Recaps

Ye Yaodong sold his catch, learned that Lin Xiuqing’s father had injured his foot, and arranged to take his family to visit him. The chapter ended with Ye Yaodong hiring a tractor to carry his pregnant wife, their children, and their gifts to Anhe Township.

• Lin Jinyang told Ye Yaodong that a sailfish had pierced his father’s shoulder before falling into their boat, and Ye Yaodong stayed to help summon the man’s family.
• Ye Yaodong sold his catch for more than seventy-eight yuan and returned home to learn that Lin Xiuqing’s father had broken his foot in a fall.
• Ye Yaodong reassured Lin Xiuqing and agreed to take her and their sons to visit her father the next day, bringing dried seafood and other gifts.
• Ye Yaodong checked his fishing pots at dawn, found only one bag of starfish, and received a sea bass and Bombay duck from Mother Ye for the trip.
• Ye Yaodong had hired a tractor to carry the family and their belongings, and they boarded after he secured the house.

Ye Yaodong brought Lin Xiuqing and their sons to visit her injured father, carrying gifts and helping her parents feel reassured about the family’s new boat. On the way up the mountain to pick tangerines, he and Ye Chenghu caught two softshell turtles, planning to cook one and let the boy keep the other.

• Ye Yaodong took Lin Xiuqing and their sons by tractor to visit her parents, bringing dried seafood, sea snake liquor, and other gifts.
• Mother Lin welcomed them, and Ye Yaodong chatted with Father Lin while Lin Xiuqing stayed home with their younger son and told her parents about their larger boat.
• Ye Yaodong took Ye Chenghu up the mountain to help pick tangerines, while the younger boy cried after being left behind.
• Ye Chenghu spotted a softshell turtle by the river, and Ye Yaodong caught it and handed it to him.
• Ye Chenghu spotted another softshell turtle in the water, and Ye Yaodong caught it, deciding to stew one and let his son play with the other.

Ye Yaodong and Ye Chenghu climbed the hill, finding wild duck eggs and a giant softshell turtle that they left in the river. They joined Ye Yaodong’s relatives to pick mandarins, while Ye Chenghu watched over the little softshell turtles.

• Ye Chenghu fell on the hill and dropped his softshell turtle, then went to wash it in the river as Ye Yaodong followed him.
• Ye Yaodong crushed one wild duck egg and found two more, then spotted a giant softshell turtle in the river and decided to leave it alone.
• Ye Yaodong and Ye Chenghu continued uphill, collected a fallen pomelo, and met Ye Yaodong’s brother-in-law and the children picking mandarins.
• Ye Yaodong learned that a canning factory had raised the mandarin price and joined his relatives in harvesting the fruit.
• Ye Chenghu sat among the mandarins to watch the softshell turtles while the other children returned to work.

Ye Yaodong and his relatives spent the day picking tangerines, while Ye Chenghu played with softshell turtles and mourned a broken duck egg. The chapter ended with the family sharing a noisy dinner at Lin Mother’s home, where Ye Yaodong served his wife a starfish and Lin Mother fussed over the food he had brought.

• Ye Chenghu helped pick tangerines but repeatedly checked on the softshell turtles he had surrounded with fruit.
• Ye Yaodong and the others found the turtles after they escaped, and Ye Yaodong put them in a basket before the family ate lunch.
• Ye Yaodong, his brothers-in-law, and the rest of the family picked tangerines through the afternoon, then carried the fruit down the hill as the children played.
• Ye Chenghu broke one of his wild duck eggs while running home, and the adults stopped the children from going to the river to look for eggs and the large softshell turtle.
• Ye Yaodong told Lin Xiangyang about the enormous turtle in the river, and Lin Xiangyang connected it to the village legend of a river-guarding turtle.
• At dinner, Ye Chenghu gave Lin Mother his remaining duck egg, and Ye Yaodong opened a starfish for his wife while Lin Mother told him not to bring so much food next time.

Ye Yaodong spent the evening with Lin Xiuqing's family, where one of the children was bitten by a softshell turtle and Mother Lin later stewed one. The next morning Ye Yaodong went to help pick mandarins, while his sons woke to find a turtle missing and cried that he had broken his promise.

• Ye Yaodong helped Lin Guangyuan free his bitten hand from a softshell turtle by singeing it with a match.
• Ye Yaodong promised Ye Chenghu and Ye Chengyang that the turtles would not be eaten, but Mother Lin secretly stewed the larger one after everyone went to bed.
• Ye Yaodong and his brothers-in-law ate the softshell turtle soup and discussed catching more turtles for the children.
• Ye Yaodong rose at dawn and went with Mother Lin's family to pick mandarins on the mountain.
• Ye Chenghu and Ye Chengyang woke, saw that one turtle was gone, and cried that Ye Yaodong had broken his promise.

