After Reincarnating as the Dragon King, I Made a Fortune with Seafood – CH42

Chapter 42: Fruit Trees

They had caught the foreign poachers, and everyone was excited.

On the return trip, the atmosphere on the entire ship was different. Even the crew members relaxed quite a bit.

After Lu Ao caught up on sleep, he came out and went to the dining hall for food. As soon as he entered, he saw Xiang Xingchang and the others drinking and singing.

“Lu Ao’s here?”

Someone called out, and everyone stood up one after another, trying to pull him over for a drink.

“Come, come, come. Have a drink. Lu Ao, you’re the great contributor this time. We caught them thanks to you.”

“Exactly, exactly. I’ll toast you. You’re amazing.”

Lu Ao went over and drank a cup, then sat down and began eating. “Why don’t I see them?”

“See who?” Xiang Xingchang quickly understood. “The warship already took the criminal suspects back first. The suspects’ ship was taken back too. Ours is a civilian ship, so it’s slower. Once we’re back on land, we just need to give a supplementary statement.”

Lu Ao nodded.

“Hey, what happened last night?” Xiang Xingchang asked excitedly. “Weren’t they trying to run away in the middle of the night? Why did fog suddenly roll in? What happened in between? I heard those bastards even had guns?”

“I don’t know either. Maybe the weather was bad.” Lu Ao swallowed a large mouthful of rice and said, “Isn’t the weather like this now? It’s not that strange for fog to rise before dawn.”

“That’s not strange? When the military police arrived this morning, there was clear sky for miles behind us. Only those foreigners’ ship was locked in thick fog. Calling that a weather phenomenon doesn’t really make sense.”

“Then I don’t know.”

Lu Ao’s mouth was sealed tight. Xiang Xingchang and the others tried beating around the bush for a long while but could not pry out any gossip, so they finally had to give up. They drank while watching Lu Ao eat.

The food on the table was almost finished, and Xiang Xingchang even paid out of his own pocket to ask the kitchen for a few more good dishes. The big boss who had chartered the ship had fallen, so the kitchen was no longer providing unlimited food.

Lu Ao was not polite with him either. He lifted his chopsticks and continued eating.

Just as he was eating with relish, Xiang Xingchang held a cigarette between his fingers, bumped his shoulder against Lu Ao’s, and asked with a meaningful smile, “Lu Ao, we count as comrades who’ve been through hardship together now, right?”

“Hm?” Lu Ao looked up, not understanding why he had suddenly become so refined. “What is it?”

“Ahem. Just say whether we count or not.”

“We do.”

“If we’re on the same side, then this is easy.” Xiang Xingchang was extremely pleased. “Here’s the thing. We have a marine protection volunteer association, and the activity center is in Yandong. Do you want to join and have some fun with us?”

“You run it?”

“Yes, I’m the president.” Xiang Xingchang said, “Our usual work is mostly helping clean up trash on beaches and underwater, reporting illegal aquaculture and illegal fishing, and promoting marine protection to the public. The workload isn’t heavy, and we don’t require team members to attend a certain number of events. You can come whenever you’re free. It’s very relaxed.”

“So I just join directly?”

“Yes, there aren’t any requirements. Just fill in your information, and we’ll enter it. Then we’ll add you to the group. If there are any activities, we’ll notify everyone there. If you ever need help with something, you can also call out in the group.” Xiang Xingchang said, “Just treat it as making a few more friends and having some fun together.”

“Then I’ll join.”

“Good brother, I knew you would! Hahahaha. Once we reach shore and have signal, you can fill out a form, and we’ll pull you into the group.”

Xiang Xingchang stood up and called the other team members, saying happily, “Come, come, come. Let’s clink glasses and celebrate our volunteer protection association gaining another fierce general.”

Most of them came over enthusiastically to clink glasses and welcome Lu Ao into the association.

The fishing boat they were on moved fairly fast. They set out in the morning and arrived at the port in Qianming waters a little after four in the afternoon.

