Fisherman Fubao made his fortune by fishing

There were beautiful shells everywhere on the beach, and soon the two sisters had picked up two bags of shells.

"That's enough, this is enough for now." Li Yuer straightened up and patted his sore waist.

"Of course it's enough. If there's more, we won't have room for it at home."

Li Yuer winked at Li Meier and said, "Sister Meier, do you want to earn your own dowry?"

After all, she was a teenage girl. Li Mei'er's face instantly turned red and she said angrily, "What nonsense are you talking about, little girl? How can a girl talk about getting married all day long?"

After the new year, Li Meir will be of age and should have been married off.

Li Meir was pretty and capable. Many families nearby were interested in marrying her, but Old Mrs. Cai declined all of them on the grounds that the eldest sister needed to take care of her younger siblings and her family planned to keep her for two more years.

Old Mrs. Cai had her own plans. She planned to take out her dowry and divide it into two parts, one with silver hairpins and silver earrings, and the other with silver bracelets, and give them to her two granddaughters and the families on land.

You won’t have to risk your life at sea anymore.

Fishermen go out to sea to fish relying on the blessings of God and the goddess of the sea. If they encounter strong winds, waves and ocean currents, they may not be able to return.

Every few years, one or two fishermen would die in the nearby fishing village, leaving behind the elderly and the weak, and life would be very difficult.

Fishermen's lives are not as stable as those of people on land. They have houses and land, and are not afraid of a hard life, but they are not likely to lose their lives easily.

Li Yuer continued to encourage, "What's there to be embarrassed about? Good girls deserve to get married. If you can save up some dowry, it will be very respectable."

Li Meir certainly knew that her family was having a hard time, and if she could save up her own dowry, it would naturally save her family from worry. Besides, which woman doesn't want to have money in her hands?

"Then tell me what tricks you have."

At this moment, Li Meir's eyes brightened unconsciously.

Li Yuer knew that the plan was almost done, so he said, "Let's use these shells to make shell crafts."

"Crafts? What are crafts?"

"For example, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, candlesticks, ornaments, etc."

The enthusiasm that was slowly rising in Li Meir's heart was extinguished a little at once. She said, "Someone has made these before. They took them to the dock to sell, but they couldn't get a good price. Jewelry made of shells will turn yellow over time, and the business will fail in a few days."

Li Yuer retorted: "That's because their skills are not good enough and their craftsmanship is not up to par. What I do is different from them."

Seeing that Li Mei'er didn't believe him, Li Yu'er patted his chest and said, "I heard this from an old craftsman on a large merchant ship at the dock. Let's make a few and try them out."

Li Mei'er lowered her head and thought for a while, then finally nodded, "Okay, let's give it a try."

Anyway, Shell doesn’t cost money.

Li Yuer also found some rough stones of different sizes nearby. These stones had rough surfaces but uniform textures and could be used as natural grinding tools.

Both of them are action-oriented and they do what they say. Li Yuer made an excuse that she had a stomachache and was escorted home by Grandma Cai and Li Meir.

As soon as I got home, I saw Li Dalang weaving wicker baskets in the kitchen shed.

"You two are back."

He doesn't talk much, doesn't bother much, and is the type who works hard.

After a simple greeting, Li Yuer asked Li Meir to look for the dried fish bubbles. They both took out the dried fish and began to look for the dried fish bubbles inside.

Fortunately, Mrs. Cai was frugal and kept all the edible parts of the fish when she cut it up and dried it. Otherwise, the key material would have been missing and the shell handicraft would not have been possible.

Soon, a small basin of dried fish was picked out and soaked in clean water.

Fish bladder is the main material for making isinglass.

In this era, there was not as much abundant artificial chemical glue as in later generations. Natural glue mainly came from animals and plants.

Plants such as glutinous rice, animals such as deer antler glue, fish maw glue (fish bubble in local dialect).

Only the rich and powerful can afford to use deer antler glue. There is no glue available on the market now. Ordinary people use thread instead of glue when making furniture or shoe soles.

Li Dalang was carefully weaving wicker baskets, which were used to hold whale meat. Only by selling the whale meat could the family debts be paid off and there would be money to treat his second uncle, second aunt, and third uncle.

Li Dalang thought the sisters' behavior was just related to picking fish and cooking.