Ye Yaodong tried to manage his sons’ excitement over the turtles while helping his in-laws pick tangerines and pomelos. After the family spotted wild ducks by the river, he promised to return after lunch to look for eggs and see whether they could catch any.

• Ye Yaodong calmed Ye Chenghu’s tantrum by claiming the surviving turtle was his, but Ye Chenghu later told Ye Chengyang that his own turtle had been eaten, making him cry until Lin Xiuqing promised to catch him another.
• Ye Yaodong and his family spent two days picking tangerines, then Ye Chenghu fell from a pomelo branch and was scolded and spanked by Ye Yaodong.
• Ye Chenghu sneaked off to climb trees with his cousins until Ye Yaodong threatened to stew the turtle, prompting him to obey and help fill a sack with pomelos.
• The children asked Lin Xianghui to search the riverbank for wild duck eggs, and Ye Yaodong followed them to keep watch.
• A flock of wild ducks landed upstream, and the children urged their fathers to catch them, but Ye Yaodong said they had no equipment and suggested they return after lunch to look for eggs.

Ye Yaodong showed the Lin children how to trap wild ducks by propping up a bamboo basket with a stick and baiting it with rice, and they caught several ducks and found an egg. While gathering river shellfish afterward, he and Lin Xianghui discovered a white bead among the mussels, leaving them to examine their find.

• The Lin children hurried Ye Yaodong to the river after spotting wild ducks, and he set a basket trap baited with rice.
• Two ducks walked under the basket, and Ye Yaodong trapped them, tied their wings and feet, and handed them to Lin Guangyuan and Lin Dongxue.
• The children took turns trapping more ducks while Lin Xianghui set a shrimp trap and found a wild duck egg.
• Lin Xiangyang arrived with a softshell turtle, and he scolded the children when they asked to skip school again the next day.
• Ye Yaodong collected freshwater snails, clams, and river mussels along the bank with Lin Xianghui.
• Lin Xianghui spotted a white bead among the mussels and reached to grab it.

Lin Xianghui found two pearls in a freshwater mussel while Ye Yaodong and the children gathered river food and wild ducks. After Ye Chenghu slipped into the water while watching a huge softshell turtle surface, Ye Yaodong took him home, where Lin Xiuqing scolded her husband but Mother Lin defended him.

• Lin Xianghui discovered two pearls inside a freshwater mussel, and Lin Xiangyang eagerly joined him in searching for more.
• Ye Yaodong checked his own mussels without finding pearls, then went to see the children, who had caught six wild ducks.
• Ye Yaodong gathered ten wild duck eggs upstream before the children called out that Ye Chenghu had slipped and a huge softshell turtle had surfaced.
• Ye Yaodong checked that Ye Chenghu was unhurt and took him home to change, while Lin Xianghui ended the children's outing and scolded Lin Guangyuan for not watching his cousin.
• Lin Xiuqing blamed Ye Yaodong for failing to watch Ye Chenghu, but Mother Lin defended him and urged her daughter to stop nagging.

Ye Yaodong helped Lin Xianghui and the Lin family with their harvest before deciding to return home with Lin Xiuqing and their children. As they left, Lin Mother loaded them with food and supplies, and Ye Chenghu promised his cousins they would visit again.

• Lin Xianghui showed the family two pearls he had found, while the children described catching eight wild ducks and other river creatures.
• Ye Yaodong joined the Lin family in harvesting sweet potatoes, earning his brothers-in-law and their wives’ growing approval.
• Ye Yaodong and Lin Xiuqing agreed to leave the next day, and she massaged his shoulders before Lin Mother called her away.
• Lin Mother gathered dried vegetables, fruit, pumpkins, and other provisions for them to take home, despite Ye Yaodong’s attempts to refuse.
• Ye Yaodong hired a tractor to carry the family and their many supplies home, and Ye Chenghu said goodbye to his cousins and promised to visit again.

Ye Yaodong and Lin Xiuqing returned to White Sand Village with their children and the many supplies Lin Xiuqing’s mother had packed. Ye Yaodong prepared to resume fishing that night, while Ye Chenghu eagerly bragged to his friends about their trip.

