It wasn't until noon that Wan Kongshan returned home, just in time to find his family entertaining the Lin family's guests with lunch.
"You said you went to deliver goods, why did it take you so long to come back?" Zhang Xiu put down her chopsticks, stood up, and went to greet her. "Have you had lunch?"
The younger generation at the table also greeted Wan Kongshan one by one.
Wan Kongshan took off his empty basket, shook his head and said, "I was summoned by the county magistrate as soon as I finished delivering the goods, so I didn't have time for lunch."
Seeing that Lin Lan and Lin Yang'er at the table had also greeted him, he politely waved his hand and said, "The Lin family's children are here too. Please eat more. We only have simple food at home, so please forgive us if we are not hospitable enough."
Zhang Xiu helped him wash his hands, served him a bowl of rice, and whispered, "What did Magistrate Cao want with you?"
Wan Kongshan did not hide anything from the Lin family just because they were there. Instead, he revealed a meaningful smile: "Do you know that the celebration for the whale has already been scheduled?"
"I've already told my aunt about this good news!"
Upon hearing what Baili Wanwan cared about most, she quickly interrupted to speak.
"Today, Magistrate Cao contacted me to entrust me with the task of making the wooden whale needed for the celebration. This is a huge order!" Wan Kongshan recalled Magistrate Cao's request, and the excitement and joy in his heart could not be calmed for a long time.
Putting aside the fact that the sheer number of whales he's going to make will guarantee him a fortune, this is a celebration that the whole village will be attending. The more people who see his carved whales, the more free publicity he'll receive.
Zhang Xiu was pleased to hear this news: "Did Magistrate Cao really say that?"
Wan Kongshan nodded affirmatively: "The county magistrate will send someone to deliver the deposit this afternoon. However, I'm afraid I'll be busy for a while, as the number of whales used for the celebration is not small."
The whole family was overjoyed by the news and offered their congratulations to Wan Kongshan.
The usually boisterous Wan Yuekui stood up and said, "Father, it's too much of a burden for you to complete this order by yourself. I'm willing to help you with the work, and I can also learn some carpentry skills from you!"
"Good, my son has really improved and knows how to be considerate of his father." Wan Kongshan was overjoyed to see his son so sensible. "Then let's work together to complete this big deal."
Seeing that everyone was talking about the celebration, but he didn't know anything about it, Xiao Qi lowered his eyes and asked Baili Wanwan, who was standing to the side, "What exactly is this whale celebration you're talking about?"
Baili Wanwan then exclaimed "Oh dear!" and put down her chopsticks to explain to Xiao Qi earnestly, "Little brother, you didn't come to the beach yesterday, so you don't know about this. Let Wanwan tell you!"
Baili Wanwan told Xiao Qi about Magistrate Cao's decision yesterday, and he nodded, understanding: "So that's why. Whales are indeed rare to see. You were able to see two yesterday, which shows that you are a blessed person."
Baili Wanwan stuck out her tongue, not telling Xiao Qi that she was friends with the whale.
Wan Yuekui, who was standing to the side, also spoke up: "You've been in our village for so long, you should take a look at our village celebration. It's really lively, definitely no less than your city celebration!"
Zhang Xiu and Wan Kongshan nodded in agreement: "Then you children can go and have a good time together. This kind of celebration is extremely rare."
After the family finished their meal in harmony, Wan Kongshan couldn't wait to take Wan Yuekui to select the wood for the wooden whale.
Lin Yang'er heard that Baili Wanwan had seen a whale, and after dinner she kept pestering Baili Wanwan to describe to her what a whale looked like.
"A whale, this... it's tall, taller than our houses, and has a big mouth." Baili Wanwan scratched her head and gestured with her hands and feet.
After gesturing for a long time, Lin Yang'er still couldn't imagine what it looked like, which amused Xiao Qi who was standing next to her.
"I have a book in my room with a picture of a whale in it. I'll show it to you in a bit," Xiao Qi said, helping Baili Wanwan out of the predicament.
"Thank you, Brother Xiao. Have you ever seen a whale?" Lin Yang'er asked curiously.
Xiao Qi shook his head: "No, Brother Xiao is not a lucky person."
For some reason, when Baili Wanwan heard Xiao Qi say these words, she felt a pang of sadness in her heart, her hands on her hips.
It turns out that even this seemingly omnipotent young man has things he's never seen before...
With that in mind, Baili Wanwan decided to take Xiao Qi to meet her whale friend.
"Hey little brother, come with me! We might see whales if we go to the beach now!" Baili Wanwan pulled Xiao Qi along and headed outside.
Upon hearing the word "whale," Lin Yang'er also stuck to it.
"Fairy Wanwan took me with her, and I want to see whales with you too!"
The three arrived at the seaside, but the sea was as calm as ever, and they couldn't see anything.
"Silly Wanwan, how could whales appear at the surface of the sea every day? You just happened to be there that day, so of course you won't see them today." Xiao Qi knew that it wasn't that easy to see whales, so he smiled and patted Baili Wanwan's head.
“However, if we don’t see any whales on the day of the celebration, the villagers will probably be a little disappointed. What if they turn around and say you’re spreading rumors?” Xiao Qi suddenly changed the subject and brought up the matter of the celebration.
To everyone's surprise, Baili Wanwan said with great certainty, "The whale will definitely come on the day of the celebration. This is a celebration held for it, and the whale will be so happy that it will rise from the seabed to see it!"
Seeing how certain she was, Xiao Qi just smiled faintly, thinking it was just another child's joke.
Unexpectedly, Baili Wanwan clenched her fist and secretly exerted her strength. The whale that heard her summons swam towards the surface of the water.
Xiao Qi took Baili Wanwan's hand and said, "Alright, we've seen the sea. The whales may be visiting somewhere else today. Let's come back another day."
But no sooner had he finished speaking than he heard Lin Yang'er beside him exclaim in surprise.
"Look! What's that! It's a huge fish!"
Upon hearing this, Xiao Qi looked up at the sea surface and indeed saw a very deep and large shadow on the water, as if a huge creature was about to emerge from the water.
With a deafening roar, a gigantic whale appeared before Xiao Qi.
He opened his mouth slightly, looking at the whale in front of him in disbelief. It was exactly the same as the one he had seen in the book, and even dozens of times larger than he had imagined.
"Look, little brother, I told you we could see whales today, didn't I? Isn't it just like the one in your book?"
Baili Wanwan, standing to the side, happily shook his hand, her little face beaming with pride.
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