Chapter 66: Can

The two of them laughed and chatted as they returned home.

Mei Yueqin went home first, and Wu Ping went to return the car.

Lao Meng opened the door, saw Wu Ping's smiling face, and said, "Looks like this trip back to your mother's family brought good news."

Wu Ping replied, "Nothing much."

"I'm glad this time I didn't have to rely on Yueqin's mother's family for help."

Lao Meng nodded, "That's good."

The Wu family's days were clearly getting better.

Wu Ping said cheerfully, "I never expected that one day I could bask in A An's light. When I used to leave Yueqin's mother's house, I kept my head down; today, I walk with my head held high."

Lao Meng said, "A An has changed a lot; he's busy every day, but it's not pointless busywork. I heard the eldest son of the Lao Mao family is also busy by the sea every day, yet gets nothing done."

Wu Ping said, "That's hard to explain."

"A An probably has the protection of Goddess Mazu."

"Yueqin is still planning to go make an offering on the first and fifteenth of the lunar month."

"Uncle, I'll head back first; there's still work at home."

He returned home.

Mei Yueqin was sweeping the floor when Wu Ping quickly snatched the broom; just as Mei Yueqin went to take a sip of water, she heard Duan Dajie shouting at the doorway, "Yueqin, want to go chase the sea?"

Mei Yueqin asked, "Duan Dajie, is there a good place to go?"

Duan Dajie replied, "I heard that today the Rocky Beach on the east side of the pier has many Spicy Snails and Sea snails; let's go have a look."

"If you're going, hurry up; don't dawdle. I heard many people have already gone."

Mei Yueqin suddenly understood why Duan Dajie called her; it was because the east side of the pier is near the neighboring village, where conflicts with its villagers often arise.

If we have more of our own people there, any clash would have mutual support.

"I'm coming," she answered, quickly lifted the bucket, tossed the shovel, tongs, rake and other tools into it, and walked out carrying it.

Wu Ping still wanted to follow.

Mei Yueqin said, "Don't go."

"You can't chase the sea many times a year; don't keep getting bruised and hurt."

"You still have to prepare lessons and teaching materials; tend to your own work."

"By the way, don't forget to go to Lao Wu to check the situation. Father said to go today, but I'm still uneasy."

Wu Ping replied, "Got it, I'm going right now."

He could focus solely on teaching, thanks to Mei Yueqin's understanding and support.

Thinking of that, he couldn't help but sigh.

But even now he doesn't have any official posting; he's heard that many privately run teachers in the same situation can no longer teach.

If he can't teach, he truly doesn't know what else he could do.

……

Wu An woke up; there were already many people heading to the sea, and it was just past four in the afternoon. Turning his head, he saw A Qing still sound asleep.

His sleeping posture was ungraceful, and he didn't know what he was dreaming about; he was propping up the tent, so Wu An quickly tossed his straw hat over.

In the past, the young wives or aunties rarely looked this way often.

A Qing groggily woke up and asked, "Brother, are we still going fishing later?"

Wu An shook his head.

The dog system insisted he take a day off today.

Fishing is no longer possible, so… he plans to go chase the sea.

The two of them carried the bucket toward the shore; the villagers they met greeted them, and the previous atmosphere of people disliking dogs and avoiding them was gone.

But after passing by, those people still couldn't help but mutter a few words behind their backs.

There were compliments as well as harsh words.

They said he was a scoundrel, that he made some money but didn't know how to handle it, that he was cleaning up the old house, and that it was all nonsense.

Wu An's mood was rather complicated.

Now everyone knows he's working and earning money; his reputation has improved a lot. Honestly, he's quite pleased, at least some people won't blame his father anymore.

But listening to the gossip, the undertone was envy and jealousy, which also showed that he'd been too conspicuous lately; he should have kept a low profile while getting rich, yet the whole village now knows he's made money.

No wonder he's drawing jealous looks.

A Qing asked, "Brother, where are we going?"

Wu An looked left and right; he didn't want to go toward the Mudflat, as he was still waiting for the Green Crab migration and didn't want to divert flow to the Mudflat.

He heard Lao Jiang and Lao Xie say that fewer villagers now go to the Mudflat to chase the sea, which is definitely good news for him.

The fewer villagers go to the Mudflat, the more he can monopolize the opportunity when the Green Crab migration comes.

While hesitating, a shout came from behind, "Second son, A Qing."

It was his sister‑in‑law.

Wu An quickly turned around and waved a greeting.

Mei Yueqin asked, "Is this to chase the sea?"

Wu An nodded, "Sister‑in‑law, you and brother have already gone back to your mother's home, why aren't you staying a night?"

Mei Yueqin shook her head, "Not staying; that would be too troublesome."

"Anyway it's not far; we can borrow Uncle Meng's car and go back."

Wu An thought, nowadays every household has a car, many have sedans, but his family only has two bicycles—truly shabby.

A fishing boat can't be bought quickly; he plans to purchase a car as soon as he has spare money.

He can use it to transport seafood, and normally it can also let his brother and sister‑in‑law and Father get around.

Duan Dajie called out, "Don't just stand and chat."

"Let's talk while we walk."

Wu An asked, "Is this going to the east side of the dock to harvest seafood?"

Mei Yueqin said, "Duan Dajie said they found many Spicy Snails and Sea snails over there."

"Are you going?"

Duan Dajie suddenly asked, "A An, don't you have a better place to go?"

Wu An shook his head.

Duan Dajie pursed her lips, "I think you're just hiding it."

"I heard that lately everyone's getting little on the mudflats, and they've only found a few green crabs and Crab Tigers in total; do you have a secret base?"

"And there's Zhen Dong Shuizha; those who went fishing came back cursing, saying they fished for half a day and only caught a sea carp."

"It still isn't enough to cover the fuel costs from before."

A Qing grinned broadly with delight.

He muttered inwardly at these trend‑followers, "Serves you right; who do you think is my brother?"

Wu An, however, felt a sudden thought; the big fellow stared at him, wanting to get rich with him.

He could also go the opposite way.

He has luck as a boon, and no matter where he goes he'll definitely get a catch.

You're milking me, so today I'll milk you back.

He hurried to catch up, saying, "I haven't gone to harvest seafood for several days."

"There's nothing good to go to, so I'll go with you to the east side of the dock to take a look."

Duan Dajie didn't say much; after all, there are only Spicy Snails and Sea snails over there, nothing worth selling, so if Wu An is willing to follow, he can.

It's better with more people.

The group walked toward the dock, and Mei Yueqin asked about the repair situation of Lao Wu.

Wu An gave a brief reply, saying there wasn't much to say; the repair of Lao Wu was fairly simple, just fixing the roof and the doors and windows.

Mei Yueqin asked again, "Since there's nothing, why aren't you fishing today?"

Wu An shook his head, "The fish bite isn't good."

Duan Dajie interjected, "That's normal; you can't have good luck every day."

"Maybe, you've already passed the Newbie Halo, so you won't have that kind of luck anymore."

"You're still young; you still need to make more plans, you can't just go sea‑harvesting with us women every day, can you?"