The GORGEOUS Mermaid Who Lands in the Eighties: Nine Brothers and Endless Pampering! - Chapter 5

Yun Xiaowu and the others were thrilled. “Could this be another patch of moon clams?” “Never mind, let’s just start digging!”
Moon clams were buried quite deep in the sand, and sometimes when they dug, they’d completely lose the trail.
There were definitely moon clams around, but they weren’t in a cluster; the kids had to scour the whole area.
While Yun Xiaowu’s crew was searching for air holes, Yun Jiao had already unearthed three chunky moon clams.
They ended up finding eight in total.
Time was getting on, so it was time to head back.
Passing the same stretch of beach where they’d met the sea turtle before, they spotted it had returned.
Yun Jiao legged it over. “Turtle, what’s in the bag?”
The turtle dipped its head into the water, surfaced, and dropped something right in front of them.
Yun Jiao picked it up. No shells or snails this time, but a huge, shining golden fish.
“A Large Yellow Croaker!”
A proper, famous Large Yellow Croaker, and one that big! A sea turtle had actually caught it and delivered it to them!
“It’s still fresh.”
Yun Xiaowu grabbed the fish for a closer look, his face beaming with surprise.
“It’s a shame there’s only one, but this yellow croaker is enormous—must be five catties at least!”
Yellow croakers usually moved in schools and were pricey, going for four yuan a catty.
If they could haul in a whole net of them, they’d be set up for life.
“Sea turtle, you’re a turtle who knows how to repay a favour. I totally misjudged you.”
Yun Xiaowu was so chuffed he gave the big sea turtle a peck right on its smooth, bald head.
The large sea turtle: …………
It twisted its head furiously and buried it in the seawater.
The turtle clearly wasn’t having any of it from Yun Xiaowu.
This time, the sea turtle really did leave, but as it swam into the ocean, it twisted its neck to look back at Yun Jiao several times.
Yun Jiao waved. “When my family gets a boat, I’ll come and visit you!”
The turtle was a helpful acquaintance; it was worth keeping up a good friendship.
The sea turtle plunged into the sea and disappeared.
They’d found good things again, but the yellow croaker was the most valuable catch, even though it was a gift.
When they got back to the spot where Shen Yunlian and Wang Mei were foraging, they noticed the area was bustling.
They could faintly hear excited chatter.
“Mum, what’s all the fuss about?”
Shen Yunlian sounded envious. “Someone found a two-catty yellow croaker that washed up on the beach.”
At four yuan a cat, two catties was eight yuan.
Yun Xiaowu looked rather smug. “What was I saying? It’s only a two-catty one.”
Shen Yunlian shot him a glare. “What do you mean, ‘only’? That’s still…”
Before she could finish, Yun Xiaowu put his bucket down in front of them, and inside was that massive yellow croaker.
It was genuinely huge, bigger than any yellow croaker they’d ever seen!
Shen Yunlian and Wang Mei’s eyes nearly popped out.
One minute they were envying someone else’s stroke of luck, and the next, their own son turned up with this monster. It felt like a dream.
Shen Yunlian even pinched herself.
“This really isn’t a dream.”
“Quick, quick, cover that bucket with a shirt.”
Shen Yunlian immediately snatched her son’s shirt and threw it over the bucket.
It was a hot day, and there were plenty of boys running around shirtless, especially by the sea, so he wouldn’t catch a chill.
“But why hide it if it’s a good thing?”
He actually wanted to brag a little.
“What do you know? Loose lips sink ships. Our family building a house and about to buy a boat is already attracting enough attention. If people find out we have this much luck catching fish, the envious ones will start getting sticky fingers. Fewer headaches are always better.”
It wasn’t just the yellow croaker; they’d recently found those small lobsters, coral trout, and tiger groupers. Their run of luck at the seaside was so good, people were bound to get jealous.
They were worried about being targeted by petty thieves.
“Come on, let’s get home fast.”
Once home, they discovered they had more than just the huge yellow croaker; they also had about two catties of bl00d clams.
“Honestly, your luck is just unreal.”
Yun Xiaojiu piped up, “The big fish was a gift from the turtle!”
They all excitedly recounted the story of the sea turtle giving them the fish.
It had even sent a jellyfish earlier.
“A jellyfish? You didn’t go near it, did you? Those things are venomous.”
“No, we kept clear.”
Wang Mei said, “I’m taking the seafood to sell first. You’ll stay at home and play, okay?”
“Hold on.”
Shen Yunlian picked out the eight moon clams. “Let’s keep these for us to eat at home.”
Her daughter’s hungry face was just too pitiful.
They couldn’t afford to eat the yellow croaker right now, but they could keep these clams.
Wang Mei also noticed Yun Jiao’s longing, little face and couldn’t help but chuckle.
“If we can catch a lot of yellow croakers later, we’ll definitely keep a few for ourselves.”
The poor thing hadn’t had much.
Yun Jiao was very satisfied; just getting to eat those few moon clams was brilliant.
“I want a small octopus too.”
“Alright, alright, we’ll keep one of those as well.”
With that, Yun Jiao was completely happy.
Shen Yunlian and Grandma Yun stayed home to cook while Wang Mei took the seafood out to sell.
The second the adults’ backs were turned, Yun Xiaowu and the others immediately dragged Yun Jiao outside.
Staying at home was out of the question; it was far too dull.
“Come on, let’s go, we’re off to play marbles.”
His marble skills had come on leaps and bounds, and this time he was determined to show off in front of all the other children.
However, they were out of luck and bumped right into their arch-rival, Yun Zhuangzhuang, and his older cousin.
Yun Zhuangzhuang had been a bit wary of Yun Xiaowu’s group before, as he’d been on the receiving end of a beating.
But this time, relying on his cousin to back him up, he actually had the nerve to provoke them.
His cousin was big, several years older than Yun Xiaowu, and had a menacing build.
“Yun Xiaowu, Yun Xiaoliu, you guys are just little copycats! I bought glass marbles, so you had to buy them too!”
Yun Xiaowu wasn’t going to take that and snapped back immediately.
“You’ve got a nerve, haven’t you? Are glass marbles your property? If you can play with them, so can we! Yun Zhuangzhuang, are you looking for a fight?!”
Yun Zhuangzhuang hid behind his cousin and made a threat. “You think I’m scared of you? See this? This is my cousin, he’s King Golden Horn!”
Yun Zhuangzhuang’s cousin glared fiercely at Yun Xiaowu’s crew.
“Ha! You’re King Golden Horn? Then I’m the Great Sage Equal to Heaven!”
They just kept jawing at each other until, before anyone knew what was happening, fists were flying.
Yun Zhuangzhuang’s cousin was a few years older than Yun Xiaowu and Yun Xiaoliu, and his large size meant Yun Xiaowu was struggling on his own.
But who cared, he had backup.
Though Yun Xiaoliu was usually a bit lazy, seeing his brother getting battered, he charged in headfirst. The two brothers teamed up against Yun Zhuangzhuang’s cousin.
Yun Xiaoqi and Yun Xiaoba also rushed in to help.
Yun Jiao saw Yun Zhuangzhuang pick up a rock and prepare to launch it at her brother, and she was instantly livid.
She sprinted over, jumped up, and smacked Yun Zhuangzhuang right across the face.
Yun Zhuangzhuang was dazed by the hit.
“Yun Jiao, you little brat, how dare you hit me!”
Yun Jiao slapped him again.
Yun Xiaojiu rushed in and headbutted Yun Zhuangzhuang right in the stomach, knocking him straight over.
The two youngsters kept him pinned and gave him a good hiding.