July 10th, afternoon.
Shangang Village.
Sun Aiju and Zhou Yin were peeling peanuts at home. It was the summer farming season and all the strong laborers in the family had gone to work in the fields, so they were the only two at home.
Although Sun Aiju and Zhou Yin did not have to work in the fields, they still had a lot of work to do.
Both of them were used to doing farm work, and they peeled a basket of peanuts in a short time.
Just as Sun Aiju was about to stand up and rub her waist, she heard the ring of a bicycle bell from the courtyard gate. "Is anyone home?"
Sun Aiju hurried out to greet them, "Yes, yes."
The postman got off his bicycle, rummaged through the back seat, and handed Sun Aiju a letter and a large package. "Here, your letter and package."
Sun Aiju took it, thanked the postman and went into the house.
Zhou Yin saw her holding a letter in her left hand and a large package in her right hand, and couldn't help but curl her lips, "Junzi sent you something again, it's not the right time yet."
Ning Jun was serving as a soldier in the western border, and he would send his salary to Sun Aiju every month without fail.
Sun Aiju laughed and didn't respond to Zhou Yin's words.
She was also confused. It was not time for Ning Jun to send wages yet. Besides, Ning Jun always sent wages in an envelope containing deposit certificates. It was unprecedented for him to send a large package like this.
Sun Aiju put the package on the table, glanced at the postmark on the envelope, and said in surprise, "It's not from Junzi. This letter was sent from Hailang Island."
"Hailang Island?!" Upon hearing that the letter was sent from Hailang Island, Zhou Yinhua stopped peeling the flowers. He wiped his hands with his apron, snatched the letter from Sun Aiju's hand, and said with a smile, "It must be from our Ning Xue."
She had never been to school and was illiterate. She snatched the letter on a whim and threw it on the table. "Forget it, I won't read it for now." Then she started to rummage through the package.
Seeing this, Sun Aiju took the letter.
Sun Aiju graduated from elementary school and attended literacy classes, so she could read. She unfolded the letter and read it carefully. When she saw Ning Tang said that she was living well on Hailang Island, Sun Aiju smiled and nodded.
When they saw the last page of the letter, Ning Tang wrote about sending seafood and described in detail how to cook it. Sun Aiju couldn't stop smiling.
Everyone in the family knows that Ning Tang can't cook, and based on Sun Aiju's understanding of her own daughter, Ning Tang is not yet so meticulous. So it goes without saying who told her how to cook the seafood.
It seems that the couple has a good relationship, and Sun Aiju finally feels relieved.
While Sun Aiju was reading the letter, Zhou Yin also opened the package.
Dried mackerel, dried abalone, dried squid, dried shrimp...the whole table was piled high.
Zhou Yin recalled that Su Junyan had promised her before leaving that he would send a lot of seafood when he arrived at Hailang Island. She smiled so hard that she couldn't stop, "This must be sent by our son-in-law."
"Where do all these things come from?" Ning Weiguo's surprised voice suddenly came from the door.
He, Ning Weidang and Ning De came back from farm work carrying hoes. As soon as they entered the house, they saw a table full of seafood.
Sun Aiju smiled and said, "Your daughter sent it from Hailang Island."
Zhou Yin was stunned and asked, "It wasn't sent by Ning Xue?"
She glanced at Sun Aiju suspiciously, took the letter from her hand, and patted it into Ning Weidang's arms, "Read the letter."
Ning Weidang read out the letter and finally said, "It was sent by Ning Tang."
Zhou Yin finally believed it. She sat aside in frustration and said, "Why was it sent by Ning Tang..."
"What about Ning Xue? Did Ning Xue send anything?" Ning Weidang asked, glancing at the seafood on the table.
Sun Aiju couldn't tell her directly that Ning Xue didn't send anything, and that these were all sent by Ning Tang.
Seeing that Sun Aiju didn't say anything, Ning Weidang guessed that Ning Xue didn't send anything.
