Not long after, Ah Can returned and handed the snakeskin bag to Feng Ye.
"Why did you bring that knife? Is it even usable?"
Feng Ye was speechless when he saw the knife in Ah Can's hand.
This knife is quite long; it's kept on the boat for bleeding and removing uric acid from large fish.
"Since we couldn't find any other tools, we had to make do with this one."
Ah-Can looked helpless.
But after searching the entire ship, they couldn't find any suitable tools.
I still have screwdrivers, but the problem is that I don't have flathead screwdrivers; they're all Torx screwdrivers, which can't be used to pry open abalone.
After searching high and low, this knife was the only one I could use.
"Then be careful not to hurt yourself."
Feng Ye tied the snakeskin bag around his waist, walked a few steps, found a spot, and buried himself in his work.
The tide has receded considerably, and the water is now less than a meter deep.
The reefs are rugged and uneven, with deep and shallow water, and they are often submerged in water, making them quite slippery. You have to be careful when walking on them.
The three of them slowly expanded outwards from the exposed reef, leaving behind only the small abalone and snails, and putting everything else into the snakeskin bag.
Everyone was full of energy. Even though bending over for a long time was tiring, the thought of making a lot of money when they got back made them very excited.
It was tiring, but it was worth it!
The three of them were so engrossed in prying open abalone and collecting sea snails that they lost track of time.
It wasn't until the sun was about to set and they realized the tide was rising that they snapped out of their daze and stopped what they were doing.
"Is it that late?"
Ah-Can looked up at the sky, then at the reefs still covered with abalone and conch, his face full of reluctance.
They spent half the afternoon prying, but they still hadn't managed to clean up all the abalone and conch on the rocks.
This shows how big the reef is.
The portion of this reef that is exposed above the water during low tide is indeed very small, only a little over two square meters.
But the portion hidden underwater is ridiculously large, amounting to tens of thousands of square meters.
"The sun is almost setting, it must be close to seven o'clock, right?"
Feng Ye straightened up, supporting his back, and looked at the sun that was about to set below the horizon in the west.
"Oh no, we forgot about the time. We need to hurry back; Alan and the others must be getting impatient."
Feng Xuan frowned, threw the abalone he had just pried off into the snakeskin bag, and swam toward the Rising Sun.
"We need to go back quickly, otherwise my mother and the others will be worried and think something has happened to us."
"Well, this place will be ours sooner or later. We'll come back on the 30th... no, there's no 30th this month. We'll come back on the first day of the new year."
"Hehe, you can come and take a look tomorrow. If the water is shallow, you can come down and dig a bit."
"We don't know what will happen tomorrow, let's talk about it then."
The three quickly swam to the side of the Rising Sun and climbed aboard.
Feng Ye took off his seawater-filled boots and found that the soles of his feet were white and wrinkled from being soaked in seawater.
Sure enough, money isn't so easy to make; you have to pay a price if you want to get rich.
Otherwise, why would fishermen suffer from rheumatism to some extent as they get older?
Moreover, because I had been working with my back bent over for several hours, my lower back was so sore that I could hardly straighten up.
While I was working, the belief that I would get rich kept me from noticing it, but now that I've stopped, the feeling of exhaustion has suddenly overwhelmed me.
He was completely exhausted and just wanted to lie down and rest.
Feng Xuan and A-Can were also quite exhausted.
However, now is not the time to rest.
The three of them, not caring that they were still wet, put their clothes back on and continued working.
Feng Xuan went to the wheelhouse to start the boat, and soon the roar of the diesel engine could be heard.
The Rising Sun ship headed straight for Crescent Island to pick up passengers.
Feng Ye and A-Can were busy on the deck.
Not only do the freshly harvested abalone and conch need to be sorted, but the catch from the net that was pulled up after the meal is still on the deck and also needs to be sorted and packed properly.
Sea snails don't need to be sorted too finely; just pick out the larger ones.
But abalone is different; it has to be sorted according to size, and different sizes naturally have different prices.
If they are sold together, the price will be greatly reduced, and you will definitely lose money.
The size of abalone is determined by the number of heads, which is derived from the weight, that is, how many uniformly sized abalone are in one jin (0.6 kg).
The number of abalone weighing one jin (approximately 500 grams) determines the number of abalone.
For example, abalone weighing two per catty is called double-headed abalone;
Abalone weighing three per catty (approximately 500 grams) is called a three-headed abalone...
And so on.
Of course, unless otherwise specified, the number of heads here generally refers to dried abalone.
However, fresh abalone is also classified in the same way, but the price is worlds apart from that of dried abalone.
Larger abalone have a longer growth cycle, higher quality, and therefore higher prices.
The abalone that Feng Ye pried up could be considered a whole abalone when it was fresh.
However, even after removing the shell and viscera and processing it into dried goods, it's uncertain whether it will meet the specifications of abalone with two heads.
Dried two-headed abalone still occasionally appears on the market, but there is still a saying that "two-headed abalone is priceless."
The rarity and value of a dried abalone (one head) are self-evident; it is truly priceless and unavailable.
...
After sailing for about twenty minutes, Crescent Island came into view.
To save time, Feng Xuan decided not to conserve fuel and instead of sailing at the economical speed, he floored the throttle and sailed to Crescent Island at top speed.
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