Chapter 9

After seeing off the soldier, Lü Dong returned to the orchard to fetch the net and showed the plate to Hu Chunlan again.

Hu Chunlan looked at it for a while: "These vinegar plates used to be common, but they were all smashed later. They're not rare anymore."

Lü Dong couldn't help but feel disappointed: "Uncle Qi said Uncle Er sold one for 50 yuan."

Hu Chunlan thought for a moment: "That's true, either two or three years ago."

Even if it was only 50 yuan, it was still the most valuable thing he had. Lü Dong carefully put it away, planning to find time to go to the Shunshan Cultural Market to check it out.

If it could sell for 50, that would be good.

He only earned about ten yuan a day working as a laborer on the construction site.

After fetching the fishing net and water bag, Lü Dong returned to the triangular dam to continue fishing, hoping to have some luck. Even if it was just fish, it could still be sold for money.

All the leeches had been dried to death.

The water level had dropped further, and the river was only about 15 to 16 meters wide.

Lü Dong cast his net, but before he could pull it up, the sound of a radio came from below the dike, followed by the familiar smell of chicken manure.

"Today we drink to celebrate our victory, with unfulfilled ambitions we will not rest, in the days to come we will show our prowess, willing to shed blood to write the annals of spring and autumn..."

Sure enough, Lü Jianbin, known as Iron Rooster, was holding a radio, climbed up the river dike, put away two bamboo poles, and came to the triangular dam.

"What a big white carp!"

The fishing net was just out of the water, and Iron Rooster widened his eyes: "There are more, pull them up quickly, don't let them escape. Dongzi, you have good luck today!"

Lü Dong lifted the net and placed it on the dam: "There have been more fish these past two days. Once the upstream gate is closed, the good luck will be over."

Lü Dong opened the net, removed the trash, and first took out a catfish, which was much larger than the one he caught in the morning. It was heavy in his hand, probably close to three pounds.

This was a northern wild catfish.

"Catfish are easy to keep, they don't die easily," Iron Rooster said like an expert. "Last year, I caught one and threw it into the chicken manure pond. It lived for more than half a year and was five pounds when I took it out to eat."

Lü Dong couldn't help but say, "Uncle Tie, can we not talk about chicken manure? Do you still want people to eat catfish?"

Iron Rooster didn't care: "What's the problem? What goes in is chicken manure, what grows is meat! It's not toxic! Look, Uncle Tie is fine after eating it."

There was no way to argue with that. Lü Dong took out the two-pound white carp and directly handed it over: "Take it home and stew it for my sister."

Iron Rooster didn't catch the meaning in Lü Dong's words. He pulled a vine from outside the dike, came back to thread it through the gills of the white carp, and his eyes caught the large pile of sandbags blocking the opening below the dike.

"Dongzi, the water level has dropped." Iron Rooster felt a sense of sorrow: "When the water is lower, we can drag out the chicken cages?"

Lü Dong was helpless: "Even if we drag them out, we can't use them."

Iron Rooster didn't give up: "We can sell them for scrap iron! I'll give you one-fifth... no, one-fourth of the money."

How many sandbags were piled on the chicken cages? By the ton! Lü Dong could only say, "We'll see."

Looking at the small mountain of sandbags below the dike, Iron Rooster's face was full of sorrow, as if he was reluctant to let go. He didn't hurry to leave, threw the white carp into the grass under the tree, and sat on the triangular dam without saying a word.

It wasn't clear if he was watching Lü Dong fish or saying goodbye to the chicken cages.

Lü Dong cast his net again, and in one net, there were a few silver carp, and in another, two more catfish, one large and one small, with the larger one also close to three pounds.

The leeches were fewer, and he continued to dry them in the sun.

The sun was scorching, and Lü Dong was drenched in sweat.

The sound of a motorcycle came from the north, very noisy. The dike had some undulations, so they could hear the sound but couldn't see the person.

"Who is that?" Iron Rooster stood up and looked north: "They should fix the muffler, you can hear it from three miles away."

Lü Dong looked north and saw dust flying. After he cast his net again and pulled it up empty, he saw a motorcycle with a sidecar.

The rider was very bold, driving along the riverbank, and the road made of three-part soil was not easy to navigate.

