Chapter 13: Who Will Support the Family

Lunch consisted of sweet potato shreds cooked into a thin porridge!

With a large family, they couldn’t afford to eat much every day; even for porridge, they had to add a large handful of sweet potato shreds.

The reason they didn’t use sweet potatoes directly was that shredded sweet potatoes were easier to preserve. Dried in the sun, they could last for months, and cooking them with rice allowed them to use less rice while still enjoying a decent flavor. Plus, they had a slight sweetness.

Of course, that sweetness was just Ye Yaodong’s perspective. The rest of the family had eaten sweet potato rice and shreds to the point of being sick of it; they didn’t think it was sweet at all. As long as it filled their stomachs, that was enough.

Since they hadn’t divided the family, there were plenty of dishes to go around. The vegetables were grown in their backyard, and the seafood was from the net they dragged in yesterday afternoon.

They had caught a bunch of small fish that weren’t worth much, and those were all dried for later. They left behind a few slightly larger ones to be braised.

The three-eyed crabs weren’t collected at the docks; they could cause allergic reactions and make people itch all over, so nobody bought them. But it wasn’t possible to throw them back into the sea since there were too many to consume, and they would spoil if left too long. So, yesterday, they shared some with relatives, friends, and neighbors.

Adults could eat two or three without any issues, but the elderly and children were advised against eating them.

They set aside a dozen or so mud crabs, which were safe for the kids to eat.

There was also a bowl of small shrimp and a bowl of sea clams they had dug up in the morning. The clams were boiled, tossed with a bit of seasoning and chili—delicious and oil-saving…

And everyone in the family loved oyster pancakes!

Ye Yaodong enjoyed these, too. He had spent quite a while cracking open the small clams from the rocky wall; it was an effort, also known as “hunting for oysters.”

As soon as he sat down, before even taking a bite, he reached for the oyster pancake. If he didn’t grab some now, there might not be any left. He had worked hard for this!

“Hey, Uncle, take a smaller piece; leave one for me!”

“Did you not eat enough? You’ve been reaching for the oyster pancakes this whole time.” Ye Yaodong took a piece for himself but also set one in his wife’s bowl.

She hadn’t even sat down yet to eat; by the time she did, there wouldn’t be any decent dishes left.

Seeing this rare gesture from him, Lin Xiuqing’s gaze softened. However, she didn’t want to keep the piece for herself; she passed it back to their oldest son, feeding it to him.

Oysters were difficult to catch, and it had taken him a long time to crack open a bowl full. They didn’t have them every day—one meal at noon and another at night; they might not even have any tomorrow.

“You haven’t eaten much either!”

Ye Yaodong shot a glare at his nephew, Ye Chenghai. “I caught the oysters; of course, I should eat them!”

“Why are you all chattering while eating?” Their mother thumped the table, and they all fell silent.

Today’s meal was unusually lavish; no one wanted to talk, and everyone eagerly focused on their food.

Usually, they had only one or two bowls of shellfish or fish with a few vegetable dishes, but today, they had crabs, shrimp, fish, and shellfish all on the table!

After all, they had a boat now and had made quite a bit of money yesterday. It was only fitting to enjoy a more plentiful meal today.

After confirming that everyone was present, Ye Father spoke up: “I just went to the commune to apply for land to build a house. We’ve discussed it and got approval to build at the entrance to the road leading to the beach. There happens to be an empty plot there that can’t be used for farming, so it’s perfect for building a house.”

Their village was near the sea, but there wasn’t much arable land. The allocated farmland was situated at the boundary with the neighboring Dongqiao Village.

The two villages were very close together, but Dongqiao Village was smaller, with only over a hundred households. Their own village was on the side of the highway, so they went to Baisha Village to fish during low tide.

The villagers of Baisha were quite familiar with those from Dongqiao, as the two villages often intermarried. Ye Yaodong’s grandmother was from Dongqiao Village.

After Ye Father finished speaking, Ye Yaodong remained unresponsive, continuing to eat his meal. In his past life, he had also bought the land where they planned to build, and the three brothers’ houses were built side by side. He had still been living there at the time of his death.

His indifference didn’t reflect the feelings of others. Everyone was excited about having their own small homes.

Ye Ersao exclaimed excitedly, “That piece of land is great; it’s close to the beach, just a straight walk to it!”

“Are we building three houses, Dad?” Ye Dasao furrowed her brows, seeming a bit worried.

Logically, two houses should be enough—one for a son to live with his parents and take care of them in their old age. However, who wouldn’t want to live in a new house and enjoy their own little life? Ye Dasao also had her own selfish motives; if only two houses were built, the eldest family would definitely be the ones staying at the old homestead.

Ye Yaopeng looked at his wife with confusion. “Why do we need three houses? Two is enough.”

Men tend to be a bit more laid-back, and Ye Yaopeng felt it was only natural for his parents to live with him as the eldest son. They certainly wouldn’t follow the youngest brother, who was a bit unreliable.

Watching the reactions of his two sisters-in-law, Ye Yaodong smirked, finding them both somewhat selfish, unlike his more generous wife.

In his previous life, he had finished eating and left, not returning until nightfall to hear about the plan to build three houses for the three brothers. Now, he could witness the discussion unfold.

Ye Dasao didn’t dare to mention how the two houses would be divided, nor who would stay behind to take care of the parents. If she did, it would surely make Ye Yaopeng upset!

Ye Yaohua, on the other hand, was rather clueless. He chuckled, “Dad, Mom, whoever you decide to live with, we’ll just stay to take care of you… Ow! Why did you pinch me?”

Ye Ersao shot him a glare. “If you don’t want to talk, then no one will think you’re mute! The houses aren’t even built yet, and you’re already worried about dividing them up?”

Though her words seemed fine, everyone present could see through the façade. It was clear she wasn’t keen on living at the old homestead with her in-laws.

Ye Father noticed the intentions of his daughters-in-law and decided to be direct. “So, who plans to stay behind to care for us in our old age?”

“Dad, it depends on who you want to live with. I’m the eldest, so you and Mom should be living with us,” Ye Laodong said.

Ye Ersao nodded in agreement. “Yeah, Dad, it’s fine if you and Mom want to live with us.”

Ye Ersao forced a smile, looking unwell. “Dad and Mom are just in their fifties; they don’t need to think about retirement yet!”

Ye Dasao quickly added, “Exactly! Dad and Mom are still very strong; they can work for another ten or twenty years at least. They don’t need to think about retiring…”

“So, none of you are willing, then?” Ye Father’s face darkened.

“Of course not; how could that be…”

Before the two sisters-in-law could protest, Ye Yaodong casually propped his foot on the chair, saying flippantly, “Dad, if the two sisters-in-law don’t want to stay, my wife and I are more than willing! How about we stay and live with you, Mom, and Grandma?”

Lin Xiuqing supported her husband, sincerely saying, “Dad, Mom, please live with us!”

The old lady happily agreed, “Okay, Dongzi can live with us!”

“Forget it! If he stays with us, is it him taking care of me, or me taking care of him?”