Dragging his exhausted body along, Ye Yaodong had barely passed his eldest and second brothers' doors, not yet reaching his own, when a crowd of children ran over excitedly and surrounded him.
"Third Uncle!"
"Third Uncle!"
"Third Uncle, we caught loads of octopuses this afternoon..."
"Third Uncle, there really were octopuses in the jars! So many..."
"Dad, I caught some too! I caught the most!"
"Third Uncle..."
Surrounded by children all clamoring "Third Uncle" and "Dad," Ye Yaodong felt as if his head would explode. His face scrunched up, and only after listening for a while did he realize they were talking about octopuses.
"Stop, stop, stop. I get it. You went down to the beach this afternoon to collect your bottles and jars, right?"
"Yes, yes, yes!"
"That's right, Third Uncle... You're amazing... You have no idea how many octopuses were in there..."
"Lots of the bottles and jars had octopuses in them! Amazing! You're amazing, Third Uncle..."
"You're amazing, Third Uncle..."
Ye Yaodong rubbed his temples. "Stop, stop, stop. Can you take turns? Don't all talk over one another. You're giving me a headache, and I'm already dead tired..."
As he spoke, he headed toward his own front door and called for them to follow.
Only after sitting in his rocking chair did he let out a long breath. He beckoned the children over. "Come here and rub my shoulders and legs. Then tell me how many octopuses each of you caught today."
"Five! Third Uncle, I caught five!" Ye Chenghai eagerly came over to massage his shoulders, repeatedly emphasizing that he had caught five.
"Dad, I caught the most! I caught six little white octopuses, and a really big one too! Mom said it was a red octopus. It was awesome! I'm the best!"
"You had the