When Li Xiangdong heard Chun Shuwei say "I can't contact my family," he understood the nature of his work. Since he was in the army, it seemed that Aunt Chunhua and Jinlong and Yufeng wouldn't have to worry about their future.
He was genuinely happy for the three of them; they were an orphan and a widow, with no one to rely on.
I just don't know why Haruki didn't come back in his past life?
Li Xiangdong's thoughts drifted away.
"Brother, I have something else to ask you."
Over here, Chun Shuwei personally poured Li Jin a glass of baijiu.
Li Jin lightly touched his wine glass with his right hand, "What is it, brother? Just say it."
"I'm just passing through this time and can't take Chunhua and her two children with me. I might not be able to come back for another year or two. In the meantime, I hope you and my sister-in-law will take good care of them."
As Chun Shuwei spoke, he took out a stack of money and national grain coupons from his shirt pocket. "I don't have anything extra on me, so you can take this."
Li Jin pushed the money and food coupons back as if they were a hot potato. His face darkened. "Brother, what do you mean by this? Do you think I'm only taking care of Chunhua and the others because of the money? You don't need to say that. My family, including my second brother's family, can guarantee that we will take good care of Chunhua and the children!"
Li Yuan nodded heavily, indicating that he completely agreed with his elder brother's words.
Chun Shuwei glanced at Yu Feng, who was nestled quietly in Qi Yuexian's arms, and then at Jinlong, who was clinging to Li Lan like a piece of candy. He tilted his head back and drank the wine in his cup, and said with a sigh, "I was wrong just now. I thank you two brothers for taking care of my sister!"
"From now on, we're brothers!"
He didn't stay long. After finishing his meal, he said goodbye to Chunhua and left. As for where he went, what he did, and when he would return, he kept it all a secret.
Chunhua's eyes were brimming with tears; she wiped one layer away only to have another seep out. The brother and sister had been separated for more than ten years, and they had only been reunited for two or three days before they had to part again.
Qi Yuexian comforted her, "Why are you crying? Knowing that Brother Shuwei is still alive and well is already wonderful news! Besides, he's so successful! After a while, the siblings will be reunited, and then all the good days will come!"
Zhao Sufang and Li Lan also came to comfort her, and Chunhua finally stopped crying and smiled, sighing, "I really didn't expect that my brother is still alive and can stand in front of me so well."
Qi Yuexian laughed, "Look at what you're saying, so your brother is a cricket, and a complete one at that!"
Everyone burst into laughter. Jinlong and Yufeng, not knowing what the adults were laughing at, clapped their hands and laughed along.
"Alright, tidy up the house, we'll continue peeling oranges this afternoon!"
They peeled the oranges and dried them, then sent baskets of orange pulp to a cannery to make canned oranges and orange jam.
......
Li Xiangdong was delayed for a few days because of Chun Shuwei's arrival. By the time he and Li Guoqing arrived in Pengcheng, Professor Liu Minle had been waiting for them for several days.
"If you two don't come soon, our ship will be setting sail!"
Professor Liu said with a smile, "You're lucky you made it in time!"
Li Xiangdong breathed a sigh of relief. Before he could even pack, he grabbed his small suitcase and boarded the ship with Professor Liu's team.
Li Guoqing had never seen such a big ship before!
The boat was ten meters wide and sixty meters long, and it was moored on the dock like a behemoth.
"Second brother, why is this ship so big!"
Li Guoqing was amazed.
"This ship isn't the biggest. I'll take you to see an aircraft carrier later!"
What is an aircraft carrier?
"A ship that launches airplanes!"
"Fly, fly an airplane? Can you fly an airplane on a ship?"
The two whispered to each other in the back, and several of Professor Liu Minle's students also gathered together to discuss them.
Are these two people Professor Liu's relatives?
"No way, Professor Liu and his wife are both from Yichun, while these two are from Zhao Province, which is not the same place at all. Besides, they don't even look alike!"
"These two are from the village where they were experimenting with raising giant freshwater prawns!"
This person clearly knows the inside story.
"We're here to do a research project, what's the point of bringing two kids along!"
Several people were quite dissatisfied. Of course, Professor Liu and Li Xiangdong were unaware of these matters.
They were standing at the bow of the ship, chatting as they looked at the vast, boundless sea where the water met the sky.
Professor Liu is currently conducting research on artificially simulated small marine ecosystems to identify which marine fish can coexist, which is of great significance for improving the economic benefits of aquaculture.
This voyage was also for scientific research on a sub-project of this study.
——
"You're sponsoring our team with so much money this time, just for sea fishing?"
Professor Liu simply couldn't believe that Li Xiangdong had given them a large sum of money just to go fishing at sea with them.
Li Xiangdong smiled but didn't say anything; he felt it was worth it!
He paid 500 yuan to go out to sea with Professor Liu on his large boat for half a month. The trip included all food and lodging, and guaranteed his and Li Guoqing's safety. Most importantly, there were no privately owned boats going out to sea; the fishing boats belonging to the group didn't know Li Xiangdong and wouldn't take them.
The past few days have been calm and peaceful, with the sun high in the sky, and the ship has already sailed quite far.
The sea breeze gently caressed his cheeks as Li Xiangdong lay comfortably on the deck, wearing a pair of sunglasses he had bought from the Yanjing Department Store. These stylish imported items drew the attention of Professor Liu's students.
Li Guoqing is still getting used to life on the ship. He's finally stopped vomiting, but he still feels dizzy when walking on the deck.
With a pained expression, he complained to Li Xiangdong, "Second Brother, this ship is so unstable! When I put my feet on the deck, it feels like I'm walking on cotton, it's so unsteady!"
Li Xiangdong patted the spot next to him, "Come lie down, it's so comfortable to float on the sea!"
It felt like I was back in the womb, surrounded by warm amniotic fluid, swaying gently and feeling incredibly relaxed.
"What's so comfortable about it? It's making me dizzy, oh no, yue—"
Li Guoqing rushed to the side of the boat, grabbed the gunwale, and began to vomit.
He hasn't been able to eat anything for the past two days, so he's been vomiting bile.
Li Xiangdong quickly stood up to support him. Good heavens, if Li Guoqing's legs gave way and he fell off the boat, it would be terrible!
If he had known Li Guoqing would suffer so much, he should have left him on shore. Li Xiangdong asked the boatman if they could return, and all expenses incurred would be borne by Li Xiangdong.
The boat captain laughed, but it was a mocking laugh. "Once the arrow is released, there's no turning back. We're already far from the shore; there's no way we can turn back now."
After being ruthlessly rejected, Li Xiangdong could only run to Professor Liu to ask for some seasickness medicine for Li Guoqing. After vomiting, Li Guoqing lay on his bed, his face pale and his eyes tightly closed.
"Sigh, I should have left you on the shore."
Li Xiangdong poured him a glass of warm water and tucked him in.
Li Guoqing was speechless.
Just then, a cheer suddenly erupted outside. Li Xiangdong went out of the cabin to look and saw that the sea was a deep red, stretching for more than ten kilometers!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com