Back to the small fishing village in 1982

Chapter 1226 Running around
The couple looked at Ye's father with sympathy. They didn't expect that his mother was such a softie with a sharp tongue. Although she said something, she would still pay the money when the time came.

Ye Yaodong was afraid that he would be heartbroken and would be scolded again if the truth was revealed, so he quickly said, "It's better if they didn't come. Anyway, they have gathered enough people."

"The sun rises from the west. I don't know if it's holding back something bad. Everyone has given me some money out of consideration. I think I should go to town tomorrow to buy two pounds of egg cakes and send them to both families. I'll give them to the two children to eat on the way."

Ye Yaodong: Oh no, it’s going to be exposed?
The old lady was particularly pleased and said with a smile, "As you should. Since you didn't come to borrow money, there's no need to rush to give money. Just buy some food for the two children to eat on the way as a token of your appreciation. There's nothing wrong with that."

Father Ye opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but he didn't know how to say it.

It's not appropriate to stop...

He had no reason to stop.

This is terrible. For the sake of family harmony, he has to give money and still be scolded.

suffocated.

He lowered his head and ate his meal without saying anything else, feeling depressed.

Lin Xiuqing felt that Ye's father must be upset. She thought for a moment and said, "I'll go buy it, Mom. You're still at work. I'll talk to my two sisters-in-law, and we'll go buy it together and send it over. We'll show our attitude to their cousins."

"You are getting older now. From now on, the three brothers will be the ones to handle all the social interactions. You don't need to do favors. It's our turn to show our appreciation."

Father Ye quickly agreed, "Yes, we should do them a favor. We are too old to get involved."

Ye's mother thought about it and it made sense. No matter what the other person did, as cousins, they had to show some appreciation.

"Okay, then you guys can decide for yourselves. Don't buy too much. Just spend a few dollars to buy some cakes and pastries for them to eat on the way. That's all you need to do. You don't need to do anything else. Anyway, we've got enough money."

"Ok."

Ye's father breathed a sigh of relief, at least he wouldn't be exposed and scolded.

"Come and eat, the food is getting cold..."

Father Ye changed the subject and talked about business, asking Ye Yaodong to prepare to go out to sea at night, which could be regarded as putting the matter behind him.

Ye Yaodong had called Boss Zhou twice when he was free at home during these two days, but no one answered and he couldn't find anyone. He waited until he finished his meal before calling again.

He planned to ask for the price clearly and confirm it in advance. When he went out to sea at night, he would be able to inform Ah Qing in advance and also appease the village cadres.

Each of them was much more anxious than him. They wanted to know immediately how much it could be sold for, and they would ask every time they met one.

He always had to tell them to watch the growth and harvest it first, and it would take several days to harvest and dry it.

If he can't contact the person, he can go directly to their door to ask for the price when he docks in the city and tell them not to worry.

But it is impossible not to be anxious, he himself is anxious too.

Fortunately, he called again in the afternoon and found the person this time.

We agreed to deliver a batch of kelp to him in half a month. He wanted five tons first to check the quality and condition. We will contact him if he needs it later.

The harvest is early this year, and Ye Yaodong also guarantees that the quality this year will be better than last year, so the price can be a little higher.

Unlike last year, when wild kelp was blown into the sea by typhoons, people started picking up some everywhere. The quality and sizes varied, and it was already July. Now, fresh kelp is available in less than May, so it is natural that the price is a little higher.

Boss Zhou charged him 1 cents, so he naturally raised the price he charged to the villagers and added 7 cents.

The village cadres were very happy to hear that they could collect one cent more than last year.

However, Ye Yaodong also said that it depends on the quality and the time of delivery. If the harvest time is too long and the quality is not good, the price may be lower.

It’s better to take precautionary measures in advance to avoid the situation where people only accept price increases and not price reductions.

After returning home, Ye Yaodong also talked to Lin Xiuqing about this. If he was not at home, there was a batch of kelp drying in the village, and he asked her to collect it first and then take it to the city.

If he can dry about 30 tons, even if Boss Zhou cannot consume it so quickly, he will not have trouble selling it in the wholesale market. The market is also full of hawkers coming and going to purchase goods. In the past two years, the store has also developed a fixed group of purchasing owners.

Moreover, he can also bring some to the army. The army is large in size, and there is no reason for the army to refuse this kind of dry goods which is cheap and can be stored, and can also prevent goiter.

Only after the matter of kelp was settled could he go out to sea with peace of mind.

Seeing that he even brought foreign cigarettes with him when he went out to sea, and that he had obviously already taken them home, but he even brought a few more on board, Ye's father couldn't help but pull him aside and ask him.

