noffsinger Chapter 444 How many people are wandering without roots
Chapter 444 How many people are wandering without roots
"Master Lu, we have customers. I'll charter a boat for today's cargo. I'll take all of it. Fifty taels of silver. You're responsible for your own profits and losses. How do you think?" The man who had just praised Uncle Lu for his good catch was a businessman by nature. He would start to lower the price as soon as he got the slightest opportunity. How dare he say that he would only pay fifty taels for the catch that someone risked their lives for several days out at sea.
"Oh, you can't say that. I've got my eyes on the lobster..."
"The crab belongs to me, I will marry it now..."
"And I……"
"I want one too!" The cousin finally found an opportunity to express his stance on buying seafood.
"Uncle, take your time to sell the goods. We are not in a hurry. Brothers, don't just stand there. Help uncle unload the goods. Uncle will offer the price and we can sell the goods together." Lu Yao also said hurriedly. Now that there are three layers of onlookers inside and outside, there should be no problem selling the goods. With so many customers waiting, he still wants to lower the price. He is undoubtedly a profiteer!
"Haha, okay, okay! Everyone will have a share. Boss Chen, forget it this time. Everyone is waiting. Next time we go out to sea, all will be yours!" Uncle Lu may be a rough man, but he is not a mean person. He will still judge the situation. With so many people around, even if Boss Chen is from the largest family in Minzhou, they can't do anything to him.
"Hmm? Then we have to make a deal. Next time, give me the good stuff. This time, pick the big abalone, prawns, and sea bass for me."
"Okay! Boss Chen, big abalone, big shrimps, and big sea bass!" Uncle Lu personally started to pick and choose. To give face to the big family, he always had to give enough. The goods were good, the quantity was large, and he even gave a discount.
"Hahaha... Master Lu is a straightforward man and he loves to buy seafood from you!" Boss Chen is a profit-seeking businessman, but he is not so arrogant as to oppress the common people and leave them with no way to make a living. Besides, someone has to risk his life for such a dangerous job as going out to sea.
"It's my turn now. I want crabs. I want the fattest ones with roe..."
"And I'll pick the big green-skinned lobster, and this one..."
The crowd crowded in the innermost circle were selecting the goods they liked, and they came to the dock to choose just for the novelty.
"Dad~" Uncle Lu's son had just tied the mooring ropes for the two boats and came back. He saw his father surrounded in the middle and he couldn't squeeze in. He also saw several young people surrounding his father, who seemed to be helping. Lu Manzai stood on the periphery and jumped up and down, calling his father. Although he was not very old, the skin on his face was also ravaged by the sun and sea breeze to become bronze, which made him look mature!
"Hey! Manzai, there are guests at home. Go to the boat and get the bucket of fish we kept for ourselves. Go home and cook with your mother first. Tell her to make food for five or six more people." Uncle Lu instructed his son. Although he didn't understand why his nephew came, he still wanted to entertain him well!
When going out to sea to fish, there are always some privately stored catches. These privately stored seafoods are not all of the best quality. They are the ones that are bumped when out of the water and will not live long. So you can just put them in a bucket with ice for chilling or pack them up for salt preservation.
You can eat them yourself or sell them in the market. The price is much cheaper than the net fish just pulled out of the sea. Those lively fish are caught, packaged and transported back while still immersed in seawater.
If Bailu, Yiyi and Yanan were here, they would say that the fact that the fish were still alive after all the trip back meant that it was still offshore fishing. Yes, with today's shipbuilding technology and the power of the boats, it is easy to imagine how far they can go. However, in this era, it is already amazing. Many people always feel that it is so vast and they can't find their way when they enter the sea. Isn't it just panic?
"Okay, Dad, you can go home after you sell the fish." There were too many people on the shore, so Lu Xiaoman had to wade into the water and get on the boat from the other end, get his things, and go home early to cook.
The seaside pier is a bit messy. It becomes lively for a while as the fishing boats dock, and then becomes deserted again.
"The good stuff has been sold out. We'll eat the remaining small fish and shrimps ourselves." Uncle Lu saw that most of the goods had been picked up. He glanced at the remaining small fish and shrimps in the wooden barrel and decided not to sell them. He took them home and cooked some seafood porridge, which was enough for everyone to have a full meal.
Not far from the coast, it is the edge of the fishing village. The houses are shacks, and the place where the sea water floods is only a dozen feet away. Uncle Lu settled his family here. No wonder Lu Yao couldn't find him in the fishing village!
"Uncle, so you live here, so close to the coast!" Lu Yao said.
"Yes, settling down here will make it convenient to go out to sea, and we can also see fishing boats. Now our family's livelihood depends on these two small boats. We have no house or fields here, so we can only rely on going out to sea to fish for a living." After saying this, Uncle Lu asked everyone to follow her.
