Chapter 404: Harvesting the Tide
Chapter 404: Chapter 404: Harvesting the Tide
At first, Bai Suihe was cautious, but soon she stopped caring whether her clothes and shoes were getting wet and threw herself into wrestling with the seafood.
Perhaps due to the era’s pristine environment, the unpolluted ocean was exceptionally rich in resources. Moreover, their timing couldn’t have been better. It was low tide, and the seafood was practically lying there, waiting to be picked up for free.
Seeing that it was just their family of three around, Bai Suihe grew bolder. The moment her hands brushed against anything, she tossed it directly into the kitchen of her interspatial domain, where she had previously cleared out a large vat.
Giant mud crabs? Taken. Blue swimmer crabs and scorpionfish? Not spared either.
Whether it was a giant octopus or a tiny one hiding in the crevices, as long as she spotted it, she didn’t bother wrestling with it. She simply tossed the creature in along with the rock it clung to; once inside her domain, they would automatically detach, and she could just throw the rock back out.
As for the sea snails, she specifically picked the prettiest and largest ones. Of course, she didn’t forget to leave a few scattered around her as a cover for her beachcombing.
Coupled with the super-excited secret weapon that was Gu Xingyang, Bai Suihe caught her targets with unfailing accuracy. Nothing could escape the mother-daughter duo’s eagle eyes.
Getting things for free was undeniably thrilling. Bai Suihe got so carried away that Gu Kaiyuan finally couldn’t stand it anymore. "More than half of your clothes are soaked. Let’s head back and get you changed. There’s no need for you to gather these yourself. I’ll go to the fishing village up ahead and hire a few people. I guarantee you’ll return with a bountiful haul."
Since Bai Suihe had already swept the immediate area clean of most goods, she didn’t insist on staying. Besides, having wet shoes and socks was truly uncomfortable. Thankfully, their carriage was parked just up ahead, so she could easily hop in and change.
Climbing into the carriage with a few conches in her arms, Bai Suihe couldn’t resist showing off her treasures. "Baby, when we get back, I’ll prep this melon shell. Your father and I will eat the meat, and the shell will be all yours."
Gu Xingyang waved her little hands. Though she was a bit disappointed that she couldn’t taste the meat, getting a seashell wasn’t a bad deal. "Mother, remember to wash it really clean..."
Seeing their masters heading back to the carriage, Zisu and the other servants quickly followed.
After changing out of her wet shoes and socks, Bai Suihe walked toward the fishing village. Small stone houses were scattered everywhere, with fishing nets draped outside to dry. A few elders sat nearby mending nets. They weren’t surprised by the sight of strangers and silently went about their business.
In their village, it wasn’t uncommon to see unfamiliar faces passing through every day. Some were curious tourists coming to see the sea, while others were wealthy nobles from the city looking for fresh seafood. As far as the villagers were concerned, Bai Suihe undoubtedly fell into one of those two categories.
Gu Kaiyuan knew the local dialect, so he walked over and communicated without any barriers, quickly gathering the information he needed. Returning to Bai Suihe’s side, he said, "Their fishing boats will be back before sunset. If we want to buy any seafood, we can wait here.
"I just asked the old man over there, and he agreed to let the women in his family help us comb the beach."
Before Bai Suihe could ask more, she saw several nimble women carrying bamboo baskets on their backs, standing awkwardly in front of them. Judging by their speed, it was clear they did this sort of work for visitors often.
Although Bai Suihe could understand some of the local dialect, she couldn’t speak it fluently. Fortunately, the villagers understood some Mandarin, so communication wasn’t an issue.
These women were seasoned workers, and beachcombing was their specialty. Walking side by side, they methodically combed through the shoreline. In no time at all, their baskets were nearly full.
Bai Suihe instantly felt like an amateur. Even with the cheat code of her interspatial domain, she hadn’t managed to gather as much as they had. However, she was easily contented—all this seafood belonged to her, after all.
The only strange thing was the way these women looked at her. She wondered if there was a hint of pity in their eyes.
Little did she know that the things she prized were completely ignored by the villagers. They were too much of a hassle to eat. The locals vastly preferred ocean fish—they were mostly meat and tasted countless times better than these scavenged bits.
And look at what else she was taking! Kelp? Sea bird’s nest? This young madam wanted it all. They really wanted to tell her that sea bird’s nest tasted awful, but seeing her bubbling excitement, they swallowed their words.
"So much," Bai Suihe murmured, feeling a twinge of regret as several large baskets were set before her.
These were out in the open, so she couldn’t secretly stow them in her domain. With just the few of them, there was no way they could finish eating all of it.
Gu Kaiyuan chuckled as he paid the silver. He then had someone hire a cart to transport the goods to a storefront he had just purchased, leaving the processing for later when they returned. After all, the fishy smell was overpowering, and they still needed to use their own carriage.
Bai Suihe blinked. She wondered why she hadn’t thought of that. They could stash the goods there first. As for how to process them behind closed doors, that was entirely up to the two of them.
When the fishing boats returned, they brought in the day’s catch. Looking at the fresh seafood, Bai Suihe couldn’t resist buying out the entire lot and hired another cart to send it back.
Seeing yet another boat approaching, her heart fluttered with temptation again.
Zisu and the others hesitated several times before finally speaking up. "Madam, with so much seafood, it’ll go bad quickly. Why don’t we come back another day?"
Bai Suihe already had her excuse ready. "Don’t worry, we aren’t eating all of this ourselves. I plan to give them away as gifts. Once we get back and sort them out, they’ll be sent off posthaste. I promise none of it will go to waste."
Having followed them all along the journey, Zisu and the servants knew their master had made new friends in several nearby county towns, so this explanation made perfect sense.
Saying no more, they actively stepped in to help select the catch. Whenever a well-meaning fisherman advised them not to buy too much at once to avoid waste, the servants helped explain.
Naturally, the fishermen were thrilled to have such a big customer. It saved them the trouble of traveling into the city overnight to sell their catch, allowing them to go out fishing again. They even offered discounts so generous that Bai Suihe couldn’t refuse even if she wanted to.
Seeing their honesty, Bai Suihe ordered some dried goods as well. She arranged to return the next day to purchase more, telling them to prepare everything—she would buy however much they had.
Although they would likely live in this area in the future, Bai Suihe simply couldn’t restrain herself when faced with such high-quality, dirt-cheap seafood. It was even cheaper than the best modern-day bargains! Besides, she had a storage room that could keep things fresh indefinitely, so stockpiling wasn’t an issue at all.
Seeing it was getting late, she reluctantly stopped and reminded the fishermen of their appointment the following day. She planned to buy even more; if they ever returned inland, these items would be rare commodities.
Once they returned to Tian Village, she would have to figure out a way to replicate the ice-making process. That would serve as a perfect cover. With Saltpeter Mountain at their disposal, it would seem perfectly natural.
At this thought, Bai Suihe could almost see countless golden ingots waving at her. It was just that their current power was a bit lacking. It seemed she would need to have a serious discussion with Gu Kaiyuan when they got back; when it came to a pie this big, they would have to share a slice of it with others.
Catching Bai Suihe’s gaze, Gu Kaiyuan immediately leaned over. "Is something on your mind?"