However, she still wanted to visit Tongcheng, where her brother and sister-in-law lived.
It's much bigger than a small county town. It's good to go back and buy some things that aren't available here to earn some college living expenses.
She sorted out the money in her hands: Xu's mother gave her all the money she earned from making clothes recently without leaving any money; plus the two hundred she had saved; the big red envelope given by her brother and sister-in-law; and going to the county to participate in labor on behalf of the town.
Bonuses from the pacesetter commendation meeting; bonuses from the top six who were recommended to BGI...
All these things were added up, and the balance on hand was 405 yuan, which was quite a lot. After all, the monthly salary of an eighth-level worker in the factory did not exceed 100 yuan.
Xu’s mother helped pack a bunch of food:
The fungus mushrooms were picked and dried by her uncle in the mountains after the Qingming Festival, and they are still very fresh.
A pack of kelp and dried shrimps sent by her sister-in-law's family. Although they are not valuable, they may not be available in Tongcheng if they want to eat them.
Xu Yin recalled the introduction about Tongcheng in the book. Oh, it is an inland province and city surrounded by the sea. The transportation is not very developed now, so it is really not that convenient to eat some seafood.
She thought about it and came up with a little idea to make money:
Since you can bring back goods from Tongcheng that are not available here and earn the price difference, you can also bring some products that are available here but not in Tongcheng and earn the price difference.
She decided to go to her sister-in-law's house and her grandmother's house before setting off to buy more seafood and take local products with her.
Anyway, there is an expansion backpack, so I don’t have to worry about not being able to carry it. If not, there is a system warehouse.
So early the next morning, in the eyes of her mother, who asked, "With so much kelp at home, why should Shopee go out if he doesn't have enough?", he rode a small electric donkey out the door.
Sister-in-law Xu’s maiden name is Li, which is the most common surname in Houhai Village.
Father Li and mother Li are sixty-five years old this year. They have three sons and three daughters. Except for Sister-in-law Xu, the other two daughters are all married in this village.
Although the three sons live in separate families, they live next door and can be called over if anything happens.
When I heard that my sister-in-law was here, I was very surprised. I put down what I was doing and welcomed her into the house warmly.
"Have Yin Yin had breakfast?" Mother Li asked.
If you haven’t eaten yet, you’ll cook a bowl of noodles and soft-boiled eggs. This is the highest standard for locals to entertain guests.
Xu Yin quickly said that she had eaten.
Mother Li still asked her eldest daughter-in-law to cook a bowl of soft-boiled eggs without adding noodles, but she beat two eggs and put in a lot of rock sugar.
Xu Yin could not hold back their enthusiasm, but she also knew that this was their simple enthusiasm for entertaining guests.
Fortunately, I was prepared before arriving. I took out two bottles of sorghum wine, two cans of oranges, and two kilograms of brown sugar from the inconspicuous enlarged schoolbag.
I bought sorghum wine from a supply store.
Brown sugar and canned goods are still stocked in the system.
How could the Li family be willing to accept it?
Xu Yin took advantage of the opportunity to express her intention: "I still have something to trouble you. Where's my aunt? If you don't accept it, I'm embarrassed to speak. It's like this. I'm going to Tongcheng to visit my brother and sister-in-law in a few days. It's far away from the sea and I can't buy it.
I just want to buy some seafood and take it over. If you don’t have it at home, ask your uncle or aunt to ask the neighbors for help. Just ask the price according to the usual price. I just want to buy it fresh at your door. "
"This is nothing to worry about. I'll take you to see it right now. Don't buy what we have at home. Give it to my son-in-law and grandson. Where can I get you to pay for it?"
Mother Li said as she took Xu Yin to the storage room.
There are quite a lot of kinds of seafood in the Li family, including kelp, dried razor clams, dried clams, mud snails, etc., all of which are picked up when going to sea.
For example, when I went to sea this morning, I picked up a lot of small sand crabs. A basket weighed about four or five kilograms. Mother Li took them home, rinsed them, and marinated them with salt and wine. They can be sold when setting up a stall at the market in a few days.
If she had known that Xu Yin would come, she would not have marinated it. After all, freshly fried food tastes better.
Xu Yin was silent for a long time after looking at it, and couldn't help but ask: "Are there any bigger ones? For example, prawns, yellow croaker, hairtail, squid, swimming crabs, etc. I have brought enough money, so don't worry."
