Back To the Small Fishing Village In 1982

After about an hour, Lin Jishang and his companions left. Only then did Mother Ye and the others anxiously enter the house.

"What did they say? Are they really here to buy our homestead?"

Father Ye finished taking a puff of his pipe and nodded. "I don't know where they found that master, but he said our land has good feng shui and will bring him prosperity. He mentioned that he has had bad luck in recent years and wants to change his fortune."

"But he's not from our village. Why would he buy the land here?"

"He said he wants to build a small house. Sometimes when he returns from a fishing trip, it's too late to go to the county town, so he wants to dock his boat at our pier and rest here."

"Is this person rich?"

"I heard he has a large ship, but I'm not sure about the details."

Ye Yaodong lazily leaned against the wall and said, "This person is not honest. I guess he's involved in smuggling on the high seas. The big port is not safe for docking, and our small village pier conveniently allows them to secretly unload goods at night. They need a place to stay overnight after unloading, right?"

"The location of this land is not far from the beach, and there aren't many residents nearby, right? Maybe that's one of the reasons they believe it has good feng shui!"

In his previous life, he had heard some rumors. Lin Jishang's family made a fortune through smuggling, but he didn't know exactly what kind of smuggling they were involved in.

In rural areas like theirs, the villagers preferred to mind their own business. Even if they knew something, they would discuss it privately and wouldn't deliberately report it.

Everyone in the room took a sharp breath upon hearing this. Smuggling on the high seas was illegal, and Father Ye was also extremely surprised. "How do you know?"

"I'm just guessing. The way he spoke earlier seemed evasive. Well, whatever. We didn't lose anything. We even gained a boat. Just don't go outside and make a fuss."

"How did the discussion go? What do you mean by gaining a boat?" Mother Ye's curiosity was itching, but no one took the initiative to explain.

Others were also anxious. "Yeah, how did it go?"

Father Ye smiled and said, "We've decided to transfer the homestead we are currently building to Zhou Yechi, Lin Jishang's cousin. He will cover the wages of the workers we've hired during this period and the cost of food. We will choose another piece of land in the village, and he will cover the cost of the homestead. As a bonus, he will compensate us with a 6-meter wooden boat."

Everyone's eyes lit up. Didn't that mean they got a boat for free?

"Why would we transfer the homestead we're currently building to him without any benefits?" Ye Yaodong said.

"Well, Dad, since we sold the land to him, shouldn't we also get paid for our work?" Eldest Sister-in-law Ye couldn't help but ask.

"Yes, all of you who have been working should be paid. Tonight, let your mother calculate how many days you've worked and how much money you should receive. Also, calculate the food expenses. Tomorrow, we'll go together to the commune and find Secretary Chen."

Ye Yaopeng reminded, "Dad, tomorrow we should check the boat first. We can't accept a damaged boat."

"Of course we have to test it on the waters."

Eldest Sister-in-law Ye asked happily, "So, where should we choose our new homestead?"

Father Ye looked at his three sons and asked, "Where do you want to choose?"

"Let's choose the land in front of the beach. It's close to the sea, and we'll know when the tide recedes. It's convenient for sea digging."

Facing everyone, Ye Yaodong wouldn't mention anything about facing the sea, warm in spring. If his parents heard that, they would probably scold him. They worked hard every day just to put food on the table. Who has time to enjoy the sea and warmth in spring?

Father Ye frowned. "During a typhoon..."

"Just don't build too close to the front, as long as the waves don't reach. This location is close to the beach, and you won't have to walk as far to the pier."

Ye Yaopeng and Ye Yaohua had no objections. Any location would do for them.

Eldest Sister-in-law Ye and Second Sister-in-law Ye also felt that what he said made sense. They could see the tide recede and return faster than others. As long as they built it in a position that the waves couldn't reach, it would be fine.

"If none of you have objections, then let's choose that area. We'll measure it tomorrow."

Since there were no objections, Father Ye made the decision directly.

Due to important matters the next day, Father Ye didn't go fishing at night. They also informed the workers to temporarily halt construction on the houses. They would resume work once the new homestead was confirmed.

The wooden boat is about 6 meters long and can carry about 5 tons. It's not too old. If you buy it second-hand, it would cost around 200 yuan.

Father Ye rowed the boat on the sea, checked it for any issues, and then, as a precaution, asked the village's master shipbuilder to inspect it again. Once there were no problems, he went to the commune to find Secretary Chen as a witness and to mark the new homestead.

Everyone in the Ye family was delighted. They were just changing the residential plot and got a boat for free. There couldn't be anything better than this.

After the smooth transaction,Secretary Chen confirmed with Father Ye multiple times that they were doing this voluntarily. Then he promptly issued a new certificate and approved the plot by the seaside. The money, of course, came from Lin Jishang's cousin, Zhou Yechi.

After settling the calculations for wages, the Ye family didn't concern themselves with the homestead anymore. They planned to inform the workers to dig a hole at the new homestead the next day and resume construction.

Back at home, Ye Yaodong couldn't help but ask, "Dad, what are you going to do with the small boat?"

"Hmm? What do you mean, what am I going to do?"

"You already have a big boat. You can't sail the small boat too!"

Father Ye frowned. "What do you want to do?"

"Sell it to me!"

The boat was 6 meters long—not too small. He couldn't afford a bigger one, and he couldn't afford a new one either. Getting a second-hand wooden boat temporarily wouldn't be bad.

It was better than taking turns with his two brothers to go fishing with their father. They only got to go fishing once every three days, and the earnings from fishing had to be used for building houses. They had no money left.

He wanted to earn money, but he didn't know how to do business, had no capital, and nobody trusted him. As someone living by the sea, having a small wooden boat to catch some fish would be good.

You see, fishing boats were the tools that coastal people relied on for survival. Rarely would anyone sell a perfectly good boat unless they were exchanging a small boat for a bigger one. Discarded small boats were usually prioritized for sale within the family. Second-hand boats were also not easy to come by. Today, this boat presented an opportunity for him.

When he said this, everyone was surprised and asked in unison, "You want to buy it?"

"Can’t I?"

Father Ye frowned. "What's the point of buying? If you need it, just take it and use it."

"Then, Dad, since you have three sons, who are you planning to let use it?"

Um... that question stumped Father Ye.

It was Mother Ye who had a better understanding of maintaining balance in the family. She changed the topic and asked, "Yaodong, why do you want to buy that wooden boat?"

"Well, I want to have my own boat. I can't afford a new one, and I can't find a second-hand one. Now that we have an extra boat at home and it's not easy to divide among the three brothers, I thought I could buy it."

Ye Yaopeng and Ye Yaohua, the two brothers, also felt a bit eager when they heard him say he wanted to have his own boat. They also wanted one.

Father Ye looked at him with suspicion. "Are you planning to go fishing by yourself?"

Why didn't he believe it? If the eldest or second son said they wanted their own boat, he would believe it without a doubt. But the third son...

Plenty of criminal records!

Even though he seemed diligent and hardworking lately, his father had doubts about how long he could keep it up!

(end of this chapter)

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Ah Dong is finally making plans for the future

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