Chapter 78: Snatching the Fish

Today’s haul was also unexpectedly large.

While they were selling their goods, Yun Jiao asked with pleading eyes if they could keep a little to make raw marinated seafood.

She looked so pitiful.

Shen Yunlian and the others immediately set aside some of the smaller ones.

Counting the geoducks, their total earnings for the day once again exceeded one hundred coins.

On their way back, they stopped by the new house to take a look. It was already half-built. It wouldn’t be long before they could move in.

"Jiaojiao is feeding them so well. They’re all full."

Granny Yun was very familiar with raising chickens. She could tell the little ones’ crops were full just by feeling them.

Yun Jiao held out clean, fresh blades of grass to feed the two little rabbits.

"Grandma, they even helped me find several blood clams."

"Oh, my! Our Jiaojiao is amazing, then. No one else in our village has little animals that can help them forage for seafood."

Praised, Yun Jiao felt proud.

’You bet!’

"Yun Jiao! Is Yun Jiao’s grandma home?"

"Yes!"

Yun Jiao shouted a reply toward the door, put the two little rabbits back in their cage, and ran outside.

"Granny Liu, did Dabai have her pups?"

Granny Liu smiled and said, "You guessed right. Dabai had three pups."

"I want to go see them."

She immediately wanted to follow Granny Liu to her house.

"Alright. Wait here while I go ask your grandma for some pickling brine for my sauerkraut."

"Okay."

Yun Jiao waited obediently. After Granny Liu borrowed a ladleful of brine, Yun Jiao trotted happily after her.

Granny Yun called out, "Be back soon."

"I will!"

When they arrived at Granny Liu’s house, she pointed to the woodshed and said, "Go on and see for yourself."

Dabai lived in the shed. Her nest was a somewhat tattered basket filled with dry straw and old clothes.

Before Yun Jiao even got close, she could hear the faint whimpering of newborn puppies.

"Dabai, I came to see you and your babies."

When Dabai saw her, she wasn’t the least bit wary. Instead, she wagged her tail, stood up, and came over to nuzzle against her.

Yun Jiao crouched down to look at the three little pups.

One was white, one was black, and one was a light black, like ink diluted with too much water, with four white paws.

Their eyes weren’t open yet. Their little ears were floppy, and their soft fur clung to their bodies. Their mouths were slightly rounded and still a pale pink, as plump as large Tang Yuan.

’So cute!’

She gently stroked them with her finger while Dabai watched from the side.

"Once your babies open their eyes and can eat on their own, I’m going to take one home, okay?"

All three puppies were super cute. It was so hard to choose.

After crouching there for a while watching Dabai nurse her pups, she knew she had to leave.

She was reluctant to go.

"Dabai, take good care of them. I’ll bring you something to eat tomorrow."

Hearing this, Granny Liu couldn’t stop laughing. "You haven’t even taken one home yet and you’re already so devoted."

Yun Jiao replied logically, "Raising pups is hard work for Dabai. She needs to eat well to have milk for the puppies."

"Hahaha... Little Yun Jiao, you sure know a lot."

Yun Jiao nodded. ’Of course. I’m very smart. It’s not like I’m a real child who doesn’t remember anything.’

Yun Jiao went back and excitedly told her brothers all about the puppies.

Yun Xiaowu and the others said they wanted to see the puppies too, but Granny Yun stopped them.

"Animals that have just given birth are very protective of their young. If you all go, Dabai will feel anxious."

"Then why could sister go?"

"Dabai and Jiaojiao have a good relationship."

’Fine, if we can’t go, we can’t go. We’ll be bringing one home later anyway.’

That night, it started to rain again, and a strong wind began to blow.

They wouldn’t be able to go out to sea tomorrow either.

Yun Jiao yawned, feeling a little disappointed.

But no one could control the weather.

This was life by the sea. For about half of every month, the weather was too poor to go out on the boats.

When they encountered a major typhoon, they even had to move the boats to the harbor, or else the fishing boats could easily be blown away.

Going out to sea was more profitable than other work, but with so few days available each month, they couldn’t make a fortune.

Unless their luck at sea was very good and they could catch something especially valuable.

The next day, they could only go foraging on the beach again.

And they had to get up very early.

The haul was always bigger after a small typhoon.

Yawning, Yun Jiao let her mother finish dressing her.

"Let’s go, let’s go! If we’re late, all the good stuff will be picked over by others."

Shen Yunlian patted Yun Jiao’s chubby little cheek.

"You’re so sleepy, yet you insist on coming along."

Yun Jiao mumbled softly, "I have to. I have to raise a puppy."

’I’m the only Merfolk to ever raise a fluffy land creature. What a proud moment for all Merfolk!’

The sky was still dark.

They had to bring flashlights to go out.

The family only had two flashlights, so they had to stick together to look for seafood.

But Yun Jiao didn’t need one.

Her eyes scanned the tidal flats left by the receding tide.

Gradually, she drifted away from the main group.

It was Yun Xiaowu who noticed she was missing and quickly shouted for her.

"Here! Fifth Brother, I’m over here!"

Yun Xiaowu followed the sound of her voice and found her with her little butt in the air, trying to catch something in the crevice of a reef.

"What is it?"

"A big squid!"

Yun Xiaowu immediately rolled up his sleeves. "Let me!"

Soon, the squid that had wedged itself into the rock crevice was pulled out.

It felt soft, but it was spraying ink.

Yun Xiaowu’s hands were sprayed black.

"It’s huge!"

This squid weighed nearly a catty.

Normal squid were around four or five taels.

Yun Jiao said, "Brother, there are more over there."

Yun Jiao pointed to a tide pool not far away.

The sky was still dark, and you wouldn’t notice them without looking closely.

These were normal-sized squid.

Yun Xiaowu went to catch them in the direction she pointed.

"There are some here! And shrimp, too."

They caught several squid alone today.

Yun Xiaowu grinned. "Yesterday’s wind must have washed up a lot of squid!"

Yun Jiao crouched in a small tide pool, picking up shrimp.

She also found a coconut snail.

But this coconut snail wasn’t as big as the last one. It probably didn’t have a Flame Pearl inside.

In the blink of an eye, she spotted a large fish.

It was a blue-green fish with white spots on its body.

’A West Star grouper!’

This fish was also very valuable. Before Yun Jiao could run over, something rushed past her like a gust of wind.

It was a person—no... more than one person.

"It’s mine! That’s mine!"

In just a moment, Yun Jiao saw two people pounce on the West Star grouper at the same time and start fighting over it.

Yun Jiao recognized one of them: Cai Jinhua.

She also knew the other one. It was a widow from the village who was raising a son and had a very fierce temperament.

"Widow Song, you let go! I clearly saw it first."

"Bullshit! I could say I saw it first, too! Besides, I was the one who got here and grabbed this West Star grouper first!"

"You’re full of shit! I was clearly the one who grabbed it first."

The two of them held onto the fish, refusing to let go, while using their free hands to pull at each other’s hair.

They even started kicking at each other, all the while arguing nonstop.

Good grief. The commotion they were making drew the attention of everyone else on the tidal flats.

Seeing it was a West Star grouper, they all ran over.

Cai Jinhua shouted, "Get lost, all of you! This West Star grouper is mine! I’ll make life hell for anyone who tries to take it!"

Widow Song slapped Cai Jinhua across the face. "You shameless bitch! I was clearly the one who caught this West Star grouper first."