I don''t have a watch, a cell phone, or an alarm clock, so I wake up based on the estimated time.


    When Da Zhuang drove the donkey cart over, the two brothers had already dragged all the bags out of the ditch.


    The bags were only half-filled and loosely tied to prevent suffocation, so they had more pockets.


    One donkey cart wasn''t enough to hold everything, so Da Zhuang quickly went to the cowshed and pulled another one over. Soon, both carts were full.


    Li He sat in the front to lead the way, while Li Long drove one cart and Da Zhuang drove the other behind him.


    After walking a certain distance, they had to fetch water with a wooden bucket and pour it onto the donkey cart to keep the eels and loaches wet.


    If the canal was far away, they had to run half the way, breathing heavily from exhaustion.


    The moonlight was bright enough, so they didn''t need to light a lantern. I would only turn on the flashlight on particularly bumpy road sections. By the time we reached the provincial capital, it was nearly dawn.


    When we arrived at the aquatic products company, people were already coming and going, rushing to deliver goods to the morning market.


    The donkey carts stopped to the side.


    Li He took out the shovel beside the cart and handed it to Li Long.


    He specifically reminded him, "Make sure to clean up the donkey''s feces and urine and bury them in the green belt."


    Then, he walked straight to the office area from yesterday.


    After just a few steps, someone grabbed his shoulder from behind. He turned around and saw the old man from yesterday.


    He immediately took out a cigarette and said, "Uncle, good morning. Have a cigarette. Is Manager Wang here?"


    The old man tucked the cigarette behind his ear and replied, "The manager won''t be here so early.


    I already told you yesterday.


    Just follow me.


    That donkey cart is yours, right? Have them bring it over."


    Li He quickly waved to Li Long and Da Zhuang, signaling them to follow.


    Inside, there were rows of water tanks filled with freshwater fish like crucian carp and catfish.


    In front of two empty ponds, Li He opened a bag and held it up to the old man.


    "Uncle, look how fat they are. We were very selective."


    The old man didn''t respond but called out, "Bring the scale over and weigh them quickly."


    After weighing, they picked out the dead and smaller ones, weighed them separately, and deducted for moisture.


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    In the end, the weight was 53 pounds less than what they had measured at home.


    Li He didn''t mind. He handed a cigarette to everyone in the group, calling them "big brother" and "big sister" with admiration in his voice, as if he were calling them family.


    After receiving the receipt, he followed the old man to the finance office to collect the payment.


    "Uncle, you really helped us a lot!"


    Pointing to Li Long and Da Zhuang, he added, "This one is my brother, and the other is my cousin. We''ll need your help in the future."


    The three men driving the donkey carts didn''t dare stop for food. After all, donkeys produce a lot of waste, and dealing with it in the city would be a hassle.


    Once they left the city and got onto the highway, they ate some bread they had brought from home and drank all the water in their kettle.


    Li He lay in the back and slept all the way to the country road. The bumpy ride woke him up, and he felt sore all over.


    After returning the donkey cart to the cowshed, he gave Da Zhuang 10 yuan. Da Zhuang hesitated, trying to refuse it.


    Li He insisted, "Take it. It wouldn''t be fair for my brother and me to make money while you work for nothing. Besides, this isn''t just a one-day job. As long as we work, you''ll earn 10 yuan a day."


    According to the market rate, two or three yuan would have been enough.


    But there''s an old saying: ''If you don''t worry about poverty, you''ll worry about fairness.''


    Li He wasn''t about to form a partnership or share profits with Da Zhuang. What he needed most was capital. If he didn''t work hard now, when others caught up, his current savings would be insufficient.


    Da Zhuang was thrilled. A strong laborer like him could earn a maximum of 240 work points a year.


    In Lizhuang, near the Huai River, droughts and floods were common, and the best he could make for one work point was 30 cents.


    His best year so far had only earned him 43 yuan. He did the math—if he earned 10 yuan a day as Li He said, that would be at least 300 yuan a month. It was unimaginable.


    It was the same as when his grandfather used to drive a cart for others. The boss provided the money, and the worker did the labor.


    Li He was paying him generously out of goodwill. Even if it were just one yuan a day, people in Lizhuang would line up for the job.


    Da Zhuang thought about it. Aside from staying up late, the work wasn''t difficult.


    He hurried home to tell his father that he would no longer be doing odd jobs for the production team.


    When Li He got home, he and his siblings counted their earnings. After deducting costs, they had made 232 yuan.


    Li Mei was shocked. "Are you sure that''s right?"


    Their fourth brother muttered, "Third brother and I checked several times. Not a single penny is off."


    Li Mei became anxious about where to hide the money. She didn''t trust leaving it at the head of the bed or in the walls because of rats. Finally, she put it in a can, sealed it, and hid it under Li He''s bed.


    Li He chuckled. "Sister, give Mom 50 yuan. Tell her it''s from the past few days'' work so she can pay off the family''s old debts."


    Li Mei glared at him. "I don''t need you to tell me that. Mom already asked yesterday. She probably didn''t feel comfortable asking you two, so I just told her I made 20 yuan."


    During dinner, Wang Yulan was both happy and worried when she heard they had made fifty yuan in three days. After all, it was still speculation.


    "Will this really be okay?"


    Li He didn''t even wait to finish chewing his chicken bone. He puffed up his cheeks and said nonchalantly, "It''s fine."


    After dinner, the two brothers prepared to go collect more eels. Wang Yulan stopped them.


    "You haven''t slept all night. Take a nap first. Your elder sister and I will collect the eels. It''s not heavy work. Now go wash your feet and rest."


    Li He had to admit, youth had its advantages. Even after staying up, running back and forth for hours, and working tirelessly, he could still hold on. But exhaustion was setting in, and his eyelids grew heavy.


    The brothers went to sleep.


    However, the room was hot, with no fan or electricity.


    Unable to rest, he grabbed a bamboo mat and lay under the tree outside, where the air was much cooler.


    When he woke up, he saw his grandfather weighing bags and his grandmother tying them with cloth.


    The old couple had three sons and one daughter. Li Zhaokun, the eldest, had split from the family and lived at the back of the village.


    The old couple sighed often over their eldest son''s struggles but couldn''t help much without affecting their younger children.


    Li He moved a stool under the tree and handed his grandfather a cigarette.


    "Grandpa, grandma, it''s so hot. Take a break. There are plenty of us working."


    His grandfather smiled, took the cigarette, and lit it himself.


    "I forgot to ask—how did your exam go?"