Chapter 434: Hindsight is 20/20
Chapter 434: Hindsight is 20/20
Zhou Chenglei took a few bites of the rice cake, finishing it with a 'crunch, crunch, crunch'. After wiping his hands clean of crumbs, he pulled out a stack of money and handed it to Jiang Xia, "Today's fishing earnings."
Jiang Xia took it and realized it was less than half of what they usually made, only two hundred and eight yuan and eight cents. "Was there no fish in the sea today?"
The combined earnings from the two boats amounted to just over two hundred yuan, an unprecedented low.
"And you call this no fish? We made over two hundred yuan! Are you still complaining?" Li Xiuxian entered the courtyard, exhausted. "We had no fish at all, and we only sold for two and a half yuan!"
They had set out to fish at five sharp, casting four nets, but all came up empty!
The catch wasn't even worth three yuan!
They hadn't earned enough for fuel costs, let alone wages!
Today, they had lost over ten yuan!
It was as if the servant was better off than the mistress; her father and brother had earned more working elsewhere!
They shouldn't have offered such high wages in the first place.
Tian Caixia asked Zhou Chengxin, "How much did our boat make today?"
Zhou Chengxin replied, "Forty-two yuan. Luckily, Ah Lei realized the trawl net wasn't catching much, so after one attempt, he suggested we try longline fishing and set shrimp traps. Otherwise, we wouldn't have made even forty yuan."
There were various fishing tools, the most common being bottom trawls, gillnets, surround nets, and longlines.
Longlines were specifically for catching large fish.
Gillnets were primarily used for catching migratory fish.
Surround nets were for capturing schools of fish.
The Zhou family was accustomed to using trawls, but when the trawl nets came up empty, Zhou Chenglei would try longline fishing and set shrimp or crab traps.
Li Xiuxian exclaimed, "You could've explained it better; I don't understand these things."
She thought that if the trawl nets caught nothing, what could longline fishing possibly catch? And in this cold weather, setting shrimp traps seemed pointless; the shrimp would be too sluggish to enter the traps.
She didn't understand, and they didn't explain it clearly. Zhou Chengsen wasn't even on their boat to help!
Zhou Chengsen retorted, "What more do you want me to say? I already said the trawl net caught nothing, so we tried longline fishing! Do you think you're the kind of person who listens when told? Don't overestimate yourself! You're just a Monday morning quarterback, and you'll never change!"
Li Xiuxian, the Monday morning quarterback, was speechless.
She was furious!
Zhou Chengsen had gone fishing with Zhou Chenglei instead of staying on their boat. If he had insisted on longline fishing on their boat, what would she have said?
In the end, hadn't she always listened to him?
And now he was blaming her!
Seeing the tension, Zhou Fu suggested, "Why don't you argue at your in-laws' place? This new home is filled with harmony and prosperity. Go argue there!"
Zhou Chengsen ignored Li Xiuxian, poured half a bucket of fish into a wooden basin, keeping only a few mudfish and a pound of shrimp that his daughter loved, and said to his parents, "Mom, these mudfish are quite fatty. I kept a lot for you."
Li Xiuxian was speechless.
He hadn't earned any money, yet he was generous enough to keep so many fish!
Jiang Xia, preparing to wash rice for dinner, asked, "Second Brother, won't you be eating here? I'm making dinner now."
"No need. We're going to pick up Yingying, and I'm not sure if we'll eat there."
Li Xiuxian was silent.
Her parents probably wouldn't have prepared dinner for them.
Zhou Chengsen spoke up again, "Ah Lei, Xia, during this winter break, let's stay at the old residence for a while."
Jiang Xia replied, "It's not a problem for family. The rooms here are all ready. It's almost the New Year, so just stay here; it'll be livelier. Yingying and Zhou Zhou can keep each other company."
Zhou Chengsen refused, "It's the same wherever we stay. It's just across the street, equally lively. I'm too lazy to move."
Li Xiuxian was lazy. Ever since she returned, she had been finding ways to indulge and shirk work. If she lived with her parents, she would expect her mother to do everything for her!
