After lunch, the workers dispersed and went home to rest.
It's too hot, so we usually don't go back to work until around 3 p.m.
Although it was a cloudy day, the temperature in the afternoon was quite high, around 34 or 35 degrees Celsius.
After dinner, Feng Ye went inside to rest, intending to take a short nap.
"Ah Ye, how much should we donate?"
Ye Qingling followed her into the house and asked.
"That depends on the threshold for acquiring a small statue of Mazu. At least we need to be able to afford one. We can't be stingy on such an important matter."
"Oh dear, you've even used the word 'stingy,' as if I would disagree."
Ye Qingling rolled her eyes at him, "I'm not like my sister-in-law. She might be reluctant to donate more money."
“You’re wrong. My sister-in-law might be stingy with money in other things, but when it comes to spending money on Mazu, she doesn’t hesitate at all; on the contrary, she’s very generous.”
"Uh... I didn't know that my sister-in-law had this side to her."
"You've only been married into this family for a few years, how much could you possibly know?"
"Then tell me about it," Ye Qingling asked curiously.
"That was eight years ago. My sister-in-law had only been married into the family for a few years, and they hadn't even separated from the family yet."
"It just so happened that the Mazu Temple was raising funds for reconstruction. At that time, the method was to apportion the cost. I think it was five yuan or something, but I can't remember exactly."
"Five yuan? Five yuan was much better back then?" Ye Qingling interjected.
“It was a lot, at least equivalent to fifty yuan now, or even more,” Feng Ye said. “Of course, Dad paid for it. But later, my sister-in-law donated another 20 yuan in my brother’s name…”
"Then I really underestimated my sister-in-law."
“Your area is not by the sea, and although you also believe in Mazu, you are not as devout as we are by the sea, so you may not understand.”
"That donation caused quite a stir in the village. You know, it had only been a short time since the land was distributed to individual households, and everyone was struggling financially..."
"So, my sister-in-law will be very generous with her donation this time?"
"Definitely, at the very least they will meet the requirements for inviting a statue of Mazu."
"So how much do you think the threshold will be? I'll prepare something for you."
Feng Ye thought for a moment and replied, "It shouldn't exceed a thousand yuan, right? Setting it too high wouldn't make much sense, since we have to consider everyone's affordability."
"Then I'll give you a thousand yuan, you can decide how to donate it."
As soon as Ye Qingling finished speaking, she added, "Forget it, no matter what the threshold is, just donate this thousand yuan. You don't need to take it back."
“Alright, if we don’t want to take it back, then we won’t.” Feng Ye nodded. “Here’s what we’ll do: if the threshold is less than a thousand yuan, I’ll donate the threshold amount in my name, and the remaining money will be split in two, with your name and Anan’s name added as well.”
"It's fine to put Anan's name on it, but is it appropriate for me, a woman, to do this?"
“What’s wrong with this? It’s not like we’re building an ancestral hall where women’s names can’t be written on it. This is building a temple, so anyone can have their name engraved on it as long as they donate.”
Upon hearing this, Ye Qingling excitedly said, "In that case, let's donate more, take out another thousand yuan, and make it two thousand yuan."
“I will donate 1,000 in your name, and Anan and I will each donate 500, so that the Goddess Mazu can bless our whole family with peace and safety.”
As he spoke, he turned around, opened the drawer, picked up a wad of cash, and began counting it.
With the completion of the expansion of the Mazu Temple, a monument will definitely be erected to commemorate those who donated money.
The thought that her name could be engraved on the monument of merit filled her with joy.
Although it has been decades since liberation, women in the general public, especially those in rural areas, are still essentially dependent on men.
No matter what she does, it's always in her husband's name.
If the husband passes away, then it belongs to the son, or even the grandson.
In short, no woman's name matters.
Even after death, a woman's name will not be left on her tombstone; only her surname will be recorded.
(I doubt many people know the names of their female ancestors, right?)
Feng Ye smiled and said, "Whatever makes you happy."
I've earned quite a bit during this period, all thanks to the blessings of Mazu. I'll donate as much as I can!
"Here, I've counted out the two thousand yuan, here you go."
"Yes, with this intention, the Goddess Mazu will protect our family even more."
"Go to sleep, I won't disturb you. I'll go talk to Mom and my sister-in-law and see if they also want to donate some money in their own names."
Ye Qingling walked out of the house with a big smile on her face, and thoughtfully closed the door behind her.
When Feng Ye woke up, it was already four o'clock in the afternoon.
Stepping outside, one finds only Ye Qingling grinding shrimp and sorting the shrimp meat in the main room.
Every time the Harvest ship returned, it would bring back some worthless small fish and shrimp.
There were too many small, unwanted fish, and everyone had already dried a lot of them, so they weren't really willing to take them anymore. They were mostly given to families without boats, especially elderly people living alone.
But everyone wanted the shrimp, and there was never enough to go around.
Once dried, this stuff is a great ingredient for cooking, making soup, or cooking porridge. It's also a nice snack; it's fragrant and crispy, and both adults and children love it.
Feng Ye yawned, walked over to Ye Qingling, grabbed a small handful of crushed shrimp, blew off the shells, and put them in his mouth.
"Mmm, it's fresh and fragrant, crunchy, and tastes just right."
Feng Ye smacked his lips, praising it highly.
"You didn't even brush your teeth before eating," Ye Qingling said, rolling her eyes.
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