Chapter 4

Niu Niu stood to one side, seeing her mother cry, the little girl also started to cry.

Many neighbors, hearing the commotion, came over to see what was happening, and only left after the brother-in-law explained the situation.

Ye Yuan, seeing this situation, didn’t know what to do. He blamed himself for not explaining clearly enough. But now, with his sister so emotionally unstable, he knew that no matter what he said, it wouldn’t help. His sister was still crying, and Niu Niu was hugging her mother. The two of them must have thought something terrible had happened.

Ye Yuan pulled his brother-in-law aside and went outside the supermarket. He said helplessly, “Actually, it’s also my fault for not explaining clearly. I plan to develop here, and I do have my reasons. I don’t want to work outside all my life. Can you understand?”

The brother-in-law sighed deeply, “How can I not understand? Who wants to work for others? But what can you do back in our county? You studied marine science; are you going to become a fisherman?”

Ye Yuan didn’t say anything. He knew that no matter what he said now, it wouldn’t help. He could only ask his brother-in-law to comfort his sister first and then go home. He would come back in a few days.

......

Ye Yuan stood at the dock. Since Ye Family Village was a small fishing village with only about fifty households, there was only one ferry to the village each day. He had originally planned to stay longer at his sister’s house, but with his sister crying, he felt it was inappropriate to stay any longer.

Sitting by the dock, he looked at the sea, lost in thought.

For Ye Yuan, even swimming back to the village wouldn’t be a big deal, but that wouldn’t explain how he got back without a boat.

It’s no wonder the government wanted to relocate the island fishing villages; the transportation was really inconvenient.

“Ye Yuan, what are you doing here?” He turned to the voice.

A man in his mid-twenties, about 1.8 meters tall, with a bare upper body and wearing dark green military pants, and a T-shirt hanging from his waist, stood on a small boat not far from him. This man was Ye Zhuang, the only young person still living in Ye Family Village.

Speaking of Ye Zhuang, he was a pitiful person.

Ye Zhuang was one year older than Ye Yuan. When Ye Yuan was in sixth grade, which was the year Ye Zhuang started junior high school, his grandfather, parents, and grandmother went out to sea and never returned. The grandmother couldn’t bear the shock and passed away a few days later.

The village chief originally planned to send Ye Zhuang to his uncle’s house, 50 kilometers away. But the uncle’s family said, “Ye Zhuang is surnamed Ye, not part of our family, and we can’t afford to raise someone else’s child.”

In the end, with no other choice, an elderly couple without children took him in. However, the old man’s health wasn’t good, and he couldn’t take good care of Ye Zhuang, who grew up eating from the kindness of the village. A few years later, the old man also passed away due to health issues.

By then, Ye Zhuang was already 18, and the only thing the old man left him was the small boat.

In recent years, many young people had left to work outside. Ye Zhuang, who was in good health, was also invited by many young people to join them. But Ye Zhuang never agreed. As he put it, “All the young people have left; what will the elderly in the village do? I grew up eating from the kindness of Ye Family Village, so I will take care of all the elderly in the village.”

Ye Yuan genuinely admired this man of honor and righteousness.

“Big Zhuang, I’m just waiting for the boat to go home,” Ye Yuan said with a smile, greeting Ye Zhuang.

Big Zhuang rowed the boat towards Ye Yuan and said, “Get on, why wait for a boat? I just came to sell fish and was about to head back.”

Ye Yuan jumped onto the boat in one swift motion.

Ye Yuan noticed that since he had practiced the Water Control Technique, his body had undergone subtle changes. He was much more agile and stronger than before.

Big Zhuang’s boat was equipped with a motor. After an hour of sailing, they could see the island where Ye Family Village was located in the distance.

The blue sky, white clouds, and sandy beaches formed a beautiful picture, like a secluded paradise.

The island covered an area of more than ten square kilometers and was shaped like a crescent moon. Most of the people living on the island made a living by fishing, so it was called Fish Bay Island.

Soon, the boat docked at the simple pier on the island. After thanking Big Zhuang, Ye Yuan picked up his luggage and walked towards his home.

Ye Yuan’s home was very close to the pier. It was the first house you saw when entering the village. When Ye Yuan was admitted to university, he became the village’s first college student, a source of great pride. But who would have thought that after graduation, he would end up like any other ordinary worker.

In the distance, he saw the dilapidated stone houses of his home. His mother was in the yard, preparing scallop meat. Drying scallop meat was a specialty of the fishing village, and every household would make dried scallop meat to sell, which was a significant source of income.

Before Ye Yuan could say anything, a yellow dog from under a tree in the yard quickly ran over, circling around him and wagging its tail like a fan.

Seeing Ye Yuan, his mother, who hadn’t expected him to return so soon, said with a smile, “Xiao Yuan, why didn’t you call? I could have asked your father to pick you up. Are you tired? Come inside, you must be hungry. I’ll make you your favorite seafood noodles.”

Ye Yuan reached out, and the big yellow dog eagerly licked his hand as if it were the most delicious food.

Ye Yuan then patted the dog’s head, “Big Yellow, go play.”

At this moment, Ye Yuan’s father also came out of the house, happy to see his son after more than four months.

The family went inside, and his mother was about to start cooking.

Ye Yuan stopped her, “I’m not hungry; I ate in the county. Parents, tell me about the relocation.”

He then took the water pot, poured two cups of water for his parents, and one for himself, and sat down to listen to them talk about the relocation.

After his father’s explanation, Ye Yuan understood the main reasons for the relocation. It was as he had guessed: not only Ye Family Village but several other villages in the area faced similar situations.

The government had to send a large number of people every month to deliver living supplies to these small islands.

Since the islands were far from the mainland, supplies could only be transported by boat, and the local government’s budget was tight. Therefore, they planned to relocate the fishing villages on these islands to the mainland. The land had already been allocated, and the new fishing village was under construction, expected to be completed in two months.

The government, considering the villagers’ concerns, offered three solutions.

The first was to relocate to the new fishing village built by the government, where each family would receive a house of similar size to their current one.

The second was to exchange for an apartment in the county, which, based on Ye Yuan’s family’s situation, would be a three-bedroom apartment of about 100 square meters.

The third, the simplest, was to measure the area and provide a cash compensation of 1500 yuan per square meter.

Ye Yuan’s family’s area would amount to about 350,000 yuan.

“What do you think? Which one do you want?” Ye Yuan looked at his father, took a cigarette from his pocket, and handed it to him, lighting it for him.

Taking a puff of the cigarette his son offered, his father said, “Your mother and I think we should choose the third option. We’ll give you the money to buy a house in Blue Island. Although it’s not enough for the full payment, it should cover the down payment. You can pay off the mortgage with your salary, and if it’s not enough, we can send you some money each month.”

“I’ve heard that a few families from your uncle’s village have moved to the county, and their houses are empty. Although they are a bit old, they are cheap. Your father and I can move to your uncle’s village,” his mother added.