Chapter 24

As soon as Lan Xiruo and her team’s fishing boat returned to the island—before they even docked—someone onshore shouted:

“Uncle Jiang He, good news! Your team should head to the brigade office quickly!”

The team exchanged puzzled glances, unsure what the good news could be.

Suddenly, Lan Xiruo’s heart skipped a beat, and she raised her voice to ask, “Did someone from the commune come?”

“Hah! As expected of an educated youth, you’re really sharp.

A lot of people from the commune have arrived, and they even brought a banner. Hurry up and go!”

A’Dong slapped his thigh and, barely containing his excitement, asked Lan Xiruo, “Could it be a reward for the treasure we handed in earlier?”

Lan Xiruo nodded. “It should be.”

Hearing this, Jiang Dazhu and Heiyu became excited too:

“Haha! If this is true, then I can finally bring honor to my ancestors!”

“Exactly! Who would’ve thought that an illiterate brute like me could receive a national award?”

—-

Within minutes, A’Dong, Jiang Dazhu, and Heiyu went from speculating about the rewards to discussing how they should distribute them, then to planning how to pass them down to their future descendants.

Lan Xiruo and Sun Yuqing: “…”

Thinking way too far ahead. They didn’t even have wives yet.

“Alright, shut up. You’re all single and already talking about descendants. Aren’t you embarrassed?”

A’Dong and the others, feeling personally attacked: “…”

Uncle Jiang He was really here to keep them in check—couldn’t he let them dream a little?

Lan Xiruo laughed heartily, took Sun Yuqing’s arm, and stepped onto the shore. “Let’s go to the brigade office and see if the commune really brought something for us.”

Gu Xizhi looked enviously at Sun Yuqing, who was being held by Lan Xiruo, then slowly followed them towards the brigade office.

He had only just learned that Lan Xiruo’s group had once salvaged a prehistoric ape-man skull from the sea—an invaluable treasure. These people had made a great contribution.

As Lan Xiruo and the others approached the brigade office, they saw a crowd gathered at the entrance.

No wonder the outside seemed so empty—everyone had come here to watch the excitement.

Seeing them, the deputy team leader quickly squeezed through the crowd and whispered, “You’re finally back. The leaders have been waiting for you for a long time.

Be sharp, okay? There are reporters here today.”

Hearing this, Uncle Jiang He and the others became so nervous that they nearly stumbled.

Seeing this, Lan Xiruo and Sun Yuqing helped steady them and walked forward.

“Hello, Secretary Xu! Hello, leaders! Apologies for being late—we were at the commune replenishing supplies and just got back.”

Secretary Xu waved it off. “No worries, we haven’t been here long either.”

Then, he turned to the representatives from the capital and said, “Comrade Yang, now that everyone is here, let’s start the commendation ceremony.”

Comrade Yang nodded, and Jiang Aiguo took a loudspeaker, leading Lan Xiruo and the others onto the wooden platform in front of the brigade office.

“Everyone, quiet down! I have great news to announce:

Uncle Jiang He’s team from our Baima Island recently salvaged several extremely valuable cultural relics from the sea and turned them over to the Cultural Relics Bureau. Today, the country has sent officials to commend them.”

“Remember, if you ever find something unfamiliar while fishing, you must report it.

The ocean isn’t just full of fish, shrimp, and crabs—it also holds cultural relics and even enemy reconnaissance devices. If you discover such things, hand them over immediately. If they are genuine, you will be rewarded.

However, if you secretly keep salvaged relics and are caught, you will be severely punished.

And if you greedily keep unknown objects, like enemy surveillance devices, that’s even worse—that’s betraying the country! That’s a major crime with consequences beyond your imagination.”

The islanders shuddered at Jiang Aiguo’s stern warning, with some turning visibly pale.

After Jiang Aiguo finished speaking, Secretary Xu took the stage to say a few words, followed by Comrade Yang and his team, who carried several banners onto the platform.

“We sincerely appreciate the selfless and responsible actions of these comrades, who have made valuable contributions to our nation.

To commend and encourage their efforts, the Cultural Relics Bureau of the capital has decided to award each of them a banner and a cash prize of fifty yuan.”

After praising Uncle Jiang He’s team, Comrade Yang began distributing the banners and money.

The banners were emblazoned with golden characters: “Model Patriotic Worker, Special Contribution.”

For everyone present, this was the highest honor imaginable. A’Dong and the others grinned so widely their faces nearly split, and even Lan Xiruo felt elated.

This was the first time in both of her lifetimes that she had ever received a banner—and it was from the country!

After the awards were given, Comrade Yang didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he posed for a group photo with them.

As the camera clicked, Lan Xiruo glanced at a certain direction in the crowd and beamed even brighter.

Oh, someone was jealous. That twisted expression on their face was enough to give her nightmares.

Once the photo session ended, Secretary Xu and his team stepped up with their own rewards.

“The capital has given you prizes, so our commune can’t fall behind either.

But we’re poor, so this is just a token. Don’t complain—there’s nothing more I can give you.”

Secretary Xu made a half-joking remark before distributing the commune’s rewards.

The prizes weren’t particularly valuable, but there were plenty of them: each person received a towel, an enamel mug, a bar of soap, and five yuan.

Afterwards, Secretary Xu, Comrade Yang, Jiang Aiguo, and the six awardees took another group photo.

This event would soon be published in People’s Daily. Once people across the country read about it, some might be encouraged to hand in their hidden treasures, while others might be inspired to search for lost cultural relics.

“Are you all envious of these rewards? If so, then next time you go out to sea, keep an eye on what gets caught in your nets. If you’re lucky, you might salvage a treasure too!

Then, these rewards could be yours…”

Jiang Aiguo rambled on for a while, seizing the opportunity to impress the leaders before finally dismissing the crowd.

But no one wanted to leave. Some of them had never even seen a banner before and were eager to touch it after Lan Xiruo’s team stepped down.

Lan Xiruo and Sun Yuqing exchanged a glance, hesitating to go down.

Her eyes darted around before she turned to Uncle Jiang He and said, “Uncle Jiang, you’re our leader and our elder. This is such a glorious moment—it’s only right that you lead the way down first.”

“A’Dong, Jiang Dazhu, Heiyu, Sun Yuqing and I joined later, so we’ll go last.”

Uncle Jiang He found her reasoning perfectly logical and stepped down first.

A’Dong and the others had no objections and happily followed, clutching their banners.

As soon as they descended, they were immediately surrounded by the eager crowd.

Taking advantage of the distraction, Lan Xiruo and Sun Yuqing swiftly slipped away with their prizes.

Gu Xizhi chuckled at Lan Xiruo’s trickery and quietly returned to the educated youth station.