"Why do you bring this foreign cigarette? You're not going to keep it for yourself to smoke at sea, are you? I know you're on the loose and have some money, but you don't need to smoke something so expensive, right? One puff of yours could feed someone for a few days..."

Ye Yaodong was holding five or six packs of cigarettes in his hand and was about to go up to the cab to leave the things under the boat to be sorted out by the boatman, but he was stopped by his father.

"I'm using it to do my job, how can I bear to smoke it? Isn't there another one here called Chengfeng?"

He turned the cigarette in his hand over, revealing a stream of smoke underneath.

Father Ye was relieved after seeing this.

"That's good, scare me."

"What? I don't deserve to draw the good ones, so I have to give the good ones to others?"

"You can do whatever you want. Isn't it a pity to put such a good and expensive thing into your mouth?"

"Giving it to others, don't you think it's a pity? After all, what you eat is still yours."

"Who are you going to give it to?"

"You'll know in two days."

"Aren't you going to order packaging bags? Aren't you going to send them to the province for Lao Hai? Is it necessary to have so many?"

"Just give him one pack. I thought I'd visit the overseas Chinese in my family on this trip to the provincial capital. Didn't I get a bunch of contact information last year? My family bought a large amount of fish sauce before the New Year. Mom said that it should be filtered out gradually next month. The daily output will gradually increase in the future. I have to find a good market in advance."

Now Ye's father was speechless.

He calculated that it was already mid-April, and it would be the end of the month by the time he returned from his next trip to the sea.

"Oh, then as long as you have a plan."

"Of course I have a plan. Everything has to be arranged in advance. You go burn incense and worship Mazu. I'll put the cigarette up there first."

"well……"

After Ye Yaodong put his things away, he came back to the deck and went through the procedures for going out to sea. He only set sail after everything was settled.

In the dark night, the light from the bulb could only illuminate the deck and a little bit of the surrounding water. Some small fish that were attracted to light kept jumping on the water as the fishing boat was moving.

There were lights from several other boats all around, and we could see each other, which gave us a very safe feeling on the sea.

Ye Yaodong stayed on the sea for a day and a night. In the early morning, the fish warehouse was about 70% full. He contacted several other ships and planned to follow suit. Just like last time, he would directly collect the goods on their ships and take them back to sell for money.

The catches of other boats were basically the same as his. This time they were not notified in advance to keep the miscellaneous fish, so the number was smaller and there was enough space on the deck.

The last time, there were too many groceries and they couldn't fit in. He couldn't throw away the goods they had helped to keep, and he had to pay them, so he could only throw away the miscellaneous goods he had kept.

If you really want to receive the goods, you have to rely on the fresh food receiving ship, which has enough space and can bear enough weight.

During the two days he was at home, he asked Ah Hai about the progress and learned that the goods would be ready for delivery in about a month, around the end of May or the beginning of June.

By the time the fishing boat headed towards the provincial capital and docked, it was already afternoon.

I haven't been to the provincial capital for more than half a year. The provincial capital seems more lively. It's only three or four o'clock in the afternoon, but the dock on the deep-water port is bustling with people. There are crowds of people everywhere and all kinds of noise.

Passing a freight terminal in front, he saw many large cargo ships. A large number of shirtless men were moving goods back and forth between the shore and the ships. He could hear the roar of trucks and tractors even from a long distance on the sea.

Lao Hai was also surprised when he saw him, and he was even more shocked when he saw that his entire ship was full of cargo.

"Have you switched to collecting freshwater boats?"

"No, there are just two more big boats in the village. Everyone is going out to sea to fish. I have something to do at the shore, so I helped them bring these goods back. Can you eat it?"

"Sure," Lao Hai said happily, "I need your goods now. As you know, last year many overseas Chinese came back to invest and set up factories. This year, more overseas Chinese have come back to invest in the surrounding areas of the provincial capital. There are several more fish canning factories, as well as restaurants and other related industries."

"That's good. I was worried that you couldn't eat so much."

"It doesn't matter if you can't finish it. You can ask other fishmongers to buy it together. Fortunately, you docked early, so I only need to buy your goods today. I don't need to ask for other people's goods."

Ye Yaodong asked curiously, "Have you made any progress in the past six months?"

"Not really. Don't I know a lot of fresh produce processing factories? Then I asked a few stalls nearby to receive the goods. Anyway, I can't get much, so it's the same to ask them. They are also happy to relax and just pass it on to me."

“So you have multiple jobs now?”

