HCB Chapter 290 Snake-skin Whip
Chapter 290 Snake-skin Whip
A gust of sea breeze swept in, and the fishy smell of sea snakes hit Xu Yiyi's nose.
Xu Pinghai and A Si both put on gloves and boots soaked in neem juice and moved very quickly.
"One by one, the snake gallbladder must be taken from a living snake."
Xu Pinghai squatted on the riverbed, his short knife deftly slicing open the belly of a golden ring snake.
With a gentle squeeze, the snake gall bladder slid out, its vibrant green color resembling jade.
Before long, a thin layer of snake gallbladders was spread on the wooden bucket.
Grandpa was leisurely sitting by the river, fishing.
Aunt Si used her rough fingers to manipulate the snakeskin with great skill. She made a slight cut along the snake's neck with the blade and then pulled it off.
The entire snakeskin slipped off as easily as taking off socks, revealing only the pinkish-white snake flesh.
Asi couldn't help but exclaim, "You're quite lucky. You caught so many sea snakes on your first try."
Xu Yiyi still has some luck.
"If you don't need that much snakeskin, dry it and sell it to the pharmacy later."
Ah Si squinted as he placed the torn snakeskin onto the sieve, knowing it would need to be washed before drying.
"I heard that the men in wealthy families use it to make whips. They can whip people without drawing blood, but the pain is excruciating."
Xu Yiyi's eyes lit up when she heard this, and she turned her gaze to Xu Pinghai.
"Uncle Pinghai, do you know how to make this whip?"
She had always wanted a handy weapon, and the dagger left behind by Xu Yinli was quite useful.
However, the whip is relatively long, so its attack range is wider, allowing her to launch attacks from a relatively safe distance.
After all, her rudimentary skills are no match for even a little kid like Sihai.
"If you asked me to teach you how to fish, I could teach you this, right?"
Xu Pinghai smiled and shook his head: "I don't have that ability, Uncle Pinghai."
As they spoke, the two men bent down to deal with the last few snakes.
Xu Yiyi got her hands directly on the snake blood, which was sticky and fishy.
Thinking about how this thing will be delivered to the restaurant later, Lao Lu will probably be laughing his head off.
……
After quickly dealing with the sea snakes...
By the time the small boat entered the town, the sun was already an inch higher in the sky.
As Xu Yiyi held the lottery ticket, she could see from afar that there were at least twice as many ships as usual at the dock.
Fishing boats, cargo ships, and even a few government transport boats could be seen, all moored haphazardly along the shore.
"Sister Yi-yi!"
Xu Anyang was collecting his catch at the dock when he glanced up and spotted a familiar fishing boat.
Is something big going to happen soon?
Xu Yiyi frowned, somewhat puzzled.
"Sister Yi, I knew you'd be back early from this voyage."
Xu Anyang stepped forward and tied the rope that Xu Yiyi had thrown up to the shore, and the small boat came to a steady stop.
As he was saying this, Xu Anyang had already carried up two large buckets of snake blood and some snake meat.
Xu Yiyi observed, her gaze sweeping across the dock, noticing many unfamiliar faces squatting on the shore, munching on dry rations, their faces pale, with tired shadows hanging over their eyes.
Further afield, Zhong Congyun, accompanied by two constables carrying knives, inspected each boat one by one.
"Something happened at the pearl farm in the north. I heard it was completely destroyed. Everyone says it's because the Dragon King was angry. A lot of fish in the surrounding waters died, and many people are crowding into our town."
Xu Anyang lowered his voice, his eyes shining frighteningly.
The pearl farm to the north belongs to wealthy merchants in the county town; it's quite far from Ping'an Town.
The volcanic eruption must have occurred not far from there, and fortunately, it did not endanger this area.
"This morning someone pulled some strange rocks from the sea. They were dark and crumbled at the slightest touch. Everyone says they're treasures thrown down by the Dragon King..."
Xu Anyang spoke with great interest, looking somewhat eager to try.
"Everyone says it's because the Dragon King is angry, so how could he possibly throw out treasures for people to pick up?"
Xu Yiyi said it casually.
Xu Anyang thought it made sense.
"Then I guess this strange rock is definitely not a treasure. It might just be the Dragon King's boogers."
He has a vivid imagination; it's either boogers or some other dirty thing.
I lost interest in that treasure.
Xu Yiyi picked out a lot of fish at the dock, as a large number of fishing boats returned to port this morning.
All kinds of fish are available.
They were all her uncles and elders in the clan, and they gave her the greatest preferential treatment.
"Yiyi, you go back first. I'll take the fish to the restaurant after I'm done processing it."
The uncle in the clan waved his hand and continued working.
Xu Yiyi and Xu Anyang pushed the cart, swaying all the way back to the back door of the restaurant.
"I think business will be very good today. We haven't even opened this morning, and quite a few people have already come knocking on the door."
Xu Anyang felt it was a great pity.
After all, the restaurant is not like the breakfast stalls that used to be set up on the docks, and with Xu Yiyi not around, they missed out on a lot of business.
Wow! So many sea snakes!
Old Lu was watching Sihai practice martial arts when he suddenly smelled a strong fishy odor.
Turning my head, I saw two large buckets of snake blood and several baskets of pinkish-white snake meat.
"This is really good stuff!"
Old Lu walked over excitedly. The snake blood and snake meat were still there, but the snake gall was gone.
"Where's your gallbladder?"
Old Lu's eyebrows twitched as he spoke.
"I need the snake gall; I plan to use it to make medicinal wine."
