Chapter 63

The sea water churned at the horizon, and what lay before them was not a beach of light golden sand, but a vast expanse of grayish-black mudflats. Stepping into it was like sinking into a quagmire, leaving deep dents in the mud.

Sister Zaohua advised, "Don't go in too deep, be careful."

The mudflat was filled with live mudskippers. From a distance, they resembled wriggling mud shrimp, but up close, they were clearly fish, with two large black pearl-like eyes. They had round mouths and could jump higher than a person.

Chen Baozhen widened her eyes. "There are... so many of them!"

It was literally fish everywhere!

The entire mudflat was alive with mudskippers, rising and falling in the mud. It seemed that with just a random grab, one could catch five or six of them.

Qin Yao muttered under her breath, "These fish are so ugly."

Sister Zaohua said that her family loved to eat them. Qin Yao had thought they were some kind of delicacy, but seeing these "mud-eating" ugly fish, they looked as unappealing as toads.

Could these things really be tasty? She’d rather pick oysters than struggle to catch these fish.

Sister Zaohua smiled. "They’re delicious. Don’t let their mud-eating fool you; they’re not fishy at all."

Chen Baozhen exclaimed excitedly, "Yaoyao, there are so many! Let’s catch a few."

"Think they’re easy to catch? Think again." Sister Zaohua lunged forward with a bamboo net, but the mudskippers scattered, and she caught none.

Sister Zaohua felt a bit embarrassed.

Chen Baozhen: "..."

Qin Yao: "..."

Sister Zaohua said, "These fish can burrow into holes. See, I'm experienced. There are fish in this hole; you need to bait and fish for them here."

Sister Zaohua’s skill in catching mudskippers was poor. If Qin Yao and the others weren’t there, she would have dug around in the mud without caring about her appearance. But today, she wanted to keep her dignity, so she fished for mudskippers using shrimp meat as bait and a rod.

She handed a simple bamboo fishing rod to both Qin Yao and Chen Baozhen. "I’ll show you how to fish for them."

While they were talking, excited shouts came from the other side. "Impressive! Impressive! Xiao Pan, you’re really good!"

Qin Yao and Chen Baozhen turned to look and saw Xiao Pan "anchoring" fish. He used a special fishing rod that required no bait, just a hook.

With a casual throw, the hook caught a mudskipper precisely.

"Xiao Pan, well done." Gao Yingzi’s face flushed with excitement. At that moment, she saw Xiao Pan as an outstanding bachelor, both literate and capable.

Not only Gao Yingzi, but even Jiang Xiaomiao and Deputy Liu couldn’t help but focus on Xiao Pan.

"Watch this, it’s simple." Xiao Pan, thinking he looked cool, swung his rod. This time, the hook missed.

He felt a bit embarrassed. "Once more."

Everyone watched intently.

Xiao Pan threw his hook, and though not perfect, he caught six or seven out of ten attempts, making him a top anchor fisher.

A line of young girls lined up to learn from him.

Seeing this, Qin Yao frowned but said nothing. She attended to Chen Baozhen. "Come on, Zhenzhen, let me help you bait the hook."

Chen Baozhen suddenly felt playful and, ignoring her usual concerns about propriety, focused on fishing.

With Sister-in-Law Zao Hua's guidance, she and Qin Yao struggled but finally caught one.

Sister-in-Law Zao Hua praised them, “Not bad at all, very good.”

Sister-in-Law Zao Hua couldn’t help but look at the two city girls differently. Among everyone here today, Qin Yao and Chen Baozhen were the only ones from the capital. Chen Baozhen, usually proud and picky, wasn’t bothered by the muddy tidal flats or the smelly sea shrimp bait.

Sister-in-Law Zao Hua had been concerned that Chen Baozhen might get angry or refuse to come to the tidal flats.

But now, seeing her playing happily in the mud in her rain boots, she was just like any other young girl.

In the eyes of Sister-in-Law Zao Hua and the others, Chen Baozhen and Qin Yao had become much more approachable.

“Chen Laoshi, come over here, put your line here, there are fish below,” another sister-in-law said to Chen Baozhen with a friendly smile.

Chen Baozhen nodded, “Sure thing, thanks.”

Wearing a straw hat, Chen Baozhen noticed that the military wives from the base, who usually didn’t talk to her, were now chatting with her casually, treating her as one of them.

Realizing this, she felt very happy inside.

Chen Baozhen held the fishing rod, watching the other sisters-in-law use bamboo poles and nets to catch fish, even diving forward into the muddy water without hesitation, putting the muddy mudskippers into their baskets.

Compared to fishing with bait, using nets was much faster.

So, Chen Baozhen threw down her fishing rod, “I’m done fishing.”

Sister-in-Law Zao Hua was stunned, wondering if Chen Baozhen had lost patience.

But three seconds later, Chen Baozhen asked one of the sisters-in-law for a bamboo net, “Can I try this, sister? Can I borrow it?”

“This isn’t easy to use; you might fall.”

“I don’t care!”

Chen Baozhen took the bamboo pole and walked forward, yelling to Qin Yao, “Yaoyao, I’m going to give all the fish I catch to you!”

Qin Yao couldn’t help but laugh, “Come on, my dear, first you have to catch them.”

“When you fall flat on your face, I’ll help you wash up.”

“Hehe, Yaoyao, let’s wash up together.”

With that, Chen Baozhen swung the net forward, and just as a mudskipper jumped into the air, it fell right into the net, “Ah! I got it!”

Putting the fish into the basket, Chen Baozhen swung the net again, “Another one!”

