Seeing that he was still looking, Lin Yuxin knew that glaring at him was useless, so she turned to Aunt Mu and changed the subject, feeling embarrassed:
“Aunt Mu, we were passing by when Xiao Chen told us that you had saved him before and treated him very well. We thought we’d come and see you. Also, I’ve never seen the sea before and wanted to spend a couple of days here, so we came to bother you.”
"Oh, Yuxin, there's no need to be so formal. Your Uncle Mu and I only have one son, who died at sea many years ago. For so many years, it's just been your Uncle Mu and me relying on each other. We're overjoyed that you can come back to see us. How can it be considered an intrusion?"
As Aunt Mu spoke, she took Lin Yuxin's hand and spoke to her affectionately.
They rescued Xiao Chen out of compassion, and during that time they treated Xiao Chen as their own child.
They were already very happy that Xiao Chen could still remember them and come back to see them.
"Aunt Mu, where's Uncle Mu? Did he go out to gather seafood again?"
Seeing that the two were chatting well, Li Xiaochen looked around and, not seeing Uncle Mu, asked with a smile.
"They've gone out to sea. The fishing net broke, so they won't be going very far today. They should be back by tonight. Please sit down and make yourselves at home. Xiao Chen knows this place well. Xiao, why don't you bring your wife with you? I'll go and clean up the seaweed by the door and make lunch for you later."
Seeing that it was getting late, Aunt Mu got up and gave Li Xiaochen some instructions.
"Okay, Aunt Mu, you go ahead and get busy, I understand!"
Li Xiaochen also stood up and spoke naturally, as if he were at home, without any sense of formality.
Lin Yuxin found it very strange!
Aunt Mu nodded, smiled, and went to the courtyard, where she sat down and began to sort the seaweed.
Uncle Mu brought this seaweed back last night. It was too late last night, so he didn't process it. If he doesn't process it today, it will spoil.
She needs to sort out the seaweed and dry it for easy storage.
Uncle Mu said that the seaweed was a gift from Grandpa Liu in the village when he came back. His family has been cultivating seaweed for many years and then selling it. The business is quite good.
So I often gave some to families in the village with whom I had a good relationship, but not much.
He delivers seaweed to the village, and the villagers also give him some seafood they catch, which can be considered a reciprocal exchange.
Lin Yuxin and Xiao Hao didn't do anything; they just sat in the courtyard, watching Aunt Mu work with curiosity in their eyes.
Neither of them had ever seen the sea, nor had they ever seen anything new or interesting coming out of it! They were quite curious to see Aunt Mu finish drying seaweed and then start processing seafood, so they pulled Xiao Hao to squat down and watch.
She had seen seafood in her previous life, but she didn't recognize all of them. She had only seen some commonly eaten ones, such as freshwater shrimp, lobster, sea urchin, and mantis shrimp.
There are still many seafood products they don't recognize! Besides, there are so many things in the sea. They don't even see many kinds of fish in Beijing, so it's even less likely that the two of them would recognize anything from the sea.
The two heads stared intently at Aunt Mu's basket, motionless, which made Aunt Mu laugh. She didn't stop them, letting them continue watching as she processed the fish and shrimp, explaining to them what these were, how to process them, and how to cook them deliciously.
The basket contained some sea urchins, conch, octopus, and some crabs, but nothing else, so it was quick to prepare.
However, when Xiao Hao saw that it looked strange and had eight legs, wriggling incessantly in the basket, he looked terrified, took a step back unconsciously, and got goosebumps all over his body.
"What...what is that?"
Xiao Hao pointed to the things in the basket and asked in a trembling voice.
"Oh! This is called a sea snake, and it's edible!"
Seeing that the child was frightened, Aunt Mu reached out and grabbed the sea snake, then smiled and introduced it to him.
When Xiao Hao saw that Aunt Mu was holding it in her hand, he immediately took a few steps back, too scared to get any closer.
They call octopuses "sea snakes" here! Aside from being ugly, they taste delicious! I really want to eat them!!
Lin Yuxin's mouth watered as she looked at the octopus, which was as big as an arm; she wanted to eat it!
"Aunt Mu, can we have this for lunch today?"
Lin Yuxin's eyes never left the octopus in her hand as she asked a question.
Aunt Mu could tell that she genuinely enjoyed the food and wasn't afraid at all, so she nodded and said:
"I've prepared all of this for you today. This is your first time here, so you've probably never seen our local specialties before. These seafood products are a treat for you to try!"
Aunt Mu nodded in agreement and said with a kind smile.
"Really? Xiao Hao, did you hear that? There's something delicious to eat today!"
Lin Yuxin was overjoyed. She grabbed the listless Xiao Hao and shook him repeatedly, exclaiming, "Ah! We can eat spicy octopus! If only we could have barbecue!!"
Lin Yuxin's swallowing motions became increasingly obvious!
Shaked by his sister, Xiao Hao watched as Aunt Mu took the sea snake off her hand. The suckers on it were still stuck to Aunt Mu's hand, and she had to pull them off by hand. The thought of having to eat it later made Xiao Hao feel uneasy.
Can he skip eating? Can he go back to Beijing earlier? He feels it's safer to go back to Beijing!
Xiao Hao wanted to cry but had no tears. However, seeing his sister's happy face, he didn't dare to say anything to spoil the mood. He could only take a few steps back, force an awkward smile at his sister, and nod with difficulty.
Meanwhile, Li Xiaochen skillfully picked up a piece of wood and started chopping firewood. In no time, he had chopped up a pile, as if he often did this before!
He saw that the group was chatting happily, and he looked to be in a good mood with a smile on his face.
Just then, a woman's gentle voice came from outside the door:
"Aunt Mu, are you home? My mother asked me to bring you some crabs!"
"Here you are, Shufang! Oh, your mother is too kind. Please thank her for me. It just so happens that your brother Xiaochen is coming back today, and I was worried about what to cook for him. You've come at the perfect time. Tomorrow, I'll bring your mother something else."
"Hehehe, Shufang, sit down for a while, I'll go make room for the basket for you!"
When Aunt Mu heard Shufang's voice, she immediately smiled and went out to open the door, warmly taking the basket from her hand. She and Shufang's mother were childhood friends, so they often exchanged food, which was nothing unusual.
So Aunt Mu took the basket and went to the kitchen!
Shufang was left standing there, stunned when she heard Aunt Mu mention Xiao Chen. She looked up at the tall figure still chopping wood, as if she could see nothing around her but him, her eyes filled with affection.
He's back! He's really back!
When this man was injured and recuperating at Aunt Mu's house, she took a liking to him. She had never seen such a handsome man before, and her heart immediately fell for him.
During that time, she went to Aunt Mu's house every day, showing concern for Xiao Chen, changing his bandages, and mending his clothes. She thought they could live like this for the rest of their lives, and that he would marry her!
The result was that he was going back, and before she could even ask him why, he was gone!
For the past five years, she has been waiting for him. Her mother has found her many husbands, but she has postponed the marriage.
She just wanted to ask, "Brother Xiao Chen, why did you leave without saying goodbye back then?"
Now that she's seen the real person, she feels a bit apprehensive about returning home!
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