Chapter 246: The Fisherman in the Sunset
I sat on the reef by the sea with the sun setting in the west, and as the tide rose to the simple pier made of earth, I saw a fishing boat returning from the sunset.
It was a small fishing boat only seven or eight meters long, and a small diesel engine rumbled on the fishing boat. After the fishing boat docked at the small pier, a middle-aged man in his fifties stepped out of the fishing boat's shed, fixed the fishing boat to the pier with a cable, and then carried a basket from the boat to the shore.
I saw in the basket all sorts of marine fish that I had never seen before.
When my uncle came ashore, he looked at me, and then at the duffel bag I had at my side. With a puzzled expression, he stepped forward and said something to me in the vernacular. I didn't understand, so I smiled apologetically at him. He probably understood that I was a foreigner, and he hesitated, probably thinking in his mind what to say in Mandarin.
"Young man, I saw you sitting here all afternoon, you will be fine!" He said with a look of some unease on his face, and looked at my travel bag again as he spoke.
Then I realized that he had seen me a long time ago, and that his fishing boat was too small to go to the open sea, but the sun was too dazzling on the sea surface for me to find him.
I smiled at him, and listening to his tone, I thought he must have misunderstood, probably from the fact that I had sat motionless by the sea all afternoon, and my melancholy expression had thought of something that I couldn't think of!
"Uncle, I just want to come and see the sea, it's nothing!" I said to him with a smile.
The uncle's puzzled expression was not solved, he looked up at the vast sea, and said, "What's so beautiful about the sea, isn't it cold for you to be so windy!" "He has lived by the sea all year round, and he has long been accustomed to the magnificence of the sea, so he cannot understand the feelings of me, a newcomer.
"You look like you're going all the way away, it's getting dark, do you have a place to live? If not, come with me to my house, I have made a lot of shrimp, they are big, I will let the old woman make them for you! ”
He smiled and said to me in earthy Mandarin, showing his untidy teeth, and turning the bamboo basket upside down to show me the shrimp he had caught.
I saw that his expression was simple and didn't look like he was deliberately polite, so I nodded at him! When he saw that I had agreed to his invitation, his face immediately grew. What a hospitable person, I thought.
So I followed him to his house, and during the conversation on the way, I learned that his surname was Wang, and most of the people in their village were surnamed Wang, so I called him Uncle Wang.
Uncle Wang's home is in the east of the village, although it is also a blue brick house, but the interior of the room is quite comfortable, and the warmth measures are very good, as soon as you walk into the house, you will feel warm and coaxing.
The six tiled houses on opposite sides are guarded by a large courtyard, which is quiet and cozy, and I liked it as soon as I entered the courtyard. This kind of idyllic life is rare in this society, but it is the kind of quiet and far-reaching feeling that I look forward to from the bottom of my heart!
Uncle Wang's wife is a kind middle-aged woman, although she is dressed plainly, her charming body also shows a little bit of wealth. After Uncle Wang told her my intention, she greeted me warmly, and then took the fish that Uncle Wang had caught into the kitchen.
Uncle Wang let me go to the kang and talked to me happily. During the conversation, I learned that there are more than 40 families in their village, and the young people have gone out to work, and they live by raising sea creatures by the sea, although they do not earn a lot of money, but their lives are worry-free.
He proudly told me that he had a college student's daughter in the county silver
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If I'm not in a hurry to leave, I'll be able to see her on the weekend.
I think he must have regarded this daughter of hers as the greatest achievement of his life.
When he learned that I was not in a hurry to leave, he invited me again to his house for the weekend, and I gladly agreed. It hasn't been a long time since we got along, and I've already fallen in love with this warm and simple and hospitable uncle.
When I asked him if there was a house nearby that I could rent, he groaned and asked me why I was here.
I told him I wasn't here for a purpose, but because I didn't have a place to go, and I liked it, I wanted to stay here for a while.
Although he didn't understand what I was saying, he didn't think much of it. Instead, it quickly helped me solve the problem.
He told me that his brother had a house that had been vacant for several years because the family had moved to the city, and that if I didn't dislike it, the house was a bit rudimentary, I could live there.
I was overjoyed, and I asked him how he was going to pay the rent.
He waved his hand and said, "No need to pay, this house has been abandoned after he moved out, and it is impossible for him to come back, and it is not the result of a collapse in the end!" If someone takes care of it, you can keep it for a few more years! ”
I was a little hesitant, thinking that it was not too good to live in someone else's house for nothing! Seeing that I was silent, Uncle Wang patted me on the shoulder and said with a smile: "Young people don't have to think so much, I can make decisions about this matter, if you have any doubts in your heart, I will give him a call and let him know!" ”
I nodded, thinking that it was necessary, and it was up to him to decide.
