"Why does this coconut snail only have a shell? Where's the meat?" Mother Ye asked as she helped sort the catch.
"In the basin. Have a look. Slice it up and stir-fry it for lunch."
"You opened it already? Nothing inside?" Mother Ye was only asking casually. The odds were too low; she didn't believe they could find a Melo pearl just by opening one, either.
"Mm!"
He lied without missing a beat, while Lin Xiuqing stole a guilty glance at him.
He waggled his eyebrows at her before saying, "Go take a bath first so you don't catch a cold. Mom and the others are here."
She understood what he meant and nodded, taking the opportunity to return to their room and hide the Melo pearl first. Otherwise, she would keep worrying it might fall out. She had kept her hand over her pocket the whole way home, afraid of losing it.
They kept one mud crab missing its large claw, another with little meat, some assorted fish, and some small fish, shrimp, and rock crabs. Mother Ye picked out everything else worth any money and put it in a bucket for him.
"While it's not raining much, hurry there and back. Remember to put on the straw rain cape."
Ye Yaodong immediately spotted the old-fashioned straw rain cape hanging under the veranda. He didn't turn his nose up at it. It was much more convenient than an umbrella and wouldn't get blown inside out.
Once he went out carrying the two buckets, the women at home began cleaning fish and cooking. They also topped up the clams' water and sprinkled in a little coarse salt to keep them alive.
Usually, the village bustled with everyday life, with women sitting at either the front or back doors of every