The Sea Queen of 1985

Chapter 173: Chapter 173: Prying Open Scallops, Very Special Pearls

Zhang Guangnan was surprised, but considering she had brought in two boatloads of seafood before, he had expected Han Xiaorui to earn a lot this time.

He wrote up an invoice for Han Xiaorui detailing the quantity, price, and total amount for the seafood, then hurriedly had it all hauled back to the cold storage.

After the typhoon a few days ago, his cold storage was running low on seafood. This shipment was perfect for restocking.

By now, the sky had brightened completely.

Chen Yishui was beaming. She would be getting a commission of over three thousand from this trip. It felt amazing.

’I feel rich all of a sudden!’

’No wonder Mom insisted I come back and go out to sea with Han Xiaorui.’

’She was so right!’

”Xiao Rui, there are still six baskets of scallops in the cold storage. Why didn’t you sell them? What are you keeping them for?” Chen Yishui asked with a smile. ”How are you planning to handle them? Since all us sisters are here, we can help you process them before we head out.”

Han Xiaorui thought for a moment. ’These were a special gift from Xiao Dai. I’d rather open them myself.’ ”No, that’s alright. Just call a car to help me get them home. You all can head home after you finish cleaning the boat. Come to my house tomorrow morning to get paid.”

”Alright!” Since Han Xiaorui didn’t want their help, Chen Yishui didn’t press the issue.

After all, they came from that sentient creature, Xiao Dai. Who knew, there might be something good inside them.

Han Xiaorui carried her duffel bag, which held her luggage and the ”gold ingot.”

A moment ago at the pier, she had thought about telling Yang Zhigang, but after a moment’s hesitation, she decided against it.

It was already six in the morning. Arriving at her front door, Han Xiaorui called out, ”Jiaojiao, Yaoyao, help me open the door.”

Wu Jiao, who was on watch for the night, had fallen asleep.

However, she woke up instantly at the sound from outside.

Recognizing Han Xiaorui’s voice, she rushed over to open the door. ”Sister Xiao Rui, you’re back! That’s great.”

Even though the thief hadn’t returned in the past two days, everyone had been on edge.

With Han Xiaorui’s return, Wu Jiao breathed a sigh of relief, feeling as if their backbone had returned.

Han Xiaoqing, who was upstairs, heard her sister’s voice, threw on some clothes, and came down. ”Sis, did the boat get back in the middle of the night?”

Han Xiaorui nodded. ”I just finished selling the fish from the boat, so I came right back. I also brought back a lot of scallops. Let’s shuck them and see if there are any pearls.”

Han Xiaoqing blinked, confused. ”I know Coconut Snails can have Mei Le Pearls, but these flat scallops have pearls in them too?”

Han Xiaorui smiled. ”Not necessarily, but it’ll be fun to check.”

”Okay! I don’t have to go to the hospital for class today anyway, so let’s start now.” Han Xiaoqing grinned. ”I’ll go get the knives!”

She found four sharp knives, ready to shuck the scallops.

Han Xiaorui sat on a small stool, holding a large scallop in her left hand and a knife in her right to pry open the shell.

Well, what do you know? Beginner’s luck.

The very first scallop had a pearl inside.

This one was purple, perfectly round and very special.

(Purple pearls are the most unique kind found in scallops.)

She plucked out the pearl, then scooped out the scallop meat. After removing the entrails, she kept only the clean white adductor muscle, dropping it into a basin of fresh water.

When Han Xiaoqing saw that her sister had already found a purple pearl, her eyes lit up with surprise. ”Oh my god, there really are pearls!”

As she spoke, she pried open a scallop with the knife in her hand.

Han Xiaoqing’s luck was also quite good; she found an oval, pale yellow pearl about the size of a peanut.

It was the first time Wu Jiao and Wu Yao had ever done this sort of work, so they were a little slow.

They had only managed to open one scallop by the time Han Xiaorui found her second pearl.

Some pearls were off-white, some were creamy yellow, and there were even more purple ones.

Some were round, some were oval, and others were irregular and unattractive.