So, he really took out an old man's mobile phone with a button and dialed it. After a few simple words, the matter was finalized by him.
I was overjoyed and felt a little more affectionate to this lovely old man.
So I confessed some things about me to him, but of course I had reservations, and I told him that I had been imprisoned for a financial dispute, and that I had just come out of prison and did not want to stay where I was anymore, so I came here as I pleased.
Although I have a lot to hide, this is not a deception, and there is no need to say more about other sad things.
Fortunately, when I observed Uncle Wang's expression, he didn't show any unusual eyes, and it was obvious that he was not very repulsive to the fact that I had been in prison, at least it seemed so, which made me feel a little relieved.
Soon Aunt Wang cooked the meal, I have to say that Aunt Wang's dishes are very delicious, a plate of sea shrimp is particularly delicious, so I am very satisfied.
Uncle Wang also took out a bottle of wine, but I politely declined due to stomach problems, which made him sigh and regret.
After the meal, Uncle Wang didn't ask me if I wanted to stay overnight, so he asked Aunt Wang to help me make a bed in the opposite house and let me rest!
That night, I lay in the warm bed, listening to the wind and the faint sound of the waves, which made my heart gradually quiet, and soon sank into sleep.
The next day Uncle Wang took me to the courtyard he had mentioned, which was a courtyard on a small hill by the sea, and I could see the sea from outside the wall.
The layout of the courtyard is the same as that of Uncle Wang's, but it looks a little desolate because it has not been occupied for a long time.
Uncle Wang handed me the key and took his leave, saying that the seafood merchant was coming today, and he was going to the beach to catch the mature seafood, and he had to be busy for a while. I thanked him and he left.
I used the key to open the slightly rusted iron lock, which I had not opened in a long time
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It took a lot of work to open it.
There was a strong dilapidated atmosphere in the house, probably as Uncle Wang said, the master here never came back to pick up after leaving! I looked around and saw that several pieces of old solid wood furniture were no longer usable, and the walls were peeling off.
Fortunately, the roof tiles are still intact, there is no trace of rain leakage in the house, the doors and windows can be used normally with simple repairs, and the cement kang and stove are still intact, but the iron pot is rusty.
I wasn't disappointed by this, but I was so glad I was that this secluded courtyard would be a great place to live if I could settle here, but of course it was just for me!
I put down my belongings and began to pack up, I removed the rotten furniture, cleaned it from the inside out, and scrubbed the doors and windows with water from a well in the courtyard.
After doing all this, I went to the town to buy some wallpaper and a bucket of paint, and after putting wallpaper on the peeling walls and repainting a few doors, the dilapidated scene suddenly became new.
I was busy until noon, when Uncle Wang came back, I was using clay to mend the cracks in the clay, he entered the house and looked around with a look of surprise, he probably didn't expect that this house was changed by me in half a day, seeing his surprised expression I couldn't help but feel a little proud!
After two more meals at Uncle Wang's house that day, I moved into my new home that night. I borrowed Uncle Wang's tricycle and went to town to buy new bedding and some simple household items, as well as pots and pans and other things, and with these things, I think I can live here completely.
As for my future financial resources, I am not worried, I still have the money left over from the transfer of the silversmith's shop, although it is not much, but I think I can survive in such an environment for a long time without worrying about my livelihood. Besides, I'm able-bodied, so it's not hard to just feed myself.
I spent the next few days taking care of my so-called new home, and although I don't know how long I would stay here, I wanted to verify what the old monk said, and I wanted to see if I could really find a new life as he said.
I cleaned the yard with the tools left by the previous owner of the house, re-fenced the wellhead of the well with cement, and lubed the rusted door lock, and it became much more alive in an instant.
This weekend, I finally met Uncle Wang's proud daughter, her name is Wang Xiaoyu, she is a petite and beautiful girl, with a pair of big eyes that look very smart. When she saw me, she would be unconsciously shy, clean as a piece of unpolished jade, simple and pure.
I learned before that the old couple had been married for more than ten years before they had this daughter, so they naturally doted on her, which can be seen from the way they looked at their daughter.
The thing they are most proud of is that Xiaoyu was not only admitted to a well-known university in China, but also got a job as a bank clerk after graduation, which is undoubtedly a very proud thing in their eyes, and it is also an example that others in their village use to inspire their own children.
At the dinner table, they couldn't help but boast about her daughter to me, which made the little girl a little embarrassed, and complained about her parents in a coquettish manner. Seeing her red face and red ears and the inconvenience of me, an outsider, made me feel funny and envious, happiness could have been very simple, but many people can't ask for it no matter what!
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