Unable to get a word in edgewise, Lu Chen looked around the room. "Mingjing, this place is quite nice. Have you considered developing it?"
Li Xiaoyu, who was standing nearby, pulled Mingjing aside and muttered, "His family is that of high-ranking officials, and his parents are leaders. Sometimes he speaks with an official tone and likes to give unsolicited advice. Just ignore him."
"Of course I've considered it, but I'm just a nobody, and everything is still in the planning stage. The successors of communism should naturally build up their hometown."
Mingjing echoed this sentiment.
The three were of similar age and quickly became friends. Li Xiaoyu couldn't join in their conversation about building their hometown, so she went outside to feed the chickens and ducks.
Soon, the crabs and eels were served, and a car horn sounded outside the door.
"Mingjing, here's your steamed seven-star fish."
Xie Junan got off the bus wearing a leather jacket and carrying a bamboo basket.
"Hey, this young man is pretty good, he has an extraordinary aura," Li Xiaoyu said, looking Xie Junan up and down, her gaze lingering on him.
"This is Xie Junan, a retired navy officer who now helps out at his family restaurant. He's my friend."
"friend?"
Li Xiaoyu grinned mischievously and nudged Mingjing with her arm.
"No way, are you sure such a handsome man is a friend?"
"Go away, don't talk nonsense."
Mingjing looked a little awkward. She took the Seven Star Fish, put it on the table, and said, "We still need a drink. I'll go buy some."
"I brought a basket of Coca-Cola."
Xie Junan turned around and unloaded a basket of drinks from the car.
"Don't be shy, Xiao Xie, come and have some with us," Sun Yunmei said, pulling Xie Jun'an to his seat next to Mingjing.
At the dinner table, Mingliang and Lu Chen got along very well, exchanging stories about their respective regional differences.
Mingjing and Li Xiaoyu chatted about things in Beijing and at sea, and also talked about the last time they hunted wild boars.
Speaking of wild boars, Xie Jun'an interjected, "By the way, Mingjing, you mentioned last time that you wanted my dad to catch some baby wild boars, and we actually caught several yesterday."
"They're too small, so they're all tied up in the back of my car. There are three in total, two males and one female."
Sun Yunmei was delighted, "That's great! Wild boars can grow to several hundred pounds, and they're expensive now. If we get a few more baby boars to have piglets, we'll definitely have meat to eat during the New Year."
Forgetting to eat, Sun Yunmei put down her chopsticks and went to the car to check on the baby wild boar.
Three wild boar piglets, weighing over ten kilograms each, were dark-skinned and their hands and feet were tied, making grunting noises.
Sun Yunmei pulled Ming Dahai to the carriage to lift the pig and put it in the pigpen that had been set up in advance. The pigpen was not big, but it was just right for the piglets.
Once the pigs are grown up, Mingjing will try to find a reason to put them in his space, otherwise he will have to reinforce the pigpen again, which is also a troublesome matter.
After they had almost finished eating, Mingjing smiled and said, "Xiaoyu will sleep with me tonight, and Lu Chen and my brother can squeeze in together, right?"
The guesthouse in town was expensive and unclean, and it would also delay tomorrow's sea trip, so Mingjing hadn't planned to book a room at all.
"Of course, we haven't been together for a long time, and I have a lot to say to you."
Li Xiaoyu has a cheerful, straightforward, and easygoing personality, which makes her very popular.
"Xiao Xie, drive carefully in the dark," Ming Dahai said as he saw Xie Jun'an off from the doorway.
"Mingjing, I'll call you when I get home."
After Xie Junan left, Mingjing pulled Li Xiaoyu to the bathroom.
Hot water was boiled in a pot and poured into a wooden tub, filling the entire bathroom with steam.
The Ming family has two bathtubs, one for the man and one for the woman.
After Li Xiaoyu finished washing up, Mingjing changed the water temperature and washed herself again before going to bed.
"How is it? How does this bed compare to your Simmons mattress?" Mingjing asked, standing by the bed while drying her hair with a towel.
"It's similar to my grandma's hard kang (heated brick bed), but it's quite comfortable."
Li Xiaoyu, lying in bed wearing a silk nightgown, turned over and sat up.
"Mingjing, are you really planning to spend your whole life by the sea selling fish?"
Mingjing remained silent. Just then, someone outside suddenly called out, and she peeked out to see Wang Youming.
"Uncle Wang, what brings you here?" Mingjing went out to open the door.
"Here are two wild bass, and some top-quality beef, mutton, and pork belly. Please take them and don't be shy."
"What are you doing? You're an honest person, everyone would be happy to choose you, this isn't something I can control."
"Others may not know, but I do. Without you, would those bastards all have their eyes on me?" Old Wang threw the things on the table in the yard.
"Alright, I'm leaving now. You go to sleep."
Wang Youming waved his hand and walked back.
"What's going on?"
A group of people peeked out when they heard the sound.
"It's alright. Uncle Wang came to visit our family and brought us some warmth. Mom, get ready so the stray cats don't take it away."
Mingjing returned to the house.
"I take back what I just said," Li Xiaoyu said, lying on the bed, resting her chin on her hands and staring at Mingjing.
"What did you say?"
“You’re not just a fisherman here. I almost underestimated you. That guy was several generations older than you, but he was very polite to you. That’s not normal.”
Li Xiaoyu, who studied criminal investigation, had good observation skills. At first glance, she could tell that the two were not of ordinary status.
Mingjing didn't hide anything and told Li Xiaoyu everything.
"So that old man still owes you a huge favor, and you can't afford to offend the village chief, nor can he afford to offend you, so he's helping you out, and you two are even?"
Mingjing nodded and continued, "But I don't know if the village chief holds a grudge against me."
"No, he's definitely wary of you now. Theoretically, since you helped him get out of prison, he might need to ask you to help him keep his position as village chief in the future."
Li Xiaoyu analyzed.
“This time he stood on your side in front of so many people, and you owe him again, which you will have to repay in the future. This completes the cycle. The old man is quite clever.”
Mingjing thought about it and agreed, and thought more highly of Li Xiaoyu, "You're quite smart, you didn't waste your time in college."
"Aren't you the same? You come up with so many schemes in such a small place. But I don't remember you being like this before. Does eating fish really make you smarter?"
Li Xiaoyu became suspicious.
Mingjing was somewhat speechless, and fearing that continuing the conversation would expose her secret, she turned off the lights and went to sleep.
When Li Xiaoyu woke up in the morning, she was grumpy. Mingjing didn't wake her and quietly turned over to check her luck value. She had 120 points today, which was not bad.
After washing up, Mingjing took a steamed bun and called Li Xiaoyu to get up.
"Get up, it's time for class."
Li Xiaoyu groggily got up, and Mingjing tossed her a leather sailor suit.
"If you're seasick, don't eat anything, just drink some water."
Mingjing handed over a white porcelain bowl containing seasickness medicine she had bought from a fishing tackle shop, which Li Xiaoyu gulped down.
Outside the door, Mingliang was packing his things, carrying large and small bags, and putting them into the tricycle.
"Are you going to set up traps today? Are fifty enough?" Ming Dahai asked, counting the traps.
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