Chapter 26: Two Hundred and Thirty-Six Yuan! Xie Cheng and Xie Youzhen Are Stunned!

He was talking to his eldest son. No one knew what they were discussing, but the two brothers burst out laughing.

How wonderful.

Tian Xiufen thought.

At her age, and as a mother, all she wanted was family harmony, peace, and safety.

Fortunately, she had persevered.

Her Er Xiaozi had grown up!

“Your two boys get along so well, and they’re so filial! Not like my family. My daughter just had a baby, and her brother didn’t even come to visit. Even the baby’s father didn’t show up! He complained about the expense, and complained that it was a girl!”

The middle-aged woman in the neighboring bed sighed, looking wistfully at the sleeping baby beside her.

Her daughter’s eyes welled with tears, and she sobbed as she hid under the blanket.

Tian Xiufen quickly went over to comfort her.

Meanwhile,

Lin Muyu stared blankly at the woman, then turned her head to look at Xie Zhao.

He truly loved these two children. A person’s eyes couldn’t lie.

Lin Muyu’s heart suddenly felt a little warm.

Perhaps.

People really could change, couldn’t they?

Then…

What about his feelings for her?

*

By the time Xie Zhao brought Xie Cheng and Xie Youzhen to the pavilion, people were already waiting.

Seeing Xie Zhao arrive, quite a few people stood on their tiptoes to wave and call out to him.

“You’re late today! Hurry up! I bought my tofu ages ago!”

“Haha! My old man has been craving this! I thought you weren’t coming today!”

“Do you have any big bighead carp? I want the biggest one! I’ve been craving it for ages!”

Having sold fish for two days now, Xie Zhao recognized them all as regular customers.

He smiled and greeted them warmly, lining up the three large wooden buckets in front of him as he spoke.

“I won’t be coming tomorrow. My wife is being discharged. If you comrades want to buy fish, just come find me on Hongxing Street. I’m in the family quarters^[1] right next to the slaughterhouse. You’ll see it as soon as you get there!”

With that, Xie Zhao rolled up his sleeves, grabbed the largest bighead carp, and called out to the middle-aged man at the front of the line, “Uncle, here’s the bighead carp you wanted, the biggest one! I saved it just for you! It’s exactly four jin and two liang. I’ll only charge you for four jin!”

The middle-aged man’s eyes lit up, and he happily hurried over with his basin to take it.

Tsk!

This bighead carp was beautiful!

With bighead carp, the head was the best part. This one had a massive head and would be incredibly flavorful, perfect for cooking with tofu!

“Thank you so much! I just love this fish. It doesn’t have much meat, but it’s so flavorful!”

The middle-aged man said with a smile.

Xie Zhao placed the fish into the basin, accepted the Da Tuanjie the man handed over, and pulled out a stack of change to give him two yuan back.

“You’ve got great taste, Uncle! You really know your food. Although this fish doesn’t have much meat, it’s incredibly fresh! If you like it, remember to come find me next time. Keep supporting my business, and I’ll give you another discount!”

Tsk!

He was incredibly generous. Those two liang of fish were worth eighty cents, which could buy half a jin of pork!

Who wouldn’t want to buy from someone like him?

“I’ll definitely support your business! Don’t you worry, young man. You’re so easy to deal with, where else would I find someone like you?”

He happily walked away, cradling his fish.

In just two short days, the regular customers had become familiar with Xie Zhao. Without him even needing to ask, they voluntarily formed a line.

Xie Zhao worked quickly, his movements swift and steady.

Meanwhile, Xie Cheng and Xie Youzhen stood to the side, so shocked they couldn’t speak a word!

How… how much?

A Da Tuanjie?!

Good heavens!

Were their eyes playing tricks on them?

These days, a jin of fatty pork only cost one yuan and eighty cents, yet a single fish actually sold for two yuan a jin?!

Since when was money so easy to make in the county seat?

It was like a dream!

No!

They wouldn’t even dare to dream of this!

“Eldest Brother?”

Xie Zhao leaned halfway out of the crowd and called out with a smile, “Come give me a hand! There are too many people!”

“C-Coming!”

Xie Cheng responded instinctively.

He squeezed through the crowd and stood beside Xie Zhao. At first, he was a bit clumsy and lost, but once Xie Zhao helped him get started, he gradually grew more adept.

He helped grab the fish, pour out the water, and pass them to Xie Zhao for weighing.

The two brothers worked together in perfect harmony.

The sales process sped up significantly. By the time noon approached, the two large buckets of fish were completely sold out.

Once the crowd dispersed, Xie Zhao and Xie Cheng sat on the handcart, wiping the sweat from their foreheads.

Phew!

The two looked at each other and smiled.

“Your father has lived for over half a century, and I never knew money could be made so easily…”

Xie Youzhen murmured, looking at Xie Zhao and Xie Cheng. “I’m not dreaming, am I?”

His dark, weathered face was filled with bewilderment, shock, and a helpless anxiety from having his worldview completely shattered.

Xie Zhao couldn’t help but walk over, smiling as he patted his father’s shoulder.

“Dad, we really made money. It’s not a dream.”

Xie Cheng also rubbed his face hard.

He turned to Xie Zhao and asked, “There are still over a dozen fish left. What should we do with them?”

Looking at the fish in the bucket, all Xie Cheng saw was money! He couldn’t bear the thought of carrying them back home unsold.

Xie Zhao was amused by the gleam in his brother’s eyes.

“Eldest Brother, I’ll take these fish over to the Aquatic Products Supply and Marketing Cooperative in a bit to see if anyone will buy them. If not, we’ll just take them home and sell them tomorrow, or we can eat them ourselves.”

Xie Zhao added, “Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Making money is the same. Take it slow. The money won’t grow legs and run away.”

Only then did Xie Cheng force himself to look away.

Xie Zhao led the two of them back into the pavilion. Seeing that no one was around, he pulled out a thick stack of bills.

Tsk.

This was the most money he had made since his rebirth.

He quickly counted it, his eyes growing brighter and brighter.

“Dad, Eldest Brother, guess how much we have?”

Xie Cheng and Xie Youzhen couldn’t help but grow tense.

“H-how much? Is… is there a hundred?”

Xie Youzhen’s voice was trembling.

He had spent his entire life working the land, and the most money he had ever seen at once was a hundred yuan.

That was the largest sum he could possibly imagine.

As for anything more,

he did not dare to think about it, nor would he.

Meanwhile, Xie Cheng remained silent.

His dark face flushed slightly, and his heart pounded. Although he did not know the exact amount, he had handled a large portion of it, so he had a rough estimate of the amount.

One hundred yuan.

Definitely more!

It could only be more!

His throat felt dry, and he could not help but rub his chapped hands together. “One hundred and fifty.”

He blurted out a number.

And this time, Xie Zhao finally stopped keeping them in suspense.

He grinned and neatly placed the money in front of the two of them.

“Two hundred and thirty-six yuan,” Xie Zhao said with a smile.

After he spoke, a long silence fell.

Two hundred and thirty-six yuan.

In this era, this was equivalent to months of salary for a regular public servant!

This could buy the Three Rounds and One Sound^[2], the four major items, and cover their entire family’s expenses for a whole year!

But they had earned this in just a single day, no, in just one morning?

Even though Xie Youzhen and Xie Cheng had prepared themselves mentally, they were still shocked by this number.