Chapter 95: Shallow Waters, Many Turtles

Wu An spoke, pushed the door and came in.

Wu Yingwei said, "Why shout so loudly? Are you afraid others can't hear?"

Wu An laughed, "The lights are off on both sides; at this hour there are still many people going to the sea."

Duan Dajie must not be home, so he dared to speak so unabashedly.

After speaking, he turned and locked the door.

Wu Ping and A Qing walked over, looked at a pile of Butter Crab, and were instantly overjoyed.

The more they looked, the happier they became.

This is all money.

Wu Ping said, "No wonder it's so expensive; it's golden, looks delicious just by looking."

Wu An said, "Steamed, it looks even better."

Wu Ping shook his head, "How can we eat this? It's too pricey; eating the meat hurts."

The others also shook their heads.

Such a big crab, each costs a few thousand bucks; taking a bite is like a red banknote.

Even if they caught it themselves, they still feel they can't afford it.

Wu An watched everyone's reaction, and suddenly recalled an old saying: "Those who sell salt drink thin broth; those who weave mats sleep on bright beds."

He crouched, picked and gathered a few smaller, leaner Butter Crabs.

"A An, stop picking."

"Just sell them all."

"Right, we have green crab to eat today; actually I think the taste should be about the same."

Everyone urged him.

Wu An said, "I don't care what you think; I care what I think."

"This matter doesn't need discussion; listen to me."

"I'm the one who decides."

Overbearing.

Quite overbearing.

The Yellow Sect Leader's famous saying, still very effective, a few words silenced everyone.

Wu An finished speaking, amused himself, and left everyone looking at him in baffling confusion.

What's there to be amused about?

Wu An said, "This one has a broken claw; Boss Gao says the most important thing about Butter Crab is its wholeness—if it's not whole, the price drops dramatically."

"Selling it is still not as good as us eating it ourselves."

Wu Ping, suspicious, "You didn't just secretly snap it off earlier, did you?"

Wu An glared, "Brother, I'm the type who…"

Damn.

These past days, being overly diligent, he almost forgot that he once truly was that kind of person.

He is willing to eat.

First green crabs, now Butter Crabs; if sold, he estimates he'll have a few hundred thousand in hand.

He didn't say much, but said quite a lot.

If he used this money to splurge, to eat Butter Crabs costing a few thousand each at a restaurant, he might be reluctant.

But these Butter Crabs were all caught by themselves; regarding cost, it's just their labor and time.

Roughly zero.

Then what's there to be reluctant to eat?

It's not like they were previously owing high‑interest loans, strapped for cash; now it's just a few thousand less.

He's not being frivolous.

It's just that his mindset has truly changed.

Everyone still urged him.

Wu An directly used his trump card: "We'll just have two or three Butter Crabs to eat."

"I'm not doing this for myself, but for Dad and Uncle Meng."

"They're older now; each meal they skip is one less meal."

"Now that we have the chance, we must let them try."

Hearing him say that, the brother and sister‑in‑law fell silent.

With that reason given, they had nothing to say.

Wu Yingwei snorted coldly, Lao Meng grinned, saying, "Fine, we'll listen to A An."

Though they knew Wu An was making an excuse, it still made him feel comfortable inside.

Wu Yingwei called, "Then let's eat first; the dishes are already ready."

Wu An said, "No rush; let's sort first."

"Boss Gao is already on his way, and just like at noon, we'll meet at Mazu Temple."

"Sell them for money, then come back to eat later, it's not late."

"Having no appetite for food and drink feels comfortable."

Everyone nodded; that makes sense.

Butter Crabs are too pricey to delay; mainly, everyone is curious how much they can sell for.

With this on his mind, he definitely couldn't eat his meal in peace.

Everyone pitched in to sort them.

Soon they had sorted out several grades, no longer putting them in the snake‑skin bag; Lao Meng went home and fetched several plastic boxes.

They placed the butter crabs one by one, not daring to press them down, and finally covered them with a plastic sheet.

Mei Yueqin urged, "Ride slowly."

Wu An acknowledged, still he rode the bike while A Qing followed, escorting the load.

They arrived at the Mazu Temple.

In the distance they saw several red dots flickering in the dark; a closer look showed Boss Gao and a few of his men smoking.

A Jin called out, "A vehicle is coming!"

"'Is that Brother An?'"

"'Boss, it's Brother An.'"

"'Here it comes, here it comes.'"

Gao Qiangqi and a few of his lackeys hurried forward to greet them.

Gao Qiangqi didn't stop to greet them; before Wu An could bring the bike to a halt, he grabbed the plastic sheet and said, "Let me take a look."

Wu An hit the brakes.

A Jin called out, "Brother An, you finally made it; if you hadn't, my boss would have been frantic and gone straight to the village to look for you."

Gao Qiangqi picked up a butter crab, and A Jin quickly shone a flashlight to help.

Gao Qiangqi exclaimed excitedly, "It's butter crab!"

Holy shit, it's still the first haul!

Wu An asked curiously, "Is there still a difference?"

Gao Qiangqi replied, "Definitely."

Gao Qiangqi said, "Look, even the joints of this one are yellow‑clear; this is top‑grade."

He added, "It can fetch 2000 per catty!"

He continued, "That's second‑hand butter crab; there's also third‑hand, which isn't as pricey—about 1000 to 1500 per catty."

A Jin stared at the cartload of butter crabs, sucked in a breath, and exclaimed, "Terrifying, terrifying!"

Wu An froze.

He then burst out laughing; A Jin must be a novel fan—Dou Po Cang Qiong is already hot, and this "terrifying, terrifying" meme has surfaced.

The other lackeys and helpers were equally stunned.

"'I've been in this business for over ten years and have never seen so many butter crabs.'"

"'Who says otherwise? The uninformed would assume these are farmed.'"

"'Other things might be possible, but butter crab is only found wild.'"

"'I've heard that people are already researching how to farm butter crab.'"

They whispered among themselves.

Gao Qiangqi's eyes flickered as he said, "Ah, tell me the truth, old brother—are you secretly farming butter crab?"

Wu An laughed helplessly: "Old brother, do you think that's possible?"

"'I don't have that ability.'"

"'These are all I caught by foraging at the shore.'"

Gao Qiangqi, cigarette in hand, said, "Then your luck is pretty heaven‑defying."

"'With this many butter crabs, I daren't even imagine the uproar it would cause on the market.'"

"'Whether my business can grow big might well hinge on you.'"

Wu An demurred: "You flatter me, you flatter me."

Gao Qiangqi said, "I'm not exaggerating."

"'I'm not hiding it from you—I'll definitely drum up publicity, and when the time comes…'"

Wu An quickly shouted, "Old brother, handle your own publicity—don't drag me into it."

"'You know, I don't want to be famous.'"

"'Living in the village with shallow waters and plenty of turtles, I need to make money quietly—now is not the time for high profile.'"

Gao Qiangqi paused, gave a thumbs‑up, and said, "A An, among young people you're quite different."

"'Alright, then this chance to make a name—old brother will take it all.'"

"'First‑hand crabs at 2000 per catty, and the rest—second‑ or third‑hand—at 1500 per catty; just consider it old brother's compensation.'"

Wu An was pleased, smiling and nodding.

He didn't want fame, thinking it brings neither joy nor benefit—only envy and perhaps a horde of relatives coming to borrow money and mooch.

As a result, Gao Qiangqi, feeling guilty, ended up giving him tangible benefits.

This too could be seen as an unexpected blessing.