When Fu Wan and the others arrived home, Ye Xiaocui was hanging clothes out to dry in the yard. Hearing the noise at the door, she hurriedly put down the clothes she was holding and went to greet them.
"How was it? Any success?"
Fu Wan only showed her obvious smugness in front of her own mother. She chuckled and said, "How could we not have any success? Mom, look who went!"
"Haha, stop showing off, let me see. Wow, so many crabs! The traps must have yielded a good haul too?"
"Yes, Mom, look! My dad even caught a grouper!"
Ye Xiaocui was overjoyed when she saw it. Fu Ming went to a water tank and picked out some crabs, while he prepared to take the rest to Fu San on a cart.
We can't eat all these crabs at home. If we keep them all, they'll die and it'll all be for nothing.
Just before leaving, Fu Ming's stomach growled twice. He had eaten two steamed buns in the morning, and with such a heavy workload, he was starving.
He turned to Ye Xiaocui and shouted, "Mom, hurry up and cook! Your son is starving!"
Ye Xiaocui was tidying up the fish trap with Boss Fu when she heard this and quickly replied, "Okay, okay, I've already chopped the vegetables, just waiting for you to come back and cook them!"
Upon hearing this, Fu Wan simply went into the kitchen.
On the stove were the dishes Ye Xiaocui had prepared: chopped cabbage and carrots, a chopped cured rabbit, and some bamboo shoots left over from the recent trip, which Ye Xiaocui had also chopped up, clearly intended to be added to the rabbit as a side dish.
Fu Wan rolled up her sleeves and lit the fire in the stove.
The peanut seedlings they used to start the fire were dried after harvesting peanuts, or sesame stalks after threshing sesame, or sometimes corn stalks. However, families that raised cattle would keep the corn stalks along with the haystacks after threshing rice to feed their cattle.
Just as Fu Wan started the fire, Ye Xiaocui came in after finishing her work.
"Ah Wan, how about we add some crab for lunch?"
Ye Xiaocui hesitated. Although the crabs were readily available, not all of them were clean and needed to be washed.
Fu Wan thought for a moment. Since they already had one meat dish and one vegetable dish for lunch, adding a crab would be fine.
She stood up and said, "Mom, you cook the dishes, and I'll clean the crabs. The children won't be home for lunch today, so let's make something spicy."
The children's digestive systems are not fully developed yet, but Lingling was envious when she saw them eating, so Fu Wan had to secretly make some when they were not at home.
The crabs today are big and plump, perfect for making spicy crab.
Thinking this, Fu Wan quickly grabbed a few crabs.
To make the spicy crab flavorful, the crab needs to be chopped in half. These crabs were very fresh, and even after being chopped into several pieces, their claws were still swinging wildly. Fu Wan used the back of her knife to crack the claws, making it easier for the flavor to penetrate.
Ye Xiaocui quickly stir-fried the cabbage and carrots. Since the preserved rabbit would need to stew for a while, she took the other dishes out first.
Just as Fu Wan started frying the crabs, Fu Ming returned with a cart full of empty fish baskets.
Wow, it smells so good!
He put down his things and rushed into the kitchen. Looking at the golden and tempting crabs in the pot, Fu Ming exclaimed exaggeratedly, "Awan, do you believe I could swallow a cow right now?"
"Xin, quickly wipe your drool, it's time to eat."
"Okay, add plenty of chili, I'll have a couple with Dad later!"
Fu Ming ran to wash his hands with a happy smile. When he was at Fu San's house, Aunt Zhao had also invited him to stay for a meal.
However, Fu San was too embarrassed to do so. After weighing himself with Fu Ming, he hurriedly ran home.
Before long, the spicy crab was ready. Four people, four dishes, because everyone was starving after a busy morning.
Fu Wan picked up a piece of bamboo shoot with her chopsticks. This bamboo shoot not only had its own fresh flavor, but also had the aroma of cured rabbit, making it very appetizing.
Fu Ming quickly finished a bowl of rice, then took a big gulp of water, and only then did he realize that he no longer felt like he was starving.
"Oh right, Wan, Uncle San said he's going to check on the seafood harvesting boat at two o'clock. He'll be over later, so don't forget."
"I remember that!"
Fu Wan nodded, while Ye Xiaocui asked, somewhat puzzled, "What's a seafood collection boat?"
"Oh, it's about buying a ship to collect seafood at sea. My third uncle told me about it during the Chinese New Year. I thought about it and it seemed like a viable business."
Fu Wan explained it to Ye Xiaocui, but Ye Xiaocui didn't understand. However, she supported her daughter's plans.
"Do you have time tonight? How about you have your brother pick up the kids?"
Fu Wan thought for a moment, "Okay, I have to go to the county town later."
The four of them ate and chatted, and finished lunch in just half an hour.
Fu Ming was clearing away the dishes when Fu San arrived with Fu Shi.
If they manage to buy the boat later, they can sail it back to Fujia Village Wharf.
When Fu Wan went out, she called Fang Min again, and Fu San was filled with envy after getting into the car.
"Wow, this car is really awesome. If I ever have money in the future, I'll get one too."
Looking at the road ahead, Fu Wan smiled and said, "Don't worry, Uncle, you'll be able to buy one in less than five years."
"Haha, what you say is always accurate, so I'll take it seriously!"
The group soon arrived at Qianjia Village, which Fu San had mentioned. This was actually Qian Xiaohua's hometown. When Fu Wan's car entered the village, she even saw Qian Xiaobao's figure by the roadside.
Fu San had scouted the area beforehand. As soon as the car stopped, Fu San and Fu Shi ran to the house of the boat seller to call for help.
Such a large ship would naturally not be kept at home, but would be moored at the dock.
The dock here is similar to the one in Fujia Village, but it's not as big, and there aren't many boats at the dock.
I don't know if they went out to sea, or if there are just few families with boats around here.
"Ah Wan, let's get out of the car and go to the dock!"
As Fu Wan and Fang Min were looking around, Fu San arrived with his men.
Upon hearing this, Fu Wan pulled out the key and jumped out of the car with Fang Min. The middle-aged man's eyes widened when he saw that the driver was a woman.
"This is Fu Wan, the niece I told you about."
"Awan, this is Qian Jiawang. We want to buy his boat!"
Fu Wan politely nodded and greeted the man. Qian Jiawang glanced at the Jeep behind Fu Wan, and his eyes lit up.
Fang Min noticed the man's gaze and couldn't help but frown.
The group followed Qian Jiawang to the dock. Qian Jiawang pointed to the innermost iron boat and said, "That's my family's boat, comrade. I'm not bragging, but my family's boat has hardly been used since we bought it. It's practically brand new!"
Fu Wan glanced at the rust on the hull. This person really knows how to brag. Does he think they're blind? Rust like this won't come out for at least two or three years.
She walked around the cabin. This iron boat did indeed resemble her family's old boat in some ways, even the control panel in the cockpit was almost the same.
However, the signs of use were also obvious. Fu San started the boat with the crank handle, and the sound of the engine clearly indicated that it was an old machine.
It's alright, though; it still works. If we replaced the engine, it might even be able to go on a long-distance voyage.
"Uncle, how much are you planning to sell this boat for?"
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