Mother Li was stunned for a moment, then laughed: "Where can we get what you mentioned here?"
"..."
After listening to her explanation, Xu Yin realized that Houhai Village was just a small place connected by the bay. It was just a corner of the bay at best, and it was actually far away from the real sea.
The fishermen here mainly go to the sea to pick up some small seafood and go to the market to sell it in exchange for grain and meat. After all, this is saline-alkali land and cannot grow crops.
Collective fishing boats can catch the kind of large seafood Xu Yin mentioned when they go out to sea, but they often have to be purchased by large factories, supply and marketing cooperatives and other state-owned units before they even get off the dock.
Individual small fishing boats generally only circle around the mouth of the bay, and the species they can catch are extremely limited.
However, even if you really catch large fish, shrimps and crabs, you will have to go to the city to find a buyer and will not sell them in the village.
Xu Yin: "..."
Never thought it would be like this.
No wonder Xu’s mother always complains that her in-laws are so poor that they only take some kelp and mud snails as gifts, because that’s all they really have.
My heart suddenly felt a little clogged.
It is said that you live on the mountain and live on the sea. From the literal meaning, it sounds like you are quite wealthy and comfortable. But when you really integrate into this environment, you realize how difficult it is.
"It's much better now than before." Mother Li is quite optimistic, "Especially this year, after taking over the tidal flat, we don't have to wait for the tide to go out. Our family raises mud snails, clams, and razor clams, and we can sell them at a good price during the Chinese New Year.
If you go to the sea and pick things up on weekdays, you can think of it as making extra money. Yin Yin, when you go back and tell your mother-in-law, we can pay back part of the money we owe before the year. Things are expensive in the first month, and if you sell well, you can pay back some more. No.
It took too long.”
Xu Yin said hurriedly: "Don't be in a hurry when it comes to money. Just take your time. If you can start tidal flat farming, your life will become more and more stable in the future. The good days are yet to come."
"Yes, yes, we are looking forward to having a stable livelihood. After all, God will give us food when we are out on the sea. When the wind is sunny, we can't feel anything. But when there is a typhoon, we will know how difficult it is to eat this bowl of rice."
"
Through chatting, Xu Yin finally understood the types of seafood available in Houhai Village:
Just some small seafood that are easy to get from the sea, such as shrimps, mud snails, razor clams, clams, sand crabs, kelp, seaweed, etc.
The price is very cheap. You can buy it for one dollar, and you can eat it for a long time after drying it.
There were no other items like abalone, scallops, prawns, swimming crabs, etc. that she wanted to buy.
Not to mention that she was too rich to buy her, but the fishermen in Houhai Village didn't see her very often, and when they did, they would gather around to look at her.
"..."
Good guy! This doesn't look like the beach. It feels like it's leaning on a fake sea.
She was naive. When she heard that it was close to the sea, she thought there were all kinds of seafood.
Having said that, the main reason is that I am too poor.
If there is a fishing boat... Of course, it is not the kind of small fishing boat that can only circle around the mouth of the bay, but the kind of big fishing boat that is not afraid of wind and waves and can travel far into the sea. Aren't there all the kinds of seafood you want to eat?
Thinking of this, Xu Yin became full of energy again.
"Auntie, how are the preparations for the fishery organization mentioned last time going? Have you bought the fishing boat?"
She is still a nominal shareholder.
Although the investment is not large and the proportion is not high, they are still shareholders and have the right to care about the business they invest in.
"What a coincidence. Yesterday I went to the town to set up a stall and heard someone talking about this." Mother Li said, stroking her hands, "I heard that the ocean-going ship has been purchased and the sailing seems to be scheduled for the beginning of next month."
"I've heard about it too." The eldest daughter-in-law of the Li family fried a bowl of soybeans and brought it to Xu Yin as a snack, and added smoothly, "But I went overseas and didn't come back so soon. I said it would be at least two or three months, maybe by the end of the year.
I just came back. But it’s good to come back at the end of the year, just in time to share the New Year’s goods.”
Xu Yin was stunned: "Split the New Year's goods?"
"Yes, our village party secretary's son has also become a shareholder. I went to find out not long ago and he said that he didn't have any money to share in the first year, but he could share some things, and that would be the seafood he caught."
"..."
So, she will have big fish, shrimps and crabs to eat by the end of the year?