The alarm blared at three in the morning. Chu Mingcheng was jolted awake, but the heavy hand of sleep pressed him down, making it impossible to get out of bed. Getting up at this hour was a true test of will.
Finally, his brain issued a command. He used one charge of Life Conversion. Instantly, the world ca into sharp focus, the drowsiness lting away.
Sitting up, Chu Mingcheng glanced at the single remaining charge and sighed. "This thing is basically a stimulant. Good thing there are no side effects."
He got dressed, washed up, and drove off without waking Zhang Wei.
He had gotten up at this ungodly hour for one reason: to prepare for the day's beachcombing trip.
Those viral videos where people find a huge haul every ti they go beachcombing? Ninety percent of them are just staged.
He was heading to the seafood market to buy so props. He wanted to fake a successful haul to give the girls the thrill of a fruitful adventure. You could say he was putting in the effort.
Lechang had a late-night seafood market. At this hour, it was swarming with stall owners stocking up for the day, which ant you could get wholesale prices, a wider selection, and the freshest catch.
The mont he stepped into the market, a potent wave of salty sea air mixed with a heavy, fishy stench hit him. Chu Mingcheng wrinkled his nose, pulled out the mask he’d brought along, and slipped it on. Much better.
Even for soone who grew up by the sea, the sll was overwhelming. Only fishern and vendors who dealt with seafood day in and day out could stand it—or maybe they had just gone numb to it.
Chu Mingcheng had a clear goal. No fish. He had other plans for the day that didn't involve them.
He went straight to a stall selling crabs and lobsters and spent five hundred yuan on five spiny lobsters. He steered clear of the ornate spiny lobsters; even the fard ones for sale looked too much like the wild ones, which were a protected species. He didn't need the trouble of being misunderstood if they were "caught" later.
He figured they'd find so swimming crabs and mud crabs on their own, so he didn't buy any of those.
He did, however, pick up so large scallops and sea snails for another three hundred.
That should be enough. Just as he was about to leave, he spotted a stall selling mud crabs. But these weren't just any mud crabs—they were enormous. Each one appeared to weigh at least two jin ( approx 1 kg or 2.2 lbs), with so weighing as much as 4 jin.
They were Sri Lankan mud crabs, probably fard.
"Boss, how much for these Sri Lankan mud crabs?"
"The small ones are two hundred a jin (approx. 500g), the big ones like these are two-sixty."
Chu Mingcheng winced. That was a steep price.
"Are they at crabs or roe crabs?"
"All at crabs. The roe isn't good this ti of year. The at crabs are what you want—they're incredibly sweet."
Hearing they were at crabs, Chu Mingcheng decided to buy so.
When it ca to mud crabs, aside from the prized yellow butter crabs, at crabs were often tastier than roe crabs. The roe just couldn't compare to that of a mitten crab. Besides, there was a season for fard mud crabs. After the Mid-Autumn Festival, the roe started to get bitter. If you wanted good roe crabs, you had to wait until after the Qingming Festival in April of the next year. The ones caught then, known as "winter crabs," would be large and full of roe.
Translator Note:
The Qingming Festival (清明节), also known as Tomb-Sweeping Day or Pure Brightness Festival, is a traditional Chinese holiday dedicated to honoring ancestors. It usually falls around April 4th or 5th, marking the 15th day after the spring equinox.
Chu Mingcheng knew how to pick a plump mud crab. One way was to check the shell, but Sri Lankan mud crabs had thick shells, making it difficult. So he picked up a few of the largest ones and flipped them over. He set aside the ones with protruding belly flaps and furry, overgrown claws.
Finally, he tested their vitality by placing them on the ground, belly-up. As long as you weren't trying to pry open their abdon, the boss was fine with custors taking their ti to choose.
Soon, Chu Mingcheng had selected a massive, aty Sri Lankan mud crab. It weighed in at four jin and three liang (2.15 kg or 4.7 lbs) and cost him one thousand one hundred yuan.
By the ti he left the market, he wasn't carrying much, but he'd spent nearly two thousand yuan.
