Volume 1, Chapter 5: Selling the King of Clams at the Pier

He had not managed to get much of the prized clams, but he had gathered quite a few smaller ones, which was still a decent haul.

"What the hell are we digging for? I can barely lift my shovel anymore. You tell me—how many pounds do you think this is?" Ye Cheng dropped onto a rock and picked up his water cup, only to find it already empty.

He licked his parched lips. "Got any water left?"

"None. Who knew we'd be at this for so long today?" Xiao Hu rasped.

With no water left, they might as well smoke. They were already dry enough; a little more wouldn’t matter.

Xiao Hu hefted the bucket and, with little effort, weighed it in his hands. "Brother, your bucket’s probably over twenty pounds. Mine’s maybe a dozen."

Ye Cheng nodded and handed him a cigarette. "Here. Smoke one, then we’ll head back."

Xiao Hu took it, lit up, and sat with the cigarette in his mouth, hands braced behind him, buzzing with excitement. "Brother, what are we going to do with so many of those big clams?"

"Sell them for money. What else?"

Ye Cheng said it calmly. Thinking of his miserable former self and that shabby home, he figured that if there were a gambling father, a gravely ill mother, and a hardworking little sister to go with it, he’d have no choice but to become a gigolo.

He needed money. Money to make his life better.

"From now on, when you come out with me, you’ll get a share too," Ye Cheng said, looking at Xiao Hu.

"Huh?" Xiao Hu’s eyes lit up, then dimmed again. He pointed at the bucket. "Brother, these big clams were all dug by you. The smaller ones I picked aren’t worth much. You don’t need to give me anything."

"If I say take it, then take it. Less talk."

"But this money, you have to take it home. Don’t go spending it recklessly."

"Brother, don’t worry. I’ll definitely give it to my mom." Xiao Hu was so excited he hardly knew what to do with himself. It wasn’t that he didn’t want a better life—he simply had never had the chance.

The two of them sat and rested a while longer, regaining a bit of strength before getting up to head back.

Xiao Hu carried the full bucket; Ye Cheng carried the half-full one. Hauling nearly twenty pounds along the beach was still tiring.

Under the setting sun, the beach took on a golden hue, and the two figures cast long tracks of footprints behind them.

When they reached the village entrance, the women from earlier were also on their way home. Seeing the two of them return with heavy buckets, they were a little surprised.

"Ye Lao Er, you didn’t stumble onto some big catch, did you? That looks heavy," Aunt Zhao teased from afar. The other women joined in with loud laughter.

These two layabouts had even tried to imitate others by going clam hunting. Did they think it was easy? Look at them—tired like dead dogs.

Xiao Hu was young and hot-blooded; he couldn’t stand being provoked and was just about to say they had found the prized clams today, when Ye Cheng stopped him.

"Just a few razor shells and sand clams. Nothing much," Ye Cheng replied indifferently.

No matter the era, never flaunt your wealth. Apart from your own family, no one wants you to do better than they do.

"Razor shells are still good. At least you’ve got something to eat when you get home tonight."

"That still means buying a bottle of liquor. What a waste of money."

"Hey, Ye Lao Er, your brother doesn’t earn money easily. If you keep eating and drinking it all away like this, be careful he won’t give you anything later."

The old village women spoke without any restraint. Ye Cheng couldn’t be bothered to argue with them and took Xiao Hu toward the direction of the pier.

"You’re heading to the pier too? Planning to sell it?"

"Nobody’s likely to buy razor shells anyway."

"Don’t they still have sand clams?"

"Hmph, no one looks twice at sand clams."

"Let them go. As if making money were that easy."

"Young people just think too simply."

"Let’s go home and fry these few stone crabs for my husband to drink with."

"Oh, so nice of you—frying them first. Planning to make your man Zhao Laosi work hard tonight, are you?"

"And what if I am? The land can’t stay fallow forever. What, do you want my old Zhao to help you instead?"

"Come on then. Would you bear to part with him? Haha."

Village women really did talk without the slightest scruple.

The pier was not far from Baiyun Village, but walking there was a bit of a slog. Back in 2002, motorcycles were still common; although some cities had already issued bans, a place like Donghai City had not.

Even so, with a price tag of over three thousand yuan, the original Ye Cheng couldn’t afford one, and neither could Xiao Hu.

As for the most economical electric scooters, they had only just begun to appear and had not yet spread to Baiyun Village, so the two of them could only ride over on bicycles.

In his past life, Ye Cheng had also been one of the cycling crowd, able to ride twenty or thirty kilometers in a night without issue.

But these old-style bicycles were a different matter. They were exhausting to ride, nothing more than a means of transport, with none of that wind-racing exhilaration.

It took them more than twenty minutes to reach the pier. Not because it was especially far, but because they were tired; Ye Cheng simply couldn’t keep pedaling.

The pier was a trading hub for the nearby villages. Aside from Baiyun Village, goods from several neighboring villages converged here, so compared with the quiet of the village, it was especially lively.

"Brother, we’re here. The pier sure is bustling," Xiao Hu said happily. At his age, he loved being where the action was.

"Let’s hurry up and find a place to sell this stuff."

Ye Cheng just wanted to cash out as soon as possible. He wanted to see how much his day’s haul was worth.

Since they had no familiar shop, they entered the first one they saw: Old Lin’s Seafood.

"Boss, do you buy clams?"

"We don’t buy sand clams or regular clams," the boss said, still busy unloading goods in the back, too lazy even to turn around.

"Blood clams, the big ones. The prized kind," Xiao Hu shouted.

At the mention of prized clams, the owner finally showed some interest and glanced back with a smile. "Well, if it isn’t Ye Lao Er and the Wang family boy."

Ye Cheng looked at the man, puzzled. He searched his memories but did not seem to know him.

"No need to think about it. You don’t know me, but I’ve heard of you two through your brother, who works at the pier." Old Lin was a slightly plump middle-aged man, his face carrying the sharpness typical of a merchant.

From the look on Old Lin’s face, Ye Cheng knew without thinking that being "heard of" was definitely not a good thing.

He probably had seen him before when the original owner came to the pier to borrow money from his older brother.

"Boss Lin, since you know us, that makes things easier. Help me see what price you can offer for this load." Ye Cheng pulled out a pack of White Sand and handed it over.

Old Lin glanced at the cigarette, hesitated, then took it. Ye Cheng kindly lit it for him.

After taking a light drag, Old Lin looked at Ye Cheng approvingly. "You’ve improved. You even know to offer a smoke now."

Ye Cheng gave a dry laugh and did not want to explain too much about the past.

"Come on, let’s see your prized clams."

Xiao Hu confidently lifted the bucket over. "Boss, take a look. All big catch, all quality goods."

But after only one glance, Old Lin’s smile froze. He looked at Ye Cheng in surprise. "These are wild?"