The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 134: Chapter 134: The Shipowner is Too Generous

Although Chen Yishui was a little disappointed they hadn’t caught the Big Yellow Fish at night, it was still a great omen.

Chen Yishui was now in complete awe of Han Xiaorui. ”Boss, you do the honors with the first net!”

”Yeah, the Boss should do it,” Liang Xiaoyu and the others agreed, pushing Han Xiaorui forward.

Han Xiaorui stepped forward to untie the net. Big Yellow Fish spilled out, slapping against the deck with a series of THWAPS. It was the best sound in the world.

Big Yellow Fish are found in the Northwest Pacific and are distributed all along the coast of China.

They inhabit soft mud or sandy seabeds in waters less than 60 meters deep and prefer to swim in schools.

Their diet is broad, mainly consisting of crustaceans like shrimp and crabs, as well as small fish. They breed in the spring, typically spawning near estuaries, inner bays, and islands.

Seeing everyone just standing around beaming, Chen Yishui shouted, ”What are you all staring at? Get sorting!”

That snapped everyone out of it. ”Right, right, let’s get sorting.”

They were so overjoyed they’d forgotten the most important task.

Han Xiaorui pulled out a camera. ”Wait a minute. Come on, everyone gather ’round for a picture.”

Everyone crowded around the ”mountain of Big Yellow Fish” and looked at the camera.

Liang Xiaoyu had also learned how to use the camera, so she took a picture of Han Xiaorui.

Wu Mengyue, who was steering the boat, heard the excited shouts from outside and was practically dying of curiosity. ”Sister Shui, you take the helm. I’m going out to see.”

Chen Yishui smiled. ”Hurry up with the pictures, then sort the fish quickly. Grade them by size.”

Once in the wheelhouse, Chen Yishui took over for Wu Mengyue.

Wu Mengyue, grinning from ear to ear with excitement, was captured in Han Xiaorui’s photo. ”You all sort the fish. Erhua, you’ll help me cast the next net.”

Their luck was incredible today. To think the very first haul would be this good!

”You got it!” The woman called Erhua, who was a bit plump, was thrilled. She was also a widow.

Life had been a struggle, so with her mother-in-law helping to watch the kids at home, she had come out to fish.

She had always worried this job wouldn’t last, but now she felt a wave of relief, as if a great weight had been lifted.

Han Xiaorui squatted down to help sort the fish, but Liang Xiaoyu stopped her. ”Xiao Rui, you just need to give orders. We’ll handle the rough work.”

’She spent so much money hiring people, there’s no need for her to do the hard labor herself.’

Liang Xiaoyu saw Han Xiaorui as a little sister. Besides, someone so pretty shouldn’t be doing such coarse work.

Han Xiaorui paused, then smiled. ”It’s fine.”

”It’s not fine. We’re getting paid well, and there are plenty of us. Don’t crowd in,” Wu Mengyue said with a laugh. ”You’re in charge of finding the schools of fish. We’ll handle the small stuff.”

Since everyone insisted, Han Xiaorui, wearing a wide-brimmed straw hat to block the sun, took a look around the boat.

Just then, the walkie-talkie crackled to life.

”Xiao Rui, how’s it going over there?” Yang Zhigang’s excited voice came through the speaker.

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Big Yellow Fish, Uncle Yang. What about you?”

”Me too, Big Yellow Fish! A full ton and a half! Good heavens, I’ve never caught so many big ones in a single net.” Yang Zhigang laughed. ”From now on, my boat follows your boat. Wherever you go, I go.”

Han Xiaorui chuckled. ”It won’t always be this good, but we’re definitely off to a great start.”

”Congratulations!” Yang Zhigang was genuinely happy for Han Xiaorui. ”Keep up the good work. Who says women are inferior to men?”

”That’s right.” Han Xiaorui nodded. She hesitated for a moment before encouraging him, ”Uncle Yang, try to look on the bright side. There’s no obstacle you can’t overcome. Heaven doesn’t forsake those who are kind and hardworking.”

Hearing this, Yang Zhigang felt a bittersweet warmth in his heart. ”Xiao Rui, thank you. The fact that you’re raising Pingping and An’an so well is the greatest comfort to me. It makes me believe that kindness still matters.”

