Chapter 59

“How about that Cai kid? Working on a boat is tough and the pay is low, but it’s still better than sitting at home doing nothing. This is the season with the most rain on our island—don’t you want a stable home?”

Cai Shuyuan ground his teeth in frustration.

He dreamed of having a nice house to live in.

But he didn’t want to work.

He was a scholar, born noble. If not for his family’s misfortune, he could have achieved great things.

Cai Shuyuan, full of pride, already felt it was humiliating enough to teach the village children, let alone go work on a boat. He would rather die than go work on a boat.

“Village Chief, why not let my mother go instead? Her health is better than mine, and she’s more diligent.”

The old village chief stared at him in disbelief.

Yu Ming, who was also present, was equally stunned.

Was this guy out of his mind?

Most of the workers on the boat were men—did he really want his mother to join them? Was he not worried about what people would say?

The old village chief glanced at Cai Shuyuan meaningfully.

From what the villagers said, this guy spent all his time in a grass hut doing nothing. He had everything brought to him by his mother. Now, he was trying to pass off the work onto her?

“Originally, I didn’t know you well, but now I understand you better. If you don’t want to work on a boat, that’s fine. Your father has already sent people to ask about transferring you. I turned them down before, thinking you were in poor health. But now, seeing you so strong, you’re perfect for quarry work.”

Cai Shuyuan felt as though a thunderbolt had struck him.

Quarry work!

Just hearing the name, he knew it was grueling and exhausting. He didn’t want to do it!

“Village Chief! How about this—I’ll go to the city and find a teaching job!”

“You won’t find a teaching job in the city. Cai’s son, I know you’re not happy about being exiled here, but you can’t resist the imperial orders, so you’ll have to accept your fate. I’ll be blunt with you: people like you, exiled here, can do hard labor or trade, but being a teacher or an official—that’s out of the question.”

The old village chief yanked his leg back with force, but he almost lost his balance and nearly fell. He instinctively tried to lean on Cai Shuyuan’s shoulder, but the young man dodged, making him feel even colder inside.

“Since you can’t be a teacher, why should the Yin and Zhou families be able to?”

“Because I, the old man, am willing to vouch for them!”

The old village chief circled around Cai Shuyuan.

“To be a teacher, the most important thing is character. You don’t think I’ll just grab any scholar to teach the village children, do you? Besides, both Yin and Zhou are top scholars. Zhou’s second son is a champion—can you compete with them? Cai’s son, I’ll give you one day to think about it. Either go to the quarry or get on a boat. The choice is yours.”

With that, the old village chief turned and left without a second glance.

Cai Shuyuan sat on the ground for a long while before getting up. Yu Ming, who was not far away, clearly saw the dark look on his face.

Tsk, this guy didn’t look like anything good.

And he wanted to teach children?

Wait… does Lianjigou have its own school now?? Two top scholars as teachers?!

Yu Ming’s mind spun with the thought. Such good teachers would be even more impressive than those in the city.

He was eager to find out more and decided to ask around as soon as he entered the village. But the first villager he spoke to immediately sent him to the village chief’s house.

“Village Chief! This man is sneaking around our village and asking about the school. He looks suspicious!”

“It’s a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!”

Yu Ming couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of it all. He never expected the villagers to be so wary of outsiders.

“Village Chief, I’m really not a bad guy. I’m just a little servant at Fengwei Restaurant in the city. I was sent by the shopkeeper to find someone here in Lianjigou.”

The old village chief squinted, sizing Yu Ming up before asking, “Who are you looking for? If you give me a name, I’ll have someone fetch them for you.”

He also wanted to give the person a little talking-to.

How did the news of the school spread to the city so quickly? There must be someone in the village who couldn’t keep their mouth shut.

“Village Chief, I… I don’t know her name. She just sold some things at our Fengwei Restaurant. Oh, she brought in a seven-star grouper half a month ago! She should be pretty well known in the village.”

“Seven-star grouper?”

The old village chief turned to his wife and several of the village men. They all shook their heads, indicating they hadn’t heard of it.

“Are you sure? No one in our village has caught a seven-star grouper.”

“I’m sure, I’m sure! She said she’s from Lianjigou.”

Yu Ming struggled to pull his hand back and obediently sat on the side.

“The woman and her daughter came to our restaurant. At first, they sold the seven-star grouper, but today they brought some delicious snail meat and a seasoning. She even told the shopkeeper that if he wanted to sell seafood dishes in the future, he could buy them from Lianjigou. The shopkeeper agreed.”

Now that he was more detailed, the old village chief immediately recognized the two women. When he heard the mention of delicious snail meat, he was even more certain.

Jiang Wan had even brought him a bowl of snail meat before, and the whole family had eaten it all, even using the broth for mixing.

“Ergou, go to the Yin family and invite Yin Huaixi and her daughter. Tell them a little servant from Fengwei Restaurant is here and ask if they know anyone from Fengwei Restaurant.”

“Got it!”

Ergou ran off and soon returned with the two women.

When Yu Ming saw them, he was ecstatic. Finally, he could prove he wasn’t a bad person!

“Village Chief, I’m really sorry to trouble you.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. Take them away,” the old village chief said with a smile, not asking any further about the seven-star grouper or the snail meat and seasoning. He simply instructed the mother and daughter to take Yu Ming away.

Yu Ming had become familiar with the mother and daughter, and now, seeing them, he greeted them as if they were family.

“Madam, Miss, I’ve finally found you!”

“Don’t call me Madam, just call me Doctor Yin, like the others in the village.”

Yu Ming was stunned for a moment, then looked at Yin Huaixi with a new level of respect. He hadn’t expected this lady to also know medicine.

“Doctor Yin, you’re truly impressive.”

“Don’t flatter me. Let’s get to the point. Why did the shopkeeper send you here?”

The mother and daughter had already guessed at the purpose, but they still needed to hear it from Yu Ming to be sure.

“Doctor Yin, the shopkeeper sent me to buy some more oyster sauce. I’m not sure how much you have left?”

“Ah? Didn’t I just sell a jar to the shopkeeper today? Has it run out so soon?”

Yin Huaixi thought it would at least take a couple of days to sell.

“It’s not completely sold out, but half of it’s gone. If we don’t buy more, tomorrow’s garlic clams won’t be on the table.”

When Jiang Wan heard this, she couldn’t stop the smile spreading across her face.

It hadn’t been long at all, and already the oyster sauce at Fengwei Restaurant was running low.

It seemed her oyster sauce workshop could finally get started!