Chapter 163 - Helper (1/2)

However, the second son still withstood that hard-pressed situation. The second son’s family now lived more comfortably than they had before they separated from the main branch. This made his mood unbalanced again.

Especially at the beginning of the spring when they went out to the sea, the amount of fish he caught was less than that of Yu Hai. The amount of money he earned was much less, at least half of what Yu Hai earned before. His mother always complained that he had no ability and that he couldn’t even compare with half of Yu Hai. These iron-like facts made him recognize the gap between himself and Yu Hai. The boulder that he had put down for a while once again pressed against his heart.

He went out fishing early in the morning, and he gathered seafood at the sea in the afternoon. Sometimes, he would go out in the middle of the night to dig for sandworms. He worked himself tirelessly to prove to his family that he wasn’t worse than Yu Hai.

However, reality still made him feel dejected. He had worked tirelessly without a moment of rest, yet he was only able to earn two to three hundred copper coins a day. Yu Hai didn’t have to go out to the sea or dig in the sand, but he was able to earn two to three times the amount he earned… If Yu Dashan could read, he would surely have the feeling, ‘there’s always someone better than you.’

Yu Hai, who didn’t know that he was envied and hated by his older brother, was currently anxiously discussing some matters with his family. They were discussing whether or not he should give the job of purchasing seafood to someone else.

Fang Zizhen patted Yu Hai’s shoulder. Using a loud and clear voice, he said, “Why are you hesitating? If you want to do it, then do it. If you don’t want to do it, then throw it at someone else. What’s so complicated about that?”

Yu Hai’s mood was currently very complicated. The family only had a lot of the businesses due to his youngest daughter’s effort. He was only a supporting role in all her efforts. He had allowed a child younger than ten to work busily every day for the family’s livelihood. As a father, he felt guilty and distressed.

Through a stroke of luck, Zhenxiu Restaurant gave him an opportunity to increase the income for the family. Even if he was busy, bitter, and tired, he was happy in his heart. However, the three mu of watermelon in the fields were about to ripen. In order to look after the melons, harvest the melons, or sell the melons, he wouldn’t be able to leave the fields. Therefore, he was struggling to decide whether he should continue the job of purchasing seafood or manage all the matters regarding the melon fields.

When Yu Hai heard that, he bitterly smiled and said, “Brother Mingzhe, it’s easy for you to say that, but I earn three taels of silver from that in just a day. In one month, I can earn 100 taels of silver, so how I can just toss it away? However, we need people to tend to the melon fields at home right now...”

Yu Xiaocao finally understood why her father had a worried frown on his face these past few days. She softly laughed and said, “Father, the melon fields and the purchase of seafood won’t clash with each other. I know that you must feel that we need more people to work at home, yet you can’t balance both jobs simultaneously. I have an idea; I don’t know if you will think it’s feasible or not!”

Yu Hai had a whole new level of respect for his youngest daughter after the first half of the year. He never dared to treat her as a child. Yu Hai was full of hope as he said, “Cao’er, tell me what good idea you have.”

Xiaocao organized her speaking points, and, after thinking about it, she said, “Our family’s watermelons are about to ripen, so we really need someone to look after them. Although it’s fine in the morning, the watermelon fields definitely need someone to tend to during the night. I don’t think anyone else is as qualified as you to look after the melons!”

Fang Zizhen smacked his lips, making his existence known, and said, “It’s just looking after melons! I can call Li Li or Wu Yun back to look after the melons, won’t that solve everything?”

Yu Xiaocao smiled sweetly at her godfather and said, “Godfather, both big brothers are already very busy on the dock. How can I trouble them with my family’s personal matters? Besides, it takes more than one or two days to watch after the melons and sell them. Your idea is not going to work!”

Fang Zizhen glared at her and said, “They should be honored to manage personal matters for this old man. In the past, these two new and young recruits were rescued by me from a mass of dead people.”

“Godfather, I know you’re amazing. However, we shouldn’t coerce them to do things in return for your kindness. Even if Brother Li and Brother Wu take the initiative to come here and help me, I still wouldn’t agree!” Yu Xiaocao definitely didn’t want her godfather suffer from other people’s criticism.

Fang Zizhen was also aware of this point, and he felt very touched by her thoughtfulness. It was a blessing to have a daughter like her.

Yu Hai wanted to say something, but he stopped himself. Yu Xiaocao said to her biological father, “I know that my big brother won’t be able to handle the purchasing of seafood by himself.”

Yu Hang opened his mouth, but he unwillingly closed it. What his younger sister said was the truth. He was only eleven to twelve years old. Besides, the problem was that people in the village might not trust him as he also needed to weigh the goods and collect money when it came to purchasing seafood. He would also need to put the collected goods in the correct places. It was definitely not a one-man job.

Yu Xiaocao gave him a soothing glance and continued, “There’s more work than we can deal with, but we can hire someone to help us! It’s not the harvesting season right now, so the villagers have plenty of free time! We can find someone trustworthy to help father do his job. We won’t make him work for free either. If he works for a day, then we’ll pay him a day’s pay.”

“Do you mean you want to hire someone to work for us? However, we’re all villagers, so it might not be appropriate…” Yu Hai felt like hiring someone to help him do his job would make him the same as those wealthy old landlords exploiting poor farmers. It didn’t feel good at all!

“Father, why would it be inappropriate? It’s the same as when we hire people to build our house. Feeding someone for helping you is the same as giving someone wages! Plus, we aren’t making him work for free.” Yu Xiaocao was very puzzled by her father’s reaction.