"Let's go! Go home and have dinner. Your aunt is weak and can't do heavy work. She has to stay at home to look after the house. Second servant can take care of you at home. You don't have to be too restrained. We are all family!"
"Okay! Uncle, I'll tell the guards that those people over there are my guards, and those horses are ours too!" Lu Yao thought about it and estimated that his uncle's house was too small to accommodate so many people. He planned to let the guards go back and tell Leader Hongyi that he had found his uncle.
"Oh? My nephew brought guards with him? Then let them come into the house together. We have seafood here, and with a pot of porridge, there will be enough to eat. There is a lot of space outside the shed. I will clean it up later and it will be able to accommodate them." Uncle Lu didn't know that his nephew brought more people with him. He thought it would not be a problem for him to entertain the few people in front of him.
"So? Fine!" Lu Yao hesitated for a moment but still followed his uncle's decision. He planned to use this opportunity to have a good chat with his uncle and try to convince him to go with him. He could not guarantee that his uncle and his family would enjoy wealth and glory if they followed him back, but it would definitely be more stable than their current rootless wandering. Lu Yao still had the confidence to convince his uncle's family. In addition, his third brother's letter urged him, so he had to deal with this matter before tomorrow morning.
"Dad, you're back! Who is this?" Lu Manzai's real age is only seventeen years old. Aunt Lu is weak and cannot give birth to a child, so she gave birth to a son very late. After being away from home for many years, everyone has changed a lot, so it is normal that he can't recognize her.
"Manzai, this is Lu Yao from your uncle's family. He started traveling when you were a few years old! These guys are also your brothers. Just call them brothers!" Uncle Lu briefly introduced the people around him to his son.
"Brother! Come in, everyone. My mother and second father have prepared the food!" Lu Manzai grinned and called for people.
"Brother Xiaoman, you're welcome. We came here with Brother Lu Yao this time, and we will follow him in the future!" A straightforward cousin blurted out.
"Yao'er, ask the guards to tie it up under that tree. The bench is simple, so just make do with it! Manzai, clean the fish and shrimp in the bucket, and cook a pot of seafood porridge!" Uncle Lu ordered everyone to settle down, and then ordered his son to cook another pot of porridge. More people were added. Before, I thought there were only five or six people, but now there are five or six more.
"Okay, Dad! I'll go cook it. It'll be quick. There's still fire on the stove!" Lu Manzai readily carried the bucket and went into the kitchen.
"Boss, it's time to eat." Aunt Lu and her second husband brought out the food and filled the table. There was a big pot of mixed fish soup, a big pot of pan-fried small sea fish, a big pot of steamed crab, a big pot of boiled shrimp, a big pot of stir-fried conchs of various colors, and a big pot of seafood porridge.
"Uncle, isn't this too much?! Tell Brother Xiaoman not to cook any more." When Lu Yao saw that all the food was served in pots, he was shocked and hurriedly tried to persuade him.
"Hahaha! Yao'er, you don't understand this, right? What you see are packed in pots, but in fact there are more shells than meat. You'll know when you eat them, these things don't take up too much space in your stomach." Uncle Lu laughed happily, and Aunt Lu and her second husband followed with a shy smile.
"Ah? Then I'll follow uncle's arrangements!" Lu Yao couldn't say anything else after hearing that, and the guest followed the host's wishes.
"Come on, come on, sit down, the porridge is still hot, you can let it cool down before drinking it. The fried fish can be eaten directly, the fish bones are all crispy. Shrimp, crab, and snail need to be shelled before eating the meat. Manzai, bring some firewood and come out to eat together!" Uncle Lu hurriedly invited everyone to eat.
"Oh, okay! Okay! Uncle, please go first, and aunt, you also take a seat." Lu Yao asked his uncle and aunt to take a seat first, and the others followed after the host took a seat.
"Dad! Mom, our harvest this time is pretty good. Mom's medical expenses are settled now!" Lu Xiaoman is still young, and he doesn't avoid talking about family matters to outsiders. Moreover, in his opinion, his brothers are not outsiders, so he still talked about the harvest this time at the dinner table.
"Well, the money can cover the cost of buying medicine for half a year!" Uncle Lu also talked openly without hiding anything.
"Uncle and aunt, I know a miracle doctor who works at the Qingnang Medical Clinic." Lu Yao finally found a way in. He had just wanted to talk to his uncle in private after dinner, but he found the opportunity right at the dinner table.
"Miracle doctor? Really..." Uncle Lu and his family were all surprised. It can be seen that Aunt Lu's illness is a big matter that weighs on their whole family's mind.