• Ye Chenghu perked up when the tractor reached White Sand Village and called to his friends that he had returned from his grandmother’s house.
• Lin Xiuqing unpacked the food and produce her mother had sent, including an unexpected sack of sweet potatoes.
• Ye Yaodong brought a wild duck to the Old House and discussed checking his fishing pots, gathering bait, and trying the newly made gill nets that night.
• Ye Yaodong found Ye Chenghu boasting to other children about catching wild ducks and softshell turtles, then dragged him home for lunch.
• Ye Yaodong and Lin Xiuqing discussed their dried seafood supplies and planned to raise more chickens for eggs in spring.

Ye Yaodong hauled in his fishing pots after several days away and found that most of the fish and shrimp had spoiled, though he caught mantis shrimp, sea cicadas, and a green grouper. After seabirds attracted nearby fishermen to his boat, he returned to shore with a modest catch and sold most of it.

• Ye Yaodong checked his boat and engine, then headed out to retrieve his fishing pots and longline hooks.
• Ye Yaodong found three enormous mantis shrimp, then uncovered several jin of sea cicadas beneath a jellyfish.
• Ye Yaodong hauled in the remaining pots and sorted the catch, keeping fresh fish and shrimp while throwing most of the spoiled catch to seabirds.
• Nearby fishermen converged on Ye Yaodong's boat, mistaking the gathering seabirds for signs of a school of fish.
• Ye Yaodong left the other boats behind, sold most of his catch at the pier, and kept four large mantis shrimp and the sea cicadas.

Ye Yaodong bought bait for his next Longline Fishing trip, shared his catch with relatives and neighbors, and spent the evening eating with Lin Xiuqing and their sons. After hearing about his second sister-in-law’s argument over unpaid money, he went to bed with Lin Xiuqing before heading out to sea that night.

• Ye Yaodong bought a hundred jin of small fish and twenty jin of shrimp from A-Cai for bait, and A-Cai offered to save bait for him in the future.
• Ye Yaodong distributed most of his sea cicadas to relatives and neighbors, keeping some for his family and taking the rest to Uncle Lin Jingye’s house before dinner.
• Ye Yaodong and Lin Xiuqing prepared sea cicadas and Mantis Shrimp for dinner, while their older son guarded his Softshell Turtle from his father.
• Lin Xiuqing told Ye Yaodong that his second sister-in-law had failed to recover money from Cousin Meiying’s family and had been scolding Second Brother.
• After dinner, Ye Yaodong teased Lin Xiuqing about his burned mouth, and the two went to bed together before his planned night trip to sea.

Ye Yaodong and Father Ye went out to sea before dawn, where Ye Yaodong spotted giant trevally hunting seabirds and caught three large fish. A cast net tore during the haul, but they recovered the dead mullet that spilled out and planned to replace the borrowed net while keeping the damaged one.

• Ye Yaodong packed food and a coal stove for the boat so he could cook without waking Lin Xiuqing.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye spotted a giant trevally catching a tern, and Ye Yaodong caught it with his hand cast net.
• After Father Ye threw the tern back into the sea, Ye Yaodong spotted another giant trevally and cast the net again.
• The net held two giant trevally and many mullet, but its bottom tore as Ye Yaodong and Father Ye hauled it aboard.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye scooped the floating dead mullet from the sea and decided to mend the torn net and have a new one woven for A-Zheng.

Ye Yaodong and Father Ye made a profitable catch, set a gill net, and hauled in a large load of mullet before spotting a strange silver shape near an island. They discovered it was a stranded four- or five-meter oarfish, which Father Ye feared might herald an earthquake or tsunami.

• Ye Yaodong bled three giant trevally while Father Ye gathered the mullet they had caught.
• Ye Yaodong set a gill net, then he and Father Ye trawled up thirty-five to forty kilograms of mullet and a thicklip sweetlips.
• Ye Yaodong spotted a long, silver shape moving across the water and steered toward it with Father Ye.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye recognized the shape as an oarfish stranded on the beach of a nearby island.
• Ye Yaodong secured the boat and followed Father Ye ashore to inspect the oarfish, while Father Ye said its appearance could mean an earthquake or tsunami was coming.

Ye Yaodong and Father Ye found and brought a giant oarfish aboard, then continued fishing while discussing its earthquake omen and planning a future shellfish-foraging trip. As they finished hauling in the longline, Ye Yaodong pulled up an unusually heavy clump and realized something was wrong.