Xu Yiyi responded, and before she finished speaking, the fish she bought at the dock was delivered to her door.
The four aunties quickly got to work.
"Snake gall wine? That's even better."
When Lao Lu heard about this thing, his eyes lit up instantly.
They smacked their lips, as if they could already taste the flavor.
"Ah Yue, do you know how to make a whip from snakeskin?"
Xu Yiyi squatted at the kitchen door and suddenly thought of the sea snake skin she had taken off.
A-Yue and Si-Hai were sparring, and upon hearing this, she clicked her tongue without even looking up.
"I can crack a whip, but I can't make one."
Si Hai looked at his eldest sister curiously, "Can snakeskin be used to make whips?"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Old Lu, who had gone to the front yard to fetch wine, peeked back with a wrinkled face.
"A snakeskin whip? I can make that!"
The old man rubbed his hands together and came closer, grinning to reveal a mouthful of yellow teeth.
Xu Yiyi's head tilted back instinctively.
"You've learned it again?"
Xu Anyang didn't hold back in his criticism, after all, this old man was supposed to be a worker, but he didn't know how to do this or that and had to be taught everything, without any self-awareness.
Their sudden attentiveness is suspicious.
"Isn't that obvious? Back in the day, when I was wandering the world, I specialized in these kinds of things. It's a skill ingrained in my bones. I can forget about these things even if I forget to eat."
Lao Lu waved his hand and turned his gaze back to Xu Yiyi.
"Once your snake gall wine is ready, give me some. I guarantee I'll make this sea snake whip so oily and shiny that it won't draw blood when it whips you, but will make you scream in pain!"
Xu Yiyi raised her eyebrows slightly.
"You're quite the bargainer."
Old Lu was thick-skinned, and he didn't feel embarrassed at all when he heard Xu Yiyi making sarcastic remarks about him.
He chuckled, his face even more wrinkled.
"This sea snake wine is a good thing. It dispels rheumatism and strengthens bones and muscles. When people get old and their legs and feet become weak, a couple of sips of wine can help them get back on their feet..."
As Lao Lu spoke, he walked with a limp.
"Alright, stop pretending!"
Xu Yiyi interrupted him mercilessly, saying, "Don't let this old man's age fool you."
But she was very quick and efficient. When she first took over the restaurant, she had no intention of taking in this old man.
Who knew that the old man would climb over the wall at night and even help her deal with a group of thieves.
He usually pretends to be unable to walk properly.
But when it really comes down to it, no one can beat him.
After all this time, she still hasn't figured out his ways.
"You'll get your share. You can have the wine, but you'd better make this whip properly."
Upon hearing this, Lao Lu's eyes lit up immediately.
He rubbed his fingers together happily, "Don't worry, I guarantee I'll make one that's even more impressive than the horsewhip in an official's house."
Old Lu saw a lot of good things when he was traveling around.
While others drooled with envy upon seeing him, he was different.
When I see something good, I want to learn how to make it.
Over time, they learned quite a few skills.
This would allow him to work as a blacksmith, and he would do a good job.
Xu Yiyi didn't reply, and just as she was about to go into the kitchen, she remembered something.
"Does this sea serpent whip come from wet or dry snakeskin?"
……
"Of course we'll do it! But there's a trick to drying snakeskin."
Old Lu spoke with an air of profound mystery.
"Your sea snake skin is simply washed and then hung on the eaves to air dry. This kind of sea snake skin is only used for eating, so there's no need to be so particular about it."
As he spoke, Lao Lu put his hands behind his back and walked to the rocking chair to lie down.
"You can't do it like that when making whips. If you want the leather to be tougher and not break so easily, you have to add something."
Hearing the old man say that...
Xu Yiyi wondered if she should go back to the island to get the snakeskin first.
"It's almost lunchtime, I'll go get it for you."
Ah Yue seemed to know what Xu Yiyi was thinking, and took the key from Sihai's neck to leave.
"Sihai is playing with his younger brother."
Xu Yiyi spoke calmly, "Wu Yuan has just woken up from a nap."
Sitting on a bamboo mat, he was playing with a little tiger doll.
This kid is very clever; he won't cause trouble as long as Xu Yiyi is busy.
Sihai stopped in his tracks as he was leaving and ran to his younger brother with small, quick steps.
With a "pop" sound.
Wu Yuan's face was covered in kisses, but the child pushed them away in disgust.
"These two brothers have a really good relationship."
Aunt Zhao washed the tofu fish while watching the two children.
"My two boys are such troublemakers, all they do is fight. This morning they even smashed the bowl over half a bowl of salted fish soup..."
Aunt Zhao kept talking on and on.
Her two children are about the same age as Sihai, and they are at the mischievous age.
"The second brother grabbed the eldest brother's hair and slammed his head against the wall, and the eldest brother retaliated by scratching his face."
Aunt Zhao shook her head helplessly as she spoke.
"You know what, your two boys are never clean-shaven. They're always bruised and battered, with one injury here and another there. People who don't know them would think you beat them up."
Aunt Zhang also thought of what the two children looked like.
"I would like to hit him, but I just can't bring myself to do it."
Aunt Zhao said with disdain, "Those two debt collectors in my house are always fighting. Not only their faces, but their bodies are also covered in bruises."
She was covered in injuries and couldn't bear to fight anymore.
“If you had a daughter, the fight wouldn’t have turned out like this. My daughter, Chao Gu, is the eldest. She’s been helping me take care of my younger brother since she was two years old. She’s managed all four boys in the family perfectly well. How could they possibly fight?”
Aunt Li said she had some experience with this.