Chapter 369: The Net

Chapter 369: The Net

Chapter 369: The Net
Li Changle and Chen Yongwei followed Qian Acong around the village and sold all the more than 40 watches they brought, but not a single cassette was sold because no one in the mountains bought that stuff.

Qian Acong said that he could afford the tape recorder but not the batteries.

After hearing this, Li Changle felt that he was just like those people who bought cars in later generations: they could afford the car but could not afford the gas.

After deducting the commission given to Qian Acong, the total profit was more than 3,200 yuan. After using the money to buy wood and yellow bamboo, there was still 2,500 yuan left.

Li Changle felt that money was really valuable these days. Such good beams, so many small pine trees as thick as bowls, and hundreds of yellow bamboos only cost more than 700 yuan. If it were in later times, you couldn't even buy a beam.

Qian Acong took the more than 200 yuan commission with a smile on his face. He felt that Li Changle was his God of Wealth and he made money every time he came.

This time he made money the most easily. He earned more than two hundred yuan just by talking. The villagers even praised him for his connections and helped them buy such cheap watches.

It’s a pity that there are only dozens of them. It would be better if there were more.

"Ah Le, do your relatives still have watches? My aunt's house is in the mountains. There should be people in their village who want to buy watches. If there are any, I'll go ask them."

Li Changle was delighted, but she didn't show it on her face. "I don't know. I have to go back and ask."

"Okay, go back and ask."

At this time, Qian Acong's wife prepared wine and food and asked them to eat.

The table was filled with a home-raised goose, half roasted chestnuts, half stewed yam, fried eel with celery, braised pork with bean noodles, fried garlic sprouts, and two side dishes.

Qian Acong went into the house and scooped out a can of wine. "My father's comrade-in-arms taught him to use sweet potato to make old wine. It doesn't make you drunk at all. You guys try it."

It was the first time for Li Changle to drink sweet potato wine. When he tasted it, he could still smell the light sweet taste of sweet potato. He drank two glasses, but he didn't dare to drink more because he had money on him.

"This wine is strong. Two glasses are enough. If I wait any longer, I won't be able to pedal my bike."

Seeing this, Qian Acong did not urge them to drink. When they left, he filled two cans of sweet potato wine for the two of them, took some peanuts and chestnuts, and picked a lot of pomelo and persimmons and put them in the backpack, and hung one on each of the back seats of the two bicycles.

The Qian Acong brothers sent the two men to the intersection and said, "Let's go back and cut the yellow bamboo. We will set out for your house early tomorrow morning."

"Okay, thank you and Brother Qian for your hard work."

"As long as I can make money, I'll be willing to cut yellow bamboo every day."

"You've been chopping bamboos down all day long. The bamboo forest is now bare."

After a few jokes, Li Changle and Chen Yongwei rode their bicycles down the mountain.

It was past four o'clock when we got home. Li's mother and daughter-in-law, Grandma Chen and Li Daxiao were turning over the dried fish in the dam. The first batch of salted yellow croakers had been hung out to dry. The yellow croakers on the drying rack looked very beautiful.

"Why did you bring back so many backpacks?"

"Brother Qian gave me some food, including pomelo and persimmons," Li Changle said. "The persimmons are still raw. I have to find some pine needles to put in the pottery jar and cover it for a few days before I can eat it."

"I'll go get some pine needles!" Mrs. Li picked up the basket and walked towards the back of the house.

Li Changle took out the wine jar and looked around but didn't see the Li father and his three brothers. "Where are Dad and my eldest and second brothers?"

Mother Li smiled and said, "Your father went to sow the seeds for cooking. Ping and An heard that Old Man Jin used a net last night and caught more than 100 kilograms of mullet and more than 20 kilograms of knife fish, so they went to the old house to get the net."

Chen Yongwei smiled and said, "I have one at home, too. I'll go back and get it so we can go online later."

Li Changle then remembered that many people still used this old-fashioned net to catch fish these days. "Okay! I'll go plug in the battery lamp to charge it, and we'll go fishing tonight."

"Brother! Next time you can bring a pull net on board, lower the pull net, shine the light on the pull net, and pull up the net when the fish is caught."

"Okay, let's make a bigger one while we're not busy these days." Li Changle walked into the house with the money, went back to his room, got the battery lamp and started charging it.

Chen Yongwei rode his bicycle back to get the net.

Mother Li picked out the persimmons and put them in a jar covered with pine needles. She smiled and said to Mrs. Li, "Awei has also gone back to get the net. He said he would take a good rest for two days, but he can't sit still anymore if he doesn't rest for a day."

"Of course not!" Mrs. Li turned around and saw Brother Li and Brother Li carrying the net into the yard. "It has been a long time since I used it. Can it still be used?"

"We checked the old house and it's still usable." Brother Li saw the fruit in the basket and asked, "Is Ah Le back?"

"I'm here. I'm going back to the house to charge the battery lamp." Mother Li took some persimmons, pomelo and chestnuts and put them in a bamboo basket. "Grandma, you can take these home and eat them later."

"Just take two pomelo. We eat here every day. Put those things here and eat together."

"Put the persimmons here together, and pack some peanuts and chestnuts for you to take back." Mother Li checked the time and said, "The children are almost out of school, let's go cook dinner."

The old lady happily followed him towards the kitchen.

Li Changle came out of the house and saw that the eldest and second brothers Li had already tied up the net.

The so-called pull net is made of two bamboo poles four or five meters long, a mesh, fishing ropes, sinkers, brackets, and pull ropes.

