Back to 1980: Farming the Sea and Expanding the Island

"Wow, Xiao Pu, these two hairy crabs look pretty big, they weigh over a pound together. Quickly take them out, I'll take them to the dock to sell," Wang Haiyue said with delight.

My younger brother actually found two big crabs. These crabs are only 9 cents a pound now. These two crabs can sell for a dollar, which is equivalent to my father's work points for a day.

"Okay, sis, I'll pour all of these into your bucket." The water monkey happily poured the swimming crabs and shells from the snakeskin bag into his sister's bucket.

Seeing the happy siblings, Lin Chuan was also happy. A river breeze blew by, causing Wang Haiyue's long hair to brush against Lin Chuan's face, making it tickle.

Since his previous life, Lin Chuan hadn't crossed the river in a long time. After Hai Yue left, the water monkey followed behind Lin Chuan, digging for seashells.

They couldn't compete with the quick hands and feet of the water monkeys. They could easily scoop out clams and razor clams from the numerous air bubbles on the mudflats.

In no time at all, the water monkey had dug up seven or eight clams and five or six razor clams. Lin Chuan looked at himself and realized he didn't even have a third of those.

Lin Chuan looked at the water monkey and laughed, "Monkey, you're pretty fast!"

The water monkey looked back at Lin Chuan's small bucket, somewhat smugly, "Brother Chuan, you're good at studying, but you can't compare to me when it comes to catching river fish. However, this stuff isn't worth much; depending on the quality, it only costs a few cents per pound."

"That works too, it can help supplement household income."

"We can only dig up more when the tide is out. But we can't dig up much, and it takes up time. The most I ever dug up was 4 jin (5 catties).

It's not easy to sell them in town either; the supply and marketing cooperative only buys the best ones. On ordinary days, when goods come to the island, people don't bother buying small quantities; they just eat them themselves.

My grandpa told me that he once came across a deep tidal bore and dug up a lot of clams!

Lin Chuan's shovel suddenly stopped, and his eyes lit up: "Catch the tide!"

The warm autumn sun shines on the mudflats, and in the distance, the river ripples and blends with the horizon.

As Lin Chuan was reminiscing about the past, he vaguely heard a shout.

"Brother!" Xiaoman called out crisply when she saw Lin Chuan from afar.

Xiaoman carried a plastic bucket and waded through the mudflats, her steps unsteady.

Lin Chuan turned around, his face instantly breaking into a smile, and he waved his hand vigorously, shouting, "Here!"

After saying that, Lin Chuan and the water monkey headed towards Xiaoman. Xiaoman, who had arrived early, had already collected most of the small fish and shells in her bucket.

"Xiaoman, where is Grandpa?" Lin Chuan asked.

"Grandpa's over there." Xiaoman pointed into the distance, then her gaze fell on the small bucket at Lin Chuan's feet, full of doubt. "Brother, why didn't you go on patrol today?"

In her memory, Lin Chuan was usually too lazy to come to the beach to do these things.

"I won't go anymore. From now on, I'll just register in the mornings and evenings, and go to Canhong Island for management in between," Lin Chuan replied with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Xiaoman immediately understood and nodded obediently.

"Come on, I'll take you for a stroll in the east," Lin Chuan said enthusiastically.

"it is good."

The three of them walked barefoot on the soft, wet mudflats, each step leaving a half-finger-deep footprint, their trouser legs already splattered with mud and water.

"Brother, there are a lot of stones on the east side, they'll hurt your feet if you step on them." Xiaoman carried Lin Chuan's broken bucket and followed obediently behind him.

Lin Chuan turned around, looked at his little sister's rosy cheeks and muddy little feet, rubbed Xiaoman's little head and smiled:

"Once we pass this area, we'll reach the sandy land. Monkey, can I borrow your snakeskin bag?"

The water monkey quickly handed over the bag, and Lin Chuan untied the knot and poured the seashells from the bottom of the bag into the small bucket he was carrying.