People from the Qianyong Maritime Navigation Public Security Bureau were already waiting onshore. As soon as they disembarked, they were invited to the bureau to cooperate with the investigation.

Everyone was separated and taken into different rooms for questioning.

The two officers who questioned Lu Ao were not very familiar. They were very polite to him and did not dig deeply into many doubtful points. They only made a record.

In just half an hour, Lu Ao finished cooperating with the questioning. After signing, he went straight out.

The moment he came out, he saw Song Zhou sitting on the waiting chair opposite.

The bureau’s simple metal waiting chair instantly seemed high-end with him sitting there.

Lu Ao’s heart strangely calmed down.

Lu Ao walked over, and Song Zhou stood up. “Let’s go. We’ll go home first.”

“Okay.” Lu Ao carried his luggage and walked side by side with him. “Are you off work?”

“I’m off work. I came to pick you up.” Song Zhou asked, “Should we eat out or go back to eat?”

“Eat out.” Lu Ao said, “Since we finally came to Qianyong, let’s go eat at the food stall. After staying on the ship for so long, I want something tasty.”

Song Zhou agreed with a smile, “My treat. The boss was arrested, so your wages this time probably went down the drain, didn’t they?”

“I don’t know.” At the mention of this, Lu Ao felt rather depressed. “We’ll see. Maybe after the police close the case, they’ll allocate part of the confiscated assets to us?”

Song Zhou said leisurely, “That probably won’t happen. A fine is a fine. They won’t use it to pay your wages.”

“Then we’ll ask them for it after they get out?” Lu Ao felt tired. “I joined Xiang Xingchang’s volunteer protection association. We’ll probably keep in contact, so I’ll see what they say. I really don’t want to worry about this right now.”

Song Zhou pinched the back of his neck. “Then let’s go eat first.”

The food at that stall was as good as ever.

After Lu Ao ate more than ten dishes, his stomach was full, and his mood improved a lot.

He suddenly remembered something. “Just now the police said they’d help me apply for a Qianyong Outstanding Youth slot. If it gets approved, there’s a five-thousand-yuan bonus.”

“So impressive?”

“More or less.” Lu Ao yawned. “I don’t know what the title of ‘Outstanding Youth’ is useful for. Since they’re giving it, I’ll accept it. I’ll probably deal with the police quite a lot in the future. Having this title might make things easier. At least they won’t suspect me as much?”

“Why would they suspect a good citizen like you?”

“There are just some things that can’t be explained. I feel like there were quite a few loopholes in what happened yesterday too, but they didn’t mention a word. I don’t know what’s going on.”

“That?” Song Zhou turned to look at him, eyes curving. “I said hello to their leader’s leader. They’ve probably filed a record on you. In the future, they won’t dig deeply into the unreasonable things about you.”

“That powerful?” Lu Ao suddenly reacted. “Do they all know I’m a dragon?”

“Not that. They only know you aren’t an ordinary human. Their leader’s leader also knows I’m behind you.”

Lu Ao’s reaction was beyond Song Zhou’s expectations. “No wonder everything went so smoothly today. Having someone behind me feels really good.”

Song Zhou’s eyes curved again.

As they spoke, Lu Ao dragged his luggage and followed Song Zhou into a quiet alley with no surveillance cameras.

Song Zhou gently held Lu Ao’s wrist. Their figures faded, and in the next second, they returned to the courtyard of Lu Ao’s home.

Looking at the familiar place, Lu Ao sat down heavily on the reclining chair. “I’m finally back.”

“If you’re tired, rest properly at home for a while.”

“Okay. I reckon the fish in the sea outside the village should have increased again. I’ll spend the next few days fishing peacefully.” Lu Ao took out his phone. “I’ll tell Brother Zhang and the others first.”

Lin Manzhang and the others had not heard anything. They were only surprised that he had returned so soon.

Lu Ao did not say much either. He simply reported that he was safe in the WeChat group and then went offline.

That night, Lu Ao slept very well at home. He slept all the way until after nine the next morning before getting up.