• Ye Yaodong identified the stranded fish as an oarfish, and Father Ye agreed to bring it aboard despite worrying that it signaled an earthquake.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye loaded the oarfish onto their boat and joked about how Ye Yaodong had learned to recognize it.
• Ye Yaodong spotted shellfish on the island and planned to return there with his mother and younger sister to forage during the spring tide.
• Ye Yaodong steered to their longline and hauled up a seasonal catch of mullet, toadfish, and other fish, including a giant trevally that Father Ye netted.
• As Ye Yaodong reached the final hook, he hauled up an unusually heavy clump and saw that it was not a single fish.

Ye Yaodong and Father Ye finished their trawling and longline work, then hauled in their deep-set gill net with the Rolling Wheel. They caught several toadfish and other fish, released a tiny red grouper, and found a piece of red coral in a parrotfish’s mouth.

• Ye Yaodong abandoned a branch line after hauling up a jellyfish, then cooked rice noodle soup with Father Ye.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye completed two trawling runs and retrieved longlines laden mostly with mullet and toadfish.
• Ye Yaodong retrieved the deep-set gill net using the Rolling Wheel and released a tiny red grouper after puncturing its swim bladder.
• Ye Yaodong and Father Ye removed a large string of toadfish and several other fish from the gill net.
• Ye Yaodong hauled up a parrotfish and found a small piece of red coral in its mouth, which he kept for his wife.

Ye Yaodong caught a red coral piece in a Parrotfish and learned that his family had thrown away baskets of coral, so he resolved to save any that remained. After bringing in a good catch and returning to shore, he prepared to take the Oarfish to town and explained its earthquake-and-tsunami reputation to his mother and nearby fishermen.

• Ye Yaodong found a bright red coral piece in a Parrotfish, then learned Father Ye’s family had discarded several baskets of coral brought by his eldest aunt.
• Father Ye said the old lady might still have some coral, and Ye Yaodong asked his parents to save any coral they found for him.
• Ye Yaodong sorted the day’s Toadfish and Mullet on the way home and considered setting more Gill Nets for bottom-dwelling fish.
• As the boat reached shore, Ye Yaodong said he would hire a tractor and take the Oarfish to the town pier.
• Mother Ye and nearby fishermen were astonished by the Oarfish, and Ye Yaodong explained that it was also called an Earthquake Fish because it might surface before an earthquake or tsunami.

Ye Yaodong brought his enormous oarfish ashore amid a crowd of curious villagers and prepared to take it to the town pier to attract bidders. After its size and weight were measured, he left by tractor with friends and relatives, while A-Guang joined them and heard how Ye Yaodong had found it.

• Ye Yaodong pushed through the crowd and told A-Cai he planned to take the oarfish to town rather than sell it through him.
• A-Cai measured the oarfish at 6.3 meters and weighed it at 196 jin and 4 liang after subtracting the board.
• Ye Yaodong and the villagers carried the oarfish onto a tractor, and he invited Xiao Xiao, A-Zheng, and his two cousins along.
• A-Guang joined the group and asked Ye Yaodong how he had found the oarfish.
• Ye Yaodong described spotting and following the strange shape at sea, then advised the others to investigate unusual things they encountered.

Ye Yaodong brought his enormous oarfish to Yujing Wharf and drew a crowd by parading it through town. He opened an auction among wealthy local bosses, and the bidding reached 820 yuan as the chapter ended.

• Ye Yaodong and his friends carried the oarfish aloft as they rode through town, attracting a crowd that followed them to Yujing Wharf.
• At the wharf, Ye Yaodong kept the fish on the tractor while the crowd gathered and waited for wealthy buyers to arrive.
• Hong Wenle and several local bosses arrived, and Ye Yaodong explained the oarfish’s size, rarity, and legend.
• Ye Yaodong started the auction at 300 yuan, and the bosses’ bids climbed steadily.
• Hong Wenle bid 820 yuan and offered to serve the oarfish at his hotel, but the other bosses continued considering their bids.

After selling the oarfish to Director Zhao for eight hundred yuan, Ye Yaodong arranged to return by boat to avoid being robbed on the road. As he waited at the pier with his companions, a tractor arrived and club-wielding men jumped out, forcing them to flee into the alleys.

• Director Zhao bought Ye Yaodong's oarfish for eight hundred yuan after Hong Wenle yielded his bid.
• Hong Wenle warned Ye Yaodong to leave quickly, and Ye Yaodong decided to take a boat home because the crowd might attract robbers.
• Ye Yaodong borrowed a telephone to ask his family to send a boat to the pier, while the tractor driver headed home separately.
• At the pier, Ye Yaodong and his companions joked while waiting and discussed how he might spend his money.
• A tractor pulled up at the pier, and men carrying clubs jumped off, so Ye Yaodong and his companions ran toward the alleys.

