"Wow~ awesome!"
Zhuge Yun exclaimed appreciatively.
"Great boat."
Zhao Luzheng looked up at the mast towering above them.
"Uncle Zhang, you've kept your boat in great shape."
Xiao Xiao could tell the boat had been around for years.
Yet its owner had taken excellent care of it.
It wasn't quite as good as new.
But the marks left by time gave the boat a sense of solidity and calm, as though the years had stamped their imprint upon it.
"Old Zhang, showing off your boat again?"
Uncle Zhang was pleased by everyone's reactions and was just about to say something when a teasing voice came from nearby.
He turned toward the voice. The moment he saw who it was, his mouth spread into a grin. "Hey, I was wondering who that was."
"So it's you, Old Yu."
"Not heading out to sea this early? What are you doing at the pier?"
"What? I can't come here if I'm not going out to sea?"
The man they called Old Yu was middle-aged, of average height, with a square face.
Years of labor at sea had left his skin rough and dark.
"I came to look at the sea. Is that a problem?"
"Haven't you seen enough of it?"
Uncle Zhang answered casually, then realized how amusing his own words sounded.
Wasn't he the same way?
He had some nerve teasing someone else.
"Don't get me wrong. Spending every day at sea can get a little tiresome."
"But after being away for just a few days, I start missing it again."
Old Yu's expression turned wistful. "I've spent my whole life tied to this sea."
"You rascal."
Uncle Zhang laughed and scolded him. "You just can't sit still."
"Old Zhang, you have the nerve