For a mont, Chu Mingcheng seriously considered getting into the Sri Lankan mud crab farming business. The price was just insane. But it was a fleeting thought. He couldn't imagine waking up at three every morning during crab season. His current life of fishing and beachcombing was pretty great—better pay than his old office job, and a lot more freedom.
On the way back, he stopped to get so seawater for the lobsters and hooked up an aerator before finally heading ho to catch a few more hours of sleep.
He slept until seven-thirty before getting up again.
This ti, he made a point of kicking the log-like Zhang Wei awake. Grabbing the seafood he'd bought that morning, they drove straight to the spot where he'd found the mud sea snails last ti.
Once his soul had returned to his body, Zhang Wei noticed the lobsters, the giant Sri Lankan mud crab, the scallops, and the rest of the seafood. He was completely baffled.
"What's all this?"
"What is there to find in our coastal waters? Without planting so stuff, how are they supposed to experience the 'joy' of beachcombing?"
"...Fair point.”Zhang Wei stroked his chin, a sly, knowing grin spreading across his face as he looked at Chu Mingcheng. “But man, you're really going all out for this, huh?"
"When you invite people out, you make sure they have a good ti. It's called being a good host."
"Aren't I a guest, too? How co I don't get this treatnt?"
"You're not a girl!"
"Hey, I can always take a trip to Thailand, you know~"
"..." When it ca to being shaless, Chu Mingcheng knew he'd never be a match for Zhang Wei.
They drove to their destination. The tide was already out and wouldn't start coming back in until around eleven.
He handed the seafood to Zhang Wei, telling him to find a few good rock pools to hide everything in and to keep an eye on it. Then, Chu Mingcheng drove off to the hotel to pick up Jiang Luoluo and her friends.
They had agreed to et at eight. When Chu Mingcheng pulled up to the hotel, Jiang Luoluo and Zhou Jiayi were already downstairs, dressed for the beach and waiting for him.
Their punctuality scored major points with him. It was a rare sight for pretty girls to be on ti; he had half-expected to wait for an hour.
Of course, two beautiful won standing out front were bound to attract attention. He had just arrived, and already, so guy—probably a tourist in town for the National Day holiday—was trying to hit on them, asking for their contact info.
Chu Mingcheng honked the horn, drawing their attention. He rolled down the window and called out, "Tide's out! Hop in!"
The aloof expression on Jiang Luoluo's face instantly lted into a bright smile when she saw him. She grabbed Zhou Jiayi's hand and, under the envious glares of the other n, climbed into his modest, hundred-thousand-yuan Volkswagen.
"Why is it just you two? Where's your photographer?"
"Her stomach's upset, so she's resting at the hotel. We can pick her up before dinner tonight!"
"Sounds good!" Chu Mingcheng felt a little bad for Zhang Ruoi. With a stomachache, she would probably have to miss out on the seafood feast later.
"Thanks for that, by the way," Jiang Luoluo said. "That guy was so annoying. He'd been bothering us for a while."
"Don't ntion it. When you're as good-looking as we are, people are going to hit on you everywhere. You just have to get used to it and learn how to say no."
"You're right. Ordinary people just don't understand our struggles!"
"You guys are so full of yourselves~" Zhou Jiayi couldn't help but chi in, rolling her eyes with a look of mock disgust.
"Haha~" Chu Mingcheng and Jiang Luoluo burst out laughing in unison.
"Oh, where's Zhang Wei?" Jiang Luoluo asked, seeming to have just now noticed soone was missing.
"He's waiting for us by the shore. Probably already found a few things by now!" Chu Mingcheng couldn't reveal the seafood scam just yet, so a little white lie would have to do.
Soon, they arrived at their beachcombing spot for the day.
After getting out of the car, Jiang Luoluo excitedly grabbed Zhou Jiayi's hand and dashed toward the reef flats. Chu Mingcheng followed behind, carrying a bucket filled with their tools.
Zhang Wei had already hidden the seafood in various rock pools, making sure they couldn't escape. The only one he was nervous about was the Sri Lankan mud crab. That beast was the only one strong enough to potentially climb out of a small pool. But since Zhang Wei was standing nearby, the crab stayed hidden in its rocky crevice, not daring to erge.
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