"Sister Qing, weren't you in Modu?"
"Sis, I came back to get my household registration booklet."
"Sister Qing, are you getting married?"
"Yes, the banquet is in May next year. If you have time, come and join the fun then." Zhang Yixin revealed a happy smile as marriage was mentioned.
"Congratulations!"
Just then, the door was pushed open, and a well-dressed, refined man walked in. "Yiqing, I didn't find what you were looking for... oh, there's a guest."
"Ziming, let me introduce you. This is a younger brother of mine, Li Haochen. Haochen, this is my boyfriend, Huang Ziming."
Li Haochen stood up and shook hands with him politely. After some conversation, he learned that Huang Ziming was a local of Modu and a teacher at a university, recently promoted to associate professor. To reach such a position at his age indicated significant family influence.
Seeing that her boyfriend and Li Haochen were chatting amicably, Zhang Yixin went into the kitchen to help. Although they were conversing well, Huang Ziming's words were subtly tinged with a sense of superiority as a Modu native.
"Haochen, if you ever have the chance to visit Modu, be sure to call us. Don't stay in hotels, they're so expensive, one night can cost you a month's salary. We have plenty of room at home, so you can stay with us. It's convenient and saves a lot of money."
"Heh, thank you very much, Brother Ming." Li Haochen smiled faintly, unhurriedly rolling up his sleeves and revealing his Vacheron Constantin watch worth 700,000 yuan, deliberately giving it a slight swing. "It's mid-November, why is it still so hot? Don't you think so, Brother Ming?"
Huang Ziming recognized the brand of the wristwatch on Li Haochen's wrist. Its exquisite craftsmanship was far beyond any imitation. He had a keen eye for such things, and immediately dropped his air of superiority, inquiring, "Haochen, that's a really nice watch. Must have cost a lot, right?"
"Ah, it's not worth much, around 700,000 yuan, I think." Li Haochen said "700,000 yuan" as casually as if he were saying "70 yuan," his acting skills were top-notch.
"Dinner's ready..."
At this moment, Zhang Yixin's voice called from the kitchen. Li Haochen stood up, patted Huang Ziming on the shoulder, and said softly, "Brother Ming, although Qing-jie and I are not related by blood, I treat her as my own sister... Let's go, it's time to eat, heh heh!"
Li Haochen's words were actually intended to convey a message to Huang Ziming, or rather, to his family: Zhao Yiqing has a wealthy younger brother.
"It's still the same taste, Teacher. It's delicious! I could eat it forever and never get tired of it." Li Haochen ate, reminiscing about the four years of his high school life, the care and attention Liang Qiujin had given him, which he would never forget.
"If it's delicious, eat more, heh heh."
After the meal, Liang Qiujin brought over all the abalone, sea cucumber, shark fin, and ginseng and cordyceps that Li Haochen had brought. "Haochen, take these back."
Li Haochen wouldn't agree. He darted to the door and made a face. "Teacher, I have to rush to Sanya. I'll bring you something next time I'm back, hehe!"
"Hey, hey... this kid, he makes money and then spends it recklessly." Watching Li Haochen flee, Liang Qiujin chided him with a hint of exasperation.
Seeing these more than ten boxes of high-grade seafood and medicinal herbs, even with his considerable income, Huang Ziming wouldn't readily buy such gifts for others. This made him intensely curious about Li Haochen.
"Yiqing, what's your brother's background? He looks quite young, how can he afford so many high-grade seafood and medicinal herbs?"
"Him? He's a student of my mother. He came from a poor family back then, and Mom often brought him home for meals. Last time, I heard my mom say he did quite well in a fishing competition, winning over a million yuan in prize money."
"Oh, I see."
Huang Ziming lost interest after hearing this. He smacked his lips, thinking dismissively, "Hmph, a former fisherman."
Upon returning home, Li Haochen cleaned up and looked around his home one last time. He walked to the ancestral shrine and bowed. "Dad, Mom, Chen'er is leaving..."
He locked the door, grabbed his suitcase, and walked to Li Dehai's house. Seeing Li Haochen arrive, Li Dehai came out carrying several large bags of feed. "Haochen, take these back. They're from the village aunties. You don't have these local specialties where you're going. If you miss them later, just call Uncle, and I'll mail them to you."
"Uncle, I'm going to Sanya for a while. Besides, how long would it take to eat all this?" Looking at the large bags, which were even bigger than his two suitcases, he couldn't help but force a smile.
"What are you afraid of? They're all dried goods, just put them in the boat cabin, they'll be fine for months. Take this. Your aunt went to the temple this morning to get it for you."
Li Haoyang also came out and gave him a hug. "Take care!"
Putting on the protective charm, Li Haochen got into Li Zijian's truck. "Auntie, Brother, I'm heading back now. I'm leaving. Come to Binhai to play when you have time."
The truck stopped just as it reached the village entrance. Li Haochen got down. "Great-grandpa, why are you standing here? It's getting cold, quickly go back inside."
Li Shuren took a large red envelope from his inner pocket and placed it in Li Haochen's hand. "Little grandson, take this to buy some snacks. Don't worry about home when you're out. A man has to forge his own path."
"Sigh... I understand, Great-grandpa. You go back inside, don't catch a cold." With that, Li Haochen quickly got back into the truck, afraid to look at Li Shuren's receding figure, and even more unwilling to let him see him cry.
Departures are always sad, it's a true saying. Even during the short few minutes' journey, Li Haochen couldn't count how many tears he shed.
"Haochen, have a safe trip." After helping Li Haochen move all the luggage onto the sampan, Li Zijian also gave him a red envelope.
"Thank you, Uncle Jian. Take care!"
"Vroom, vroom, vroom~"
The diesel engine started, and the sampan slowly sailed towards the Starlette. It wasn't far, only a few minutes away. It took them considerable effort to bring all the items aboard.
Li Dehai jumped off the sampan, wiped away his teary eyes, and waved. "Haochen, come back when you miss home. I'm heading back now, don't worry about us."
Tears fell again. Li Haochen stood on the deck, watching Li Dehai until he returned to the shore, then looked at Li Family Village, and all the familiar mountains and seas outside the village. His heart was stirred for a long time.
After standing for half an hour, Li Haochen finally walked into the ship's cabin. Seeing the large bags of supplies, he was touched, but there were simply too many, and they occupied the entire cabin, forcing him to walk sideways.
"Keeping them stored like this isn't practical. I'll unpack them first and then deal with them."
When the six large bags were unpacked, Li Haochen was startled. They were filled with good things! Dried vegetables, dried taro roots, dried oysters, dried shrimp, cured meats and sausages, kudzu powder, and other dried goods. There was also a large bag of wild Daliangshan ginseng and Ligusticum wallichii, and even a big basket of earth eggs buried in bran. If they knew Li Haochen was sailing to Sanya, they probably would have loaded him with live chickens and geese.
After some arrangement, space was finally cleared in the cabin. He raised the anchor chain, started the engine, and blew the whistle.
"Sanya, here I come."