Lin Xiuqing looked at the things piled up at the door and asked his friends.
After listening to everyone's words, she found out what had just happened in front of the village committee. Because she had to look after the children and prepare meals and tea for the workers, she couldn't leave and didn't go over.
"Those leaders are really good at calculating. They calculate everything for them, clearly."
"That's right, otherwise how could he be a leader while we are just country bumpkins?"
The old lady smiled and said, "It's okay, it's okay, you can earn money slowly, merit is important, Mazu is watching, she will definitely bless our Dongzi to have smooth sailing and make a lot of money safely."
Lin Xiuqing also smiled and said, "Grandma is right. These things can also bring some comfort. When the time comes, we can also ask for a small statue of Mazu to be placed on the boat."
"Yes, yes, yes, this is definitely necessary. Let's take this flag in and hang it up first. It's an honorable thing to do."
With Ye Chengyang's assist, Ye Yaodong was able to get away with the rest of the punishment.
A group of people sat at the door playing cards to pass the time, and the old lady sat nearby listening to the radio.
She also specially took a stool and placed it in the corner facing the workers who were working, and turned up the volume so that everyone could listen while working.
The workers were also very happy. They could listen to the radio while working. There was nothing better than this. Everyone praised Ye Yaodong for being filial and said all kinds of good things, which made the old lady feel very comfortable.
It was almost time for dinner when Ye's father, Ye's mother, and the couples Ye Yaopeng and Ye Yaohua finally came back.
As soon as Ye's mother arrived, she went straight to the bucket of tea at the door, picked up a plastic cup, and filled a large cup of tea before she breathed a sigh of relief.
"It's so hot, in the middle of the day."
Ye Yaodong held the poker in his hand and asked curiously, "Why did you come back only now?"
"Your father and his friends were just watching the fun, but I was working there and was so busy. The villagers were so enthusiastic that they wanted to donate money on the spot. They were so hasty and there was no rules, so it became a mess."
"What should we do then?"
"I discussed this with the elders in the village earlier and decided to put up a sunshade in front of the Mazu Temple this afternoon and start registering donations there tomorrow. The Mazu Temple is not far from the pier, so if we put up a shed there, those leaders who are not out at sea can sit there to rest and see what is happening outside the pier."
“Also, if people from other villages come to donate, they can see that it is indeed initiated and supported by the county leaders, which can motivate everyone and prevent them from thinking that we are cheating them out of their money.”
Ye Yaodong nodded and thought it made sense. It would be better to set up a tent in front of the Mazu Temple to donate money than to the village committee.
"Mom, I didn't expect that after not seeing you for a few days, you look completely different. Your face is rosy and full of energy. You look younger and your speech is different too."
Xiao Xiao also agreed, "Yes, I haven't seen Auntie for a while, and she is completely different from before."
Ah Zheng also smiled and praised, "It looks fashionable now."
"You just realized it now, but I've noticed it a long time ago. Since my mother-in-law joined the Women's Federation, she has become more energetic and her temperament has improved."
After saying that, Ah Guang smiled and gave her some advice, "Mom, curly hair is very popular now. You can go to town and get one. I guarantee you will outdo all the women in the village."
Ye's mother was originally talking to them seriously, but after hearing their praise, she smiled so hard that her mouth couldn't close and she even touched her hair.
"I'm already this old, why do I still curl my hair? I don't want people to laugh at me as an old monster."
"Who dares? You are now an officer of the Women's Federation, and you can decide life and death with just one word."
"That won't do. You can't say that. We're all from the same village." Ye's mother quickly told them to stop talking.
"Has your wife cooked yet? I'll go and help."
Mother Ye went back into the house with a smile on her face to busy herself.
Ye Yaodong curiously asked the three of them, "How much money are you going to donate?"
Ah Guang thought for a moment and said, "Let's see how much it would cost to donate a small statue of Mazu to be placed on the boat. We will donate that much then."
The other two also echoed, "Yes, we do the same. Please put the small statue of Mazu on the boat to ensure safety."
Ye Yaodong touched his chin and said, "If it's more than 50 yuan, then I, the number one brother on the list, am not worthy of my position."
"What do you mean?"
The three of them were a little confused. What did it mean to be the No. 1 on the list? No. 1 on the merit list
"If you have to donate 100 or 200 yuan to buy a small Mazu statue, but I only donated 50 yuan, and then a bunch of people below donated 100 or 200 yuan, it would not look good!"
"Seems to be."
"Then you can take a look at it when the time comes. If the difference is not too big, just make up the difference. I guess it won't be much, and you probably don't need that little money. If it's much, forget it. Anyway, everyone knows your contribution."
"Yes, the villagers all know that the construction of the Mazu Temple was all your credit. I heard from my mother-in-law that it was you who came up with the idea of asking the county leaders to publish an advertisement to solicit donations."
The three of them finished speaking one by one. After hearing what A Guang said, Xiao Xiao and A Zheng were surprised again.
"Is this true? When did Dongzi become so smart?"
"My brain has always been better than yours."
"Tsk~"
"Give me money~50K!"
"My last three tickets are also 50K. Yeah, give me the money!" After saying that, Ye Yaodong high-fived A Guang and the other guy.
They played fifty K against each other.
