Big Green Blowflies

Early the next morning, Ye Yaodong woke when he felt movement beside him. He could barely open his eyes, so he kept one shut and peered through the other at Lin Xiuqing dressing their two children.

"What time is it? Why are they both up so early?"

"Six!"

Once Ye Chenghu was dressed, he crawled over and asked curiously, "Dad, how come you woke up so early today?"

"Can't I? Early to bed, early to rise keeps you healthy!"

"But you usually sleep until the sun's shining on your butt."

Ye Yaodong glanced at his older son, stopped talking, and closed his eyes again. It was too early to do anything. He would doze a little longer.

"Hehe! Grandma says Dad's a big lazybones!"

His younger son joined in excitedly. "Big lazybones! Big lazybones!"

He opened his eyes again and glared at both sons. These two were downright unlovable! And to think he had left them a compensation payout after he died!

"What's all that racket first thing in the morning? Go outside and play!"

"Bleh, bleh, bleh!"

His older son pulled a face at him, then slipped off the bed and ran outside. His younger son grew frantic watching him leave. "Brother! Brother!"

"What's the rush?" Lin Xiuqing pulled his trousers on and set him on the floor. "Be careful. Don't run and fall."

As she spoke, she picked up the bowl and spoon from last night, along with the urine-soaked bedsheet, and followed him out.

"The shorts I took off last night are on the stool in the corner. I tossed my shirt in the backyard."

"Got it."

Once the door closed, the room fell quiet again, but Ye Yaodong no longer felt sleepy. He rested his hands behind his head and closed his eyes. He was afraid getting up too early would surprise everyone.

He had barely lain there a moment before he heard Ye Second Sister-in-Law gossiping loudly in the main room, as though she was worried he might not hear.

"Mother, work on the house starts in a couple of days. A-Hua and Eldest Brother will take turns going out to sea with Father, so only one of them will be home. Since Yaodong isn't going out to sea, shouldn't he help carry things and lend a hand? He's got nothing to do anyway. Otherwise, hiring another person means paying another wage."

"I'll talk to him when he gets up!"

"Each of the three brothers gets a room. If he isn't going out to sea, the least he can do is lend a hand. Once the household splits, he'll be the head of his own family. He needs to take some responsibility."

Ye Eldest Sister-in-Law agreed. "Exactly. We're not expecting him to do all that much, but he could at least help out..."

Ye Eldest Sister-in-Law's voice wasn't as loud as Ye Second Sister-in-Law's. Ye Yaodong couldn't hear her clearly, but he caught some of it.

His brow furrowed. His eldest sister-in-law was all right-fairly kind. His second sister-in-law, though, was always finding fault. She talked too much, was petty, and calculated everything. Thank goodness his wife wasn't like that.

Actually, having a husband like him made Lin Xiuqing quite an object of sympathy. Even his mother showed her a little extra affection. Whenever she went back to visit her parents, his mother would secretly give her some money to buy some Fish Catch to take along.

His two sisters-in-law never got that treatment. After all, his older brothers were both hardworking men.

Thinking about it, apart from accompanying his wife to her parents' home on the second day of the lunar new year, he didn't seem to have gone back with her once in the six months since.

Although he was something of a good-for-nothing, his father-in-law had treated him fairly well early on. Perhaps it was mostly because he felt sorry for his daughter?

Later on, that stopped, and his father-in-law simply ignored him. For all he knew, the man cursed him behind his back every day...

He could accompany his wife back to her parents' home with gifts for the Mid-Autumn Festival.

He lay in bed letting his thoughts wander for quite a while. When the sunlight streaming in from outside began to hurt his eyes, he figured it was about time and got up.

But the moment he opened the door and stepped out, Grandma looked surprised. "Why are you up so early, Dong? Aren't you going to sleep a little longer?"

"Early? Father and Eldest Brother went out to sea after one in the morning. A-Hua got up at six to clear weeds from the foundation site. Even the children have finished breakfast and gone out to play. Who else in this family gets to sleep comfortably until now?" Sitting by the doorway, Ye Second Sister-in-Law couldn't help looking up at the glaring sunlight when she heard the Old Lady's words, then bluntly called into the house.

Ye Yaodong picked at his ear and pretended not to hear. He had heard plenty of that in his previous life. He was used to it!

"I woke up, so I got up. Have you had breakfast?"

"Yes, yes. Hurry along to the back door and brush your teeth and wash your face."

"All right."

After brushing his teeth, he felt the urge to pee. He turned and had barely taken two steps when he saw the makeshift privy in the corner of the backyard, built from bricks and straw, with a battered wooden board serving as its door. He instantly remembered the large toilet bucket inside. Right... that bucket had all sorts of things in it...

And just then, he heard the buzzing of big green blowflies flying past...

Ye Yaodong forcibly pulled back the leg he had just stepped forward with and headed for the vegetable patch in front of him instead. He might as well pee there and fertilize it.

Yesterday morning, he had relieved himself by the shore while foraging along the coast. In the afternoon, he had peed in the grass at A-Guang's Home. He really hadn't thought about the toilet bucket at home.

Ugh... don't think about it. I still have to eat breakfast!

He felt newly motivated to make a decent life for himself. It wasn't just a bed he needed to buy-he also had to work toward getting a proper toilet.

After finishing and giving himself a couple of shakes, he went straight back inside.

There was already congee and two dried fish on the table. The congee was still made with shredded sweet potato, but for once, the accompaniment was dried fish instead of pickled mustard tuber or salted vegetables. His appetite immediately perked up.

"Grandma, were these fish dried yesterday?"

The Old Lady smiled, showing her toothless gums. "Yes. They were too small to be worth much, so your father brought back a few dozen jin the day before yesterday for us to clean. They dried after just one day in the sun yesterday. I steamed a bowl especially this morning and saved two for you. Go on, eat!"

These were dried Bombay ducks. With their heads removed, they were only a little longer than his middle finger. They were too small to braise well, but perfect for drying-the ideal accompaniment to rice for people living by the sea.

"Mmm, they're delicious!"

"If you like them, I'll steam some more at noon. Your father's sure to bring more back this evening, and we can dry another batch tomorrow."

"Do you need corn picked today? I'll go to the field and pick some for you in a bit."

The Old Lady waved her hands repeatedly. "No, no. If you're busy, don't bother. I'll take a few of the little ones later. One basket will be enough."

"I've got time. I've got plenty of time. The tide will be half an hour to an hour later than yesterday, so there's no need to go to the shore so early. I'll pick it for you after I eat."

"You're not going out to have fun today?"

"It's too hot. I don't feel like going out. I've arranged to forage along the shore with a few friends after the tide goes out."

"All right, all right. You can pick it for me, then."

Ye Yaodong quickly finished his small bowl of congee. As the Old Lady reached over with a cleaning cloth to clear away his bowl, he took the cloth from her first, swept the fish bones on the table into the bowl, and carried it to the back door.

The Old Lady's face blossomed into a smile. "Just leave it there for your wife to wash later."

"Okay. Let's go."

Seeing his younger son sitting alone by the doorway playing with a sea snail shell, he scooped him up. "Want to come out and play?"

"Yes! Yes!" Ye Chengyang excitedly wrapped his arms around his neck.

He was the youngest child in the family. Before he had even finished eating, the older boys and girls had all run off, leaving him alone with no choice but to stay home with his mother.