She had such a long winter break, while he hadn't even started his vacation!
Now she wanted to go fishing with her father and expected to be served by others every day?
Who could bear it? In the past, he only returned home during the Chinese New Year holidays, and his sister-in-law had always complained. But back then, there were no other options; he couldn't not come home during the holidays. He could only do more housework to make up for it.
Now that they can live separately, it's better to have their own space.
Zhou Chengsen had originally planned to save up more money next year to build a house in the village, so he wouldn't have to stay with his brother's family when he returned.
Now, he'll have to postpone building a house for a year or two.
Zhou Chengsen washed his hands, "We still need to pick up Yingying, let's go."
Jiang Xia quickly said, "Second Brother, wait! Ah Lei also brought back a yellowtail snapper and a few pounds of shrimp. Take some with you!"
Jiang Xia took out some fish and shrimp for him.
Zhou Chengsen waved his hand, "I have enough! No need!"
He glanced at Li Xiuxian, "Let's go, we'll pick up Yingying and then go to your mother's place for a meal."
Li Xiuxian: "..."
She followed him, annoyed!
Go to her mother's place to eat the northwest wind!
Clearly, he wanted to go back to the old residence to cook himself!
Zhou Chengsen didn't pay attention to her and turned to leave.
Li Xiuxian followed.
As expected, Zhou Chengsen left the courtyard and headed towards the old residence. Once inside, he said, "From now on, when we return from the sea, we'll cook for ourselves."
If it weren't for the fear that she might be lazy around his parents, Zhou Chengsen wouldn't bother with her.
He hadn't even started his vacation yet, and he was already making arrangements for her and their daughter.
"I'll go pick up Yingying," Li Xiuxian said, leaving without paying him any mind!
What does 'trouble' mean? Does it mean that when the elderly can't move, they won't need her care?
Otherwise, why is it that her in-laws can help Tian Caixia for so many years, and now it's Jiang Xia's turn, but they can't help her? Does she have to do it herself?
If they won't help her, they shouldn't expect her to help them. Zhou Chengsen didn't pay her any mind and started to clean and prepare the fish for cooking.
He didn't have the energy to deal with her complaints.
As soon as Li Xiuxian stepped out, she met Tian Caixia.
Tian Caixia smiled, "Second Sister-in-law, I've been taking care of your pig separately for twenty days now. In a few days, when we slaughter the New Year's pig, remember to pay me a pound of pork per day!"
Li Xiuxian: "..."
The next day, Zhou Chenglei went out to sea at six in the morning and took the sandalwood to the city pier.
Jiang Xia woke up and accompanied him to the sea. She had a shopping list for Zhang Rong and asked him to help her get some items from Hong Kong Island.
At 7:30 sharp, they met Zhang Rong at the city pier.
This time, Zhang Rong was taking a large boat to Hong Kong Island. As he watched the workers hoist the massive wood onto the boat, he asked Zhou Chenglei and Jiang Xia, "Are you short on cash these days?"
Zhou Chenglei looked at Jiang Xia.
Jiang Xia was in charge of the finances.
Jiang Xia shook her head, "We're not short on cash at the moment."
Zhang Rong didn't bother discussing it with Zhou Chenglei, as he knew that Zhou would defer to his wife's opinion.
So, he spoke directly to Jiang Xia.
Jiang Xia laughed upon hearing this, "I trust my brother-in-law. Take the money and invest it!"
"This is my first investment, so I can't guarantee a profit. We might even lose everything. But the market has been good for the past couple of years, so it should continue for a few more."
Jiang Xia knew that the market could sustain for a few more years and replied seriously, "I understand. There's no such thing as a risk-free investment. Brother-in-law, go ahead and invest! They say that pregnant women have good luck. If you're unsure, call me when the time comes, and I'll pick one for you."
Zhang Rong smiled, "Alright! I'm off then, and I'll be back before the Eve of New Year's Eve."
"Safe travels."
(End of Chapter)
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