Chapter 123: Try Something New (II)
What was more, even if it didn’t work out, she could always sell these things to a medicinal hall; they would certainly buy these earthworms. Han Ruochen swallowed hard and then started to shovel the sand with the help of a shovel. Tong Zhaodi, beside her, looked at the earthworms wriggling in the sand and questioned, with her eyes wide, "Sister Chen, is this ...are these earthworms?"
Everyone knew that as long as they collected a thousand earthworms and slit them open to wash the dirt away, they could sell them for ten to twenty yuan per jin after drying to the medicinal hall. The price was not high compared to the things that they had found, but they were nice to have as pocket money.
"Try to collect as many as possible but leave a few behind," said Han Ruochen as she started cleaning the sand and pouring a bunch of earthworms into her bucket. She was worried that if they cleared out the area, then they might end up angering the sea god.
Tong Zhaodi also knew this principle. She agreed with Han Ruochen and started digging the sand to collect the earthworms in her bucket. While the woman was picking up the earthworms, Han Ruochen poured a few earthworms into the universal bait box that she had received from the system.
Once she was done, she patted her hands and then straightened up. Just in time, too, as the sound of footsteps echoed behind her. She turned and saw the old man walking toward her with a bucket in his hand. He was grinning foolishly and looked quite smug. When he saw Han Ruochen, his smug smile turned even smugger.
Seeing Old Master Chen, Han Ruochen hurriedly hid the galvanised steel box that was the size of a tool chest in her inventory. Though she was quick, Old Master Chen still noticed the old brass pressure gauge, which resembled something that belonged to the submarine. Old Master Chen frowned but did not think too much. The sea was like a mystery. Most probably, Han Ruochen found something in the waters.
"Ruochen! Are you collecting earthworms? Ah, it seems like your good luck has run out." Old Master Chen remarked with a jolly voice. "Look at this, I caught a blue crab. Though it’s nothing good, it can still be sold for fifteen yuan, as for earthworms, I am afraid that you can only sell them to the medicinal hall."
Han Ruochen looked at the blue crab in the hands of the old man and calmly asked, "Where did you find it?" If there was one blue crab, then there was a good chance that there were more of them hiding in that spot.
"Right over there," Old Master Chen pointed to the spot where he had found the blue crab and then continued, "But there is no point in going there. I have already searched through the entire space; there was only one blue crab."
Han Ruochen, however, didn’t seem like she had heard anything. She walked over and looked around the space. Seeing this, old master Chen simply shook his head. He thought that Han Ruochen was unwilling to give up, but what was the point? He had already snatched the goods first. As a result, he saw Han Ruochen catching a large blue crab with her pliers and putting it in her bucket.
"Where did you find this one?" He had looked around the entire space and didn’t see anything. Old Master Chen looked at the blue crab with an envious gaze. This one was bigger than his own; he couldn’t help but turn green with envy. This was too much. For the first time in a while, he thought that he had finally shown his skills in front of these young ones, but he was once again proven wrong.
"Maybe you missed it in your hurry, Uncle Chen," replied Han Ruochen, but her attention was on the jagged white pulse on the display of her screen. She noticed that just like before, it was not a school of fish, but it was a solid, stationary mass, tucked deep inside a submerged crevice right beside her.
The scanning system gave a low, rhythmic hum and then:
Density: High.
Biological Signature: Crustacean.
Han Ruochen waded into the freezing knee-deep water and stretched out the pliers inside. She found something inside the dark cavity and knew at once that it was not a rock but a serrated armour. Han Ruochen grunted and pulled the monster out of the deep-seated cavity. As soon as she pulled out the thing, she turned her flashlight on the monster now lying on the ground.
Just one look, and Han Ruochen gasped.
Most of the crabs had a narrow, pointed apron on their belly. But this one was wide, rounded and bulging; it was an unmistakable sign of a female. But it was not just wide; it was wide to the point of bursting. Through the gaps in her armour, Han Ruochen could see deep, fiery vermillion-orange ores that glowed like hot coals.
There was more roe than meat inside this crab.
Han Ruochen knew that a five-jin female bursting with roe was nothing less than a gift from the heavens. Anyone in the county would be willing to pay a king’s ransom to buy this king crab. After all, many of the officials still believed that eating this yellow roe of the female crab would grant them longevity and power.
As the crab started to click her massive claws, Han Ruochen saw a drop of the thick, orange roe leak from the hinge of her leg. It was such a rich amount that it looked like yolk. Han Ruochen could no longer see a crab on the ground; she was seeing a ten-thousand-yuan bill thrashing on the sand.
She took out the thick hemp twine and started to tie the crab. She had to tie her perfectly, or else if she snapped her leg or cracked her shell, the pressure would make the roe leak out, and then the value of this crab would disappear. But after she was done tying the crab, another trouble popped up, she had to get it to the county or else if this thing died, the roe would turn bitter.
