??Chapter 194: 194. Hooked!_1
Chapter 194: 194. Hooked!_1
The fishern sat quietly around the pond, forming a world of their own.
Song Tan collected their single-use porridge bowls from the stainless steel basin, and watched, barely able to suppress a laugh, as yet another person solemnly lifted their rod, only to reel in a thumb-sized lumpfish shimring in the morning sun with iridescent colors.
It was really her own fault, when you got down to it.
If she hadn’t set those few traps, nobody would have fished in this pond for a long while, and it wouldn’t have been so barren of kicks this morning for the group of ten.
But now, the fish knew there was sothing better waiting for them, and they were noticeably less interested in the bait thrown down from the shore.
However, Song Tan believed that, with the tiny brains of these fish, they wouldn’t be able to hold out for too long, and the harvest should co before much longer.
If they all ended up with nothing… my, my, would it be too much to have ten people weeding for the first ti?
Should she sell so expensive bait herself?
Just then, an ecstatic cheer was heard:
“Got one! Got one!”
She turned her head and saw a fishing rod, worth four figures, swaggeringly cast, and a small crucian carp, about ten centiters long, was being pulled out of the water, flapping continuously.
Feeling guilty, she quickly turned her head back.
Ten people, almost five hours, for a total catch of just this one little crucian carp…
It must be their lack of skill!
It’s not the fault of her fishpond!
Song Tan hurriedly ran off, yet this small crucian carp had enlivened everyone’s spirits—
Fishern can catch anything except air. They had been sitting idly for hours; they surely couldn’t just settle for lumpfish tassels in the end, could they?
The sacrifice of this fish symbolized that their skills were still intact, and that the pond before them held great promise!
Suddenly filled with pride, they weren’t afraid of scaring the fish anymore and simply shouted:
“Fellas, we’re not that young anymore, we can’t really squat in the fields pulling weeds, right? Let’s put so real effort into this!”
Pulling weeds was a minor issue, but losing face was a major one.
The buddies looked at each other and, because of this one crucian carp’s landing, the previously harmonious atmosphere turned into one of competitive tension.
anwhile, at Lao Song’s house, Aunt Lianhua briskly cleaned up the pots and pans, took the porridge and two buns, and went back ho.
Working for others really was better. Usually she’d be in a flurry at ho in the morning, making do with so sloppy porridge or flatbreads. But now, on her first al on the job, she felt like she could devour four buns in one sitting.
Why did other people’s cooking have to taste so good?
Granny back ho would surely enjoy eating them.
With the weather being nice lately, Aunt Lianhua would take Granny out in the wheelchair to bask in the sun at the doorway.
“Ti for breakfast.”
By nature, Aunt Lianhua wasn’t the type for soft-spoken tenderness, her voice was always loud. Luckily, Granny was used to it, and now she even asked cheerfully,
“Is the work too hard?”
“If it’s not too hard you can do more, I don’t have much to do at ho.”
Granny had been paralyzed for a long ti, and her speech was noticeably weak, sounding seriously ill.
Aunt Lianhua ‘humphed’ in response: “Not much to do? I have to wash and change you, do the laundry, assist you to the bathroom… I’m busy!”
Continuing, she handed over the bowl: “Eat up! It’s from Seventh Uncle at Old Song’s family. How many years has it been since you last had his food?”
Granny was paralyzed from the waist down, but she could still sit up to eat.
Firstly, she slowly took a sip of the warm porridge. It was a cozy morning, and the warm porridge settled in her stomach, warming her through and through.
Then she took another bite of the soft and fluffy bun.
Her teeth weren’t that good, but not bad either, and as she chewed on the bun, tears suddenly welled up in her eyes:
“It’s delicious… Lianhua, I’ve been such a burden to you.”
“What are you talking about?” Aunt Lianhua huffed as she pulled out a tissue from her pocket to wipe her tears, “If it’s good, eat more, what are you crying for?”
Having said that, she put the tissue back into her pocket and now headed out with a broom to sweep the yard.
There were a few trees behind the house that often shed their leaves; she loved cleanliness and felt the need to sweep every now and then.
“Old lady, you should eat and drink and not think too much about all that nonsense. Haven’t I also gotten your house in the end? I haven’t lost out.”
That’s what she said, but a woman’s youth had been drained away, only to be traded for a house in the countryside that wasn’t worth much…
The old lady was well aware of this.
She then advised her, “Don’t stay at ho all the ti, go out and do more work for others, pull so strings so that if I’m gone and he cos back to cause trouble, you’ll have soone to speak up for you.”
This “he” she referred to was the old lady’s son. Every parent knows deep down whether their child is filial or not, just like Aunt Lianhua no longer counted on her own children either.
Aunt Lianhua silently paused for a mont:
“Okay, I got it. They’ve got a lot of fish at their place today, I’ll go help clean them up in a bit.”
Only then did the old lady feel relieved and continued eating.
…
Aunt Lianhua was as good as her word; after tidying up her own ho, she rushed over here in haste.
When she arrived, she saw Song Sancheng and Seventh Uncle sitting on a stool lazily cleaning fish, so without a word, she squeezed in.
“Let
do it, let !”
The basin was full of small whitefish, about ten centiters long. These tiny fishes, if dried, whether stewed with pickled cabbage or braised, were crispy and delicious, their bones easily crushed to bits.
They didn’t need to be deboned and still retained the flavor of fish, which made them very popular.
Aunt Lianhua skillfully held the large kitchen knife, made a deft incision in the belly of the fish and with a poke of her finger, the insides were neatly removed.
This speedy efficiency made even Song Sancheng feel a bit embarrassed.
“Auntie, we agreed that your job was just to scrub pots and wash dishes, you don’t need to do this… doesn’t the old lady at ho need soone to look after her?”
“That’s nothing!”
Aunt Lianhua said cheerfully, “It was the old lady who told
to co and help. Before I left, I put a straw hat on her, and she’s sitting in the yard enjoying the sun now.”
She was also wearing a big overcoat; when it got warm, the old lady could simply move and put the coat aside without any hassle.
Song Tan had been eavesdropping on Qiaoqiao’s lesson for a while and had just stepped out of the house when she heard this conversation. Glancing at Aunt Lianhua’s dexterous movents, and then at Seventh Uncle and Song Sancheng sitting idle, hands free…
They really needed an extra pair of hands.
She looked into the fish pond, grabbed a net and scooped out two nets full of small fish:
“Aunt Lianhua, you can clean fish anywhere. If you don’t mind the trouble, take the fish back to your place to clean, and once it’s done, bring it back here. It’s all the sa.”
She didn’t know if this busy pace would continue, but if it did, it might be ti to talk about a raise.
Then, Song Tan looked at Song Youde:
“Grandpa, why don’t you drive this basin of fish over to Aunt Lianhua’s house?”
Song Youde was sprightly, agreeing with particular enthusiasm, “Don’t worry, my driving skills are rock solid!”
He was just fretting about not having a chance to use his old tricycle!
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