Almost everyone, young and old, was watching the excitement at the river bend. Wenxi was there too. When she learned that Captain Qian was going to spend money on fish and shrimp, Wenxi would throw a stone into the river every now and then. Everyone thought she was just skipping stones and didn't think much of it.
However, more and more fish and shrimp are coming down from upstream, as if they can't be caught in time. There are even big fish weighing tens of kilograms. It's the first time everyone has ever heard of such big fish in the river bend.
Everyone was already quite enthusiastic about catching them.
At noon, several purchasing agents from various companies came to buy fish and shrimp. They didn't know how these strange shrimp were eaten, so they only ordered fish and not crayfish, river shrimp, or large crabs.
When the supply and marketing cooperative had fish available, the price was 60 cents per pound. The Fengshou Brigade thanked everyone for supporting the business and gave everyone 50 cents per pound.
After all the purchasing agents from various units had taken the fish back, Captain Qian immediately arranged for the accountant to tally today's income. Once the fish and shrimp were distributed, the money would be given to everyone.
Qin Mi's purchasing agent also came. Wen Xi told him the simplest way to cook river shrimp and asked him to buy some to take back for everyone to try. River shrimp are really delicious, and they have no bones. The meat is plump and firm, making them more cost-effective than crucian carp. Crucian carp has a lot of shell and little meat, and the meat yield is not as high as that of river shrimp!
Wenxi is Qin Mi's girlfriend, and Qin Mi values her very much. It is common knowledge that he comes to the countryside every night to protect her. Therefore, he naturally obeys Wenxi's every word and bought a lot of large river shrimp to take back.
Everyone kept catching fish and shrimp until the afternoon, forgetting to go back and cook lunch. They completely forgot about eating altogether, catching fish until only small fish and shrimp remained on the surface of the water.
It's not that people look down on small fish and shrimp, but rather that they want to save them for next year. If they wipe them out completely, will there be any fish and shrimp left to eat in the future?
Then they started sorting the fish and shrimp and weighing them.
The fish was distributed per person, with each person receiving about 15 jin (7.5 catties) of fish, while the mixed shrimp received several dozen jin (10 kg). Since not many shrimp were sold, they were left for everyone to eat.
After dividing the fish and shrimp, we started distributing money to everyone. Each person received more than nine yuan, which was more than what they received last year when they sold watermelons. They never expected that so many fish would be available today.
After receiving their share of fish and shrimp and money, everyone wore bright smiles and carried their fish and shrimp home to cook and eat.
Fish can be pickled, but shrimp cannot be pickled and must be eaten as soon as possible.
However, there were simply too many, so some people decided to send some to their relatives as a way of maintaining relationships.
Back home, Wenxi went to the kitchen to cook, while Shen Jiaojiao and Jiang Yue went to the well to prepare fish and shrimp. Unexpectedly, shortly after they arrived home, there was a knock on the door.
Shen Jiaojiao got up and went to open the door, only to see Wang Xinru and Yao Hongbo standing outside. "Why are you here? And you even brought all the things you were allocated?"
Wang Xinru said shyly, "Shen Jiaojiao, I'm not very good at handling these things, could I trouble you with this...?"
“Wenxi is in charge of cooking in our family. We’re responsible for the other housework. You can ask Wenxi about it,” Shen Jiaojiao said. She wouldn’t just take on any task for Wenxi.
Wang Xinru hurried to the kitchen to find Wen Xi. "Wen Xi, can we bring our things over and deal with them together? There are too many people at the educated youth settlement, and we don't know when it will be our turn!"
Wenxi got up from behind the stove, brushed the bits of grass off her clothes, and said, "We've distributed so much today, can you all finish it? Many people are taking it to town to exchange for money, aren't you going to do the same?"
Wang Xinru was stunned for a moment, clearly not expecting that this could be done. "I don't know where to change it."
“The people at your educated youth settlement will definitely be going to be replaced. You should hurry back and set off with everyone,” Wenxi reminded them.
Eating dozens of kilograms all at once would definitely be too much for the body to handle.
So not only the educated youth had to be sent away, but even the people in the team would be sent away!
"Go to the factory's residential area and go door-to-door, saying you're relatives. That way, no one will know you're selling things. It's best to go in pairs; it's safer that way," Wenxi advised.
Wang Xinru nodded, "Okay, I'll go back now."
"Remember to come over for dinner tonight. We won't be serving ours, so please come over and help us finish it. Otherwise, it will spoil by tomorrow if we don't finish it," Wen Xi said.
Since Shen Jiaojiao and Jiang Yue were both at home, she had no way to cheat, so all the fish and shrimp were disposed of today.
Wang Xinru and Yao Hongbo hurried back to the educated youth settlement, and sure enough, there was no one there. It seemed that everyone had gone out. So the two of them quickly went to catch up with everyone. They needed someone to help cover for them in this matter, otherwise it would be easy for someone to get into trouble.
The two of them ran for quite a while before catching up with everyone, both panting heavily. Seeing this, Huang Minghao took Wang Xinru's basket from her back and said, "I'll carry it for you for a while. Take a break first, and then you can take it back when you've calmed down."
"Thank you," Wang Xinru said, panting.
Tan Huatao also took Yao Hongbo's basket and let him rest for a while.
Afterwards, the group headed towards the town in a grand procession. Xue Qiujun was also very puzzled. She didn't expect there to be so many fish in the river bend of the Fengshou Brigade. They had only been there a short time and had already benefited from such a thing. So many things could be exchanged for at least ten yuan, right? Adding to the nine yuan they had already received, everyone got nineteen yuan for free!
I never expected the Harvest Brigade to be so amazing.
Considering that Wang Xinru and Yao Hongbo would be coming over for dinner that evening, Wenxi added more rice and sweet potatoes, started a fire to cook the rice, and then went to the well to help with the cooking.
Each person weighs several dozen kilograms, and the three of them together weigh over a hundred kilograms. If they are not processed together, it is impossible to process them all.
Once the food is ready, cook as much as you can in the afternoon and leave the rest for dinner.
Wenxi cooked braised crucian carp, salted shrimp, spicy crayfish, and steamed crab for lunch, and also stir-fried water spinach. The three of them ate a late lunch, and then went to the yard to continue preparing these dishes.
Wang Xinru and Yao Hongbo didn't return until evening. Their faces were flushed red, like pig livers. Wenxi told them to sit down and rest, and poured them some cool boiled water. Once their complexions returned to normal, Wenxi fetched some well water for them to wash up.
It's the height of summer now, and a round trip to town takes almost three hours. Plus, they went to town to sell things today, so they're naturally exhausted.
"How did it go? Did you sell the items successfully?" Wenxi asked curiously.
Wang Xinru said with a smile, "We sold them, but we didn't go to the factory's residential area. Everyone else went to the residential area, and if we went there too, it might take up too much time, so we went directly to the hospital's residential area."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