He couldn't help but vent his anger on Ning Tang, complaining, "Ning Tang is such a jerk! She didn't even bother to let her cousin know she was safe when she wrote the letter."
Ning De came out and said something fair, "My sister and cousin are both married. Even if they live on the same island, they are still two families. How can you ask my cousin to report my sister's safety? It's just two letters. How much postage would it cost?"
Ning Weiguo frowned and said, "Ning Xue's letter might arrive in two days. By then, it will contain everything you want to know."
Ning Weidang never dared to confront Ning Weiguo. Upon hearing this, he simply said to Zhou Yin, "Hurry up and clean up these seafood. We'll cook them tonight and try the seafood from Hailang Island."
Zhou Yin agreed reluctantly.
These seafood were all sent by Ning Tang. Although the letter said it was for the whole family, Ning Weiguo and Sun Aiju definitely took the lion's share.
When he thought of this, the stingy Zhou Yin became very angry.
Hailang Island
On July 16th, at 3:30 in the afternoon, Mrs. Luo came to the house and said, "Xiaoning, I'm going to the beach. Do you want to come?"
"Going to the beach?" Ning Tang's eyes lit up. "Are you going to pick up those barnacles you picked up last time? I'll go, I'll go."
Last time, Mrs. Luo gave her a bag. Although the shells were difficult to peel, they tasted very delicious and she couldn't stop thinking about it.
In addition, she wanted to go to the beach last time, but was stopped by Ning Xue, so she didn't go. Later, the weather got hotter day by day, and she forgot about going to the beach. Now that she has the chance, she must go to the beach and have fun.
Mrs. Luo smiled and shook her head. "There's not much meat in barnacles, not even enough to fill a gap between our teeth. This time we went to the sea to pick abalone and razor clams. The sea temperature rises in July and August, and the abalone swims to the shallows. Their meat is plump and delicious, making it the best time to catch them. If we're lucky, we might even pick up some sea cucumbers."
Ning Tang's mouth watered when she heard Mrs. Luo say they could pick up abalone and razor clams. Thinking of the braised sea cucumber with scallions, she quickly asked, "Why do you have to be lucky to pick up sea cucumbers?"
Mrs. Luo said, "Sea cucumbers are only caught in April to May or October to December. It's July now, so it's usually hard to find them unless we're lucky."
Da Wa couldn't help but said, "Sister Luo, take Da Wa with you. Da Wa is very lucky and will definitely be able to pick up a large sea cucumber."
Erniu and Sanwa also surrounded Luo Saozi, one on each side, and said, "Sister-in-law, we want to go too."
Mrs. Luo smiled and said, "My words don't count. Ask your stepmother."
The three children looked at Ning Tang in unison, their eyes full of anticipation.
Although the three children were born and raised on the island, none of them had ever been to the sea. Shen Lie felt that the three children were still young and the waves at the seaside were strong, so he did not let them go.
The mother of the eldest, second and third children is frail and sickly, so it is even more impossible for her to take the three children to the beach.
Ning Tang crossed his arms and thought for a while, then asked Da Wa, Er Niu, and San Wa, "Do you really want to go?"
Da Wa's eyes sparkled. "I do." He gritted his teeth and said, "Stepmother, take us to the beach. At worst, we'll wash the dishes for you for a week."
Erniu nodded, "Yes, free work, but not the kind with red dates."
"Okay then." Ning Tang held up a finger, "But you have to promise me one thing."
Before she finished speaking, the three children couldn't help but ask, "What is it?"
Ning Tang: "I tell you to walk, and you walk. I tell you to run, and you run. In other words, when we get to the beach, you must obey me and not run around."
Big Baby nodded eagerly, "Okay, I'll do as you say."
Ning Tang snorted, "You guys agreed to it now, but when you got to the beach you were just wandering around and causing me a lot of trouble. I only have two hands and two legs, how can I take care of you three little brats?"
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