Fisherman Fubao made his fortune by fishing

At first, she searched around the sperm whale several times, but couldn't find any ambergris. She thought that this sperm whale didn't have ambergris, or that the stuff had been lost in the sea because its stomach was empty.

Unexpectedly, the ambergris and sperm whale were washed up on different beaches, one on the north shore of Rabbit Island and the other on the south shore.

After many twists and turns, it finally returned to her hands.

In Dabao's hands, this thing will just be thrown away as trash and worthless. It won't be considered stealing someone else's treasure if she keeps it.

In fact, she could have just waited for Dabao to throw it away and then she could have picked it up directly, but she exchanged it for pearls, on the one hand to feel at ease, and on the other hand to divert the focus of gossip and reduce the presence of the Li family.

Just think of it as a way of returning the favor and thanking the villagers for their help when the Li family got into trouble.

Ambergris is extremely precious. In ancient times when spices were extremely scarce, one gram of ambergris could be said to be worth one gram of gold. It was even rarer than gold.

She doesn't plan to make this thing public for the time being, as the Li family cannot afford such wealth, so she will process it and preserve it in a vacuum.

There is an old saying: "A gentleman is innocent, but guilty of possessing a treasure."

Sometimes, having something that does not match your status and strength is not a blessing, but a disaster.

The county magistrate who ruined the family and the prefect who wiped out the clan, these words are not used to scare ordinary people.

We are living in an era with strict hierarchy and supreme imperial power. A single word from a high-ranking official can easily wipe out an ordinary person's family. It is truly easier than crushing an ant to death.

Besides, she didn't know the Li family very well, and her understanding of each person's character was only superficial.

The most unreliable thing in the world is gambling with human nature.

Li Yuer picked up a shovel, dug a hole next to the stove shed, and temporarily buried the ambergris in the hole.

After the burial, Li Yuer sprinkled some snow on the ground.

In this season, it's freezing cold, so things won't go bad.

She planned to come back from town tomorrow, then dig out the ambergris and take it to a cave called Diaoer Cave east of Qiantan to dry and store it.

The second day was a rare good day, with no wind, no clouds, and the sky and the sea were the same color, like a clear sapphire.

Li Erlang ate his breakfast absentmindedly, thinking about the possible situations he might encounter when setting up a stall: What if I can't sell? What if the quality is not good and someone asks me to buy it back? Where to sell? If someone thinks it is too expensive, should I lower the price or refuse to bargain? If I lower the price later, will the previous buyer ask me to buy it back? ...

The New Year is coming soon. The Li family has received some money and is busy discussing buying New Year's goods.

Old man Li listened to the discussion happily and couldn't help sighing in his heart. Not long ago, their family suffered a great disaster and lost most of their wealth. They didn't even know if they could survive the winter. In a few days, they can have enough food to eat and buy New Year's goods.

At this time, the Li family's small black-sailed boat was filled with laughter and everyone had a satisfied smile on their face.

"My son's grandma, please take a look at what we should buy today. Let's buy everything at once and bring it back early while Brother Jiu's cart is still at home." said old man Li.

It was the first time that Old Mrs. Cai had so much silver. She planned to have a good New Year and also wanted to get rid of bad luck. Therefore, she had a lot of things to buy, especially things for offering sacrifices to ancestors and the goddess of the sea, so she had to spend more money.

"One cotton-padded quilt per person."

"hiss!"

"Clap!"

As soon as Mrs. Cai opened her mouth, everyone gasped. Zhang was usually timid and she dropped her chopsticks in fright.

Ordinary people were the only ones from wealthy families who could afford quilts. The fishermen on the island all used reed fluff as winter quilts, and only a few families had quilts.

One bed per person, what a generous deal! It's like falling into a paradise.

Mrs. Cai said, "The children have all grown up. The quilts will be their betrothal gifts and dowries. They will follow them. I see how much each of you has worked for this family. You deserve this. If you cherish your blessings, you can live two more years and have a good body, which will reduce the burden on your children in the future."

The seaside is humid, and most of the fishermen who have lived on boats all their lives have rheumatism. Many of them are paralyzed in bed when they get old and need their children to take care of them, which adds a lot of burden to their children.