"Sai Linmu, you two are shameless and you didn't report the number of cards left!" Ah Zheng widened his eyes and threw the cards on the table to accuse Ye Yaodong and Ah Guang.
"We were having a great time chatting, weren't we? I forgot, hurry up and give me the money."
"I just deliberately changed the subject to divert our attention."
Ah Guang slapped the table twice with a smile and urged: "Admit defeat and pay quickly. I have to go home to eat. My wife won't enjoy her meal without me."
"Fuck you, you're acting like everyone has a wife," Ah Zheng cursed as he went outside to count the money, "You've lost everything and it was fine, why change the name... It's so infuriating..."
“Hehe~”
Ah Guang raised his chin and snorted, but he heard them making fun of him.
"Shunzi!"
"Crush to death!"
"Shunzi!"
"Crush to death!"
"Get lost, you guys can't afford to fight three of you, and you're crushing me to death, I'm crushing you, go home and eat."
The three men felt too hot while playing cards, so they took off their clothes and played shirtless. Now one of them stood up, threw a piece of clothing over his shoulder and left.
Ye Yaodong put away the poker cards, rolled them up with a rubber band, and kept them for use next time.
Seeing that the waves were not that big at night, they went out to sea as usual. God had also arranged the weather just right, and as the matter was settled, they were allowed to go out to sea immediately.
When they came back in the evening of the next day, they saw a tent set up in front of the Mazu Temple with several tables set up in front of it, which looked quite decent.
Several cadres from the village committee were sitting there, and several leaders from the county were also sitting there.
Each of them had an enamel cup in front of them, and they would take a sip of tea from time to time. They looked very leisurely. The sun didn't shine on them, and they could feel the sea breeze. It was much more comfortable than sitting in the village committee.
There were also a few villagers gathered around the table. They had just returned from the sea and were curious about what was happening.
"Let me see who donated money?"
"I can't read a few characters. Can you understand it?"
“I can’t read the names, but I can look at the numbers to see how much money everyone donated.”
"After donating the money, can you come and donate again?" Lan
Secretary Chen nodded: "Of course, I can't refund it to you. If you want to donate more, then I can definitely give you a refund."
After Ye Yaodong and his friends finished selling their goods, they came over with a cart and said, "Make way, let us see..."
"Secretary Chen, how much money do we need to donate to buy a small statue of Mazu?" Xiaoxiao asked curiously.
"We discussed it and decided to allow everyone to buy a small statue of Mazu if they donated 100 yuan. This is mainly to ensure everyone's safety when sailing. 100 yuan is equivalent to two months' wages for an average worker, and the villagers can afford it."
"Of course, in order to accumulate more merit, if you want to donate more, that's fine too. The more you donate, the more merit you will gain."
The fishermen who had just returned from boating nearby grumbled a few times and nodded, also thinking that 100 yuan was not a lot.
Although fishermen have a high-risk occupation, their income is much higher than that of ordinary workers, mainly because they can go out to sea more often if the weather is good.
If there is no good weather to go out to sea, it will be useless and they will all rely on luck.
But Ye Yaodong just looked at the merit book and found that no one had donated 100 yuan. He was the only name that was at the top with 50 yuan written on it. There were a long list of names that only donated a few yuan, and the largest amount was only ten yuan, and there were only a few of them.
He also saw familiar names, the old lady's name was also on the list. Among the limited ten-dollar donations, hers was one of them.
He pointed to the merit book and said, "Are these all donations from the elderly in the village?"
The names all seem familiar; I've heard people calling them in the village occasionally.
"Yes, you young and strong people all go out to sea at night, or go to work early in the morning. Today, some elderly people in the village took the lead in donating money. Although they are old and don't go out to sea, they have worshipped Mazu all their lives and want to do their part to accumulate merit."
"Oh."
Secretary Chen looked at the others and said, "It's not time to get off work yet. Those of you who are supposed to donate should go back and get the money to donate, so that you don't have to go out to sea at night and miss the trip again."
"People in our village should be more active and donate more. The amount on the list should be higher, so that people from other villages can come and look at the donation book, which will look good."
Everyone nodded.
Ye Yaodong asked again: "Have you put the notice in the county newspaper? Also, have you calculated the date for the construction to begin?"
"Yes, I calculated it early in the morning. After I figured out the date, I went to the county newspaper to place the advertisement. A leader came forward and said that I could jump the queue and be published in the latest issue, in the most eye-catching position."
Other village cadres added: "The construction will start in half a month, on the ninth day of the sixth lunar month, which is July 18th in the Gregorian calendar. We have exactly half a month to raise money. By then, we can produce a corresponding design based on the funds raised and start construction. We can also raise money while construction is underway, and any surplus can be used for later maintenance."
"That's good."
"So, fellow villagers, should we donate what we should donate in the next two days? Let's make the merit book look better. Then when people from surrounding villages come to donate, they can see how active our village is."
The village official next door also echoed, "Today, many people from the neighboring villages came to watch after hearing about it. Everyone should set an example for our village."
"Building the Mazu temple was originally what the villagers in our village wanted. It doesn't matter whether you donate early or late. The more effort you put in, the more merit you will gain."
"Okay, okay."
The men, who had just returned from the sea, nodded.
"Let's go back and discuss how much to donate..."
"If it's too late, let the women in the family come over tomorrow to donate..."