Hearing Ye Cheng's teasing, Xiao Hu quickly took the money, grinned foolishly, and stuffed it into his pocket.
"Brother, my mom would be overjoyed to see that I can make money."
"Don't die, come on, let's go buy some things to take back."
There is only one small shop in the village, which sells a limited variety of goods. The dock is in the town, where there are many more things to buy.
The two strolled around the town, bought some daily necessities, and then Ye Cheng specially bought some braised dishes and braised meat to take back, spending a total of 30 yuan.
Back in the village, Xiao Hu excitedly went home to boast about his achievement.
Ye Cheng went back and put his things away, then put the clams in a basin of water to keep them alive. He then carried the braised meat and braised vegetables to his older brother's house.
It was already dark, and everyone was starting to cook.
Ye Cheng stepped inside. His sister-in-law, Jiang Yunxiang, had already prepared the meal. The family of three sat at the table looking worried, completely unfamiliar with chopsticks.
Seeing Ye Cheng enter, Ye Guowei quickly stood up, forcing a smile, "Cheng's here! Come, sit down and have something to eat with us."
Jiang Yunxiang glanced at Ye Cheng, then reluctantly went inside to get the bowls and chopsticks.
This younger brother-in-law always comes over to freeload when he's broke, or he comes to ask for money. In short, nothing good ever comes of it.
Even their son, Dou Dou, knew that his uncle was not a good person.
Ye Cheng glanced at the table and saw that there were only three dishes: shredded potatoes, scrambled eggs, and some green vegetables. The meal was very simple.
There was only a bowl of rice in front of his elder brother, not even a cup of wine.
Ye Guowei works as a laborer, which is very physically demanding. Many people like to have a drink after they get home, which makes them feel refreshed.
He remembered that Ye Guowei had drunk alcohol before, but he didn't know why he hadn't today.
Moreover, the couple looked worried just now, so they must have encountered some difficulties.
"Sister-in-law, I've already eaten, you don't need to get any more bowls and chopsticks," Ye Cheng said.
Hearing Ye Cheng say this, Jiang Yunxiang didn't stand on ceremony and walked straight out of the kitchen.
Ye Guowei glanced awkwardly at his wife, knowing she was upset, but he didn't know what to say, after all, that was just the kind of person his younger brother was.
"Acheng, you went beachcombing today. How was your catch?" Ye Guowei changed the subject.
"Hmm, not bad, brother, sister-in-law, I brought you some food. There's braised pork knuckle that Dou Dou likes, pig's trotters that you want, and pig's head meat that big brother loves." Ye Cheng said, placing the braised dishes on the table.
Ye Guowei stared at Ye Cheng with his mouth agape, then looked at the dishes on the table. "This must cost several tens of yuan."
Jiang Yunxiang's face darkened, and she hurriedly opened the package to find a pile of braised meat.
DouDou's eyes lit up as she looked at the braised dishes on the table, and her chopsticks unconsciously reached for the braised pork knuckle.
"Don't move." Jiang Yunxiang scolded softly, her face growing even more unpleasant. "Acheng, your brother doesn't earn money easily, and the family still owes money to others. You're spending so recklessly, sigh..."
Jiang Yunxiang complained a couple of times, but ultimately didn't continue. She was a rather introverted person and there were some things she couldn't bring herself to say.
Ye Cheng thought to himself, "No wonder he looked so grim just now. He thought I bought the meat with my older brother's money."
It's unfair that my family earns money to eat vegetables while my uncle spends money to eat meat.
Ye Cheng sat down calmly and took out three red bills from his pocket. "Brother, sister-in-law, I made some money from beachcombing today. I bought these with the money I earned from beachcombing, so don't worry."
Upon hearing that the money was earned from beachcombing, Jiang Yunxiang looked a little embarrassed.
Ye Guowei asked curiously, "Can you really earn this much by beachcombing?"
"Yeah, I'm in luck today. Brother, did your wife say earlier that the family still owes money?" Ye Cheng asked.
He just searched the original owner's memories and had no recollection of it at all. It seems that the original owner just took whatever he wanted without asking any questions.
"Yes, my parents borrowed some money when they left, and now they say they need the money." Ye Guowei didn't hide anything.
"How much do you owe? I'll pay it back," Ye Cheng suddenly said.
Ye Guowei and Jiang Yunxiang looked at Ye Cheng with surprise. What's wrong with this younger brother today?
They bought things from me and then said they wanted to pay me back.
"Cheng, you're not going to do something bad, are you? Let me tell you, if you're ever short of money, just tell me. Don't go hanging out with those guys."
Ye Cheng knew that Ye Guowei was referring to Gu Feng and his group of four or five people. They were also from Baiyun Village and were a bit older than Ye Cheng.
Ye Cheng is at most a bit lazy, a bit of a scoundrel, and a petty thief. This group of people are bullies who dominate the market and have been trying to recruit Ye Cheng. If Ye Guowei hadn't stopped him, Ye Cheng would have gone long ago.
Ye Guowei can accept his younger brother being a bit of a scoundrel, but he cannot accept his brother going down a path of crime.
Seeing the concerned looks from his brother and sister-in-law, Ye Cheng felt a surge of excitement, but also a look of utter speechlessness. Am I really that pathetic?
“Brother, sister-in-law, I really earned this money by going to the beach. I went with Xiaohu. It was from Old Lin Seafood at the pier. 32 catties of king clams. I’m not lying to you.”
"Old Lin Seafood, yes, there is such a place at the dock." Ye Guowei nodded.
"Sister-in-law, how much money do we still owe?" Ye Cheng turned to look at Jiang Yunxiang, knowing that his older brother was unlikely to tell him.
Jiang Yunxiang glanced at Ye Guowei, then lowered her head and muttered, "We still owe more than 5,000. Your Uncle Zhang said he needs the money and wants us to pay him back within a month."
5,000 yuan is not much these days; after all, it's not the era when a family with 10,000 yuan could have been wealthy.
However, it's still a considerable amount. Considering Ye Guowei's monthly salary of over a thousand yuan, it's equivalent to almost half a year's wages.
"5000, right? No problem, I'll definitely pay them back within a month. Don't worry, I'll take responsibility," Ye Cheng assured him, patting his chest.
Ye Cheng earned 500 yuan in one day, 5000 yuan in ten days, and 5000 yuan a month. He felt no pressure at all.
"Acheng, your success in beachcombing depends on luck. You can't expect to be this lucky every day. Brother Qian will pay you back. Just keep the money safe and live your life well." Ye Guowei was unwilling to let his younger brother pay back the money, and he also stuffed the three red bills on the table back to Ye Cheng.
Ye Cheng did not refuse; he needed some money too.
"Brother, don't worry, I'll earn back the 5,000 yuan. You guys eat, don't worry about me."
After saying goodbye to Dou Dou, Ye Cheng left.
Ye Guowei stared blankly at Ye Cheng's retreating figure, then looked at his wife beside him and asked, "Honey, what's wrong with Cheng?"
"What can you do? As long as he can make money, it's better than you constantly subsidizing him."
“You’re bringing this up again. He’s my brother. If I don’t help him, who will?”
"Mom, can I eat braised pork knuckle now?" DouDou asked in her childish voice from inside the house.
"Eat it, just eat what your uncle bought."
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