Volume One, Chapter Two: The Second Brother Joins the Tide Gathering—A Rare Guest Indeed

Ye Cheng wore an expression of speechless disbelief. Well, it seemed the original owner truly harbored such thoughts.

Seeing Ye Cheng ignore him and head straight back indoors, Wang Xiaohu followed closely. "Brother, going out to play?"

"Play what? All you ever think about is playing. Listen, from now on, I’m going to focus on serious work. If you want to do something worthwhile with me, come along. If you want to keep fooling around like before, then go your own way."

Ye Cheng had been reborn, but he wasn’t here to continue petty schemes and mischief.

Wang Xiaohu was momentarily stunned. He hadn’t expected Ye Cheng to suddenly talk about getting serious. Was the sun really rising from the west?

"Brother, we used to have so much fun. Why do we have to do serious work now?"

"Can you play your whole life? Besides, your parents are getting older; their health isn’t what it used to be. Do you expect them to worry about you forever?"

"Xiaohu, people have to grow up."

Wang Xiaohu’s family was poor, and his elderly parents still labored hard—a life of hardship. Scratching his head, Xiaohu felt these words sounded like a teacher’s lecture.

Brother Cheng’s change was swift. He used to be the first to rush out for fun, always coming up with mischievous ideas. Now, he spoke with such righteous seriousness—it was unsettling.

"Alright, Brother, I’ll follow your lead. Whatever you do, I’ll do too."

Hearing Wang Xiaohu’s willingness, Ye Cheng felt comforted. After all these years together, he wanted his little brother to walk the right path. Every great man may lack a woman by his side, but he must have brothers.

"But Brother Cheng, what serious work do we do? Nobody in the village would dare hire us."

Given their reputation, Xiaohu had a point—no one would employ them.

"Why hire others? We have hands and feet; we’ll do it ourselves. Once we have money, we’ll hire villagers to work for us," Ye Cheng declared boldly.

Hearing this, Wang Xiaohu’s young heart was instantly stirred. "Brother Cheng, then let’s hire my parents first, so they can earn some money."

Though a troublemaker, this kid was nevertheless filial.

"Let’s go, come with me to gather seafood," Ye Cheng said, grabbing the sea-harvesting shovel he had exchanged for, along with a small basin, preparing to set off.

"Gather seafood? Planning to make some snacks to go with drinks?" Xiaohu asked puzzled. Just now, Cheng had talked about serious work, and now he was going to the beach. Brother Cheng was truly unpredictable.

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"Snacks? No, we’re going to make money gathering seafood," Ye Cheng said confidently.

"Brother, don’t joke. How much money can you make gathering seafood?"

"That’s your doubt. Follow me and you’ll see. Are you coming or not? Enough talk."

"Fine, fine, I’ll go. Worst case, it’s just a wasted trip," Xiaohu grumbled, clearly uninterested in the idea of earning from the sea.

Just as they were about to leave, a sturdy, tanned man hurried in—it was Ye Cheng’s elder brother, Ye Guowei.

"Acheng, I heard Widow Zhang came to scold you?" Ye Guowei asked anxiously, sweating profusely.

Ye Cheng looked at this half-brother, feeling a little awkward. Although he inherited memories and family ties from the original owner, the relationship still felt unfamiliar.

"Brother, it’s nothing. Just a misunderstanding, I explained everything. Did you rush back from the docks?"

"Yeah, villagers told me about it. I was worried you’d get into a fight, so I took leave from work to come back. Glad it’s nothing serious."

Hearing Ye Guowei’s concern touched Ye Cheng. Family was family.

"I’m fine. Don’t worry. You should go back and not delay your work."

"Alright, I’ll head back. Don’t cause trouble with anyone," Ye Guowei warned, then hurried off.

At the door, Ye Guowei paused, hesitating before pulling out two wrinkled ten-dollar bills from his pocket.

"Here, take this for now."

From his hesitation, Ye Cheng knew his big brother wasn’t well off. He earned barely over a thousand a month; his wife stayed home with the kids, supporting the whole family, along with debts left by their parents before passing. Life was hard for Ye Guowei.

Yet despite this, he never pressured Ye Cheng for repayment. He even secretly slipped money to him from time to time.

Whenever he visited, he would bring money. This time, just before leaving, he remembered it had been a while, probably because Ye Cheng was struggling again—otherwise, why would he go to Widow Zhang?

"Brother, take it back. I won’t take your money anymore," Ye Cheng said firmly, shaking his head.

"What? Don’t want my money?" Ye Guowei’s face didn’t show relief but a flicker of panic.

"Acheng, you mustn’t do anything illegal," his brother warned.

Ye Cheng made a wry face. Did his brother really think he could only earn money through unlawful means?

"Not what I mean. Brother, I plan to make money gathering seafood, to help share the family debts." He pointed to the sea-harvesting shovel in his hand.

"Yeah, Brother Guowei, Brother Cheng said he’s taking me too, to earn money and support the family," Xiaohu quickly added, fearing Ye Guowei might not believe them.

Ye Guowei’s outstretched hand paused a moment but he took back the twenty yuan. "Alright, gathering seafood is honest work. Be careful. If you have no money for food, come to me."

With that, he hurried away.

It was obvious he had little faith in his younger brother.

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Baiyun Village lay by the sea; just a short walk led to the beach.

When they arrived, seven or eight women were already gathering seafood there.

It was like any inland village where women gathered by the river to wash clothes and do chores, but mostly to chat and gossip.

By the sea, the women came to gather seafood in their spare time. If lucky, they might bring home valuable catch to sell for household expenses; if not, just some ordinary seafood to add to dinner.

"Hey, Number Two, joining us gathering seafood? What a surprise," Aunt Zhao teased, looking up.

"Looks like the sun’s risen in the west."

"What’s the matter? No money to eat? Planning to catch some snails?"

Laughter erupted from the group.

Everyone knew what kind of character Ye Cheng was. He had caused plenty of trouble stealing chickens and ducks, so there was no respect for him here.

Wang Xiaohu’s face darkened. He shouted at them, "Keep insulting us and watch your windows!"

"Alright, Wang family brat, you smashed them last time! Let me tell your dad and have your legs broken."

"You..." Xiaohu wanted to retort but was stopped by Ye Cheng.

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