The four had only run a short distance when they heard there was a good opportunity for them and immediately screeched to a halt.
"A good opportunity?"
"Seriously?"
"Shall we hear him out?"
They stopped and waited a moment before Wang Maoquan caught up with them, panting.
"What were you running for? I kept telling you to stop, but you just kept going."
Speaking for the four of them, Ye Yaodong smiled sheepishly. "Was there something else you needed us for, Manager Wang?"
Wang Maoquan bent over with both hands braced on his knees, gasping for breath. "You're all from a fishing village, right? You can all swim and go out to sea?"
Ye Yaodong glanced at the other three before nodding. "Yes, that's right."
"Good. A few friends of our young boss arrived early to have some fun. They're bored and want to try sea fishing. It was a spur-of-the-moment decision, and even the motorboat is borrowed, so they need a few boat hands. He remembered you were fishermen from a fishing village and sent me out to see whether you'd left."
"Huh? Now?" Ye Yaodong looked up at the sun, already sinking in the western sky. "It's past three already. If we go out now, won't it be nighttime before we get back?"
"More or less. You won't be out all night. Five yuan each. What do you think? Interested? We wouldn't offer that much if it weren't at night. You won't really have to do anything, just keep watch on the boat in case anything happens."
The four exchanged glances. Five yuan was good money for a single trip out to sea.
"Are you coming or not? Give me an answer now, or I'll have to find someone else. There are plenty of boat hands at the