He then handed the snakeskin bag to Xiaoman and said softly, "Take this. It'll be more comfortable to walk on the stones later. When we get there, I'll get you some reed shoes."

In 1980, resources were scarce, and the islanders of Jiangxin Village often worked barefoot.

Looking around, none of the men and women, young and old, on the mudflats were wearing shoes.

On ordinary days, except when going to the commune market, going barefoot was the norm, and wearing shoes was a rare sight.

However, the villagers are all quite skilled with their hands, and in autumn they have grass, specifically cattails.

The cut cattail stalks are light and tough, and people sit on the ridge of the field, using two bundles of dry grass as shoes.

Then, he pulled out a few damp blades of grass to use as rope, first wrapping them around the instep twice horizontally, and then tying them around the ankle.

When the grass stalks are flattened, they form a grass raft that won't fall apart even after walking a mile on the mudflats.

Once ashore, it falls off with a shake of the foot, making it a completely disposable item. The older generation called it "grass nest," while the younger generation renamed it "nest grass."

It is often used when selecting eel fry during the spring flood season and the autumn flood season.

In winter, people would cut reeds on the beach, casually picking a handful of reed fluff to put on the insteps and soles of their feet, and then putting a tattered old net bag over their feet as an "outer bag".

The mesh opening is retracted, providing both insulation against the cold and preventing slipping.

When you come back from the mudflats, the reeds will have absorbed a lot of water and will simply fall apart. The net can still be used as a rope, so it's kind of "semi-disposable".

"Okay, thank you, brother." Xiaoman blinked her big eyes and watched Lin Chuan respond happily, feeling that her brother was much gentler than usual today.

The three of them walked eastward, their steps uneven, until they passed a patch of reeds, where Lin Chuan picked some reeds.

He quickly wove a pair of reed shoes, tied them with the rope from the snakeskin bag, and handed them to Xiaoman to put on.

As they headed east, the number of people on the mudflats decreased significantly. Xiaoman skipped and hopped along the way, sometimes running ahead, sometimes behind, her smile never fading.

"Brother, come quick! There's something in that crevice!" Xiaoman suddenly stopped and pointed to a bluish-gray reef half-buried in the mud, shouting in surprise.

Before she finished speaking, she grabbed the snakeskin bag and rushed over, lying on the rocks and reaching into the crevices. The moment her fingertips touched something, she exclaimed, "It's a crab! And it's huge!"

"Be careful, don't get your hand caught." Lin Chuan and the water monkey quickly moved closer.

Xiaoman's face turned red as she strained to pull out a bluish-black stone crab.

The crab clung tightly to the rope on her hand, its eight legs kicking wildly in the mud, its shell still covered with seaweed and small snails.

"Let go! Use the handle of the shovel to pry open its pincers!" Lin Chuan handed over the small shovel in his hand. Xiao Man understood, used the handle of the shovel to hold the crab's large pincers, and flipped the crab over with a flick of her wrist.

With his other hand, he quickly pinched its navel and proudly held it up: "Brother, look! It's huge!"

The water monkey's eyes lit up, and it squatted down beside him, searching for the stone.

Suddenly, with a "whoosh," he reached into the crack in the rock and pulled out a tiny abalone, no bigger than a fingernail: "Brother Chuan! What's this round thing? It even has patterns on its shell!"

Lin Chuan leaned closer to take a look and couldn't help but laugh, "This is abalone, it's very precious, even more valuable than hairy crabs."

"That monkey has sharp eyes; it hid so well that most people wouldn't be able to find it."

The water monkey smacked its lips: "In all these years of river fishing, I've only ever seen abalone once, and that was when my grandpa found it. I didn't even recognize it at first glance!"

Xiaoman caught a big crab, and her face turned red with excitement. She gripped her little shovel and searched even more diligently.

Lin Chuan looked at the two of them with a smile on his lips, but his gaze swept across the mudflats.

He remembered that in his previous life, someone found a hidden sandbar on the East Beach. It was usually submerged by the tide and only showed its traces at the bottom of the high tide. However, very few people could find its exact location.