inevitably became the focus of village gossip; at his young age, relying on himself to buy a fishing boat and return was truly remarkable.

What's more rare is that Wu An used to be a good-for-nothing despised by everyone; they say a prodigal son's return is worth more than gold, yet this prodigal son keeps bringing gold back home.

Late at night.

A sneaky figure came to the dock.

"Who?"

An angry shout came from where the fishing boat was moored; immediately two figures walked into the light, and seeing it was Lin Hu, Wu Yingwei and Chen Gui, their expressions differed greatly.

Wu Yingwei, who had been drinking, had a flushed face and eyes like knives.

Chen Gui wore a playful smile, squinting as he sized up Lin Hu.

Lin Hu hurriedly explained: "I'm not here to cause trouble."

"I... I just couldn't sleep."

"Just taking a stroll."

Chen Gui snorted; that was even worse than not explaining.

Wu Yingwei said: "A An installed a camera on the boat."

Lin Hu gave an embarrassed laugh: "Uncle Yingwei, what are you talking about? Whether or not there's a camera has nothing to do with me; I already know I was wrong."

Wu Yingwei said in an unfriendly tone: "You'd better know you were wrong; not just know it, but also change."

Chen Gui suddenly reminded: "The most important thing is not to forget to pay compensation."

"Now A An bought a fishing boat; you have to pay him."

"Have you figured out how much?"

Upon hearing this, Lin Hu couldn't even force a fake smile; he hurriedly slipped away, saying: "A An has been busy all day; we haven't had a chance to talk yet."

As he spoke, he had already started walking; if he weren't afraid of looking too guilty, he would have started running.

This time he truly felt wronged.

He's not stupid either.

Even if he wanted to cause trouble, it couldn't be done like this.

"Wu Yingwei actually came to guard the fishing boat; him guarding is fine, but what's that old guy Chen Gui doing, stirring up trouble?"

After walking far away, Lin Hu started cursing angrily.

"Damn it."

"Pay compensation?"

"I'll pay fuck all!"

"I couldn't possibly pay a single cent."

……

Seeing Lin Hu fleeing in defeat, Wu Yingwei's face darkened further, while Chen Gui couldn't help laughing; seeing Lin Hu still wanting to cause trouble, he felt relieved.

Wu Yingwei glanced at Chen Gui: "What are you doing at the dock in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Chen Gui coughed: "I'm just on patrol."

"……" Wu Yingwei said nothing, just stared at him with a piercing gaze, then said, "You guess whether I believe you."

Chen Gui didn't argue about explaining; whether you believe it or not, he asked: "How did you come to the dock? Are you here to stand guard because you're worried someone will mess with your son's fishing boat?"

Wu Yingwei said: "I just came to take a look."

He had drunk some alcohol but wasn't drunk yet, feeling uneasy inside, so he went out for a walk; walking and walking, he ended up at the dock, thinking it was a good chance to see the fishing boat Wu An had bought.

As a result, upon approaching, he saw Chen Gui.

Right after that, he saw Lin Hu.

Tonight turned out to be quite lively.

Wu Yingwei felt a bit annoyed; he didn't understand why everyone kept staring at his second son, when A An was already keeping a low profile.

In terms of conduct, he's also improved a lot compared to before.

To be frank, he thinks Wu An is doing better than he is.

Speaking of the past, everyone looked down on Wu An because he behaved poorly; as his father, he also had nothing to say, and still had to bear the responsibility of "father's fault for not teaching his son."

But now……

What do you all mean?

You're bullying good people, right?

The more Wu Yingwei thought about it, the angrier he got; did they really treat him as mere decoration?

He didn't take the cigarette Chen Gui offered, saying: "Aren't you leaving yet?"

Chen Gui sullenly put away the cigarette: "Going, going, we're leaving now; aren't you leaving?"

Wu Yingwei said coldly: "I'm not reassured."

"You did give me a heads-up."

"I intend to stand guard here."

Chen Gui, at a loss for words after being rebutted, thought, "You might as well have just said you're guarding against me," shook his head, and walked away.

He returned home.

He closed the door.

He locked the windows.

He took out his phone and made a call.

"I went to the dock."

"I hadn't even boarded when Wu Yingwei spotted me."

"Although I didn't board, I saw something covered with a plastic sheet beside the boat's canopy."

"Hidden so securely, it must be something illicit."

"I guess it's exactly what you mentioned—the crab pot, longline fishing, etc.; since you heard from the boss that Wu An had secured it, it definitely hasn't run away."

"Fine, fine, I know what to do."

"……"

He put down his phone.

Chen Gui sighed; Wu Yingwei was guarding against him, and indeed he had guessed right.