The moment he woke, he heard the geese honking in the goose pen next door. Their volume was no weaker than dogs barking.

Lu Ao could not even be bothered to eat breakfast. Rubbing his aching temples, he went over to check. Every goose had stretched its head through the fence, necks extended long, honking at the open space. When they saw Lu Ao, they honked even more fiercely, their voices rumbling like thunder.

Lu Ao poked his head in and saw that their food and water basins were already empty. No wonder they were honking so fiercely.

He went back to get old rice and water, then cracked a few eggs into the rice, mixed it evenly, and stepped back to let the geese eat.

The leader of the flock, Sesame Ball, charged ahead first. That gray fluffball shot over with its fuzzy backside sticking up and plunged its head into the trough.

Lu Ao reached out and touched its body. It had grown quite a bit and already felt very solid to the touch.

Sesame Ball honked, and the flock waiting behind hurried over, all plunging into the trough and eating noisily.

For a while, Lu Ao’s ears were filled with the sound of goose beaks pecking at food.

Lu Ao stared at them, silently calculating how many more days it would be until he could eat goose.

The flock seemed to sense his gaze and shifted uneasily to the side.

Lu Ao ignored them. After feeding the geese and cleaning the pen, he washed his hands, went home to change clothes, and called Lin Qiyan.

“Lu Ao?” Lin Qiyan was extremely happy. “Why are you looking for me?”

“Are you free? Take me to town. I need to buy supplies.”

“I am. Wait a bit, I’ll come find you right away.”

Not long after Lu Ao hung up, Lin Qiyan really did ride over on his motorcycle. The moment he saw Lu Ao, he planted both feet on the ground and asked curiously, “Where’s your three-wheeler?”

“I left it at Brother Dawu’s place last time.”

“No wonder.” Lin Qiyan said, “You’re going to town to buy groceries, right? Have you had breakfast?”

“Not yet.”

“Hey, then let’s go, let’s go. Hurry.”

Lin Qiyan carried Lu Ao straight to a breakfast shop in town.

Soy milk, fried dough sticks, buns, seafood congee—Lu Ao ordered a tableful.

Their seafood congee was especially delicious. The seafood had been bought by the owner at the dock early that morning, and when it went into the pot, the ingredients were still fresh and alive.

After the customers placed their orders, the owner would take out the ingredients, clean them, place them at the bottom of a bowl, then pour in boiling-hot congee that had been simmered until soft and silky. The seafood would be cooked through instantly. Add a handful of chopped scallions, adjust the seasoning, and it was ready to eat.

This kind of freshly cooked seafood congee was sweet, savory, and mellow. Having a bowl first thing in the morning was the most comforting thing.

Lin Qiyan’s lips turned red from the heat, but he still blew on it while slurping it down.

Lu Ao was much faster than him. Basket after basket of buns and fried dough sticks disappeared into his stomach, while the seafood congee merely filled the gaps.

The two of them spent sixty-nine yuan on breakfast, of which sixty-four yuan was eaten by Lu Ao.

After breakfast, Lin Qiyan carried Lu Ao to Lin Dawu’s place.

Lin Dawu’s family shop had long since opened for business.

Today was not a market day, so there were relatively few customers. Lin Dawu was sitting behind the counter. As soon as he saw Lu Ao, his eyes lit up. “Hey, Lu Ao, perfect timing! You came just in time!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Didn’t you say before that you wanted to plant fruit trees? I have a friend whose family ran into some trouble. They want to sell fruit trees, so I wanted to ask if you want them.” Lin Dawu said, “They’re all old trees, and the prices are cheap. Quite a few people are eyeing them. I couldn’t get through to your phone these past two days, and I was nearly dying of anxiety.”

Lu Ao said, “I was still out at sea these past two days. What kind of fruit trees?”

“Seems like waxberries, loquats, and things like that. Wait, if you’re interested, I’ll ask again. I don’t know if his family’s trees have been sold yet.”

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