Chapter 6 Money Was Earned in the Afternoon, Beatings Were Taken in the Evening
When Dahuazi saw her, he dashed over like a rabbit. The big white goose in the yard was so startled it squawked, “Changed! Changed!”
“Aiyo, Dahuazi, slow down, you scared me to death.”
Grandma Ma shook her head.
“Siyi, these kids are so mischievous.”
“Siyi, come play with us!”
“I’ll take you to the dock market!”
“You guys go by yourselves. Siyi is tired today, she’ll play with you tomorrow. Grandma is making wontons tonight, come over and eat!”
Bai Zimo also chimed in with an invitation.
“I caught a big carp! We’ll stew it tonight. Grandma Ma, why don’t you come eat with us too?”
“That’s wonderful. I’ll bring Siyi over later, and I’ll make extra wontons!”
“Me too! Me too! Bai Zimo, save me some fish tail!”
“Greedy cat… come work with me!”
As a true social butterfly, Dahuazi might be late, but he never missed a gathering!
Watching their retreating figures, Ma Siyi felt a bit envious, but also a little fearful. The enthusiastic invitations from this group of kids were both exciting and unfamiliar to her.
“This is our home now. Siyi, since you’re tired today, Grandma will take you to school tomorrow to register.”
Ma Siyi didn’t say anything, just nodded.
“Alright, take a look around. I’ll go put your luggage over there.”
Unlike the noisy, lively kids outside, Siyi was quiet and stubborn, with a trace of melancholy between her brows. She looked weighed down with worries.
“Want to see where you’ll sleep? Come on, it’s this way. You’ll sleep with Grandma tonight.”
“Oh, and there’s a desk and a small chair here. You can sit here to do your homework — all prepared by Grandma.”
Ma Siyi absentmindedly touched the desk.
“Did she say how long she’ll stay?”
“… Grandma will show you the kitchen!”
Grandma Ma was deeply worried, but she had no other choice. Siyi’s mother had remarried and had another child.
“Grandma, did you say that Bai Zimo really has no father too?”
“Yes, his father won’t be coming back. He lives with his grandma too.”
At this, Grandma Ma’s eyes lit up.
Maybe Bai Zimo, having had a similar experience, could help her granddaughter move out of her sadness faster. Both of them had experienced the tragedy of the old burying the young.
In Bai Zimo’s grandmother, she saw her own future. She, too, had to create a safe world for her child.
“What about Bai Zimo’s mother?”
Another difficult question.
Grandma Ma could only dodge the topic.
“Siyi, you’re the same. Both of you are strong. You should spend more time with Zimo. He’s a good kid, helping his grandma with lots of chores.”
“Yes, I can do it too. I will be strong!”
Meanwhile, Bai Zimo led Dahuazi to the vegetable garden, along with Xie Wanghe and Shao Xingchi. Zhou Haikuo had gone to do his homework — poor kid.
Though boat families didn’t farm, they did have vegetable gardens. Bai Zimo’s family’s garden was big. Because they also made seasonings to sell, they bought several plots of land to combine into a big garden. But after tragedy struck the family, the large yard became overgrown with weeds and looked abandoned. Grandma was old and could only tend a small corner.
Squatting nearby, Dahuazi said, “Bai Zimo, are you running a fever? Fishing, and now digging in the garden?”
“Careful, or I’ll shove a worm in your mouth.”
“Ew, that’s disgusting!”
Because of the moist land by the canal, worms were everywhere. Before long, they filled a box, ready to be used as bait. In order to trigger the fishing system, they had to fish after all.
“Brothers, want to make some extra money?”
“Let’s catch some eels and sell them.”
“Can we even catch any?”
“Use black worms, as long as they’re smelly enough.”
In Huajie, there was plenty of water and fish. Every little ditch could yield fish, snails, eels, or loaches. Wherever there was water, they thrived — in muddy soil, among rocks, even in farmland.
【Ding! Caught a basket of eels today — gained ‘Bajiquan (basic level)’!】
What boy doesn’t dream of learning martial arts?
Bai Zimo was just fulfilling that dream.
By the canal, Zhou Haikuo’s father stared at the group of muddy children, dumbfounded.
“What on earth happened to you guys?”
“Uncle Zhou, we went eel fishing. How about you set a price for them?”
“You even caught eels to sell?”
Dahuazi added, “Self-reliance isn’t shameful. You just tell us a fair price.”
“Making money isn’t shameful. I’ll give you twenty yuan. But… does your mom know?”
Just then, Dahuazi’s mom, Li Yan, stormed over, wielding a feather duster!
“Why can’t you use your smarts for studying instead? Stealing watermelons, fishing eels — why do you always come home covered in mud!”
Dahuazi ran around wildly!
“If he dares save you, I’ll hit him too… and don’t think the rest of you can escape. All your moms have their feather dusters ready!”
Money was earned in the afternoon, and beatings were taken at night.
As the saying goes—”Before the founding was complete, disaster struck halfway!”