Chapter 7: Going to the Beach

After Ye Father left, Ye Eldest and Ye Second also headed to the pier to check on the boats.

With the first day of the month approaching, the tides had been receding nicely. If the boats ran aground, they wouldn’t be able to go to sea tonight, so they needed to check and park the boats a bit further out. They also planned to buy a barrel of diesel to keep on the boats, hoping to take advantage of their luck and go fishing tonight.

The catch of big yellow croakers yesterday had been exhilarating, and they were eager to head out again. However, time was short, and they couldn’t be out for long, as that would just waste the diesel money.

Meanwhile, the women in the household sat at the door, beginning their daily task of mending fishing nets.

Today, however, they were especially motivated; once they built their houses, they would split the family and move into new homes. Who wouldn’t be happy about that?

Lin Xiuqing was also in high spirits. Even though her lips and teeth had gotten banged up a bit, she wanted her own little family. As she wove the fishing nets, her hands moved faster.

Their fishing village was called Baisha Village, far from the county seat, requiring over an hour of mountain roads to reach. The women had to care for the household and couldn’t go out to work, so the only way to earn money was by making fishing nets.

This work, while not very profitable, was light and could be done at home. All the women by the seaside knew how to weave and mend fishing nets, while the men in the village mostly did odd jobs or farmed. Those who owned boats would go out to fish, but that was a minority.

Lin Xiuqing had been married for a few years and had learned how to make fishing nets, especially since her husband did nothing and she had to rely on herself to save money.

Everyone had something to do, and Ye Yaodong ended up being the most idle one; even the old lady was helping them with the needle and thread for the nets.

He moved closer, squatting beside his wife, and picked up the net she was weaving. Curious, he asked, “How many nets can you weave in a day?”

Lin Xiuqing looked at him, puzzled. “Five or six. The child cries a lot, and there’s too much to do, so I can’t make more. Eldest Sister-in-law and Second Sister-in-law can make more.”

“How much do you earn in a day?”

“A few dimes, not even a yuan!”

Ye Yaodong looked at the fishing net disdainfully, pouting. Labor was indeed cheap!

Just as he was about to say something, his second son, Ye Chengyang, came over and stuffed a drool-covered cucumber into his mouth, causing him to fall back onto the ground in shock and quickly spit it out.

“Ugh—yuck! That’s disgusting! You can eat it yourself; don’t stuff it in my mouth!”

Ye Mother shot him a glance from the side. “Your own son is being filial, and you’re still complaining.”

“Mom, if you’re not disgusted, I’ll take a piece of that cucumber soaked in drool and feed it to you! Your own son—don’t be picky!”

“Don’t be disgusting. How old are you, and how old is he? A baby’s drool is clean enough.”

“Every day, he’s touching this and that, shoving everything into his mouth—how clean can it be?” Ye Yaodong got up, dusting himself off. Seeing that his son was about to mess with the fishing nets again, he quickly pulled him aside. “Don’t be naughty; if you are, I’ll have to spank you.”

“Don’t scare him; he’s just a little kid; how would he know? It’s rare for you to stay home today; just keep an eye on the child and let your wife do more weaving…”

“Lixiang— the tide is out, stop weaving nets and come help wash the sea…”

Ye Mother, whose full name was Chen Lixiang and was the second daughter in her family, was interrupted before she could finish her sentence. Looking up, she saw her elder sister calling her.

She was someone who had married within the village. In these times, families were having lots of children, and there were four to five hundred households in Baisha Village, with half of the village being relatives.

“It’s not the first day until the day after tomorrow; is there really anything to dig up today?” she asked, but still inserted the net needle into the fishing net and stood up.

“We’ll know when we go take a look; it won’t take long. I heard someone already went. Hurry up, I’ll go check first.”

“Okay, okay,” Ye Mother replied and called out to everyone in the yard, “Everyone, let’s put the nets away and take the pots, spatulas, and tools to check it out.”

At this moment, most of them were calling it “tide digging,” while fewer referred to it as “beach gathering.”

Ye Yaodong had nothing better to do, so he followed along. Since his rebirth, he hadn’t had the chance to explore their little fishing village.

Lin Xiuqing, holding their son, glanced at him with confusion, sensing something was off with him today. “Aren’t you going out?”

“Where to? Do you really want me to go out?”

She turned her head away, not wanting her husband to spend all day lazing around outside. “No, just asking casually.”

“I don’t want to go out today; I want to join you all in digging at the beach and see if there are any gains. It’s been a while since I strolled along the shore.”

It had indeed been a long time since he had leisurely walked on the beach. In his previous life, he only took his grandson there to play during the fishing ban periods when they weren’t going out to sea.

Lin Xiuqing gave him a scrutinizing look, then tilted her head back to glance at the sun in the sky. Was it coming up from the west? How rare!

Seeing her reaction, Ye Yaodong’s mouth twitched. What was wrong with wanting to join them in digging at the beach? Trying to be better, and yet this was her attitude—so infuriating!

He turned away and stopped talking, curiously observing the dilapidated surroundings. After forty years, he had almost forgotten what a village in the ’80s looked like, but seeing it again now, his memories were rekindled.

The ground was a gravel path that was not easy to walk on. If one wasn’t careful and fell, it would definitely leave palms and knees bloody. On both sides of the road, weeds grew wildly, and there was a small ditch nearby, with uniformly distributed low stone houses and a couple of two-story brick houses.

The brick houses had been built in recent years. In the past, people used to build houses with stones. After 2020, stone houses had become quite rare, and if they were still standing, they often had a layer of cement plaster over them and were painted.

“Ah~”

“Ah!”

Lost in thought while looking around, Ye Yaodong accidentally stepped on Lin Xiuqing’s heel. Watching her stumble forward, he rushed to catch her, almost sending their child flying.

“Are you okay?”

“What are you doing? Can’t you watch where you’re walking? I’m fine, but what if you dropped the baby?” Lin Xiuqing anxiously patted their child’s back, and since the little one wasn’t crying or fussing, she felt a bit relieved.

“Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention. This gravel path is hard to walk on. Give the baby to me; I’ll hold him.”

It was really surprising for her to see him apologizing and proactively wanting to carry the child. Something was definitely off today. Lin Xiuqing looked at him suspiciously.

“What’s wrong with you today?”

Ye Yaodong felt a twinge of unease; she was right, the person closest to you always knows you best. Better to take it slow.

He stuffed his hands in his pockets, no longer wanting to hold the child. Nonchalantly, he replied, “Nothing much; I was just enlightened by Mom and Dad. Let’s go.”

Lin Xiuqing: “……”

“What are you looking at? Hurry up, they’re getting ahead.”

“Oh, oh…”