Lin Xiuqing spread all five fingers over his face and shoved him away. The shameless bastard had only been serious for a moment before fooling around again.
But Ye Yaodong caught her wrist and frowned. "Did you scrape your hand in the fall too?"
She pulled her hand back. "Yes, it's fine. Just a little scrape."
"Then let's go back and wash it. Stop looking. It'll hurt more if you get seawater on it."
"It's fine, it doesn't hurt. It's still early, and the tide has only just gone out. There must be more things to gather. I just won't touch the seawater. If I spot anything, I'll call you. Isn't that what I was doing before?"
"Don't push yourself..."
"Oh, come on, it was just a fall. Keep looking." Unconcerned, she continued searching carefully, then stopped after just a few steps. "Move this rock. I saw a blue crab leg. It should be an Orchid Crab."
She was on a roll, and Ye Yaodong could do nothing with her, so he let her have her way.
They began wandering around the rocks again. A few fat raindrops fell, but just as they were about to head back, the rain suddenly stopped, so they kept searching.
Only after another two hours of wandering did Ye Yaodong say, "All right, it's nearly noon. Let's head home."
"Can't we look a little longer?" Lin Xiuqing asked reluctantly.
Ye Yaodong chuckled. "What, are you hooked on shore gathering?"
"Yes, a little. It feels so easy today. We've gathered so much in just one morning. Even during the spring tides on the first and fifteenth, there was never this much to pick up."
"There's actually plenty during those spring tides too. It's just that the villagers visit our stretch of beach so often that