”Things will get better, Uncle Yang,” Han Xiaorui continued to encourage him, hoping he could pull through.

Han Xiaorui respected Yang Zhigang, and she hoped that everyone who truly loved Pingping and An’an would be alright.

After ending the call, Yang Zhigang looked up at the sky and let out a few hearty laughs, a weight lifting from his shoulders.

He was Yang Zhigang. As long as his conscience was clear, that was all that mattered.

The fisherwomen on board were quick and deft. They soon had the fish sorted by size, packed into baskets, and carried to the freezer.

Because these fish were hauled up from dozens of meters below the sea, most of them couldn’t survive the sudden change in pressure, which crushed their internal organs.

Even if dead ones weren’t as expensive as live ones, the sheer quantity made up for it.

A quick estimate put the haul at about two and a half tons, or five thousand jin. Most of them were over three jin each, and at no less than five yuan per jin, this one haul was worth at least twenty-five thousand yuan.

After they finished, everyone scrubbed the deck spotless. In this, they were more meticulous than their male counterparts.

Seeing how clean everything was, Han Xiaorui couldn’t help but ask, ”Did we keep a few Big Yellow Fish?”

Wu Mengyue shook her head. ”They’re so expensive, of course we’re saving them to sell! I had someone take them all to the fish hold.”

Han Xiaorui didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. ”We have so many good fish, how much could we possibly eat? Pick out three big ones for me. We are absolutely having Big Yellow Fish for dinner.”

”But...” Big Yellow Fish were so expensive now. The biggest one was over ten jin! And she wanted to eat three of them—that was several hundred yuan!

’No matter how rich you are, you can’t just eat money like that!’

Liang Xiaoyu smiled. Others might not understand Han Xiaorui, but she did. The girl was the type who couldn’t walk away from good food.

’If she doesn’t get to eat Big Yellow Fish, Han Xiaorui probably won’t sleep well tonight!’

”Xiao Rui, I’ll go get them in a bit. It’s a small thing, don’t you worry about it,” Liang Xiaoyu said with a smile. ”Oh, and you should go rest in the cabin for a while. Don’t stay out here in the sun.”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Alright, thanks for all the hard work, everyone. Take breaks in shifts. We have more work to do tonight!”

”Got it, we’ll arrange it,” Liang Xiaoyu said, waving for Han Xiaorui to go rest.

After Han Xiaorui left, Wu Mengyue said grumpily, ”Xiao Yu, Xiao Rui is young and doesn’t know any better, but how can you not know better? Those are Big Yellow Fish! They’re very expensive.”

Liang Xiaoyu shook her head and chuckled. ”Sister Mengyue, when Xiao Rui says she wants to eat something, she really wants to eat it. She’d rather earn less money than miss out. As long as it’s something she says she wants to eat, we shouldn’t stop her.”

”Besides, Xiao Rui is the boss. This is her one big indulgence. We shouldn’t wait for her to specify, or else she’ll ask for the biggest and the best. For example, with today’s Big Yellow Fish, if you pick a few smaller ones, that’ll be enough to satisfy her.”

Wu Mengyue was exasperated. ”This is the first time I’ve ever met such a generous boss. On other boats, the owners wanted to sell every last good fish. Even if they ate some, they’d eat it themselves, not share it with the whole crew.”

Liang Xiaoyu smiled. ”Sister Mengyue, don’t be so surprised. You’ll get to know Xiao Rui. She’s a good person, and very generous. As long as everyone works hard, she’ll definitely treat us well.”

Wu Mengyue nodded. If the boss was willing to part with them, who was she to object?

Liang Xiaoyu went to the fish hold, retrieved three Big Yellow Fish, each weighing about three jin, and gave them to the cook, Liu Huamei.

Two were steamed to make Steamed Big Yellow Fish.

The other one was braised to make Braised Big Yellow Fish.

Besides the Big Yellow Fish, the first haul also had some octopuses. They picked out a few, washed them, and made a cold octopus salad.

They were so fresh that Han Xiaorui saw the tentacles in the seasoned octopus salad still squirming in the bowl.