"Isn't it also necessary to make a living and support the people? In addition, I have a wide network of contacts, so it is of course convenient for my own family to find my own family. Fortunately, there are many brothers who can work, and I have brought a group of people out one after another. Now there are many people working."

"That's great." Ye Yaodong gave him a thumbs up in admiration.

"It's also because everyone trusts me and follows me to have a good life."

"It's always like this. Hurry up and help unload the goods first. There are so many goods, it will take several hours to get them done. It will be dark by then. If you have anything to say, we can talk after we finish weighing the goods."

"Row."

Lao Hai called a large group of people to move the goods onto the ship, and by the way, he also politely greeted Ye's father.

It takes a lot of manpower to move and weigh an entire shipload of cargo. Fortunately, they are not short of manpower, and a dozen or twenty people can move it quickly.

He also specifically asked them to stack them separately according to the marks on the baskets, which would make it easier to weigh them, and they could come in batches.

Originally, they were stacked separately on the boat in a regular pattern, and he also asked Lao Hai to bring him a cargo list to record the weight.

Of course he wouldn't keep track of it for a long time, so he just threw it to Chen Shi and asked him to stand over there on the scale and listen to the record. His father also stood by and watched the weight.

After waiting for half an hour, someone drove a truck over and waited.

As soon as the goods were weighed, they were poured into their baskets and loaded onto the truck. Once the truck was full, it was immediately driven away.

He stood in the corner with Lao Hai, smoking and talking. He gave him two packs of Marlboro and asked him what factories the overseas Chinese had opened and who of the people in his phone book were in the city.

Fortunately, they don't look down on small things like fish sauce, which is time-consuming and troublesome, cheap, and slow to convert. Things like canned fish are circulated and converted into money quickly, and there is demand for them both at home and abroad.

So he explained his purpose to Lao Hai, and Lao Hai told him to make the call himself first, and after they had agreed, he would find time to accompany him to visit the overseas Chinese in the provincial capital.

It's not impossible for him to go alone, but it would always be a bit abrupt. After all, he didn't grow up in the same village as them. It would be different if he was accompanied by Ye Yaohai, an old acquaintance.

"Thank you, brother. I have to trouble you every time I come to the province."

"You're welcome. We're all family. Our clan is united like this. If we help each other, won't we all be prosperous? I can also make money from your goods. The ones the cannery doesn't want can be taken to restaurants and sold to other fishmongers. Can't we help each other?"

"That's why I was wondering why there are so many overseas Chinese in our clan. They all look so powerful."

"This is all tradition. Once the beginning is good, the atmosphere will be good. Everyone is out there, you help me, I help you, and when we come back, we can pull the collective together and build our hometown, and then it will start to flourish."

Ye Yaodong couldn't help but sigh, no wonder he always heard in his previous life that clans in some places were particularly united, and there were also the famous Fuqing Gang, Changle Gang and so on.

"My second uncle has contacted you before, right? He wants to send his two children abroad. Have they come to the city? I saw them worshipping Mazu before they left for sea."

"They are already here. They also arrived in the afternoon, half an hour earlier than you. I asked them to find a guesthouse first and then meet at the pier the day after tomorrow evening."

"Which country are they going to?"

"That's the daily life."

"what?"

"Even though those bastards have a grudge against us, it's also a developed country, and there are quite a few of us there, so I suggest that your cousins ​​send their children there. After all, they're going to work there, the industry there is very developed, and the population of that island country is small, so it's a good place to go to work."

Ye Yaodong opened his mouth and asked tentatively, "Fuqing Gang?"

"What? There are indeed a lot of people from Fuqing. How did you know? People from this place always lead one another, in large groups. There have been more and more in recent years, and they can be found in the area around the provincial capital."

"Hehe...I heard that..."

It seems that it is still too early for the Fuqing Gang...

"Well, life in China is hard and it's hard to find a job, so those who have relatives or friends abroad will try to make some money and go there. If you can't get a visa, you can only pray to Mazu."

"Hahaha……"

Ye Yaodong didn't expect that he could say this.

Ye Yaohai also enjoyed himself. He opened the pack of cigarettes that Ye Yaodong had given him, handed one to him, and lit one for him to take.

"You are so generous that you just opened it and smoked it. I was so heartbroken that I couldn't bear to take a single bite, and I still have to rely on you for your help."

"What's there to be reluctant about? It's just a Marlboro, right?"

“It was called Marlboro.”

"You gave it to me as a gift, and you don't even know what it's called? It's really expensive. Never mind, just smoke one, put it away, and save it."

