Ding Xiaoxiang watched Zhao Dahai pass by her on a motorcycle loaded with mussels. She knew that her mother didn't like her mentioning Zhao Dahai, but she couldn't help it.
Zhang Li was unhappy, but she couldn't refute it. During the low tide once or twice a year, countless people go to the sea to dig for mussels. Those who come for fun are not counted. Those who usually go out to sea for fishing can only make one trip.
, usually only a few weigh a few dozen or a hundred pounds. Zhao Dahai made four trips, and each time weighed three to four hundred pounds. Others walked, and Zhao Dahai drove a motorcycle, which saved the time of picking.
It saves the effort of picking, but it is not effortless. If nothing else, the mussels cannot get into the mesh bag by themselves. They have to be dug and packed. In these four trips, they dug out 800 kilograms. I did it by myself.
It takes four or five people to do the job.
"This kid Dahai is so awesome!"
……
"As dirty as a monkey! You are really willing to work hard!"
……
"Not many children can afford such hardship now! How much more money can they make if they all work in an electronics factory? Isn't it just for comfort?"
……
"Hey!"
"This child is pitiful!"
……
Zhang Li turned around and saw several old men in their 60s and 70s a few steps away from her, squatting on the ground smoking hookahs. They must be people from Langtou Village, and they had nothing to do and were here to watch the fun.
"This big brother."
"Are you talking about the young man who was riding a motorcycle to pull mussels just now?"
Zhang Li didn't pay attention at first. When she heard someone saying that Zhao Dahai was pitiful, she couldn't help but ask.
Ding Xiaoxiang’s little hand holding the water glass tightened, and her ears immediately stood up.
"Haha!"
"That's right. It's that kid, Zhao Dahai, from our Langtou Village."
……
"The father and mother of the sea went fishing two years ago. They were caught in the wind and never came back."
"He and his seventy-year-old grandma are the only two people left in the family."
……
"Without discipline, this kid, Dahai, has become a bastard. I think this family can't survive, so who wants to be diligent? It's really a life-threatening job!"
……
"Isn't there a saying that the prodigal son turns back?"
"In the past two years, Dahai was just young, but now he is sensible!"
……
"Our place is poor, but as long as we work hard, there is nothing we can't live without!"
……
Zhang Li was stunned for a moment, she didn't expect such a thing.
"Mom!"
"I didn't expect Zhao Dahai to be in such a situation."
Zhang Li looked back and saw Ding Xiaoxiang's eyes were red and filled with tears.
"Ding Xiaoxiang!"
"I'm telling you, don't worry about this kid!"
Zhang Li's heart was ringing with alarms. As a woman, she knew very well that once she sympathized with a man, it would leave a shadow in her heart. It didn't mean that she would definitely talk about getting married, but she definitely had more thoughts than other men. She had just
You are a bitch, why did you ask this? I regret it so much.
"Mom!"
"What did you say?"
"How could such a thing happen!"
"Can you please stop talking about everything?"
Ding Xiaoxiang was angry and anxious. She was feeling sad and sympathizing with Zhao Dahai when her mother started to blame her again.
"Humph!"
"Your mother is a woman! Can you understand a woman's thoughts?"
"It's best if this doesn't happen! If it does, stop it as soon as possible!"
Zhang Li did not let go.
Ding Xiaoxiang looked at the tigress-like old lady and felt extremely wronged. She was already sixteen years old this year, and she had to take care of everything. Talking about things that didn't happen every day was too much. She pursed her lips tightly and didn't say a word. Zhang Li felt a little regretful when she saw Ding Xiaoxiang like this. Her daughter is older and has her own ideas. What she said just now was too strong. Just when she wanted to add a few words to soften it, a big truck drove over. It was here to haul mussels.
Thousands of kilograms of piles will be piled together for a long time, and part of them will die. There is no time to delay, so we can only work first. We can only talk about Ding Xiaoxiang's matter later.
Zhao Dahai parked his motorcycle in front of his house and unloaded all the mussels. When he walked into the yard, he saw his grandma Zhong Cuihua sitting on a low stool with a pile of boiled and opened mussels in her left hand. There was a large iron basin at her right foot.
I was peeling the meat one by one, and looked at the dozens of kilograms of meat in the big iron basin, and then looked at the smell of cooking mussels coming from the kitchen. I was busy pulling mussels from the sea today, and my grandma was at home.
It hasn’t stopped either,
Zhao Dahai immediately helped Zhong Cuihua stand up slowly, walked a few steps, stretched his legs and feet, poured a glass of water and took a few sips. He had to rest. At the age of seventy, he did not dare to work hard like this.
Zhao Dahai sat down on a short stool and began to peel the mussels. The tide had almost risen and he didn't have time to go down again. This time the tide brought back a lot of water, which must have weighed more than 1,000 kilograms together.
Zhong Cuihua takes a break and wants to help with the work.
"Grandma!"
"It's getting late!"
"The sun is almost going down. I've been working hard all day and I'm hungry. Why don't you go cook and make whole pork belly? These mussels are fresh and boil two or three kilograms. Let's have a good meal."
Zhao Dahai knew that he had to find some work, or Zhong Cuihua would definitely have to help him skin the mussels. This job didn't seem difficult, but it required sitting still for a long time and doing mechanical work. The waist and legs of older people couldn't bear it. "Haha!"
"Okay!"
"Then I'll cook first and help you later."
Zhong Cuihua knew that Zhao Dahai wanted to relax, but he did have to cook, so she nodded with a smile.
Three o'clock in the morning.
The moon hangs in the sky, only as big as a sickle.
The stars are hiding somewhere, and there are not even a few in the sky.
There is a lamp hanging in the yard.
Zhao Dahai was busy working under the dim light. He picked up a cooked mussel with its mouth opened in his left hand, and lightly scratched the shell with the knife held in his right hand. A plump mussel meat fell into his feet and was placed there.
As time went by, the mussels became more and more fleshy. This was already the second pot, and the one that had been peeled off had been dried on the dustpan. Grandma Zhong Cuihua originally wanted to help.
But since I’m older, I’ve already rushed back to bed as early as just after twelve o’clock.
Five o'clock in the morning.
The sky shows the white color of fish belly.
The roosters in the village crow non-stop. After crowing in the east, they crow in the west. When they crow in the south, they crow in the north without showing any weakness.
I picked up the sea with both hands and walked out of the kitchen carrying a basket of steaming mussels that had just been cooked. This was the last pot. I sat down and continued working.
The red sun rose from the sky, and the whole village was immediately covered with a layer of golden light.
Zhao Dahai stood up and moved his hands and feet all night long. Finally he finished his work and beat his waist a few times. He was glad that he had let his grandma go to bed early. His body was working hard at his age, let alone a seventy-year-old man. p>
Zhao Dahai walked out of the yard with a big iron basin. The dustpan was not enough for a long time. He took two straw mats, washed them, spread them on the cement floor, and spread out the mussel meat one by one.
Do it.
Zhao Dahai spread out the mussel meat, cleared out all the piles of shells in the yard with baskets, fetched water, rinsed the entire yard, and packed up the iron basins. It was already eight o'clock in the morning, and he sat down on a chair to rest for a while.
, I thought about going to bed after breakfast, but I didn’t expect that as soon as I closed my eyes, I fell asleep immediately.
Zhong Cuihua finished cooking breakfast and walked in to see Zhao Dahai sleeping soundly on a chair. She felt so distressed that she wiped her eyes. She was exhausted, but there was nothing she could do. She was old and couldn't help much. She had to rely on Zhao Dahai for everything.