There wasn't a child who didn't love festivals. Long before the day arrived, the village children had already begun looking forward to it. Some even asked their elders eight times a day when the Mid-Autumn Festival would come, when they would get time off, and when they could eat mooncakes.
When the Mid-Autumn Festival finally arrived, they put on their new clothes and ran happily all over the place, beside themselves with joy.
Only at New Year and festivals did they get a chance to wear new clothes. Normally, they could only wear hand-me-downs from their older siblings.
Still, this was probably the happiest year the children in the family had ever had. Besides mooncakes, there was so much other food at home that they could stuff their pockets full and show it off everywhere.
The adults were all beaming too. They had made a big haul just in time for the festival.
As Father Ye shelled a crab, he asked, "Shall we take tomorrow off after the festival, then head out to sea tomorrow night?"
"Sure." Ye Yaodong thought for a moment, then added, "Dad, ask around for me and see if there's another boat I could buy."
Father Ye's hands paused over the crab. Puzzled, he asked, "What's this? Why do you want to buy another boat?"
Mother Ye put down her chopsticks too, bewildered. "Don't you already have a boat? Why buy another when things are going perfectly well? It's already impressive that your earnings were enough to buy two shops. At least let the rest, along with the thousand or so you made these past two days, warm your pockets a little!"
"No one else's child makes as much fuss as you do. You want to buy everything. You just can't keep money in your pocket.