"I'm lucky. I fished it out of the sea. I don't have any foreign exchange coupons, so where can I buy some?" Ye Yaodong took out another box of Chengfeng and gave it to him. "Just have this one. It won't hurt."

Ye Yaohai didn't bother to be polite with him, "Yeah, you're lucky then."

"We can pick up any garbage, good or bad."

"It's like this. Yesterday I heard that someone fished out two embroidered shoes in a row along the coast, and they even made a pair. I was so scared that I went straight home to pray to the Buddha and asked someone to perform a ritual."

Ye Yaodong shuddered when he heard this. "How scary! This is really bad luck. It's so miserable. I haven't dared to go out to sea for most of the year."

"I heard that the boat was sold, but no one wanted it. He got a fever and started talking nonsense the night he got home."

"Who would dare to take this boat if they encountered such a weird thing? It's normal to catch one, but it's weird to catch two."

"Yeah, so we were originally planning to send them off tomorrow night, but now we're going to postpone it for a day. We also have to worship Mazu more."

"Then please ask someone to take care of the two children."

"Yes, we are all not outsiders, and we will stick together when we go out."

"That's good."

"Oh, right, I saw your and your father's names in the newspaper before the New Year. Was it you? I'll go look for them. I even saved the newspaper..."

Lao Hai stood up and went to look for a newspaper in the drawer, and Ye Yaodong followed him.

"It was me. I fished out an unmanned underwater vehicle from overseas and handed it over directly. Then the higher-ups paid great attention to it and even held a commendation meeting to praise me."

"I said it must be you. The village and the name match. How can there be another Ye Yaodong and Ye Jianzhang? You are so proud."

The boatman next to him said, "Not only that, our boss is now the city's President Ye, the vice president of the Fisheries Association, and an official. He is very powerful."

Ye Yaodong was a little embarrassed...

Ye Yaohai looked at him in surprise, "Amazing! You are so good, you walked from a small fishing village to the city and became the president of Ye?"

"lucky……"

Ye Yaodong was somewhat embarrassed and quickly changed the subject, telling him about how the law enforcement ship had captured a smuggling ship a few days ago.

"I heard that because of foreign espionage equipment, the defense department has stepped up maritime patrols in the past six months and paid more attention to maritime security. You guys should be careful."

"No wonder. I was wondering why the news has been so intense in the past six months. It turns out it's really because of this incident. Ordinary things wouldn't make the People's Daily, but this one made the headlines. We were all guessing."

"So, be careful."

"Well, I'll roll up the newspaper and bring it with me tomorrow so that the overseas Chinese can see our talented people."

Ye Yaodong opened his mouth and closed it again.

Well, it's better to have others show off for him than to show off by himself.

By the time all the cargo had been weighed and the money paid, it was already dark.

Fortunately, there were some small private restaurants nearby. He went there to order food in advance, and they were not closed. After finishing the work, he waved his hand and directly treated two tables.

After happily eating and drinking, everyone dispersed at the urging of the restaurant owner, some went home and some got on the ship.

The next day, Ye Yaodong had to call those overseas Chinese one by one to make appointments, and then asked Lao Hai to accompany him, for fear of delaying the fishing at sea.

When his father woke up in the early morning, he asked his father to drive the boat back to the sea first, as he planned to stay in the provincial capital for a few days.

When it's time to return, ask him to come to shore again.

Since there was one person missing on the boat, they could only take turns in a tight group.

Ye's father knew that he was going to do serious work, so he just told him to be careful and didn't say anything else.

Ye Yaodong was very busy for the next few days, running around like a top from morning to night.

My skin was apparently fairly fair and I didn't get tanned at sea, but after running back and forth in the city for a few days and then in the provincial capital for a few days, I suddenly became several shades darker, almost like wheat.

But the results are gratifying. Not to mention the new packaging bags, we also got a few more orders from overseas Chinese. After trying it for a period of time and if it is stable, there will be no need to worry about subsequent shipments.

In fact, he doesn't have to worry about it, he just wants to do some overseas market and earn some foreign exchange.

There is a wholesale market in the city. Although the store is not big, goods are in short supply these days, and bagged fish sauce is easy to carry and transport, so sales will only grow wider and bigger.

His father-in-law told him that the sales volume in the past two or three months has doubled or tripled compared to the previous month, and other dry goods have also sold better.

He was thinking of waiting until the kelp was harvested, then stocking up a batch in the store and selling it slowly, so that he could make a little more money and have more varieties.

After finishing all his work, he took advantage of the extra time to go for a stroll.

I found that in the past six months since I last visited the provincial capital, it has become more prosperous. There are many more high-rise buildings, and individual shops have sprung up like mushrooms after a rain.