As they got closer, the noise was deafening. It was an orange Jialing CJ50, a common sight in rural areas, with a self-welded sidecar that could carry and pull.

The rider was a middle-aged woman, like most rural women, with a dark complexion. On the back seat was a girl around ten years old, with a sunburned face.

The middle-aged woman saw Lü Dong's fishing net and stopped the motorcycle.

Iron Rooster covered his ears: "Sister, this car needs to be fixed!"

"Planning to get a new one!" The middle-aged woman turned off the engine and smiled broadly: "Won't need it in a while."

Lü Dong glanced at the sidecar, which contained a large water tank with fish swimming in it.

The middle-aged woman got off the motorcycle and carried the little girl down, asking Lü Dong: "Brother, did you catch any fish?"

Lü Dong pointed to the rope tied to the water bag: "Some."

Iron Rooster, who ran a poultry farm, immediately asked: "Are you buying fish?"

The middle-aged woman said: "Only catfish and black fish, no others."

"Why?" Iron Rooster didn't understand.

"It's too hot, other fish die easily and aren't worth much when dead," the middle-aged woman explained: "These two are easy to keep and don't die easily."

Lü Dong needed money: "I have catfish."

"Da Ya, behave!" The middle-aged woman first scolded the child and then said to Lü Dong: "Brother, can I take a look first?"

Lü Dong lifted the water bag, untied the rope, and brought it to the woman: "They're all here."

There were three catfish, two large and one small. The woman picked them up and asked: "How much?"

Before Lü Dong could speak, Iron Rooster reminded: "At the market, they sell for three yuan per pound."

Catfish were very popular in the Quannan area. Even in the era when the salary of a good unit in the provincial capital was 700 to 800 yuan, the retail price of catfish during the Mid-Autumn Festival and New Year could reach five to six yuan per pound.

Later, due to various reasons, catfish fell from grace.

The middle-aged woman glanced at Iron Rooster: "That's the market price."

Lü Dong asked the woman: "The fish are here, you name the price, if it's not right, I'll put them back."

"Five yuan for the large ones, three yuan for the small ones," the middle-aged woman said straightforwardly: "I don't lie, the fish on the car are all bought at this price. The reservoir gate is open, and the fish are cheaper. I come out in the heat, I need to make a profit."

Lü Dong didn't know the market price, turned to look at Uncle Tie, and saw him nod, saying: "The fish are yours."

The middle-aged woman put the fish in the sidecar, took out three five-yuan notes, and Lü Dong shook his head: "I can't change it."

His pockets were cleaner than his face, and his personal savings were zero!

The woman rummaged through her pockets, found three red one-yuan notes, and gave them to Lü Dong along with the two five-yuan notes.

Holding the money, Lü Dong felt a heavy weight.

In the next moment, Lü Dong realized that, except for the money for the headcount, this was the first money he had earned through labor since turning eighteen!

The woman got on the motorcycle and said: "Brother, if I need more, I'll come back."

Iron Rooster, worried that Lü Dong might be inexperienced and get cheated, asked: "Which village are you from?"

"Zhaojia Village," the middle-aged woman said.

Lü Dong knew: "Near the university town?"

The middle-aged woman nodded: "If you have more fish, take them to Zhaojia Village, it's only ten miles away. Ask for Zhaoyuan, and you'll get a better price."

Lü Dong threw the water bag back into the river: "Got it."

Zhaoyuan started the Jialing motorcycle, and the loud noise made Lü Dong cover his ears. He thought of something and quickly moved the leeches in the sun, reminding her: "There's a turn ahead, go through the village, and then it's the gate. You can't pass through."

"Thanks," the middle-aged woman revved the engine and left.

Iron Rooster picked up the white carp, waved to Lü Dong, and also left.

Lü Dong put the money in his pocket, pressing it hard to make sure it didn't fall out of his shorts.

This was the first capital to start a new life after returning, a total of 13 yuan!

He had the money to go to the city to check the situation.

Of course, he could also ride his bicycle to Quannan City, but with the changes over the past twenty years, Lü Dong needed to familiarize himself with the roads.

Due to the university town, the area from Qingzhao County to Quannan City had undergone significant changes.

