Ye Yaodong moistened his thumb and forefinger with saliva twice, then began briskly counting the notes one by one. He counted them twice and got fifty-six both times.
"That's right. It's all there."
He put away the fifty-six ten-yuan Great Unity notes and the seven yuan in smaller bills, then pressed the remaining fifty-six fen into Chen Jiannian's hand. "It's sweltering today. Get yourself an ice pop and a couple of packs of cigarettes."
"Heh, you're too kind. You've let me earn a little extra again."
"It's only right. We should all make money together. I'm still counting on you to help collect payment for the rest of the goods."
Chen Jiannian accepted the money and happily thumped his chest, solemnly promising, "Of course. Since you trust me, I have to get things properly sorted out for you. I'm hoping we can come back next year and make another good haul."
"Good, good..."
Everyone stood around looking envious. Those who had not known about it now learned that Ye Yaodong had sold nearly six hundred yuan's worth on his very first day here.
"Dongzi's got guts. He really knows how to make money."
"Exactly. Who would have thought coming out around Zhejiang-Fujian to catch jellyfish could pay this well?"
Ye Yaodong smiled. "That's what they call high risk, high reward. Everything comes with risks anyway. Those of us who make our living at sea might earn more than other people, but we face more danger too."
Father Pei smiled. "Well, following you here was definitely the right choice for us."
Ye Yaopeng said enviously, "Dongzi really made the right call buying that batch of jellyfish. Just bringing them here multiplied their value fivefold, and he can keep fishing here too. He really can make a fortune on this trip."
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