Seeing Zhang Qiang's frustration at having gained nothing, Feng Ye comforted him, "Don't worry, take your time. Luck is a tricky thing sometimes. Some people might win on their first try, while others have to wait and see."

He didn't try to persuade Zhang Qiang to pry the oysters off the whole thing and wait until they got back.

That's how people are; they're not worried about scarcity, but about inequality.

The three of them each dug one up, but Zhang Qiang didn't. He must be feeling resentful, and trying to persuade him might not work; it might even backfire.

"Hey, I know you're not satisfied until you open one after seeing that we all have them. Here's what we'll do: after you open it, don't eat the meat anymore, just throw it away. Overeating is bad for your health."

Fang Yi happened to be standing next to Zhang Qiang and gently patted him on the shoulder to show his understanding.

Wang Teng chimed in, "That's right, it doesn't matter if it's a bit wasteful, since these are all wild, not bought with money. Besides, you don't like eating raw oysters anyway, and the way you held your nose while eating them made me uncomfortable."

"No, it's such a waste to waste such good stuff." Feng Ye hurriedly added, "There are bowls and a lunchbox on the boat that can be used to hold the oyster meat, why waste them?"

Actually, you could use a bucket, but buckets are too big. It's not worth wasting the capacity of a bucket just to hold some oyster meat.

Bowls and lunchboxes, on the other hand, have a much smaller capacity, making them practical, easy to carry, and space-saving.

Thinking about this, Feng Ye felt that he was really too clever.

"Yeah, how come I didn't think of that?"

Upon hearing Feng Ye's words, Wang Teng suddenly realized what was going on, excitedly slapped his thigh, and then said with a resentful look, "Why didn't you say so sooner? If you had, I wouldn't have eaten so much. *burp*"

As he spoke, he let out a burp and a helpless smile appeared on his face.

"I just remembered it myself." Feng Ye spread his hands and said helplessly, "Besides, the things are on the ship, didn't you remember it yourself? And you're blaming me."

He hadn't eaten too much, so of course he couldn't remember it right away.

While the two were talking, Zhang Qiang couldn't wait to head towards where the Rising Sun was docked.

He had only one thought in his mind; all he could think about was pearls, pearls…

However, to everyone's surprise, he didn't take a bowl or a lunchbox, but rather the pot from the coal stove.

"What are you doing...?"

Looking at the large pot in Zhang Qiang's hand, Feng Ye was both amused and exasperated.

Zhang Qiang was beaming with excitement, his eyes sparkling with anticipation: "Hehe, I wonder how many oysters I'll have to dig up to find a pearl. I'm worried the bowls and lunchboxes won't be big enough to hold it all. This pot is great, it's big enough!"

After saying that, he couldn't wait to take out his small hoe and dig into an oyster.

"Whatever makes you happy."

Feng Ye shook his head helplessly, finding Zhang Qiang's behavior somewhat amusing.

However, he didn't say much and continued to concentrate on digging for oysters.

Meanwhile, Fang Yi and Wang Teng were also busy.

They have successfully opened an oyster pearl, and although they are eager to open more, there is no need to rush.

Opening oysters takes more time than digging them out whole; it's better to take them home and open them slowly.

Moreover, whether or not a pearl can be found is still unknown.

The oysters were quite large, and Feng Ye quickly filled the bucket and burlap sack.

He stood up, looked around, and found that the tide had gradually receded, revealing more reefs.

The surface of the reef is covered with all kinds of shellfish, including a large number of oysters.

"Hey, I didn't bring enough burlap sacks!"

Looking at the scene before him, he couldn't help but sigh. He then hoisted a sack of oysters onto his shoulder and carried a full bucket in his hand as he headed toward the Rising Sun.

Once on the boat, he didn't have time to spare. He grabbed another bucket and three snakeskin bags, and gave two to each of them as well, before quickly returning to the reef.

He handed out the snakeskin bags to them, but instead of joining them, he found an unexplored rock and started digging.

Not only were there oysters growing on the rocks, but also some snails clinging to them, which he unceremoniously collected.

Not long after, he suddenly heard a frantic shout: "Hahaha, I dug it up! I dug up two oyster pearls!"

Feng Ye turned his head and saw Zhang Qiang holding two similar-sized oyster pearls tightly in his hand, dancing with excitement.

"Holy crap, two! What incredible luck you have, finding two pearls in one oyster."

Fang Yi looked at the two pearls in Zhang Qiang's hand, his eyes sparkling with envy.

Although neither of these two pearls was as large as the one he had cut open, their combined value was in no way inferior, and perhaps even greater.

Wang Teng joked, "You've really been saving up for this. It seems all those oysters you ate while holding your nose weren't for nothing. Now you've opened two at once, just enough to make a pair of earrings for your wife."

"Haha, yeah, I never expected to be so lucky!"

Zhang Qiang was beaming with pride, his smile almost reaching his ears. He carefully put the two pearls into his pocket, as if afraid of losing them.

Feng Ye couldn't help but marvel at Zhang Qiang's good luck.

They either don't come at all, or they come with two. Luck is a really mysterious thing.

However, Wang Teng's reminder gave Feng Ye a thought: the oyster pearls could be saved to make jewelry for Ye Qingling.

Oyster pearls are valuable, but not extremely so, making them suitable for ordinary people to wear.

It wasn't that he was unwilling to let Ye Qingling wear something better, like the Melody Bead at home; it was mainly because there were many robbers these days, and he was afraid it wouldn't be safe for her to wear it out.

Time passed by unnoticed, the tide had receded completely, and they had dug up all the oysters they could see.

Feng Ye alone dug up four full snakeskin bags of oysters, while the other three had slightly fewer, but each of them still had about three bags.

After carrying their harvest back to the boat, they were in high spirits, imagining how many pearls they could harvest after opening the oysters.

"It's almost five o'clock, we should get ready to head back."

After resting for a short while, Feng Ye said something and got up to go to the driver's seat.

Fang Yi looked up at the position of the sun and said in confusion, "Isn't it a bit early now? The sun is still high in the sky..."

"Are you out of your mind? We've been at sea all day, and nobody's watching us. Of course we need to go back soon!"

"Besides, the journey back will take at least two hours. If we go back later, it will be dark by the time we reach the dock."

After all, the ship belongs to Feng Ye, so naturally he has the final say, and it doesn't matter if others have opinions.

In fact, Fang Yi only mentioned it once, and Wang Teng and Zhang Qiang had no objections; they couldn't wait to go back.