Lü Jianren, holding a fishing net, dragged his feet and slowly walked over.

"Only just arrived?" Lü Dong was surprised, as Uncle Qi was usually very enthusiastic about fishing.

"My elder brother called me," Lü Jianren held the net and water bag in one hand and scratched his newly cut hair with the other, looking very worried: "He asked me to go to the university town construction site in a few days..."

Lü Dong said: "Just hanging around at home isn't a solution."

Lü Jianren glared at Lü Dong: "You're still a kid, what do you know? My skills, can you hire me for ten or twenty yuan?"

"Yes, yes..." Lü Dong didn't bother to argue. Uncle Qi was very skilled, making fishing nets, fish forks, and other tools by hand.

He was good at construction work, welding, and reinforcing bars. In 2019, he could easily earn hundreds of yuan a day.

But being skilled didn't mean he was willing to work.

Seeing Uncle Qi's new haircut, Lü Dong thought of his own middle part: "I'll go first."

Lü Jianren pushed back: "What's wrong? Don't like your Uncle Qi? You leave when I come?"

Lü Dong pointed to his head: "Going to get a haircut."

"Looks good."

"Too silly, like Liu Kuisheng!"

Lü Dong pulled the water bag, took off his clothes, and carried the dead leeches to the orchard.

After putting the fish and net in the orchard, he found a plastic bag to put the leeches in, pushed his 28-inch bicycle, and went to the market to get a haircut.

It was hot, and the road dried quickly, so the bicycle could run.

To save time, Lü Dong asked the barber to give him a buzz cut.

He spent 1.5 yuan out of the 13 yuan he had just earned.

This saved him 50 cents, as getting a haircut from a young woman in the village would cost 2 yuan.

Lü Dong left the shop and was caught by his great-uncle Lü Zhenlin, who asked him to help at the village office.

Lü Zhenlin also gave him some news: "Town Mayor Yang plans to submit your case to the county, as there was a flood but no disaster. There will be a commendation meeting, and you might get an award for outstanding individual."

This was good news, but Lü Dong didn't know if there would be any material rewards.

The question was too vulgar, and with others around, Lü Dong didn't ask.

The flood had receded, but there were many follow-up tasks.

Sand and food, which were provided free of charge by various villages, needed to be thanked formally.

There were also the supplies brought by Lü Jianguo, which needed to be coordinated through the town and county with the Third Construction Company. Yang Liwen had already taken over this task.

Lü Dong sighed inwardly, the new town mayor was quite interesting. The person in charge of the Third Construction Company was from Lüjiacun and was a cousin to his great-uncle, whom he should call Great-Grandpa.

Was this the simplest task among a pile of problems?

At the village office, several high school and vocational school students on summer break were called by Lü Zhenlin to help with the accounting and inventory of remaining supplies.

Lü Dong's assigned task was to cut red paper, which his second great-uncle would use to write thank-you letters to the villages or units that had provided aid.

The village accountant would order banners, and once they were ready, they would formally thank the donors.

While they were busy, Li Wenyue suddenly said: "Great-Grandpa, the bill from Cheng Lifeng is wrong. The meat prices are generally 50 cents higher than usual."

His family was a neighbor of Cheng Lifeng, so he knew the prices better.

Lü Zhenlin thought for a moment: "Calculate it based on the price he reported."

This was something that wasn't discussed beforehand, and no one thought to negotiate prices at the time, as everyone was focused on the rescue efforts.

The women's director said: "That's too cheap for him!"

Lü Zhenlin's thick eyebrows twitched: "He brought food at a critical moment, which is a favor. Paying him is our duty. He also contributed, so we shouldn't be too picky. Town Mayor Yang has guaranteed that the expenses will be covered from the pooled funds."

When one area is in trouble, help comes from all sides. Many people and supplies came to assist, and there were many follow-up tasks. Lü Dong had dinner at the village office and worked until 10 PM.

After leaving the village office, Lü Dong rode his 28-inch bicycle to drop off Li Wenyue, went to the orchard to tell his mother he would go to the city the next day, and took the white porcelain plate and the black plastic bag with leeches back to the old house.

After washing up, Lü Dong took out 11.5 yuan and laid each note on the table. This was all his money!

加油吧，拼搏吧，少年！

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