Ye Yaodong and his companions fought back against the thugs who had chased them through the red-light district, then captured and tied up all ten men. After learning the thugs had beaten a tractor driver to find them, Ye Yaodong and A-Guang prepared to haul the captives to the border defense station while Ye Yaodong’s father arrived with the boat.

• Ye Yaodong, A-Guang, and A-Zheng fled into a small shop, then turned around and beat two club-wielding pursuers, disarming and tying them up.
• Ye Yaodong and the others helped another companion fight off three more thugs, then found his two cousins emerging in disheveled clothes with five stripped-down men behind them.
• The group caught and tied up all five men, threw their clothes into the sea, and learned that the thugs had beaten a tractor driver to discover their location at the pier.
• Ye Yaodong’s father arrived with the boat, and the group gagged the ten captives with their own socks and strung them together.
• Ye Yaodong and A-Guang set off to take the captives to the border defense station while the others boarded the boat.

Ye Yaodong and A-Guang left the captured thugs tied to a tree near the Border Defense Station, then returned to the pier with the others and headed home. After giving Lin Xiuqing the eight hundred yuan from the oarfish sale and telling her about the catch, Ye Yaodong warned her to stay alert for possible earthquakes.

• Ye Yaodong and A-Guang tied the gagged thugs around an osmanthus tree near the Border Defense Station and left them there overnight.
• Ye Yaodong joked that he had lost the eight hundred yuan, alarming everyone before revealing the money was safe and getting mobbed for the prank.
• Ye Yaodong asked Father Ye about Uncle Zhou, then offered his two older male cousins money to make up for their trouble, but they refused.
• Ye Yaodong returned home and gave Lin Xiuqing the eight hundred yuan from the oarfish sale and a piece of red coral to keep.
• Ye Yaodong told Lin Xiuqing how he had caught the oarfish, cautioned her that going to sea was dangerous, and urged her to watch for signs of an earthquake.

After finding an oarfish, Ye Yaodong avoided going far out to sea as waves grew rough, then checked his fishing pots and visited Uncle Zhou. The village spent two nights fearing an earthquake or tsunami, and Ye Yaodong went to the People's Commune to look for news about what had caused the unsettled sea.

• Ye Yaodong turned his boat back when he encountered strong offshore waves, then later checked his coastal fishing pots and brought in a good catch.
• Ye Yaodong set aside shrimp and sea bass for Uncle Zhou, visited him, and learned that he had suffered only minor injuries.
• The villagers watched enormous waves crash offshore and feared an earthquake or tsunami, while Ye Yaodong's family stayed awake through the night.
• After nothing happened for two nights, villagers blamed Ye Yaodong's oarfish for frightening them, and Mother Ye defended him.
• Ye Yaodong went to the People's Commune to read the daily paper and search for news about the rough seas.

After learning about the recent earthquakes and tsunami, Ye Yaodong began studying old newspapers and teaching himself characters with Lin Xiuqing. When the weather cleared, he prepared to go fishing and reluctantly agreed to take Mother Ye and Ye Huimei to gather seafood on an island.

• Ye Yaodong borrowed newspapers from Secretary Chen, then teased Ye Chenghai about failing his tests and sent him running from Ye Eldest Sister-in-Law’s whip.
• Ye Yaodong read the newspapers at home, circled unfamiliar characters, and asked Lin Xiuqing to teach him while their sons waited for lunch.
• After the wind and waves eased, Ye Yaodong collected repaired fishing gear and reserved miscellaneous fish and shrimp for his trip.
• Mother Ye asked Ye Yaodong to drop her and several aunts on an island to gather seafood, and he agreed to take only her and two aunts.
• Ye Huimei pleaded with Father Ye and Ye Yaodong to join the trip, and Ye Yaodong finally agreed to take her instead of the aunts.

Ye Yaodong took his family out to set fishing gear near a familiar island, but at dawn they discovered a newly surfaced reef. As they approached, the family spotted abundant sea snails, small green lobsters, and abalone.

• Ye Yaodong brought extra food and took Ye Huimei, Mother Ye, and Father Ye aboard to help with the day's fishing.
• The family baited ten baskets of longline hooks, set the lines and gill nets, then headed toward the nearby island.
• Father Ye noticed the island's surroundings looked different, and the family waited aboard until daylight to investigate.
• At sunrise, Ye Yaodong and Father Ye realized a dark rocky islet might be a submerged reef pushed above the sea.
• Ye Yaodong steered closer, and the family saw large sea snails, small green lobsters, and abalone covering the reef.