After soaking the isinglass, Li Yuer dug out the stone pestle and small stone mortar used to pound garlic at home. They are called stone pestle and stone mortar, but in fact they are natural stones. They were picked up and used as kitchen utensils because their shape is suitable for pounding garlic.

Li Meir started a fire and melted a pot of snow water.

When the fish is almost soaked, clean it and you can start making fish maw.

The first step is to blanch the fish. When the water temperature is right, Li Yuer instructs her cousin to put the soaked fish in and blanch it.

Take out the blanched fish bubbles and put them into a dustpan to drain.

After the water is drained, the second step is to cut the fish bubbles into pieces with scissors.

"Sister Mei, the smaller the cuts, the better."

"Got it, you little rascal, I want to see what you can do."

While she was talking, her hands moved deftly. Li Meir was indeed a good worker, and she cut the fish bubbles into small and neat pieces.

Finally, the whole small basin of fish bubbles was cut.

The third step is to steam it. Steaming requires a lot of attention. Li Yuer instigated Li Meir to "borrow" a piece of clean linen from the bottom of Old Lady Cai's box. This linen was left for the younger brother to use as a swaddling cloth.

I can't worry about so many things now. In a few days, the whale meat will be sold. I will get the money and buy some fine cotton cloth for my little brother. Linen is very rough and is not suitable for babies.

Li Meir carefully placed the fish bubbles on a clean white linen cloth, put it in the steamer, and started steaming it over low heat. It would take about two hours.

That means it can be steamed before lunch.

While the fish was being steamed, the two sisters took out shells to select and match.

"Sister Mei'er, why don't you use this palm-sized scallop as the base, and stack cat's eye snails, hairy clam shells, and beautiful conch shells as lamp posts, and then use smaller scallop shells as lamp stands to create a sense of uneven heights. It will definitely look good."

In her previous life, Li Yuer was very fond of and good at making handicrafts, such as handmade silk jewelry, shell crafts, etc.

The first thing she planned to make was a shell candlestick, which would be magnificent when paired with whale oil.

If it is a wealthy family that is particular about details, they can also light incense. The faint smoke rising from the candlesticks of different heights and exquisite shapes must be very ethereal and elegant.

She planned to give the first candlestick to Shopkeeper Qian, along with the whale's tail, partly to repay his kindness and partly to attract more business.

Shopkeeper Qian is a well-known figure in Xinpu Town. Most of the people who come and go in Nongchao Tower are local dignitaries. He can get in touch with them. If Shopkeeper Qian is willing to act as a matchmaker, the whale oil candlesticks will be sold at a good price.

Kill two birds with one stone; good things come in pairs.

"Yu Baoer, look, do I look good with my outfit?"

Li Yuer looked over and saw a large lavender scallop shell base. The shells on the lamp post were also lavender and light pink. The two lamp stands on it, one was a larger purple scallop shell, and the other was a smaller pink scallop shell. The combination of pink and purple was so girly.

Li Yuer praised: "It's really beautiful. They say Sister Mei'er is skillful, it's true."

Li Meier was a little embarrassed by the compliment and said, "Children of poor families grow up early. I just did more work and became more skilled.

Besides, capable people should do more work, and our daughters must learn how to do housework, otherwise it will be difficult for us to gain a foothold in our husband’s family in the future.”

Li Yuer was influenced by modern ideas and had a different view on this. She used someone else's words to refute: "But the maids who buy things for the wealthy families in town don't say that. They say that girls need to be pampered, learn to read, do accounting, and manage the household. The housekeeper doesn't need to do everything herself."

Li Meir was stunned. It was the first time she heard such a statement and she didn't know how to respond for a moment.

Li Yuer knew that she couldn't accept the opposite idea at once, so she said subtly: "Mammy also said that we women should be able to manage the household, but we can't just work blindly. If we do that, our husbands will look down on us and think we are stupid. Once they get used to it, they won't take us seriously anymore, as if you are supposed to serve their whole family."

The little girl's clear voice, imitating the way the housekeeper spoke, made Li Meir laugh and feel that it made sense: she was worthy of being the housekeeper of a wealthy family, she had a clear view of things.

This idea left a latent impression on Li Meir's mind, and also saved her from becoming a "free nanny" in her husband's family in the future.