Upon arriving in town and getting out of the car, Feng Ye asked Ye Qingling to watch over their belongings by the roadside with their son.
He himself carried a snakeskin bag to the dock.
Of the four burlap sacks, apart from the one containing rice, the other three were not actually very heavy.
Upon arriving at the pier, I immediately saw the ferry bound for Baishi Island quietly moored.
It was almost five o'clock, and many people had already boarded the boat and were waiting.
"Ah Ye, you're back from your father-in-law's house?"
As soon as I stepped onto the ship, Feng Xuan's voice rang in my ears.
Feng Ye put down the snakeskin bag, looked up, and saw that not only Feng Xuan, but also A-Can was on the boat.
"Are you here in town for the market?"
Seeing that there were quite a few things at their feet, Feng Ye asked the question knowingly.
"Isn't tomorrow the Dragon Boat Festival? Let's come to town to buy some things for the festival."
"You're here just in time. Come on, help me move these things, so I don't have to make several trips."
"You've already brought over a whole sack of snakeskin bags, and you still have things on top of that? Brother Ye, did you go to your father-in-law's to buy more goods?"
"No wonder I didn't see A-Ling and A-Nan. At first I thought they were going to stay a few more nights, but it turns out they were watching over the things."
"Stop arguing and get going."
Feng Ye asked a villager on the boat to watch his things, and then pulled the two of them off the boat.
As they walked, Feng Ye asked, "You went to the market in the old town, didn't you go to check on the boats?"
"Yes, the boat owner even took us for a spin around."
Upon hearing this, Feng Ye asked impatiently, "How is the ship?"
"It's well-maintained. The ship is only seven years old. The engine has only undergone minor repairs and no major overhauls."
“Xuan and I have already made a deal and paid a deposit of 500 yuan.”
Feng Ye frowned slightly: "It's settled so quickly? Have you agreed on the price? Don't let them change their mind later."
Ah-Can laughed and said, "Brother Ye, don't worry. Brother Xuan and I are going with my uncle. The boat owner is my uncle's friend, so he definitely won't cheat us."
Feng Xuan also said, "Even the price was negotiated for us by Uncle A-Can. The boat owner originally asked for 21,000, but Uncle A-Can helped us negotiate it down to 20,000."
Don't be fooled by the fact that the boat owner lowered the price by a thousand dollars, seemingly losing a lot of money. In reality, he made a fortune from this one boat.
Putting aside the money earned from fishing over the past seven years, the boat itself alone could not possibly have lost money.
The trawler, though not the smallest, cost only three or four thousand yuan when it was bought seven years ago.
After seven years of use, it can now be sold as a second-hand item without depreciation, and can even fetch a high price of 20,000 yuan, which shows how tight the current ship market is.
Demand far exceeds supply!
Of course, this is also closely related to currency devaluation and reduced purchasing power.
"Twenty thousand yuan? That's a bit high, but acceptable."
"The agreement was to deliver the ship on the tenth of the month, and the money was also paid on that day."
Feng Ye frowned: "Why is it the tenth? Can't it be earlier?"
Feng Xuan explained, "The ship owner's new ship will be delivered on the 11th. If he sells it earlier, he will have no ship to go to sea, so he is unwilling to make the deal in advance."
"Let's make it the tenth of the month."
Feng Ye sighed.
There's no use in rushing; all we can do is painstakingly row the small wooden boat for a few more days.
Upon arriving at the roadside, they saw a burlap sack and a bucket scattered around. Feng Xuan joked, "You're not going to deliver festival gifts, you're going to move house."
Ah-Can then laughed and said, "Brother Ye, you didn't empty your father-in-law's house, did you?"
“My mother-in-law insisted on giving it to us, and we had no choice but to accept it; we couldn’t even refuse.”
Feng Ye said with a smile, sounding a bit like he was being hypocritical after getting a good deal.
"Your mother-in-law is really too kind," Feng Xuan said with a smile. "When I went back with your sister-in-law yesterday, we only brought back some zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) and vegetables."
Ye Qingling smiled and said, "You live close by, on the island, it's just a short walk to you, unlike me who has to go back, which is so troublesome."
“That’s right. If you live nearby, they’ll deliver anything you need. But if you live far away, there’s nothing they can do,” Feng Ye chimed in. “Like Sister A-Ling, when she went back yesterday, she only brought some zongzi (sticky rice dumplings).
After saying that, he hoisted the heaviest bag of rice onto his shoulder.
It's only right that I work hard for my own things.
The other two snakeskin bags were just enough for each of them.
There was another bucket that was originally planned for Ye Qingling to carry, but after Feng Xuan weighed the snakeskin bag, he insisted on carrying it himself.
Once aboard, after waiting for several tens of minutes, it was almost six o'clock before the ferry slowly started moving.
As the days get longer and the nights get darker, the ferry departure times are also delayed accordingly.
On the boat, Feng Ye chatted with his elder brother about the progress of building the house and the catch from the sea.
The construction of the house has already begun; according to his instructions, it will be a 24-walled structure.
The catch from sea nets such as sea cages and longlines was about what he had expected.
My earnings in the second and third years of junior high were quite good, usually several tens of yuan, but this morning, they suddenly dropped back to normal levels.
He knew the reason, of course, but he kept it to himself and didn't say it.
It was almost seven o'clock when the ferry arrived at Dongtou Village Wharf.
He borrowed a cart from Feng Jiafa's shop, threw his things onto it, and hurriedly pushed the cart home.
...
Around 4 a.m., Feng Ye was woken up.
Today is the Dragon Boat Festival. According to the customs of Baishi Island, if there is nothing important, the whole family will go to worship Mazu.
Such a grand worship of Mazu only happens a few times a year: Dragon Boat Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese New Year, as well as Mazu's birthday and ascension day.
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