Chapter 244: Fish

Yang Qing was startled awake and happened to see Chen Feng dozing off.

He sat up, put his overcoat on Chen Feng, then opened the tent door.

Three women entered in single file.

Chen Feng only then noticed someone had come.

Yang Qing gave him a push.

"Go to sleep."

Chen Feng rolled over to the spot where Yang Qing had just been sleeping.

Without even taking the time to greet the three widows, he flopped over and fell asleep.

Yang Qing put on good bait, then looked at the three women who were as curious as babies.

"Do you want some hot water?"

"Put the kettle on the stove; in a moment it will be hot."

"Working with your own hands brings plenty of food and clothing," Yang Qing said, yet he himself didn't move, gesturing for them to help themselves.

"Yang Qing, this place is quite warm; what are you burning in the stove, charcoal?"

Yang Qing pulled a fish out of the water before speaking.

"Charcoal and coal."

"They're what we've saved up year after year."

"Add some reeds to burn with it; we go through five or six catties a night."

"Going to collect some coal nuggets would also work."

"Although the stove is small, being made of iron, it dissipates heat well and raises temperature quickly."

"Plus there's a section of chimney, which absorbs heat quite well."

Gu Ning was full of envy.

"Brother Qing, I also want to get a set made, okay?"

Yang Qing didn't care.

"Then let's get a set; it'll be much more comfortable in winter."

Gu Ning seized the opportunity.

"Then please go to the trouble of helping make a set."

Yang Qing nodded helplessly.

"You could have someone else make it; waiting for me to make it for you, who knows when that'll be."

"Chen Hong's child is my whole life, but I also have to attend to street office matters; maybe I won't have much time."

Gu Ning felt a bit disappointed, but Yang Qing was indeed busy, so she didn't feel right continuing to pester him.

She looked at Qin Huairu and Liang Ladi.

"Do you want to prepare a set?"

Liang Ladi and Qin Huairu shook their heads.

"The stuff is good, but we have no use for it; how many times a year could we actually use it?"

"Normally we still have to go to work, and we deal with machines; a slip-up could be a big deal."

"Better you make it; we'll join in when we get a chance."

Gu Ning snorted.

"These years we've been trading industrial coupons and making a fair bit; why bother saving?"

"Coming out to fish once earns it back."

"Let's get a set; Friday and Saturday nights you can come over to fish."

With Gu Ning's persuasion, Qin Huairu and Liang Ladi couldn't resist her urging and also agreed to get a set made.

At that moment, the water in the kettle was already hot; the three of them faced the spout and each took a few sips.

As the hot water entered their mouths, their whole bodies felt a wave of warmth.

Their bodies began to feel a little languid.

Their eyelids also started to droop.

Yang Qing saw this.

"You can nap a bit; in half an hour I'll call you."

The three were utterly exhausted; hearing Yang Qing's words, they huddled together and slowly fell asleep.

Yang Qing saw they were asleep and also breathed a sigh of relief.

It was really that the three of them, chattering away, delayed his fishing.

Chen Feng, being a novice, didn't catch many—about the same as Qin Huairu, twenty-odd.

To others that would be a lot, but to Yang Qing it was too few.

He not only had to give fish to others, but also needed to earn some money for his mother-in-law to take back.

Too few fish won't do.

After more than half an hour, the three women who had been woken saw nothing less than a small mountain of fish, at least thirty-odd.

As they were being woken, Yang Qing pulled out another fish.

The women who had been sleepy and unwilling to move instantly perked up.

Money, ah, it's just petty cash.

They immediately roused themselves, then took a few gulps from the kettle and went back to work.

As soon as they returned to their fishing spots, a chill made them shiver.

If they haven't enjoyed it, it's fine, but after they have enjoyed Yang Qing's tent, their wild snow nests become somewhat hard to accept.

We need to get a full set, we must get a full set.

Time began to slowly pass, and the sky grew darker and darker.

Yang Qing left the tent, looked at the stars, and knew it was time to go.

He shook Chen Feng awake.

When Chen Feng opened his eyes, what he saw was a small hill of fifty or sixty fish piled up.

"Wow, that many?"

Yang Qing handed him a sack.

"Hurry up, pack them, we're going back."

"Ah, we have to leave again?"

"Brother-in-law, can I keep fishing here? If you bring me some coal, I can roast sweet potatoes and potatoes to eat."

Yang Qing shook his head.

"No, catching a few fish is fine, but catching dozens will easily arouse others' jealousy."

"After all, this amounts to a suspicion of encroaching on collective property."

"You're about to take the college entrance exam; don't lose the big picture over small things."

Chen Feng had no choice but to compromise.

"Because of this, in their village it's the same: catching a few is fine, but if you keep catching endlessly, large amounts become a problem."

While Yang Qing was talking to him, he had already put out the stove.

Now he has started taking down the tent.

Chen Feng grabbed the sack, and he threw the fish in one by one.

Soon the sack was full, with a dozen or so fish left on the ground.

Yang Qing then produced another small sack and handed it to him.

After he finished tidying up,

Yang Qing had already rolled up the tent and put it away.

The commotion over at Yang Qing's place quickly startled the three women.

Seeing Yang Qing start to pack up, they didn't hesitate and quickly began packing up as well.

Finally, they covered the fire with snow to put it out, dragged their sacks, and came to Yang Qing's place.

At that moment, Yang Qing also shouldered his bundle, he dragged a small sack, and Chen Feng dragged a large sack.

The five of them, dragging their catch, headed toward the main compound.

This time they didn't go through the front gate but came to the back door.

They slipped in through the back door and quietly returned home.

After arriving home, Yang Qing threw the fish into the prepared icebox (a Northeastern outdoor icebox: a hole dug in ice, things placed inside for cold storage), tidied up a bit, and then crawled into bed.

Chen Feng experienced the feeling of night fishing, feeling as if his body had been hollowed out in the northeast.

"Brother-in-law, night fishing like this is utterly exhausting."

Yang Qing gave a hehe laugh.

"You don't still not want to come back, do you?"

Chen Feng.

"Brother-in-law, I'm sore all over."

"Go to sleep; after a night's rest you'll be fine."

Sleeping on the hard ground inside the tent? That would be a miracle if it felt better.

After dawn, Qin Huairu picked up a sack and went to the steel mill.

Liang Ladi also had a sack tied to her rear seat.

San Da Ye, they all smelled the fishy odor.

He thought of something, then walked toward Gu Ning's home.

Gu Ning hasn't gotten up yet; it's her father-in-law who's cooking.

San Da Ye sniffed at her door and asked.

"Older brother, did Gu Ning go fishing last night?"

The old man lifted the pot lid.

A smell of fish soup came out.

San Da Ye slapped his thigh.

"Ah, why wasn't I invited?"

The old man looked at San Da Ye.

"Aren't you supposed to be in class today?"

San Da Ye was left speechless by the question.

"Well, ah, this..."