He also saw his brand's packaged fish sauce in some grocery stores. He didn't know where it was sold to the city, but it seemed that the sales channels had been opened.

For example, these days when supplies are scarce, as long as you have something, you don’t have to worry about sales.

There is nothing that cannot be digested, as long as there is not enough food.

He only let Ye Yaohai accompany him twice, and he didn't feel comfortable asking anyone to accompany him afterwards. Ye Yaohai was also very busy, and it was good enough that he could spare most of the day to go with him twice.

At first he was unfamiliar with it, as he had never done this kind of thing before. But after running twice and getting familiar with it, he became more comfortable with it and no longer needed anyone to accompany him.

After his father sailed the boat to the shore and cleared the goods, he treated Ye Yaohai and the others to a meal to express his gratitude before returning.

When they docked at the provincial capital again, theirs was the only ship. The other three ships docked directly in the city and did not come to the provincial capital.

In the first two days after they docked, they slowly headed back towards the provincial capital, trawling the nets. After all, in terms of distance, the provincial capital would be a little farther away and the city would be closer, and there was no need for them to dock in the provincial capital.

So when he got home, the other three boats had already returned to the village, and the workshop was already working in full swing.

The old lady saw that he was all black and didn't understand anything. She just thought that he had suffered again and was so distressed that she wanted to kill a chicken again that night.

Father Ye said angrily, "Why does a grown man need to be so white? He looks uneasy. How good is it now? It's okay to look like a ghost on the sea, but how can you look like a ghost walking on the street?"

Lin Xiuqing understood why he got so tanned.

"Did you go to the provincial capital to get a tan? How come you are so tanned this time?"

"I've been running around the provincial capital these days, so I'm a bit darker. It doesn't matter. I'll be white again after a while. I'll still be that pretty boy. You watch over here. I'll go check on the fish sauce stocks these days. After a while, we'll be able to filter a large amount, and we'll have to take turns bottling it day and night."

"Have you negotiated the order?"

"Yes, otherwise how did I get so tanned? It's all from running back and forth."

The old lady said, "I thought it must be hard work, otherwise you wouldn't be so tanned."

Father Ye said: "I am darker, so won't I have a harder time?"

"Haven't you always been like this? What's so hard about it?"

"Ugh……"

Father Ye was speechless and had to move the goods.

The old lady walked home with a cane. "The sun has just set. I'll feed the chickens and drive them back to the cages. There are only two roosters left. After that, I'll eat the ducks... Fortunately, I can hatch another flock next month..."

Dong Qing was in charge of the weighing of the goods, while Lin Xiuqing followed behind Ye Yaodong and asked him about what he had been doing in the provincial capital in the past few days.

"Have those two kids, Ah Xing and Ah Song, been sent out?"

"It was sent out on the day of the twelfth Grain Rain. It stayed in the provincial capital for a few days. I haven't heard of any accidents. Just wait. The boat is not that fast. If it arrives safely, there should be news back."

"Well, these past few days, their two families have been particularly high-profile, both talking about sending their children abroad. The villagers are particularly envious, and some seem to have had thoughts about it."

"If it succeeds, some people might even sell everything they have and send their children away."

Nowadays, everyone thinks that everything abroad is good and going abroad means success.

It's normal to have the thought.

Ye Yaodong said casually: "Who cares? It's none of our business whether they are willing to fight or not. I can't bear to let my own children go abroad to suffer. Our country will become more and more powerful."

Lin Xiuqing smiled and said, "Of course. Life is easy at home. Why would we risk sending it out? What if something unexpected happens on the way?"

"Well, if you really want to go abroad, you have to grow up and apply for a visa properly, and then you have to come back."

"It's too early. We'll talk about it later. I just want to tell you that the villagers are eager to sneak out of the country."

"Have you harvested the kelp in the village? When I came back earlier, I took a look at the offshore experimental field base and saw that half of it was gone."

"We have harvested it. We have been harvesting it for the past three or four days. The villagers are so happy. They all say it is a great harvest. They have all decided to do the same in the second half of the year."

"Where is it hanging?"

"It's at the old primary school in the village, but it's too full to dry, so we didn't collect them this afternoon. We're cleaning up a piece of wasteland near our house this afternoon. We plan to tidy it up and collect it and dry it there tomorrow. We may be able to dry a batch tomorrow, and we'll probably bring it over directly."

"Then accept it. Give out real money. Once it's in your hands, everyone will be happier and more certain that kelp farming can make money."

Lin Xiuqing smiled and nodded, "Yes."