“Again!”

“They’re so dumb!”

“Yaoyao, I caught another one!”

……

In just a few moments, Chen Baozhen had caught seven or eight fish. Turning around, she saw Sister-in-Law Zao Hua and the others staring with wide eyes.

Qin Yao, “!!!!!!!

Qin Yao was utterly astonished. She also borrowed a fishing net and swung it forward, but failed to catch any fish despite her efforts.

These mudskippers were remarkably agile, and just when it seemed she had one, it would dart away in an instant.

However, the mudskippers Chen Baozhen caught seemed like dazed fish; she caught one with every scoop.

Chen Baozhen caught several hundred on her own.

The mudflat became her personal stage.

Having practiced musical instruments diligently since childhood, she was used to long hours of practice every day. Now, with each swing of the net, she didn’t feel tired at all.

"Yingzi, can you still fit more in your basket?" Chen Baozhen’s bamboo basket had been full for a while. She helped Qin Yao fill hers, filled her sister-in-law’s, and gave plenty of fish to the other sisters-in-law.

Qin Yao and Gao Yingzi watched the entire time, catching only three or four tiny fish, while the rest was all Chen Baozhen’s performance.

Gao Yingzi’s eyes sparkled. "Sister-in-law, you’re amazing!"

Gao Yingzi used to think her sister-in-law, who grew up in the city and was pretty like a doll, couldn’t handle hard work. Without the hardworking farmers to support her, she would definitely starve.

But her sister-in-law actually had a secret technique for netting fish. She would never go hungry near the water.

"Sister-in-law, you’re so capable!"

Gao Yingzi had long set Xiao Pan aside and even returned the fish Xiao Pan had caught for her. "My basket is full of the fish my sister-in-law caught!"

No matter how much Gao Yingzi liked Xiao Pan, she loved a good deal even more. The mudskippers Xiao Pan caught with his anchor hook were either damaged or had holes in them; they looked revolting.

"Am I amazing? I think I’m amazing!" Chen Baozhen was very proud. "Next time you go fishing, make sure to invite me!"

Neighbor Sister Zaohua and the others nodded.

The group returned with a full load, this time with an astonishing haul. Among them, Chen Baozhen was the most excited, while Xiao Pan was in low spirits and quite dejected.

With Chen Baozhen as a comparison, Xiao Pan’s moment in the spotlight was completely gone.

Xiao Pan left with a dark face, and He Tengfei left too.

Deputy Director Liu was invited by the sisters-in-law to go to the family apartment. Qin Yao said, "Deputy Director Liu, come to my house for a meal."

"Alright." Deputy Director Liu agreed, her heart skipping a beat for a moment before calming down.

Her mouth moved, wanting to ask if Qin Yao’s husband was home, but she ultimately didn’t voice it.

In the eyes of most people at the hospital, Qin Yao marrying Gu Cheng was definitely a high match. In a high match, one is bound to suffer some grievances.

Director Huang also said that although Qin Yao appeared to be all smiles and glamorous on the surface, life at home might not be easy. Choosing a man, one must pick someone with a good temper. Deputy Director Liu deeply agreed.

Leaders in hospitals, and leaders in various military units, those who were good at handling matters and got promoted quickly, mostly had bad tempers and were domineering at home.

Their hospital had one such man. The husband was very excellent, and his wife was an army doctor, a graduate of the military school and an alumnus of her husband. She was a perfect example of a virtuous wife and good mother, with no ambition. Her mother had taught her since childhood to "regard her husband as her heaven" and "obey her father at home and her husband after marriage." Even when she was hit by her husband, she didn’t say much and even considered it a sign of his "manliness."

When it came to being hit, she still looked happy, saying that her husband used to fight a lot in school and even fought for her, resulting in a demerit. He should have been a troublemaker, but this man was also good at handling relationships, loyal to his brothers, good at currying favor with leaders, and his career developed smoothly after graduation.

Over the past few years, Deputy Director Liu had to admit that the honest and rule-abiding people were never seen by the leaders, while those who were good at handling matters and had good luck were more likely to rise step by step.

Marrying someone capable was naturally a good thing, but if Deputy Director Liu were to be hit, she couldn’t accept it.

Deputy Director Liu was friends with the female doctor, Xiao Yan. Xiao Yan always loved complaining to her about how her husband didn't respect her, hit her, and treated her as a scapegoat, but would also boastfully praise him, saying she admired him, that he had such manliness, and that she deserved to be hit because she was in the wrong.

"Beating is a sign of affection, scolding is love. The more he hits me, the more he scolds me, the more he cares about me."

"Men, it's normal for them to hit or scold."

Xiao Yan's words made her uneasy.

Deputy Director Liu was afraid that Qin Yao could be like Xiao Yan, and she had been hesitant to engage with her before, fearing that Qin Yao would complain about her husband’s mistreatment and lack of respect, only to sweetly boast about her husband’s excellence.

Deputy Director Liu had eaten at Xiao Yan's house, and Xiao Yan wasn't lying. Her husband really didn't respect her. Even with guests present, he would scold her whenever he wanted, speaking very harshly. Xiao Yan was submissive and cautious in front of her husband, which made others feel uncomfortable.

For a man of his age to have reached such a position and still be highly regarded by his superiors, he was indeed outstanding.

That meal was exceedingly awkward for Deputy Director Liu.

Qin Yao seemed similar to Xiao Yan and probably had little status at home. She might soon become another Xiao Yan.

Given the nature of his work, Captain Gu might not be home now. Deputy Director Liu dreaded another unbearably awkward meal.