Chapter 24: Setting His Sights on a Deserted Island

At this moment, Lin Qingxiang emerged from the house. Lin Zhi immediately targeted him, "Lin Qingxiang, that land belongs to our family. If it's going to be farmed, it should be by us. Give that land back to me right now!"

Lin Qingxiang pulled out a signed document, looking at him with a mocking smile. "Sure! I have a written agreement with Lin Yi in black and white; that land is mine for the year. I have no objection to you renting it, but you'll have to pay."

"Pay? You must be crazy for money!" Li Lian, standing behind Lin Zhi, stretched her neck and shrieked.

Lin Qingxiang was not one to be pushed around. He turned to the village head and said, "Either you handle this, or I'm calling the police. We are in the new era of reform and opening up; it’s the perfect time to make an example of some local ruffians and bullies!"

The village head scrutinized the couple. Seeing that he seemed serious, the two were frightened off.

Lin Qingxiang scoffed, "Cowards! And they wanted to pick a fight with me!"

The village head shook his head helplessly. "They're just the two black sheep of the village, and utterly unreasonable at that. Why bother getting worked up over them?"

Lin Qingxiang curled his lip, not really listening.

In the distance, Li Lian was fuming. She jabbed Lin Zhi hard in the lower back. "Why are you so useless! Those fields clearly belong to your parents. They only have our two grandsons; how could they possibly give the land to an outsider for pennies? Your brother is heartless, and your parents must be turning in their graves!"

"If you want to talk about my brother, then talk about him—why bring my parents into this? If you hadn't stopped me from putting on a show, my brother wouldn't have gone behind our backs to let Lin Qingxiang farm the land!" Lin Zhi was equally furious.

Li Lian became even more incensed. "Blaming me now? What kind of life are we living? Our two sons are about to get married, and we can’t even scrape together the money to build a house. If you had even a shred of competence, I wouldn't have to be so tight-fisted!"

The couple continued to bicker, scolding each other all the way home.

Meanwhile, Lin Qin and Chen Wenjun had already brought Lin Yi to the banks of the Nanxi River.

As the largest river in the region, the Nanxi was the primary source of water for the city and the surrounding counties. In the 1980s, many boat people still lived on the river, making a living primarily by transporting passengers and cargo, with fishing as a secondary pursuit.

Flowing downstream from the Nanxi brought one to Nanhai, home to large passenger and freight terminals. In the early days of the economic boom in the 80s, most goods—seafood, timber, tea, and even contraband—were transported by water.

Then there was the ancient practice of log rafting, where boatmen risked their lives traversing rapids and dangerous shallows. A single trip could earn them dozens of yuan. If things went smoothly, it was fine, but if an accident occurred, nine times out of ten, it meant losing one's life to the water.

In his younger years, Chen Wenjun, like other boat people, had braved these dangers. That was before Chen Ping'an was born, when life felt full of hope.

Ever since Chen Ping'an was born, a shadow had hung over the family. Before the child was even a year old, Chen Wenjun’s first wife had run off, taking her entire family with her to parts unknown.

He feared that if anything happened to him, the child would have no hope of survival, so he dared not take those risks anymore.

Moreover, shipping cargo required strict schedules. When Chen Ping'an was little, he was sick every other day, making it impossible for Chen to take on freight jobs for fear of missing deadlines and facing penalties. He had to rely solely on fishing to make ends meet.

Throughout the journey, Chen Wenjun explained his situation to Lin Yi.

Lin Yi listened with a sigh, observing Chen Wenjun's five-canopy boat.

Chen Wenjun helped Lin Yi off first, then quickly hopped onto the boat to open the door.

In the cabin, Chen Ping'an didn't call out for his father with his usual excitement. It wasn't until he heard Liu Yaya's crisp voice calling, "Brother Ping'an," that his eyes lit up.

He scrambled out in excitement, and upon seeing Liu Yaya standing on the bank, he offered a shy, innocent smile.

When he met Lin Qin's gentle, loving gaze, he retreated in shyness, whispering to Liu Yaya, "Yaya, come here, the little turtle is here."

"Okay!" Liu Yaya couldn't wait to get on board.

Chen Wenjun set up the gangplank, lifted Liu Yaya onto the boat, and then returned to help Lin Qin move Lin Yi.

Lin Yi was filled with curiosity about everything on the boat. He found it hard to believe that the rear cabin could house an entire family.

It was still daytime, not yet time to sleep, so Chen Wenjun settled Lin Yi in and opened the bamboo canopy so he could look at the scenery on the Nanxi.

He smiled and said, "Uncle, you can just rest on the boat from now on. Starting today, I'll go set the fish traps. My luck with fishing has been pretty good lately, and I've saved some money. Give me a year or two, and I’ll definitely save enough to buy a plot of land and build a house."

Lin Yi nodded with satisfaction. Regardless of whether Chen Wenjun could actually do it, at least he had the courage to make such a promise, which brought comfort to Lin Yi.

Seeing Lin Yi’s skeptical expression, Chen Wenjun knew he didn't believe him. "Come! I'll row you all to see a place."

"Where to? The sun is about to set," Lin Qin asked, sitting cross-legged on the floor, feeling surprisingly at peace as she glanced occasionally at the two children playing with the small turtle.

Chen Wenjun didn't beat around the bush. He pointed to a small island in the distance and whispered, "Remember when you heard about people buying these deserted islands to raise geese? I want to buy that island and build a house there."

Lin Qin was shocked; she stretched her neck to look, her hand reaching out beyond the side of the boat. "You mean that one?"

"Exactly!" Chen Wenjun gestured for Lin Qin to join him outside so they could talk.

Lin Qin told Lin Yi to watch the children and went out with Chen Wenjun.

Outside, the view was much broader, and from there, Lin Qin could roughly make out the shape of the deserted island.

There were many such islands on the Nanxi, appearing every few miles. They varied in size, and this one looked to be over two hundred mu. Surrounded by water on all sides, it was a hilly landscape of crystalline granite, with an elevation of perhaps a little over a hundred meters—one could take it all in at a glance.

Lin Qin’s brow furrowed. "This island doesn't even have a place to dock. Why would you want to buy it?"

"Don't be so quick to judge! I'll take you over to see it, and you'll understand." Chen Wenjun was excited and began rowing without another word.

Lin Qin simply sat down cross-legged, letting the river breeze blow over her, savoring the momentary tranquility.

The five-canopy boat was quite fast. While Lin Qin was lost in thought, they approached the island and began circling it, until suddenly, a gap appeared before her eyes. She jumped up in excitement.

Chen Wenjun moved to her side, triumphantly pointing at the gap, which was concealed by a large banyan tree.

"I've already climbed in to take a look. Don't be fooled by the hills surrounding it; the open space in the middle is actually quite large. There are dozens of mu that can be reclaimed for farming. It's overgrown with weeds, and there might be snakes or biting ants, so clearing it will be a bit of a hassle, but those are minor issues."

"The main reason I have my eye on this place is that this is the only spot on the whole island where one can land. Everywhere else, boats can't get close because of the reefs, and even if you did get close, you couldn't climb up."

"Once we buy the island, we can prune this big banyan tree and use stones from the hillside to seal this gap, turning it into a gate. That way, our safety will be guaranteed."