Reborn in 78, I made my fortune by working in the mountains, supporting three families on my own.

"It's alright, Sixth Uncle, we'll be going now."

"Okay, take care on the road."

After saying goodbye to Uncle Liu, the group passed by several neighboring houses on their way back to Zhao Lei's home.

Without exception, they were all stopped by others, who either exchanged eggs, or grain coupons, cloth coupons, or meat coupons for some fish.

Along the way, they exchanged at least seven or eight large fish weighing four or five pounds each.

When they got home, there were still quite a few fish left from the more than 100 pounds of fish they had brought home.

The three ex-wives, who were taking care of their children under the eaves, stared wide-eyed when they saw the brothers carrying back bamboo poles laden with large fish.

Qin Yuchan exclaimed in surprise, "Oh my, Sanshi, Big Brother, Little Brother, Zongbao, is this all the fish you caught this morning?"

Jiang Xinyue was also seeing such a scene for the first time. She couldn't hide her joy at the harvest, and her big, watery eyes curved into crescent shapes.

"Sanshi, you guys caught so many fish?"

Su Wanqing and the children were very happy under the eaves. The children jumped and clapped their hands repeatedly.

"Dad is so amazing! Uncle Daddy, Uncle Xiaomao, and Uncle Zongbao are all amazing too!"

"So many fish, so many fish, we can't eat them all."

"The fish are swaying..."

Zhao Lei instructed everyone to put the fish in place first. He then took a bamboo brush and, taking advantage of the accumulated water from the heavy rain, gave the bluestone water tank, which had not been cleaned for years, a quick scrub.

After scooping out the accumulated water with Qin Dashan, they filled the tank with water again and threw the fish back in.

After finishing all that, Qin Yuchan took out several sets of clothes from the room and gave them to everyone: "Big brother, little brother, Zongbao, come on, don't mind, these are Zhao Lei's clothes. Change into something clean so you don't catch a cold later."

Qin Dashan and his companions didn't stand on ceremony. They went to their rooms to change their clothes before coming to the main room, looking refreshed.

Zhao Lei had already told Qin Yuchan, Jiang Xinyue, and Su Wanqing to pick out three large fish and were busy in the kitchen.

But there was still quite a bit left in the jar.

Zhao Lei said, "There are still quite a few fish left. Each of you can pick a few good ones to take home."

Wang Zongbao was the first to speak up: "Brother Lei, my family has plenty of fish to eat. My grandpa's out fishing right now. Do you think we could sell these fish and get some money?"

Zhao Lei immediately understood Wang Zongbao's meaning and said with a smile, "Haha, Zongbao, are you in a hurry to marry Xiao Cui and save up for a wife?"

"Hey, Lei-ge, it's enough that you know."

Upon hearing this, everyone burst into laughter.

Qin Dashan and Qin Bowen picked out two fish, which weighed about eight or nine pounds in total, and left the rest untouched.

"Brother-in-law, my older brother and I can take these two fish back to eat. There are only my parents, sister-in-law and nephew at home."

"By the way, my sister-in-law is pregnant with her second child. Brother, could you pick out some crucian carp to make fish soup for her? I think the rest can be sold."

Qin Dashan nodded quickly, "Yes, that's good. We can't possibly eat all of this, so it would be better to sell it for money."

After everyone expressed their opinions, Zhao Lei finally made the decision: "Alright, since you all say so, let's take them out to sell after we finish eating and when the rain gets a little lighter."

Wang Zongbao suggested, "Brother Lei, why don't we take it to town to sell? In the village, everyone uses grain coupons and meat coupons to exchange for meat, and they're all related. We'd be losing out a bit, it's not worth it."

"I'll go to town to sell them. Those people there have money, and since they're fresh, I can get a good price. It's been a few days since I went to the market, so I'd like to buy some things."

Zhao Lei thought it was a good idea and nodded in agreement.

noon.

The brothers enjoyed a delicious spicy and sour pickled fish at Zhao Lei's house. Zhao Lei also personally cooked a cold crucian carp dish, which received unanimous praise from everyone.

Qin Yuchan gave a rare thumbs-up: "Sanshi, I didn't expect you to have such a talent! We've been married for so many years, and you've never made this dish for me before."

Jiang Xinyue also praised repeatedly: "Hmm, I never thought crucian carp could be eaten cold. This is the first time I've ever tried it this way. It's so delicious, much better than the chefs I used to hire at home. Sanshi, you made it really well."

Hearing Jiang Xinyue mention the past, Zhao Lei suddenly remembered and asked, "Xinyue, how is your younger brother Jiang Chengfeng? Have you heard from home?"

Jiang Xinyue did the math; she had only sent the money a few days ago, and based on the distance, it would take several more days to travel back and forth.

"It should take a few more days to get a reply, but once the fine is paid, everything should be fine, right?"

"But this isn't a long-term solution. I think you should write a letter to Mom when you have time and ask her to come here. She and my brother are alone over there, and it's hard for us to help them if they need anything."

Upon hearing this, Su Wanqing quickly chimed in, "Yes, Sister Xinyue, if your mother could come, we'd have someone to take care of the child, and we wouldn't have to bother Granny Zhang every day. Sanshi's idea is really good; we won't have to worry about taking care of the child these next few days, which will be much easier."

Qin Yuchan said with some concern, "Sanshi, we only have a few rooms in our house now. Where will Xinyue's mother and younger brother stay?"

Zhao Lei slapped his forehead and sighed softly, "Oh right, I almost forgot about it. Never mind, let's wait until the new house is built before we talk about it."

Afterwards, the family talked about building the house, which was a huge project.

Zhao Lei explained his estimate for the consumables, which would cost around three to four thousand yuan, far from enough at present, and he might have to wait a while longer.

Qin Dashan chimed in, "Lei Zi, this can't be rushed. The rainy season is almost over, and we'll be harvesting corn and threshing rice soon, which will be the busy farming season. You won't have any workers to help you build the house now. I think it's better to wait until after the harvest season to start construction."

Zhao Lei nodded: "Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too. After all, it's been raining every day. If they demolish my old house, where will my wife and kids sleep?"

Upon hearing Zhao Lei's words, Qin Yuchan immediately retorted sarcastically, "Oh, so you still know you have a wife and children?"

Zhao Lei muttered, "You're everywhere, even eating can't shut you up, huh?"

Hahaha......

Immediately, their bickering drew laughter from everyone.

Perhaps it was the weather that was kind to us, but it happened around 1 p.m. after lunch.

The heavy rain that lasted all night and all morning has finally subsided.

"Brother-in-law, the rain outside has lessened."

Zhao Lei looked up and saw that it was indeed true, so he told everyone to put on their straw hats and raincoats again.

After Wang Zongbao finished dressing, he greeted Zhao Lei and said, "Brother Lei, you guys find something to pack the fish up first, I'm going back to drive the oxcart."

Zhao Lei nodded.

He suddenly realized that they had done several transactions without having a proper means of transportation.

Wang Zongbao always had to go back to drive the oxcart.

Although oxcarts were indeed convenient and labor-saving in this era, they did not save time and were often much slower than walking.

Zhao Lei thought to himself that it would be perfect to use an oxcart to transport heavy goods.

However, for some light tasks, other means of transportation are still necessary...