Chapter 4

The typhoon raged on through the night, keeping everyone on edge, afraid that the storm might bring down their makeshift shelters.

Only Lan Xiruo was an exception.

—-

In her previous life, she had been imprisoned in a cellar for over a year. The despicable couple who held her captive often deprived her of food, forcing her to rely on sleep to numb her hunger.

Sometimes, that woman wouldn’t even let her sleep, deliberately making noise above her head.

Over time, Lan Xiruo developed the habit of being able to fall asleep in an instant, no matter how loud the surroundings were. Likewise, she could wake up instantly whenever she wanted.

Knowing the people she lived with in the shelter, she was certain that if anything happened, they would call for her. With that assurance, she slept soundly through the night.

As dawn broke, the typhoon weakened, and the fishermen gradually emerged from their shelters.

They picked up their tools and began repairing doors and windows damaged by the violent winds, as well as the roofs that had been blown away.

Lan Xiruo, having slept well, felt refreshed. By the time her shelter-mates, Sun Yuqing and Chen, got up, she also rose from bed.

Breakfast was made by Chen—a bowl of porridge so thin that one could see their reflection in it. After finishing her meal, Lan Xiruo headed to the village brigade with Sun Yuqing.

By the time she arrived, apart from Brigade Leader Jiang and the deputy leader, the room was packed with many villagers.

Those who had been on the same boat as her the previous day were also present, including Uncle Jiang He, who was now standing in the corner, supported by his wife.

“Alright, now that everyone is here, let’s talk about what we couldn’t discuss yesterday,” Jiang Aiguo said as he swept his gaze across the room. His tone was heavy. “Judging by your expressions, I believe you all understand what we are about to face.”

“That’s right. I’m going to talk about the very thing you all fear the most.”

“Because your fishing boats failed to retrieve the nets in time and got caught in the storm at sea, you must bear the full cost of the losses yourselves.”

“As for the damaged boats, I will apply for repair assistance from above. That is the only way I can help reduce your burden.”

After the brigade leader finished speaking, the deputy leader opened the account book he had been holding and began reading out each team’s losses.

“Lian Dashan’s team lost 20 shrimp nets, valued at 400 yuan in total. With four team members, each must contribute 100 yuan.”

“Jiang Dadi’s team lost 10 hanging nets, valued at 400 yuan in total. With five members, each must contribute 80 yuan.”

“Jiang He’s team lost… three 500-meter-long drift nets, valued at… 1,400 yuan in total. With six members, each must contribute 233 yuan.”

As the deputy leader read the numbers, he felt his heart ache. Jiang He’s team had suffered the most.

Especially the two female educated youths in the group—while others still had families to help share their burden, these two had to bear the cost alone. It was truly tragic.

Upon hearing the amounts, everyone except Lan Xiruo looked down in despair.

So much money… How long would it take for them to pay it off?

“Don’t lose hope. Those fishing nets might still be out there—we can go look for them and maybe recover some,” Lan Xiruo encouraged.

Her words, however, failed to lift anyone’s spirits.

“Lan Zhiqing, you’re too optimistic,” Uncle Jiang He sighed. “Even if the nets weren’t washed away, we can’t go out to sea anymore. I checked with the team leader this morning—our boats have taken on too much water. Without repairs, they’re unusable.”

The other teams that had lost nets also sighed in resignation.

“The waves were too strong last night. The chances of recovering anything are slim.”

“Yeah, there’s hardly any hope. Why waste time searching?”

“The typhoon just passed. Instead of chasing lost nets, we should wait for the tide to recede and scavenge the shore—we might find something valuable.”

They could secretly sell whatever they found and earn a little money that way.

—-

Lan Xiruo ignored the pessimistic chatter and instead looked at her team seriously.

“The typhoon just passed, and the sea is full of debris. The other teams won’t be going out to fish right away.

If I can borrow a boat from another team, would you be willing to come with me to search for the lost nets?”

She had already thought of a way to borrow a boat. But she needed her team’s cooperation.

Her team members were all poor—unlike the others in the room.

Their fishing boat was small, but it specialized in catching certain types of fish that sold well. As a result, their earnings were higher, and the authorities allocated them better revenue shares.

However, their situation was different. Uncle Jiang He was the most skilled fisherman on Baima Island, so other teams let him test unfamiliar nets before they used them.

Unfortunately, just as they started seeing results, the typhoon hit, taking away most of their equipment before they could make much money.

The debt burden meant that each person had to pay over 200 yuan—an astronomical amount. Even 20 yuan would have been a huge sum for them.

Worst of all, until they paid off this debt, they wouldn’t be able to apply for new fishing nets from the authorities.

If they didn’t go out to search for the lost nets, were they supposed to survive by scavenging the shore with buckets?

If that were the case, it would take them years to repay their debts.

“Lan Zhiqing, if you can find a way to borrow a boat, I’ll go with you,” Uncle Jiang He said before the others could respond.

“I’m in too!”

“Count me in!”

The rest of the team members followed suit, agreeing one after another.

They had no other choice but to trust this educated youth who had saved Uncle Jiang He—and indirectly saved them all.

A city girl who had read so many books and seen so much of the world—perhaps she really could convince someone to lend them a boat.

Meanwhile, members of the other teams hurriedly slipped away the moment they heard Lan Xiruo mention borrowing boats.

They didn’t want to stick around and risk being asked to lend theirs.

Their boats brought good profits. After selling their catch to seafood companies, they could repay their debts in just a few months.

“Tsk, look at them…” A’Dong muttered, frustrated by their lack of solidarity.

Lan Xiruo, unfazed, calmly said to Ah Dong:

“We can’t force anyone to lend us their boats. That would only make them resent us.

Besides, they need their boats for themselves. Don’t be fooled by their dismissive attitude—once we leave, they’ll sneak out to search for their lost nets too.”

Uncle Jiang He nodded in agreement. “Lan Zhiqing is right. A’Dong, you boys should learn from her.”

“Lan Zhiqing, how do you plan to borrow a boat?” Jiang Aiguo finally asked, growing impatient.

“In the past, people failed to borrow boats because they didn’t offer enough incentives.

—-

Today, let’s go all in—let’s offer most of what we collect from shore scavenging to the team lending us a boat. What do you think?”

The group exchanged glances before gritting their teeth and nodding. “We’ll go with Lan Zhiqing’s plan.”

At worst, they would just keep a little for themselves and give away the rest.

Brigade Leader Jiang chuckled. “Lan Zhiqing has guts. You have to be willing to sacrifice something to gain something.”

Everyone looked forward to the twice-a-month shore scavenging—it was a rare chance to keep whatever they found.

And today was the biggest tide of the year. Even just scavenging, they could collect plenty.

After discussing and deciding which team to approach for a boat, they left the brigade office to prepare their scavenging tools.