Zhao Dahai rode his motorcycle back home and found an iron rake. He had used it when he went out to rake clams some time ago, two large baskets and a small dustpan. Wearing Jiefang shoes, he rode his motorcycle back to the dock.
There was too much sand on the beach for the motorcycle to run on, so I quickly returned to the reef area carrying two large baskets, a small dustpan and a small rake on a pole.
Zhao Dahai found a place to put two large baskets. He held a small dustpan in his left hand and a small rake in his right hand. He walked to the waterline and carefully looked at the rocks where the waves hit. There was a thick layer of
The color is black and almost the same as a reef. The long fingers are the same, and the short ones only have one finger.
"Hey!"
"Idleness is idleness."
"If you don't have fish, just get some seaweed."
Zhao Dahai spotted a place, walked over and stood firm, tried to make sure his feet were not slipping, turned half sideways, and could see the waves coming from the sea from the corner of his eyes. He waited for a wave to recede, bent down, and held the iron rake in his right hand.
I scraped down hard on the reef, and pieces of seaweed fell off. I held a small dustpan in my left hand and placed it underneath, and then scraped off the seaweed.
Zhao Dahai moved his right hand very quickly. He scraped a dozen times in one breath. The dustpan was filled with less than half of it. He watched the waves coming from the corner of his eyes. He immediately straightened up and stood firm on his feet. The waves passed by his feet and the sea water flooded him.
My calves were almost up to my knees. The waves were splashing, and I was half wet all of a sudden. When the waves receded, I bent down and continued to scrape the seaweed on the rocks. I held my breath and did it a dozen times. The small dustpan was already full, and I walked to
Pour it into the side of the large basket.
"Swish, brush, brush!"
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"Swish, brush, brush!"
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"Swish, brush, brush!"
……
Zhao Dahai took advantage of the gap between one wave and the next to quickly scrape the seaweed.
The seaweed in the reef area in front of the village did not attract much attention. It grew densely, one after another. I specially selected the thick and good places, and filled a large basket with it in an hour.
"Huh?"
"What are you scraping?"
……
"When did seaweed grow on the rocks in our village?"
……
"Wow!"
"The waves are coming again! Zhao Dahai is really brave. I don't dare stand in that place and scrape seaweed!"
……
"Just stand firm. Didn't you see that Zhao Dahai is half-sideways? He's just keeping an eye on those waves. Just be careful when they hit them. It's not as dangerous as you think."
"Isn't it just as dangerous to climb up and down the island all day long?"
……
Zhao Dahai ignored the pointing fingers of the people picking up fish on the rocks. Some of them walked to their own big baskets to look at the scraped seaweed.
Seaweed is not a rare thing, but it grows on rocks. Especially now that there is a strong wind and I can’t go fishing at sea. Isn’t it a good idea to get some for free and make egg soup at home? It won’t take long.
Someone must be coming. Take your time and shave more.
Zhao Dahai worked hard, and beads of sweat came out one by one. When the waves came up, the splashing sea water sprinkled on his body, mixed together and dripped down, and it was difficult to tell which ones were sweat and which ones were sea water.
Zhao Dahai straightened up. There was a pile of seaweed in the small dustpan in his left hand. There were about ten kilograms of seaweed soaked in sea water. After scraping for almost two hours, he was a little tired. He was a little unsteady while holding it. His hands were a little shaking. He threw the small iron rake away.
When I got inside, I walked to the big basket with both hands and poured it in. I looked around and found that it was true. There were already seven or eight people scraping seaweed. After a while, there would definitely be more. Look at the two outfits.
There is a big basket full, no matter what you do, you have to do it quickly. If you are late, you will not be able to eat anything hot.
Zhao Dahai sat on the rocks, rested for a while, and went back later.
"Yo?!"
"Is this a fish?"
……
"No way?"
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"Ah!"
"It's really a fish!"
……
Zhao Dahai suddenly stood up, but he was not in a hurry. The strong wind and waves made the rocks very slippery. He walked to the waterline with good luck. The waves just receded and no fish could be seen. After waiting patiently for a while, the waves came up and a big fish appeared in the water.
The fish rolled over, and with quick eyesight and hands, he quickly changed his waist and grabbed the fish's tail to lift it up.
"Bad fish?"
Zhao Dahai was a little disappointed. He finally found a big fish, but he didn’t expect it to be this thing. The "rotten fish" is tarpon, which is called "rotten shuttle" in some places. It swims very fast, and this fish is covered with small spines.
Fish meat is nothing special and not many people like to eat it. Although this one is big, almost one meter long and as wide as the palm of your hand, no one can buy it in the market for only two or three yuan a pound.
Zhao Dahai just wanted to throw it away, but after looking at the two large baskets of seaweed, he changed his mind. The "rotten fish" would not taste good if cooked directly, but as long as you are willing to put in the effort, you can make a delicious dish. Usually, I don't have the time.
But these days it's windy and I can't go out to sea, so I have time. Grandma Zhong Cuihua likes to eat it very much.
Zhao Dahai threw the fish into the basket, held the "ears" on both sides of the basket with both hands, and lifted it back and forth twice to get off the reef. He carried the pole to the pier, put it on the motorcycle, and drove home.
When Zhao Dahai returned home, Lancaoyu took some ice and put it in a foam box to keep it in the cold, not caring about handling it for the time being.
The seaweed raked down by the iron rake contains tiny broken rocks and needs to be cleaned.
Zhao Dahai took a large basin with a diameter of more than one meter. The faucet was filled with water. He grabbed half of the seaweed in the basket and put it down. He stirred vigorously. The seaweed began to rotate with the water, and the crowded seaweed spread out.
I stopped stirring, waited for a while, picked up the seaweed floating on the water, and put it in another large basin next to it to soak in water.
Zhao Dahai finished washing it once and then washed it a second time. After washing it five times, he grabbed a handful of seaweed and carefully pulled it apart. He was satisfied that there were no broken rocks or other debris.
"Ah?"
"Grandma."
"How come there is such a thing?"
Zhao Dahai looked at Zhong Cuihua holding a stack of small dustpans with a diameter of only 20 centimeters. He remembered that there was no such thing at home.
"Hehehe!"
"It was almost ten years ago. If I hadn't watched you washing seaweed here, I wouldn't have been able to remember it."
"Look for it and take it out to see if it works."
Zhong Cuihua handed it to Zhao Dahai.
Zhao Dahai rinsed it with water and it was really usable. This thing is very simple. A thin bamboo strip about one centimeter wide is used to form a circle about twenty centimeters in diameter. In addition, small bamboo strips about the width of chopsticks are used.
The bamboo strips have a braided bottom, and the overall appearance is no different from a dustpan, except that it is smaller.
Zhao Dahai cleaned the large iron basin and filled it with two-thirds of the water. He grabbed a few handfuls of seaweed and put it into the iron basin. He beat it evenly with his hands and floated it on the water. He filled it with a small dustpan and added a little more to the thin areas.
Thin out the thick parts of the seaweed, take it out of the water evenly, drain the water, and place it upside down on a large dustpan. The method is very simple, but very effective. The fishing village has been using this method to make round seaweed cakes for 180 years.
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Zhao Dahai has been working non-stop. It took him four or five hours to wash all the seaweed, turn it upside down into seaweed cakes and dry them on the dustpan. The wind was very strong and the sun was blowing. He would dry them for one day today and another day tomorrow.