Nearly every scallop had a pearl inside. Before long, the bottom of the basin was covered in them.

The pile of adductor muscles in the other basin grew steadily. They washed them clean and laid them out on a sieve to dry.

The adductor muscles they had shucked on the boat weren’t fully dry yet, so Han Xiaorui brought them out to dry on sieves in the courtyard as well.

Chen Yishui and the others cleaned the fishing boat from top to bottom, even spraying it with osmanthus-scented water to get rid of the fishy smell.

Having been up all night, they were exhausted. They hadn’t had a chance to wash up and smelled of sweat and the sea, so they were eager to get home, clean up, and rest.

Chen Yishui took the initiative and called for a four-wheeled farm vehicle to drop everyone off at their homes along the route.

Han Xiaorui shucked for a while, but once the novelty wore off, she lost interest.

”I’m covered in this smell. I’m going to take a shower and make some breakfast. You guys keep digging for pearls!”

Han Xiaoqing, however, was having the time of her life. She grinned and said, ”Sounds good, Sis!”

Wu Jiao and Wu Yao were like treasure hunters, not even looking up from their work.

Now that they had gotten the hang of shucking scallops and finding pearls, the two sisters were completely absorbed in the fun.

To keep things simple, Han Xiaorui just put on a pot of seafood congee.

Han Xiaorui took a shower, scrubbing herself and her hair thoroughly with shampoo to finally wash away the lingering smell of the sea.

With her hair wrapped in a towel, Han Xiaorui changed into some loungewear and went to the kitchen to stir the congee.

There were big steamed buns that Wu Jiao had made. Han Xiaorui sliced them, coated them in egg, and pan-fried them until golden brown.

They also had eight-treasure chili paste and braised bamboo shoots as side dishes.

By the time breakfast was ready, they still hadn’t finished with all the scallops.

Han Xiaorui poked her head out. ”Breakfast is ready!”

Everyone washed their hands and came over to eat.

Wu Jiao agreed. ”Let’s eat quickly so we can get back to shucking scallops and digging for pearls. This is so much fun!”

Han Xiaorui got her children dressed and let them eat on their own.

After she finished her meal, she went back to her room to sleep.

She woke up at two in the afternoon.

Han Xiaorui hadn’t even been woken up by the noise her children were making.

If she didn’t have to go to the bank at three o’clock to transfer funds and withdraw cash for the crew’s wages tomorrow, she would have slept straight through to the evening.

Whenever she had the chance to, Han Xiaorui liked to dress up nicely when she went out.

She wore a straw hat to shield her from the sun, a cream-colored, short-sleeved, V-neck blouse, and had the hem tucked into a maroon skirt.

(An 80s Hong Kong-inspired look.)

On her feet were a pair of off-white leather sandals with four-centimeter heels. She rode her bicycle to a spot near the bus stop and left it there.

The weather was hot, so Han Xiaorui used an umbrella for shade as she took the bus to the bank.

’If only I had a car and a driver, this wouldn’t be such a hassle.’

’If the driver’s license test wasn’t so hard to pass, I would’ve bought a car and started driving myself ages ago.’

When she got to the bank, Han Xiaorui saw that Zhang Guangnan had already arrived. ”Boss Xiao Zhang, you’re here early.”

Zhang Guangnan chuckled, his eyes full of admiration. ”Of course. I’m the one who owes Ms. Han money, so it’s only right that I arrive early and not keep you waiting.”

Han Xiaorui nodded with a smile. ”Then let’s not waste any time. Fishing at sea is exhausting, so the sooner we get this done, the sooner I can get home.”

”Alright!” Zhang Guangnan immediately had a bank associate handle the transfer.

Once the money was in her passbook, Han Xiaorui withdrew several tens of thousands in cash to keep for wages, leaving the rest for household expenses.

It was easy to hail a cab near the bank.

A motor-tricycle took her directly to her doorstep.

Han Xiaorui had just gotten home and hadn’t even had a sip of water when her sister, Han Xiaoqing, pulled her into a room. ”What’s wrong?”