Chapter 135: Eyeing her Fortune
Han Ruochen did not answer. She simply walked past the woman and went to the water vat to get some fresh water to add to the icebox. She did not have much water inside the ice box as the golden moray had been thrashing wildly, causing the water to splash out of the holes of the aerated box.
She opened the lid of the box to pour the water, but as soon as she opened the box, Meng Yunhan came rushing. She wanted to mock Han Ruochen for trying to act all mysterious for something cheap. But as soon as she saw the content inside the box, she couldn’t even bring herself to say a single harsh word because inside lay the golden moray eel. Its scales caught the morning sun like a rope of thick golden coins, reflecting the sunlight as if it were some sort of burning amber. And next to it were the blue-spotted abalones that pulsed with neon radiance that looked way too expensive.
"A golden moray," she whispered, her eyes turning wide. Then the shock turned into suspicion as she raised her head and looked at Han Ruochen. She asked doubtfully, "Where did you steal this thing? Han Ruochen, I know that we are in a terrible situation, but you should not steal from a government boat. I am telling you that it can bring trouble to our door!"
"I caught it," said Han Ruochen flatly. She knew that Meng Yunhan would rather believe a dog than believe her words because she could not see her doing well. "There is no way I could have stolen it from the government boat. Is that not right, brother Yong?"
Han Yong nodded. Now he was regretting letting Zhai Heng leave with the members of the Zhai family. The two of them were no match when it came to their mother and her stubborn attitude. If Zhai Heng were with them, then maybe his mother would have believed the two of them.
"You are lying!" spat Meng Yunhan. "You want me to believe that you have caught this...this golden moray. You don’t even have a boat! How can you catch this thing on the shore? Oh, I understand now. Ziyan got a job in the army, and you couldn’t withstand the fact that she was now above you. So you stole this thing from someone. You damn wretched girl. You are really a curse to this family."
"What happened now?" Han Ziyan stepped out. She was getting ready to go to her job when she heard her mother yelling and hissing. She stepped out of the house and saw Han Ruochen standing with a box. Though she was not someone who went out of the house to the sea, even Han Ziyan knew the importance of finding a golden moray eel. Thus, when she saw the golden treasure inside the aerated box, her mouth dropped open, and she couldn’t help but feel envious. This thing was worth twenty-five thousand yuan or maybe more. This much money—it was something that Han Ziyan could never even imagine earning.
When Meng Yunhan saw that Han Ziyan had stepped out, she walked over to her and hissed, her voice a frantic whisper, "Look at this, Ziyan; this is something that Han Ruochen caught. If she sells it to the county, then they will definitely pay her really well. She might even be able to buy a motorboat. Then she will become the big shot of the village. People will look up at her as some kind of lucky sea goddess and no one will care about your job in the army because even if you work in the army, it’s temporary. But her boat will be a big asset!"
Han Ziyan looked at the golden moray eel with her face darkening. Her eyes were filled with envy and greed. "That is worth twenty-five thousand yuan. If she sells it, then she can seriously buy a good motorboat. Maybe even have some savings if the gold is ’pure’."
"That is what I am telling you!" Meng Yunhan said to her precious daughter. She gripped Han Ziyan’s arm tightly, her fingers digging right in. "You need to think of something. We cannot let her sell this thing in the county. That will not only help her buy the boat but also make connections. These things should belong to you!"
Han Ziyan’s eyes flickered with greed. If she could get her hands on the twenty-five thousand yuan, then she could get promoted to an even higher position, and she wouldn’t even have to bother with that man either!
"Mom, do something. If we get this money, then we will be able to make a comeback," said Han Ziyan in a mere whisper.
Han Ruochen heard everything with her great sense of hearing; she scoffed and closed the lid of the aerated box. Her mother and Han Ziyan were dreaming if they thought that they could take this money from her. If not for the fact that her uncle had gone to deliver to the state-run restaurant and her aunt and grandma were not at home, she would have never brought the golden moray eel home.
When Meng Yunhan saw that Han Ruochen had closed the lid of the aerated box, she knew that the woman was about to leave and raised her voice, "Don’t touch that thing! This is all because of Ziyan’s luck; you are such an unlucky person, how can you even catch such a thing? It must be because of Ziyan’s luck that we got this. You give that box to Ziyan now. She has the connections now; she will sell this thing properly. You will only get cheated because you are such a fool."
Han Ziyan was also emboldened by the words of her mother. With her mother backing her and calling her a little lucky charm, she said to Han Ruochen, "Sister, Mom is right. I am now working in the army canteen and can sell this thing for a pretty good sum. I will also buy some winter coats for mother, and then we can keep the rest of the money in the family savings."