Some elderly people do not want to bring trouble to their families, so after becoming paralyzed they find a dark and windy night, climb out of the boat, and jump into the sea to die, putting an end to all their problems.

Old Lady Cai ignored everyone's reaction and continued, "Next spring, Erlang and Mei'er will be adults. Suddenly, there will be four people in the family who need to get married and start their own families. The betrothal gifts and gifts alone will be very large. This time, we should prepare more things for the wedding, buy some good fabrics, and make some clothes for everyone in the family."

After all, Li Laosan and the other three were young men and girls in their prime. They all felt love in their hearts. When they heard their elders talking about marriage, they all blushed. Dalang and Li Meir lowered their heads in embarrassment.

Li Erlang said, "I want someone who is pretty, gentle and virtuous, not someone as powerful as Li Mei'er."

Li Meier was stunned. She could no longer bear it and gave him a slap. "You little brat, who do you think is better?"

Li Erlang covered his head and shouted, "You still say you are not, you can kill the tiger? No! You are more powerful than that tigress!"

Li Meier was so angry that she was about to hit her again, but Zhang stopped her, "Meier, you can't hit your brother."

Li Laosan was lying on the bed, unable to get up, but his eyes kept moving around, and no one knew what he was thinking about.

"Pah!" Old man Li slammed his chopsticks on the table. "What are you doing? Li Erlang, you little brat, what are you saying about your sister? If this gets out and outsiders believe it, will your sister still be able to find a good family?"

"I'm not wrong. Besides, who in our village doesn't know how powerful she is?"

Old Mrs. Cai glared at him, and Li Erlang shut up, not daring to say anything more.

Li Erlang knew very well that the one with the most say in the family was grandma. If he offended grandpa, he would at most be treated to a meal of fried pork with willow twigs. But if he offended grandma, he would have no food to eat. It was not a pleasant feeling to be hungry.

Li Laosan and Li Erlang have had a deep understanding of this since childhood.

Finally, they agreed upon a plan: buy everything together and each family would contribute money. In the end, a bunch of things were listed together, and Old Man Li and Boss Li were responsible for the purchase. They were confused and only remembered half of it.

In the end, Old Mrs. Cai decided to go with them herself, so that she could bargain and save some money, and Old Man Li and his friends could just be responsible for the labor.

Before going out, Li Erlang used a stomachache as an excuse to avoid staying at home to take care of his father and third uncle. This job was eventually transferred to Li Dalang again.

Li Dalang felt a little regretful that he could not go to the town to buy groceries, but he always believed that he was the eldest grandson of the family and should shoulder the responsibility of being the eldest brother. He should not argue with his younger siblings about everything, so he agreed to stay.

Since he had a stomachache, Old Man Li did not allow Li Erlang to go to the town with him, which was a disguised punishment.

Li Erlang looked at their receding backs, curled his lips and said, "If you don't take me with you, don't I have legs? When I sell the silver, I can buy whatever I want."

Li Meir was about to come of age, and Grandma Cai did not let her take care of the second daughter-in-law who was giving birth, but asked the eldest daughter-in-law to stay at home to look after the house and take care of her during the confinement period.

About a quarter of an hour after Old Man Li and his companions left, Li Yuer and the other two said hello to Zhang, said they were going to the village to play with other children, and then slipped out.

Li Erlang and Li Meir carried wicker baskets, Li Yuer carried whale oil, and the three of them headed towards Xinpu Town.

Their goal was very clear, which was to go to Nongchao Tower first. As they walked, they also deliberately avoided places where they might meet Old Man Li and his companions.

As the year draws to a close, Xinpu Town is very prosperous, with a growing passenger flow. Several large markets have spontaneously formed around the town, bringing together villagers from dozens of villages in the surrounding area.

There are many people setting up stalls, selling all kinds of things, but they do not set up stalls randomly. The wisdom of the ancient working people cannot be ignored. They take the initiative to divide the area according to the items they sell.

One section sells food, another sells cloth and sundries, another sells jewelry and handicrafts, and another sells incense, candles, and paper money...