First, build two bamboo poles into a cross, stretch them into a bow shape, and then fix them with wire. Then, tie a four-meter square mesh reinforced with fishing line at the four corners.

After the frame is completed, lead weights are tied to the four corners of the mesh, and a support pole made of bamboo is tied to the top of the cross.

Finally, gather the fishing ropes at the four corners, tie them into a strand about thirty to forty centimeters above the net mouth, and tie the rope to the top of the cross. When pulling the net, pull the rope and the net will be pulled up.

When Li Erge saw him coming out, he hurried forward and asked in a low voice: "Did you sell the things you brought?" Li Changle nodded, "All the watches were sold, and no one wanted the tapes. Brother Qian said that they have a big village inside..."

After hearing this, Brother Li said worriedly, "What should we do with such a big box of tapes?"

Li Changle smiled and said, "That's easy. There will be a lot of people going to the market during the New Year. We can take the recorder with us and set up a stall on the street to sell it."

"Listen to you."

The three brothers carried the net to the side, and Chen Yongwei came on his bicycle. He was very strong, and the net he made was bigger than the one Li Changle had. It was a five-meter square net and looked about 80% new.

"I only used it a few times. If Auntie hadn't told me, I would have forgotten about it."

"Let's go find a suitable spot to set up the net. When we come back after dinner, the tide will be almost up."

"Okay!" Several people lifted the net and loaded it onto a tricycle, then headed towards the beach.

As soon as they reached the intersection, Zhou Ruonan came back with the children. Seeing that they were going to set the net, they excitedly took off their schoolbags and stuffed them to Zhou Ruonan, then ran after the tricycle.

"Dad, wait for me, we want to go too."

Brother Li turned around and waved at them, "What are you following me for? Go home and do your homework."

"Let's take a look and then go home to do our homework."

"We don't have homework!" Li Xiaozhou and Li Xiaomei pulled their father, "Dad, is the tide going out? Can we catch some crabs now?"

"You'll have to go and see for yourself."

The four of them walked to the beach with a group of children. The sea breeze was whistling, and the waves in the distance were more than a foot high, surging towards the beach one after another.

There is a net standing on the beach past the big puddle. It seems that the Jin family put it there and waited for the tide to rise before lowering the net.

"Dad, there is a big net over there."

"That's Grandpa Jin's house." Li Changle put his youngest son down, "Just wait here, don't go play in the puddle."

"Let's go to the puddle and see if there's a family of crabs there?"

"Uncle San, why does Xiaozhou want to catch a family of crabs?" Li Xiaoqing looked at Li Changle curiously.

"Ask Xiaohai, he knows!" Li Changle didn't understand, how could the child have such a good memory?
"I know..." Several children started chattering.

Chen Yongwei parked the tricycle next to the big puddle. A few people looked around and thought that the location in front of the pile of rocks at the entrance of the puddle was not bad.

There is still more than an hour before the tide rises. The tide rises faster and more urgently than usual on windy days. I put down the net, went back to have dinner, and came over when the tide almost reached the water inlet of the big puddle.

The four men lifted the net off the tricycle, lowered the net in front of the reef, and waited for the tide to rise to lower the net and catch fish.

Li Changle looked back and saw several children rolling up their trouser legs to their thighs, busying themselves happily by the puddle.

"Dad, Dad, look, I picked up clams." Li Xiaozhou opened his trouser pocket to show him. There was mud and sand on his face and hair.

"Silly, if you put it in your trouser pocket, it will get smelly soon." Li Changle took a look at his trouser pocket and saw a few clams in it. He quickly took out a net bag and put them in.

Li Xiaozhou was fished out here, and over there, Li Xiaomei was seen digging for sand crabs by the puddle. Xiao Qu Qu was sweeping around in the water, not even noticing that her hair was soaked.

Brother Li looked around and saw the big ones by the puddle, sticking their butts out and moving stones to look for seafood.

Brother Li picked up his little daughter and said, "Xiaohui, Xiaobo, why aren't you watching your sister? Look, your pants are wet. When you get home, your mother will scold your father for not watching you."

Li Xiaobo turned back in dissatisfaction, "If I don't dig for her, she'll cry. Why don't you take care of her yourself? You always ask us to watch her."

"Dad, look what I caught!" Li Xiaomei proudly showed off a clam to him.

"Not bad, you are worthy of being my little girl. You can even find clams now."

"Humph! You boastful liar, we helped you and Xiaozhou find the vent, and we only let you dig after we found clams and razor clams."

Li Xiaohai pointed to the stone slab beside the puddle and said, "Dad, look, we found razor clams and mussels."

Li Changle went over and saw a handful of razor clams and a pile of cockles on the stone slab. She didn't expect that the children would find so many in such a short time.

"Good, I can make a side dish. Did you catch any blue crabs?"

Li Xiaohai shook his head in frustration, "I didn't find any."

Li Xiaoyang rinsed the clams he had dug out in the puddle for a few times and said, "Uncle San, after dinner I want to come with you guys to pull the nets."

"Dad, we have to pull the net too."

The eldest opened his mouth, and the younger ones behind him started chattering loudly. Li Changle felt that they were no different from the sparrows in the woods.

"All you know how to do is play!" Brother Li gave them a sidelong glance and said, "Go home and finish your homework!"

Seeing that everyone was wilting, Li Changle waved at them and said, "Get in the car, let Uncle Awei take you back."

(End of this chapter)